Guns, explosives seized in Sudan raid

KHARTOUM — Sudan's controversial paramilitary force said its troops on Monday seized several guns, explosives and ammunition during a raid in Khartoum, not far from where thousands of demonstrators are holding a sit-in.

The Rapid Support Force(RSF), Sudan's counterinsurgency unit, said the raid on a house in the capital's eastern district of Al Taif followed reports of "strange activity" there.

The RSF had "thwarted an attempt to sabotage the security and stability of the country, and seized large quantities of weapons, ammunition and explosives", it said, adding that several arrests were made.

It did not specify the quantity or type of guns and explosives seized.

The raid comes as thousands of protesters remain camped outside the military headquarters in Khartoum, about seven kilometres away.

The RSF, formerly made up of militiamen accused by rights groups of abuses in the conflict-wracked Darfur region, now forms part of the Sudanese armed forces.

It was formed in 2013 under the rule of ousted president Omar Al Bashir to fight rebels in Darfur.

Human Rights Watch in a 2015 report accused RSF of carrying out "torture, extrajudicial killings and mass rape" of civilians in Darfur.

The group is commanded by Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamadan Dagalo, who is now the deputy chief of Sudan's ruling transitional military council that took power after the army ousted Bashir.

Sudan has been rocked by nationwide protests since December that initially targeted Bashir's three-decade rule.

On April 11, the army deposed Bashir after calls from protesters camped outside the military headquarters demanding that the veteran leader be ousted.

Following Bashir's ouster, a 10-member military council of generals has taken power.