Army promises to hand over power to civilians

Sudanese military leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has said that the army will relinquish power as soon as civilian political groups in the country reach an agreement on the formation of a new transitional government.

Parties that signed the 5 December framework agreement - which paves way for the formation of a new civilian-led transitional government - are expected to set up committees to work on a new constitution for the country, Gen Burhan said.

He said the timeline for formation of a new government would depend on how fast civilian groups can reach an agreement on outstanding issues.

He insisted that the military “saved the country” on 25 October last year when it toppled a civilian-led coalition government in a coup.

Gen Burhan spoke on Tuesday to several pan-Arab news channels, including Al-Jazeera, Sky News Arabia and Al-Arabia TV.

The latest Sudanese political agreement was signed by the military junta and a faction of the former ruling civilian bloc Forces for Freedom and Change-Central Council (FFC-CC) and allied political groups.

While widely welcomed by the country’s international partners, the deal has been rejected by powerful pro-democracy protest organisers known as Resistance Committees and key pro-military and Islamist groups.

Source: BBC