general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan

Top General Says Takeover in Sudan Was to Avoid Civil War

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Sudanese military chief General Abdel-Fattah Burhan said Tuesday the army’s overthrow of the country’s transitional government was necessary to avoid a civil war.

“The whole country was deadlocked due to political rivalries,” Burhan said at a televised news conference in Khartoum. “The experience during the past two years has proven that the participation of political forces in the transitional period is flawed and stirs up strife.”

Burhan also said that deposed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was at the general’s home, one day after Hamdock was reported to have been detained by soldiers during the takeover. The general said Hamdok was “in good health” and would “return home when the crisis is over.”

Sudanese protest against a military coup that overthrew the transition to civilian rule, on Oct. 25, 2021 in the al-Shajara district in southern Khartoum.
Sudanese protest against a military coup that overthrew the transition to civilian rule, on Oct. 25, 2021 in the al-Shajara district in southern Khartoum.

Burhan also acknowledged that “we arrested ministers and politicians, but not all” and said that some would face trial for allegedly inciting a rebellion within the county’s military.

The events in Sudan were set to be discussed behind closed doors Tuesday by the United Nations Security Council.

Burhan declared a national emergency hours after the takeover and announced the end of the joint civilian-military council, which had run the country since August 2019, shortly after the ouster of longtime autocratic President Omar al-Bashir.

He pledged the military would turn over power to a civilian government in July 2023 when general elections will be held.

Demonstrators remained in the streets of Sudan’s capital Khartoum to protest the arrest of Hamdok and other officials of the Sovereign Council.

The Sudan Doctors Committee said at least four people were killed and at least 80 people injured on Monday when security forces opened fire on demonstrators.

Despite the violence, protesters were on the streets of Khartoum again Tuesday, condemning the coup and shouting “no to military rule.”

The U.S. Embassy in Sudan has warned Americans in the country to shelter in place.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the African Union, and the Arab League were among those expressing alarm and dismay Monday at the latest events in Sudan and called for the country to stay on a path toward civilian rule.

On the takeover, Guterres expressed concern about the growing number of coups. “We are seeing a multiplication of coup d’états” that are the results of “strong geopolitical divides” he said.

There have been coups this year in Myanmar and in the African nations of Niger, Chad, Mali and Guinea.

Guterres told reporters Tuesday, that the Security Council’s “difficulties” in taking strong measures has created an atmosphere in which some military leaders feel they can act with “total impunity,” without fear of consequences.

“My appeal, obviously, is for – especially the big powers – to come together for the unity of the Security Council, in order to make sure that there is effective deterrence in relation to this epidemic of coup d’états,” Guterres said.

The White House said it was “alarmed” by the developments, while the U.S. State Department said it was suspending $700 million in financial assistance to the country.

A joint statement issued by the United States, Britain and Norway through the State Department condemned the coup and called on the security forces to immediately release all those people who are “unlawfully detained.”

“The actions of the military represent a betrayal of the revolution, the transition, and the legitimate requests of the Sudanese people for peace, justice and economic development,” the statement read.

In a statement Tuesday, Sudan’s Ambassador to the U.S., Nureldin Satti, condemned the coup “that has put an end to the civilian democratic transition in Sudan.”

“I am heartened to see that my colleagues in Brussels, Paris and Geneva and New York have followed suit and condemned the military coup,” Satti added. “We shall work with other colleagues in the diplomatic service and in the diaspora to resist the military coup in support of the heroic struggle of the Sudanese people to achieve the objectives of the December 19, 2018 revolution.”

Prime Minister Hamdok, an economist and diplomat who has worked for the U.N., was named the country’s transitional prime minister in August 2019. The transition won strong support from Western countries, including the United States, which removed Sudan from its state sponsors of terrorism list.

But Hamdok faced stiff resistance from elements of Sudan’s military. On September 21, forces still loyal to al-Bashir used tanks to block a key bridge and attempted to seize power. The coup was put down, and dozens of soldiers were arrested.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets last week to voice concern about the prospect of a return to military rule.

“This country is ours, and our government is civilian,” protesters chanted.

Some information in this report also came from the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence-France Presse.

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