Sudan denies reports about new military coup

April 5, 2020 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) issued a statement on Sunday denying press reports on Monday morning about the arrest of several army officers who had been preparing a military coup.

The London based Asharq Alawsat said government officials got reports about preparations by Islamists military elements to take power on 6 April, the day were protesters successfully reached SAF headquarters in April 2019 and staged a sit-in that led to the collapse of the former regime.

“The Sudanese Armed Forces can assure that the situation is stable and there are no indications or suspicions for a coup among the armed forces,” said SAF Spokesman Amer Mohamed al-Hassan.

“We deny this rumour which is harmful to the security of society,” he asserted.

In July 2019, the then Military Council aborted a military coup by Islamist generals and removed prominent army officers known for their links with the former regime.

Also, in October 2019, al-Burhan reformed the army leadership structure. He relinquished the system of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and adopted the General Staff system for the structure of the military command.

Last February, al-Burhan purged 79 military officers from the medium and junior ranks including some Islamists and an officer who was among the first military to join the protest movement in April 2019.

(ST)