Members of Sudan’s transitional government and other civilian leaders have been arrested amid reports of a military coup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok is among those reported to have been put under house arrest by unidentified soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The army has not commented, but pro-democracy groups urged street protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Military and civilian leaders have been at odds since long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir was overthrown two years ago and the transitional government set up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It remains unclear who was behind the pre-dawn arrests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A statement from the information ministry on Facebook said the detentions were carried out by “joint military forces” and those arrested were being held in “an unidentified location”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It said Mr Hamdok was being pressed to support a coup but was refusing to do so and he urged people to continue with peaceful protests to “defend the revolution”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States was “deeply alarmed” by the coup reports, its special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Witnesses have said the internet is down in the capital, Khartoum, while images have appeared on social media showing angry crowds burning tyres in the streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The army and paramilitary have been deployed across the city, restricting the movement of civilians, a witness is quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Khartoum airport is now closed, and international flights are suspended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sudan’s main pro-democracy group has called on its supporters to resist any military coup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The military and civilian transitional authorities have ruled together since President Bashir was toppled after months of street protests in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A power-sharing deal between the military and a loose coalition of groups – the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) – had been agreed, launching the Sovereign Council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was to rule the country for another year – with the aim of holding elections and transitioning to civilian rule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the deal has always been fractious, with a large number of rival political groups – and divisions within the military too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tensions grew further after\u00a0a coup attempt attributed to followers of Mr Bashir was foiled in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This month, opponents of Sudan’s transition to democracy took to the streets of the capital, Khartoum, to call on the army to take control of the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pro-democracy groups said it was an organised attempt by the military to retake power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last Thursday, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Khartoum to show solidarity with the transitional government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Support for the interim government has slumped in recent months as the country’s economy has struggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sudan has been unable to find a workable political system since independence in 1956 and has seen numerous coups and coup attempts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Members of Sudan’s transitional government and other civilian leaders have been arrested amid reports of a military coup. Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok is among those reported to have been put under house arrest by unidentified soldiers. The army has not commented, but pro-democracy groups urged street protests. Military and civilian leaders have been at odds […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27983,"featured_media":27085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_paywall_metabox":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[161],"tags":[31,148],"class_list":["post-27083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world","tag-featured","tag-sudan"],"yoast_head":"\n