Sudan: Hamdok says solution hinges on return of govt

NOTE from Sudan Watch editor:  Although there is a lack of news about Sudan’s cabinet ministers, their current whereabouts and how well they are being treated, it is clear that the UN Security Council and many ambassadors and diplomats round the world are following events closely and doing everything possible to ensure Mr Hamdok and his detained ministers and politicians are being kept safe and well.

Shortly after the military coup, a news report stated that a cabinet minister had been arrested at home during the night and taken to an unnamed location still wearing his night clothes. 

The following copy of a news report by AFP says PM Hamdok is quoted as saying "the release of the cabinet ministers and the full reinstatement of the government could pave the way to a solution”. The source of the quote is the Facebook page of Sudan’s information ministry.

The report reveals that the coup leader Gen Burhan said the detainees were being kept in "a decent place" and that those facing charges "will be moved to where the accused are usually taken while the rest will be released."

I have no verifiable news about current internet access in Sudan, cut off by the junta during the coup.

Here is a full copy of a news report written by Agence France-Presse (AFP)

Published at France24 dot com

Dated Monday, 1 November 2021, 9:23 pm

Sudan's ousted PM says solution hinges on return of govt: ministry

Sudan's ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said Monday [Nov 1] the reinstatement of his government, dissolved in a military coup, could pave the way to a solution in the country, the information ministry said.

Hamdok spoke during a meeting at his home, where he is under effective house arrest, with the ambassadors of the United States, Britain and Norway, the ministry which remains loyal to the prime minister said.

On October 25, Sudan's top general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolved the cabinet as well as the ruling joint military-civilian Sovereign Council which had been heading Sudan's transition towards full civilian rule following the 2019 overthrow of autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

In a move widely condemned internationally, Burhan declared a state of emergency and detained Sudan's civilian leadership, including Hamdok and members of his government.

Hamdok, an international economist, was later released and placed effectively under house arrest.

The ousted prime minister "insisted on the legitimacy of his government and transitional institutions", the information ministry said on its Facebook page.

He added that "the release of the cabinet ministers and the full reinstatement of the government could pave the way to a solution," the ministry said.

Hamdok, according to the statement, demanded that the situation in Sudan return to what it was before the coup, refusing to negotiate with the military rulers.

The statement added that the three ambassadors also informed Hamdok that the US special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, would arrive at dawn Tuesday in Khartoum "to pursue efforts to ease the crisis".

'Dangerous legal situation'

Earlier Monday [Nov 1] a Sudanese lawyer representing the detained civilian leaders said their whereabouts is unknown and that they are in a "dangerous legal situation".

Kamal al-Gizouli is the lead defence lawyer on a team of attorneys which has come forward to represent them with the backing of their families.

Gizouli said his team went to an agency "where they were believed to have been held but we found that they were not there."

Gizouli expressed concern about the well-being of the detainees and called on those holding them to reveal their location.

"These detainees are in the most dangerous legal situation" since nothing was known about their case nor who was heading the investigation, he added.

Little is known about the whereabout of his cabinet and the members of the council that had been tasked with paving the way to full civilian rule.

Burhan had since August 2019 chaired the council, working alongside Hamdok's government under a power-sharing deal that outlined the post-Bashir transition.

The arrangement came under strain, however, as splits deepened between the civilians and the military.

Jonas Horner, senior analyst for Sudan at International Crisis Group think tank, speaking to AFP earlier Monday, said Hamdok will "find that his political cache has been boosted" by recent events, "and that he is in fact strengthened from what was a relatively weak position previously."

Horner cited, for example, Hamdok's "principled stance" prior to the putsch in refusing to dissolve his government.

In a news conference last week, Burhan defended the military's takeover, saying it was "not a coup" but a move to "rectify the course of the transition".

The general also said the detainees were being kept in "a decent place" and that those facing charges "will be moved to where the accused are usually taken while the rest will be released."

