Teenager killed in Sudan during protests against military

Shooting brings number of people killed in clampdown on anti-coup demonstrations to 89

A Sudanese protester stands in front of a blazing fire during a demonstration against the military coup in Khartoum, on March 8. Reuters

Sudanese security forces have shot and killed a teenager during a crackdown on rallies against last year's military coup, medics said.

Regular mass protests have taken place across Sudan since a military coup on October 25 led by army chief Abdel Fattah Al Burhan.

"Babiker Al Rashid, 17, was killed in Omdurman after he was hit at a close range by a live bullet to the chest by coup authorities," said the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors, a group aligned with the protest movement.

It brings the number of people killed in the clampdown on anti-coup protests to 89, the committee said.

The military coup derailed a fragile power-sharing agreement between the army and civilians negotiated after the 2019 ouster of longtime autocrat Omar Al Bashir.

Monday's protests were staged mainly in the capital Khartoum and its neighbouring cities of Omdurman and North Khartoum.

Security forces fired teargas to quell the protests, witnesses said.

Monday's protests came as US Treasury undersecretary Brian Nelson said Washington had imposed sanctions on Sudan's Central Reserve Police (CRP) over its use of "excessive force against pro-democracy protesters". Under the sanctions, any CRP assets in the US will be frozen.

Sudanese authorities have repeatedly denied opening fire on protesters.

Sudanese teachers and doctors have recently staged strikes against security forces to protest violence and the worsening living conditions.

Last year's military power grab has drawn wide international condemnation and cuts of crucial aid, which deepened the economic crisis in Sudan where prices of bread, fuel, and electricity have skyrocketed.

On Monday, Gen Al Burhan headed to Saudi Arabia for talks after a similar trip to the UAE where he discussed his country's ailing economy.