The Republican and Democratic leaderships in Congress put forward a draft resolution condemning Sudan's coup and calling for sanctions against army leaders.
The bill, presented by Democratic Senator Bob Menendez and Republican Senator Jim Risch in cooperation with Representatives Gregory Meeks and Mike McCaul, expresses US support for the Sudanese people and their democratic aspirations.
It also recognizes Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and members of his cabinet as the constitutional leaders of the Sudanese transitional government and calls on the military council to release all civilian officials and other people arrested during or after the "coup."
"The military junta must immediately end the state of emergency, release Prime Minister Hamdok and members of his cabinet unharmed, restore the civilian-led transitional government, and respect the rights of Sudanese citizens to protest peacefully. They must show restraint and safeguard the human rights of all protesters."
It urges Sudanese forces to retreat, cooperate with international rules of engagement, respect the rights of peaceful demonstrators, and hold accountable all those who used excessive force and other violations.
The draft urges the junta to stop all attempts to change the civilian structure of the government, the Sovereign Council, and other government facilities.
It called upon the Secretary of State to identify the coup leaders and their associates for sanctions while calling on military leaders to immediately return to the rule of law as discussed in the constitutional document.
The draft calls for monitoring and preventing any effort of "foreign parties" to support the coup.
"The junta's failure to reverse course will result in dire consequences. We will remain engaged with the administration to assess the implications for our relationship with Sudan, including the immediate suspension of further international financial assistance and other appropriate measures," the senators warned.
The bill requires the Treasury Department to suspend all non-humanitarian debts or debt relief activities until the constitutional rule is restored.
The draft also requires the international community to impose sanctions on the army and coup partners and suspend Sudan's membership in all international organizations until the transitional government returns under civilian leadership.
