Türkiye evacuates nearly 2,000 Turkish citizens from Sudan amid conflict

Türkiye has evacuated 1,961 Turkish nationals from Sudan amid ongoing clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Force in the country since April 15, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Twitter.

A total of 2,382 people have been evacuated from the conflict-ridden country by Türkiye's efforts, Caliber.Az reports citing the ministry.

#Sudan’dan tahliye operasyonlarımız kapsamında, son iki günde 94 kişiyi daha tahliye ettik.

Bugüne kadar 1961’i vatandaşımız olmak üzere toplam 2382 kişinin tahliyesini gerçekleştirdik.

Tahliye çabalarımıza destek veren tüm kurumlarımıza teşekkür ediyoruz.

Vatandaşlarımızın… pic.twitter.com/349KBzv61S

— T.C. Dışişleri Bakanlığı (@TC_Disisleri) June 9, 2023

"To date, we have evacuated a total of 2,382 people, including 1,961 Turkish citizens. We express our gratitude to all the agencies that have supported our evacuation efforts. Türkiye always supports its citizens," the diplomatic office said in a post.

The disagreement that started over the paramilitary group's integration into the armed forces, a key condition of Sudan's transition agreement with political groups, boiled into a full-blown conflict on April 15, when fighting erupted in the capital Khartoum.

Sudan has been without a functioning government since October 2021 when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok's transitional government and declared a state of emergency in a move decried by political forces as a "coup."

The transitional period, which started in August 2019 after the ouster of President Omar al-Bashir, had been scheduled to end with elections in early 2024.

Millions of people are now facing a humanitarian disaster, and are in need of assistance.