Sudanese and international efforts have been made to mediate a way out of the crisis since the coup.

"We call on all sides mediating to resolve the crisis to demand that the whereabouts of these ministers and politicians be known," said Gizouli.

On Sunday, the UN special representative to Sudan, Volker Perthes, said options for mediation have been discussed with Hamdok and other Sudanese stakeholders.

Photo and caption: Sudan's ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, pictured in September 2021, has been effectively under house arrest since the military coup (AFP/-)

bur-mon/hkb/it

View original: https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20211101-sudan-s-ousted-pm-says-solution-hinges-on-return-of-govt-ministry

UK seeks urgent session of top UN rights body on Sudan

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: The penholder for 2021 in the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Sudan is the UK. Also, the US is the penholder for 2021 in the UNSC on South Sudan, Sudan/South Sudan, Sudan sanctions and South Sudan sanctions.  Source: List* of 2021 UN Security Council Chairs of Subsidiary Bodies and Penholders.

Over eighteen years have passed since I began this blog, Sudan Watch. In 2003 I couldn't find a map of Darfur on the internet. Today, when I look at these photos showing protests in Khartoum, many of the protestors look younger than this blog. All they've known is war. They deserve their voices to be heard and their protests to be heeded. They are the future.

The world wide web, invented and freely given to the world by Englishman Sir Tim Berners-Lee, has enabled the world to watch Sudan and South Sudan and to donate its hard earned cash to help to bring peace and prosperity to the two countries. God help anyone who does anything to harm Sudan’s prime minister Hamdok or his family or colleagues. The world will go mad.

Billions of people around the world wish that music could unite us all to make world peace. Everyone knows love is the most important thing. God bless all Sudanese people and bring them love and peace.

* https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/working_methods_penholders_chairs.pdf

Here is a full copy of a news report by Reuters

Reporting by STEPHANIE NEBEHAY; editing by GILES ELGOOD

Dated Monday, 1 November 2021 3:50 PM GMT UK

Britain seeks urgent session of top UN rights body on Sudan

Photo and caption: Protesters carry a banner and national flags as they march against the Sudanese military's recent seizure of power and ousting of the civilian government, in the streets of the capital Khartoum, Sudan October 30, 2021. Credit: REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin

Photo and caption: Protesters gesture and shout slogans as they demonstrate against the Sudanese military's recent seizure of power and ousting of the civilian government, in the capital Khartoum, Sudan October 30, 2021. Credit: REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin/File Photo

GENEVA, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Britain said on Monday that it had requested that the U.N. Human Rights Council convene an emergency session on Sudan following last week's military coup.

The request was sent to the president of the 47-member Geneva forum on behalf of 18 member states, more than the one-third required to convene a special session. It was backed by 30 countries with observer status, including the United States.

"The actions of the Sudanese military are a betrayal of the revolution, the transition & the hopes of the Sudanese people," Simon Manley, Britain's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, said in a tweet.

Last week, Sudan's military took power in a coup, detaining civilian officials and politicians, and promising to establish a new government of technocrats. The coup has been met with opposition and street demonstrations over the last week.

Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; editing by Giles Elgood

View original:  https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/britain-seeks-urgent-session-top-un-rights-body-sudan-2021-11-01/

Sudan’s PM Hamdok well but under house arrest

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: The following news report confirms that Mr Volker Perthes, the UN special representative to Sudan, said yesterday (Oct 31) that he had met Sudan’s prime minister, Mr Abdalla Hamdok, who is being held under armed guard by the ruling military junta. “He remains well but under house arrest,” Perthes said.

I say, looking at this report's photograph taken yesterday one can’t help wondering how many people it took to fetch and carry all the bricks that were needed to keep on creating barricades. This report tells us that as soon as the bricks were removed by the security forces, many of the barricades were put back when the security forces left :)  Good Sudanese people are so great, they make me laugh. I’m sure some Britishness and British sense of humour have seeped into their DNA somewhere along the line of history.

