Prof. Munzoul Assal, B.Sc, M. Sc (Khartoum), PhD (Bergen, Norway), professor of social anthropology at the universities of Khartoum and Bergen. The civilian-military partnership that was formed in August 2019 was not exemplary as Mr Hamdok repeatedly said. The military maintained an upper hand in decision-making in the country and dominated the economy, and instead of working in good faith to strengthen and entrench the partnership it actively sabotaged it. Signs that the military will not hand leadership of the sovereign council to civilians were abundant long before the October 25th coup. But there are also other reasons for the coup: safeguarding the military’s economic interests and avoiding accountability for the sit-in massacre of June 3, 2019, among others.