Sudan coup: UN documents 13 incidents of rape during mass protests on Sunday
The UN said in a statement on Tuesday that it had documented 13 incidents of rape during Sunday's mass protests in Sudan against October's military coup.
"Our Joint Human Rights Office in Sudan has received allegations that 13 women and girls were victims of rape or gang rape," said Liz Throssell, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spokesperson based in Geneva.
"We have also received allegations of sexual harassment by security forces against women who were trying to flee the area around the Presidential Palace on Sunday evening."
Security forces cracked down on Sunday as hundreds of thousands marched against the coup, which also marked three years since the start of mass demonstrations that led to the overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir.
The death toll from Sunday rose to two, medics said on Tuesday, while a government ministry said two women were raped in the chaos.
On Monday, medics had reported a first shooting death in the previous day's street violence, while the health ministry reported 125 protesters injured, many by tear gas inhalation.
On Tuesday, Sudan Doctors Committee reported the additional death. It said Abdelmoneim Mohamed Ali, 28, was killed with "a bullet in the head" in Omdurman, Khartoum's twin city.
The UN on Tuesday called for "a prompt, independent and thorough investigation into the allegations of rape and sexual harassment, as well as the allegations of death and injury of protesters as a result of the unnecessary or disproportionate use of force, in particular use of live ammunition".
Hamdok 'to resign within hours'
Protesters on Sunday had chanted slogans calling for the resignation of the country's military chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who led the coup on October 25.
Nationwide, at least 47 people have been killed in street clashes in the past two months, according to the doctors' committee.
The army on Monday insisted in a statement it supports "free and fair elections" in 2023.
The Forces for Freedom and Change, the umbrella group which spearheaded the protests against Bashir, has called for more demonstrations on 25 and 30 December.
Meanwhile, Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok told a group of political figures that he intended to resign from his post within the next several hours, two sources close to the premier told Reuters on Tuesday evening.
The group called on him to stay in his position but he insisted he would leave, the sources added.
Middle East Eye could not independently verify the Reuters report by the time of writing.
Hamdok had seen a surge in popularity when he was placed under house arrest during the coup.
However, for weeks he has been facing a popular backlash on the streets and among political groups that previously supported him after he made a deal with the military and was reinstated as prime minister last month.
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
