At least one dead in mass protests in Sudan: One demonstrator was shot dead by security forces and 200 were injured during mass protests in Sudan’s capital Khartoum yesterday. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets on the anniversary of the 2019 uprising that dethroned President Omar Al-Bashir, protesting the coup led by military chief Abdel Fattah Al Burhan led in October. Burhan’s reinstating of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok after a month under house arrest, and his promise to hold democratic elections in 2023, did little to quell protests, with pro-democracy demonstrators demanding full return to civilian rule. Burhan currently still has political authority and oversight over the civilian leadership. The demonstrations received substantial ink, from BBC and Voice of America to Sky News and The Guardian.

ALSO- Lebanon could reach an initial agreement for an IMF program in January or February, after the financially battered country’s financial sector posted a USD 69 bn loss, the deputy prime minister said, according to Reuters.