Five demonstrators, including fourstudents, were shot dead on Monday during a rally in the town of Al-Obeid incentral Sudan. Sudan, a poor country with adevastated economy, has been in the grip of a protest movement since December2018. Initiated after the tripling of the price of bread, the demonstrationsturned into a protest against the regime that led the army to dismiss andarrest President Omar al-Bashir in April after 30 years in power. They continued after the exclusion ofthe Head of State and the establishment of a Military Council to replaceBashir, to demand a civilian government and better living conditions. On 17 July, the ruling generals andthe leaders of the protest reached, after difficult negotiations, an agreementon a Sovereign Council composed of five military and six civilian members tolead the transition for just over three years. They are resuming negotiationson Tuesday to finalize some outstanding issues. Since December, the repression of the protest has left246 people dead, including 127 demonstrators killed on June 3 at the scene of asit-in in Khartoum, according to a report by the medical committee provided.