UN chief hopes Sudanese premier’s appointment leads to formation of broad-based government
Antonio Guterres underscores that consensus efforts must be prioritized and lead to 'tangible progress' for benefit of all Sudanese people, says spokesman
WASHINGTON
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres took note of the appointment of Kamil Eltayeb Idris as prime minister of Sudan, his spokesman said Tuesday.
Guterres "hopes the appointment will serve as the first step towards inclusive consultations aimed at forming a broad-based technocratic government and forging peace," Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
The statement came a day after the Chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, appointed Idris as prime minister.
Dujarric added that Guterres underscores that consensus efforts must be prioritized and lead to "tangible progress" for the benefit of all Sudanese people, including by "silencing the guns, delivering essential services to all the population and laying the groundwork for a common vision for Sudan’s future."
Idris is a former UN official and an ex-presidential candidate.
The appointment installs a prime minister for the first time since January 2022, when Abdalla Hamdok resigned amid a political deadlock that turned one year later into a civil war still raging in the country.
Last month, Burhan appointed career diplomat Dafallah al-Haj as acting prime minister.
Since April 2023, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group has been battling the army for control of Sudan, resulting in thousands of deaths and creating one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
More than 20,000 people have been killed and 15 million displaced, according to the UN and local authorities. Research from US scholars, however, puts the death toll at around 130,000.
