Sudan's ruling Transitional Military Council rejected an offer for mediation by Ethiopia with the Sudanese opposition, a council spokesperson said June 23, Yeni Safak reported June 24. According to AP, the mediation would have involved a search for a compromise between military and civilian negotiators on the issue of leadership of a new sovereign council that would govern Sudan. The military would have led the sovereign council for its first 18 months, and the civilian opposition would have led it for the next 18 months — totaling the three-year transitional process the government and opposition have already agreed upon. The mediation would also have sought to settle the disagreement over who should hold the majority in the council by proposing seven seats for each side, with an additional 15th seat being reserved for a civilian selected jointly by the Transitional Military Council and the opposition.