Al Burhan hit the nail on the head when he missed…or the republic of the rifle

Al-Burhan invoked a well-deserved wave of devastating attacks and outrage for his miserable and wretched statement, “There is no more glory for the revolution’s tires, glory -only- to the rifle.” To further highlight the misery, these words were uttered at a Civil Service Conference. The roaring crowds that confronted Al-Burhan, vigorously and fiercely defending the “tires,” were enough for me when Al-Burhan sought to belittle and disparage the glorious December Revolution, its symbols, and its brave youth. He used the phrase, “There is no more glory for the revolution’s tires,” in reference to the popular revolution that toppled the corrupt, fascist Salvation (Inqaz) regime in (April 2019). During the uprise that erupted in (2018), demonstrators burned tires on public roads to prevent security forces from reaching their locations and suppressing them. This was in addition to other measures the revolutionaries took to protect themselves from the excessive and lethal force used against them by the Security Forces.

Indeed, dozens of innocent demonstrators were martyred, and hundreds were seriously injured. The mere act of burning these tires -carried out by the young men and women of the revolution- was nothing more than a legitimate defense against a brutal, repressive, immoral, inhumane, irreligious, and illegitimate act. Had these young men enjoyed their inherent human right to freedom of expression through their peaceful mass demonstrations, marked by their popular slogans and chants, they wouldn’t have had to burn a single tire.

Those who confronted Al-Burhan regarding his statements have fulfilled the promise and held their ground, leaving no stone unturned. Therefore, I will focus on the second part of the wretched statement: “Glory be to the rifle only.” Al-Burhan hit the nail on the head in this regard, as his primary goal in attacking the revolution and its symbols was to pave the way for his new era, the era of the fascist, dictatorial Republic of the rifle, with said rifle acting as its symbol. As usual, he didn’t dare or have the courage to directly disclose his upcoming arrangements after his return from Egypt and his meeting with its president, Al-Sisi, who summoned him to appear before him. Al-Burhan’s concealment of his hidden goal, without disclosing it directly and clearly until after the attack on the revolution, also indirectly, reminded me of a story by Professor Abdullah Al-Tayeb, may Allah have mercy on his soul. When the professor was head of the University of Khartoum, he would only approve what was right in terms of university duties.

He refused government interference or arming himself with a relationship with it, regardless, and he was able to impose a special prestige on university education, which doubled the number of his opponents, naturally. He was dismissed from the university, despite the fact that he worked there with all his strength and established vital milestones. However, denunciations from colleagues in the profession, who had an opinion contrary to his method of management, were enough to get him dismissed from the university. Professor Abdullah Al-Tayeb felt bitter about what happened, as those with high levels of competence and professionalism were dismissed in favor of others who had yet to rise to the former group’s level. During his tenure, the University of Khartoum became a twinning university with one of the most prestigious English universities.

Following his dismissal, the professor returned home. People flocked to his house and consoled him over what had happened, claiming that he was greater than the government’s decision, and that he would return to his lair, despite their reluctance. His late English wife, may Allah have mercy on her soul, spoke the classical Arabic that the professor had taught her, but it was broken Arabic. While people were cheering him on, his wife also wanted to add her own words, saying, “By God, what happened was nothing but a heinous act against you.” She meant “to spite you.” The professor laughed, saying, “The foreigner hit the nail on the head when she got it wrong.” I decided to borrow the professor’s sarcastic phrase as a comment on Al-Burhan’s aforementioned statement, saying, “Al-Burhan hit the nail on the head where he missed.” His goal in attacking the revolution was to inaugurate the fascist, oppressive, dictatorial era of the rifle.

As for whether it was the Republic of the rifle, which Al-Burhan was foreshadowing, there’s no need to exert the slightest effort to uncover its truth. As Al-Burhan along with the other military leaders… Shams El-Din Al-Kabbashi, Yasser Al-Atta, and Ibrahim Jaber only seized power after the (October 2021) Coup by force of arms, overthrowing the civilian revolutionary government and arresting its leaders. Since then, and even now, after an accursed war that has entered its third year, they have controlled the reins of power without any legitimacy other than that of the rifle.

Al-Burhan was right when he said, “Glory to the rifle alone.” The rifle is what gives them this illusory and alleged glory to this day. How could they not glorify it? This is the habit and nature of the coup plotters. Even their allies in this dirty war, the Islamists, are known for their glorification of the rifle. Al-Burhan and the rest of the current Army leadership are nothing but an unrevised copy of their book, raised, nurtured, and propelled forward under their wing, where they respected and negotiated only with those who carried a weapon.

They openly claimed and boasted that they had seized power by force, and that anyone who wanted to challenge them for power had to resort to force as well. This led to the rebellion of numerous groups who took up arms after the avenues of peaceful popular civil action were blocked. The country entered a spiral of violence, and Armed Movements multiplied like amoebas. Due to the aforementioned facts, the cycle and mill of violence is still running, in addition, the cup of death and destruction, continues to rage. Indeed, in keeping with Al-Burhan’s words, glory now belongs only to the rifle.

Since the beginning of this war, unarmed citizens who don’t own guns have found it necessary to protect themselves when those tasked with protecting the civilians failed to carry out their duties. Even now, in light of the chaos and security instability sweeping the country, especially in the capital, Khartoum, and its three cities, the glory of guns remains. All citizens ought to own guns. Only by owning them, will they be able to protect their lives, property, and honor, as well as resist all deviants and criminals. Each person ought to assume the responsibility of defending themselves, their families, and their possessions, as long as the country is experiencing an unprecedented level of chaos and insecurity, in addition to a widespread wave of crimes of all kinds, especially armed crime.

Didn’t I tell you that Al-Burhan hit the nail on the head when he missed? Can’t you see -as well as he does- that, given this situation, glory truly belongs only to the owner of a gun?