British nationals have been urged to leave Sudan. “Now is the time to move,” the Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly said. The UK government doesn’t know what will happen when the ceasefire ends on Thursday at midnight local time, people have gathered at the airfield “in good order” for evacuation with help from the Sudanese army, the Secretary explained.
The UK has airlifted 536 people from the east African country, but that is a fraction of the thousands of British nationals thought to be in the country afflicted by conflict.
The Foreign Secretary said, he was not able to determine the exact number on British citizens, who are currently in Sudan, but told those who wanted to leave to do so before the ceasefire ends. “We have flights available, but none of us know what will happen after the ceasefire ends tonight,” he added.
“We are saying to people ‘If you want to have our support to fly out of Sudan, do so now,” Mr. cleverly said. The evacuation route from Khartoum to the airfield is being facilitated by the Sudanese army, he added. The Secretary said, it was not helpful to draw comparisons between the UK’s evacuation response with other nations, adding that many British nationals living in Khartoum were situated around the city.
“Where a country has a community which is tightly located, an ex-pat bubble, it is much easier to evacuate en-masse,” he said. It comes after he previously warned, there was no guarantee further evacuation flights would leave the country once the ceasefire has ended.
The 72-hour truce, which was agreed by Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), began on Tuesday and ends on Thursday midnight. The army said, it was willing to hold talks about extending the truce, but there has been no response from the RSF. The US said it was in direct contact with the two warring generals to see if the ceasefire could be extended.
Meanwhile in the UK, the first flight from the Lanarca airport in Cyprus, where evacuees were initially flown to, has arrived at the Stansted airport. There were 250 people on board. Emotions ran high as arrivals looked relieved from the ordeal they have experienced in Sudan. “I am very happy to be here,” Nema, from West London said, as she was met by her sister. “The British Government has been marvelous, I feel very proud that I have made it here.”
Shama, one of the first off the airport bus, told reporters and her family, “We’re safe, we’re in no danger, I’m back and no longer scared.” Asked about the speed of the British response to the violence in Sudan, she said, “It was slow but we’re here.”
More than 2,000 British nationals in Sudan, have registered with the Foreign Office under evacuation plans. Only British passport holders and immediate family members with existing UK entry clearance are being told, they are eligible for evacuation.
Alicia Kearns, the Conservative chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee said, elderly people who are dependent on their children, who themselves have British status should also be admitted. She said, “In the same way we treat children who are dependent on their parents, we should respect that some elderly people are dependent on their children.” “So, I think it is important that we are bringing people out who would otherwise be left destitute and really vulnerable.”
UK Accused Of Delaying Germany’s Evacuation Plans
The UK has been accused of delaying Germany’s effort to evacuate its citizens from Sudan, with its mission to rescue British embassy staff during the weekend. They alleged, British forces landed in Sudan without the Sudanese army’s permission, as other European nations were hoping to airlift citizens to safety. The Defense Ministry of UK has labelled the accusations as “complete nonsense.”
Germany, among others, had planned to use the airfield north of Khartoum from which subsequent evacuation operations have been conducted, but the “unannounced British military presence” angered the Sudanese army that, they were refused access to the facility.
It is believed that, the British Army had paid the Sudanese Army, for landing without their permission. So, negotiations for German rescuers, to access the airfield were “lost at least half a day” during what was, at the time, considered to be a very small window of opportunity.
The UK Ministry of Defense denied these allegations, that implied it was responsible for delay of the German rescuers to evacuate their nationals in Sudan. “It is not accurate to suggest that Britain’s efforts to evacuate embassy staff from Sudan last weekend slowed-down Germany’s plans.”
“Operating in such complex circumstances will always come with challenges, but we have worked extremely closely with our French, US and particularly German partners who have facilitated access to the airfield throughout this week, and of course we remain grateful to the Sudanese Armed Forces.”
READ ALSO:U.S Embassy Staff Evacuated From Sudan
