Political crisis
Military and civilian groups have been sharing power in the east African country in an uneasy alliance, dubbed the Sovereign Council, since the toppling of long-standing
President Omar al-Bashir in 2019.
But following a
failed coup attempt in September attributed to forces loyal to Bashir, military leaders have been demanding reforms to the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) coalition and the replacement of the cabinet.
Civilian leaders, however, have accused them of aiming for a power grab -- and Sudan is now grappling with the biggest political crisis in its two-year-old transition.
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in front of the presidential palace in Khartoum on October 17
calling for the military to seize power. They were organized by a military-aligned faction of the FFC, and called for Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the armed forces and Sudan's joint military-civilian Sovereign Council, to initiate a coup and overthrow the government.
Days later, thousands of protesters took to the streets in a number of cities
in support of civilian rule within the country's power-sharing government.
Global leaders were watching the unfolding events in Sudan with concern on Monday; the US, EU and UN all urged stakeholders to return to the country's democratic transition process.
The United States said it was "deeply alarmed at reports of a military takeover of the transitional government."
"As we have said repeatedly, any changes to the transitional government by force puts at risk US assistance," Special Envoy Jeffrey Feltman said in a tweet on the official account of the US State Department's Africa Bureau.
Feltman said the alleged military takeover "is utterly unacceptable" and "would contravene the Constitutional Declaration and the democratic aspirations of the Sudanese people."
African Union chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat called for the release of Hamdok and other civilian officials arrested in the apparent coup on Monday.
The UN's Special Representative for Sudan said he was "deeply concerned about reports of an ongoing coup and attempts to undermine Sudan's political transition."
"The reported detentions of the Prime Minister, government officials, and politicians are unacceptable," Volker Perthes said in a statement, adding: "It is the responsibility of these forces to ensure the security and wellbeing of people in their custody."
Perthes has asked all parties to "exercise utmost restraint" and called for them to "return to dialogue" in order to "restore the constitutional order."