Sudanese Defence Minister Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf appointed on Friday Army Chief of Staff Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan as the new head of a transitional military council, local media reported.

"I announce my resignation from this post and the choice of the one in whose experience I trust … after consultations, Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan was appointed new head of the Transitional Military Council", Ibn Auf said in a televised address broadcast by Arabic TV channels.

Al-Burhan has served as chief of staff of the Sudanese Ground Forces since the army command reshuffle in February 2018.

On Thursday, Ibn Auf announced the establishment of a military council that would govern the country for two years.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese opposition demanded that the military council immediately transfer power to a civil government, Mohammad Youssef, a member of the secretariat of the opposition Sudanese Professionals Association, told Sputnik earlier on Friday.

"We are seeking the immediate transfer of power, not in a month or two years from now. The forces that are seeking reforms have specific demands on following the democratic path that will solve the corruption issue and other problems that resulted from the rule of the salvation government [of former President Omar Bashir]", Youssef said.

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He pointed out that members of the military council were part of Bashir’s elite circle.

Youssef noted that there was no legal basis for forming a military council and called on all political forces and the army to reach an agreement on the formation of a government.

According to Youssef, the Sudanese people likewise oppose the curfew imposed after Thursday's coup.

Sudan has seen months of protests that first erupted in the country in December. The rallies were initially triggered by a rise in the prices of bread and other consumer goods that greatly increased the food vulnerability of Sudanese citizens. The protests then took on a new dimension as Sudanese citizens started calling for the resignation of Bashir, who had been in power for nearly 30 years.

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