The Clouds Of Politics And The Storms Of The Economy Before The Night Of The Seventeenth Of November.
When The Vaults Of The Secret Archives Of The Great Powers Are Opened, History Rewrites Itself, And Masks Fall From The Faces Of Events To Reveal The Facts Naked As They Were Recorded In Encrypted Telegrams And Secret Reports. This Is Exactly What The Book “Sudan In British Documents: The Coup Of Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud 1958”, Prepared And Edited By Dr. Waleed Muhammad Saeed Al-A’dhami, Does. This Investigative Work, Published In Baghdad In 1990, Represents A Deep Dive Into The Labyrinths Of Sudanese Politics During One Of Its Most Critical Periods, Relying Primarily On British Secret Documents That Were Declassified In Early 1989 In The Capital, London.
The Book Takes Us At Its Outset To The General Climate That Prevailed In Sudan In The Few Years Following The Restoration Of Its Sovereignty And Full Independence, Which Were Years Characterized By Difficult Labor And Stumbling Political Experiences To Change The Structure Of The Ruling Regime From Time To Time. Stability Was Not A Familiar Guest In The Corridors Of Sudanese Politics At That Time; Rather, Partisan Conflict And Continuous Disagreement Among Political Forces Were The Dominant Feature And The Primary Driver Of Events. This Bitter Struggle Cast Its Heavy Shadows On The Scene, Causing The Formation Of Several Fragile Partisan Governments During A Short Period Extending Between 1956 And 1958, Which Constituted The Fundamental Reason For The Loss Of Political Stability.
As A Result Of This Permanent Crack In The Wall Of Power, All The Governments That Emerged From These Warring Parties Failed To Achieve Any Radical Social Or Economic Reforms Touching The Life Of The Sudanese Citizen. The Book Explains How The National Unionist Party, Which Had Secured A Comfortable Majority In Parliamentary Seats During The 1954 Elections, Found Itself The Ruling Party In The Country Shortly After Independence, Yet This Dominance Did Not Last Long. Its Parliamentary Seats Began To Shrink Gradually, Especially After August 1955, Leading Up To The Fatal Blow In November Of The Same Year When The Opposition Succeeded In Inflicting A Severe Defeat On Its Government. However, The Absurdity Of The Political Scene Manifested In Its Truest Form When The Opposition Itself Failed To Remain In Power For More Than Two Days Only, For The Parliament To Retrace Its Steps By Supporting The National Unionist Party Once Again.
The Crisis Deepens With The Book’s Observation Of The State Of Fragmentation And Splits; As The Khatmiyya Sect Split From The National Unionist Party To Weave A New Alliance With The Umma Party, An Alliance That Put Spokes In The Wheels Of The National Unionist Party And Prevented Its Ability To Pass Any Reforms Or Bring About Tangible Changes. And As Is The Nature Of Fragile Alliances, The Government Soon Collapsed When A Group Of Members Of The National Unionist Party Decided To Jump Ship And Join The Ranks Of The Opposition.
By July Of 1956, Sudan Witnessed The Birth Of A New Coalition Government That Replaced The National Unionist Government, And Included In Its Ranks Members From The Umma Party, The Southern Liberal Party, And The People’s Democratic Party, Which Represented The Political Umbrella For The Khatmiyya Sect. The Book Records A Fundamental Observation Here, Which Is That The Sole Concern Of This Coalition Government Was The Frantic Effort To Remain In Power And Maintain Their Seats, Completely Forgetting The Necessity Of Achieving Any Real Political Or Economic Reforms For The Country. Amidst This Absurdity, It Became Very Familiar And Natural For Sudanese Politicians To Change Their Loyalties And Partisan Affiliations, Moving From One Party To Another In Search Of Spoils.
When The Time Came For The Elections In March 1958 To Form A New Constituent Assembly, The Result Was An Exact Reflection Of The State Of Fragmentation; As None Of The Four Major Parties, Namely The Umma Party, The People’s Democratic Party, The National Unionist Party, And The Southern Liberal Party, Was Able To Achieve Any Absolute Majority That Would Enable It To Form The Government Alone. There Was No Escape Then From Swallowing The Bitter Pill And Resorting To Forming A Second Coalition Government Consisting Once Again Of Two Historical Rivals, The Umma And People’s Democratic Parties, While The National Unionist Party, Alongside The Southern Liberal Party, Were Forced To Sit In The Opposition Seats.
Dr. Al-A’dhami Traces Through The Documents How Failure Was Written For This Second Coalition Government Like Its Predecessor, Since Solidarity And Harmony Between The Umma And People’s Democratic Parties Were Virtually Impossible. For This Coalition Carried Within It The Genes Of Its Own Demise, As It Reflected A Long And Bitter History Of Rivalry And Conflict Between Two Powerful Sects, The Ansar And The Khatmiyya. The Two Partners In Governance Exchanged Serious Accusations; The Umma Party Accused Its Partner, The People’s Democratic Party, Of Treason And Working To Serve Egyptian Interests, While The Latter Retaliated In Kind By Accusing The Umma Party Of Being Merely A Tool To Serve British Purposes And Interests In Sudan.
