SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: New York Times - Concerns of a Coup Stir in Sudan as Capital Braces for a Virus Lockdown

17/4/2020: New York Times - Concerns of a Coup Stir in Sudan as Capital Braces for a Virus Lockdown, by Declan Walsh

 Declan Walsh cites disputes between Sudan’s military and civilian leaders over measures to counter the spread of coronavirus in Khartoum to underscore the “fragility” of Sudan’s democratic transition.

 Walsh notes the confrontation between Prime Minister Hamdok and Khartoum governor Lt. Gen Ahmed Abdoun Hamad, after the latter defied orders to cancel Friday prayers.

 Walsh reports that senior Sudanese officials contacted western officials and local journalists to warn that they feared the military would use the coronavirus lockdown to seize power. However, a senior US official said Sudan’s “jittery” civilian leaders had “so frequently warned of a possible coup in Khartoum that they had become akin to the boy who cried wolf.”

 Civilian officials have also said that coronavirus has put them at a disadvantage since they now could not mobilise supporters lest they risk spreading the virus.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Radio Dabanga - Sudan to take 'firm action' against Al Bashir supporters

17/4/2020: Radio Dabanga - Sudan to take 'firm action' against Al Bashir supporters

 Radio Dabanga reports that Sudan’s Cabinet has ordered strict measures against al-Bashir supporters who continue to demonstrate in Khartoum.

 Minister of Industry and Trade Madani Abbas Madani said that his Cabinet colleagues agreed that supporters of the defunct regime “should not be allowed to occupy the spaces of freedom that the Sudanese people have extracted from the same former regime, and to overthrow the democratic path in Sudan”.

 The ministers emphasised the need for Sudan’s security forces “to deal firmly with these outlaws who do not take into account the health, political, and economic situation in the country.”

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Economist - Sudan and Algeria overthrow despots but not their political systems

17/4/19: Economist – Sudan and Algeria overthrow despots but not their political systems

The Economist piece argues that true change will only come in Sudan if prevailing political systems are completely overturned.

 The Economist suggests that the military handing over power to civilians is unlikely, and that it would not equate to a definite positive outcome - implying that Al Bashir’s fall not translate to a transition towards democracy, as civil war or even a new dictatorship may come to rise.

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Washington Post - Sudan's upheaval is the latest example of a 'gray-zone coup'

17/4/19: Washington Post – Sudan’s upheaval is the latest example of a ‘gray-zone coup’

 Nandita Balakrishnan, an international relations PhD candidate at Stanford University, argues that Omar Al Bashir’s upheaval was the result of the military coercing Al Bashir into negotiated settlement: thus falling into the “gray-zone” between a military coup and negotiated settlement.

 The article highlights how Al Bashir tried to “coup-proof” his regime by purging the military of his rivals, stacking the military those who share his ethnicity, and giving military leaders preferential political and financial treatment.

 However, Balakrishnan suggests that Al Bashir miscalculated his military’s will or capacity to remove him, as well as his inner circle’s loyalty, thereby making him unwilling to negotiate. She also raises the possibility of Al Bashir waiting for a better negotiated settlement, but capitulating after the military made a show of force.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters - Uganda says it is willing to consider asylum for Sudan's ousted leader

17/4/19: Reuters – Uganda says it is willing to consider asylum for Sudan’s ousted leader

Uganda will consider offering asylum to ousted Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir despite his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC). “Uganda would not be apologetic at all for considering an application by Bashir,” Okello Oryem, Uganda’s state minister for foreign affairs, told Reuters in Kampala.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters - Sudan’s military council orders seizure of “suspect” funds – state news agency

17/4/19: Reuters – Sudan’s military council orders seizure of “suspect” funds – state news agency

Sudan’s ruling Transitional Military Council ordered the central bank to review financial transfers since April 1 and to seize “suspect” funds, state news agency SUNA reported.

 The TMC ordered the “suspension of the transfer of ownership of any shares until further notice and for any large or suspect transfers of shares or companies to be reported” to authorities.

 In a separate decree, the council said all state entities should disclose financial holdings within 72 hours, and that those who did not comply could be fined and face up to 10 years in prison.

The decree applies to bank accounts and holdings of foreign currency as well as precious metals and jewellery inside and outside Sudan.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Multiple sources - Sudan ex-president Omar Al Bashir moved to prison

17/4/19: Multiple sources – Sudan ex-president Omar Al Bashir moved to prison

BBC

Reuters

CNN

Sudan's former President Omar Al Bashir has been moved to Kobar maximum security prison. Reports say the ex-leader has until now been detained at the presidential residence under heavy guard. He is reportedly being held in solitary confinement and is surrounded by tight security.