Sudanese military in new deal to restore Prime Minister Hamdo: Mediators Protest News

Abdalla Hamdo’s military plan to restore the ousted prime minister and release civilian leaders arrested after last month’s military coup has been announced by mediators.

Fadlallah Burma Party leader Nasir Umma confirmed the deal to reporters on Sunday. A group of Sudanese mediators has also released a statement on the agreement.

“A political agreement has been reached between General Burhan, Abdalla Hamdo, political forces and civil society organizations to return Hamdo to his charge and release the political detainees,” Nasir said.

Hamdo will form an independent cabinet of technocrats and all political detainees will be released under an agreement between the military and political parties, Nasir said.

Nasir added that he attended a meeting of mediators that reached an agreement on Saturday night.

The Sovereign Council will hold a meeting on Sunday before announcing the deal, a source familiar with the talks said.

The deal comes more than three weeks after General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan sidelined Sudan’s transition to civilian rule with a military coup.

On October 25, al-Burhan declared a state of emergency, disbanded the caretaker government and arrested the civilian leader, sparking widespread international condemnation and urging people to take to the streets.

Hamdo was arrested at home when the military took power.

The assassination ended in 2019 a transitional partnership between military and civilian groups that helped oust former President Omar al-Bashir.

A statement from mediators said the agreement was reached after an agreement between political parties, former rebel groups and the military.

“The agreement will be officially announced later today after its terms are signed and the accompanying political statement,” he said.

Anti-coup activists demanded it and the move came within hours mass protests on Sunday.

Wednesday was the deadliest day, with 16 people killed.

Doctors said on Saturday that the death toll had risen to at least 40 since the military took over. Sudanese authorities said an investigation into the killings would be launched.

The rallies have often become violent, with police and soldiers using direct rounds and tear gas to disperse the crowd. Authorities have denied using real ammunition and stressed that they have used “minimal force” to calm the crowd.

The agreement will not end the protests

Hiba Morgan of Al Jazeera, reporting from Khartoum, said several people involved in organizing demonstrations against the coup and members of political parties told him that even if Hamdo resettles, they do not want an agreement with the army.

“Many of them have told Al Jazeera how they have seen this power-sharing agreement go, and they have seen what the military can do and how easily it can overturn or overturn that agreement,” Morgan said.

“Many of them say that even if Abdalla Hamdo returns to office as prime minister, that will not end the protests,” he said.

“Many of them want to end this political instability, and although they want to launch some kind of transition, they don’t want the military to continue to play a role in the country’s politics. They want to return to their barracks, and they want a completely civil transition. ”

General Al-Burhan stressed that the military movement was “not a coup d’état” but a step towards “correcting the transition” as the internal factions and divisions of the factions intensified under the government that removed it from civilians and the military.

Earlier this month, he announced a new civil-military governing council, where he retained the post of leader, along with a strong paramilitary commander, three senior military officials, three former rebel leaders and a civilian.

Morgan said questions remain as to whether Hamdok will be reinstated as prime minister if the amount of decision-making power is restored.

“Any cabinet minister he appoints must be approved by the Sovereign Council, which controls it [coup leader] General Al-Burhan. So it’s not clear how much freedom he will have when it comes to choosing his cabinet, ”he said.

The Western powers that backed Sudan’s political transition refused military control and suspended hundreds of millions of dollars in economic aid to Sudan.

The return of the economist to Hamdo, who worked for the United Nations and African institutions, was a key demand of the international community.