Sudan mourns Minister of Defence

The body of Sudan’s Minister of Defence, and head of the Sudan government delegation to the peace talks, Lt Gen Jamaleldin Omar, who died suddenly of a heart attack in Juba on Wednesday morning, arrived in Khartoum this afternoon to a full state and military reception. He was buried in Khartoum this evening.

Lt Gen Omar was in the South Sudan capital of Juba for the peace talks, that have now been suspended for a week.

Initial funeral rites were held at Juba airport this morning, before Gen Omar’s body was airlifted to Khartoum.

On arrival, in the Sudanese capital, Gen Omar’s casket was received by a Guard of Honour in an official military funeral ceremony led by the President of the Sovereign Council Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan and his deputy, Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, members of the Sovereign Council and the Council of Ministers, commanders of the Armed Forces, the Wali (governor) of Khartoum State, representatives of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) and other national figures.

The sudden death of Gen Omar has prompted expressions of condolence to the Sudanese people, and appreciation of the minister’s work and contribution towards peace in Sudan.

The Sovereign Council eulogized Minister Omar, saying that “he died while he was defending Sudan’s stability, safety, and dignity,” and that he “dedicated his life to progress of the country”.

‘Gen Omar died while he was defending Sudan’s stability, safety, and dignity… He dedicated his life to progress of the country’ – Sovereign Council

The Central Council of the Forces for Freedom and Change described Omar as “one of the pillars of the government’s negotiation team in Juba,” adding that the deceased exerted all efforts to achieve peace, noting that he died in Juba while setting up the finishing touches to the security arrangements.

Messages and condolences have also poured-in from political and civil society organisations across the spectrum of Sudan, including the Revolutionary Front, Chairman of SPLM-North, Malik Agar, the Sudanese Congress Party (SCP), and the Democratic Unionist Party at time of publishing.

Gen Omar was buried this evening at Faroug Cemetery in Khartoum, in the presence of leaders of government, military commanders, religious leaders, and civil society figures.

Omar was a member of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, which took power last year under a 39-month power-sharing deal between the military and the pro-democracy movement that led the uprising against the Omar Al Bashir regime.

Omar was promoted to the rank Lieutenant General on April 15, 2019 by the head of the Sovereign Council, Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan.

Video: Gen Omar’s casket arrives in Khartoum (SUNA)

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