By Khalid Abdelaziz

CAIRO (Reuters), – Thursday’s appointment of Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the chief of the army in Sudan, as the new head for the transitional council to manage the country in the wake the military overthrow late last month. This was despite international and domestic pressure to reverse the takeover.

A new Sovereign Council of 14 is formed, with one member yet to be confirmed. The council includes civils from Sudan’s regions, but not the Forces of Freedom and Change political coalition (FFC), which had shared power with military forces in democratic transitions since 2019.

Burhan’s deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo will continue to command the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. (RSF), both men still holding the same roles as before the coup.

It is expected to increase resistance among civil groups, who pledged to resist takeover by a campaign for civil disobedience strikes mass rallies and civil disobedience.

Hamza Balloul, Sudan’s former Information Minister, called this an extension to the coup. He said in a statement that he was “confident that the Sudanese people can defeat the coup and continue the transition.”

Part of the FFC is the Sudanese Congress Party. They pledged to resist and oppose the coup at all costs.

Representatives of rebel groups are also included in the council, who reached a deal with the government last week but rejected it this week.

On Oct. 25, the takeover of the Omar al-Bashir presidency ended the power-sharing deal between military and civilians, which was intended to bring about elections in the late 2023.

Some high ranking civilians were taken into custody, and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was placed under house arrest.

This council was Sudan’s previous collective head of government, along with Hamdok’s government that ran Sudan’s daily affairs. Burhan and Dagalo were due to transfer its leadership to civilians in the next months.

Since the coup, mediation to secure the release and return to power has been stalled as the military consolidated control. According to political sources, Reuters reported Thursday that indirect contact between Hamdok’s army and Hamdok had not progressed.

Sky News spoke to Aboulkassem Mohmburtum, the new council member representing north Sudan. He said that the government would use the constitution declaration as a basis for the democratic transition. “We are civilians. Civilians are not just Hamdok.” he stated.

Burhan’s office stated that Burhan spoke to Yoweri Mugabe about Thursday’s announcement and said that he is committed to dialog with all political forces as well as the formation of an expeditious technocratic government. Burhan said he has not attempted a coup but promised that elections would be held in 2023.

MEDIC ARRESTED

On Thursday, Sudanese doctor Mohamed Nagi Al-Assam (who rose to prominence in uprising against Bashir) was detained and taken to unknown locations, according to a union of doctors.

According to Assam’s arrest statement, the union stated that the resistance will continue “until coup is defeated and its leaders are tried.”

This union joins other labor organizations and the FFC to call for Saturday’s mass rallies.

A large part of the international community calls for Burhan’s resignation. Western countries and the World Bank have suspended their economic assistance, calling into doubt a deal that would forgive billions in foreign debt.

Thursday’s events were deemed “very worrying” by the United Nations.

According to Josep Borrell, foreign policy chief, Thursday’s statement stated that the European Union was “greatly concerned” about the ongoing and increasing number of arbitrary arrests in Khartoum.

Since Oct. 25, the blackout of internet service in Sudan has hampered civil disobedience movements.

On Thursday, Zain Telecoms and MTN received a second instruction from a judge. The order was to restore connection to the telecoms providers and local providers Sudatel/Canar while damages are announced to subscribers.

Zain, in a statement to Reuters said that the original order was only for certain accounts. The company has reconnected these accounts instantly. According to Zain, the company was still working on Thursday’s orders to restore all lines. Other companies were unable to reach them or didn’t immediately reply to our requests for comment.

Burhan, Dagalo and three additional military members from the former ruling council were kept in the council’s new announcement on Thursday. The civilian representative was also retained, having been selected jointly by the FFC and the military.

Four other members were appointed to represent different parts of the country, although the state media said that the representative from eastern Sudan had yet to be confirmed.