At least 20 Nepali nationals have fled Sudan, which entered a third week of fighting between rival military forces despite a ceasefire, as of Monday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hundreds of people have been killed and thousands wounded in the Northeastern African nation since April 15 when a long-simmering power struggle between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces erupted into conflict.

The fighting has pitched Sudan towards a civil war, derailing an internationally-backed transition aimed at establishing a democratic government and sending tens of thousands of people fleeing into neighbouring countries.

The Foreign Ministry, in a statement on Monday, said that the government has been working for the safety and evacuation of Nepali nationals in view of the complicated situation of security in Sudan.

“Thirty Nepalis, excluding officials deployed at the United Nations Peace Mission, who are currently in the conflict-hit nation, have come in contact with Nepal’s embassy in Cairo, Egypt,” reads the statement.

According to the ministry, the Office of the Consulate General of Nepal in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia has informed that 19 Nepali nationals, who had reached Port Sudan (a city and port on the Red Sea state in eastern Sudan), were rescued and brought to the Saudi city with the help of the Saudi Arabia government. Likewise, one Nepali national had reached Jeddah on the person’s own initiative and a process is underway to facilitate the return of Nepalis who have reached Jeddah to Nepal, the statement said.

The ministry informed that 11 Nepalis who have come in contact with the Cairo-based Nepal’s embassy have left for Port Sudan and efforts are underway to bring one Nepali national stranded in Khartoum to Port Sudan for evacuation.

As per the statement, three Nepalis who were brought to Port Sudan with the help of their employers have decided to stay at a hotel in the city while two others, with the help of their employers, are being evacuated to Egypt border from Khartoum.

Published on: 2 May 2023 | The Kathmandu Post