Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, has revealed that the Federal Government of Nigeria is very worried over the fate of thousands of Nigerian citizens stuck in troubled Sudan.
In a tweet via his Twitter handle which was sighted by Africa Today News, New York, @Garshehu, Shehu wrote: ‘Nigerian government has been having sleepless nights following the ongoing crisis in Sudan. Our officials are doing a lot, coordinating with the Embassy in Khartoum, the Sudanese and Ethiopian governments trying to ensure the safety of the large number of our citizens there. Minister Geoffrey Onyeama who is coordinating these efforts is optimistic that they will start moving people to safety as soon as possible. Watch the Minister explain what they are doing on Channels TV this evening.’
Africa Today News, New York reports that over 400 people have died and nearly 3,500 have been injured in the confrontation between the Sudanese security forces and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Force.
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The violence, which began on April 8 and entered its 15th day on Sunday, has forced hundreds of citizens to flee the capital Khartoum.
The RSF paramilitary organisation, directed by General Mohamed Dagalo, and the Sudanese Armed Forces, under the command of General Abdel al-Burhan, were previously allies.
They collaborated in the 2019 revolt that ousted Sudan’s cruel dictator Omar al-Bashir, who had governed the nation for thirty years.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has confirmed that US troops have swooped in on helicopters to evacuate embassy staff from Sudan’s battle-torn capital, even as other nations sought to help their citizens flee deadly fighting between rival generals.
Africa Today News, New York reports that France had also launched evacuation operations on Sunday from the northeast African nation, where ongoing fighting has entered its second week.
Deadly battles between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary group — which has seen fighting with tanks in densely populated Khartoum and air strikes launched by fighter jets — have killed more than 400 people and left thousands wounded.
Biden, who said the US military ‘conducted an operation’ to extract US government personnel, condemned the violence, saying ‘it’s unconscionable and it must stop’.
Just over 100 US special operations troops took part in the rescue to extract fewer than 100 people, which saw three Chinook helicopters fly from Djibouti, staying on the ground in Khartoum for less than an hour.