(Reuters) – The formation of a new Sudanese government is expected to take place once the recapture of Khartoum is complete, military sources told Reuters on Sunday, February 9, 2025. This comes a day after army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan announced plans to establish a technocratic wartime government.
The Sudanese army, which has been struggling in its conflict against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has recently regained significant ground in the capital. Advancing along multiple fronts, the army is now approaching the symbolic presidential palace along the Nile.
The RSF, which has expressed support for the creation of a rival civilian administration, has been retreating in the face of the army’s enhanced air capabilities and reinforcements from allied militias.
“We can call it a caretaker government, a wartime government. It’s a government that will help us complete what remains of our military objectives, which is freeing Sudan from these rebels,” Burhan stated during a meeting with army-aligned politicians in Port Sudan on Saturday.
Despite recent losses in Khartoum, the RSF retains control over most of western Sudan and is intensifying efforts to consolidate its hold on the Darfur region, particularly by attempting to capture the city of al-Fashir. Burhan has ruled out a ceasefire during Ramadan unless the RSF halts this offensive.
The conflict, which erupted in April 2023 over disagreements regarding the integration of the two forces, followed their joint removal of civilian leaders who had shared power with them after the overthrow of autocrat Omar al-Bashir.
The war has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, displacing more than 12 million people and leaving half of Sudan’s population facing severe food insecurity.
Burhan indicated that the country’s interim constitution would be amended, and military sources confirmed that these changes would eliminate any references to power-sharing with civilians or the RSF. Under the revised framework, authority would be vested solely in the army, which would appoint a technocratic prime minister responsible for forming a cabinet.
Burhan also urged members of the civilian Taqadum coalition to sever ties with the RSF, stating that they would be welcomed back if they did so.
