Sudan leader says to build professional army under elected civilian authority

KHARTOUM, Sudan

Sudan’s military chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said Sunday he is seeking to build a professional army under an elected civilian authority.

“We want to build professional armed forces that will not participate in politics in the future, and will not stand in the way of the state’s reform process,” al-Burhan said in a speech in the capital Khartoum.

“We want to enable any elected civilian authority to have the armed forces under its command,” he added.

“This is a good opportunity to reform all state agencies,” al-Burhan said. “We are working to build armed forces which have the trust of all Sudanese.”

On December 5, Sudan’s military and political forces signed a framework agreement meant to resolve Sudan’s months-long crisis.

The deal calls for the reform of the military and defense sector, unifying the military and integrating the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary force, into the army.

Sudan has been without a functioning government since October 2021 when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government and declared a state of emergency, a move decried by political forces as a “military coup.”

Sudan’s transitional period that started in August 2019 was scheduled to end with elections in early 2024.

• Army
• Elections
• Sudan