Türkiye starts evacuation operation in Sudan

ANKARA

Türkiye started an evacuation operation of Turkish citizens in Sudan on April 23 due to security concerns after clashes erupted between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces.

Türkiye’s embassy in Sudan announced on April 22 that it would evacuate Turkish nationals who wanted to depart the country and Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Sudan’s Ali al-Sadiq discussed the issue the same day.

A Foreign Ministry statement on April 22 recalled the phone conversation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Çavuşoğlu with their Sudanese counterparts on the issue of the safe repatriation of Turkish citizens residing in Sudan.

“Following our security assessment, we have decided to repatriate our citizens, on April 23 especially from conflict areas by land to Türkiye through a third country. Moreover, third-country nationals who have asked for assistance have also been included in our planning,” said the statement.

“Our citizens who have asked for repatriation are being informed through the social media accounts of our Embassy and ministry as well as through the contact information of our citizens who have registered up to today,” it added.

The clashes between the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces erupted on April 15 and more than 2,500 Turkish citizens were stuck in the firing line in Khartoum. The Turkish Foreign Ministry and the embassy urged them to remain indoors and in their houses and get in contact with the Turkish diplomatic mission in case they need something.

Most major airports have become battlegrounds and movement out of the capital has proven intensely dangerous. The two rivals have dug in, signaling they would resume the fighting after the declared three-day truce.

Questions have swirled over how the mass rescues of foreign citizens would unfold, with Sudan’s main international airport closed and millions of people sheltering indoors. As battles between the Sudanese army and the powerful paramilitary group rage in and around Khartoum, including in residential areas, foreign countries have struggled to repatriate their citizens — many trapped in their homes as food supplies dwindle.