Internal Differences Were Not The Only Dilemma; Rather, The Book Clarifies That The Main And Fundamental Point Of Disagreement Between The Two Allied Parties Revolved Around Sudan’s Foreign Policy And Its Orientations In A Highly Polarized Regional And International Environment. Since The Dawn Of Independence, Sudan Attempted To Chart A Foreign Policy Based On The Principles Of Friendship And Good Neighborliness With Its Arab Surroundings, Which Was Crowned By Its Active Participation In The Famous Bandung Conference In 1955, Then Its Official Joining As A Member Of The United Nations Organization, And The Crowning Of All That By Joining The League Of Arab States In November Of 1956.
Successive Sudanese Governments Exerted Strenuous Efforts To Establish Solid Relations Of Friendship With The Major Neighbor, Egypt, Aiming To Enhance The Spirit Of Mutual Understanding And Bilateral Cooperation, An Understanding That Remained Resilient And Continuous Until The Month Of February Of 1958. But The Regional Winds Brought What The Sudanese Ships Did Not Desire; Relations Began To Deteriorate In A Rapid And Sudden Decline When Egypt Proceeded To Demand The Annexation Of The Northern Sector Of Sudanese Territories, Specifically The Area Located North Of Wadi Halfa. The Matter Escalated Into An Actual Military Movement, Where A Division Of The Egyptian Army Was Sent To Incurse Into The Northeastern Part Of Sudan, Which Is The Strategically Known Area As “Halayeb”.
Sudan Did Not Stand Idle With Its Hands Tied In The Face Of This Escalation, But Responded By Mobilizing Its Military And Popular Forces In A Show Of Force, And Escalated The Situation Internationally By Submitting An Urgent Official Complaint To The United Nations Security Council. Matters Did Not Return To Normal And The Front Of The Conflict Did Not Cool Down Until After Egypt Retreated And Agreed To Abandon Its Territorial Demands And Resort To The Negotiation Table To Resolve This Border Dispute. And Halayeb Was Not The Only Wound In The Body Of Bilateral Relations; Rather, The Issue Of The Nile Waters Emerged As A Second And Sensitive Point Of Conflict, Where All Sudanese Parties, Despite Their Different Backgrounds, Convened To Support The Necessity Of Reconsidering The Unfair Nile Waters Agreement Signed In The Year 1929.
In The Midst Of These Regional Intersections, The Views And Orientations Of The Umma And People’s Democratic Parties Were Characterized By Stark Contradiction, Not Only Regarding The Differences With Egypt, But The Divergence Extended To Include The Form Of The Relationship With A Rising Global Power, The United States Of America. Washington Strove With All Its Diplomatic And Political Weight To Pull Khartoum Into The Orbit Of What Was Known Then As The “Eisenhower Doctrine”, And American Interest Reached Its Peak With The Official Visit Of The American Vice President At That Time, Richard Nixon, To Khartoum To Promote This Doctrine. Here The Internal Division Manifested; As The Umma Party Aligned Itself Supporting And Blessing The American Position And Orientation, While The People’s Democratic Party Stood Strongly Opposed To The Idea Of Joining This Alliance. The Rejection Did Not Stop At This Limit; Rather, The People’s Democratic Party Opposed The Project Of Signing The American Aid Agreement, Which Is The Agreement That The Umma Party Moved Forward In Approving And Passing In The Month Of May Of 1958.
This Political Floundering And Sharp Division In Foreign Orientations Were Accompanied By A Crushing Crisis On The Economic Level, Making The Situation Increasingly Deteriorated And Worse. The Depression Struck The Cotton Market, Which Was The Main Nerve Of The Sudanese Economy In That Year, Which Consequently Led To Igniting Anger In The Sudanese Political Street. Strikes Broke Out And Demonstrations Swept Across The Country, And The Coalition Government Stood Helpless And Paralyzed, So All Attempts And Endeavors Aimed At Removing Differences Between The Members Of The Two Ruling Parties Failed, Just As Attempts To Form A Broad National Government Bringing Together The Main Parties To Save What Could Be Saved Ended In Failure.
In The Shadow Of This Dark Tunnel, Attempts Loomed On The Horizon By The National Unionists To Consolidate Their Political Forces And Ally With The People’s Democratic Party, Hoping To Form A New Coalition Government Which Would Be The Third Of Its Kind. Intensive Partisan Discussions And Dialogues Took Place Between These Two Parties, Starting In The Month Of September Of 1958 And Continuing Their Pace Until October Of The Same Year, And The Declared Goal Was To Settle Accumulated Differences And Remove The Causes Of Division To Pave The Way Towards Governance. As The Date Of The New Parliamentary Session, Scheduled To Be Held On The Seventeenth Of November 1958, Approached, It Became Clear And Evident To Observers That This Session Would Inevitably Result In The Birth Of A New Coalition Government Bringing Together The National Unionist Party And The People’s Democratic Party, Which Automatically Meant The Collapse And Dissolution Of The Unnatural And Anxious Coalition That Existed Between The Umma And People’s Democratic Parties.
This Complex Historical Background, Filled With Partisan Conflicts, Economic Crises, And Regional Interventions, Represented The Ideal Stage And Fertile Soil For The Occurrence Of An Event That Would Change The Face Of Sudan For Decades To Come. From Here, And From The Heart Of This Chaos, The Book Opens The Windows Of The British Documents So The Reader Can See How The Eyes Of London And Washington Were Monitoring This Absurd Scene, And How They Intervened, Or Planned To Intervene, In Completing The Missing Links And Drawing The Details Of The Awaited Military Coup Led By Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud.
