KHARTOUM, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Sudan's military will exit politics after elections scheduled for 2023, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan told Reuters in an interview on Saturday, adding that the deposed former ruling party would have no role in the transitional government.
Following a military takeover led by Burhan in late October that sidetracked Sudan's transition to civilian-led democracy, a deal was struck on Nov. 21 reinstating Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok to lead a technocratic cabinet until elections in July 2023.
"When a government is elected, I don't think the army, the armed forces, or any of the security forces will participate in politics. This is what we agreed on and this is the natural situation," Burhan said.
The coup, which ended a partnership with civilian political parties after the ouster of Omar al-Bashir, drew international condemnation after the detention of dozens of key officials and crackdowns on protesters.
Neighborhood resistance committees and political parties have called for the military to exit politics immediately and have rejected any compromise including the deal with Hamdok. At least 44 people have died during demonstrations, many from gunshot wounds from security forces, according to medics.
"Investigations regarding the victims of the protests have begun to identify who has done this an to punish the criminals," Burhan said, adding that the government protects the right to peaceful protest.
In the aftermath of the coup, many civilian bureaucrats were dismissed or transferred and replaced with Bashir-era veterans in decisions Hamdok has begun to reverse.
"[Bashir's] National Congress Party will not be a part of the transition in any form and we are committed to this," Burhan said.
Sudan is in the midst of a deep economic crisis, with positive signs emerging only after the beginning of an influx of money from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and Western nations, much of which was suspended after the coup.
Burhan said he expected international economic support to return after things stabilize under a civilian government, adding that the country would not reverse reforms enacted over the past two years by reinstating subsidies or returning to printing money. (Reporting by Aidan Lewis and Khalid Abdelaziz; writing by Nafisa Eltahir; Editing by Alex Richardson and Christina Fincher)
