Limited evacuation of foreigners begins. UK has hotline and urges Britons in Sudan to contact FO

Report from BBC News

Sunday 23 April 2023 c 01:50 GMT UK

Sudan fighting: Limited evacuation of foreigners begins

Those evacuated to Saudi Arabia on Saturday were welcomed at Jeddah Sea Port with sweets and roses

The UK government is considering ways to evacuate its embassy staff from Sudan, as fighting between rival armies continues in the capital Khartoum.

More than 150 people were evacuated by sea to the Saudi Arabian port of Jeddah on Saturday - mostly nationals of Gulf countries.

Khartoum airport has been repeatedly targeted and Canada's government says no flights are possible yet.

It has told Canadians in Sudan to "shelter in a safe place".

Describing the security situation as "highly volatile", the Canadian government travel advice tells citizens to keep their phones charged, their doors and windows locked and "consider leaving the country if there's a safe means to do so".

"With the airports and airspace closed, no air evacuations from Sudan are possible at this time," it says.

Meanwhile the UK has set up a hotline for those who need urgent help, and has urged its citizens in Sudan to tell the Foreign Office online or by phone where they are.

Any UK evacuation is expected to be very limited and focus on diplomatic staff - not comparable to the mass evacuation from Afghanistan in 2021.

Saturday's evacuation to Jeddah - the first since violence in Khartoum erupted last week - saw citizens, diplomats and international officials travel by sea. As well as Gulf nations, there were also citizens from Egypt, Pakistan and Canada.

Full story: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65363586

New fighting and looting in North Darfur: 11 killed, 1 police; 57 injured. SAF demotes RSF to a rebel group.

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: In the past few days Sudan's Army chief Gen. Burhan demoted Hemeti's RSF to a rebel group. Some males in the RSF are very young. They can become lost, neglected, drugged and frightened. 

Many rebels have to steal food, water, meds, drugs, cash, phones, clothes, petrol, vehicles and attack aid convoys for supplies. Being a rebel is a way to become gainfully employed, part of a gang with camaraderie and a purpose.

Most of them become street wise, creative and resourceful, clever and able to think fast on their feet. I am not up to date with the law on recruitment of child soldiers but I hope it is now unlawful and classed as human trafficking. 

Report from Radio Dabanga in Netherlands - www.dabangasudan.org

By Radio Dabanga

Published Friday 21 April 2023

New reports about fighting and looting in Darfur

PHOTO: RSF soldiers deployed in a neighbourhood of Khartoum (Photo supplied)

EL FASHER / NYALA / ED DAEIN – Eleven people were killed in battles between Sudanese army soldiers and paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in El Fasher, on Wednesday [19 Apr].

Among the 11 people killed was one policeman, the North Darfur Radio Dabanga correspondent reported from El Fasher. 57 others were injured.

“The Southern Hospital is overcrowded,” she said. “Luckily, youth initiatives have led to the opening of five health centres that provide free diagnosis and treatment.”

Yesterday morning, the North Darfur capital witnessed relative calm with sporadic clashes, he said. “But the plundering continues.”

The Specialised Children’s Hospital was looted, and two ambulances were stolen on Wednesday, she said. Many houses have been plundered as well.

Youngsters are barricading the streets in the neighbourhoods to prevent more plundering.

“At the markets She further noted a significant decrease in the prices of clothes, shoes and other commodities, as thieves offered stolen goods for sale as well.”

‘Cautious calm’

Nyala, capital of South Darfur, witnessed a cautious calm on Thursday after clashes earlier this week that left at least 31 people dead. People left their homes to buy food and other needs from the shops. Many markets are still closed.

“However, intermittent exchanges of fire with heavy weapons continued in the northern part of the city on Thursday,” a correspondent in Nyala said.

He also reported widespread plundering. “People in various neighbourhoods resorted to barricading the streets to prevent looting.”

A listener told Radio Dabanga from Nyala that the plundering is done by armed men riding on motorcycles and in rickshaws. “Youths have formed groups that are patrolling the neighbourhoods.”

He said that the army forces are stationed at the base of the 16th Infantry Division, not far from the airport. The RSF soldiers are deployed in the El Matar, El Riyadh and El Malja neighbourhoods close to the army command.

Ed Daein, capital of East Darfur, has hardly been affected by the ongoing battles, residents told Radio Dabanga.

