Sudan currently has a joint military-civilian, 11-member sovereign council for the next three years.
Sudanese Prime Minister Abdulla Hamdok (File Photo by ASHRAF SHAZLY / AFP)
Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok survived an assassination attempt involving explosives in the capital Khartoum on Monday, said his top aide. “An explosion hit as Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s car was driving by but thank God no one was hurt,” said Ali Bakhit, his office director.
A cabinet official confirmed Hamdok had escaped an attack according to new agency AFP. Images on state television showed at least two damaged vehicles at the site of the blast in the Kober district, northeast of the centre of Khartoum.
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State TV reported that Hamdok’s convoy was targeted but was currently “well and has been taken to a safe place”. The area was quickly cordoned off by the police. State-run radio Omdurman meanwhile reported that automatic weapons were also used in the attack and that Hamdok was taken “to a hospital”.
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The development comes ahead of Sudan’s one year anniversary of the pro-democratic uprising which ousted the autocratic leader Omar al-Bashir through a military coup. The country still remains in a delicate political situation as the military continues to rule the country despite public outcry for democracy.
Following months of negotiations, the military and the pro-democracy movement reached a power-sharing deal in August which resulted in Hamdouk becoming Prime Minister.
Sudan currently has a joint military-civilian, 11-member sovereign council for the next three years.
The Associated Press reports, “the country faces a dire economic crisis. Inflation stands at a staggering 60% and the unemployment rate was 22.1% in 2019, according to the International Monetary Fund. The government has said that 30% of Sudan’s young people, who make up more than half of the over 42 million population, are without jobs.”
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