KHARTOUM: The United States military has evacuated American diplomats and their families from Sudan’s war-torn capital Khartoum, President Joe Biden has confirmed, as fighting between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) entered a second week with hundreds killed and thousands injured.
“Today, on my orders, the US military conducted an operation to extract US government personnel from Khartoum,” Biden said in a statement.
Washington is suspending operations at its embassy amid fighting between Sudan’s rival commanders, he said.
President Biden also thanked Ethiopia, Djibouti and Saudi Arabia, saying they had been “critical to the success of our operation”. He said the tragic violence in Sudan has already claimed hundreds of lives of innocent civilians.
The US staff were airlifted to an undisclosed location in Ethiopia, two US officials familiar with the operation told the Associated Press.
The White House has said there are no plans for a government-coordinated evacuation of the estimated 16,000 private US citizens registered with the embassy in Sudan.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a tweet that Washington would “continue to assist Americans in planning for their own safety” in Sudan, and press for a ceasefire to “prevent further damage to the Sudanese nation”.
.@StateDept has suspended operations at @USEmbassyKRT and evacuated all U.S. personnel and their dependents. We continue to assist Americans in planning for their own safety. We will also continue to press to expand the ceasefire to prevent further damage to the Sudanese nation.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) April 23, 2023
Earlier Sudan’s paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said six aircraft were used in the mission on Sunday morning, and that it had coordinated the evacuation with the US.
The number of people airlifted out of Sudan has not been confirmed. However, CBS News reported a plan to evacuate about 70 government employees ahead of the operation.
It is the second evacuation of foreign citizens from the conflict-ridden country since violence erupted in Sudan’s capital last week.
More than 150 citizens, diplomats and international officials, mostly from Gulf countries, as well as Egypt, Pakistan and Canada, were evacuated by sea to the Saudi Arabian port of Jeddah on Saturday.
Saudi naval forces transported them across the Red Sea from Port Sudan to Jeddah.
Khartoum airport has been repeatedly targeted by shelling and gunfire, making it impossible to conduct evacuation flights from there.
An unnamed US official told the Associated Press that Biden ordered the evacuation on Saturday following a recommendation from his national security team, who saw no end to the ongoing fighting in Sudan.
The UK has said it is considering ways to evacuate its diplomatic staff from Sudan. A hotline has been set up for those requiring urgent help, and UK citizens in Sudan are being urged to inform the Foreign Office about their location.
Meanwhile the Canadian government has instructed its citizens in Sudan to “shelter in a safe place”.
It urged them to keep their cell phones charged, their doors and windows locked and try leaving the country if they come across a safe means to do so.
Non-stop heavy fighting
Heavy fighting broke out on April 15 between the SAF and RSF. The clashes, driven by a power struggle between two former allies – Sudanese army chief Abdel Fatteh al-Burhan and RSF’s General Mohamed Hamdan Dagaloby, have since then been raging in Khartoum and in other strategic areas throughout the country.
The continuous shooting and bombardment in the capital and elsewhere has cut power supply and safe access to food and water for most of the population.
Several ceasefires seemingly agreed by both sides were breached, including a three-day armistice to mark the Muslim holiday of Eidul Fitr, which started on Friday.