Activist Emameldin Maw said that the situation is calm except for two incidents on Sunday, the second day of the war, which led to the death of four army soldiers. He attributed the calm to the ability of native administration leaders to control the forces “by virtue of the social composition of the two parties”.

Continue Reading

Fighting continues in Sudan capital, UN warns for collapse of health system

Sudan: RSF attack police stations in El Obeid, 20 policemen killed

View original: https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/new-reports-about-fighting-and-looting-in-darfur

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Sudan food markets burned in North & South Darfur

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: Lately, I find myself double checking dates on news reports because the content is so similar to the start of Darfur war. 

At least this time the world can see verifiable and timely satellite imagery and detect truthful news from Darfur. 20 yrs ago it was like from another planet. No maps of Darfur were on the internet. Now we can see evildoings.

Starve Darfuris of food was a tactic used in Darfur war. Force them to flee from fire so they're traumatised and controlled by chaos, fear and anxiety. 

Report from dnyuz.com

By New York Times

Friday 21 April 2023

Large Food Market Burned in Darfur Camp, Satellite Images Show

A large market for food and other supplies serving a camp for displaced people was partly damaged during a fire on Wednesday, reflecting the dangerous toll recent fighting has taken on Sudan’s most vulnerable citizens. The extent of the destruction was evident in satellite imagery and social media videos analyzed by The New York Times, which found that the blaze destroyed or damaged approximately 18 acres of the market.

Over the past week, Sudan has been engulfed in violence as the Army and a paramilitary group, Rapid Support Forces (R.S.F.), vie for control of the country. Already, the Abu Shouk camp, located in El Fasher, the regional capital of North Darfur, was experiencing supply shortages.

According to Thomas Okedi, the area manager for the Norwegian Refugee Council, the camp hadn’t received any aid in the week before the fire started. He blamed the current fighting and turmoil for the blaze, saying it started because of a stray bullet or looters igniting one of the shops, and then spread quickly through some of the makeshift structures.

A satellite image from Wednesday afternoon shows the fires still burning, with small shops on the eastern side of the market reduced to ash, and flames consuming other structures.

A video shared on social media shows the blaze, with a man taking the video saying: “May God help us. This market is completely destroyed.” Another video, taken a few hours later, shows the charred, smoking remains of shops and equipment.

“As of right now, Abu Shouk market is operating at very limited capacity,” Mr. Okedi said. “With the reduction of food supplies and the stopping of humanitarian aid, the situation is getting more dire.”

Many humanitarian groups have halted their operations because of the fighting, and there are growing concerns about how people will get access to food and water.

Fighting has been reported in El Fasher by Doctors Without Borders, which said that it had treated almost 300 wounded civilians, 44 of whom died from their injuries, in the city this week.

Nearly 900,000 internally displaced people lived in North Darfur before the current escalation of violence. The Abu Shouk camp alone is home to more than 100,000 people, according to Mr. Okedi. Some of them were displaced by a genocidal campaign in the early 2000s waged by the Sudanese Army and so-called Janjaweed militias. The R.S.F. grew out of the Janjaweed, and is now fighting its former ally, the Army.

Another food market, 100 miles south of El Fasher in the capital of South Darfur, Nyala, went up in flames on Sunday. Satellite imagery from April 20 shows the aftermath.

A few homes less than a mile from the market also burned down. Additionally, the satellite imagery shows signs of looting at various places in the city, and unidentified security forces, including tanks, positioned in a residential area.

At least 413 people have been killed and 3,551 others around the country have been wounded in the violence, the World Health Organization reported on Friday.

The post Large Food Market Burned in Darfur Camp, Satellite Images Show appeared first on New York Times.

View original: https://dnyuz.com/2023/04/21/large-food-market-burned-in-darfur-camp-satellite-images-show/

Saudi Arabia announces first civilian evacuations from Sudan. Armed group forcibly evacuated Khartoum's Al-Huda prison, detainees’ whereabouts unknown

Report from Gulf News.com

By Associated Press

Saturday 22 April 2023 15:30; Last updated: 22 April 2023 17:20

Saudi Arabia announces first civilian evacuations from Sudan

Boat carrying Saudi citizens and other nationals arrives in Jeddah

PHOTO People fill barrels with water in southern Khartoum on April 22, 2023, amid water shortages caused by ongoing battles between the forces of two rival Sudanese generals. Image Credit: AFP

CAIRO: A boat carrying Saudi citizens and other nationals rescued from battle-scarred Sudan arrived Saturday in Jeddah, Saudi state television said, in the first announced evacuation of civilians since fighting there began.

