Sudan's deposed prime minister signed a deal with the military on Sunday that will see him reinstated, almost a month after a military coup put him under house arrest. A key pro-democracy group that has mobilized dozens of protests had dismissed the deal as "a form of betrayal." The country's top general, Abdel Fattah Burhan, said in televised statements that Abdalla Hamdok will lead an independent technocratic Cabinet until elections can be held. It remains unclear how much power the government would hold, the AP reports. It would still remain under military oversight.
It also remains unclear whether any political parties or pro-democracy groups have signed off on the agreement. The deal expects the military to release government officials and politicians arrested since the Oct. 25 coup, which has drawn international criticism. It came more than two years after a popular uprising forced the removal of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir and his Islamist government, has drawn international criticism. "The signing of this deal opens the door wide enough to address all the challenges of the transitional period," said Hamdok, speaking at the signing ceremony broadcast on state TV.
Sudanese have protested since the military takeover, which upended the country's fragile transition to democracy. Hamdok has been held under house arrest by military leaders for weeks. The Sudanese Professionals' Association, a group that played a key role in the uprising against Bashir, voiced vehement opposition to the agreement, accusing Hamdok of committing "political suicide" and calling the deal "an unjust attempt to bestow legitimacy on the latest coup and the military council,” tweeted the group shortly after the deal was signed. The Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change, an umbrella of many political parties and pro-democracy groups, objected to any deals with the military.
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