Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to
ArabizeDarfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
has formed a new government, a month after he secured a landslide victory in elections boycotted by the opposition and marred by allegations of fraud.
Bashir announced the cabinet line-up late Saturday, appointing his presidential assistant Ibrahim Ghandour as foreign minister, while Mohammed Zayed took over as oil minister, state-run broadcaster al-Sudan reported.
The 71-year-old president removed long-time Defense Minister Abdelrahim Mohammed Hussein and appointed Lieutenant General Mustafa Osman Obeid, the army's chief of staff, as acting defense minister.
Bashir reappointed both of his vice presidents, Bakri Hassan Saleh and Hassabo Mohammed Abdelrahman, to the same positions.
According to al-Sudan, the new government would be made up of 31 cabinet ministers.
Early on Sunday, Bashir also issued a decree that appointed governors for the African country's 18 states. The former defense minister, Hussein, was appointed governor of Khartoum State.
Bashir won the presidential election in April with 94 percent of the votes.