Islamic leader questioned about 1989 Sudan coup

The Sudanese Public Prosecution detained prominent Islamic leader Ahmed Abdelrahman yesterday. He was questioned about his involvement in Omar Al Bashir’s military coup on June 30, 1989.

Abdelrahman was released on bail after he pledged not to leave Sudan.

On June 22 last year, the Public Prosecutor listened to the statement of the head of the National Umma Party, El Sadig El Mahdi, following a complaint filed against Al Bashir and his aides on charges of "undermining the constitutional order" during the 1989 military coup.

In the last quarter of 2019, the Public Prosecution began investigating those involved in the 1989 military coup against the democratically-elected government of Prime Minister El Sadig El Mahdi and President Ahmed El Mirghani. The coup was led by military officer Omar Al Bashir, who would rule the country for almost 30 years. He was deposed by the army on April 11 last year.

On March 31, the public prosecutor formally charged Al Bashir, several of his senior military aides, and several Islamist leaders with undermining the constitutional order.

Charges were brought against Omar Al Bashir, Bakri Hasan Saleh, Feisal Madani, Osman Hasan, Suliman Mohamed Suliman, Feisal Abusaleh, Ahmed El Naw, Mohamed Jami, Yousef Abdelfattah, El Tijani El Tahir, Abdelrahim Hussein, Younes Mahmoud, Abdallah Abdelmutalab, and Ibrahim Nayil, who were all in the armed forces.

The head of the committee investigating the 1989 military coup, Seifelyazal Sirri, said that he had also charged top Islamic leaders Ibrahim El Sanousi, Ali Osman Taha, Nafi Ali Nafi, Zubeir El Hasan, Ali El Haj and Awad El Jaz.

They have all been detained since April 11. In May 2019, former First Vice President Bakri Hasan Saleh was summoned for questioning about the coup. He was detained after he refused to respond questions of the investigating committee. That same month Omar Al Bashir was charged with the killing of demonstrators in the months before he was ousted.

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