The Engineering Of Silence.. Behind The Scenes Of The Night Of Handing Over The Military Keys
It Is Impossible To Understand The Night Of The Seventeenth Of November 1958 In Isolation From The Secret Maneuvers That Took Place In Closed Rooms, Where The Nascent Democracy In Sudan Transformed Into A Scapegoat In The Market Of Narrow Partisan Calculations And Growing Regional Fears. In This Part Of Our Review Of The Book “Sudan In British Documents: The Coup Of Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud 1958”, Dr. Waleed Muhammad Saeed Al-A’dhami Raises The Curtain On One Of The Most Controversial Facts In Modern Sudanese Political History, Which Is That The First Military Coup In Sudan Was Not A Rebellious Movement By Mutinous Officers In Their Barracks, But Rather A “Handover And Takeover” Operation That Took Place With The Consent And Blessing, And Even With The Planning Of The Head Of The Civilian Executive Authority Himself; Prime Minister Abdallah Khalil.
The Samson Option And The Prime Minister’s Crisis
The British Documents Relied Upon By The Author Reveal The Psychological And Political State That Abdallah Khalil, The Prime Minister And Secretary General Of The Umma Party, Was Experiencing In His Final Weeks In Power. The Man Found Himself Trapped Between The Hammer Of The Economic Collapse Resulting From The Cotton Marketing Crisis, And The Anvil Of The Imminent Alliance Between The National Unionist Party And The People’s Democratic Party, An Alliance That Would Inevitably Mean The Exclusion Of The Umma Party From Governance And Throwing It Into The Ranks Of The Opposition. For Abdallah Khalil, This Alliance Was Not Merely A Loss Of The Prime Minister’s Chair, But He Saw In It An Existential Threat To The Entity Of Sudan And Its Independence, As He Firmly Believed That Any Government Controlled By The National Unionists And The Khatmiyya Would Be An Easy Prey For The Ascending Egyptian Influence Led By Gamal Abdel Nasser, An Influence That Khalil Feared And Saw As An Attempt To Swallow Sudanese Sovereignty.
Faced With This Dead End, The Prime Minister Began To Think About What Could Be Termed “The Samson Option”, That Is, Demolishing The Entire Democratic Temple Over Everyone’s Heads Instead Of Handing Power Over To His Political Opponents And To The Regional Influence He Feared. The Secret Correspondence Of The British Embassy In Khartoum Indicates That Abdallah Khalil Began Hinting To Those Close To Him, And To Some Western Diplomats, That The Army Was The Only Remaining Force Capable Of Saving The Country From Political Chaos And From External “Swallowing”. The Matter Did Not Stop At The Limits Of Hinting, But Turned Into Actual Coordination And Planning Led By Khalil Himself With The Leaders Of The Sudanese Army, Specifically With Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud, The Commander In Chief Of The Armed Forces, And Major General Ahmed Abdel Wahab, The Strongman In The Army And One Of Those Ideologically And Politically Close To The Orientations Of The Umma Party.
The Arrangements Took Place With Extreme Precision Behind A Thick Wall Of Secrecy; Where It Was Agreed That The Army Would Carry Out Its Military Movement A Few Hours Before The Convening Of The New Session Of Parliament, To Completely Block The Way For The Expected Announcement Of The New Government Coalition. The Common Goal Between The Prime Minister And The Military Leadership Was To Create A Political Shock That Would Paralyze The Movement Of Competing Parties And Put Everyone Before A Fait Accompli, Under A Broad Banner Which Is “Maintaining Security And Protecting The Country’s Independence”.
The Night Of The Quiet Landing And The Darkness Of Khartoum
When Midnight Struck On The Sixteenth Of November 1958, The Capital Of The Confluence Was Fast Asleep, Uninterrupted By The Sound Of Bullets Or The Commotion Of Unusual Military Vehicles. The Book Redraws The Details Of That Night In A Style That Blends Strict Documentation With Journalistic Thrill; As Selected Units From The Sudanese Army Moved From Their Barracks In Khartoum North And Omdurman Towards The Strategic Targets Precisely Drawn For Them. The Plan Included Seizing Control Of The Radio And Television Building In Omdurman, The Main Ministry Buildings, The General Command Headquarters, Electricity Transformers, And Telegraph And Telephone Lines.
The Interesting Thing About The Details Of This Movement, As Relayed By British Reports, Is The Total Absence Of Any Manifestation Of Resistance Or Protest. There Were No Defensive Plans By The Government, Simply Because The Head Of The Government Is The One Who Opened The Doors. The Military Forces Moved And Settled Into Their Positions With Complete Smoothness, To The Point That The Vast Majority Of The Capital’s Residents Did Not Know About The Coup Until After Waking Up The Next Morning To The Sounds Of Military Marches Emanating From Radios. The British Ambassador Records In His Telegram To London Feelings Of Astonishment At This “Clean And Cold” Coup In Which Not A Single Drop Of Blood Was Shed, And Not A Single Bullet Was Fired, Making It More Akin To An Administrative Operation To Transfer Power Than A Traditional Military Coup.
