Germany calls off evacuation of nationals from Sudan

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) - The German government has canceled a military evacuation of its citizens from Sudan because of the security situation in the North African nation, media reports said Wednesday.

According to information from the German Press Agency (dpa), a plan for the use of the German air force was stopped on Wednesday due to the uncertain situation in the embattled capital Khartoum.

“The Federal Government condemns the fighting in Sudan in the strongest possible terms. We are appalled by the extent of the violence, especially against civilians, diplomats and aid workers," deputy government spokesman Wolfgang Buechner told reporters in Berlin.

The focus is on protecting human life and de-escalating the situation. It is important that the parties to the conflict agree on an immediate ceasefire and comply with it, Buechner added.

The planes took off for an evacuation from the north central German air base of Wunstorf on Wednesday before 5 a.m local time (0300GMT).

The three A400M military transport aircraft flew over Italy and refueled in Greece. Military aircraft from other nations were also ready for action in the region in the event that the situation on the ground would have allowed it, the report said.

The meeting point for the evacuation of German citizens was supposed to be the contested Khartoum airport. The return should then have taken place via the Al-Asrak air force base in Jordan, which is used by the German armed forces.

On Wednesday afternoon, however, the Bundeswehr machines were on their way back to Germany.

According to a Foreign Office spokeswoman on Monday, a "low three-digit number" of German nationals in Sudan was registered in the so-called crisis prevention list of the Federal Foreign Office.

The fighting is very heavy between the rival groups and the military. There is looting all over the country, shots, explosions not only in Khartoum, but also, as I said, in other cities in Sudan," a spokeswoman for the Federal Foreign Office said in Berlin on Wednesday.

She spoke of a very confusing situation that was very dangerous for everyone involved. Since the weekend, the government's crisis team has been meeting daily at the Foreign Office.

Fighting broke out in Sudan on Saturday between the country's two most powerful generals and their units. The two men have led Sudan with around 46 million inhabitants since a joint military coup in 2021. De facto President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is also the commander-in-chief of the army, has been fighting with the military against his deputy Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, the leader of the powerful paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF).​​​​​​​