Sudan’s military council head and Defence Minister Awad Ibn Auf resigned on Friday just a day after leading a coup that toppled long-time leader Omar al-Bashir following mass protests. The resignation was announced on state TV. Awad, who sworn in as the head of a transitional military council after Al-Bashir’s exit, named Lt Gen Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan as his successor.
“I, the head of the military council, announce I am giving up the post,” Ibn Auf said, reported Aljazeera.
He explained he took the decision to preserve unity of the armed forces.
“This is for the benefit of our nation, without having to look at special interests, big or small that may impede its progress,” the General said.” I would like to recommend that you work together and reach a solution very speedily.”
Notably, soon after his appointment, General Ibn Auf imposed a three-month state of emergency and declared the transitional body would rule the country for two years.
But, the protestors rejected the coup and installation of the council protesters as they claimed the move did not meet their long-standing demands for a civilian-led government and that the coup leaders were too close to Mr. Bashir. The continued protests forced the head of the transitional military council to resign.
Meanwhile, the army has insisted that it is not seeking power and Sudan’s future would be decided by the protesters.
Mr. Bashir is currently in custody. He has been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over that conflict. Notably, the military hierarchy has already confirmed that they are not going to extradite him to face international criminal charges at The Hague. His downfall followed months of unrest that initially began in December over rising prices. Around 38 people have died in the protests.