“The first evacuation vessel from Sudan has arrived, carrying 50 (Saudi) citizens and a number of nationals from friendly countries,” the official Al Ekhbariyah television said.

The boat docked at the Red Sea port of Jeddah where four other ships carrying 108 people from 11 different countries was expected to arrive later from Sudan, the broadcaster said.

Al Ekhbariyah carried footage of large vessels arriving in Jeddah’s port. It also released a video showing women and children carrying Saudi flags on board one of the ships.

Saturday’s evacuations mark the first major civilian rescue since violence in Sudan broke out on April 15. […]

Sounds of fighting continued overnight but appeared less intense on Saturday morning than on the previous day, a Reuters journalist in Khartoum said. Live broadcasts by regional news channels showed rising smoke and the thud of blasts.

The army and the paramilitary RSF, which are waging a deadly power struggle across the country, had both issued statements saying they would uphold a three-day ceasefire from Friday for Islam’s Eid Al Fitr holiday. […]

There has been no sign yet that either side can secure a quick victory or is ready to back down and talk. 

The army has air power but the RSF is widely embedded in urban areas including around key facilities in central Khartoum.

Burhan and Hemedti had held the top two positions on a ruling council overseeing a political transition after a 2021 coup that was meant to include a move to civilian rule and the RSF’s merger into the army.

In Omdurman, one of Khartoum’s adjoining sister cities, there were fears over the fate of detainees in Al Huda prison, the largest in Sudan.

The army on Friday accused the RSF of raiding the prison, which the paramilitary force denied. Lawyers for a prisoner there said in a statement that an armed group had forcibly evacuated the prison, with the detainees’ whereabouts unknown.

The Sudanese doctors union said early on Saturday that more than two thirds of hospitals in conflict areas were out of service, with 32 forcibly evacuated by soldiers or caught in crossfire.

Some of the remaining hospitals, which lack adequate water, staff and electricity, were only providing first aid. People posted urgent requests on social media for medical assistance, transport to hospital and prescription medication.

Any let-up in fighting on Saturday may accelerate a desperate rush by many Khartoum residents to flee the fighting, after spending days trapped in their homes or local districts under bombardment and with fighters roaming the streets. […]

ALSO READ

• UAE successfully mediates safe return of Egyptian soldiers in Sudan
• Sudanese military rules out negotiations with rival force

View original: https://gulfnews.com/world/mena/saudi-arabia-announces-first-civilian-evacuations-from-sudan-1.95287242]

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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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Ireland: All Irish citizens living and working in Sudan to register with the Irish Embassy in Nairobi in Kenya

Report from The Irish Times

Saturday April 22 2023 - 13:06 GMT BST UK - excerpts:

Sudan conflict: army says evacuations of diplomats expected to begin

Countries have struggled to bring out citizens amid deadly clashes that have killed more than 400 people

The Sudanese army has said it is coordinating efforts to take diplomats from the UK, the US, China and France out of the country on military planes, as fighting persists in the capital including at its main airport.

The military said army chief General Abdel Fattah Burhan had spoken to leaders of various countries requesting safe evacuations of their citizens and diplomats from Sudan, which has been hit by violence for the past week. […]

With Sudan’s main international airport closed, foreign countries have ordered their citizens to shelter in place until they can figure out evacuation plans.

Gen Burhan said diplomats from Saudi Arabia had already been taken out of Port Sudan and airlifted back to the kingdom. He said Jordan’s diplomats will soon be evacuated in the same way.

Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said on Friday that Ireland is working closely with European Union and other partners to prepare to evacuate more than 100 Irish citizens caught up in the civil war which has erupted in Sudan.

Mr Martin said Ireland had asked all Irish citizens living and working in Sudan to register with the Irish Embassy in Nairobi in Kenya and, to date, 105 people had registered though this could change given the number of Irish citizens with international aid organisations in Sudan.

Even as questions persisted over how the mass evacuation of foreign citizens would unfold, the Saudi foreign ministry announced on Saturday that it had started arranging the evacuation of Saudi nationals out of the country. Officials did not elaborate on the plans. […]

View original: https://www.irishtimes.com/world/africa/2023/04/22/sudan-conflict-army-says-evacuations-of-diplomats-expected-to-begin/

British troops & aircraft standby at overseas military base to airlift Britons & embassy staff in Sudan

Report from The Daily Telegraph's front page

Saturday 22 April 2023 00.30 GMT BST UK

Military ready to airlift Britons from Sudan

British military aircraft have been put on standby to fly out UK citizens and embassy staff caught up in the fighting in Sudan. 

