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KHARTOUM: Sudan’s ruling council head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan announced on Monday a state of emergency across the country and the dissolution of the transitional sovereign council and the government.
In a televised address, General Abdel-Fattah Burhan announced that he was dissolving the country’s ruling Sovereign Council, as well as the government led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. He said quarrels among political factions prompted the military to intervene. Burhan said a new technocrat government would lead the country to elections.
Military forces arrested Sudan’s acting prime minister and other senior officials and disrupted internet access on Monday in an apparent coup as the country was nearing a planned transition to civilian leadership.
In response, thousands flooded the streets of the capital, Khartoum, and its twin city of Omdurman to protest the apparent military takeover. Footage shared online appeared to show protesters blocking streets and setting fire to tires as security forces used tear gas to disperse them.
At least 12 protesters were wounded in demonstrations filled with plumes of smoke. Videos on social media showed large crowds crossing bridges over the Nile to the center of the capital.
A takeover by the military would be a major setback for Sudan, which has grappled with a stop-and-go transition to democracy since long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir was toppled by mass protests two years ago.
The moves come less than a month before the head of the military, General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, was expected to hand the leadership of the ruling transitional council to a civilian. The Sovereign Council, which has run the country since shortly after al-Bashir’s ouster, includes both military and civilian members, who have frequently disagreed over Sudan’s transition to democracy.
READ MORE: Sudan’s military detains prime minister in apparent coup
The United States and the European Union expressed concern over Monday’s developments. Jeffrey Feltman, the US special envoy to the Horn of Africa, said Washington was “deeply alarmed” by the reports.
Feltman met with Sudanese officials over the weekend in an effort to resolve the growing dispute between civilian and military leaders. EU foreign affairs chief Joseph Borrell tweeted that he’s following events with the “utmost concern.”
The first reports about a possible military takeover began trickling out of Sudan before dawn Monday. By mid-morning, the Information Ministry confirmed that the prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, had been arrested and taken to an undisclosed location. Several senior government figures were also detained, the ministry said but their whereabouts were unknown.
Hamdok’s office said in a statement on Facebook that he and his wife were detained early on Monday as part of what it described as a “complete coup.” In other hallmarks of a takeover, internet access was widely disrupted and the country’s state news channel played patriotic traditional music.
Among those detained Monday were five senior government figures including Industry Minister Ibrahim al-Sheikh, Information Minister Hamza Baloul, and Mohammed al-Fiky Suliman, a member of the Sovereign Council, as well as Faisal Mohammed Saleh, media adviser to Hamdok. Ayman Khalid, governor of the state containing the capital, was also arrested.
After news of the arrests spread, the country’s main pro-democracy group and two political parties issued appeals to the Sudanese to take to the streets.
