Sudan’s Military Alliance, Opposition Sign Power-Sharing Deal

Sudan’s Transitional Military Council (TMC) and an opposition alliance signed a political accord on Wednesday as part of a multi-year power-sharing deal until elections can be held. “We want a stable homeland because we have suffered a great deal,” Ibrahim al-Amin, a leader in the opposition Forces of Freedom and Change coalition, said after the ceremony, according to Reuters. The agreement was signed in Khartoum in the presence of the African mediators who had aided the two sides in forging the agreement starting earlier this month. The two sides agreed on a sovereign council led by the military for the first 21 months, followed by civilian rule for the remaining 18 months until elections are held. The TMC and demonstrators had been at loggerheads ever since the overthrow of president Omar Al-Bashir in April. Talks between the two collapsed after a June military raid on a protest site that the opposition says killed 128 demonstrators, although the mediators pushed the two sides to resume discussions. The sides are still working on a constitutional declaration, which is expected to be signed on Friday.