UPDATE - African countries begin evacuating diplomats, citizens from Sudan

ADDS DETAILS ON SOUTH AFRICA’S EVACUATION OF ITS CITIZENS

By Mohammed Dhaysane

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) - South Africa, Somalia, Djibouti and Kenya have begun evacuating their citizens from Sudan as fighting between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues intermittently.

South Africa’s Foreign Ministry said late Monday that 77 of its nationals have been evacuated from the conflict-torn country.

“Our nationals & embassy staff are on their way out of #Khartoum. I can't disclose the security & logistics of the operation. But they are moving out. We are in constant contact with them,” Clayson Monyela, head of diplomacy at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), said on Twitter.

Earlier, Monyela had tweeted that the capital “Khartoum is effectively a no-fly zone. The airport was damaged and closed,” adding that all routes out of the city remained dangerous and risky as intensive fighting continued.

The first group of Somali citizens, including students, have arrived in Ethiopia, an official with the country’s Foreign Ministry told local media in the capital Mogadishu.

He said the 27 Somali nationals, including four women, had safely made it to the country after crossing the border at Metema on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Somali Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA) has established a 24-hour hotline for Somali people in Sudan who require evacuation.

“If you’re a Somali citizen in Sudan or you have family & friends there, IMMEDIATELY contact SoDMA,” the agency said in a statement.

Djibouti has also begun evacuating its diplomatic staff and citizens from Sudan.

Several diplomats including Djibouti’s Ambassador to Sudan Issa Khaire arrived in Djibouti city on Monday, the country's Foreign Minister Mohamoud Ali Youssouf confirmed.

“The trip was exhausting with a lot of stress, but Alhamdulillah they are safe and sound,” Youssouf said in a message on Twitter, adding that 40 students are expected to arrive later in the day.

Meanwhile, Kenya has also confirmed relocating 29 of its students who were stranded in Sudan owing to intense clashes with heavy weapons.

The students are now in Ethiopia, from where they will fly to Addis Ababa and then to Nairobi, Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua said in a statement issued in Nairobi.

Kenya is working to evacuate nearly 400 students from Sudan, he added.

“I also, in particular, thank the governments of South Sudan and Ethiopia for heeding our request and allowing Kenyans to cross their borders and make it to safety,” Mutua said.

Uganda also confirmed on Monday that four buses carrying 208 Ugandans began their 768-kilometer (477-mile) journey from its embassy in Khartoum to Ethiopia.

From their temporary destination at Gondar Airport in Ethiopia, the evacuees are expected to board flights back to Uganda through Entebbe Airport, Ugandan Ambassador to Sudan Rashid Yahya Ssemuddu said in a statement.

He added that they will keep the country updated on their movement.

According to the embassy, 208 people have boarded the buses including 98 women and children and they include diplomats, students and members of the working community.

An estimated 300 Ugandans were reportedly stranded in Sudan when clashes erupted on April 15 between the army and the RSF in Khartoum.

Meanwhile, Chad's Minister of Communication Aziz Mahamat Saleh announced Monday that his country will evacuate 438 nationals from Khartoum to Port Sudan, where a special repatriation flight will pick them up.

He said among the evacuees are pilgrims, diplomats and their families as well as patients and students.

Chad’s President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno held talks with “Somali belligerents” to facilitate their evacuation, he added.

"Let us pray that they return safely," he wrote on Twitter.

Fighting between the warring parties has entered its ninth day, killing over 420 people and injuring 3,700 others, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs for Southern and Eastern Africa.

The UN said that prices of essential items are “sharply increasing due to shortages.”

Thousands of people are fleeing to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan, the UN said on Monday.

*Hassan Isilow in Johannesburg, South Africa, Andrew Wasike in Nairobi, Kenya, Hamza Kyeyune in Kampala, Uganda, and James Tasamba in Kigali contributed to this report