- Friday, April 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
The Indian mission in Sudan has asked Indians living in the north African nation to stay indoors after clashes broke out between its army and paramilitary forces on Saturday (15).
The Indian embassy in Sudanese capital Khartoum said, “In view of reported firings and clashes, all Indians are advised to take utmost precautions, stay indoors and stop venturing outside with immediate effect. Please also stay calm and wait for updates.”
NOTICE TO ALL INDIANS
IN VIEW OF REPORTED FIRINGS AND CLASHES, ALL INDIANS ARE ADVISED TO TAKE UTMOST PRECAUTIONS, STAY INDOORS AND STOP VENTURING OUTSIDE WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT. PLEASE ALSO STAY CALM AND WAIT FOR UPDATES.
— India in Sudan (@EoI_Khartoum) April 15, 2023
One Indian user replied to the tweet saying 13 of them were staying in a hotel in Khartoum and wanted to know how they could return to India.
We are 13 Indians residing in Hotel Kanon, 15 Street, Khartoum, please let us know, how we can go to India.
— Surendra Yadav (@YadavSurendra_) April 15, 2023
Violence erupted on Saturday following weeks of simmering tensions between military leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his No.2, paramilitary commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, over an planned integration of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) into the army.
According to witnesses, loud explosions and gunfire were heard near a RSF base in south Khartoum.
Sources in RSF said its forces had taken control of the city’s airport after witnesses claimed seeing several fighters entering the airport compound in lorries.
Civilians were seen running for shelter as artillery exchanges took place on the streets, AFP reported.
Both sides blamed each other for triggering the clash.
Burhan has been at loggerheads with Daglo over talks to finalise a deal to bring civilian rule back in the country and end the crisis that was sparked by the 2021 coup.
Set up in 2013, the RSF emerged from the Janjaweed militia that then president Omar al-Bashir deployed against non-Arab ethnic minorities in the western Darfur region a decade ago.
Daglo has said in recent months that the 2021 coup was a “mistake” that failed to bring about change in Sudan.
Burhan, a career soldier from northern Sudan, on the other hand feels that the coup was “necessary” in order to bring more outfits into the political process.
US ambassador to Sudan John Godfrey tweeted that the escalation of tensions “within the military component” in the African nation is “extremely dangerous” and urgently appealed to the senior leadership of both sides to stop the clashes.
