To not miss anything on African news, subscribe to the newsletter of World Africa from this link. Every Saturday at 6 a.m., find a week of current events and debates treated by the editorial staff of World Africa.
The chief of the army in Sudan, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhane, on Thursday (November 4th) ordered the release of four ministers arrested on the day of the coup d’état of October 25, amid increased international efforts to put back on the rails the democratic transition. The head of the American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, moreover met Thursday with the general Al-Burhane, urging him to “Restore the government led by civilians”.
The news about the ministers came hours after the military announced the training “Imminent” government ten days after General Al-Burhane dissolved the government, arrested civilian leaders and established a state of emergency.
Also listen Coup d’Etat in Sudan: bitterness after hope for revolution
Since then, Sudan, mired in political and economic stagnation, has come to a standstill between intransigent soldiers and anti-coup demonstrators. Thursday evening, General Al-Burhane ordered the release of four ministers: Hamza Baloul (information and culture), Hachem Hassabarrassoul (telecommunications), Ali Jeddo (commerce) and Youssef Adam (youth and sports). No date for their effective release has been specified.
Most members of the government were arrested on October 25, including Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok who was brought back the next day to his home in Khartoum, where he has since been under house arrest.
“A people who aspire to democracy”
The decision to release the ministers came shortly after a telephone conversation between General Al-Burhane and UN boss Antonio Guterres, who urged his interlocutor to release those arrested and urgently restore civilian government.
The United States, which suspended part of its aid to Sudan after the coup, said it had “Noted” of the release of the ministers, but reaffirmed that they expect more from the army.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged General Al-Burhane on Thursday “To immediately release all political figures detained since October 25 and return to a dialogue bringing Prime Minister Hamdok back to his post”, according to the State Department. This is the first known exchange between the two men since the coup.
Mr. Blinken also spoke again Thursday with the ousted Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, after a first exchange on October 26, the day after the putsch. “The Secretary of State underlined the strong support of the United States to the Sudanese people who aspire to democracy”, said the spokesperson for the State Department.
In an attempt to put the transition back on track and resolve the crisis, international mediation efforts have intensified and several foreign diplomats have followed one another in Khartoum.
“A government of technocrats”
The announcements of “Liberation are the result of mediation efforts. It was agreed that the detainees would be released in groups ”Tut Gatluak, adviser to the President of South Sudan and head of the South Sudanese mediation delegation visiting Khartoum, told AFP. “We called for the release of all the detainees”, he added.
Key officials remain in detention, including Sovereign Council member Mohammed Al-Fekki, Hamdok’s adviser Yasser Arman, and cabinet minister Khaled Omar Youssef.
Gatluak spoke of negotiations to form a government but, for the moment, the two camps are sticking to their positions. “Al-Burhane has no problem with Hamdok returning to his post as prime minister, but he does not want a return to the situation before October 25”, he clarified.
On Wednesday, General Al-Burhane met with the envoy of the African Union (AU), Olusegun Obasanjo, and said that“A government of technocrats is about to be set up”, according to the Sudanese agency SUNA.
Prior to the coup, Sudan was ruled by transitional military-civilian authorities – a Sovereign Council headed by General Al-Burhane and made up of military and civilians, and a government headed by Mr. Hamdok. They were responsible for leading the country towards elections and fully civilian power after thirty years of dictatorship by General Omar Al-Bashir, dismissed by the army in April 2019 under pressure from the streets.
But the growing divisions between civil and military clans ended up getting the better of their fragile understanding. After the coup, the Sudanese took to the streets in droves to denounce the military power. At least twelve protesters were killed and hundreds injured in the crackdown, according to a committee of pro-democracy doctors. Gatherings were held again Thursday in Khartoum.