As Sudanese citizens await the long-promised “Government of Hope” to be unveiled in Port Sudan by army-appointed Prime Minister Kamil Idris Al-Tayeb, tensions were flaring within the ruling coalition.
The conflict is particularly sharp among signatories of the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement, as they battle for control over key ministries, especially Finance and Minerals, which oversee gold revenues, Sudan’s most critical source of national income.
Over the past week, Idris has held several meetings with leaders of armed movements and political groups tied to the Juba Agreement, which guarantees them 25% of executive government positions, as well as representation in the Sovereign Council and state governments.
Notable figures at the latest meeting included Minni Arko Minnawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement; Abu Aqla Kikel, commander of the Sudan Shield Forces;
Mohamed Al-Jakoumi, advisor with the Democratic Unionist Party, and Ayman Abdel Daim, Minnawi’s aide.
Idris presented his plan for forming the new cabinet, asking participants to propose qualified candidates by submitting CVs, without pre-assigning specific ministerial portfolios. However, the proposal was met with outright rejection from the Justice and Equality Movement (led by Jibril Ibrahim) and the Sudan Liberation Movement (led by Minnawi), who viewed the approach as dismissive of their political weight. Tensions escalated when rumors emerged that Jakoumi and Kikel were being considered for top cabinet posts, prompting Minnawi to storm out of the meeting in protest.
At the heart of Sudan’s current political deadlock lies a fierce battle over control of two of the country’s most strategic ministries: Finance and Minerals. These ministries oversee Sudan’s core economic assets – especially gold revenues, which form the backbone of the national economy.
For armed movements, securing these portfolios is seen as an economic guarantee of real influence and lasting participation in power. But military and civilian factions accuse these groups of trying to monopolize state resources under the guise of the Juba Peace Agreement. At the same time, Army Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan – who led the 2021 coup – is pushing to place all key financial streams directly under his control, aiming to wrest the ministries away from Juba-affiliated factions.
Minnawi vs. the Military: al-Burhan’s Warning Signals
This tension came to a head with recent confrontations between Minni Arko Minnawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement, and the army leadership. Sources say the military dispatched senior intelligence officers, including Deputy Intelligence Chief Maj. Gen. Hassan Al-Ballab and Deputy Security Chief Lt. Gen. Mohamed Abbas Al-Labeeb – to deliver a sharp message to Minnawi.
Al-Burhan’s envoys reportedly warned that “Arab movements in the north and center” are ready to step in if Minnawi’s group refuses to cooperate. They also reminded him that, despite receiving significant military support – 1,800 vehicles and $420 million – his faction has failed to deliver results on the ground.
Analysts see this exchange as part of a deeper and more dangerous trend: the rise of ethnic and tribal tensions in post-coup Sudan. Since the military and Islamist militias seized control of Khartoum, Omdurman, and Al-Jazirah State earlier this year, reports of ethnic violence have surged, exposing the darker undercurrents fueling Sudan’s political conflict.
Internal Divisions Shake the Juba Agreement Camp
The disagreements within the camp supporting the Juba Peace Agreement go beyond just Minnawi and Jibril; they extend into conflicts among the armed factions themselves. Meanwhile, leaders like Abdallah Yahya, Salah Adam Nour Rasas, and Mustafa Tambour have shown openness to Prime Minister-designate Kamil Idris’s proposals, signaling internal fractures that could reshape alliances in the coming phase, according to Darfur 24.
On the other hand, Mohamed Al-Jakoumi, head of the Northern Track, has publicly rejected demands for specific ministries, stressing that the Juba Peace Agreement guarantees proportional participation – not fixed portfolios. His remarks underline a broader pushback against perceived entitlement from dominant factions within the armed groups.
Kordofan Losses Ignite Political Tensions:
Political tensions in Sudan escalated sharply after the army suffered major setbacks in Kordofan at the end of May, including the death of Major General Ihab Youssef Al-Tayeb. In the aftermath, the military accused members of the Zaghawa ethnic group of either complicity or failure to act, leading to the arrest of tribal leader Abdullah Jannah.
These accusations have deepened mistrust between the army and the armed movements, prompting some factions to consider pulling out of the political process altogether.
On June 11, several reports confirmed that armed movements withdrew from the border triangle between Sudan, Libya, and Egypt without engaging in combat. The move is widely seen as a strategic message to the military, pressuring it to reconsider efforts to sideline these groups from the upcoming government.
Which Side Will Kamil Idris Choose?
Kamil Idris now stands at a critical crossroads. Tasked with forming a government that includes the armed movements under the military’s umbrella, he finds himself caught between competing demands.
On one side are factions that call themselves “partners in blood and politics” – groups that refuse to be symbolic participants and demand real power. Accommodating them could help Idris stabilize the political landscape temporarily, but would likely provoke criticism from civilian forces eager to break away from the legacy of quota-based politics.
On the other hand, ignoring the armed groups’ demands could ignite fresh conflict within the Port Sudan camp and risk fracturing the military-political alliance from within.
In this delicate balance, the central question remains: Can Kamil Idris reconcile these conflicting demands, or will his government collapse before it’s even formed?
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