Sadiq al-Mahdi
Sadiq al-Mahdi | |
|---|---|
الصادق المهدي | |
 al-Mahdi in 1964 | |
| 6th Prime Minister of Sudan | |
| In office 6 May 1986 – 30 June 1989 | |
| President | Ahmed al-Mirghani |
| Preceded by | Al-Jazuli Daf'allah |
| Succeeded by | Bakri Hassan Saleh (2017) |
| In office 27 July 1966 – 18 May 1967 | |
| President | Ismail al-Azhari |
| Preceded by | Muhammad Ahmad Mahgoub |
| Succeeded by | Muhammad Ahmad Mahgoub |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 December 1935 Al-Abasya, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan |
| Died | 26 November 2020 (aged 84) Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
| Political party | National Umma Party |
| Relations | Muhammad Ahmad (great grandfather) Hadi al-Mahdi (uncle) |
| Children | Siddig, Bushra, Ribah, Mariam |
| Parent(s) | Al-Siddiq al-Mahdi Rahma Abdullah Jadallah |
| Education | University of Oxford |
Sadiq al-Mahdi (
Political life
Sadiq al-Mahdi was Prime Minister of Sudan on two occasions: first briefly between 1966 and 1967 and second from 1986 until his ousting on 30 June 1989.[1]
First term as prime minister (1966–1967)
Mahgoub's resignation split the Umma party into two factions: the opposition faction was led by Mahgoub and endorsed by Sadiq's uncle, the
In the opposition (1967–1986)
Second term as prime minister (1986–1989)
After the 1986 elections, Sadiq formed a coalition government comprising the Umma Party (which he led); the National Islamic Front (led by his brother-in-law, Hassan al-Turabi); the Democratic Unionist Party (led by Mohammed Uthman al-Mirghani al-Khatim); and four small Southern parties. However, this coalition proved to be unstable, preventing Sadiq from delivering on his promises to end the Second Sudanese Civil War and fix the ongoing economic crisis.[2] On 30 June 1989, his government was overthrown in a coup led by Brigadier Omar al-Bashir. The post of Prime Minister of Sudan was then abolished.[5]
1989 coup and afterwards
Sadiq continued to lead the Umma Party in opposition to Bashir after being ousted.[6][7] He spent a period in exile, but eventually returned to Sudan in November 2000.[7] As a former head of government, he joined the Club of Madrid.[4]
He ran unsuccessfully for the 2010 presidential elections, pledging not to hand Bashir to the International Criminal Court to face charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes on the grounds that it would destabilize the country.[8] In 2014, the government alleged that Sadiq had collaborated with rebels, forcing him to flee to Egypt. He eventually returned to Khartoum on 26 January 2017.[9]
In April 2019, Bashir was himself
On October 24, 2020, as Sudan began to normalize diplomatic relations with Israel, Mahdi strongly condemned the move, while accusing U.S. president Donald Trump (a chief facilitator of the deal) of being racist against Muslims and black people, and calling Israel an "apartheid state."[13]
Personal life
Sadiq al-Mahdi was born on 25 December 1935 in Al-Abasya, Omdurman, Sudan.[14][4]
He was the paternal grandson of Sayyid Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi, founder of the Umma Party,[15][16] and great-grandson of Muhammad Ahmad,[17] the Sudanese sheikh of the Ansar and self proclaimed Mahdi who started the Mahdist War to end Egyptian rule in Sudan. He was also the paternal uncle of Sudanese-British actor Alexander Siddig.[18]
Sadiq al-Mahdi married twice and had ten children, including a son named Siddig after his grandfather al-Imam al-Siddiq, born in 1968, who is now a leader in National Umma Party,[19] and a daughter, Mariam, who is the leader of the National Umma Party.[20]
On 26 November 2020, Sadiq died of complications from COVID-19, after being admitted to a hospital in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, for nearly a month.[21]
Publishing career
He was the author of a variety of scholarly and political books, including The Southern Question (1964); Speeches in Exile (1976); Questions on Mahadism (1979); Legitimate Penalties and Their Position in the Islamic Social System (1987); Democracy in Sudan: Will Return and Triumph (1990); Challenges of the Nineties (1991).[4] In addition to his political career, he is remembered for helping theorize and explicate "a new kind of religious thought which would draw out of the Qur’an and Hadith a shari‘a which was adapted to the needs of the modern world."[16] Professor of History Albert Hourani characterizes Sadiq's intellectual contributions as "responsible but bold."[16]
Education
See also
- First Sudanese Civil War (1955–1972) between North and South Sudan
- Second Sudanese Civil War (1983–2005), a continuation of the First
- Darfur Conflict(since 2003, ongoing as of 2020)
References
- ^ Abdelaziz, Khalid; Khalek, Hesham Abdul (26 November 2020). "Sudan's last democratically elected PM dies from COVID-19". Reuters. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8444-0750-0.
- ^ Metz, Helen Chapin, ed. (1991). "Return to Civilian Rule, 1964-69". Sudan: A Country Study. Washington, D.C.: GPO for the Library of Congress – via countrystudies.us.
- ^ a b c d e f "Sadig Al-Mahdi". Club De Madrid. 12 September 2007. Archived from the original on 8 October 2007. Retrieved 29 March 2008.
- ^ "FACTBOX – Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir". Reuters. 14 July 2008. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2008.
- from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
- ^ ISBN 0955114403, p. 113.
- ^ Mazen, Maram (1 February 2010). "Sudanese Candidate Al-Mahdi Wouldn't Hand Over Bashir to ICC". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 27 November 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
- ^ Aboulenein, Ahmed (26 January 2017). "Sudanese opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi returns from two-year exile". Reuters. Archived from the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
- ^ "Omar al-Bashir: Sudan military coup topples ruler after protests", BBC, 11 April 2019.
- ^ "Opposition leader denies Bashir ouster was 'military coup', calls for Sudan to join ICC". France 24. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ "Sudan's Last Democratically-Elected Leader Retiring From Politics | Voice of America – English". www.voanews.com. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
- ^ Magdy, Samy (24 October 2020). "Head of Sudan's largest party slams Trump and Israel deal". AP News. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
- ^ "السيرة الذاتية". alsadigalmahdi.com (in Arabic).
- ISBN 0-299-18294-0.
- ^ a b c Hourani, Albert. "A Disturbance of Spirits (since 1967)." In A History of the Arab Peoples. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belnap Press of Harvard University Press, 1991.
- ^ Gamal Nkrumah (21 July 2004). "Sadig Al-Mahdi: The comeback king". Al-Ahram. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
- ^ Gayle Stever (1998). "Sid's Biography". Sidcity.net.
- ^ "مريم الصادق المهدي: هذه ليست حكومة كفاءات بل "كفوات"". France 24 (in Arabic). 19 March 2019.
- ^ "Mariam Al Mahdi: Revolutionary 'Kandake' as Sudan's Top Diplomat". eng.majalla.com.
- ^ "Sudan mourns former Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi". Africanews. 26 November 2020.
External links
- Helen Chapin Metz, ed., "Umma Party", Sudan: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1991.