Dubai: Worried relatives of several Indians stranded in Sudan due to fierce fighting between the army and paramilitary forces are desperately waiting for any information about their relatives. Along with this, the worried relatives have appealed to the government to make arrangements to evacuate the people trapped in the crisis-hit African country.
Fighting in Sudan began on Saturday and so far at least 185 people, including one Indian, have been reported killed, while over 1,800 have been injured. Mansi Seth’s father is also among the Indians stranded in Sudan. Mansi said her father (65) had gone to Sudan on a business trip and was scheduled to return to Mumbai on Saturday. According to Mansi, he was at the airport when he was informed that his flight had been canceled and he was not allowed to leave the airport along with other passengers. When they were allowed out of the airport after a few hours, they had to walk to their hotel as there was no transport available.
Mansi said, ‘I am worried about my father as he is a senior citizen and also has health problems. Spoke to him briefly this morning (Wednesday) but after that there was no contact. We just want to know that he is safe. There is no electricity in many areas of the city and the hotel where Mansi’s father is staying is running on a generator, which also has limited capacity. He said that he also has some relatives in Sudan who told him that the security situation in the country is very bad and the violence has not stopped despite the announcement of a ceasefire.
Government sources said in New Delhi on Wednesday that India is coordinating with various countries to ensure the safety of Indian nationals in Sudan. These countries include America, Britain and Saudi Arabia. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has spoken to his counterparts in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on the situation in Sudan and has assured them of practical support for the security of Indians in that country.
Mansi said her relatives told her that Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were looting and taking away people’s cars. He said people have been asked to deflate the tires of their cars and empty their fuel tanks so that the RSF cannot take away the cars. Expressing full faith in the government, he appealed to the government to evacuate all the Indians trapped there soon. There are about 4,000 Indians in Sudan, of whom about 1,200 were settled in Sudan and have been there for about 150 years. Other NRIs are working as professionals in Sudan, while some Indians are working in UN missions and other international organizations.
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