Failed coup attempt in Sudan, State media reports

An attempted coup in Sudan "failed" early Tuesday, state media reported.

"There has been a failed coup attempt, the people should confront it," state media reported. 

A top government source said the plotters had attempted to take over the state media building but "they failed". 

A senior military source said a group of officers "were involved in the attempt but were immediately suspended." 

It was reported that tanks moved in front of the military hospital in Omdurman and closed the road towards the old Omdurman Bridge, next to the Sudanese parliament, amid a heavy deployment of military forces in the area.

Sources said that the coup attempt was planned to launch in more than one area of the capital Khartoum.

Traffic appeared to be flowing smoothly in central Khartoum on Tuesday, including around army headquarters, where months of mass protests prompted the ouster of veteran president Omar al-Bashir in a palace coup two years ago. 

Sudanese security forces did however close the main bridge across the Nile connecting Khartoum to its twin city Omdurman. 

Muhammad al-Faki Suleiman, a member of the Sudanese Sovereign Council and the official spokesman for the Council, appealed to all Sudanese to defend the country.

In a comment posted on his Facebook account, he said: "Run to defend your country and protect the transition."

However, he returned and added in a later comment: "Things are under control and the revolution is victorious."

He also confirmed that the state would interrogating suspects behind the coup attempt shortly, adding that a statement would be issued by the army.

Transitional government

Sudan is currently ruled by a transitional government composed of both civilian and military representatives that was installed in the aftermath of Bashir's April 2019 overthrow and is tasked with overseeing a return to full civilian rule. 

Deep political divisions and chronic economic problems inherited from the Bashir regime have overshadowed the fragile transition. 

In recent months, the government has undertaken a series of tough economic reforms to qualify for debt relief from the International Monetary Fund. 

The steps, which included slashing subsidies and a managed float of the Sudanese pound, were seen by many Sudanese as too harsh. 

Sporadic protests have broken out against the IMF-backed reforms and the rising cost of living.

Tension

Observers believe that the coup attempt is closely related to the tension that is taking place in the states of eastern Sudan.

Some areas in the region, including the states of the Red Sea, Kassala and Gedaref, witnessed tensions and clashes after some tribes rejected the peace agreement.

Yesterday, protesters closed the country's main port on the Red Sea again, and the road linking Port Sudan with the rest of the country's states, in protest against the peace agreement signed by the government last year.

It is noteworthy that in October 2020, the Sudanese transitional government signed a historic peace agreement in Juba, South Sudan, with a number of movements that took up arms during the era of former President al-Bashir.

In the same month, after the signing, the Beja tribes in the east of the country, considered one of the poorest parts of Sudan, protested and closed Port Sudan for several days, protesting their exclusion from the deal.