British officials refused to say whether the Royal Air Force (RAF) would be involved in US plans for a possible airlift of civilians. 

But the Foreign Office yesterday said “prudent planning” to prepare for “various contingencies” was underway in the Ministry of Defence (MoD). 

The US State Department said those trapped in the country should not expect a co-ordinated evacuation. 

Continued on the newspaper’s page 13.

[Ends]

______________________________________________________

Report from Alarabiya.net

By Reuters, London

Saturday 22 April 2023: 01:01 AM GST; Updated: 01:23 AM GST

UK defence ministry is engaged in ‘prudent planning’ on Sudan

Britain’s government said its defence ministry was engaged in “prudent planning” related to the current conflict in Sudan, after a report that British troops and aircraft had been put on standby to evacuate embassy staff and civilians if needed.

Sudan’s army earlier said it had agreed to a three-day truce starting on Friday to enable people to celebrate the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr following almost a week of fighting between its troops and a rival paramilitary force.

Britain said it was coordinating with international partners to provide consular assistance to British nationals and support diplomatic staff.

“The Ministry of Defense is supporting the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office with prudent planning for various contingencies,” it added.

Sky News reported that British troops and aircraft were being put on standby at an overseas military base to airlift embassy staff and British nationals if needed.

View original: https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2023/04/22/UK-defense-ministry-is-engaged-in-prudent-planning-on-Sudan

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Plans to evacuate Irish citizens in Sudan. Irish EU Ambassador violently assaulted at home in Khartoum

Report from Independent Ireland

By Ralph Riegel

April 21 2023 03:08 PM - full copy

Plans to evacuate Irish citizens as civil war escalates in Sudan

THE Government is planning to evacuate all Irish citizens from war-torn Sudan once it is safe to do so.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the Government was monitoring the escalating civil strife in Sudan very carefully but refused to discuss evacuation plans of Irish citizens for reasons of operational security.

Ireland is understood to be working with other EU countries to extract citizens once there is a lull in the fighting around Khartoum.

Sudan has descended into civil war amid a violent power struggle between the army and a heavily armed paramilitary group.

Heavy fighting has erupted in major population centres across the country - with shelling and missile strikes around Khartoum Airport.

All civilians have been urged to stay indoors and remain safely sheltered until the fighting eases.

A Sudan-based Irish diplomat, Aidan O'Hara (58), who is also serving as EU Ambassador, was violently assaulted earlier this week after a robbery at his residence as security chaos spread across the country.

Tánaiste Micheál Martin strongly condemned the attack and warned Sudan it was responsible for the safety of all diplomats in the country.

Mr O'Hara was confronted by armed robbers dressed in military fatigues and assaulted during the confrontation.

Miraculously, he escaped serious injury and is now said to be recovering and "in good shape."

The incident is understood to have been a robbery of opportunity and not a deliberate attack on the Irish diplomat.

The Taoiseach said Ireland was now working very closely with its allies to ensure the safety of its citizens in the vast African country.

Ireland has a significant number of citizens based in Sudan - many of whom are based there because of aid agency work.

"We have some work ongoing at the moment - that is being coordinated by the Tánaiste (Micheál Martin), the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Defence," Mr Varadkar said.

"I am not at liberty to say too much about it."

"But we are aware that there are quite a number of Irish citizens in Sudan and we have a responsibility to our citizens around the world to ensure their safety as best we can. Some work has been done."

The German military had planned an airlift of its nationals from Sudan three days ago but had to cancel it amid safety concerns over heavy fighting around airfields in Khartoum.

Germany has around 150 citizens in Sudan and decided to cancel the Luftwaffe evacuation because of heavy fighting near airfields as repeated efforts to broker a local ceasefire failed.

Both factions fighting in Sudan have access to heavy weaponry - and any airlift without a firm ceasefire was considered too high a risk.

Ireland is now understood to be liaising with allies within the EU about an evacuation.

Irish nationals are expected to be extracted via an effort led by Germany, France, the US or the Nordic bloc countries.

The elite Army Ranger Wing may be offered to assist with any evacuation of EU nationals from Sudan.

However, Ireland does not have a heavy air-lift capacity to extract citizens from Sudan.

