Fighting continues in Sudan: the number of civilian casualties is increasing

Great Britain also said on Sunday that British diplomats and their families had been successfully brought to safety. France and the Netherlands reported continuing rescue operations. It is not yet clear when the German army wanted to start a new attempt to rescue German citizens. The first attempt to drive the Germans out of the country by Luftwaffe aircraft on Wednesday was canceled because the security situation in the besieged capital was deemed too dangerous for such an operation.

A US military official said that about 100 US soldiers participated in the evacuation of US embassy staff. Using the helicopters on site took less than an hour. As a result, no one died or was injured.

According to the information, less than 100 people were rescued, including several diplomats from other countries. The US Embassy in Khartoum has been closed indefinitely.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Sunday that British forces have completed a complex and rapid evacuation of British diplomats and their families.

For several days, the US military has been preparing, along with other Western countries, to evacuate their citizens. Additional armed forces have been transferred to Djibouti, among other places. The country is located 1,200 km southeast of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on the Horn of Africa. From there, the American mission began.

US President Joe Biden called on the warring factions for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire. He also urged them not to obstruct humanitarian aid and to respect the will of the Sudanese people.

A week ago, fighting broke out in Sudan between the country’s two most powerful generals and their units. Both have led the country of about 46 million people since a joint military coup in 2021. Now, de facto President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is also the army’s supreme commander, is fighting with the army against his deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, leader of the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Group (RSF). RSF). In fact, the Daglu group should have been subordinate to the military, and power in the country should have been returned to a civilian government.

Khartoum airport has been at the center of hostilities in recent days. Foreign diplomats have been trying to establish a stable ceasefire for the evacuation.

A group of Saudis were evacuated from the eastern city of Port Sudan on Saturday. A Jordanian delegation was also scheduled to be transferred from Port Sudan. There are approximately 850 kilometers between Khartoum and Port Sudan.

According to the Saudi Al-Arabiya channel, five Saudi ships transported more than 150 people from Sudan to Saudi Arabia. According to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, diplomats and citizens from Saudi Arabia, Bulgaria, Canada, Qatar, Kuwait, Egypt, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, India, Pakistan, Burkina Faso and the Philippines were on board.

The US government has made it clear that Americans who were not in Sudan as diplomats or embassy staff could not expect to be removed from the country. US citizens are strongly advised not to travel to Sudan for an extended period. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said US citizens who remain in the country will continue to receive support and coordination will be made with allies and partners to ensure the safety of their personnel. The US media recently reported that several thousand Americans are still in Sudan. There was no official information on this.

From the Netherlands it was reported on Sunday that various countries are conducting an operation to evacuate their citizens from Sudan. The Netherlands also participated with a team from Jordan. “They will do their best to pick up the Dutch as quickly and safely as possible,” said Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra. France also said it was carrying out an “urgent evacuation” of its diplomatic and French staff. European diplomats will also be accepted.

Greece has deployed military units and private aircraft to Egypt for an evacuation mission in besieged Sudan. This was announced by Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Sunday on state television. Egypt agreed to the procedure. She said that this task should be coordinated with other countries and international organizations.

The Italian government said it was also planning an evacuation. It was scheduled to take place on Sunday, according to a letter he sent to the Italians residing in Khartoum. The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Turkish nationals should be transferred to safety via a third country.

Sudanese are also trying to flee the fighting. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, up to 20,000 people have already fled to neighboring Chad in the past few days. Thousands of people have been displaced from highly contested areas within the country.

Fighting continued between rival military units in Sudan on Sunday. The National Medical Commission said that the number of civilian deaths was increasing every day. There is not yet a complete overview of the range. Many of those infected do not receive care. According to the World Health Organization, at least 413 people have died and more than 3,500 have been injured since the fighting began. The actual number of victims may be much higher.