Late Nov. 21, 13 Sudanese military officers were arrested in Khartoum on charges of planning a coup against President Omar al Bashir. The suspects include several high-ranking Sudanese officials, including the country's former intelligence chief, the former head of military intelligence and a general who helped al Bashir stage the 1989 coup that brought him to power. The Sudanese regime's hold on power has appeared remarkably resilient despite years of external pressure, the Arab Spring and even the secession of South Sudan in July 2011, which saw Sudan lose control over its most valuable oil fields. However, the accumulating stress from these issues along with the government's unwillingness to address the concerns of the country's opposition groups appear to be weighing on the regime. Now, the alleged coup plot indicates discontent has also spread within the military, which has long served as al Bashir's power base. Within the military, the airborne division and its attached special operations forces battalion are the president's most trusted military force, but al Bashir also needs support from the rest of the military and security services. The military is the main tool through which al Bashir's regime controls Sudan's predominantly Muslim core territory along the Nile and projects power into the country's outer regions and beyond. Maintaining the support of the Muslim core is critical for the government, whereas controlling outer regions like Darfur or even its former territory that now makes up South Sudan are not as important for governing the country. Since the dismissal of the regime's main civilian Islamist element in 1999, the military's role has only grown more important for preserving stability in this area.
