Sudan’s military restructures national police

The head of Sudan’s Transitional Military Council (TMC), Abdel Fatah Al-Burhan, yesterday ordered an organisational restructure across the Sudanese national police apparatus as part of “new governmental amendments,” local media has reported.

The amendments included the appointment of Adil Bashayer as the police’s new director general and Tarifi Idriss as the apparatus’ new deputy.

Burhan’s order also included “upgrading of a number of Sudanese police officers to the rank of lieutenant general as well as improving the working and social conditions of the Central Reserve Police (CRP) officers who had served during the former regime.”

Burhan also referred 29 brigades, 14 mayors to retirement, in addition to deposing some 255 police lieutenants.

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Al-Arabiya said that Burhan’s decisions were part of “recently-pledged police restructure by the TMC,” adding that the new apparatus consisted of 11 brigades.

TMC held a meeting on Monday with the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change (FDFC) – a coalition of opposition groups led by the Sudanese Professionals Association, which has spearheaded the country’s protests since December – to discuss handing over power to a civilian government.

After the meeting, the two sides were divided over what role the military should play in the transitional period, adding that the protestors were demanding a full transfer of power to a civilian government that would govern for four years.

Sudanese army removed deposed president Omar Al-Bashir from power in April after four months of mass protests, but the demonstrators have remained in the streets ever since, demanding the dismantling of his regime.

The military wants to play a leading role in a transition lasting up to two years, while the protesters have demanded an immediate transition to a civilian-led authority.

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Protests in Sudan – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]