Here is a full report by The Guardian UK

Reporting by Guardian Correspondent and Agencies

Dated Sunday 31 October 2021 18.33 GMT UK

Sudan coup protesters return to barricades on seventh day of unrest

Militia and police personnel target protesters in south Khartoum a day after deadly crackdown

Photo: A brick barricade on a street in east Khartoum on Sunday [Oct 31]. Credit AFP/Getty Images

Sudanese anti-coup protesters gathered behind barricades in Khartoum on Sunday, a day after a deadly crackdown on mass rallies.

Tens of thousands of people turned out across the country for Saturday’s demonstrations, and at least three people were shot dead and more than 100 people wounded, according to medics. Police denied the killings or using live bullets.

On Sunday the feared Rapid Support Forces militia and police special forces ejected some protesters from barricades in al-Daim neighbourhood, in the south of Khartoum, as a defiant civil disobedience campaign against the military takeover extended into a seventh day.

Mustafa Hassan told the Guardian he had been sitting outside having coffee under a tree near where he lives in south Khartoum when the forces came in carrying guns and sticks.

“They beat me and everybody on the street including an elderly man, shouting at us to remove all the barricades. They do not have mercy, they do not respect old people. I felt sorry for the old man,” he said.

Another protester said many of the barricades were put back up when the security forces left.

“They ran away when the security forces came in here, but when they removed the barriers and left, they came back to build new barricades,” said the man, who did not want to give his name.

“The opposition to this coup is huge, it is on the social level. I was sitting here upstairs and seeing even children and women and young girls are all part of the resistance. That’s what the opposition lacked for years during [the former dictator Omar al-] Bashir’s time.”

The protests are in response to Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolving the government on 25 October, declaring a state of emergency and detaining Sudan’s civilian leadership.

Sudan had been ruled since August 2019 by a joint civilian-military council as part of a now derailed transition to full civilian rule.

Volker Perthes, the UN special representative to Sudan, said on Sunday he had met the detained prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, who is being held under armed guard by the ruling military junta.

“He remains well but under house arrest,” Perthes said.

“We discussed options for mediation and the way forward for Sudan. I will continue these efforts with other Sudanese stakeholders.”

The independent Central Committee of Sudan’s Doctors said on Sunday that militias had shot dead a protester on the day of the coup, pushing its overall tally to 12 dead. A senior US official had estimated that at least 20 to 30 people were killed before Saturday’s protests.

The coup has sparked a chorus of international condemnation and punitive aid cuts, and world powers have demanded a swift return to civilian rule and called for the military to show restraint against protesters.

View original: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/oct/31/sudan-coup-protesters-man-barricades-on-seventh-day-of-unrest

Inside the frantic days leading to Sudan’s coup

Report by ABDI LATIF DAHIR and DECLAN WALSH, The New York Times

Published: Sun 31 Oct 2021 08:21 AM BdST - Reprinted by bdnews24.com

Title: 'They lied.’ Inside the frantic days leading to Sudan’s coup

For days, the American envoy navigated between Sudan’s army chief and prime minister, striving to head off the collapse of a tenuous democratic transition in the country that had been two years in the making.

In a frantic series of meetings in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum last weekend, Jeffrey Feltman, the US envoy to the Horn of Africa, sought to narrow the differences between the army chief, Lt Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the civilian prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, who had been sharing power since the 2019 ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

At a final meeting Sunday afternoon, al-Burhan argued that Sudan’s Cabinet should be dismissed and replaced with technocrats but gave no indication he was preparing to seize power. With that reassurance, the American diplomat wrapped things up and caught a flight to Qatar where, on landing, his phone lit up: A coup was underway in Sudan.

“They lied to him,” said Nureldin Satti, Sudan’s ambassador to the United States, referring to his country’s military leadership. “This is very serious, because when you lie to the US, you have to pay the consequences.”

