Military Coup Takes Place in Sudan: Members of Civilian Government Under Arrest

Meanwhile, thousands of people in Sudan have taken to the streets to protest the military coup.

Sudan's military arrested members of the transitional civilian government, including the prime minister, and declared a state of emergency in the country.

Chairman of Sudan's Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said in a televised address that he was forced to take such action because of confrontation between various politicians and calls for violence.

Al-Burhan promised that Sudan would remain committed to international agreements and that the country could return to civilian rule after some time, which could happen after elections scheduled for July 2023.

Coup

At dawn on Monday, the military detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and most cabinet members. He reportedly refused to make a statement supporting the military's actions.

According to the channel, the army arrested not only ministers but also one civilian member of the Sovereignty Council, several state governors and leaders of political parties.

Sudan's Ministry of Information, which remains under the control of supporters of Prime Minister Hamdok, called the events a military coup and urged resistance.

The prime minister himself, placed under house arrest, also said that people must take to the streets to peacefully defend the revolution.

Major civilian democratic groups in Sudan have also called for resistance to the military coup.

According to the Ministry of Information, tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest the military's seizure of power. Gunfire was heard near the building in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, where the army leadership is based.

Medical workers report that at least 12 people were injured during the clashes; other details are not yet known.

Eyewitnesses report that the internet is not working in Khartoum, making it difficult to receive information about events in Sudan.

According to reports, the military stormed the main radio and television center in the city of Omdurman and arrested a number of employees.

According to local media, the capital's airport has been closed, access roads are blocked by the military, and international flights have been suspended.

The Arab League, of which Sudan is a member, also expressed concern. League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit called on the Sudanese parties to abide by the signed transitional agreements.

Crisis in Sudan

The army arrested the government amid growing tensions between the military and the civilian transitional authorities. They jointly governed the country after the overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

Bashir was sentenced to two years in prison on charges of corruption, illegally receiving gifts and possessing foreign currency. The political transition agreed after his resignation was supposed to lead to elections at the end of 2023.

The crisis escalated in September, when an attempted coup took place, which is attributed to supporters of al-Bashir.

In October, opponents of the democratic forces took to the streets of Khartoum to call on the army to take control of the country. And on Thursday, tens of thousands of people took part in a demonstration in the capital in support of the civilian transitional government.

Support for the interim government has sharply declined in recent months as Sudan's economy is in a difficult situation.

This year, the media reported that Sudan had frozen an agreement on hosting a Russian Navy base on its territory, concluded during al-Bashir's rule. Moscow stated that the issue has not been finally resolved and that statements about the agreement's ratification being abandoned are allegedly false.