View original: https://www.independent.ie/news/plans-to-evacuate-irish-citizens-as-civil-war-escalates-in-sudan-42443337.html

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Top US, Sudanese generals discuss safety of Americans in call. UN and others work to extract staff

Report from Alarabiya.net

By Reuters

Published: 22 April 2023: 02:07 AM GST

Updated: 22 April 2023: 02:42 AM GST

Top US, Sudanese generals discuss safety of Americans in call

PHOTO United States Army General Mark A. Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Rayburn House Office building on Capitol Hill on September 29, 2021 in Washington, DC. (AFP)

The top US general discussed the safety of Americans in Sudan during a phone call with Sudan’s army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, on Friday, the Pentagon said, as Washington considers a possible embassy evacuation amid fighting in Sudan’s capital.

“The two leaders discussed the safety of Americans and the developing situation in Sudan,” said a statement from Army General Mark Milley’s office. Milley is chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Forces commanded by two previously allied leaders of Sudan’s ruling council began a violent power struggle last weekend. Hundreds have died so far, and a nation reliant on food aid has been tipped into what the United Nations calls a humanitarian catastrophe.

Read more:

[…] Washington has said private American citizens in Sudan should have no expectation of a US government-coordinated evacuation. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said the United States was in touch with several hundred American citizens understood to be in Sudan.

Earlier on Friday, the State Department confirmed the death of one US citizen in the country.

UN works to extract staff

Other countries and the United Nations are also looking at how they can evacuate citizens and employees.

The UN has been trying to extract staff from “very dangerous” zones in Sudan to move them to safer locations, the top UN aid official in Sudan, Abdou Dieng, said on Thursday. Dieng said he had been moved to a safer area on Wednesday.

The UN has about 4,000 staff in Sudan, of which 800 are international staff. A UN source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there were a further 6,000 UN staff family members and associated personnel in Sudan.

Switzerland said on Friday it was examining ways to evacuate nationals from Sudan, and Sweden said it will evacuate embassy staff and families as soon as possible.

Spanish military aircraft are on standby and ready to evacuate some 60 Spanish nationals and others from Khartoum, and South Korea sent a military aircraft to stand by at a US military base in Djibouti to evacuate its nationals when possible.

View original: https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2023/04/22/US-military-prepares-options-for-possible-Sudan-evacuation

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No evacuation plans for all Americans in Sudan

Report from The Associated Press

By LOLITA C. BALDOR, MATTHEW LEE and TARA COPP

Friday 21 April 2023 - full copy

White House: No evacuation plans for all Americans in Sudan

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AP) — The Pentagon has deployed forces and is developing options to assist in the possible evacuation of U.S. Embassy personnel from Sudan, but the White House said Friday there are no plans for now for a broader pullout of the potentially thousands of other Americans from the African country where warring factions are in a violent conflict.

The troop moves by the U.S. military are intended “to ensure that we provide as many options as possible, if we are called on to do something. We haven’t been called on to do anything yet,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said at a news conference in Germany. Austin and U.S. Army Gen. Mark Milley, the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, held meeting meetings with defense leaders from other countries to discuss additional support for Ukraine. 

An estimated 16,000 private U.S. citizens are registered with the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum as being in Sudan. The State Department has cautioned that that figure probably is inaccurate because there is no requirement for Americans to register nor is there a requirement to notify the embassy when they leave.

“It’s absolutely imperative that U.S. citizens in Sudan make their own arrangements to stay safe in these difficult circumstances,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in Washington.

He added that “Americans should have no expectation of a U.S. government coordinated evacuation at this time. And we expect that that’s going to remain the case.” 

For embassy staff, according to an American official, a small number of U.S. troops have begun arriving in the Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti, where the U.S. is pre-positioning forces and equipment to assist in any potential evacuation. The official said Army soldiers are being tapped for the task.

The U.S. troops are being moved to Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti. Evacuation planning for Sudan got underway in earnest on Monday after a U.S. Embassy convoy was attacked in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.

The conflict between Sudan’s military and a rival paramilitary force is worsening. The military has ruled out negotiations and said it would only accept surrender as a temporary cease-fire ended, raising the likelihood of a renewed surge in the nearly weeklong violence that has killed hundreds.

The U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe private deliberations, said Milley discussed the situation with defense officials from Germany, Italy and Canada, among others. One topic was ensuring that any potential evacuation efforts did not conflict.

The U.S. State Department said Friday that an American citizen had died in Sudan, but did not have further details. 

