Sudan appoints ex-UN official Kamil Idris as prime minister amid ongoing civil war and humanitarian crisis.

Chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has appointed Kamil El-Tayib Idris, a former United Nations official, as the country’s new prime minister. The announcement was made on Monday through a decree issued by Burhan, who also serves as Sudan’s army chief. Idris, who previously ran for president, marks the first individual to assume the role of prime minister since January 2022, following the resignation of Abdalla Hamdok due to a prolonged political stalemate. That deadlock eventually escalated into a civil war that continues to devastate the nation.

Last month, General Burhan had named career diplomat Dafallah al-Haj as acting prime minister. In a separate decree, he also appointed two women—Salma Al-Mubarak and Nawara Abu Mohamed Tahir—to the Sovereign Council, increasing the total number of council members to nine.

Since April 2023, Sudan has been engulfed in a violent conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the national army. This ongoing battle for control has resulted in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, with thousands of lives lost and massive displacement. While official figures from the United Nations and local authorities report over 20,000 deaths and 15 million people displaced, independent research by U.S.-based scholars estimates the death toll to be as high as 130,000.