The Sudanese government said Tuesday it blocked an attempted coup from within the country’s armed forces, according to multiple outlets.
The Sudanese military said the coup attempt started at 3 a.m. local time on Tuesday, with several military units attempting to take over the national radio station, according to the New York Times. An unspecified number of soldiers and 21 officers were arrested, and a search is ongoing, the report added.
Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdook called the plot “an orchestrated coup by parties inside and outside the armed forces” and “an extension of the attempts of the remnants since the fall of the defunct regime to abort the civilian democratic transition.”
“The coup calls for a complete review of the transition experience in full transparency and clarity, and reaching a partnership based on the slogans and principles of the revolution, and a path that leads to a civilian democratic transition and nothing else … What happened is a lesson learned and a reason for a real and serious pause to set things right,” he continued, according to the Sudan News Agency.
Sudanese military officials told Arab media outlets that those arrested were mostly supporters of the Bashir regime and were affiliates of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Brig. Gen. Al-Taher Abu Haja, media adviser to the commander in chief of the armed forces, said the situation was under control, but Hamdook said the failed coup “clearly indicates the need to reform the security and military institutions.”
The attempt comes more than two years after dictator Omar al Bashir was toppled in an uprising, as Sudan’s transitional government, which is shared between civilians and generals, faces a number of other crises.
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Prior to Tuesday’s attempted coup, the Sudanese government faced other societal challenges, including severe economic hurdles, internal division, and security challenges stemming from disputes with Ethiopia.
Bashir is expected to be extradited to the International Criminal Court and stand trial for war crimes.
