Foreign Office is accused of abandoning ‘hundreds’ of British civilians in Sudan

The SAS led a dramatic rescue of British diplomats from war-torn Khartoum yesterday – but fears remain for UK nationals trapped in the Sudanese capital.

While Foreign Office officials and their families were escorted to safety, terrified Britons hunkering down in the city were told to rely on a telephone hotline for updates as street battles raged around them.

US Special Forces flew into war-torn Sudan’s capital on Saturday night, leaving behind a team of elite British operatives. More than 100 UK Special Forces troops, accompanied by paratroopers and marines, had deployed to Sudan in an SAS-led operation described as ‘complex and rapid’ by Rishi Sunak. 

Overall, more than 1,200 UK military personnel were involved, in Sudan, neighbouring African countries, Middle East states and Britain.

Once the SAS forces landed, they got hold of several local vehicles and drove into the city.

They sought out around two dozen British diplomats and their families who were holed up an area of Khartoum located in between two warring factions vying for control of the capital. 

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hailed the military operation carried out by UK special forces to rescue a group of 30 people made up of British diplomats and their families out of Sudan

A convoy leaving Khartoum towards Port Sudan, on April 23 as people flee the battle-torn Sudanese capital

Smoke rising over Khartoum’s North Light Industrial Area as intense fighting continues in the Sudanese capital 

Over 100 French nationals and other nationalities have already been evacuated from Sudan in one of the first major extractions by a western nation since fighting began

Saudi Royal Navy officers assist a child onboard their ship as they evacuate people from Sudan, April 22

Passengers disembark at French military air base in Djibouti on April 23, during the evacuation of around 100 people from Sudan on the first French flight out of the war-hit country

A convoy leaving Khartoum advances on a road towards Port Sudan, on April 23

Turkish citizens in Sudan’s capital Khartoum wait for evacuation due to the clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary

Turkish citizens queue outside a bus to transport them to the airport, April 23

The location, near the epicentre of the conflict, proved challenging for the troops to reach and it was feared more soldiers and aircraft would be required for backup if the fighting was too intense. 

Despite this, the team managed to drive the group of around 30 people – including children – to a convoy north of Khartoum, which then transported them to the Wadi Siedna airfield 18 miles outside of the city, passing through multiple checkpoints.

To the echoes of gunfire and explosions in central Khartoum, heavily armed SAS soldiers escorted the evacuees, including young children, to an airfield on the outskirts of the city.

From there the British Embassy staff and their dependants were flown to safety early yesterday.      

They boarded two Royal Air Force transport planes – a Hercules and A400M Atlas aircraft – which had arrived from a British military base in Cyprus, shortly after the British troops had landed. 

It comes as hundreds of other British nationals in Khartoum face an uncertain fate, with many complaining of feeling ‘abandoned’ after the Government told them to seek shelter while embassy staff were rescued.  

Ireland has confirmed it is planning to evacuate civilians, The Telegraph reports.

British-Sudanese writer Rozan Ahmed described hiding under a bed for six hours and told Sky News her area has been ‘shelled to shreds’ over the last few weeks.

She said: ‘If there is no plan to get me out, please say why? We have received no information as to our evacuation. I am alive only by the grace of God and by the strength of my family.

‘There are rogue soldiers in the streets raiding homes. We are terrified to a point where we have gone numb.’

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak today hailed the brave efforts of the UK’s armed forces , saying the British military had undertaken a ‘difficult’ operation.

He tweeted: ‘UK armed forces have completed a complex and rapid evacuation of British diplomats and their families from Sudan, amid a significant escalation in violence and threats to embassy staff.

‘I pay tribute to the commitment of our diplomats and bravery of the military personnel who carried out this difficult operation.’

There have been warnings that extracting hundred of British citizens estimated to be in Sudan will be difficult, with a dangerous insurrection in the capital and serious damage to Khartoum’s airport.

Mr Sunak and Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said the UK would continue to act as a broker for a peace deal in Sudan.

