Bundeswehr flies more than 100 people out of Sudan

Berlin/Khartoum. In a first step, the Bundeswehr has flown 101 people out of the embattled Sudanese capital Khartoum. They were on board a military transporter, which was the first German machine to fly back on Sunday evening, as the Bundeswehr announced on Monday night on Twitter. A third German military plane landed in Khartoum in the evening.

Like other countries in the country on the Horn of Africa, Germany has begun a military evacuation. More than 300 Germans registered on a crisis list are to be flown out via the Jordanian military airfield Al-Asrak. Citizens of partner countries should also be helped. The operation, in which more than 1,000 men and women from the Bundeswehr are involved, was prepared over several days.

Battle between two generals

More than a week ago, heavy fighting broke out in the country between the country’s two most powerful generals and their units. The two men have led the country in northeast Africa with around 46 million inhabitants since two joint military coups in 2019 and 2021.

De facto President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is also the Army Commander-in-Chief, is fighting with the military against his deputy Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, the leader of the powerful paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Actually, the RSF should have subordinated itself to the army and power in the country should have been transferred back to a civilian government. However, since both camps were ultimately unable to reach an agreement, the conflict turned violent.

In Khartoum, the supply situation has deteriorated dramatically since the fighting began. There is a lack of water and food, power cuts are increasingly impeding communication, and there is looting.

Hundreds dead and more injured

Heavy fighting continued on Sunday. The number of civilians killed is increasing every day, the Sudanese Medical Committee reported. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), at least 413 people have lost their lives and more than 3,500 have been injured since the fighting began. The actual number of victims is likely to be much higher.

In the third largest country in Africa in terms of area, with its 46 million inhabitants, only 35 hospitals and clinics are still functional, the medical committee reported. And even they are running out of drugs. According to the organization Doctors Without Borders, there are hardly any blood supplies left in the country.

The US government had all US diplomats and their families brought to safety on Sunday night. Other countries including France, Belgium, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Sweden and Spain were also planning rescue missions, the first of which were successfully completed on Sunday evening. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced on Sunday evening that the staff at the EU embassy had also been evacuated, but that the ambassador would continue his work in Sudan.