With The First Threads Of Dawn On The Seventeenth Of November, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud Read His First Statement Over The Airways Of The Sudanese Radio. The Statement Came, As Analyzed By Dr. Al-A’dhami, Wrapped In An Apologetic, Justificatory National Language; Where Abboud Directed Scathing Criticisms At Politicians And Parties, Accusing Them Of Running After Narrow Personal And Partisan Interests, Destroying The Country’s Economy, Failing To Maintain Stability, And Plunging Sudan Into The Furnace Of Pointless Regional And International Conflicts. Abboud Announced In His Statement The Abolition Of The Temporary Constitution, The Dissolution Of Parliament, The Banning Of All Political Parties, And The Prohibition Of Gatherings And Demonstrations, And Emergency Teams, Announcing The Formation Of The “Supreme Council Of The Armed Forces” To Manage The Country’s Affairs Under His Presidency.
A Reading Into The Diplomatic Motives And The Hidden Aspects Of British Satisfaction
The Book Then Moves To Monitor The Immediate Reactions In The Corridors Of Foreign Embassies In Khartoum, And Specifically The British Embassy Which Was Following The Situation Through Magnifying Lenses. The Documents Show That British Diplomacy, Despite Publicly Expressing Its Regret Over The Disruption Of The Democratic Path In A Country That Had Recently Gained Its Independence Under Its Sponsorship, Was In Reality Feeling A Kind Of Implicit Satisfaction With This Transformation. London Feared, Just Like Abdallah Khalil, That The Rise Of The Pro-Egyptian Coalition Would Lead To Transforming Sudan Into A Rear Base For Nasserite Policies Which Were Then Waging A Cold And Hot War Against British Interests In The Middle East And North Africa, Especially After The Suez Crisis In 1956.
Therefore, The Initial Reports Sent By The British Ambassador, Sir Edwin Chapman-Andrews, To The Foreign Office In London Came To Reassure The British Government That The New Military Leadership Headed By Lieutenant General Abboud And Major General Ahmed Abdel Wahab Is A Moderate, Rational Leadership, And Harbors A Historical Affection Towards Britain. The Ambassador Described Abboud As An Upright And Apolitical Man, And That His Movement Came As A Preventive Measure To Stop The Country From Sliding Towards Chaos Or Completely Throwing Itself Into The Egyptian Embrace. This Positive Evaluation Made London Hurry, In Coordination With Washington, To Study Ways To Provide Economic And Political Support To The New Military Regime To Ensure Its Stability And Establish Its Foothold In The Face Of Any Counter Regional Pressures.
This Chapter Of The Book Reveals How The Strategic Interests Of The Major Powers Intersected At That Historical Moment With The Ambitions Of The Military And The Fears Of Some Civilian Politicians, To Create Together A Tragic Scene In Which Sudan’s First Democratic Experience Ended Before Completing Its Third Year, And A New Era Began Of The Rule Of The Military Uniform That Would Leave Its Deep Marks On The Political And Economic Future Of The Country For Long Decades To Come.
Satisfaction In The West And Apprehensions In The East
The British Documents Reveal, With Complete Clarity, That The Military Coup Was Not A Shocking Surprise To Western Circles, But Political Scientists Could Rather Describe It As Having Been A “Pleasant Surprise” To A Large Extent. In London And Washington, A Feeling Of Deep Satisfaction Prevailed Because The Military Movement Led By Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud Blocked The Way, At The Last Minute, For The Establishment Of A Coalition Government That Would Have Included The National Unionist Party And The People’s Democratic Party, A Government That The West Viewed With Suspicion And Doubt, And Considered It A Wide Open Gate For The Expansion Of Egyptian Influence, And Behind It Soviet Influence, Deep Into The African Continent.
The British Reports Preserved In The Archives Relay How The American And British Press Rushed To Catch The Event And Frame It In A Way That Served The Western Vision. Reports From Major Newspapers Like “The New York Times” And “The Washington Post” Indicated That The Coup Was An Inevitable Result Of Political Corruption, The Failure Of Parliamentary Democracy, And The Deterioration Of Economic Conditions. But More Importantly, Is The Western Press Highlighting The Coup As A Preemptive Strike Against The Ambitions Of The Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser In Sudan. Washington Considered That The Government Of Lieutenant General Abboud, Which Included Conservative Military Figures And Technocrats, Would Be More Responsive To American Aid Projects And Less Affected By The Radical Nationalist Tide That Was Sweeping Through The Arab Region At That Time.
In Complete Contrast, The Documents Illustrate How The Scene Was In The Soviet Capital, Moscow. The Soviet Leadership Did Not Swallow The Bait, And Viewed The Coup From The First Moment With An Eye Of Apprehension And Veiled Hostility. The British Embassy In Moscow Followed The Reactions Of The Soviet Press, Such As The “Tass” Agency And The “Pravda” Newspaper, Which Saw In The Event A Reactionary Right-Wing Movement Supported By Western Imperialist Circles To Abort Democratic Progress In Sudan And To Keep The Country Hostage To Western Economic And Military Interests. This Soviet Entrenchment Was Expected, Especially With The Strict Measures Taken By The New Regime Immediately Upon Taking Power Against The Sudanese Communist Party And The Labor Union Movement.
As For Tel Aviv, A Highly Important Document Monitors The Features Of The Israeli Position Through A Conversation That Took Place Between The British Ambassador There And The Director General Of The Israeli Ministry Of Foreign Affairs. The Initial Israeli Assessment Showed A Kind Of Caution, But It Soon Turned Into Veiled Satisfaction, As Israel Considered That The Rise Of The Star Of The Military In Khartoum, Especially With The Presence Of Major General Ahmed Abdel Wahab Whom The Israelis Saw As A Bitter Opponent To Nasserite Orientations, Represented A Stumbling Block Against Egypt’s Attempts To Integrate Sudan Into Its Regional Strategy Aimed At Encircling Israel And Isolating It In Its African Surroundings.
