Cape Town – The Department of International Relations and Co-operation (Dirco) is exploring options to assist about 100 SA citizens left stranded by the war in Sudan.
Explosions erupted in Khartoum on Tuesday following a week of fighting between forces of army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagloof, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), AFP reported.
International calls are mounting for an end to hostilities that have spawned increasing lawlessness, death and damage. According to the UN more than 1 800 people have been injured.
Amid calls to assist stranded SA citizens, Dirco said the SA embassy in Sudan was not open, adding that the airport was also closed.
Dirco head of diplomacy, Clayson Monyela said there was intense fighting including airstrikes.
“The SA embassy like all others is not operational. The streets are dangerous. There’s intense fighting including airstrikes. Civilians have been killed. For now, we advise everyone to stay indoors. All options are being explored to assist our nationals. We don’t need drama please,” Monyela said.
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According to TimesLIVE, Dirco had revealed that more than 100 nationals were stranded in Sudan, although the numbers “change by the hour”.
During an interview on 702, Monyela said that it was impossible to reach stranded citizens, as the country had become a no-fly zone.
Monyela said some nationals were not on the embassy’s database, but they were reaching out and were now being added to the database, the report said.
