Khartoum: One person died after police fired tear gas to try and break up a protest in Sudan’s capital Khartoum on Friday, the force said.
Witnesses said about 500 people blocked two main streets in the city’s eastern Al Jarif district, saying they have a right to land that the government has allocated to investors.
Baton-wielding officers fired tear gas at the crowd, some of whom threw stones and set fire to tyres, according to people at the scene.
The police said members of the crowd had started the violence and tried to attack a police station. The force press office said protesters had also set fire to another police post.
“As the protesters insisted on continuing their riotous acts, police were forced to use tear gas according to the law,” the statement said.
“During that time, one citizen was hurt, was taken by ambulance to hospital and subsequently died,” it added.
One witness said the protest had started off peacefully.
“We are demanding our land and our rights that the government has taken away from us. The government responded with violence: protesters were hit and tear gas was fired,” Othman, a resident of Al Jarif, told Reuters.
