Sudan’s Revolution

A large seated crowd fills a street lined with tents, banners and loudspeakers at the Khartoum sit-in. — Protesters listen to the Friday sermon at the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

Life at the Khartoum sit-in

After the military removed Omar al-Bashir from power in April 2019, protesters remained outside the army headquarters in Khartoum, demanding civilian government. The May photographs show the sit-in as a place of speeches, music, shared meals and remembrance.

A photograph from the sit-in also appeared in Al Jazeera.

Protesters gather beneath a graffiti-covered railway bridge while others stand above them holding Sudanese flags. — Protesters perform and chant beneath the railway bridge at the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

A seated man in a pale purple shirt plays a violin, with people gathered behind him at the Khartoum sit-in. — A musician plays the violin at the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

Women with Sudanese flags stand at the front of a crowd; a woman in a pink headscarf and mint shirt faces forward. — Protesters listen to speeches about their hopes and plans for Sudan’s future government at the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

A large Sudanese flag sweeps across the foreground above a crowd walking among tents and banners at the sit-in. — A Sudanese flag waves above the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

Two posters with portraits and Arabic text hang on a turquoise wall covered in handwritten protest slogans. — Posters for the dead and missing hang on a wall at the Khartoum sit-in on May 3, 2019.

Two men unroll green mats along a road in front of the military headquarters. — Protesters spread carpets so that others can break their Ramadan fast in front of the military headquarters on May 7, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

Child in a pink headscarf among people seated on green mats at the sit-in. — Protesters gather to break their Ramadan fast in front of the military headquarters on May 7, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

Volunteers handling plates and large metal lids beside food prepared for iftar. — A volunteer at the Khartoum sit-in helps prepare food for iftar on May 7, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

Volunteer in red gloves stirring food in a large metal pot at an outdoor kitchen. — A volunteer stirs a large pot of food for iftar at the Khartoum sit-in on May 7, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

Awadiya Mahmoud pouring tea into a cup held out by a protester. — Awadiya Mahmoud hands out free tea to protesters on May 3, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

Awadiya started selling tea in 1983 and by 2013 she had organized 13 community groups for tea sellers and a union to organize them. The union worked together to fight police harassment, find homes for the women, and open a clinic. During the 2019 sit-in, she said there were around 26,000 women in the union. She started serving free food and tea to keep the protesters strong and was a constant presence at the sit-in.

Her work sustaining the sit-in also appears in MERIP’s reporting on Khartoum’s women street vendors, illustrated with a photograph from this series.

Women gathered around kettles in a dim room while a man carries cups. — Women sit around a table with metal kettles while a man carries cups inside a room on May 6, 2019.

Woman in a magenta wrap standing beside an open gate beneath an Arabic sign. — A woman in a magenta patterned wrap stands outside a doorway beneath an Arabic sign on May 6, 2019.

Woman standing in a sandy courtyard beneath a clothesline and beside mud-brick walls. — A woman in a magenta patterned wrap stands in a sandy courtyard enclosed by mud-brick walls on May 6, 2019.

Seated man raising his hand beside cups and containers at the Khartoum sit-in. — A man sits beside cups, containers and other tea supplies at the Khartoum sit-in on May 4, 2019.

Woman in a red headscarf with the Sudanese flag draped around her shoulders. — A woman wearing a red headscarf is draped in the Sudanese flag at the Khartoum sit-in on May 6, 2019.

Man in a checked shirt holding a spray wand, with a yellow tank behind his shoulder. — A man wearing glasses holds a spray wand at the Khartoum sit-in on May 4, 2019.

Tall columns and a covered entrance illuminated at night beside a blue-lit facade. — A columned building is illuminated after dark on May 7, 2019.

Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo in uniform posing with men beside a white vehicle. — Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemeti and then the deputy head of the military council, visits patients at the Royal Care Hospital on May 4, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

June 2019: after the sit-in

Security forces attacked the sit-in on 3 June. As Foreign Policy later recounted, demonstrators returned to the streets on 30 June to demand civilian rule. The following photographs include recovery houses, neighbourhood gatherings and that day’s mass march.

Haider Mousa Jouma standing beside crutches in a tiled room. — Haider Mousa Jouma, 16, after being shot in the leg in Zalinga. Khartoum, June 17, 2019.

Salah Soleiman lying on a bed with a bandaged leg raised in a metal frame. — Salah Soleiman, who was shot in the legs at the Khartoum sit-in, holds his leg up in pain at a recovery house on June 18, 2019, in Khartoum, Sudan.

In June 2019, Sudanese in Sudan and abroad were raising money to help care for protesters who had been injured.

From reporting with Zeinab Mohammed Salih for the Guardian, July 2019: “Today, it is a safe house for protesters, including children, who face life-changing injuries.”

Elevated night view of people seated around a platform at an Omdurman gathering. — Residents of Omdurman gather in a soccer field in the Abu-rof neighborhood to listen to speeches on June 20, 2019.

Many of the participants arrived with marches that circled around northern Omdurman before arriving. The police arrived soon after, announced that the gathering didn’t have a permit and waited at the back.

People carrying flags across muddy ground toward an outdoor gathering at night. — Participants arrive with flags at the June 20, 2019 gathering in Omdurman’s Abu-rof neighborhood.

Person waving a Sudanese flag above a seated crowd at the night gathering. — A participant waves a Sudanese flag above the seated crowd in Omdurman’s Abu-rof neighborhood on June 20, 2019.

Open wooden door revealing ornate chairs stored inside the presidential palace. — Ornate chairs are stored in a room inside the presidential palace in Khartoum on June 23, 2019.

30 June: the march through Khartoum

On 30 June, protesters marched towards the Republican Palace and confronted security forces on the airport road. A photograph from that demonstration was also published by the Middle East Institute.

Dense crowd of marchers filling a Khartoum road and carrying Sudanese flags. — Protesters calling for a civilian government fill the main airport road in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019, commemorating people who had been killed. Security forces stop their march toward the Republican Palace.

Uniformed security personnel and white vehicles lined across a broad road. — Security forces and their vehicles form a line across the main airport road, facing protesters in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

Man sitting against a building with a face mask beneath his chin. — A protester suffering from tear gas sits against a building in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

People raising their arms in a street as water splashes around them. — Protesters raise their arms beneath a spray of water in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

Uniformed police riding in a white vehicle amid people carrying Sudanese flags. — Police wave at protesters from a pickup truck driving through Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

People gathered outside a building beside a wall with Arabic writing. — People gather outside a building beside a wall bearing Arabic writing during demonstrations in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

People kneeling beside a man lying on the pavement, with a water bottle nearby. — A protester faints from tear gas and is revived moments before security forces storm through the bus station in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

People climbing over a low wall as a crowd moves through dust. — Protesters run from the sound of gunshots and from tear gas, scrambling over a low wall in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

Men sitting and standing on a makeshift street barricade at dusk. — Protesters sit on a street barricade built to prevent attacks by security forces’ trucks in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.

People gathered around a burning barricade under traffic lights after dark. — Protesters gather around a burning street barricade after dark in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 30, 2019.