Seven dead in crackdown on anti-coup rallies in Sudan: Medics

Security forces fired volleys of tear gas as they blocked thousands of protesters from advancing on Khartoum's presidential palace.

Protest organisers in Sudan's capital Khartoum announced two days of strikes and civil disobedience after security forces used gunfire and teargas on Monday to disperse demonstrations against a coup and medics said seven people had been killed.

The toll marked one of the bloodiest days since pro-democracy groups began a campaign of anti-military protests following the Oct. 25 coup, and threatened to deepen the gulf between military leaders and a large protest movement.