NEW DELHI: Indian authorities on Tuesday scrambled to evacuate close to 3,000 Indian nationals from Sudan after the regular army and a rebel paramilitary force agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire, with Saudi Arabia becoming a key staging post for ferrying out stranded citizens.
A small number of Indian nationals were evacuated from Sudan by Saudi Arabia and France over the past few days, and hundreds remain stranded in different parts of the country, mainly the capital Khartoum. About 600 Indians gathered at Port Sudan, the country’s main port located more than 800km from Khartoum, and 278 of them were evacuated to Jeddah on the warship INS Sumedha on Tuesday afternoon.
“First batch of stranded Indians leave Sudan under #OperationKaveri. INS Sumedha with 278 people onboard departs Port Sudan for Jeddah,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted. Soon after, a second Indian warship, INS Teg, with a capacity to carry about 350 people also reached Port Sudan and is expected to take the second batch of Indians to Jeddah.
Forces loyal to the Sudan Army chief, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his deputy-turned-rival, Gen Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), agreed on a 72-hour nationwide ceasefire from midnight on April 24. Two C-130J medium-lift transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) were stationed in Jeddah on Sunday but it was not immediately clear if they would be able to fly into the airport at Khartoum, which was reportedly damaged in intense fighting, the people said.
{{/usCountry}}Forces loyal to the Sudan Army chief, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his deputy-turned-rival, Gen Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), agreed on a 72-hour nationwide ceasefire from midnight on April 24. Two C-130J medium-lift transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) were stationed in Jeddah on Sunday but it was not immediately clear if they would be able to fly into the airport at Khartoum, which was reportedly damaged in intense fighting, the people said.
{{/usCountry}}“An assessment has to be made of the damage suffered by the airport. Besides, air traffic control facilities will be needed for safe operation of flights,” one of the people cited above said.
For now, the Indian side is looking at the possibility of operating flights from military airbases located near Khartoum. “There is a military airbase located about an hour’s drive away from Khartoum and this is one of the options being considered,” the person said.
The US used heavy-lift helicopters to evacuate its diplomats and nationals from Khartoum in view of the fighting near the airport. However, the people said aircraft are a better option than evacuation by sea – the flight from Khartoum to Jeddah takes about 45 minutes and each C-130J can carry about 100 people, whereas warships such as INS Sumedha can carry about 300 people though the voyage from Port Sudan to Jeddah takes more than eight hours.
INS Sumedha, a patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, reached Port Sudan over the weekend and the first batch of citizens boarded the warship on Tuesday afternoon. “The Indians gathering at Port Sudan can be taken to Jeddah, from where they can be put on flights to India,” the person said.
The people said Saudi Arabia, with which the Indian side established close contact soon after the fighting erupted in Sudan on April 14, is expected to play a crucial role in evacuation efforts.
According to UN agencies, more than 420 people have been killed and more than 3,700 injured in the fighting so far. Tens of thousands, including Sudanese and foreign nationals, have fled the country in the past few days, with many of them heading for Egypt, Chad and South Sudan.
There is an acute shortage of food, water, medicines and fuel in Sudan, leading to a spike in the prices of these commodities. Many areas in Khartoum are without electricity and have limited communications, including internet connectivity.
Despite the ceasefire put in place on Tuesday, there were reports of fighting between the warring factions in west Darfur.
The US said on Tuesday it will coordinate with regional and international partners and Sudanese civilian stakeholders to assist in the creation of a committee to oversee the negotiation, conclusion and implementation of a permanent cessation of hostilities and humanitarian arrangements. It will also continue to work with Sudanese parties and partners toward the “shared goal of a return to civilian government in Sudan”, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said.