Germany has begun evacuating its citizens from Sudan, the defense and foreign ministries announced on Twitter today.

#Sudan: Gemeinsam koordinieren @BMVg_Bundeswehr And @AuswaertigesAmt Eine Laufende #Evacuationoperation der #Bundeswehr for the Germans for Orth in agreement with our partners. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/54GI9ebHlv

— Auswärtiges Amt (@AuswaertigesAmt) April 23, 2023

“Our goal is to airlift as many (German) citizens from Khartoum as possible, given the dangerous situation in Sudan. As far as possible, we will also take citizens of the EU and other countries with us,” the German ministries add.

The first military plane sent by Germany to Sudan landed in Khartoum a few minutes before 17:00 (Greek time), but it will take some time for the evacuation of Germans and citizens of other countries, a Defense Ministry spokesman said.

“Our goal is to airlift as many (German) citizens from Khartoum as possible, given the dangerous situation in Sudan. As far as possible, we will take with us citizens of the EU and other countries,” said German government sources.

Germany also tried to expel its citizens last Wednesday, according to Der Spiegel magazine, but abandoned the attempt. Three military transports, containing about 150 people, were heading for Sudan, but due to the situation there, they were forced to turn back.

Bild newspaper reports today that the government planned two missions with A400M military aircraft. The paratroopers of the German army were transferred to Jordan in order to assist in the evacuation if necessary.

At least 420 people were killed and more than 3,700 were injured in clashes in Khartoum between the army of Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

Source: APE-MPE, AFP.