UN security council meeting this afternoon to discuss Sudan
By Juba Echo &Agencies
The United Nations Security Council has scheduled an emergency closed-door meeting on the coup in Sudan for today afternoon.
The consultations were requested by the United States, United Kingdom, France, Ireland, Norway and Estonia, says UN envoy to Sudan Volkher Perthes during a video link briefing to reporters in New York where he expressed his intentions to brief the 15 member council on the developments in Sudan.
“Council members are considering asking the broader UN membership to adopt a joint declaration”, the diplomat said.
Sudan’s military seized power Monday, arresting the prime minister and other officials of the transitional government, sparking protests by thousands of demonstrators across the country demanding a return to civilian rule. The takeover threatened the country’s shaky progress toward democracy.
The Council members are also scheduled to discuss the disputed Abyei region on the Sudan-South Sudan border Wednesday.
Global Condemnation
In Washington, the Biden administration has suspended $700 million in emergency assistance to Sudan pending a review of the developments in Khartoum according to State Department spokesman Ned Price.
The administration demands the release of all officials detained and condemned the military takeover and dissolution of a transitional civilian-led authority which led to the arrest of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Price said.
The UN secretary General Antonio Guiterres also condemned the coup and called for the immediate release of the Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok.
“The secretary General calls for the immediate reconstitution of the governing arrangements provided for under the Constitutional Document”, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
There were also widespread condemnations of the coup from around the world including Nigeria and many European powers meanwhile most of the Arab world have called for restraint from the military leaders.
