The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) says at least 39 people have been killed by the Sudanese security forces with 15 persons reportedly shot dead since the October military coup.
Protesters, including doctors, oil workers and pilots, have been demanding the release of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, members of the Transitional Sovereignty Council’s civilian component and several ministers.
In response to demonstrations, the Sudanese security forces, according to reports, have injured more than 100 people during protests in Khartoum, Khartoum-Bahri, and Omdurman, with 80 people said to have sustained gunshot wounds.
In a statement condemning the killings, High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet said it was ‘utterly shameful’ for live ammunition to be used against protesters.
‘Shooting into large crowds of unarmed demonstrators, leaving dozens dead and many more injured is deplorable, clearly aimed at stifling the expression of public dissent, and amounts to gross violations of international human rights law’, Bachelet said.
Phone and mobile communications have also been shut down across the country in addition to the shutdown of internet services, making it harder for injured protesters to receive medical assistance as the country remains shut from the rest of the world.
‘Unable to call for ambulances to treat injured protesters, families are unable to check on the safety of their loved ones, and hospitals are unable to reach doctors as emergency rooms are filled up, to name just a few very real and serious consequences’, he added.
‘Blanket internet and telecommunications shutdowns violates core principles of necessity and proportionality, and contravene international law’.
Since the coup, journalists, particularly those who were critical of the authorities, have been targeted, with reports of arbitrary arrests, abductions, and home and office raids.
Bachelet urged the authorities to immediately release all those who have been detained for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
She also stressed the need to ensure that health care workers are not targeted for providing medical care to injured protesters and that their essential work is not hampered.
Source: UNHCR
Photo source: AP/Marwan Ali
