Two years after Sudan's strongman dictator Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by the military, media reports indicated a coup was under way in Khartoum early on Monday.
Reuters quoted local media as saying several members of the civilian leadership, including at least four cabinet ministers, several state governors and heads of political parties, had been arrested. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was placed under house arrest, local media said.
Reuters and internet activity-monitoring platforms claimed internet services appeared to be down in Khartoum.
An Al Jazeera correspondent in Khartoum reported "telecommunications access has been restricted” in the country, “so it’s very hard to get information on what’s going on”. "What we do know for sure is that the minister of industry has been arrested. He put out a social media post just a few minutes before his arrest saying that there was a military presence outside his home," Al Jazeera's Hiba Morgan reported.
Al Jazeera reported the arrested leaders included, “Ibrahim al-Sheikh, minister of industry; Hamza Baloul, minister of information; Mohammed al-Fiky Suliman, member of the sovereign council; and Faisal Mohammed Saleh, media adviser to the prime minister”.
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Ties between the military and civilian leadership in Sudan had been strained since a failed coup in September. The coup attempt in September was led by a group of soldiers from the armoured corps who sought to take control of several government institutions.
Sudan has been ruled by a joint civilian and military government after the ouster of al-Bashir. The two sides had agreed to hold elections by 2023.
The transitional government has been under increasing pressure to end wars with rebel groups as it seeks to rehabilitate the country's battered economy, attract much-needed foreign aid and deliver the democracy it promised.
