By Matik Kueth
The newly appointed Prime Minister of Sudan, Kamil Idriss, took the oath of office on Saturday in front of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is the head of the military and the Sovereign Council.
His appointment, approved on May 19, is the first time the position has been filled since Abdalla Hamdok resigned in January 2022, following political unrest sparked by the October 25, 2021, coup.
Idriss now faces the task of developing a new administration, as the military has officially pledged to refrain from influencing executive choices, and al-Burhan has revoked Sovereign Council members’ old supervision duties over government ministries.
The swearing-in ceremony was witnessed by senior officials, including the Secretary-General of the Sovereign Council and the top judicial representative from Red Sea state, standing in for the Chief Justice.
In a related move, two new members of the Sovereign Council, Salma Abdel Jabbar al-Mubarak and Nawara Abu Mohammed Tahir, were also sworn in. Nawara expressed her commitment to national progress and serving the Sudanese people, while Salma, previously removed from the council in July 2022, thanked al-Burhan for reinstating her and lauded the military’s battlefield successes.
Constitutional changes made on February 19 granted the Sovereign Council authority to appoint or dismiss the prime minister upon recommendation by the transitional legislative authority, which includes both the Council of Ministers and the Sovereign Council. These amendments also extended Sudan’s transitional period by 39 months, starting February 23, 2025, unless new elections or a national consensus is reached before then.