AL-MUKALLA: More than 150 Yemenis were evacuated from Sudan and taken on a Royal Saudi Navy ship to Jeddah on Tuesday as Yemen’s government launched emergency plans to rescue thousands of its citizens trapped in the war-torn country.
The first group of evacuees left the Red Sea city of Port Sudan on a Saudi ship bound for the Kingdom on Tuesday morning, while hundreds of Yemenis were also being relocated from the Sudanese capital Khartoum to safe locations in the country.
Evacuations are being overseen by an emergency committee made up of staff from Yemen’s Embassy in Sudan and the Yemeni community in the country, including members of the Yemeni students’ union.
Afif Al-Barashi, head of the students’ union, told Arab News that the emergency committee plans to evacuate 3,000 Yemenis on Saudi ships in the coming days.
Evacuees will be taken from Port Sudan to Jeddah and then returned to Yemen, he said.
Thousands of Yemenis have been living in Sudan for the past decade, with others relocating there for study or medical treatment.
Al-Barashi said that some Yemeni families faced difficulty escaping conflict-ridden areas of Khartoum, while rising bus fares had also hampered evacuation plans.
“The bus prices are exorbitant. A 50-passenger bus costs $16,000. Financial transfers to Sudan are difficult since banks are closed and there is no adequate housing in Port Sudan.”
Yemen’s Foreign Ministry said at least 400 Yemenis have left Khartoum “safely” in the past 48 hours, with 250 heading to Madani city, southeast of the capital, before being taken to Port Sudan for evacuation.
The Yemeni government was in contact with Saudi authorities over plans to evacuate Yemenis from Sudan “as soon as possible,” the ministry said.
It urged Yemenis in Sudan to inform the emergency committee of their location and to follow its instructions.
Images on social media showed scores of Yemenis boarding a truck with their belongings as they fled Khartoum.
Many described terrible scenes in the capital when violence erupted in the streets, trapping them inside their homes for days.
Nassar Mohammed, a Yemeni academic at a Sudanese university, told Arab News that Yemeni families fled their residences in the country during a ceasefire, leaving their property behind.
“The situation is really tough. The fighting eased, but it did not end. Yemenis fled their houses and left their belongings behind, with many homes still unlocked,” he said.
Mohammed said that he knew five Yemeni students who went without food for six days because they were unable to withdraw money from banks.
