On 25 October 2021, the Sudanese military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, took control of the Government of Sudan in a military coup. At least five senior government figures were initially detained. Civilian Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok refused to declare support for the coup and on 25 October called for popular resistance; he was confined to house arrest on 26 October. Internet outages were reported. Later the same day, the Sovereignty Council was dissolved, a state of emergency was put in place, and a majority of the Hamdok Cabinet and a number of pro-government supporters were arrested. As of 5 November 2021, the list of those detained included "government ministers, members of political parties, lawyers, civil society activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and protest leaders", who were held in secret locations, without access to their families or lawyers.
Key civilian groups including the Sudanese Professionals Association and Forces of Freedom and Change called for civil disobedience and refusal to cooperate with the coup organisers. Protests started on 25 and 26 October against the coup and at least 10 civilians were reported as being killed and over 140 injured by the military during the first day of protests. Protests and strikes continued, with 200,000 to 2,000,000 protestors participating around Sudan on 30 October and 15 shot dead by security forces in protests organised by the Sudanese resistance committees on 17 November.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Information and the Prime Minister's Office refused to recognise the transfer of power, stating that the coup was a crime and that Hamdok remained prime minister. On 26 October, the African Union suspended Sudan's membership, pending a return to power of the Hamdok government. On 27 October, the European Union, the United States and other western powers stated that they continued to recognise the Hamdok cabinet as "the constitutional leaders of the transitional government" and insisted on their ambassadors having access to Hamdok.
Faced with internal and international resistance, al-Burhan declared his willingness to restore the Hamdok Cabinet on 28 October, although the deposed Prime Minister declined this initial offer, making any further dialogue conditional on the full restoration of the pre-coup system. On 21 November 2021, Hamdok and al-Burhan signed a 14-point deal that reinstated Hamdok as prime minister and stated that all political prisoners would be freed. Civilian groups including Forces for Freedom and Change and the Sudanese Professionals Association rejected the deal, refusing continued power-sharing with the military. Hamdok resigned on 2 January 2022 amid continuing protests.
Background
2019 coup and revolution
President Omar al-Bashir, who had ruled the country since the 1989 coup, was overthrown by the military in April 2019 after weeks of mass protests, with the Transitional Military Council (TMC) taking power. Protests continued for some months. The Khartoum massacre took place in June. The protestors represented by the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) agreed to a power-sharing deal with the military, creating the Sovereignty Council in August 2019 and the Abdalla Hamdok government in November 2019. According to the TMC–FFC agreement, the transition process would last three years and three months. The Sovereignty Council was to be led by a military figure for 21 months, followed by a civilian leader for 18 months. The handover was planned to take place in November 2021.
September coup attempt
In September 2021, a military coup attempt was thwarted by the government. According to the Minister of Information, the perpetrators were "remnants of the former regime" who tried to take control of the state broadcasters television buildings and the military central command. Following the incident, 40 officers were arrested. Since then, tensions between the military and civilian leaders rose as military leaders started demanding reforms to the FFC coalition and called for the replacement of the cabinet.
October 2021 pre-coup protests
On 16 October, pro-military protests organized by the Charter of the National Accord were held in Khartoum, during which protestors demanded a military coup. They were allowed to reach the gates of the presidential palace with a negligible police presence. They called for General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, chair of the Sovereignty Council, to seize control and take over the country. The pro-military protesters continued their sit-in outside the presidential palace in Khartoum through to 21 October.
On 21 October, hundreds of thousands of pro-civilian protestors in cities around Sudan including Khartoum, Omdurman, Port Sudan and Atbara took to the streets in support of the civilian government. Following the demonstrations, Ibrahim al-Sheikh, a senior member of FFC, called on al-Burhan to resign, arguing that al-Burhan had ordered the use of force against a sit-in by protestors despite having promised not to. FFC had five issues of disagreement with military leaders: security reform, commercial activities by the military, forming a constitutional court, appointing an attorney-general and chief justice, and the transfer of the Chair of the Sovereignty Council to a civilian.
On 24 October, pro-military protesters blocked some roads and bridges in Khartoum. Security forces used tear gas to disperse the crowds.
Negotiations and coup proposal
Sudanese prime minister Abdalla Hamdok tried negotiating between civilian and military groups following the September coup attempt.
On 26 November, General Hemedti stated in an Al Jazeera English interview that during the negotiations, both Hamdok and the military had made proposals, and that Hamdok had been aware of the plan for the coup that was later implemented. Hemedti stated, "What happened on October 25 was the ultimate outcome of a long process. Many discussions were made, and many initiatives proposed. ... We were left with three options, the best of which was the move we took, and it was completely agreeable to the prime minister himself. We did not make such a move on our own." Hamdok had earlier denied being aware of the plans for a military coup.
Events
Coup takes place and government dissolved
Around dawn on 25 October 2021, Sudan's military arrested at least five senior Sudanese government figures. Later, internet outages across Sudan were reported.
According to a Reuters witness, members of the Rapid Support Forces were stationed on the streets of Khartoum during the time of the coup.
Later that day, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan declared a state of emergency and announced the dissolution of the government and the Sovereignty Council. In a televised address, he stated that a new technocratic government would lead the country until the next elections, to be held in July 2023. A day after the coup, al-Burhan said that his actions were justified to avoid a civil war in Sudan. He stated that the armed forces had had no option apart from arresting politicians who were allegedly carrying out "incitement" against the military. Al-Burhan denied that he had carried out a coup d'état, but was rather "trying to rectify the path of the transition".