No one factor appeared to prompt al-Burhan to call a halt to Sudan’s democratic transition. Nor is it certain his coup will succeed, given the mass demonstrations called for this Saturday.

In a series of interviews with analysts and multiple American, Sudanese and European officials, a picture emerged of a military that had grown frustrated with its civilian partners and was intent on maintaining its privileged position and avoiding any investigations into its business affairs or human rights abuses during al-Bashir’s three decades of rule.

Some also faulted the civilian opposition for failing to assuage the generals’ fears of prosecution while the transition to democracy was still underway, while one US official said that Russia had encouraged the coup in hopes of securing commercial advantages and a port on the Red Sea.

Sudan’s civilian leadership had been living in fear of a military coup for at least 18 months. Last weekend, as pro-military protesters camped outside the presidential palace and a pro-military ethnic group closed off the country’s main seaport, it seemed imminent.

Around noon Monday, al-Burhan announced the dissolution of the country’s governing bodies, arrested the prime minister, blocked the internet and announced a nationwide state of emergency. He also disbanded the committees managing the country’s trade unions, while his security forces arrested top civilian leaders, at least one of whom was badly beaten, according to Western officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, under normal diplomatic practice.

His moves plunged the nation into a wave of deadly protests and work stoppages, and drew condemnation from regional and global leaders who insisted on the need to return to civilian leadership. But none of that has seemed to soften the resolve of al-Burhan and his confederates.

“We are back to square one,” said Jihad Mashamoun, a Sudanese researcher and analyst. “General al-Burhan has once again set the seal on the military’s dominance in Sudanese affairs, and the people will come out to face him.”

Little known before 2019, al-Burhan, 61, rose to power in the tumultuous aftermath of the military-led coup that ousted al-Bashir. Then the inspector general of the armed forces, he played a role in sending Sudanese troops, including children, to fight in Yemen’s civil war. He had also served as a regional army commander in Darfur, when 300,000 people were killed and millions of others displaced in fighting between 2003 and 2008.

A close associate of al-Bashir, the general firmly believed the military was the most important institution in the country, tantamount to the state itself, said Cameron Hudson, a nonresident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Africa Centre.

Thrust into the public eye following a popular uprising against the strongman ruler, he proved a reluctant leader, unaccustomed to the international stage. Under the long decades of isolation and international sanctions under al-Bashir, his sphere of travel had been limited to a handful of Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

By contrast, Hamdok, 65, an economist by training, had spent much of his career working at international financial institutions and consulting firms.

The two leaders remained amicable in the beginning, with Hamdok’s government overseeing a raft of reforms that succeeded in removing Sudan from the US list of countries that sponsor terrorism, banned female genital cutting and scrapped apostasy laws. He also signed a peace agreement with rebel groups.

But their relationship soon soured over the question of how best to manage the country and the economy. Those differences deepened after a coup attempt in September.

Tensions rose further in recent months as pro-democracy groups stepped up calls for the military to relinquish power to civilians and for the transitional government to investigate human rights abuses and corruption under al-Bashir. The military balked, analysts and officials said, fearful that any measures of accountability would expose their personal, financial and factional interests.

“It’s all tactical retreat,” said Hudson, arguing that the generals signed the power-sharing agreement in 2019 to relieve pressure on the military, not because they truly believed in it. “The only throughline in all of this is the military’s survival.”

Another divisive issue was whether to hand over al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court, where he has been charged with crimes against humanity and other offenses. Neither al-Burhan nor Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan, also known as Hemeti, head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces that were accused of genocidal violence in Darfur, have been indicted by the court, and analysts say they are keen to maintain the status quo.

“The two generals have had very close relations since Darfur and have everything to worry about if Mr al-Bashir is taken to the ICC,” Mashamoun said. “They would like to see some sort of immunity.”

The armed forces and intelligence services have also resisted efforts to rein in their extensive financial power.

