1 killed, 3 injured in protests in Sudan's West Darfur state

KHARTOUM Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- A student was killed and three others injured as they were participating in a demonstration in El Geneina, the capital city of Sudan's West Darfur State, in protest against increasing of bread prices, Sudan Tribune reported Sunday.

West Darfur State Governor Fadl Almula Alhaja has confirmed the killing of the student and the injury of the others, saying the protests were conducted by private schools students backed by trends he did not name, according to the report.

"Investigations will be made to know the details. The protests were conducted by private schools' students, the situations are now stable," the governor was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, eyewitnesses in El Geneina said that hundreds of students demonstrated in El Geneina on Sunday in protests against the prices hike.

According to the eyewitnesses, the police forces confronted the students which resulted in injuries among the students.

Earlier on Sunday, State Minister at Sudan's Interior Ministry, Babikir Digna, said in a statement that "expression through peaceful means is allowed, but any sabotage during the protests is not allowed."

"Gatherings and public symposia require prior permission, and any sabotage during protests is not allowed," the minister added, warning that the police forces would suppress any illegal protest.

Meanwhile, Sudanese political forces and parties called on the Sudanese people to come out in peaceful protests against the recent economic decisions.

Last week, the Sudanese parliament approved the general budget for 2018, which included devaluating the Sudanese pound against the U.S. dollar, with one dollar exchanging 18 Sudanese pounds from 6.9 Sudanese pounds, besides raising the electricity tariff for the industry, agriculture and trade sectors and liberalizing the price of wheat.

Accordingly, flour manufacturers have raised the price of a 50-kilo sack of wheat flour from 167 to 450 Sudanese pounds, causing the owners of bakeries to raise the price of a piece of bread from 0.5 Sudanese pounds to 1 pound as of Friday, Jan. 5, 2018.

Sudan consumes about 2 million tons of wheat annually, while the country's production is only about 12 percent of the annual consumption. Enditem