Report from The Guardian UK LIVE reporting
By Dan Sabbagh
Monday 24 April 2023 17:10 BST UK
RAF plane lands in Sudan for future evacuations
A British RAF plane has landed at port city in the north-east of Sudan as a British minister said that the UK is evaluating further military options for rescuing non-diplomats from the country by land, sea and air.
A C17 Globemaster is on the ground at Port Sudan with some troops who may form part of a second rescue organised by the UK following Sunday’s controversial evacuation of British diplomats from the capital, Khartoum, but not other UK nationals.
James Heappey, the minister for the armed forces said in a briefing that the UK recognises that “the job isn’t done” when it comes to rescuing the 4,000 or more British and dual nationals trapped in Sudan.
“Work is under way in [the Ministry of Defence] and has been all weekend and the back end of last week to give the prime minister and Cobra options for what else could be done to support the wider community of British nationals in Sudan,” the defence minister said.
A storm gathered on Monday over Britain’s decision to rescue only its diplomats when other countries such as Germany had been evacuating both diplomats and nationals, prompting British ministers to say that evacuation efforts had not been abandoned.
Heappey said that discussions in government were continuing “at pace” and that Rishi Sunak would be given options to help Britons trapped in Sudan “as and when they arise”, but added that there was a concern that the military situation was highly unstable given the fighting between government and RSF rebel forces.
A frigate, HMS Lancaster, is also available nearby and could participate in any maritime rescue, if one were organised. Although the long journey from Khartoum to Port Sudan is not being recommended by British officials and is fraught with danger, convoys have been able to make it to the relatively safety of the city.
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Report from BBC News LIVE
By Jonathan Beale, Defence correspondent
Monday 24 April 2023 16:47 BST UK
British military reconnaissance team lands in Port Sudan
The BBC understands that a small British military reconnaissance team has landed in Port Sudan to asses potential options for the evacuation of UK citizens still stranded in Sudan.
No decisions have been made about extracting UK citizens from the country but defence sources say that work is under way to provide the prime minister with options.
Two Royal Navy ships are also in the region. The Frigate HMS Lancaster is already at sea nearby.
Supply ship RFA Cardigan Bay has been undergoing maintenance in Bahrain.
Commenting on the reports, a defence source said the news "should give you no indication, other than defence is doing what defence does - looking to generate options for the prime minister, so that as soon as those options are ready, he can take them if he thinks they are viable".
View original: here.
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