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 been transferred to a Khartoum prison following his toppling by the army last week, a source from his family told AFP on Wednesday.
"Last night, Bashir was transferred to Kober prison in Khartoum," the source said without revealing his name for security reasons.
Bashir was ousted by the army last Thursday after four months of protests against his three decades of iron-fisted rule. The country's new military rulers had said he was being held "in a secure place".
Witnesses said there was a heavy deployment of soldiers and members of the paramilitary Rapid Support Force outside the prison in north Khartoum.
"There are troops in vehicles mounted with machine-guns near the prison," a witness told AFP.