A military court in Sudan sentenced former chief of staff of the Sudanese armed forces, Hashim Abdel Muttalib, to nine years in prison on Monday over the 2019 attempted coup.
A source familiar with the military court ruling told Sputnik about the case. The source revealed that Abdel Muttalib was retired after having his military rank downgraded. Three years ago, Abdel Muttalib was named chief of staff by the transitional military council that seized power after al-Bashir’s ouster.
According to The Print, the court also sentenced three colonels and two other officers to a five-year prison sentence. They were working for the military and the national intelligence and security services. Three soldiers of the Sudanese armored corps were acquitted.
The judgment needs the approval of Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the country’s top general. He became de facto head of state after the 2019 ouster of strongman Omar al-Bashir. He commanded Sudan’s ground forces before Bashir made him inspector general of the army in February 2019, two months before the military removed Bashir from power.
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In February, the Unionist Alliance party said Mohammed Al-Faki Suliman, a former member of the ruling Sovereign Council, was detained in Khartoum by the officials. Suliman was the deputy head of a government-run agency tasked with dismantling the legacy of former autocratic President Bashir’s regime.
Protests erupted again in Sudan
Separately, thousands of Sudanese took to the streets again on Monday to protest against the October military coup and the arrest of scores of pro-democracy activists. They rallied in Khartoum and other cities, including Atbara in the north. The latest protest also took place after the military rulers last week floated the local currency. It caused sharp hikes in the prices of basic commodities.
A similar protest took place last week. The protests coincided with International Women’s Day. Reportedly, officers fired tear gas to stop thousands of protesters.
