Khartoum (AFP) - Pro-democracy activists in Sudan marched against the army and paramilitaries Thursday as the civilian opposition marked a key anniversary in the decades-old struggle against military rule with new protests.
April 6 is a symbolic date for Sudan's civilian opposition -- the anniversary of uprisings in 1985 and 2019 that ended up ousting two leaders who had seized power in coups.
The latest demonstrations come with cracks reported in the military hierarchy over proposed security reforms, leading to another postponement of an agreement set to relaunch the transition to democracy.
In anticipation of demonstrations, the authorities had declared Thursday a non-working day.
Witnesses reported a large military presence on the streets of the capital Khartoum since Wednesday.
Troops had blocked off the Nile bridges linking the city to its suburbs, Omdurman and North Khartoum, while armoured vehicles also prevented access to the presidential palace.
On Thursday, marchers chanted "Soldiers back to barracks!" and "The people want civilian rule!", as well as chants calling for dissolution of the Janjaweed militia.
Accused of committing war crimes in Darfur in 2003, the Janjaweed were run by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, the second in command behind Sudan's military ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
Security forces fired tear gas at hundreds of demonstrators in Omdurman and at Port Sudan on the eastern coast, witnesses told AFP.
Marches were also reported in Wad Madani 200 kilometres (125 miles) south of Khartoum and in Darfur itself, where protesters carried placards asking "Where is the peace?"
Cracks in the military
Sudan is still ruled by Burhan, the military leader who seized power in an October 2021 coup, aborting the transition to civilian rule agreed after the 2019 overthrow of Islamist general Omar al-Bashir, who himself seized power in a 1989 putsch.
A new delay to the signing of a deal to restore the transition, which had been rescheduled for Thursday, prompted the civilian opposition to call for nationwide protests instead.
The Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) urged Sudanese people to demonstrate for "freedom, peace and justice" and against the return of "the old regime", after several high-ranking officials from the Bashir era found roles in the current administration.
Cracks have emerged within the military over security reforms proposed as part of the deal with the FFC.
The signing ceremony had been pushed back "due to a resumption of talks between soldiers", the FFC said.
Analysts say the sticking point has been the integration into the regular army of the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Burhan's deputy Daglo.
US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee said she called Daglo on Thursday "to underscore US support for the aspirations of the Sudanese people to move now to transfer power to a civilian-led government".
Burhan and Daglo have been at loggerheads over the timetable for the RSF's integration and analysts have pointed to a deepening rift between them.
Created in 2013, the RSF emerged from the Janjaweed that Bashir unleashed a decade earlier against non-Arab ethnic groups in the western region of Darfur.The militia has since been accused of war crimes.
Roadmap for new government
"The parties are now working tirelessly to finalise discussions on the remaining points," Burhan said in a speech commemorating the anniversary of the 1985 overthrow of Jaafar Nimeiry, which ushered in a brief period of civilian rule.
"The postponement of the signing ceremony was only done with the aim of establishing a solid framework."
The deal sets out a roadmap for the formation of a civilian-led government and the withdrawal of the military from politics.
It is supposed to build on a preliminary agreement reached in December after near-weekly protests since the 2021 coup that have seen 125 protesters killed by security forces, according to pro-democracy doctors.
"We won't lose hope, we will continue our revolution until we get a civilian and democratic state," 23-year-old protester Mohanad Ahmed told AFP in central Khartoum on Thursday.
"We will not give up on our dreams because our brothers died fighting for them", added Nada Abderrahim, 20, among marchers holding portraits of many of the demonstrators killed in previous protests.
The worsening state of Sudan's economy has also put pressure on all sides to reach a deal, which is a precondition for the resumption of international aid to the impoverished country.
