KHARTOUM, June 29 (Xinhua) -- On the eve of mass demonstrations expected on Tuesday, Sudanese capital Khartoum is witnessing unprecedented security measures.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok urged the participants in Tuesday's demonstrations to exercise maximum alert and follow the health instructions and guidelines to prevent further spread of coronavirus.
"I'm fully confident in the vigilance of the revolutionaries and their adherence to the weapon of peacefulness with which the revolution has triumphed over the forces of dark," said Hamdok in a speech to the Sudanese people on Monday.
Meanwhile, in anticipation of Tuesday's demonstrations, the Sudanese government on Monday announced the arrest of leaders belonging to the former regime over planning for hostile moves.
"According to reliable information about a meeting for leaders belonging to the dissolved National Congress Party and the Islamic Movement, a joint team of the military intelligence and the General Intelligence Service raided the meeting site and arrested the group participating in the meeting," said a statement by the office of Sudan's Information Minister Faisal Mohamed Saleh.
The Public Prosecution is undertaking the investigation procedures with the defendants prior to presenting them to the judiciary, according to the statement.
The Sudanese authorities on Monday tightened the security measures around the army's general command and main headquarters such as the Republican Palace and the Council of Ministers.
Additionally, security forces have been deployed on the bridges linking Khartoum, Omdurman and Khartoum North after Khartoum State authorities on Sunday decided to fully close all bridges on June 29 and 30.
Various parties have called for demonstrations on Tuesday. Some called for a demonstration to correct the path of the revolution, while supporters of the former regime called for a similar demonstration on the same day to demand the overthrow of Hamdok's government.
According to Sudanese media, quoting security sources, there are reports indicating plots to carry out assassinations, chaos and sabotage acts during the June 30 demonstrations to speed up removal of the transitional government, led by Hamdok.
Since August 2019, a military and civilian coalition has been in power in Sudan for a transitional period of 39 months, after a popular revolution that ousted the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir on April 11 last year. Enditem
