Islamabad: Pakistan’s foreign ministry confirmed on Monday that 427 Pakistanis have reached Port Sudan city safely from where arrangements for their further travel would be made, as fierce fighting raged on in the African nation as several countries scramble to evacuate their diplomats and citizens.
On Sunday, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Sudan, Meer Behrose Reg, told Arab News the South Asian country’s mission has started evacuating its stranded nationals to Saudi Arabia. He disclosed that Pakistani citizens would be taken to Jeddah before they are flown back to Pakistan.
The development takes place as a number of countries around the world attempt to evacuate their citizens from Sudan after two rival military factions clashed with each other last week on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia has played a pivotal role in helping other nations rescue their nationals from the African state, with President Joe Biden thanking the kingdom for evacuating American diplomats and their families while calling its help “critical to the success of our operation.”
In a message on Twitter, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) wrote that the ministry is following developments in Sudan and working with Pakistani missions in the region to provide relief to Pakistanis there.
“427 Pakistanis reached Port Sudan safely and are being lodged before arrangements for their onward journey are coordinated,” MoFA wrote.
Last week, residents of Khartoum and adjoining cities found themselves under siege as the Sudanese army and its powerful paramilitary, the Rapid Support Forces, clashed with each other while striving to take control of the country.
The two sides were allies in the past and worked together to seize power in a 2019 coup.
As tensions increased, however, a power struggle broke out between them, making analysts warn of a nationwide civil war and the international community calling for a cease-fire.
