Sudan Protesters Reject UN Post-Coup Mediation

Around 3,000 protesters in Khartoum on Saturday rejected UN mediation efforts between civilian and military leaders as “foreign interference” and called for Islamist rule in Sudan.

A military coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan last year derailed a fragile transition to civilian rule after the 2019 ouster of long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

For 12 months, near weekly anti-coup protests have been met with force, and efforts by the United Nations and other international actors to bring Sudan's military government and civilian leaders to the table have stalled.

The crowd that gathered Saturday in front of the headquarters of the UN mission in Sudan chanted pro-Bashir slogans and burned photos of UN envoy Volker Perthes.

The country has been grappling with political unrest and a economic crisis since Burhan seized power on October 25, 2021, and arrested the civilian leaders with whom he had agreed to share power.

The crackdown on anti-coup protests has killed at least 119 people, according to pro-democracy medics.