Together they control hundreds of state-owned enterprises dealing in the production and sale of minerals, including gold, imports and exports of livestock, construction materials and pharmaceuticals. Rife with corruption, the companies rarely contribute their profits to the national budget, said Suliman Baldo, a senior adviser at The Sentry, a Washington-based group that seeks to expose corruption in Africa.

Al-Burhan also heads the board of trustees for Defence Industrial Systems, one of the military’s biggest firms. “He is doubling up as a corporate baron while he’s also the general commander of the army and now the de facto head of state,” Baldo said.

But civilian leaders in the transitional government bear some of the blame for the breakdown in relations, said Satti, the Sudanese ambassador, whom the military said Thursday it had fired along with other ambassadors who had publicly condemned the coup. Satti insisted that he was still on the job.

“There is a tug of war and a mutual provocation between the two sides,” he said. He added that some civilians did not understand the importance of alleviating the military’s fears.

With rising inflation and a shortage of basic goods, Hamdok faced a lot of pressure, too. A technocrat by training and temperament, he lacked the political skills to manage the tensions, Satti said.

There were “too many actors, a lot of disagreements and not a proper background to understand the requirements of the moment,” he said. “And he pushed too hard, too fast.”

Analysts said that al-Burhan would not have undertaken the coup without at least the tacit approval of powerful allies in the Middle East. Two of those, Egypt and the UAE, have yet to criticise the coup, while Saudi Arabia has condemned it, the US State Department said in a statement.

Al-Burhan has defended the coup as necessary to avert a “civil war” and promised to transfer power following elections in 2023. It is a timeline many young Sudanese say they do not agree with, a point they plan on making in Saturday’s protests.

“It’s going to be a showdown,” Mashamoun said.

© 2021 The New York Times Company

IMAGE, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a news conference during the International Conference in support of Sudan at the Temporary Grand Palais in Paris, France, May 17, 2021. REUTERS 

View source: https://bdnews24.com/world/africa/2021/10/31/they-lied.-inside-the-frantic-days-leading-to-sudans-coup

Why Sudan’s coup leader Gen Burhan risked a blatant power grab - Who can trust him to keep his word?

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor:  Here below is a copy of Professor Dr. Alex de Waal’s latest Sudan coup analysis, published at BBC NEWS in the early hours of Wed 27 Oct 2021. British-born Alex (pictured below) is the executive director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US. 

If you zoom in on the photo of Alex you can see some of the books are about Sudan and South Sudan. The large grey book with the title MASS STARVATION printed in a white circle is one of his many published works. This is not the most flattering photo available online. I have chosen it because it conveys some of the weariness and exhaustion he must feel after the miles of serious papers he has read during his lifetime. The deeply sad and difficult subjects he studies and writes about are, I believe, succeeding in making an important contribution towards world peace. 

The twitter account of World Peace Foundation @WorldPeaceFdtn is at: https://twitter.com/WorldPeaceFdtn

A list of published works by Alex de Waal is at Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_de_Waal

IMAGE, Professor Dr. Alex de Waal. IMAGE SOURCE, World Peace Foundation, Tufts University: 

https://sites.tufts.edu/reinventingpeace/2018/05/14/new-video-alex-de-waal-on-mass-starvation/

Sudan coup: Why the army is gambling with the future

Analysis at BBC NEWS online

By ALEX DE WAAL

Africa analyst

Published Wednesday 27 October 2021

Sudan's coup leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has taken a leap into the dark. 

He has endangered Sudan's international standing as a nascent democracy, imperilled essential debt relief and international aid, and jeopardised peace with rebels in Darfur and the Nuba Mountains.

He was head of Sudan's Sovereign Council and the face of the army in the country's civilian-military cohabitation - until Monday, when he seized complete power.

He dissolved the country's civilian cabinet, arresting Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and other prominent civilians with whom the military had agreed to share power until elections were held next year.

The general's autocratic ambitions were no secret.

Over the last months, he showed impatience with Mr Hamdok's leadership, signalling that a strong ruler was needed to save the nation.

