Sudan: the presence of General al-Burhan at the funeral of Elizabeth II goes badly

General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan during a press conference in Khartoum, October 26, 2021. AFP - ASHRAF SHAZLY

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2 mins

The President of the Sovereign Council of Sudan, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was present among the hundreds of dignitaries from around the world who made the trip for the funeral of Elizabeth II.

He is the head of the Sudanese junta which led a coup nearly a year ago ousting the civilian representatives of the transition initiated with the fall of Omar al-Bashir.

Unlike his predecessor,

persona non grata

in London for 30 years, General al-Burhan walked the nave of Westminster Abbey.

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With our correspondent in Khartoum,

Eliott Brachet

According to the official Suna news agency, General al-Burhan's trip to London was justified by the " 

strong ties that unite Sudan to the United Kingdom, deeply rooted in history

 ".

Many Sudanese do not hear it that way and denounce the hypocrisy of the head of the military junta.

Himself who, in a fiery speech delivered the day before the death of Queen Elizabeth, had castigated the United Kingdom for crimes committed during colonization.

Following in the footsteps of Omar al-Bashir before him, General al-Burhan had demanded a public apology from the United Kingdom and denounced crimes that he considered to be "

 genocide and ethnic cleansing

 ".

A normalization not accepted by the demonstrators

But what angers many militants opposed to the coup is the normalization of general al-Burhan abroad, induced by this invitation.

Sudanese Internet users recall that since the putsch of October 25, every week, the Sudanese authorities have violently repressed

peaceful demonstrations

in the streets of the country.

In one year, more than 117 demonstrators have been killed by the police.

Isolated on the international scene, General al-Burhan thus saw the opportunity to present himself as a statesman.

According to the

Sudan Tribune

, General al-Burhan is also due to go to New York next Thursday, where he is expected to deliver a speech on behalf of Sudan before the United Nations General Assembly.

►Also read: A new, more "radical" opposition coalition is born in Sudan

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  • Abdel Fattah al-Burhan

  • Sudan

  • Elizabeth II

  • UK

  • UN