A New Foreign Policy.. Balances On The Edge Of The Abyss. Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud And His Military Council Realized That Stabilizing The Pillars Of The Regime Internally Required Extracting A Quick And Comfortable International Recognition. Therefore, The Regime Rushed In Its Early Days To Issue Detailed Statements Drawing The Features Of Its Foreign Policy. The Book Documents How The Military Drafted A Highly Cautious And Smart Diplomatic Discourse, Aimed At Reassuring Everyone At Home And Abroad. The New Regime Announced Its Full Commitment To All International Charters And Agreements Concluded By Previous Governments, And Affirmed Its Organic Adherence To The United Nations Charter And The Charter Of The League Of Arab States.
But The Most Important Message In The Foreign Policy Statement Was Directed In Two Halves; The First Towards The West, Through Announcing The Unconditional Welcome Of Foreign Capital, Loans, And Foreign Aid, Provided That They Do Not Detract From National Sovereignty, Which Was Akin To A Green Light For Accepting American Aid That Had Been The Subject Of A Sterile Controversy That Brought Down Previous Governments. The Second Half Was Directed Towards The Northern Neighbor, Egypt, Where The Statement Affirmed Sudan’s Deep Desire To Remove The Artificial Estrangement And Resolve All Outstanding Problems Between The Two Countries, Foremost Of Which Is The Nile Waters Knot, Through Frank Brotherly Dialogue. This Orientation Aimed To Withdraw The Pretexts For Attack From The Massive Egyptian Media Machine, And To Ensure That Cairo Did Not Intervene To Support The Opposition Inside Sudan.
And With These Diplomatic Maneuvers, The Military Regime Garnered Rapid And Successive International Recognition From Britain, The United States, And Many Western And Arab Countries, Thereby Overcoming The Most Important Obstacle Facing Any Military Coup In Its Early Days.
The Great Paradox: The Silence Of Politicians And The Blessing Of The “Two Leaders”. If The International Reactions Were Understandable And Governed By The Language Of Interests, Then What Shocks The Reader Within The Folds Of The British Documents Is The Rapid Collapse, And Even The Voluntary Surrender, Of The Civilian Political Forces Inside Sudan In The Face Of The Advance Of The Tanks. Lieutenant General Abboud’s Decisions To Dissolve The Parties And Abolish The Constitution Did Not Face Any Notable Popular Or Political Resistance In The First Days, With The Exception Of Some Hidden Restlessness.
The Most Dramatic Moment Highlighted By Dr. Al-A’dhami Is The Issuance Of Statements Of Support And Blessing From The Two Most Important Religious And Political Figures In The Country: Sayyid Abd Al-Rahman Al-Mahdi, Patron Of The Umma Party And Leader Of The Ansar Sect, And Sayyid Ali Al-Mirghani, Leader Of The Khatmiyya Sect And Patron Of The People’s Democratic Party. In A Move That Stunned Observers And Dealt A Fatal Blow To Any Hope Of Restoring Democracy, The Two Leaders Issued Separate Official Statements In Which They Welcomed The “New Era”, And Appealed To The Masses For Calm And Obedience To The Men Of The Armed Forces Who “Saved The Country From Chaos And Collapse”.
How Can This Position, Which Appears To Be Political Suicide, Be Explained? The British Documents Answer Clearly: For Sayyid Abd Al-Rahman Al-Mahdi, The Coup Was, As Previously Mentioned, A Pure Engineering Exclusively Crafted By His First Man And His Prime Minister, Abdallah Khalil. Al-Mahdi Chose To Sacrifice The Parliamentary Democratic Form To Ensure That Actual Power Remained In The Hands Of Generals Who Owe Hidden Loyalty To The Umma Party, Specifically Major General Ahmed Abdel Wahab, And Thus Preventing His Opponents In The Democratic Unionist Party From Reaching The Seats Of Power.
As For Sayyid Ali Al-Mirghani, The Man Preferred, By Virtue Of His Conservative Nature And Complex Calculations, To Rely On The Organized Military Force That Promises Stability, Rather Than Venturing Into Volatile Political Coalitions That Might Harm His Sectarian And Economic Interests. And With These Two Blessings, The Military Regime Obtained The Strongest Possible Religious And Social Cover, Which Struck Other Partisan Leaders, Like Ismail Al-Azhari, With A Shock And Temporary Paralysis That Made Him Commit To Silence And Cautious Observation In His Home Without Issuing Any Antagonistic Statement During Those Critical Days.
The Suppressed Opposition And The Silent Pursuit. While The Two Traditional Leaders Were Granting The Regime Spiritual Legitimacy, The Sword Of The Military Hung Over The Necks Of Those They Considered The Real And Actual Danger: The Leftist Forces And The Trade Union Movement. The Book Indicates, Based On Intelligence And Diplomatic Reports, That The First And Fiercest Blow Of The Coup Was Directed At Dismantling The Infrastructure Of The Sudanese Communist Party, Which Enjoyed Precise Organization And Wide Influence Among Workers And Students. Wide Arrest Campaigns Were Launched That Affected The Leaders Of The Party And The Unions, Their Newspapers Were Suspended, And They Were Banned From Any Organizational Activity, In An Attempt To Eradicate The Only Force That Possessed The Mass Capability And Ideological Will To Fight The Nascent Military Regime And Thwart Its Project From The Cradle.