At a recent military-backed demonstration in the capital, Khartoum, protesters blamed Mr Hamdok for deteriorating living conditions - not helped by a blockade at the main port in the east which has led to shortages.

Sudanese democrats were alert to the army's stratagems, which seemed to be copied from the playbook that led to Abdul Fatah al-Sisi's military takeover in Egypt in 2013.

The Sudan Professionals Association and the multitude of neighbourhood committees that had orchestrated the non-violent protests which brought down the 30-year rule of President Omar al-Bashir in 2019 prepared for a new round of street demonstrations.

IMAGE: Source EPA. Caption, Protestors are determined not to allow the army to steal the revolution that saw Omar al-Bashir ousted in 2019

Foreign diplomats were also worried. US Special Envoy Jeffrey Feldman visited Khartoum at the weekend to press for agreement between the generals and the civilians. He left the city on Sunday with - he thought - a pact agreed.

The coup was staged hours later, leaving the Americans not only dismayed but outraged.

Making it clear that they had been deceived, the US administration has "paused" a $700m (£508m) financial assistance package.

An even bigger issue is the status of Sudan's debt relief package, recently negotiated by Mr Hamdok.

After two years of painful delays, international aid to salvage Sudan's economy was finally in prospect - and is now in jeopardy.

The African Union (AU), the United Nations, the East African regional body Igad and all of Sudan's Western donors have condemned the coup and called for a return to civilian rule.

The Arab League has also called for the constitutional formula to be respected. The grouping is usually in step with the Egyptian government, raising the question of how much Gen Burhan can count on the backing of Cairo.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which provided crucial financial aid to Gen Burhan in 2019, have stayed silent so far.

Their sympathies probably lie with the army strongman, but they will also know they cannot cover the costs of bailing out Sudan.

Gen Burhan was already the most powerful man in the country, his role legitimised by the August 2019 power-sharing deal between the military and the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), a loose coalition of civilian groups.

So why would he risk it all on a blatant power grab?

Commercial empires

According to that agreement, Gen Burhan was due to step down as chairman of the Sovereign Council next month.

At that point, a civilian chosen by the FFC would become the head of state, and the civilians in government would be better placed to push ahead with implementing key items on their agenda.

“Not only was the army commanding a vast share of the national budget, but military-owned companies operate with tax exemptions and often alleged corrupt contracting procedures" 

- Alex de Waal, Africa analyst

IMAGE: Source, GETTY

One is accountability for human rights violations. The government is committed in principle to handing over ex-President Bashir to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

His former lieutenants - including Gen Burhan and leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces Gen Mohamed Hamdan "Hemeti" Dagolo - wanted him to be tried in Sudan and not in The Hague.

They have good reason to fear that Bashir will name them as culprits in the alleged atrocities meted out during the Darfur war.

Gen Burhan and his fellow officers have even more reason to fear that investigation into the massacre in Khartoum in June 2019 would also point the finger of blame in their direction.

It took place two months after Bashir's removal by the army, when peaceful protesters were calling for civilian rule.

Tackling corruption and implementing security sector reform were other agenda items that worried the generals.

Take the cumbersomely named "Commission for Dismantling the June 30 1989 Regime, Removal of Empowerment and Corruption, and Recovering Public Funds."

This was not only exposing and uprooting the network of companies owned by the Islamists forced out of power in 2019, but also the tentacles of the commercial empires owned by senior generals.

Mr Hamdok had become increasingly outspoken in his criticism of the military entanglement in the economy.

Not only was the army commanding a vast - and still-increasing - share of the national budget, but military-owned companies operate with tax exemptions and often allegedly corrupt contracting procedures.

Placing the army under proper civilian control was also a priority for the next stage of the transitional period.

Risk of rebel action

Gen Burhan is claiming he is keeping the transition to democracy on track - and has promised a technocratic civilian government and elections in two years.

Most Sudanese see this as an unconvincing façade.

