Khartoum: Update:
Sudanese military council says criminals, not protesters, targeted
Sudanese Transitional Military Council said on Monday that criminal elements near a Khartoum protest site were targeted in a raid by security forces, denying that authorities were trying to clear the camp.
Lieutenant General Shams El Din Kabbashi also told Reuters that the Transitional Military Council (TMC) remained committed to talks with the protesters and was ready to hold a meeting soon.
Kabbashi earlier told Abu-Dhabi-based Sky News Arabia talks on a civilian transition were expected to resume "today or tomorrow".
9 killed as Sudan forces try to disperse sit-in: doctors' committee
Nine protesters were shot dead Monday as Sudan's ruling military tried to break up a sit-in protest outside army headquarters in Khartoum, a doctors' committee close to demonstrators said.
It said the death toll "from the massacre today has risen to nine martyrs, with four new martyrs", since its last statement, the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said on its Facebook page.
Death toll rises to five
At least five protesters were shot dead Monday as Sudan's military rulers tried to break up a sit-in outside the country's army headquarters, a doctors' committee close to the demonstrators said.
Three more people were killed "by the bullets of the military council," bringing the total to five dead, the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said in an update on its Facebook page, calling it a "massacre".
It also reported a "large number of critical casualties".
US embassy says attacks on Sudan protesters 'must stop'
The US embassy in Khartoum said Monday attacks on protesters "must stop", after at least two people were killed when security forces tried to break up a sit-in outside army headquarters.
"Sudanese security forces' attacks against protesters and other civilians is wrong and must stop," the embassy wrote on Twitter.
"Responsibility falls on the TMC. The TMC cannot responsibly lead the people of Sudan," it added, referring to the Transitional Military Council which has ruled Sudan since the ouster in April of president Omar Al Bashir.
Two shot dead as Sudan forces try to disperse sit in: doctors committee
Two people were shot dead on Monday as forces loyal to Sudan's transitional military council tried to break up a long-running sit-in in front of the army headquarters, a doctors committee close to the protesters said.
Two "peaceful protesters" were "killed by live bullets fired at the orders of the Transitional Military Council," the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors said on Twitter.
Thousands block roads in Khartoum's twin city of Omdurman - Reuters witness
Thousands of Sudanese protesters blocked roads with stones and burning tyres in Omdurman, the twin city of Khartoum, on Monday as security forces tried to disperse a protest camp in the capital, a Reuters witness said.
The witness said there were no security forces in the area as young men and women blocked main streets and side roads across Omdurman, which sits on the other side of the Nile river from Khartoum.
Sudan military rulers use force to disperse sit-in: protest group
Sudan's ruling military council on Monday used force in a bid to break up a long-running sit-in outside the Khartoum army headquarters, one of the main protest groups said.
"Now an attempt is taking place to disperse the sit-in at the headquarters of the people's armed forces by force by the military council," said a short statement from the Sudanese Professionals Association, the group which spearheaded nationwide protests that started in December.
A witness living in the Burri neighbourhood in east Khartoum said he could "hear the sound of gunfire and I see a plume of smoke rising from the area of the sit-in."
Another resident of the area, which is near the sit-in, said he had seen forces in "police uniform" trying to expel the demonstrators.
The SPA said it amounted to a "bloody massacre", and called on Sudanese to take part in "total civil disobedience" to topple the military council and for people for take to the streets to protest.
One person killed
Explosions and machine gunfire were heard in Sudan's capital early Monday, and troops blocked roads in an apparent move against a sit-in camp where protesters have demanded an end to military rule.
An Associated Press journalist saw smoke rising from the area early Monday and civilians being detained.
Protest leaders said the military is trying to break up the protest site, and urged supporters to come to the area. The Sudan Doctors' Association said at least one person was killed early Monday.
The sit-in has lasted weeks as civilians and military officials argue over the makeup of a transitional government.
The military overthrew longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir in April after mass protests against his 30-year rule.
Tens of thousands of protesters have been camped outside the military's headquarters, the epicenter of Sudan's uprising that led to the military overthrow of al-Bashir.
The protesters are calling for "limited military representation" in a sovereign council that would lead the country as it transitions to civilian rule over three years.
Both sides are split over the makeup and leadership of the council, with the ruling generals refusing to relinquish power.
