Sudan...The Animal Museum Cries For War. Importance of Sudan's Natural History Museum

THIS is so sad. Let's hope it's true that people are giving water to animals.

Report from EasternHerald.com 

By Arab Desk

Dated Friday 19 May 2023 - full copy:

Sudan.. The Animal Museum Cries For War

And the clashes, which have not ceased since April 15, have made it impossible to access the museum site, which includes no less than 100 animals, which were placed in their cages the day before the outbreak of the fighting.

The director of the Natural History Museum said in statements exclusive to Sky News Arabia that things are still unclear regarding the position of the animals inside the museum, before I receive unofficial reports that some members of the Sudanese army were providing water to the animals, which represents a breakthrough for repeated distress calls throughout the past few weeks.

Despite this breakthrough, the situation remains difficult for the animals of the Sudan Museum, while “Said” identified this case in several points:

- Animals face a difficult fate, and of course there are some who have died from these very complex conditions, depending on how long they were left unattended.

- I expect the death of many animals, mainly birds and mammals which cannot endure a month without monitoring, feeding or monitoring, and we cannot reach them yet, because the water supply of their cages is was doing at the start of the war, and we cannot set a timetable for the armed forces to respond to distress calls. It is more likely that she died of hunger and thirst.

- Some other animals can withstand these conditions as long as possible, these are reptiles like desert tortoises. Because they store water in their body.

- From a scientific point of view, birds cannot survive more than 5 consecutive days without food or water, especially in extreme temperatures that reach 46 degrees Celsius.

- The pets that some Sudanese used to keep at home are also in a difficult situation. Because many citizens have been displaced and left these animals behind.

- We cannot go to the headquarters of the zoo, because things are very complicated considering the location of the museum near the general command of the armed forces, which is a very dangerous area for the movement of civilians, who can be targeted by both sides of the conflict.

- I tried as much as possible to reach the museum, but I was in an area where the sounds of bullets had never been silenced, and I couldn’t; Therefore, no one has any information or assessment of the situation and the number of dead animals.

Importance of the Natural History Museum

- The Natural History Museum zoo is home to many species of animals including lion, African gray parrot, vervet monkey, giant lizards called Nile monitor lizards, desert tortoise, horned snake and nubian cobra.

- The site of the museum, which is close to the headquarters of the Sudanese army, where fighting was taking place there, prevented people from accessing it and rescuing the animals.

- The museum documents wildlife in Sudan as well as the state of South Sudan, and serves scientists, scholars and visitors.

- The museum contains hundreds of valuable preserved animal specimens, some of which are now extinct.

- The Sudanese fear the repercussions of the current crisis on the historical legacy of Sudan, which is difficult to compensate for in the light of the continuous clashes between the two parties to the conflict, with no hope of an immediate solution.

View original: https://www.easternherald.com/2023/05/19/sudan-the-animal-museum-cries-for-war/

Sudan crisis: UK troops set to take command at Khartoum airfield and can use force if necessary

Report from the i

By Hugo Gye, Political Editor

Tuesday 25 April 2023 6:49 pm (Updated 8:20 pm)

Sudan crisis: UK troops set to take command at Khartoum airfield and can use force if necessary

It remains unclear how many of the British citizens currently stranded in Sudan can be evacuated by the Government

British troops on their way to Sudan (Photo: LPHOT Mark Johnson/MoD)

British troops are poised to take control of the airfield in Sudan where evacuation flights have been taking British citizens out of the war-torn country.

Military and civilian officials will oversee operations at the facility outside Khartoum, including security in the event that the airfield comes under attack from local militias.

Three flights were due to be completed by Wednesday morning with several more expected throughout the day – but the UK Government does not know whether it will be able to evacuate all the British nationals who want to leave.

Officials are based at the Wadi Saeedna airfield but ministers have ruled out expanding operations beyond that area, meaning that only people who can make it there on their own will be eligible for evacuation. 

There are 120 British troops at the base including members of 40 Commando, who flew in from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus.

i understands the UK troops will be ready to use force if required to protect the airfield, should it come under attack during the airlift.

Government officials are hopeful the operation can be carried out without any exchange of fire, with the troops primarily there to assist with logistics.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace confirmed i‘s reporting on Tuesday evening, telling LBC Radio: “The Germans are leaving tomorrow, and we will take over the facilitation at the airfield.

“And the reason the Germans are leaving is people have stopped coming in large numbers.”

Mr Wallace said only one nation can facilitate the airfield at a time.

He added: “If the Spanish or the Italians or anyone else wants to fly, we’ll be the ones giving permissions effectively.”

The minister also said 99 per cent of the British nationals who have registered with the Foreign Office are in the capital Khartoum.

The Government is still working on other options including an evacuation by boat from the coastal city of Port Sudan.

The start of the mission came after the announcement of a ceasefire between the two warring forces currently tearing Sudan apart. 

It also followed an agreement between the UK Government and the armed forces of Sudan to give British nationals safe passage out of the country.

The Foreign Office has made contact with the Rapid Support Forces, which is fighting the Sudanese Armed Forces of the internationally recognised government.

A processing centre at the airfield is being run by staff from the Foreign Office and Border Force after the entire embassy team was evacuated on Sunday over fears they would be directly targeted by militias. The site, used by several different Western governments, was being operated and guarded by the German military but as of Wednesday evening they were preparing to end their mission and hand over to the UK.

There are no plans to help British nationals to access the evacuation mission because of the dangers of travelling even short distances within Sudan. And if the current ceasefire breaks down, there is no guarantee the evacuation efforts can continue, Government sources have said.

Rishi Sunak rejected the suggestion that the Government was too slow to act to help British citizens, saying: “I’m pleased that we were actually one of the first countries to safely evacuate our diplomats and our families. And it was right that we prioritised them because they were being targeted.

“The security situation on the ground in Sudan is complicated, it is volatile and we wanted to make sure we could put in place processes that are going to work for people, that are going to be safe and effective.”

The UK’s military presence in the region may enable the Government to bring humanitarian aid to Sudan once the evacuation mission is complete, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told MPs. He said: “It could well be that it stops becoming an evacuation and in fact it becomes a humanitarian crisis that we have to deal with, that is the challenge on the ground in Sudan is the food and water access as a result of the conflict.”

Oliver Dowden, the new Deputy Prime Minister, chaired the latest in a near-daily series of Cobra meetings to co-ordinate the response of multiple different Whitehall departments to the crisis.

View original: here.

A British RAF plane and reconnaissance team lands in Port Sudan for future evacuations

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.

View original: here.

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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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Sudan army chief agreed to facilitate evacuation of diplomats and nationals from UK, US, France and China from Sudan by air “in the coming hours”

Report from BBC News

By Sarah Fowler

Saturday 22 April 2023 c.14:00 GMT BST UK - excerpts:

Sudan fighting: Army says foreign nationals to be evacuated

Diplomats and nationals from the UK, US, France and China are to be evacuated from Sudan by air as fighting there continues, a statement from the Sudanese army says.

Army chief Fattah al-Burhan agreed to facilitate and secure their evacuation "in the coming hours", it said

[...] A statement from the [Sudanese] army said British, US, French and Chinese nationals and diplomats would be evacuated by air on board military transport planes from the capital, Khartoum.

The UK government said it was "doing everything possible to support British nationals and diplomatic staff in Khartoum".

It said its defence ministry was working with the foreign office to prepare for a number of provisions, without specifying whether immediate evacuations were among those plans.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak chaired a Cobra meeting - an emergency response committee - on Saturday morning about the situation in Sudan.

Read full story here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65358069

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