“We are in touch with the family and offer our deepest condolences to them on their loss. Out of respect for the family during this difficult time, we have nothing further to add,” the department said in a statement. 

Lee and Copp reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.

View original: https://apnews.com/article/united-states-sudan-djibouti-evacuation-2773f4922611aeed462652f178745688

[Ends]

US military plans possible Sudan embassy evacuation

Report from The Associated Press

By MATTHEW LEE and LOLITA C. BALDOR

Thursday 20 April 2023

US military prepares for possible Sudan embassy evacuation

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is moving additional troops and equipment to a Naval base in the tiny Gulf of Aden nation of Djibouti to prepare for the possible evacuation of U.S. Embassy personnel from Sudan.

Two Biden administration officials say the deployments to Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti are necessary because of the current uncertain situation in Sudan, where fighting is raging between two warring factions.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the administration’s planning for a potential evacuation. That planning got underway in earnest on Monday after a U.S. Embassy convoy was attacked in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.

In a statement Thursday, the Pentagon said it will deploy “additional capabilities” to the region to potentially help facilitate an evacuation of embassy personnel from Sudan if required, but provided no details, and did not state the location.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the decision to prepare for a possible evacuation was made by President Joe Biden in the “last couple of days.” The president “authorized the military to move forward with pre-positioning forces and to develop options,” Kirby told reporters at the White House.

“There’s no indication that either side is deliberately going after or trying to hurt or target Americans,” Kirby said. “But it’s obviously a dangerous situation.”

Deputy State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said conditions were not yet safe to mount any evacuation but stressed that all embassy personnel are safe and accounted for and that those who haven’t been moved to a secure centralized location had been instructed to shelter in place at their homes.

U.S. officials have told lawmakers concerned about the situation that there are roughly 70 American staffers at the Khartoum embassy, according to congressional aides.

An estimated 16,000 private U.S. citizens are registered with the embassy as being in Sudan, but the State Department has cautioned that that figure is likely inaccurate as there is no requirement for Americans to register nor is there a requirement to notify the embassy when they leave.

Since hostilities between the two factions erupted last weekend, the U.S. has been contemplating the evacuation of government employees and has been transporting them from their homes to a secure, centralized location to prepare for such an eventuality.

The officials said Djibouti, a small country on the Gulf of Aden sandwiched between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia, will be the staging point for any evacuation operation.

However, any evacuation in the current circumstances is fraught with difficulty and security risks as Khartoum’s airport remains non-functional and overland routes from the capital out of the country are long and hazardous even without the current hostilities.

If a secure landing zone in or near Khartoum cannot be found, one option would be to drive evacuees to Port Sudan on the Red Sea. But that is a 12-hour trip and the roads over the 523-mile (841-kilometer) route are treacherous.

Another might be to drive to neighboring Eritrea, however that would also be problematic given that Eritrea’s leader, Isaias Afwerki, is not a friend of the U.S. or the West in general.

The last time the U.S. evacuated embassy personnel overland was from Libya in July 2014, when a large convoy of U.S. military vehicles drove staff from the Tripoli embassy to Tunisia. 

There have been more recent evacuations, most notably in Afghanistan and Yemen, but those have been conducted largely by air.

View original: https://apnews.com/article/united-states-sudan-djibouti-evacuation-2773f4922611aeed462652f178745688

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Pentagon Positioning Forces Near Sudan

Report from: Voice of America (VOA)

By CARLA BABB

Thursday 20 April 2023 12:45 PM

Pentagon Positioning Forces Near Sudan

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, GERMANY — The Pentagon is positioning military forces near Sudan to help evacuate U.S. Embassy personnel in Khartoum, if needed, amid the explosion of violence between the African country's two warring factions.

U.S. Africa Command is monitoring the situation in Sudan and conducting "prudent planning for various contingencies," according to a statement from the Department of Defense.

"As a matter of policy and security, we do not speculate on potential future operations," it added. […]

Washington has called for the two groups to "renounce violence and return to negotiations," adding that the country's two top generals "are responsible for ensuring the protection of civilians and noncombatants." […]

The World Health Organization reports the fighting has restricted movement in the capital, creating challenges for doctors and other health care workers.

Watch related video by Cindy Saine:

PHOTO FILE - Smoke rises over the horizon as a fire burns after a strike in Khartoum, Sudan, April 16, 2023.

View original: https://www.voanews.com/a/pentagon-positioning-forces-near-sudan-/7059108.html

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