Sudan’s Transitional Military Council (TMC) has also called for general elections within nine months.

TMC head Abdel Fattah Al Burhan made a speech in the early hours of Tuesday morning, asserting that opposition activists were trying to exclude other political and military forces and trying to “clone another totalitarian regime”, the Sudan Tribune reported.

The military’s call follows Monday’s bloodshed in the capital Khartoum when, according to protesters, 35 people were shot dead by militiamen from the Rapid Response Forces (RPF) as protesters continued their sit-in protest outside military headquarters calling for a civilian government. Regular soldiers were accused of standing by and failing to intervene to help the protesters.

While Burhan spoke of holding elections in nine months, the actual text released by the TMC indicated they would be held in seven months.

In the interim a caretaker government is to be formed to hold former officials accountable for being involved in corruption and other crimes, to create a conducive regional and international environment for the elections and to ensure public freedoms and human rights, the military asserted.

Meanwhile, the opposition FFC on Monday had already announced the suspension of talks with the TMC and subsequently called for a general strike to overthrow the military junta.

The two sides previously failed to reach agreement on the composition of an interim authority with the protesters wanting a civilian majority and the military saying they would not settle for being relegated to defence and security matters alone.

African News Agency (ANA)