Sudan’s Government Faces Challenges of Transition

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Reuters file photo
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Reuters file photo
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Sudan’s Government Faces Challenges of Transition

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Reuters file photo
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Reuters file photo

Sudanese observers and politicians link the sudden and sharp decline in the exchange rate of the Sudanese pound to intelligence agency officers attempting mutiny and protests held by the supporters of Omar al-Bashir’s former regime.

The dollar was selling for 100 Sudanese pounds in cash transactions on Monday compared with 88 pounds a week ago, as the gap with the official rate of 45 to the dollar continues to widen.

Observers and analysts believe that the defectors and protesters are part of an evil Muslim Brotherhood plan that seeks to destabilize security and provoke sedition.

Information Minister Faisal Saleh said that although the mutiny is regrettable, it was not surprising.

Firefights rocked Sudan’s capital on January 14, as members of the General Intelligence Service mutinied against the government.

The rebellion prompted the closure of Khartoum’s airport and raised fears about a coup that could overturn the democratic progress the country has made since a revolution overthrew Bashir last year.

These developments triggered a flurry of speculation about the motives of the mutineers.

Sudan is negotiating a perilous political transition, in which civilians representing the opposition to Bashir share power with representatives of the military junta that overthrew him.

Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan currently heads the Sovereign Council, Sudan’s transitional governance body, pending national elections that are expected to take place in late 2022.

The Sudanese transitional government, headed by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, faces many challenges among which are achieving peace, stopping war, providing security and stability, rebuilding the economy, and ending the living hardships.

Hamdok, in an interview broadcast on state television on Tuesday, said that his government had plans and programs to address crises facing the country.

He also pledged to provide a unique Sudanese experience for national recovery.

Speaking about the mutiny, Hamdok said it was quashed by joint work between the civil and military components of the government.

Sudan-based political analyst Khalaf Allah told Asharq Al-Awsat that the toughest challenge facing the people of Sudan post deposing one of the fiercest known dictatorships is finding the requirements for transition.

Khalaf Allah believes that the economy and peace are, at the moment, the most prominent challenges facing the transitional authority.



Netanyahu Says Significant Progress Made in Talks to Release Hostages

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony on the eve of Israel's Remembrance Day at the Yad LaBanim Memorial in Jerusalem, on April 29, 2025. (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony on the eve of Israel's Remembrance Day at the Yad LaBanim Memorial in Jerusalem, on April 29, 2025. (AP)
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Netanyahu Says Significant Progress Made in Talks to Release Hostages

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony on the eve of Israel's Remembrance Day at the Yad LaBanim Memorial in Jerusalem, on April 29, 2025. (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a ceremony on the eve of Israel's Remembrance Day at the Yad LaBanim Memorial in Jerusalem, on April 29, 2025. (AP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that there had been "significant progress" in efforts to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza, but that it was "too soon" to raise hopes that a deal would be reached.

Despite efforts by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to restore a ceasefire in Gaza, neither Israel nor Hamas has shown willingness to back down on core demands, with each side blaming the other for the failure to reach a deal.

Netanyahu, who has come under pressure from within his right-wing coalition to continue the war and block humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, said in a video statement shared by his office that there had been progress, without providing details.

A source familiar with the negotiations said that Washington had been giving Hamas more assurances, in the form of steps that would lead to an end to the war, but said it was US officials who were optimistic, not Israeli ones. The source said there was pressure from Washington to have a deal done as soon as possible.

The White House National Security Council and representatives for US envoy Steve Witkoff, who is leading US efforts in the ceasefire talks, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Neither did Hamas representatives.

Israel's leadership has said that it would wage war until the remaining 55 hostages held in Gaza are freed and when Hamas, whose October 2023 attack sparked the war, has been dismantled.

Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, has said it would no longer govern after the war if a Palestinian, non-partisan technocratic committee took over, but it has refused to disarm.

The US has proposed a 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Israel said it would abide by the terms, but Hamas has sought amendments. The group has said that it would release all hostages in exchange for a permanent end to the war.

The war in Gaza has raged since Hamas-led gunmen killed 1,200 people in Israel in the October 2023 attack and took 251 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel responded with a military campaign that has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities.