Security forces storm Sudan protests, killing 13


The months-long protests in Sudan took a violent turn on Monday, when paramilitary security forces stormed a protest camp in the country's capital, Khartoum, killing 13 in the process. Several more were wounded in the raid, which Al Jazeera reports is ongoing.
The soldiers, who are reportedly heavily armed, allegedly first used tear gas and sound grenades to disperse the protesters before firing live rounds. They reportedly now have control of most of the camp and the protesters, who described the situation as a "massacre" have mostly left the area.
The protests were a continuation of a call for a civilian government after earlier rounds of protests forced long-time former autocratic President Omar Al-Bashir from power after 30 years. The protesters and the military council which succeeded Al-Bashir had been in negotiations for weeks over the country's future, but talks stalled over what Al Jazeera reports is the makeup of a so-called "sovereign council," which would govern the country for the next three years before democratic elections. The military reportedly would have let the protesters form a government, but insisted on maintaining ultimate authority, while the protesters wanted a civilian-led government, Al Jazeera reports.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Monday's violence has resulted in global condemnation and calls for restraint. The U.S. embassy urged the security forces to halt the attack, the African Union called for an investigation into the deaths, and the U.N.'s General Secretary Antonio Guterres "strongly condemned" what he considers excessive force. The military council has denied trying disperse the sit-in, saying only that the security forces, which formed under Al-Bashir, were targeting "unruly" groups nearby. Read more at Al Jazeera.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Court allows Trump’s Texas troops to head to Chicago
Speed Read Trump is ‘using our service members as pawns in his illegal effort to militarize our nation’s cities,’ said Gov. J.B. Pritzker
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in Oregon
Speed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feud
Speed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protesters
Speed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’
Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoff
Speed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies