The tense situation in Sudan, where fighting between the army and paramilitary groups has been going on for more than a week, has forced most countries to evacuate their diplomatic staff. The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports that 22 Romanians will be evacuated along with 4 Sudanese family members.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs clarifies that in the context of the events related to the security situation in Sudan, an interdepartmental working group for managing the situation has been launched at the disposal of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bohdan Aureska. On April 16, 2023, it continued its activities to support and provide assistance to Romanian citizens on the territory of Sudan with the aim of safely evacuating those who requested it,” the IAE reports:

“Since the activation of the interagency task force, numerous steps have been taken through the involved Romanian diplomatic missions and institutional partners to identify and connect with Romanian nationals and their family members in Sudan, as well as to establish optimal evacuation methods.” , says MAE.

The ministry clarifies that the activities of the Romanian embassy in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, were suspended in 2021, and consular assistance and protection services for Romanian citizens in Sudan are provided by the Romanian embassy in Addis Ababa (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia). .

“At the same time, MAE states that so far at the level of the Romanian Embassy in Addis Ababa, they have registered their presence and/or been contacted by the Romanian diplomatic mission for the purpose of evacuating 22 Romanian citizens and 4 family members, citizens of Sudan “, the minister said.

“In addition, given the worsening security situation, as of April 17, 2023, the travel alert for Sudan has been raised to level 8 from 9 (Pay special attention – https://www.mae.ro/travel-alerts/ 2924). The inter-institutional task force continues its activities 24/7, monitors developments in the region and maintains contacts with Romanian citizens from Sudan and with other EU member states with the aim of evacuating Romanian citizens and their family members who have expressed their desire to be repatriated.” is also transmitted by the IAEA.

MAE strongly advises all Romanian nationals in Sudan to contact the Romanian Embassy in Addis Ababa as a matter of urgency and provide their contact details so that they can be contacted in case of need.

“Citizens of Romania can request consular assistance by calling the Embassy of Romania in Addis Ababa at +251 116 622 675, calls are forwarded to the Contact and Support Center for Romanian Citizens Abroad (CCSCRS) and are answered by call center operators. Romanian citizens also have the emergency telephone number of the diplomatic mission at +251 935 350 059,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports.

Fighting in Sudan: Western countries have evacuated their citizens and diplomatic personnel

The United States evacuated its embassy from Khartoum by helicopter, followed by France on Sunday as fighting between the army and militias wreaked havoc in Sudan for more than a week.

US President Joe Biden said on Saturday night that the US military had begun an operation to evacuate US government personnel from Khartoum, adding that Washington had temporarily suspended its embassy as fighting continued in Sudan, Reuters reported.

And Great Britain, in turn, evacuated its diplomatic staff from Sudan.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the violence that broke out on April 15 in Khartoum and the Darfur region (in the west) has resulted in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries. The clashes forced thousands of people to flee and led to the mobilization of several states to evacuate their citizens.

The fighting has killed hundreds of people, mainly in the capital and western Sudan, turning the continent’s third-largest country, where about a quarter of the population already relies on food aid, into a humanitarian disaster.

International efforts for a temporary truce to allow civilians to safely arrive and visit their families during the three-day leave have so far failed. With the airport under fire and the sky uncertain, Western countries were unable to evacuate their embassy staff.

Sudan borders seven countries and lies between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Africa’s volatile Sahel region. Military action could increase regional tensions.

The violence was fueled by disagreements over an internationally-backed plan to form a new civilian government, four years after the fall of dictator Omar al-Bashir in mass protests and two years after a coup.

Both sides accuse the other of obstructing the transition.

On the same topic:

• VIDEO Fighting in Sudan: the EU is trying to evacuate 1,500 European citizens from Khartoum, the Pentagon wants to evacuate the US embassy, ​​but how? The country’s airspace is closed, the airport is bombed
• VIDEO Sudan: Army says it will help evacuate foreigners even as fighting continues in capital
• Bloody struggle for power in Sudan. Washington and London are calling for an “immediate end” to violence and the resumption of talks
• VIDEO Coup attempt in Sudan. Sudan’s army says it controls presidential palace after militias claim to have taken it / Heavy fighting in central capital
• VIDEO Sudan plunged into chaos as military rivals vie for power. During the last day, 56 civilians died during the hostilities
• Three UN staff killed in Sudan. The UN World Food Program (WFP) has temporarily suspended its work
• VIDEO The plane, which was preparing to take off, was hit by shelling at Khartoum International Airport / There were passengers on board
• VIDEO Evidence emerges that Wagner’s Russian group was arming militias fighting the Sudanese army (CNN)