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Sudanese protester killed during demonstration to demand justice for victims of 2019 sit-in protest

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Another Sudanese protester was on Friday, shot dead by securty forces in the capital Khartoum, during demonstration as thousands of youths poured into the streets in several cities of the country to mark the third anniversary of the famous 2019 sit-in-protests in which thousands of people called for civilian rule.

The June 2019 protests had seen several protesters killed and many others injured by soldiers who violently dispersed them while staging a sit-in at the General Command headquarters, calling for civilian rule.

The Friday protest, according to Sudan’s Central Medical Committee, led to the death of one protester in a clash with soldiers in south Khartoum.

“The spirit of a twenty-year-old martyr rose after he was shot in the chest by live bullets fired by the coup forces as they suppressed the processions of Station 7 in Sahafa area,” the Committee said in a statement.

“This brings the total number of martyrs of our people counted by the Commission since the coup of October 25th to 99 martyrs who remain prominent flags of the glorious December revolution and immortal in history forever,” the statement added.

“Early on Friday, security officers were deployed in Khartoum in anticipation of demonstrations announced by the resistance committees, coinciding with the third anniversary of the dispersal of the sit-in.

“The army and other security forces were deployed in the centre of Khartoum and around the strategic sites, and the General Command was surrounded by a tight security fence, with the surrounding streets closed off,” media reports said.

“Authorities also closed Nile bridges linking the three cities to Khartoum, except for the Halfaya and Soba bridges, and announced that the measures came within the framework of ensuring the security and safety of citizens.

“The resistance committees, the Resistance Committees and the Sudanese Professionals Association and the youth groups that mobilise the protests, said that they held Friday’s demonstrations to seek accountability and justice, and to call for the handing over to judicial authorities of perpetrators of violence in the 2019 sit-in,” the reports added.

Metro

Zambia’s ruling party UPND warns against personal attacks on President Hichilema

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Zambia’s ruling party, the UPND, has warned opposition politicians and critics against personal attacks on President Hakainde Hichilema as his meekness should not be mistaken for weakness.

Secretary-General of the UPND, Batuke Imenda, who gave the warning in a statement in Lusaka on Monday, urged political opponents to always engage in mature and issue-based discourse.

Zambia Monitor reports that Imenda’s warning, was directed at the leader of Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) party, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, whose recent remarks Imenda described as “provocative” and a “feeble attempt to mislead citizens.”

“Provocative words uttered by Kelvin Bwalya against our party and President Hichilema are a clear demonstration of naivety,” Imenda said in the statement.

He further advised Bwalya to abandon personal attacks and focus on substantial political issues.

The UPND Secretary suggested that Bwalya’s attacks stemmed from a desire for relevance amid declining political fortunes, hinting at a possible alignment with former President Edgar Lungu.

“It appears KBF is hoping that Edgar Lungu might support his embattled political career by unjustly attacking President Hichilema,” he said.

Imenda defended the President’s record, highlighting that under Hichilema’s leadership, Zambia’s democratic space had expanded compared to the previous PF administration, which he accused of stifling freedoms.

He noted that while criticism was welcome, it should not devolve into baseless attacks, warning that opposition figures should not misinterpret Hichilema’s restraint as weakness.

Imenda also criticized Bwalya for overlooking the gains in transparency and justice since the change in government, claiming that past regimes were marked by resource mismanagement and corruption.

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Following backlash, Nigerian govt withdraws treason charges against minors

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The Nigerian government has officially withdrawn the treason charges it entered against some minors who participated in the #EndBadGovernance protest that spread across the country from August 1 to the 10th.

The nation was thrown into shock on Friday when the Nigeria Police presented 76 protesters at the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on treason. Among the suspects were four minors who slumped before they could be arraigned before the court.

This caused serious uproar in the country with Nigerians condemning the government and calling for the unconditional release of the kids and the dismissal of the charges against them.

The decision to withdraw the charges against the underage accused came following a directive by President Bola Tinubu who ordered the immediate withdrawal of the charges and an in-depth investigation into what led to the arrest and detention of the minors.

Tinubu had also ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) to officially take over the case file as well as review the cases following public outcry that came with the arraignment of the minors.

The charges were finally withdrawn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja through an application for discontinuance filled by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar, on behalf of the AGF.

According to Abubakar, the discontinuance application was based on provisions of sections 174(1), (b) and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015.

The DPPF also applied for further proceedings to be conducted without the presence of the minors in the courtroom, in line with provisions of Section 266(b) of the ACJA, 2015, and Section 1 of the Childs’ Rights Act.

In response, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Fanala (SAN), who stood in for the accused as well as other defence lawyers in the matter, did not oppose the applications which promoted the judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, to strike out the charges, while the four affected minors were also delisted from the charge sheet.

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