With the arrival of a second overland convoy to Port Sudan, the US government has helped nearly 1,000 Americans escape the spreading conflict in Sudan, the State Department said Sunday.
“We continue to assist U.S. citizens and others who are eligible with onward travel to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where additional U.S. personnel are positioned to assist with consular and emergency services,” said a statement from spokesman Matthew Miller.
A first US-organized convoy reached Port Sudan on Saturday, bringing American citizens, local staff, and nationals from allied countries, for transit on to Saudi Arabia.
Miller said the US was coordinating closely with partner nations on evacuation flights and convoys, and said there had been “a sustained diplomatic and messaging effort to reach the fewer than 5,000 US citizens who have sought guidance from the government.”
Millions of Sudanese, unable to leave, are hunkering down amid heavy fighting between the forces of army general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Fighting since April 15 has killed more than 500 people, displaced tens of thousands and triggered an exodus of foreigners and international staff.
Violent clashes were continuing Sunday in capital Khartoum, even after both warring sides said they were extending a shaky truce.
In another development, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is sending an envoy to the Sudan region amid the “unprecedented” situation there, his spokesman said Sunday.
“In light of the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Sudan,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement, Guterres is sending Martin Griffiths, the UN emergency relief coordinator.
“The scale and speed of what is unfolding is unprecedented in Sudan,” the statement said. “We are extremely concerned.”