Protesters Block Major Sudan-Egypt Highway Over Power Cuts

17 May 2026

Protesters in Abri, Northern state, block Sudan-Egypt highway over power cuts on May 16, 2026

May 17, 2026 (WADI HALFA) – Protests flared on Sunday in the Abri area of Sudan’s Northern State as residents demonstrated against daily, hours-long power outages and deteriorating basic services.

Protesters blocked the main highway connecting Dongola and Wadi Halfa, a vital trade route that regulates transport links between Sudan and Egypt.

A local demonstrator told Sudan Tribune that dozens of youth staged the protest near Abri, an administrative division of Wadi Halfa located along the overland route to Egypt.

The blockade is part of escalating measures initiated by protesters in April, which initially involved temporary road closures to pressure authorities to end scheduled electricity cuts.

The source added that Sunday’s escalation directly responded to the persistent power cuts and targeted commercial trucking.

The protest was carried out peacefully, with demonstrators allowing passenger buses and private cars to pass while halting commercial freight trucks.

Protesters warned authorities against using excessive force to reopen the road to commercial traffic and demanded an end to what they described as unfair power rationing.

Sudan faces a widening electricity deficit, particularly during the peak summer season when temperatures climb to 44 degrees Celsius in northern, central, and eastern regions.

Egypt supplies several northern Sudanese cities with electricity under a multi-year agreement, which theoretically exempts the region from the rolling blackouts used by the Sudanese government to ration consumption and manage frequent network failures.