The First Days And Weeks Of Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud’s Coup Painted A Highly Complex Picture Of A Country That Fell Into The Trap Of Dual Polarizations; The Conspiracy Of Elites On The Inside, And The Opportunism Of Major Capitals On The Outside. And In The Midst Of This Scene, The Democratic Experience Was Buried, To Open The Doors Wide Before A New Chapter In Sudan’s History, A Chapter In Which The Military Would Soon Discover That Managing The State Differs Radically From Issuing Orders In Training Grounds.
The Coup: Claims And Repercussions. The Tanks Extended Their Control Over The Streets Of Khartoum On That Autumn Morning, But The Real Battle Was Being Decided In The Ether And On The Pages Of Official Newspapers That Were Soon Forced Into Silence. Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud And His Companions Did Not Waste Much Time Contemplating Their Easy And Bloodless Victory, But Rather Rushed Immediately To Tighten Their Grip Through A Rapid Legal Engineering Manifested In Issuing Constitutional Orders That Served As An Official Death Certificate For The First Democratic Experience In Sudan. And In The Midst Of Those Accelerating Hours, The Supreme Council Of The Armed Forces Declared Itself The Supreme And Absolute Authority In The Country, Monopolizing All Legislative And Executive Powers, And Delegating Them Entirely To Its President, Lieutenant General Abboud, So That Sovereignty Transferred With The Stroke Of A Pen From The Hand Of The People And Its Civilian Institutions To The Grip Of The Military Institution.
And The New Power Engineering Was Not Limited To Monopolizing Decision-Making, But Extended To Dismantling The Previous Political Structure From Its Roots; As It Was Decisively Resolved To Suspend Work With The Temporary Constitution, Dissolve The Parliament, And Strip Political Life Of Its Vitality Through Dissolving All Parties And Banning Gatherings And Demonstrations, And Even Suspending Newspapers And News Agencies To Impose Complete Media Isolation Until Things Settled Down. And In His Justification For These Harsh Exceptional Measures, Lieutenant General Abboud Relied In His Speech To The Masses On The State Of Deterioration The Country Had Reached, Describing It As Sliding Towards The Edge Of The Abyss As A Result Of Political Corruption And Partisan Machinations That Had Come To Threaten Sudan’s Security And Open The Door Wide Before Foreign Interventions.
And While The Facades Of The Regime Were Forming, The New Ministerial Formation Appeared As An Exact Reflection Of The Hidden Power Balances That Engineered The Coup. The Military Dominated The Sovereign Joints; So Alongside Lieutenant General Abboud’s Presidency Of The Council, The Ministry, And Defense, The Name Of Major General Ahmed Abdel Wahab Emerged As An Actual Ruler And A Strong Man Holding The Portfolios Of Interior And Local Government, An Appointment That Was Not Isolated From Spiritual And Political Affiliations, As The Man Was Known For His Loyalty To The Ansar Sect And Close To The Circles That Planned To Topple The Parliamentary Regime. Despite This Strict Military Hue, The Military Realized Their Dire Need For Civilian Expertise To Run The Wheels Of The State, So They Inoculated Their Government With Prominent Technocratic Faces Such As Sayyid Ziada Arbab Who Took Over Justice And Education, And Sayyid Abdel Majid Ahmed Who Was Entrusted With The Tasks Of Economy And Trade, In A Smart Attempt To Impart A Touch Of Administrative Competence And Reassure Civilian Elites That The Management Of Daily Life Affairs Would Not Be Disrupted.
However, This Reassurance Was Not Going To Include Everyone, For The Nascent Military Regime Realized That The Real Danger To Its Stability Does Not Lie In The Traditional Parties That Surrendered To Their Fate Or Blessed The Military Movement, But In The Radical And Leftist Forces That Possess The Ability To Mobilize The Street And Incite The Masses. And According To The British Documents, The Military Did Not Delay In Directing A Preemptive Crushing Blow To The Sudanese Communist Party And The Trade Union Movement; Where Wide Arrest Campaigns Were Launched Affecting Labor Leaders And Political Activists Under The Cover Of Emergency Laws, And Opposing Voices That Tried To Organize Strikes Or Issue Statements Condemning The Coup Were Silenced, A Move That Was Met With Great Satisfaction In Western Diplomatic Circles That Considered The Communists The Most Prominent Threat To Their Interests In Sudan. And The Wave Of Silent Rejection Extended To The Walls Of The University Of Khartoum, Where Students Showed Early Opposition To Military Rule, Holding Meetings And Announcing Their Intention To Confront The New Government, Prompting The Authorities To Take Strict Measures To Calm The Situation Inside The University Campus And Warn Students Against The Consequences Of Interfering In Political Affairs.
