Only one day after Sudan’s longtime autocratic ruler, President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, was ousted by his own defense minister — a close ally — the defense minister announced on state television that he was stepping down as head of the transitional government and would be replaced by yet another military leader.
The move was seen as an effort to assuage the thousands of protesters who have camped outside the country’s military headquarters in the capital, Khartoum, for the last seven days, demanding that a civilian government replace Mr. al-Bashir and his military coterie. This was the second time in two days that the protesters had forced the departure of a ruler they found unacceptable, but it was unclear whether another general would satisfy them.
The defense minister, Lt. Gen. Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf, had proclaimed on Thursday that he was assuming power in a transitional government that would be in place for two years. After protesters in Khartoum expressed outrage and refused to disperse despite an overnight curfew, General Ibn Auf announced on Friday evening that he would be succeeded immediately by Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan Abdel Rahman, general inspector of the armed forces, as head of the transitional council.