In an address on state television, Defence Minister Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf said Omar al-Bashir, 75, was under arrest in a “safe place" and a military council was now running the country., who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for 30 years, was on Thursday overthrown in a coup by the armed forces which announced a two-year period of military rule to be followed by elections.
He also said Sudan’s air space would be closed for 24 hours and border crossings shut until further notice. The downfall of Bashir follows the toppling this month of Algerian strongman Abdelaziz Bouteflika, also following mass protests after three decades in power.Here are key dates in Sudan since Omar al-Bashir seized power three decades ago, after he was ousted on Thursday by the military following months of protests against his iron-fisted rule.
The International Criminal Court in 2009 indicts Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur, and a year later for genocide. He denies the charges. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North launches insurgencies in the states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile. In October 2017 the United States ends its 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan, imposed over alleged support for Islamist militants.In early 2018 demonstrations erupt over soaring food prices. They are swiftly dispersed and opposition leaders and activists rounded up.