In Parallel With This Internal Security Grip, The Regime Was Waging Another Battle No Less Fierce On The Foreign Policy Front, Aiming To Extract A Quick International Recognition That Legitimizes Its Existence. The Foreign Policy Statement Was Drafted With Extreme Care To Reflect A Pragmatic Approach Transcending Sharp Polarizations; So Sudan Announced Its Absolute Commitment To The Charters Of The United Nations And The League Of Arab States And The Resolutions Of The Bandung Conference, But At The Same Time It Explicitly Opened Its Arms To The West, Welcoming Foreign Aid And Loans, In An Unmistakable Signal To End The Controversy That Brought Down Previous Governments Over Accepting American Aid. And To Secure Its Northern Front, The Regime Directed Intensive Friendly Messages Towards Egypt, Expressing Its Sincere Desire To Turn The Page On Differences And Resolve The Complex Nile Waters Crisis, And Remove The Artificial Barriers That Disturbed The Peace Of Relations, Which Was A Successful Diplomatic Tactic That Yielded Successive International Recognitions And Aborted Any Attempt To Impose External Isolation On Khartoum.
And In The Depths Of This Sprawling Scene, The British Documents Emerge, Specifically The Report Of Ambassador Sir Edwin Chapman-Andrews Drafted In Late December, To Uncover The Biggest Mystery In This Narrative: The True Psychological And Political Motives That Pushed The Civilian Prime Minister Abdallah Khalil To Voluntarily Hand Over Power To The Army. Khalil’s Decision Was Not A Spur-Of-The-Moment Phenomenon, But Was Rather The Culmination Of A State Of Deep Despair And A Feeling Of Historical Deadlock; For He Had Been Watching With His Own Eyes How The Parliamentary System Was Collapsing Under The Weight Of Corruption, Incompetence, And Partisan Machinations That Made The Continuation Of Civilian Rule Borderline Absurd. And The Man’s Tragedy Deepened With The Terrible Economic Collapse That Struck The Country As A Result Of The Abysmal Failure In Marketing The Cotton Crop, A Failure That Emptied The State’s Coffers And Left It Standing On The Verge Of Total Bankruptcy.
However, The Real Terror That Dominated Abdallah Khalil’s Mind, And Pushed Him To Commit What Looked Like Political Suicide, Lay In The Tangled Partisan Scene; For He Had Come To See The Specter Of A New Government Coalition Forming Between His “Umma” Party And The “National Unionist” Party, An Alliance Whose Idea He Loathed From The Foundation, Believing With Certainty That The Return Of His Bitter Opponent Ismail Al-Azhari To Power Through This Coalition Would Necessarily Mean Sudan Throwing Itself Into The Arms Of Egyptian Influence, Which He Considered An Unacceptable Squandering Of National Independence. And What Further Complicated His Position Was The Internal Floundering In The Corridors Of His Party, And The Relentless And Overt Endeavors Of His Spiritual Leader Sayyid Abd Al-Rahman Al-Mahdi To Run For The Presidency Of The Republic, Ambitions That Khalil Saw Would Further Tear The Political Fabric. In The Face Of These Fierce Storms That Gathered On Khartoum’s Horizon, Abdallah Khalil Chose To Be The Engineer Of His Own End And The End Of The Entire Democratic Experience, Handing Over The Country’s Keys To A Military Leadership Whose Hidden Loyalty To His Orientations He Trusted, Preferring The Rule Of The Military Uniform Over Seeing His Political Opponents Crowned On The Throne Of Power.
The Hidden Resistance And The Creation Of De Facto Legitimacy. At The Time When The Sudanese Radio Was Broadcasting Chants Of Military Victory, And Western Capitals Were Exchanging Telegrams Of Congratulation Veiled With The Success Of The “Smooth Handover” Of Power, There Were Back Streets In Khartoum Boiling With A Silent Rejection That Soon Found Its Way To Express Itself.
For The Calm That Hung Over The Capital On The Morning Of The Seventeenth Of November 1958 Was Not A Calm Reflecting Consensus, But Was A Shock Capitalized On By The Military To Establish Their Foothold. However, The British Documents Reveal That There Was One Political Force That Did Not Swallow The Bait And Did Not Surrender To The Shock, Namely The Sudanese Communist Party. The Intelligence Reports Attached In The Book Indicate That The Communists Were The First To Realize The Danger Of The Military Movement, And On The Very Day The Coup Was Announced, They Defied The Curfew And Emergency Laws, And Initiated The Distribution Of Secret Leaflets Throughout The Capital. These Leaflets Described What Happened Not As Saving The Country, But As The Establishment Of A “Military Dictatorship” Whose First And Last Goal Is To Liquidate The Mass Democratic Movement And Strip The Unions Of Their Gains, Considering That The Coup Is An Extension Of The Interests Of Western Colonial Powers That Were Bothered By The Growing Labor And Syndicalist Awareness In Sudan.
The New Military Authority Did Not Tolerate This Blatant Challenge That Threatened Its Official Narrative, So The Response Came Swiftly And Ruthlessly. The British Embassy’s Telegrams Document The Fierce Raiding Campaigns Launched By The Military Police Forces On The Homes Of Communist And Leftist Leaders In The Middle Of The Night. Dozens Of Prominent Political And Syndicalist Figures, Such As Hassan Al-Tahir Zarrouq, Were Arrested And Dragged To Prisons Without Trials, In A Clear Message Of Intimidation To All Civilian Forces That The Sword Of The Military Is Drawn And Will Not Show Mercy To Anyone Who Tries To Disturb The Peace Of The “New Era”. And The British Embassy Followed These Arrests With Great Satisfaction, As London Saw In The Growing Communist Influence In Sudan A Direct Threat To Its Strategic Interests In The Nile Valley.
