Sadiq al-Mahdi
Sadiq al-Mahdi (Arabic: الصادق المهدي) (also known as Sadiq Al Siddiq, born December 25, 1935) is a Sudanese political and religious figure who was Prime Minister of Sudan from 1966 to 1967 and again from 1986 to 1989. He is head of the National Umma Party and Imam of the Ansar, a sufi sect that pledges allegiance to Muhammad Ahmad, who claimed to be Islam's messianic saviour, or the Mahdi.
Personal life
Sadiq al-Mahdi was born on December 25, 1935 in Al-Abasya, Omdurman, Sudan. He is the grandson of Sayyid Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi, founder of the Umma party, and great-grandson of Mohamed Ahmed Al-Mahdi, the Sudanese sufi sheikh of the Samaniyya order and self-proclaimed Mahdi who led the Mahdist War to reclaim Sudan from Anglo-Egyptian rule. He is also the paternal uncle of Sudanese-British actor Alexander Siddig.
Political life
Sadiq al-Mahdi was Prime Minister of Sudan on two occasions: first briefly in 1966-67, and second from 1986 until his ousting on 30 June 1989.
First term as Prime Minister (1966-1967)
Podcasts:
