Sudanese keep up pressure for civilian rule after coup leader resigns

Sudanese people have remained in the streets in the capital Khartoum to push for a civilian rule after Defense Minister Awad Ibn Auf resigned as the head of the ruling military council.

Auf stepped down as head of the transitional military council late Friday, a day after Sudan’s military announced that it had unseated President Omar al-Bashir following almost four months of protests.

Auf named the general inspector of the armed forces, General Abdel Fattah Burhan, as his successor.

Protesters said on Saturday they would keep up pressure for civilian rule, a day after thousands defied a curfew to gather outside the army headquarters in Khartoum.

They also resumed celebrations after Auf's resignation, chanting "The second has fallen!".

PressTV-Sudan coup leader resigns as head of military council

Sudan’s defense minister has resigned as the head of the country’s military council following deadly protests that called for a civilian government.

The Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), the main organizer of the protests, called for the demonstrations to continue on Saturday.

"Today, we continue the march to finish the victory for our victorious revolution," the SPA said in a statement.

"We assert that our revolution is continuing and will not retreat or deviate from its path until we achieve ... our people's legitimate demands of handing over power to a civilian government," it added.

Head of National Intelligence and Security Service resigns

Also on Saturday, Salih Ghosh resigned from his post as the head of Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

The transitional military council said the chief of the transitional military council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, had accepted the resignation of Ghosh.

The council has announced a two-year transition period to civilian rule. Addressing the UN Security Council, Sudan's UN Deputy Ambassador Yasir Abdelsalam said that the military council would support an inclusive civilian-led government.

The head of the military council’s political committee, Omar Zain al-Abideen, also said they would hold a dialogue with various political groups to reach a solution.

Bashir, 75, who ruled over 30 years, took power in a coup in 1989. He had said that he would only move aside for another army officer or at the ballot box.

The protests against Bashir initially erupted on December 19, 2018, in the face of a government decision to triple the price of bread. The demonstrations quickly turned into a mass movement across the country against the president, and finally led to his ouster on Thursday.

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