Sudan police fire tear gas amid nationwide protests call

KHARTOUM: Sudanese police fired tear gas at protesters in the capital Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman after midday prayers on Friday as organisers urged nationwide demonstrations over the next week against President Omar al-Bashir. Crowds chanting "freedom, peace, justice" demonstrated in two areas of Khartoum and in Omdurman just across the Nile, witnesses said. They were quickly confronted by volleys of tear gas from riot police. Friday’s protests came after organisers called for nationwide demonstrations over the next week demanding Bashir resign. The demonstrations that first erupted on December 19 over a government decision to triple the price of bread have swiftly escalated into broader protests that are widely seen as the biggest threat to Bashir’s rule in three decades in power. "We will launch a week of uprising with demonstrations in every Sudanese town and village," the Sudanese Professionals’ Association said.