SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Sudan Tribune – Sudan’s Ansar sect disapproves Hamdok-Hilu agreement

11/9/2020: Sudan Tribune – Sudan’s Ansar sect disapproves Hamdok-Hilu agreement

 Sudan Tribune reports that al-Ansar sect, the religious arm of National Umma Party (NUP), criticised the joint agreement between Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North faction leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu on the relationship between religion and the state.

 Ansar Mosque preacher Adam Ahmed Youssef said the agreement was "a violation of the transitional government’s mission,” which he said is “limited” to: securing livelihoods, dismantling Omar al-Bashir’s regime, preparing for free and fair elections, fighting corruption, recovering stolen money, and ensuring a stable purchasing power of the national currency.

 Youssef’s state contradicts a previous statement by sect leader Sadiq al-Mahdi, who voiced his support to the agreement.

 Sudan Tribune note that the al-Hilu-Hamdok agreement will not be valid unless concerned parties (Forces for Freedom and Change and the military component of the government) endorse it. Al-Hilu and Hamdok agreed to informally discuss the issues before resuming formal negotiations.