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.



Suspected US Airstrikes in Yemen Kill at Least 4 People Near Hodeidah

A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
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Suspected US Airstrikes in Yemen Kill at Least 4 People Near Hodeidah

A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
A man holds a rifle as protesters, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the annual al-Quds Day (Jerusalem Day) on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Sanaa, Yemen March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Suspected US airstrikes battered Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen into Wednesday, with the militias saying that one strike killed at least four people near the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah.

The intense campaign of airstrikes in Yemen under US President Donald Trump, targeting the militias over their attacks on shipping in Mideast waters stemming from the Israel-Hamas war, has killed at least 65 people, according to casualty figures released by the Houthis.

The campaign appears to show no signs of stopping as the Trump administration again linked their airstrikes on the Iranian-backed Houthis to an effort to pressure Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program. While so far giving no specifics about the campaign and its targets, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt put the overall number of strikes on Tuesday at more than 200.

“Iran is incredibly weakened as a result of these attacks, and we have seen they have taken out Houthi leaders,” Leavitt said. “They’ve taken out critical members who were launching strikes on naval ships and on commercial vessels and this operation will not stop until the freedom of navigation in this region is restored.”

Overnight, a likely US airstrike targeted what the Houthis described as a “water project” in Hodeidah governorate's Mansuriyah District, killing four people and wounding others. Other strikes into Wednesday targeted Hajjah, Saada and Sanaa governorates, the militias said.