Khartoum (AFP)

The trial for corruption of ousted President Omar al-Bashir, who ruled for three decades, opened on Monday in Sudan, where the process of transition to a civilian power is still waiting for its first concrete act with the appointment of the members of the sovereign council.

The former head of state, deposed by the army on April 11 in response to massive demonstrations, arrived in the morning before a court in Khartoum, escorted by an imposing military convoy, a journalist from the AFP.

Detained in a Khartoum prison, 75-year-old Bashir has been told by the prosecution that he faces charges of "possession of foreign currency, bribery" and trading in influence.

In charge of the investigation, Brigadier Ahmed Ali told the court that Mr. Bashir received $ 90 million from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The trial of the former president was to open Saturday, the day of the signing of a historic transition agreement between the military council in power since April and the challenge. But it had been postponed indefinitely.

In late April, the head of the Transitional Military Council, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, claimed that the equivalent of more than $ 113 million had been seized in cash at the former president's residence in Khartoum.

In May, the Attorney General also stated that Mr. Bashir had been charged with killings during the anti-regime demonstrations leading to his ouster, but it was not clear when he would be charged.

- Crimes in Darfur -

Amnesty International warned last week that its corruption trial should not distract from the heavier accusations it faces in The Hague.

Bashir, who led the country with an iron fist following a 1989 Islamist-backed coup, is subject to international arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. war, crimes against humanity and genocide, during the war in Darfur (West), where a rebellion broke out in 2003.

The UN says that the conflict has left more than 300,000 dead and 2.5 million displaced, and that hundreds of thousands of people still live in miserable and impoverished camps more than a decade and a half later.

The ICC has been demanding for years that Mr. Bashir be tried, and has renewed his appeal since his fall.

Amnesty called on the new transitional institutions in Sudan to ratify the Rome Statute of the ICC, which would allow Mr. Bashir to be transferred to this international tribunal.

Protests against Omar al-Bashir's regime broke out on December 19 after his government tripled the price of bread.

They continued after its fall in April, in order to obtain a transfer of power to civilians, and ended Saturday with the signing of an agreement between the ruling generals and the protest.

Thousands of Sudanese have celebrated this historic agreement, but the expected Sunday appointment of the Sovereign Council supposed to steer this transition has been delayed, one of the five people chosen by the protest movement having declined the offer.

The complete composition is now scheduled on Monday.

The Sovereign Council must be composed of six civilians and five soldiers and will first be led for 21 months by a general and then by a civilian for the remaining 18 months.

It will have to oversee the formation of a civilian transitional administration, including the government.

- Reserves -

The official signing ceremony of the agreement on Saturday took place in the presence of many foreign dignitaries, a sign that Sudan could turn the page of its isolation under the Bashir regime.

But, despite the euphoria surrounding the transition agreement, reservations remain within the contestation.

This includes the ubiquitous transition process of General Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, number two of the Military Council. He also co-signed the agreement on Saturday.

The dreaded paramilitary forces of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by Mr. Daglo are accused of having repressed several demonstrations. Many fear that it will attempt to seize power and kill the democratic process.

Women, who played a crucial role in the protests, also denounce the small share of women represented in transitional institutions.

It also remains to be seen how the new institutions intend to pacify a country bruised by several conflicts in the regions of Darfur, Blue Nile, and Kordofan.

© 2019 AFP