Sudan: US troops evacuate embassy staff. Graphics show where rival fighting is worst.
The U.S. used Navy SEALs and Army Special Forces to evacuate American Embassy personnel in Sudan Saturday as a power struggle between two top military factions has erupted into widespread fighting across Khartoum, the capital city.
Hundreds of Sudanese civilians have been killed and thousands wounded. The conflict threatens to destabilize Africa's third-largest nation.
The U.S. forces were deployed in Djibouti, south of Sudan. An estimated 19,000 American citizens are in Sudan.
Artillery fire, airstrikes and ground fighting began April 8 between Sudan’s armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, a rival paramilitary force. The two factions have been unable to agree how to share power as Sudanese civilians clamor for a democratic government.
Rival generals in Sudan conflict
Sudan's army, commanded by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burham, and the RSF, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamden Dagalo, were allies in a 2021 coup. Now they are fighting each other, despite pleas for peace from organizations such as the U.N., the European Union and the African Union Commission.
Fighting has intensified around the capital's airport, closing its airspace, and near hospitals, hampering evacuation efforts and treatment of wounded. Thousands have been injured.
Civilians also are struggling with power outages and food shortages. U.N. relief efforts have been halted.
A 24-hour cease-fire was declared on April 19, but fighting slowed only briefly as many Khartoum residents tried to evacuate.
Sudan has suffered decades of fighting
Conflict has been a part of Sudan for decades, starting with its colonial period in 1899. Its most recent disputes:
1989: Gen. Omar al-Bashir overthrows the Sudanese government in a military coup.
1993: Bashir is appointed president. He dissolves the National Assembly in 1999.
2009: The International Criminal Court in The Hague issues an arrest warrant for Bashir, charging him with war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. The court issues a second warrant in 2010.
April 2019: Two military men, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his former deputy, Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, are part of a coup that topples Bashir.
September 2019: A new three-year government is formed under Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Power is shared by the military, civilian representatives and protest groups. Elections are planned in 2023.
October 2021: The military arrests Hamdok. Al-Burham, leader of the power-sharing group, dismisses it and says elections will be held in 2023.
November 2021: Hamdok is reinstated but resigns in January 2022.
April 8, 2023: Fighting breaks out between the Sudanese army and the RSF after they fail to agree how power would be shared.
April 23: U.S. and U.K. officials announce diplomatic staffers have been flown out of Sudan. Other Western nations also report evacuations.
Attack on Merowe airport
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SOURCE Paste BN Network reporting and research; Associated Press