عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Trials of 1989 Coup Sudanese Leaders to Begin

: Former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech inside Parliament in Khartoum, Sudan April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo
: Former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech inside Parliament in Khartoum, Sudan April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo
TT
TT

Trials of 1989 Coup Sudanese Leaders to Begin

: Former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech inside Parliament in Khartoum, Sudan April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo
: Former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech inside Parliament in Khartoum, Sudan April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

Sudan’s judiciary authorities announced that it will be launching the public trial of deposed president Omar al-Bashir and dozens of his regime’s leaders, accused of staging a coup against the country’s democracy in 1989.

Since his ouster, Bashir and many of his aides have been kept in Khartoum's Kober prison on multiple charges. Former officials Ali Othman Taha, Ahmed Mohamed Haroun and Abdulreheem Mohamed Hussein have been held in Khartoum’s Kober prison since Bashir’s military ouster.

Some of the held officials were released on bail.

On Monday, Public Prosecution referred five cases in which investigations were completed. They included three corruption cases involving Abdullah Hassan Ahmed Al-Bashir (Bashir’s brother) and Muhammad Othman Kabir.

A case of premeditated murder in which the accused is a Rapid Support Forces officer was also referred.

The judiciary has indicated it will provide courtrooms and judges to conduct the trials. It stressed that the courts will observe coronavirus precautions.

Bashir, who ruled the country for 30 years and was deposed by a military coup on April 11, 2019, was convicted on charges of corruption and currency irregularities in December 2019. He was sentenced to two years in a ‘correctional facility’ designed for older prisoners.

Bashir has also been charged with incitement and involvement in the killing of demonstrators during the protests that led to his removal from power. In December he was questioned about his role in the 1989 coup that brought him to power.

The Attorney General Tajelsir El Hibir said earlier on Monday that the Investigation Committee into the violent break-up of the Khartoum sit-in on June 3, 2019, has so far questioned more than 1,000 witnesses. The Public Prosecution cannot interfere with or influence the committee’s work.

He appealed to the international community to cooperate with Sudan in extraditing indictees who now live abroad.

The National Judicial Service Commission reinstated 25 judges in the Supreme Court. They had been dismissed arbitrarily during the period of Bashir's rule.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

FM: Iraq Wants Iran-backed Factions to Lay Down Weapons

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
TT
TT

FM: Iraq Wants Iran-backed Factions to Lay Down Weapons

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein speaks during an interview in London, Britain, January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Marissa Davison

Iraq is trying to convince powerful armed factions in the country that have fought US forces and fired rockets and drones at Israel to lay down their weapons or join official security forces, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.

The push comes with a backdrop of seismic shifts in the Middle East that have seen Iran's armed allies in Gaza and Lebanon heavily degraded and Syria's government overthrown.

The incoming US Trump administration promises to pile more pressure on Tehran, which has long backed a number of political parties and an array of armed factions in Iraq.

Some Baghdad officials are concerned the status quo there may be upended next, but Hussein played this down in an interview with Reuters during an official visit to London.

"We don't think that Iraq is the next," Hussein said.

The government was in talks to rein in the groups while continuing to walk the tightrope between its ties to both Washington and Tehran, he said.
"Two or three years ago it was impossible to discuss this topic in our society," he said.

But now, having armed groups functioning outside the state was not acceptable.

"Many political leaders, many political parties started to raise a discussion, and I hope that we can convince the leaders of these groups to lay down their arms, and then to be part of the armed forces under the responsibility of the government," Hussein said.

Iraq's balancing act has been tested by Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups' attacks on Israel and on US troops in the country they say are in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war.

A promised Gaza ceasefire has the government breathing a sigh of relief, though uncertainty prevails over how the country may fare after Donald Trump becomes US president.

During the last Trump presidency, relations grew tense as he ordered the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020, leading to an Iranian ballistic missile attack on an Iraqi base housing US forces.

"We hope that we can continue this good relationship with Washington," Hussein said. "It is too early now to talk about which policy President Trump is going to follow for Iraq or Iran."

Iraq will only be reassured about Syria when it sees an inclusive political process, Hussein said, adding Baghdad would supply the country with grain and oil once it could be assured it would go to all Syrians.
Baghdad was in talks with Syria's foreign minister over a visit to Iraq, he said.

"We are worried about the ISIS, so we are in contact with the Syrian side to talk about these things, but at the end to have a stable Syria means to have the representative of all components in the political process."

Baghdad and Washington last year agreed to end the US-led coalition's work by September 2026 and transition to bilateral military ties, but Hussein said that the developments in Syria would have to be watched.

"In the first place, we are thinking about security of Iraq and stability in Iraq. If there will be a threat to our country, of course it will be a different story," he said.