The Latest: EU, US voice 'grave' concern over Sudan upheaval

CAIRO — Egypt has urged all parties in neighboring Sudan to work to ensure “stability and security” amid the military takeover of the east African country.

Egypt, which shares access to the vital Nile River and a long southern border with Sudan, said Monday that it was “closely following” the country’s tumult and emphasized the need to deal “with current challenges in a manner that guarantees the safety of this brotherly country.”

The statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, which came after Sudan’s top general dissolved the civilian government and declared a state of emergency, did not condemn the coup or express overt concerns like many Western countries have.

Instead, Egypt said only that it was urging Sudanese factions to “give priority to the higher interest of the country and to national consensus.”

The two most senior generals in Sudan have close ties with Egypt under its own general-turned-president Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

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MORE ON SUDAN:

Leading general dissolves Sudan government in coup, PM held

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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

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PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron has added his voice to the growing global concern over the military coup underway in Sudan.

“France condemns in the strongest terms the attempted coup d’état,” Macron tweeted, after Sudan’s leading general declared a state of emergency and dissolved the civilian government.

Macron said France supports the transitional government that had been tasked with steering Sudan toward democratic elections. He also called for the “immediate release” of Sudan’s prime minister and other civilian leaders who have been detained.

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CAIRO — The United States says the leaders of the military coup underway in Sudan are undermining the country’s transition to democracy and should “stand down.”

The U.S. Embassy in Sudan said on Twitter Monday it was “gravely concerned” after Sudan’s leading general declared a state of emergency and dissolved the ruling body that had been jointly overseen by military and civilian leaders. In the statement the embassy calls on “all actors who are disrupting Sudan’s transition to stand down, and allow the civilian-led transitional government to continue its important work to achieve the goals of the revolution.”

That’s a reference to the mass protests that helped topple longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir in 2019 and installed a ruling council to steer the country toward democratic elections.

U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman said earlier Monday that Washington was “deeply alarmed” about the events and warned that a military coup could jeopardize American aid to Sudan.

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CAIRO — The Norwegian Refugee Council has appealed to Sudan’s rulers to protect civilians amid the military takeover of the east African country, requesting unimpeded humanitarian access to help millions who have fled war over the years.

The aid group’s Sudan director, Will Carter, said Monday that changes to Sudan’s political leadership should not jeopardize authorities’ previous vows to ensure that humanitarian organizations can assist the 13 million people badly in need of aid across Sudan, including millions of displaced Sudanese.

“Sudan’s leaders have a collective opportunity and responsibility to break from a difficult past,” the statement said, exhorting the international community “not to abandon Sudan’s people in this hour of need.”

The call came as Sudan’s leading general declared a state of emergency and dissolved the ruling council that had been steering the fragile country toward democratic elections.

Under long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir who was toppled amid mass protests in 2019, aid organizations struggled to access the country’s most vulnerable in war-scarred regions like Darfur where combatants sometimes controlled access to food.

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BEIJING — China is urging a dialogue between Sudanese factions as an apparent military coup roils the nation.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Monday that China wanted all parties in Sudan “to resolve their differences through dialogue so as to maintain peace and stability of the country.”

He told reporters that China would continue to closely follow the turbulence in Sudan and “take necessary measures to ensure the safety of Chinese institutions and personnel there.”

China is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and major investor in Africa.

The arrests on Monday of Sudan’s interim prime minister and other officials plunged Sudan’s fragile path to democracy into uncertainty following the 2019 ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir. During al-Bashir’s harsh rule and despite allegations of his government’s human rights abuses, China was Sudan’s biggest trading partner and key international partner.

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CAIRO - The Saudi-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation has expressed concern over the apparent coup in Sudan amid a fragile transition to democracy.

In a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the organization said Monday that it urged Sudanese leaders to “abide by the constitutional document and what has been agreed upon during the transition period.”

The statement comes as other nations express alarm at the arrest of Sudan’s interim prime minister and other senior officials. Their whereabouts were not immediately known.

Thousands of Sudanese protesters have flooded the streets as fears of a military coup grip the country two years after mass protests ousted autocrat Omar al-Bashir, who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for three decades.

The 57-nation OIC is based in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia.

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BERLIN — Germany has demanded an immediate halt to the apparent military coup underway in Sudan.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Mass condemned the attempted takeover in the vast east African country and called the news “dismaying.”

“This attempted coup must end immediately,” he said, urging “all those who bear responsibility for security and state order in Sudan to continue the peaceful political transition process in Sudan toward democracy.”

The statement Monday was one of several from other nations expressing concern about the arrest of Sudan’s interim prime minister and other senior officials. Their whereabouts were not immediately known.

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CAIRO — The United Nations Mission to Sudan has issued an emphatic rebuke of what it called an ongoing coup and attempts to undermine the northeast African nation’s fragile democratic transition.

The first reports about a possible military takeover began trickling out of Sudan before dawn Monday. By mid-morning, the information ministry confirmed that the prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, had been arrested and taken to an undisclosed location. Several senior government figures were also detained, the ministry said in a Facebook post. It said their whereabouts were unknown.

“The reported detentions of the prime minister, government officials and politicians are unacceptable,” said the recently formed U.N. political mission, which has a mandate to assist the country’s political transition and protect human rights.

The mission called on Sudan’s security forces “to immediately release those who have been unlawfully detained or placed under house arrest” and urged all parties to “exercise utmost restraint.”

Diplomats have joined in a chorus of concern over the events that rocked Sudan on Monday, as Sudanese security forces detained senior government officials in undisclosed locations and thousands flooded the street in protest, two years after mass demonstrations helped topple former autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

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CAIRO — The Arab League has released a statement of “deep concern” about the apparent military coup in Sudan.

The Secretary-General of the 22-member bloc, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, urged all parties on Monday to “fully abide” by the constitutional declaration signed in August 2019, which had aimed to pave the way for a transition to civilian rule and democratic elections following the ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

“There are no problems that cannot be resolved without dialogue,” Aboul Gheit said after Sudan’s military detained the country’s interim prime minister along with other top Cabinet officials and protesters poured into streets of the capital, Khartoum.

“It is important to respect all decisions and agreements that were decided upon … refraining from any measures that would disrupt the transitional period and shake stability in Sudan,” the statement added.

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CAIRO — The European Union has joined the United States in expressing grave concern about a possible military takeover underway in Sudan.

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell tweeted on Monday that he’s following events in the northeast African nation with the “utmost concern,” after reports emerged that Sudanese military forces had detained several senior government officials, including the interim prime minister.

“The EU calls on all stakeholders and regional partners to put back on track the transition process,” Borrell wrote, referring to Sudan’s fragile transition from autocracy to democracy after the ouster of longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

Earlier, U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman said Washington was “deeply alarmed” and indicated that a military coup would threaten American aid to the impoverished country.

“As we have said repeatedly, any changes to the transitional government by force puts at risk U.S. assistance,” the U.S. Bureau of African Affairs wrote on Twitter.