Abdel Fattah al-Burhan
Sudan army chief and Sovereign Council chair; co-led the 2021 coup; US-sanctioned Jan 2025 over SAF bombing of civilians
Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (born 11 July 1960) is a Sudanese army officer who became Chief of Staff of the Sudanese Army in February 2018 and has been commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) since 12 April 2019. He chaired the Transitional Military Council in 2019, then the Transitional Sovereignty Council from August 2019; on 25 October 2021 he led a coup that dissolved the civilian-led government, and he re-formed the Sovereignty Council in November 2021 with himself as chairman. On 16 January 2025 the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned him under Executive Order 14098, stating that SAF forces carried out lethal attacks on civilians and airstrikes on schools, markets and hospitals and denied humanitarian access, and that he has opposed a return to civilian governance. On 13 October 2025 he dismissed Central Bank of Sudan Governor Burai al-Siddiq Ali Ahmed and appointed Amna Mirghani Hassan El Toum, and in April 2026 he received RSF defector Al-Nour Ahmed Adam (al-Qubba); Human Rights Watch said on 10 June 2026 it found no public information that authorities had investigated the abuses of defecting commanders.
● confirmed by a primary document · ○ reported
● confirmed by a primary document · ○ reported
Roles
1 source
- U.S. Department of the Treasury (OFAC press release)DocumentSAF leadership
Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan (Burhan) is the commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
1 source
- www.hrw.orgDocument
The Sudanese army leader and chairperson of the Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, welcomed Al-Qubba into the SAF publicly.
1 source
- www.hrw.orgDocument
The Sudanese army leader and chairperson of the Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, welcomed Al-Qubba into the SAF publicly.
1 source
- Al-Estiklal
Transitional Sovereign Council Chairman General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan on October 13, 2025, dismissed Central Bank Governor Buraie Siddig Ali Ahmed from his position. He appointed Amina Mirghani Hassan al-Tom as his successor, making her the first woman in Sudan’s history to lead the Central Bank at one of the most difficult financial moments since the country’s independence.
Figures
1 source
- U.S. Department of the Treasury (OFAC press release)DocumentSAF leadership
In October 2021, Burhan and RSF commander Hemedti co-led a military takeover that seized power from Sudan’s civilian-led transitional government.
1 source
- U.S. Department of the Treasury (OFAC press release)Document
Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan (Burhan), the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), under Executive Order (E.O.) 14098, “Imposing Sanctions on Certain Persons Destabilizing Sudan and Undermining the Goal of a Democratic Transition.”