- EDITOR’S BRIEF: The conflict in Sudan has led to a dire situation for many, with citizens trapped and unable to leave due to damaged airports and other infrastructure. The Kenyan government is taking steps to ensure the safe passage of its citizens out of Sudan, and the more significant international community is also working to evacuate their workers. The situation is a stark reminder of the devastating impact of war and conflict on ordinary people’s lives and highlights the importance of peaceful conflict resolution.
As Sudan’s conflict continues to escalate, Kenyan students have been forced to take action, with more than 100 of them embarking on a 1410-kilometre journey from Khartoum to the Ethiopian border. The journey was prompted by the inability of nations to airlift their citizens out of Sudan, due to extensive damage to the Khartoum International Airport by warring parties. With more than 400 people killed and 3,550 injured in Sudan’s conflict, the Kenyan government’s focus is to get its citizens out of harm’s way.
Dr. Korir Sing’oei, Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary, stated that it is difficult to land in Sudan, and the plan is to get Kenyans to Port Sudan from where they will be airlifted to Jeddah and then hopefully to Nairobi. The government has received requests from the United Nations and other multinational organizations to evacuate their workers to Nairobi before they are airlifted to their respective countries.
The Kenyan embassy in Sudan has been in communication with the students, with teams working to support and facilitate their safe passage. Despite intermittent internet outages, Citizen TV managed to reach out to some students via WhatsApp.
One of the students, Mwashame, stated that they had managed to evacuate from their university and reach the bus station at Minal Al-bari safely. The first group of students had already boarded a bus towards Gadaref, and the last group was in the bus ready to travel to the same destination. They were also in communication with the Kenyan embassy in Sudan, and all was well so far.
However, the more than 100 Kenyan students who have left Khartoum for the Ethiopian border have to pass through Gondar City in Northern Ethiopia, which is located some 534 kilometres from the Tigrayan regional capital, Mekele. Mekele has experienced conflict between the Federal Government of Ethiopia and regional Tigrayan forces for two years. Sing’oei stated that from their embassies in Juba and Addis Ababa, they have teams working to support and facilitate their safe passage.
The fighting between the Sudanese Army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo has led to water and power cuts, as well as internet outages. The United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and Belgium are among the countries that have evacuated their nationals as fighting intensifies in Khartoum and other major cities in Sudan.
PS Korir stated that Nairobi is leading mediation efforts both under the framework of AU and IGAD, which have called for a cessation of hostilities and de-escalation and a return to normalcy. Nairobi is known as the capital for peacebuilding, having mediated the South Sudan conflict and the Somalia conflict regionally and globally. Kenya is in a good place to mediate the current conflict because it is a neutral party, not involved in the dispute.