Mr Cleverly has warned the UK is ‘severely limited’ in what aid it can provide to trapped nationals while fighting between the two warring factions drags on. 

Former UK ambassador to Sudan, Sir William Patey, told the Guardian that evacuating civilians without a guarantee of safe passage could be ‘disastrous’ and added it was a ‘much more complex operation’ than extracting diplomats.

A team of elite British soldiers flew into Khartoum  and evacuated around two dozen diplomats from the city

Families await rescue in Sudan yesterday, bound for safety in Turkey

Turkish citizens, to be brought to Turkiye in the capital Khartoum due to the clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)

MP Alicia Kearns, chair of the foreign affairs committee, described the rescue efforts in Sudan as ‘the most challenging evacuation’ in any country for a long time. 

She told Times Radio that evacuations were taking place against a backdrop of ‘looting, sexual assault and violence on a daily basis’.

Foreign Secretary Mr Cleverly has defended prioritising the evacuation for what is regarded as a small number of diplomats, arguing it would allow the UK Government to strengthen efforts to assist British nationals trapped in Sudan.

Fears remain for other British nationals trapped in Khartoum. Some in Sudan have accused the UK government of ‘abandoning’ them as preparations were being made for the evacuation of diplomatic officials.

More than 400 people have been killed in fierce clashes between Russian-backed rebels and government forces over recent days, with thousands more left injured.

Bloody street battles continued last night, forcing Britons to take cover beneath their beds, as heavy explosions rocked buildings and illuminated the night sky over Khartoum. 

The fighting between the country’s military and a rival paramilitary force went on as Foreign Secretary James Cleverly admitted the UK’s options to rescue those trapped were ‘severely limited’. 

In a bid to reassure these Britons, the UK’s ambassador to Sudan, Giles Lever, tweeted that officials will ‘continue working at pace’ to support them. 

Pictured is an aerial view of black smoke rising above the Khartoum International Airport 

A drone view shows smoke rising over buildings a week after fighting began in North Khartoum, as seen from Omdurman, Sudan, April 22, 2023

The Prime Minister confirmed the evacuation of British diplomat staff in a statement on Sunday 

People carry water during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum

But there are serious concerns the rebel ‘Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) may seek to seize Britons as hostages.

The RSF has been equipped and trained by the Russian paramilitary organisation Wagner, which is financed by the Kremlin.

The rescue mission for British ‘Local Nationals’ (LNs) is expected to involve Britons being driven under SAS guard to neighbouring countries such as Egypt. These journeys could take several days.

They may also be taken to discreet locations along the Red Sea coastline for transportation to the Saudi port of Jeddah.

Some UK nationals in Khartoum have said they feel abandoned by the UK government, due to the lack of information given to them about evacuation plans.

However, these details may be being withheld to protect operational security.

There are thought to be several hundred UK citizens in Sudan. In a dramatic television interview desperate Rozan Ahmed, a British national of Sudanese origin who went to the country to attend her cousin’s funeral ten days ago, said her family had spent six hours beneath their beds.

She said: ‘The area has been shelled to shreds. I have heard nothing but explosions and gunfire and shelling and screams.

‘On top of that, there are rogue soldiers walking around our streets, randomly raiding our homes. ‘I am only alive by the grace of God and the strength of my family members.

‘But we are terrified to a point where we have gone numb.’

So far no UK citizens are thought to have been injured in the fighting. But concerns for their safety increased yesterday amid reports a French national was shot as he attempted to flee.

A statement by the RSF, which wants to overthrow the Sudanese government, said a Frenchman was injured as a convoy came under fire from army aircraft. Sudanese armed forces blamed the RSF for the attack.

Mr Cleverly said: ‘We would say to British nationals in the region, please register with us. We have circulated a register, if an opportunity arises we can find a way of helping them.’

The US military used Chinook helicopters to transport its officials and their families to safety.

Saudi Arabia, Italy, Belgium, Turkey, Japan and the Netherlands are among the other nations also organising their own rescue operations.