UN, US urge Sudan military to allow pro-democracy protests

The United Nations (U.N.) this week met with Sudanese leaders in an effort to urge the country to allow peaceful pro-democracy protests on Saturday.

U.N. special envoy for Sudan Volker Perthes and Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo had a meeting late Friday to discuss activist-planned “million-person” marches scheduled to take place on Saturday, according to The Associated Press.

The goal of the marches is to press Sudan to release senior political officials and to reinstate its former government amid a military coup takeover, the news outlet noted.

In a Twitter post, Perthes reportedly said that in his conversation with Dagalo he “stressed the need for calm, allowing peaceful protest and avoiding any confrontation.” 

On Friday, a senior official from the United States also called for peace during Saturday’s planned protests, saying that the Sudanese military has “hijacked and betrayed the aspirations of the Sudanese people” and that Saturday would be a “test,” according to the AP.

Daily protests have occurred in Sudan since the start of the military coup. Nearly 170 people have been injured and at least nine people have been killed by gunfire from security forces, AP reported.