A top US diplomat will head to Sudan this week to urge an end to a bloody crackdown on protesters, Washington said Monday, as a nationwide civil disobedience campaign challenged the African country's ruling military council.

Security forces have arrested two prominent rebels and an opposition leader, aides said Saturday, just days after a bloody crackdown stifled hopes for Sudan's swift democratic transition. 

The men were arrested after they held meetings on Friday with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who was in Khartoum on a mission to revive talks between Sudan's ruling generals and protest leaders on who should lead the country's next governing body -- a civilian or a soldier.

The UN Security Council's decision to renew an arms embargo on South Sudan was "anti-peace" and will weaken the government's fight against rebels, a senior minister told AFP on Friday.

Sudanese authorities on Thursday shut down news broadcaster Al Jazeera's Khartoum office, as thousands of protesters gathered outside the country's military headquarters to pressure the ruling generals to cede power.

In unprecedented scenes in Khartoum, hundreds of workers in suits and ties alongside their neatly dressed women colleagues have gone on strike to protest what they call Sudan's "total economic collapse".

The popular protests that have rocked the northeast African country for more than five months broke out over a decision to triple the price of bread before quickly turning political against the regime of Omar al-Bashir.

Thousands of Sudanese workers began a national strike on Tuesday, leaving air and bus passengers stranded as protesters piled pressure on the military to hand power to a civilian administration.

The United States, Britain and Norway called for a swift agreement between Sudanese protesters and generals on installing civilian rule, saying it would be harder for them to work with any other new authority.

Sudanese army rulers and protesters failed Tuesday to reach an agreement yet again on the make-up of a new ruling body as negotiations also became deadlocked over who should lead it -- a civilian or soldier.

Sudan's army rulers and protest leaders said more talks were planned for Monday on finalising the makeup of a new ruling body, after hours of negotiations through the night ended without agreement.

Sudan's protest movement said that it is determined to have a civilian as head of a new governing council ahead of negotiations Sunday with army rulers to finalize its makeup.