Sudan's Abdalla Hamdok resigns as prime minister

Sudan's civilian Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok announced on Sunday that he was stepping down from his role.

His resignation comes six weeks after he was reinstated as part of an agreement with the military that originally overthrew the government in October.

"I decided to give back the responsibility and announce my resignation as prime minister, and give a chance to another man or woman of this noble country to ... help it pass through what’s left of the transitional period to a civilian democratic country," Hamdok said in a televised address.

Hours before the announcement, thousands of protesters took to the streets in the capital calling on the military to stop interfering in the transition.

Why is Hamdok stepping down?

Hamdok's decision comes amid stunted attempts to carry out a democratic transition in the country. He has called for a roundtable discussion to table a new agreement on how this can be achieved.

"I have tried my best to stop the country from sliding towards disaster," he said, addressing the nation.

"In view of the fragmentation of the political forces and conflicts between the (military and civilian) components of the transition ... despite everything that has been done to reach a consensus ... it has not happened," he said.

Sudan "is crossing a dangerous turning point that threatens its whole survival", he added.

Hamdok had got the military to agree to elections in 2023, but rumors of his possible resignation began to circulate after local media reported that he had not been in his office for days.

What is the situation in Sudan?

The news of Hamdok's plan to leave power throws the country into further uncertainty, three years after a popular uprising toppled the long-time leader Omar al-Bashir.

Hamdok first became prime minister as part of a deal with the military. He had previously served as an official for the United Nations and is trained as an economist.

The military — under the leadership of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan — then conducted a coup on October 25, sparking concern for the state of the country's struggling democratic transition. He was reinstated in November.

Despite the concession from the military, protests continued. Protest organizers claimed that the reinstatement of Hamdok was a move by the military to legitimize the coup.

Police and security forces have responded in a heavy-handed way against protesters leading to scores of them being killed.