The civilian leaders are not satisfied with this aftermath of the June 3 massacre they say left 130 people dead.

An independent investigation into the deadly breaking of a months-long sit in outside military headquarters in Khartoum calling for civilian rule in Sudan is part of the power-sharing deal between the military junta and protest leaders.

The military officers facing prosecution were not named.

Crimes against humanity are punishable by the death penalty in Sudan.

Civilian groups insist the incident requires further investigation by an independent panel in terms of their agreement with the Transitional Military Council.

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The announcement by the military junta in Khartoum comes as talks between the generals and pro-democracy civilians about a power-sharing agreement drag.

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The Transitional Military Council says the arrested officers and politicians were bent on restoring the regime of President Omar Al Bashir they overthrew in April.

Army chief Hashim Abdel Muttalib Ahmed is the most senior officer now in custody.

The generals will remain in control  for 21 months of a a power-sharing period to be followed by 18 months of civilian rule ahead of democratic elections.

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The killing of yet another demonstrator has set back the signing of a power-sharing deal between the military junta and civilian groups.

Emotions at the vigil were heightened by footage of the deadly June 3 crackdown that have gone viral since lifting of the internet blackout that prevented this being seen before.

The Alliance for Change and Freedom has delayed signing the power sharing deal with the  Transitional Military Council first from Saturday until Sunday and then until today.

They say they need further consultations with the generals. Recent developments might necessitate even more talks.

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Twelve officers both serving and retired were arrested for trying to prevent a power-deal with civilians that the Washington post calls  remarkable opportunity to restore popular rule in the giant on the Nile.

The attempted putsch follows the Transitional  Military Council, that overthrew President Omar Al Bashir last April, agreeing to enter a power-sharing deal with civilians leading to elections in three years time.

Sudan has been suspended from the African Union until the generals hand power to a civilian administration.

There are vestiges of Bashir regime who fear the consequences of losing power.

Pressure from the AU and Western powers makes it impossible for the the junta to continue holding the reins

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More than 100 people were killed by the former janjaweed militia who dumped dozens of bodies in the Nile.

The BBC used video from more than 300 people who filmed the massacre on their mobile phones.

This was backed by evidence from soldiers involved in the crackdown on the months-long sit in outside military headquarters in Khartoum.

They say they were ordered to carry out the pre-planned attack on the demonstrators.

The Transitional Military Council, which has since entered into a power-sharing deal with the pro-democracy civilians, has yet to comment on the BBC findings. 

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The demonstrations brought tens of thousands to the streets – the largest  number since paramilitaries killed 118 unarmed civilians.

They military say they were forced to intervene yesterday when unknown snipers fired on both troops and civilians.

They used teargas and live ammunition.

On the day marking the 30 anniversary of the coup that put ousted Omar Al Bashir in power.

the iron-fisted response will put back talks between the Transitional Military Council and the pro-democracy civilian groups under the banner of Forces For Change

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US Under Secretary of State for Africa, Tibor Nagy says the appointment of special envoys by various countries points to the determination to achieve such a settlement.

Washington’s chief Africa envoy Timor Nagy, who was in Sudan last week,  says the US supports the African Union mediation in Sudan and it is important other countries do likewise.

“We are very careful not have multiple processes so then the Sudanese can go forum shopping between them So it is very important that everyone support the African Union process,” he says.

He says it would be unhelpful if either the Transitional Military Council or the Forces for Change, who now see each other in a hostile terms, were to impose a unilateral solution for Sudan

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Making his first appliance in public since the April 11 coup, he was driven from prison to the prosecutor’s office to hear the charges.

Clad in the traditional white robes and turban of Sudanese men, Omar Al Bashir was driven under heavy police guard.

He entered the prosecutors building with a broad smile and exchanged greetings with staff.

He left shortly afterwards scowling.

He is expected in court next week.

The military junta is hoping his trial will appease the civilian groups that demonstrated for months calling for his fall.

Those groups insist they want the Transitional Military Council to make way for a civilian government.

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The  United Nations Security Council has condemned the violence and noted the junta’s undertaking to investigate the massacre.

About to re-engage in dialogue with civilian leaders, Sudan’s Transitional Military Council says it regrets the error made in deploying the paramilitary Rapid Support Force, formerly known as the janjaweed,  against protestors.

Meeting in New York last night the UN Security Council emphasises the importance of protecting human rights in Sudan.

The junta has had a similar call from President Donald Trump’s most senior representative to Africa  Tibor Nagy who is in Sudan with Washington’s newly-appointed special envoy Donald Booth. 

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In those heady, early days of democracy South Africa was often said to be punching above its weight diplomatically.

There was not a country that did not want to be the friend of Nelson Mandela’s success story.

Many sought help, hoping that rubbing  up against  it might bring some good fortune.

So, in addition to their considerable domestic commitments Mandela and his early successors were required to be counsellors and mediators.

They were expected to explain how they  achieved the seemingly impossible end of apartheid and the reconciliation that brought about the Rainbow Nation.

Northern Ireland is perhaps the best example of this

Many times, South African leaders were obliged to apply these lessons by actually stepping  in between parties in conflict and brokering a peace.

This applied mainly in Africa where South African mediation achieved settlements in Sudan, Comoros, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire and Lesotho.

The fact that things have lately gone pear-shaped in many of these nations is a debate for another day.

However badly things have fared, they are indubitably better off having  had South African mediation and peacekeeping at a time when the rest of the  world was either unwilling or incapable to intervening.

Thankfully, that is not the case in Sudan today.

The African Union has built the confidence and experience to make its presence felt by red-carding the Transitional Military Council until it hands power to a civilian administration.

The Arab nations are there, albeit misguidedly lending moral support to the military junta in Khartoum until the generals made the fatal error of deploying the former janjaweed against unarmed protestors.

The United States has got involved, sending Tibor Nagy its top envoy to Africa to urge an and to the violence.

It has also named Donald Booth as its special envoy to Sudan – the ninth since 2001.

Not only Washington, but Hollywood has skin in the game through activity actor George Clooney calling on the U.S. Treasury to use its muscle with international banks to dry up the financial stream to the junta in Khartoum and anyone seeking to prolong the conflict in the strategically place country bridging Africa and the Arab worlds.

Look for South Africa in this crowd and you will be disappointed.

Does this mean the days of Mzanzi mediation are over?

Probably not.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has his hands full pulling South Africa out of the economic swamp.

For him it is very much a case of charity beginning at home.

The sad reality is the wasted Zuma years of Zuma corruption has cut the moral high ground from under South Africa’s feet.

That is ironic, because Zuma himself was a good, although tough, mediator.

“Do you really think you can twist a man’s arm behind his back hard enough to  get him to sign a settlement with his free hand?” I asked him in jest after he had brought a reluctant  Pierre Nkurunziza into the Burundi deal.

“What do you think the did to us at Codesa?” he retorted.

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