New Delhi/Cairo: The first batch of Indians stranded in violence-hit Sudan left the country onboard India’s naval ship INS Sumedha as part of the evacuation mission ‘Operation Kaveri’.
External Affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said 278 people onboard the ship departed Port Sudan for the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah.
“First batch of stranded Indians leave Sudan under #OperationKaveri. INS Sumedha with 278 people onboard departs Port Sudan for Jeddah,” Bagchi tweeted.
India on Monday launched ‘Operation Kaveri’ to bring back its nationals from Sudan which has been witnessing fierce fighting following a power struggle between the regular army and a paramilitary force.
On Sunday, India said it has positioned two transport aircraft of the IAF in Jeddah and naval ship INS Sumedha at Port Sudan as part of its contingency plans to evacuate the stranded Indians.
The government had on Friday said it was focusing on the safety of over 3,000 Indian citizens currently located throughout Sudan.
Meanwhile, Sudan’s warring generals pledged on Tuesday to observe a new three-day truce brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia in an attempt to pull Africa’s third-largest nation back from the abyss.
The claims were immediately undercut by the sound of heavy gunfire and explosions in the capital of Khartoum. Residents said warplanes were flying overhead.
Several previous ceasefires declared since the April 15 outbreak of fighting were not observed, although intermittent lulls during the weekend’s major Muslim holiday allowed for dramatic evacuations of hundreds of diplomats, aid workers and other foreigners by air and land.
For many Sudanese, the departure of foreigners and closure of embassies is a terrifying sign that international powers expect a worsening of the fighting that has already pushed the population into disaster.
Meanwhile, the Sudanese desperately sought ways to escape the chaos, fearing that the rival camps would escalate their all-out battle for power once evacuations were completed.
Late on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that he had helped broker a new 72-hour ceasefire. The truce would be an extension of the nominal three-day holiday ceasefire.
The Sudanese military, commanded by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the rival Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group led by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, said on Tuesday they would observe the ceasefire. In separate announcements, they said Saudi Arabia played a role in the negotiations.
“This ceasefire aims to establish humanitarian corridors, allowing citizens and residents to access essential resources, healthcare, and safe zones, while also evacuating diplomatic missions,” the RSF said in a statement.
The Army announcement used similar language, adding that it will abide by the truce “on the condition that the rebels commit to stopping all hostilities.”
But fighting continued, including in Omdurman, a city across the Nile River from Khartoum. Omdurman resident Amin Ishaq said there were clashes early on Tuesday around the state television headquarters and around military bases just outside Omdurman.
“They did not stop fighting,” he said. “They stop only when they run out of ammunition.”
“Sounds of gunfire, explosions and flying warplanes are still heard across Khartoum,” said Atiya Abdalla Atiya, secretary of the Doctors’ Syndicate. “They don’t respect ceasefires.”
Atiya and Farah Abass, another Khartoum resident, said people were still fleeing Khartoum on Tuesday. Bus stations were packed with many who had spent the night there, hoping to get a seat on a departing bus, they said. Drivers increased the prices, sometimes tenfold, for routes to Port Sudan or the border crossing with Egypt.
Sudan was once a symbol of hope because of its fitful efforts to transition from decades of autocratic rule to democracy. Now, it faces a bleak future. Even before April 15, one-third of the population of 46 million relied on humanitarian assistance. Most of those providing aid have suspended operations.
More than 420 people, including at least 291 civilians, have been killed and over 3,700 wounded since the fighting began. The military has appeared to have the upper hand in Khartoum but the RSF still controls many districts in the capital and Omdurman, and has several large strongholds around the country.
Meanwhile, airlifts of foreigners continued. Britain said on Tuesday that it will run evacuation flights for UK nationals from Sudan from an airfield outside Khartoum. Officials have said there are as many as 4,000 British citizens in Sudan, 2,000 of whom have registered for potential evacuation. The Foreign Office said priority would be given to families with children, the sick and the elderly.
Germany said one of its rescue planes flew another mission early on Tuesday, bringing the total of people evacuated to nearly 500.
France secured the use of a base on the outskirts of Khartoum to act as an extraction point after intense negotiations with both sides the military that held the base and the RSF that held the surrounding districts, a French diplomatic official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the operation.
Amid continued gunfire, nationals from dozens of countries made their way to the base. Some braved the roads in their own vehicles while others called on private security firms to shepherd them through military and RSF checkpoints.