Saudi Arabia Conducts First Evacuation of Foreign Civilians from Sudan: "157 Arrive in Jeddah"

The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 22nd (local time) that 157 people, including its nationals and foreigners who were in Sudan, have arrived in Jeddah.

AFP reported that this is the first large-scale evacuation of foreign civilians from Sudan since the outbreak of armed clashes on the 15th between the government forces led by General Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that "91 Saudi nationals, along with 66 nationals from 12 countries including Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Tunisia, Pakistan, India, Bulgaria, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Canada, and Burkina Faso, have safely arrived in Jeddah."

Among the foreigners, some diplomats and government officials were also reportedly included.

They traveled by vehicle within Sudan to the eastern port city of Port Sudan and then boarded a ship to Jeddah, according to Saudi state broadcaster Al Ekhbariya.

Earlier, the Sudanese government forces announced that the evacuation of foreign diplomatic missions and civilians would soon begin, stating that Saudi diplomats had already left Port Sudan and returned to their home country, and that Jordan would also evacuate in the same manner.

In this regard, Reuters reported that Jordan has begun evacuating 300 of its nationals from Sudan.

On the other hand, countries attempting to evacuate their nationals and diplomats by air are reportedly facing difficulties due to the collapse of the three-day (21st?23rd) 'Eid ceasefire' agreement.

General Burhan claimed to have regained control over all airports except for the capital Khartoum International Airport and Nyala Airport in the southwest, but ongoing clashes between both sides have made it difficult to secure safety not only for air routes but also for land transportation.

Countries such as South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Spain, which have military aircraft on standby in nearby countries like Djibouti, plan to evacuate their nationals as soon as Sudanese airspace reopens and safety during transit to the airports is ensured.

Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) reported that local residents trapped by the armed conflict in the capital Khartoum and other areas, suffering from power outages, water shortages, and food scarcity, have fled in large numbers, with an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 Sudanese crossing into neighboring Chad so far.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.