KHARTOUM: Hundreds of thousands of people marched to the presidential palace in Sudan’s capital Khartoum on Sunday in protest at the Oct. 25 military coup, drawing volleys of tear gas and stun grenades from security forces, witnesses said. The outpouring of protest marked the third anniversary of demonstrations that touched off a popular uprising which led to the overthrow of long-ruling Islamist autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

Protests against the coup have continued even after the reinstatement of the prime minister last month, with demonstrators demanding no more military involvement at all in government in a transition towards free elections.

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They initially gathered less than a kilometre (0.6 mile) from the palace, chanting “the people are stronger and retreat is impossible”, with some darting into side streets to dodge volleys of tear gas.

The protesters then set out for the presidential palace, encountering bursts of tear gas and stun grenades that failed to turn them back, witnesses said. They reached the gates of the palace for the first time in nine protests since the coup. There were no immediate reports of injuries or arrests.