Businesses shut, internet blocked
A protest strike kept businesses shut and residents indoors in the Sudanese capital yesterday as a top US diplomat prepared a visit to press the ruling generals to halt a bloody crackdown.
Protest leaders stepped up the pressure on the generals by announcing they would soon release a list of members for a new ruling body -- the key point of dispute between the two sides.
Most shops and businesses remained closed on the third day of a civil disobedience campaign launched by protest leaders after a crackdown on a weeks-long sit-in left dozens dead on June 3.
Public buses were operating in some parts of the capital, but Khartoum's main business and commercial districts were shut down, an AFP correspondent reported.
Protest leaders has vowed to name a new ruling body to replace the generals.
The crackdown by the military came after negotiations between protest leaders and the generals collapsed late last month over who should lead the new governing body -- a civilian or a soldier.
Since toppling longtime President Omar al-Bashir on April 11, the generals have resisted demonstrators' demands to make way for a civilian-led transition.
Comments