Sudan minister says it’s ‘unrealistic’ to return to pre-coup transitional government

Sudan’s finance minister says it is “unrealistic” for the nation to return to its pre-coup transitional government after the military seized control last month in a move that has drawn sharp international condemnation.

The U.S. and others have urged Sudanese military leaders to come to an agreement in order to restore civilian power in the country, but Gibreil Ibrahim, the finance minister for the new government, told The Associated Press Tuesday that is unlikely. 

“It is rather unrealistic to say, ‘Either we turn to October 23rd or 24th or we are not going to talk to you,’” he said. “There is a new reality, and we need to look into it.”

Negotiations have reportedly been held to get depose Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who is currently under house arrest, in charge of a technocratic Cabinet that could run day-to-day activities, but Hamdok has not accepted the position yet, according to the AP.

“The country cannot wait forever, so if he doesn’t take the job, then someone else will definitely take it,” Ibrahim said. 

The U.S. and World Bank have cut off financial support from Sudan due to the coup, but Ibrahim argued the country should get the backing regardless of who is in charge as long as “the policies are good.”

His comments come as pro-democracy activists and groups have ramped up protests, with the military-controlled government retaliating and killing at least 10 people, the Sudan Doctors Committee said Wednesday, according to the AP. Dozens of others have been wounded.

Sudan’s military established a Sovereign Council last week with no representatives from the Forces of Freedom and Change, the civilian group with which it had been sharing power before the coup.