At least seven people were killed in Sudan on Wednesday as anti-government violence flared in the capital Khartoum, prompting authorities to completely shut down the Internet, according to Al Arabiya.
Protesters torched cars and petrol stations and threw rocks at police, who fired tear gas to try to disperse the biggest display of public anger against President Omar Hassan al-Bashir‘s government in more than a year, according to Reuters.
Demonstrators also set fire to the ruling party’s headquarters in the capital’s twin city of Omdurman on Tuesday.
Internet access was shut down and schools in the capital were closed in the third day of violence prompted by a cut in fuel subsidies, Reuters reports.
Deadliest day in Sudan’s fuel subsidies protests
According to the Sudan Tribune, the Sudanese government announced Wednesday that orders were issued to the army to deploy to public government buildings and gas stations to protect them from protesters who continued demonstrating against the decision to cut fuel subsidies.
Ahmed Bilal, the country’s information minister and government spokesperson, told the pro-government Ashorooq TV that the army was asked to move in against “outlaws.”
“What we see confirms that they are not peaceful protesters, but outlaws,” Bilal said.
He also acknowledged reports of an Internet shutdown, saying that the government has exercised “plenty of self-restraint” and promised that the cyber-blackout will soon end.
The spokesperson accused unspecified elements of inciting the demonstrations that started on Monday in Sudan’s central state of Gezira and spread later to other parts of the country including Khartoum, Omdurman, Darfur and Eastern Sudan.
In Gezira state capital of Wad Madani, Bilal said, the protesters attacked more than 37 policemen. He said that five people were killed on both sides.
Bilal also claimed that some of the protesters were carrying knives and firearms. He denied reports that some of the forces joined hands with protesters, the report said.
