Sudan's Ruling Military and Civilians Have Signed a Power-Sharing Deal

TheBBC reports that a power-sharing deal has been signed between the ruling Transition Military Council (TMC) and protest leaders representing the Sudanese people. The deal, which confirms an agreement made earlier this month, will see the military ruling for the first 21 months and power then transferred to civilians for the 18 months leading up to elections.

This power-sharing deal comes just a few days after thousands of protesters took to the streets in "Justice First" rallies and held night vigils in remembrance of over 100 protesters who were killed during the military-led deadly crackdown of June 3rd.

There have been continued talks between the TMC and protest leaders after civilians demanded that the military cede power over to them. However, the military has controversially stood by their stance that their rule is only to ensure that "order is maintained" and that threats to the country's security are minimized.

Back in April, protesters rejected the two-year power-transfer deal and resumed protests which ultimately saw the violent dispersal of protesters in Khartoum by the military.

According to IOL, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo of the TMC has referred to the signing of the deal as a "historic" moment and Ethiopian mediator Mohamoud Dirir called it a "great moment for the people of Sudan", some protesters feel aggrieved by the fact that the same military which has killed well over 100 Sudanese civilians, will retain power at the beginning of this deal.