The crackdown has dissolved the key trade unions and professional groups that organised the previous street protests. Internet and social media are largely shut down. Troops have fired on protesters, reportedly killing 10.

VIDEO: Media Caption, Demonstrators take to the streets of Khartoum to protest against the arrests

Street activists have overcome such clampdowns before and forced the army to back down, most notably in the aftermath of the June 2019 killings.

The generals must also face the reality that the civil war in parts of the country is not over.

A peace agreement last year brought several armed opposition groups into government - but no deal was yet reached with the biggest two rebel forces.

IMAGE: Source, AFP. Caption, Gen Burhan (L) and civilian PM Hamdok (R) were part of a power-sharing administration

In Darfur there is the Sudan Liberation Movement headed by Abdel Wahid al-Nur, and in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan there is the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu.

Both command popular support and have shown military resilience. Both were in peace talks with the government and had confidence in Mr Hamdok. The coup threatens renewed conflict.

With his unconstitutional seizure of power, Gen Burhan has taken a huge gamble.

He is offering no answers to Sudan's most pressing issues - the economy, democratisation and peace - and is risking turmoil and bloodshed at home and pariah status abroad.

In July 2019, following the army's violent crackdown on the democracy movement, the "quartet" of the US, the UK, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, working hand-in-glove with the AU, stepped in to press for a negotiated solution - which followed the next month.

A similar process may be needed to bring Sudan back from the brink. The problem is, after Monday, who can trust Gen Burhan to keep his word?

Alex de Waal is the executive director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US.

More on the Sudan coup:

• IN PICTURES: Sudan coup protesters take to streets
• EXPLAINER: Sudan coup: What you need to know
• ANALYSIS: Sounding the alarm for Sudan’s democracy

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Abdel Fattah al-Burhan

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Published 9 September 2019

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Source - BBC NEWS, view original at:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-59050473

UNITAMS: Sudan’s PM Hamdok safe and well at home

Ambassadors of @FranceauSoudan, @GermanyinSudan, @NorwayAmbSudan, @GilesLeverUK, @USCDASudan, @EU_Sudan and SRSG @volkerperthes met Prime Minister Hamdok at his residence. Pleased to find him in good health. We continue to call for full restoration of his liberty.

— UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission Sudan (@UNITAMS) October 27, 2021

Sudan's PM Hamdok, detained after coup, is home

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor:  Although I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the following report, I am posting it here because it provides some details about Sudan's Prime Minister Hamdok and his wife. Sadly, I have not found any reliable news about Mr Hamdok's cabinet colleagues, their current whereabouts and how they are being treated. I am reluctant to post this report here today but am confident that Mr Hamdok and his wife have been released safely. Reportedly, they were abducted and detained at the home of Sudan's coup leader Gen. Burhan. More on this at a later date.   

Photo, Sudan's head of the military Gen Abdel-Fattah Burhan speaks during a press conference at the General Command of the Armed Forces in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)

Sudan’s prime minister, detained after coup, returns home

Report at Fox17 dot com 

Written by SAMY MAGDY, Associated Press (AP) 

Published Wednesday 27 October 2021 

Sudan's deposed prime minister and his wife were allowed to return home Tuesday, a day after they were detained when the military seized power in a coup, according to a statement issued by his office.

The release of Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and his wife followed international condemnation of the coup and calls for the military to release all the government officials who were detained when Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan seized power on Monday.

The statement by Hamdok's office said other government officials remained in detention, their locations unknown. The deposed prime minister and his wife were under "heavy security" at home in the upscale Kafouri neighborhood of the capital Khartoum, said a military official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media. The official did not say whether they were free to leave or make calls.

Earlier in the day, Burhan said Hamdok had been held for his own safety and would be released. But he warned that other members of the dissolved government could face trial as protests against the putsch continued in the streets.

View full report plus 14 photos here:  https://fox17.com/news/nation-world/sudans-prime-minister-detained-after-coup-returns-home