The Early Resistance Was Not Limited To Seasoned Partisan Cadres, But Its Spark Extended To Ignite The Walls Of The University Of Khartoum, Which Had Always Been A Barometer For The Political Pulse Of The Sudanese Street. The Book Cites A Highly Important Report Submitted By The British Ambassador On The Eighth Of December 1958, In Which He Observes The Restlessness Of The Student Movement And Its Escalating Anger Over The Confiscation Of Political Freedoms. The Students Defied Military Orders And Held Mass Meetings Inside The University Campus, In Which They Announced Their Categorical Rejection Of Dictatorship And Began Planning For A Comprehensive Strike. This Movement Bothered The Military Authorities Who Rushed To Freeze The Activity Of The Students’ Union And Hint At Closing The University, In An Attempt To Contain This Young Giant Before It Goes Out To The Streets And Merges With The Masses.
And While The Regime Was Tightening Its Security Grip On The Inside, Its Real Battle Was Taking Place In The Corridors Of International Diplomacy To Ensure The Continued Flow Of Support And Consolidate Its Legitimacy. The Documents Clearly Reveal How Sudan Transformed Into Rich Material For Discussion In The Corridors Of The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In A Secret Telegram From The British Delegation In Paris Dated November 19, A Discussion Took Place About The Extent Of The New Regime’s Loyalty To The West, And One English Diplomat Was Quoted With His Simultaneously Sarcastic And Deep Comment That “The Prime Minister And The Leader Of The Coup In Sudan Have Become More English Than The English Themselves”. This Comment Reflects The Extent Of Western Reassurance Towards The Orientations Of Abboud’s Government, In Which They Saw An Impregnable Fortress Against Nasserite Expansion And Soviet Penetration.
And This Western Satisfaction Translated Quickly Into Practical Steps; For The American Press, Headed By “The Washington Post” And “The New York Times”, Showed An Unprecedented Welcome To The Coup, Considering It A Defeat For The Egyptian Dictator Gamal Abdel Nasser And A Slap To His Ambitions To Control The Nile Waters. On The Other Bank, Moscow Expressed Its Severe Resentment, As The Soviet Newspaper “Pravda” Published Analyses Considering What Happened A Reactionary Coup Supported By Imperialism. And In The Midst Of This Polarization, Britain Did Not Waste Time, But Rather The Foreign Office In London Began In Late November To Study Plans To Provide Shipments Of Weapons And Equipment As An Urgent “Gift” To The Sudanese Army, With The Aim Of Ensuring Its Permanent Loyalty And Blocking The Path Against Any Egyptian Or Soviet Attempts To Infiltrate The Sudanese Military Institution Through Armament Deals.
And In The Context Of His Endeavors To Break His Stereotypical Image As A Strict General, And To Address Regional And International Public Opinion With A Soft Language, The Book Cites The Details Of A Lengthy And Exceptional Press Interview Conducted By Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud With The Arab News Agency And The Indian Journalist Prakash Chandra In December 1958, Which Became Known As The “Forty Questions Interview”. In This Interview, Abboud Attempted To Paint A Humane And Wise Picture Of Himself And His Regime; So He Patiently Answered Questions Ranging From The Policies Of The Major State To The Details Of His Personal Life. Abboud Strongly Denied That His Coup Was Directed Against Democracy, Stressing That He Was Forced To Intervene To Save The Country From Corruption And Nepotism, And That The Army Would Return To Its Barracks Whenever Matters Stabilized.
The Leader Of The Coup Was Keen In His Answers To Send Reassurances To All Parties; So He Affirmed His Adherence To Positive Neutrality, And Announced His Readiness To Accept Foreign And American Aid Provided That It Does Not Touch National Sovereignty, And In An Attempt To Cool The Front With Cairo, He Spoke With A Conciliatory Tone About The Nile Waters Crisis, Stressing That Quiet Dialogue Is The Only Way To Reach An Agreement That Satisfies Both Parties. And The Interview Was Not Devoid Of Personal Touches, As He Stated That He Is A Man Who Leans Towards Discipline, Wakes Up Early, And Spends His Free Time Reading, Especially Reading Books On History And Islamic Heritage, And That He Does Not Smoke Or Drink Alcohol, In A Clear Attempt To Court The Conservative Popular Conscience And Impart A Touch Of Paternal Dignity To His Emergent Leadership.
At The Conclusion Of This Journey, We Find Ourselves Before A Highly Important Historical Document That Dismantles Many Of The Myths That Surrounded The First Military Coup In Sudan’s History. For The Tanks Of The Seventeenth Of November Did Not Move In A Vacuum, But Rather Slipped On A Path Paved By The Civilian Politicians Themselves When They Prioritized Narrow Partisan And Sectarian Interests Over The Interest Of Democratic Construction. The Real Tragedy Narrated By These Documents Lies Not Only In The Military’s Seizure Of Power, But In The Civilian Elite’s Abandonment, Headed By Prime Minister Abdallah Khalil, Of Democracy And Voluntarily Handing It Over As A Sacrifice To Dispel Geopolitical And Regional Fears. And Thus, Abboud’s Coup Was Nothing But The First Act In A Long And Painful Play Of Military Coups That Would Continue To Batter Sudan, Leaving Behind A People Who Pay Every Time The Price For The Conspiracy Of Their Elites And The Manipulation Of Major Powers With Their Destiny.
