Authorities in Sudan on Tuesday said it has foiled an attempted coup by army officers and civilians loyal to the regime of ousted dictator, Omar Al Bashir.
It was gathered that an unspecified number of troops from the armoured corps were behind the attempt and that they had tried to take over several Government institutions but were repelled
The suspects were said to have tried to take control of a state radio station in Omdurman, across the River Nile from the capital, Khartoum.
Reports say the troops tanks to close a bridge connecting Khartoum with Omdurman early on Tuesday morning.
Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said the aim of the attempted takeover was to derail the country’s transition to democratic rule two years after Al Bashir was removed by the military in the face of mass street protest.
“But our resolve was stronger and going back is impossible,” he told the nation in a televised address.
Recall that Information Minister, Hamza Baloul, sought to reassure the nation that all was in hand.
“We assure the Sudanese people that the situation is fully under control,” Mr Baloul said in a live broadcast on state television. “The civilian and military leaders of the coup attempt have been arrested.”
He said army troops “liquidated the last coup pockets” in Al Shagarah barracks, a sprawling military complex on the outskirts of Khartoum.
“The relevant authorities are continuing to pursue the remnants of the vanquished regime who took part in the failed coup,”he further said.
Hamdok’s later comments came during a joint meeting of his government and the Forces of Freedom and Change, a pro-democracy alliance that mobilised the street protests that paved the way for Al Bashir’s ouster by the military in April 2019.
“The unity of the forces of freedom, revolution and change is both the guarantee for and immunity of a civilian and democratic transition; and realising the objectives of the revolution,” he said.
“The attempted coup requires a full and transparent review of the transition to arrive at a partnership based on the slogans and the principles of the revolution as well as a road that leads only to a democratic and civilian transition.”
According to Mohamed Al Faki Suleiman, a member of the country’s ruling council, the situation has been brought under control.
Many troops, including high-ranking officers, have been arrested in connection to the failed coup.