Sudan leaders say attempted coup was thwarted

Sudanese authorities on Tuesday said they were able to thwart an attempted coup carried out by supporters of deposed President Omar al-Bashir.

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok said the insurrection that took place early on Tuesday was “an extension of previous attempts” to overthrow the transitional government that was put in place after al-Bashir was ousted from power in 2019.

“They tried to take advantage of the situation in different towns by closing the ports and the roads. They took advantage of the national crisis and tried to stop us from moving forward during this transitional period,” Hamdok said, Al Jazeera reported.

Political divisions and problems lingering from al-Bashir’s time in office have overshadowed the transitional government, Al Jazeera noted. The Sudanese government has recently sought economic reforms in order to qualify for debt relief from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Sudan’s Information Minister Hamza Baloul said that both military officers and civilians were part of the attempted coup.

“We brought under control a coup attempt by military officers early Tuesday,” said Baloul, adding that authorities have “arrested leaders of the failed plot, which involved military officers and civilians belonging to the defunct regime.”

Al Jazeera reported that 11 military officers were arrested. A Sudanese government official told the news outlet that the government was made aware of the coup attempt on Monday evening.

Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, released a statement on Tuesday condemning the attempted coup.

“The Secretary-General condemns the attempted coup d’état in Khartoum on 21 September. Any effort to undermine Sudan’s political transition will jeopardize the hard-earned progress made on the political and economic fronts,” said Dujarric.

“The Secretary-General calls on all parties to remain committed to the transition and the realization of the aspirations of the Sudanese people for an inclusive, peaceful, stable, and democratic future,” he added.