What was the ‘Khartoum Massacre’ marked by Sudan’s activists?

Killings of at least 120 pro-democracy protesters in 2019 were a flashpoint between activists and the military.

As Sudan’s civil war spirals deeper into turmoil, activists are remembering friends and loved ones killed during pro-democracy protests in Khartoum on June 3, 2019.

The killings, carried out by military forces in an effort to disperse a sit-in calling for civilian rule and democracy, marked a pivotal moment for Sudan after the April 2019 overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir.

Before al-Bashir was deposed in a military coup, a large civilian protest movement had been demanding for months that the president step down. That movement continued after the imposition of military rule, eventually leading to what has become known as the “Khartoum Massacre”.

The same forces that took over from al-Bashir – Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces – are now fighting each other in a civil war that started on April 15, 2023. And many activists now believe that the June 3 killings were a sign of the devastating war that was to come.

Here’s all you need to know about the significance of the killings: