KHARTOUM (Reuters) – Sudan’s Sovereign Council accepted the resignation of the public prosecutor and relieved the head of the judiciary from her position, a council statement said on Monday.
No reason for the decision was given, though the statement noted that Public Prosecutor Tajalsir al-Hibir had repeatedly asked to step down.
The council made the announcement less than a week after two protesters were killed at demonstrations marking the anniversary of a deadly raid on a protest site during the 2019 uprising that toppled former president Omar al-Bashir.
Reaction to last week’s killings is seen as a test of the fragile relationship between civilian authorities and the military who are now sharing power.
After they happened, Sudan’s civilian transitional cabinet complained of delays in bringing to justice perpetrators of the 2019 raid and of other incidents linked to ex-regime loyalists.
A committee charged with weeding out Bashir loyalists from civil service has dismissed dozens of prosecutors and judges.
Several soldiers suspected over last week’s killings were handed over to civilian authorities for investigation on Sunday, the first time such a transfer has taken place.
Asked about the case during a visit to Paris on Monday, Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said the military leadership had taken swift action in removing the suspects’ immunity.
Those who targeted demonstrators acted individually and would be held to account, said the military head of Sudan’s ruling council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
“The authors of these crimes will be punished … we have committed to protect civilians and to apply the law,” he said.
(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz, Writing by Nayera Abdallah and Aidan Lewis; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Grant McCool)