According to Sudan Tribune, al-Burhan replaced "state governors, undersecretaries in the federal ministries, banks and public agencies directors" by members of the National Congress Party that held power under former president Omar al-Bashir.
Arrests of government members
Military forces placed civilian Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok under house arrest after besieging his home. Hamdok was pressured to make a statement supporting the coup, which he refused. He called for Sudanese to resist the coup and "defend their revolution". In response to his refusal to support the coup, Hamdok was moved with his wife on 25 October to an unknown location. On 26 October, al-Burhan said that Hamdok was being detained in al-Burhan's own home to protect Hamdok from "danger".
On 25 October, Industry Minister Ibrahim al-Sheikh, the governor of Khartoum, Ayman Khalid and Information Minister Hamza Baloul were also taken into custody. Also arrested was a member of the ruling Sovereignty Council, Mohammed al-Fiky Suliman, and Faisal Mohammed Saleh, a media adviser to the prime minister. As of 25 October 2021, the location of the detainees is unknown. Witness reports stated that the military had been deployed across the capital, restricting the movement of civilians. International flights were suspended after the closure of Khartoum airport.
Resistance to the coup, arrests, and killings of civilians
The coup was met with resistance from pro-democracy Sudanese civilians, some of whom took to the streets of Khartoum in protest. The Sudanese Professionals Association and FFC, two of the coalitions that coordinated the Sudanese Revolution, called for mass civil disobedience and refusal to cooperate with the coup. The National Umma Party similarly denounced the arrests of the government ministers and called on the public to protest in the streets. The Sudanese Communist Party advocated for a workers' strike and mass civil disobedience.
Following the arrest of the prime minister and civilian leaders, demonstrators started gathering in the streets of Khartoum, lighting car tires and setting up roadblocks. Chants by the protestors included "the people are stronger", "retreat [to military rule] is impossible", "We are revolutionaries. We are free. We will complete the journey." A number of schools, banks and businesses were closed.
Some gunfire around Khartoum occurred throughout 25 October. According to the Information Ministry, the army used live rounds to disperse the protesters in the 25 October protests. Military forces tried to remove protestors' barricades and attacked civilians. The Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors reports that soldiers fired on protestors outside the Sudanese army headquarters in Khartoum, killing at least three people and injuring more than 80 people. Seven civilians were killed and over 140 injured during the protests. Military forces as well as gangs of thugs in plainclothes beat demonstrators in the street, with some being severely injured, and others being injured by cars driven into demonstrators. Medical personnel in Khartoum reported rebuffing demands from gun-wielding soldiers to hand over wounded demonstrators to them. Security forces conducted house-to-house arrests of protest organizers. The Socialist Doctors' Association stated that the Royal Care hospital near army headquarters was in "urgent need of blood". Three hundred protestors were arrested.
Plans for continued protests called the "Revolutionary Escalation Schedule" were published by the Joint Chamber of the Marches of the Millions for Civilian rule and Democratic Transition. The plans included vigils on highways and in front of government buildings and embassies, nightly marches starting on 29 October and mass protests on 30 October throughout Sudan, calling for a full transfer of power to civilians.
Protests continued on 26 October, with protestors chanting slogans, blocking roads and burning tyres. There was civil disobedience, and schools, shops and petrol stations were closed in Geneina. Protests outside of the capital took place in Omdurman, Atbara, Dongola, El Obeid, Port Sudan, Gezira, and Red Sea State. Protests continued on 27 October in Khartoum and Atbara. "Most government and educational institutions were in complete paralysis" and travel between Khartoum and the states of Sudan had mostly stopped. Security forces used live fire while trying to remove protestors' road blocks in Khartoum. Demonstrations became large in Khartoum in the evening. Mass protests and strikes continued during 28 and 29 October.
On 30 October, mass protests called "Marches of the Millions" took place around Sudan against the coup. Notwithstanding the difficulties of compiling the actual numbers during the ongoing Internet and telecommunications blackout, The Guardian estimated the numbers as "hundreds of thousands", and Mada Masr spoke of "millions". Security forces used teargas and live bullets against protestors and set up barbed wire barricades. Protestors' chants included "No, not to military rule" and called for al-Burhan to be arrested and held in Kobar Prison. Protestors held pictures of al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) covered in red. Three unarmed protestors were shot dead outside the parliament building in Omdurman, one dying from a chest wound in hospital. Injuries sustained by protestors included head and neck gunshot wounds and trauma from beatings with batons. Treatment for tear gas exposure was needed. One protestor was run over by a military vehicle. Protestors carried banners in support of Hamdok and criticising Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Protestors held signs stating, "the Emirates will not govern us, nor the implementation of Sisi."
On 31 October, security forces assaulted protestors, forcing them to dismantle street barricades. The protestors rebuilt the barricades. Governmental and educational institutions, banks and shops remained closed. The resistance committees, the Sudanese Bankers Association, the Bank of Khartoum and the Democratic Lawyers Alliance called for continued strikes and civil disobedience.
On 4 November, three FFC members, Taha Osman, Hamza Farouk and Sharif Mohamed Osman, were arrested shortly after they met with Volker Perthes, head of United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS). On 5 November, the list of those detained included "government ministers, members of political parties, lawyers, civil society activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and protest leaders", and the detainees were held in unknown locations, without access to their lawyers or families, according to Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.