Sudan: Bashir, aides charged for plotting the 1989 coup

Agencies

November 13, 2019

Khartoum, Nov 13: Sudanese authorities on Tuesday filed new charges against ousted leader Omar al-Bashir and some of his aides for "plotting" the 1989 coup that brought him to power, the country's protest movement said.

Bashir, who was a brigadier at the time, seized power in an Islamist-backed coup that toppled the then elected government of prime minister Sadiq al-Mahdi.

But Bashir himself was ousted by the army in April after months of nationwide protests against his iron-fisted rule of three decades.

He has already been jailed since, but on Tuesday authorities filed a separate case against him and several of his aides for the 1989 coup.

"Arrest warrants have been issued against all military and civilian members who plotted and carried out the 1989 coup," the legal committee of the protest movement Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) said in a statement.

It said arrest warrants and travel bans were issued against Bashir, and other top figures of his regime, such as Nafa Ali Nafa, Ali Osman Taha and Ibrahim al-Sanousi.

The authorities have also issued an arrest warrant against Ali al-Haj, a senior leader from the Islamist Popular Congress Party, which was an ally of Bashir's government.

Like Bashir, Nafa and Taha are already in prison, while Sanousi and Haj are still free.

The FFC said the prosecutors informed them of the new arrest warrants and travel ban against Bashir and others during a meeting earlier on Tuesday.

A source in the prosecutor's office confirmed to AFP that new arrest warrants had been issued against Bashir and his aides.

The Sudanese Professionals Association, which is part of the umbrella protest movement and initially spearheaded the campaign against Bashir, also posted the FFC statement on Twitter.

If found guilty, the accused could face the death penalty or life imprisonment under Sudanese law.

Bashir is also wanted by The Hague-based International Criminal Court for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for his alleged role in the war in Darfur.

He is currently on trial in a Sudanese court for illegally acquiring and using foreign funds.

Sudan is now ruled by a joint civilian and military sovereign council, which is tasked with overseeing the country's transition to a civilian rule as demanded by the protest movement.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Pak jail authorities say Imran Khan is alive and healthy after ‘murder’ rumours spark panic

News Network

November 27,2025

Authorities at Pakistan’s high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on Wednesday dismissed speculation about the condition of imprisoned former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, rejecting rumours that he had been moved out of the facility or was in danger. Officials said Khan was in “good health” and described the viral death claims as “baseless.”

“There is no truth to reports about his transfer from Adiala Jail,” the Rawalpindi prison administration said in a statement, according to Geo News. “He is fully healthy and receiving complete medical attention.”

Amid swirling rumours on social media, Imran Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), urged the federal government to issue an official clarification and demanded that authorities allow his family to meet him immediately, Dawn reported.

The frenzy began after Khan’s three sisters called for an impartial probe into what they described as a “brutal” police assault on them and other PTI supporters outside Adiala Jail last week. Soon after, several social media handles circulated unverified claims alleging that Khan had been “killed” inside the prison.

The rumours intensified when a handle named “Afghanistan Times” claimed that “credible sources” had confirmed Khan’s “murder” and that his body had been moved out of the jail — allegations that have not been verified by any credible agency.

Imran Khan, PTI’s patron-in-chief, has been lodged in the Rawalpindi prison since August 2023 in multiple cases. For over a month, an undeclared restriction has prevented family members and senior PTI leaders from meeting him. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has reportedly been denied access despite making seven attempts.

In a letter to Punjab Police Chief Usman Anwar, Khan’s sisters — Noreen Niazi, Aleema Khan, and Dr. Uzma Khan — said they were “peacefully protesting” outside the jail when police allegedly launched an unprovoked assault after streetlights were switched off.

“At 71, I was seized by my hair, thrown to the ground and dragged across the road,” Noreen Niazi said, alleging that other women present were also slapped and manhandled.

Adiala Jail officials reiterated that speculation over Imran Khan’s health was unfounded and insisted that his well-being was being ensured, Geo News reported.

Comments