Sudan military ruler says to hold elections within nine months

Sudan’s army ruler General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said Tuesday the country’s military rulers had decided to cancel what they had previously agreed with protesters about the country’s transition and hold elections within nine months.   

It came the after Sudan’s military forcefully broke up a weeks-long sit-in outside Khartoum’s army headquarters calling on the country’s ruling generals to hand over to civilian rule, leaving more than 30 dead.   

 “The military council decides to stop negotiating with the Alliance for Freedom and Change and cancel what had been agreed on and to hold general elections within nine months,” Burhan said in a statement broadcast on state television early on Tuesday.   

Burhan added the election would take place under “regional and international supervision”.   

The Transitional Military Council ousted President Omar al-Bashir in April after months of protests against his authoritarian rule.   

It had agreed a three-year transition period for transferring power to a civilian administration and that parliament be composed of 300 members for the transition, with around two-thirds from the protest alliance and the rest drawn from other political groups before talks broke down on 
May 20.   

Thousands of people remained camped outside the military headquarters calling for the generals to cede power before security forces used force to break up the sit-in, leaving some 30 people dead and hundreds wounded, according to doctors close to the protesters. 
KHARTOUM AFP June4, 2019