Bashir moved from residence to Khartoum’s Kobar prison

KHARTOUM: Deposed former Sudanese president Omar al Bashir has been moved to Kobar prison in Khartoum from the presidential residence, family sources said on Wednesday, and a prison source said he was being held under tight security in solitary confinement. Sudan’s military ousted Bashir after weeks of mass protests that climaxed in a sit-in outside the Defence Ministry compound. Protests are continuing and their leaders say the unrest will not cease until the ruling Transitional Military Council (TMC) hands power to a civilian-led authority ahead of elections. The Sudanese Professionals’ Association (SPA), leading the revolt, has called for sweeping change to end violent crackdowns on dissent, purge corruption and cronyism and ease an economic crisis that worsened during Bashir’s last years in power. In initial steps to tackle corruption, the TMC ordered the central bank to review financial transfers since April 1 and to seize “suspect” funds, state news agency SUNA said on Wednesday. SUNA said the TMC also ordered the “suspension of the transfer of ownership of any shares until further notice and for any large or suspect transfers of shares or companies to be reported” to state authorities. Bashir, 75, had been detained under heavy guard in the presidential residence inside the compound that also houses the Defence Ministry, before being shunted to Kobar prison late on Tuesday, the family sources said. Kobar, just north of central Khartoum adjacent to the Blue Nile river, housed thousands of political prisoners under Bashir’s rule and is Sudan’s most notorious jail. At least some political prisoners have been freed since Bashir’s overthrow, including several SPA figures. Awad Ibn Auf initially headed the TMC before stepping down after one day in the post. Abdel Fattah al Burhan, who has engaged in impromptu dialogue with protesters in the streets of the capital, now heads the council and has promised to hold elections within two years. The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, a rebel movement in the southern states of Blue Nile and South Kordofan, announced it was ceasing all hostilities until July 31 as a “goodwill gesture” following Bashir’s overthrow. SPLM-N leader Abdelaziz Adam al Helew, in a statement conveyed to Reuters in Khartoum, said the move was to help facilitate “the immediate and smooth handover of power to civilians” in Sudan. The SPLM-N had sought to overthrow Bashir and is seeking autonomy for Blue Nile and South Kordofan and a redistribution of wealth and political powers in the country. Bashir ruled Sudan with an iron hand for 30 years after seizing power in a military coup. Uganda will consider offering asylum to Bashir despite his indictment by the International Criminal Court, a foreign affairs official said in Kampala on Wednesday. The head of the TMC’s political committee, Omar Zain al Abideen, said on Friday the council would not extradite Bashir for trial, suggesting he could be tried in Sudan instead. — Reuters