UK forces evacuate British embassy staff from Sudan

Rishi Sunak, British prime minister, says the United Kingdom forces have completed the evacuation of the country’s diplomats and their families from Sudan.

“I pay tribute to the commitment of our diplomats and bravery of the military personnel who carried out this difficult operation. We are continuing to pursue every avenue to end the bloodshed in Sudan and ensure the safety of British nationals remaining in the country,” Sunak wrote on Twitter on Sunday.

“I urge the parties to lay down their arms and implement an immediate humanitarian ceasefire to ensure civilians can leave conflict zones.”

Violent clashes between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group, have killed over 400 people, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Thousands of civilians have fled Khartoum, Sudan’s capital, with foreign nations making efforts to evacuate their citizens.

Earlier,  NAN quoted a British government source saying any evacuation would be “incredibly limited” and focused on the small number of British civil servants based in the capital, Khartoum”, given that Britain does not have a substantial diplomatic or military footprint in Sudan.

“Due to the increasing attacks on diplomatic missions, we will be evacuating our HMG staff as soon as feasible,” the government source said.

“It’s likely any evacuation will be incredibly limited due to the small number of UK staff in the country, and British nationals should remain in a place of shelter.

“There is currently no suggestion British nationals are being actively targeted by armed factions.

“We do not expect any major change in our travel advice to Sudan for British nationals in the coming days.”

Meanwhile, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), has said the tense situation in Sudan makes it “risky and impossible for any flights at this point in time”.

She, however, said the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have put in place arrangements for the evacuation of students and others stranded in the country.