By Spy Uganda Correspondent
Sudan: Sudan’s top general, Abdel-Fattah Burhan, said on Tuesday he was keeping ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok at “my home,” in the wake of the military coup led by the army official.
Burhan told a news conference in the capital, Khartoum, that Hamdok was being held there “for his own safety.”
“Yes, we arrested ministers and politicians, but not all” of them, Burhan said, adding that Hamdok was “in good health” and would “return home when the crisis is over.”
PM Office Speaks Out
However, Hamdok’s office has hit back and called for his “immediate” release, as well as that of others who have also been detained as part of the military operation.
The call for the prime minister’s freedom came in a statement from the Information Ministry which appealed for the “liberation of everyone” arrested on Monday. This included Hamdok’s wife, several of his ministers and civilian members of the council that was in charge of the country’s transition to full civilian rule. (Rybelsus)
The office said that Hamdok is still “the executive authority recognized by the Sudanese people and the world.”
Ousted Officials Call For Mass Protests
Meanwhile, the United States has condemned the actions of the military and called for the immediate restoration of the civilian-led transitional government.
According to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, the Biden administration is considering the range of economic tools it has in response to the military coup, and was reported to be in close communication with Gulf states.
The State Department has suspended $700 million (€ 603 million) in aid meant for the transition to democracy.
Coup Necessary To Avoid Civil War, Says Gen Burhan
Burhan stood by the army’s decision to carry out the coup, saying it was required to avoid civil unrest.
“The whole country was suspended due to political rivalries,” he said at the televised news conference on Tuesday. “The experience during the past two years has proven that the participation of political forces in the transitional period is flawed and stirs up strife.”
Meanwhile, three Sudanese ambassadors in Europe have declared their defection and condemned the military coup in their country.
“We completely align ourselves with the heroic opposition [to the coup] followed by the entire world,” said the ambassadors to France, Belgium and Switzerland, declaring their missions as “embassies of the Sudanese people and their revolution.”
