Sudan: First flight evacuating British civilians lands in Cyprus – as PM says next 24 hours ‘absolutely critical’
The first flight carrying British civilians out of Sudan has landed in Cyprus – as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the next 24 hours are “absolutely critical”.
A passenger plane with about 40 civilians on board landed at Larnaca airport, a spokesperson for Cyprus’s foreign ministry said.
Around 4,000 UK passport holders have been stranded in the east African country after heavy fighting broke out.
An RAF plane collected people from an airfield near Khartoum, with priority being given to families with children, the elderly and people with medical conditions.
And two more flights are expected overnight – though Britons will also have to reach the airfield themselves, negotiating checkpoints and potential outbreaks of fighting, as no escorts are being provided.
Evacuation effort begins for stranded Britons – Sudan latest
Africa minister Andrew Mitchell said all British nationals in the country who want to leave should head to the airstrip “before 8pm Khartoum time” – 7pm BST – to be processed for departure, but reiterated they would have to make it there “by their own steam”.
He also appealed to people to continue to register their location with the Foreign Office, and said the government was “continuing to work up other options to assist British nationals wanting to leave Sudan, including other points of exit.”
More than 1,400 military personnel are involved in the UK operation: Pics: MoD
It appears to be a race against time as there are fears over whether a 72-hour ceasefire, which began late on Monday, will hold.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said it was “impossible for us to predict how long this opportunity will last”.
Around 1,400 military personnel are believed to be involved in the UK operation.
The first Hercules left Sudan this morning, according to a flight-tracking site, and landed at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus this afternoon.
It is understood to have been carrying an advance team, rather than people evacuated from Khartoum.
An RAF Hercules was tracked leaving Sudan and heading towards Cyprus. Pic: Flightradar24
Mr Mitchell said around 200 people were working in a crisis centre in the Foreign Office “day and night”, with a range of government departments “joined at the hip”.
The PM visited staff earlier to thank them for their work, telling them: “Keep at it… the next 24 hours are absolutely critical.
“We can make a big push as we’re already doing and you can help us get everyone who wants to come home, home.”
The government has faced criticism for evacuating diplomatic staff two days before a full evacuation of British nationals began.
But Mr Sunak said he had been chairing emergency meetings on the crisis everyday since Thursday – including one his minister revealed took place at 3.15am on Saturday morning – and he was “pleased that we were actually one of the first countries to safely evacuate our diplomats and their families”.
He added: “It was right that we prioritise them, because they were being specifically targeted.
“Now, the security situation on the ground in Sudan is complicated, it is volatile and we wanted to make sure we could put in place processes that are going to work for people, that are going to be safe and effective and we now have over 100 people on the ground in Sudan.
“The first flight has already left with British nationals, we’ll have more flights this evening, and we’ll have many more into tomorrow and that is down to the hard work of lots of people and we will keep at it.”
Speaking to the Foreign Affairs committee, Mr Mitchell was also questioned as to why other countries – namely France – had already carried out evacuations of their citizens and was asked if the country was doing a better job.
“No I don’t,” he said. “I think everyone is going about this in their own way [and] we have a much larger number of citizens to take out.”
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Sudan ‘fundamentally different’ to Afghanistan – Cleverly
About 4,000 UK passport holders are thought to be trapped in Sudan as rival military factions battle for control.
Hundreds of people have died since the fighting started on 15 April and the evacuation comes after days of pressure for a plan to get Britons out.
Food and fuel have soared in price, electricity and internet are cut off in much of the country and the clashes have left governments scrambling to get their citizens and diplomats out.
Mr Cleverly said contact had been made with leaders of the two factions “calling on them to allow British nationals, dual nationals and minors to be evacuated”.
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Briton escapes Sudan on French flight
Sky’s Alistair Bunkall – in Cyprus – saw the first flight take off from RAF Akrotiri and said many more are likely to follow considering the number of people who need evacuating.
It takes about three and a half hours to travel from the Mediterranean base to Sudan.
The Foreign Office said it is also looking at other potential “points of exit” – possibly by sea via Port Sudan, according to Bunkall.
Two ships, RFA Cardigan Bay and HMS Lancaster, are being lined up in case they are needed, said the Foreign Office.
The airborne evacuations carry obvious risks for the RAF, such as potential exposure to gunfire or even missiles, according to Sky’s defence editor Deborah Haynes.
Although they shouldn’t be targeted, she said there is “always the possibility of a mistake, a miscalculation or a deliberate attack given the chaos and unpredictably on the ground”.
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Streets of Khartoum devastated by fighting
Read more:
Which countries have evacuated their citizens from Sudan?
What’s happening in Sudan?
Some UK citizens have manged to escape on evacuation flights operated by other countries.
Germany, Italy, Spain and France are among those that have already rescued hundreds of people from dozens of countries on their own flights.
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An elderly woman could be seen being helped off the military plane.
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However, the Foreign Office said only British passport holders would be able to get a place on the UK planes.
Britain’s diplomats and their families were evacuated over the weekend in a precarious mission by elite troops that took place under the cover of darkness.
Some senior Foreign Office officials will be at the airstrip to coordinate the evacuations.
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Ben Wallace has told MPs that 120 British forces had arrived at an airfield in Sudan to help with the evacuation of British nationals, but warned the situation continued to remain ‘volatile’.
The violence in Sudan comes after rival generals fell out over a deal to incorporate the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group into the military.
The army and RSF mounted a coup together in 2021 after long-time ruler Omar al Bashir was overthrown in a popular uprising two years earlier.
However, their relationship broke down during negotiations to integrate and form a civilian government.
World
South Korean authorities attempt to arrest President Yoon for second time – standoff with security service under way
A new attempt to arrest South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is under way, six weeks after his short-lived attempt to impose martial law.
A standoff is in place outside Mr Yoon’s official residence between authorities and the president’s security service.
A previous attempt by law enforcement to arrest the impeached president failed earlier this month.
Mr Yoon’s presidential security service prevented dozens of investigators from arresting him after a standoff which lasted nearly six hours on 3 January.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials and police responded by pledging more forceful measures to detain Mr Yoon while they jointly investigate whether his martial law declaration on 3 December amounted to an attempted rebellion.
The National Police Agency convened multiple meetings of field commanders in Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi province in recent days to plan their detainment efforts, and the size of those forces fuelled speculation that more than 1,000 officers could be deployed in a possible multi-day operation.
Police officers stand in front of the gate of the presidential residence in the early hours of Wednesday 15 January local time. Pic: AP
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From 3 January: South Korea protesters clash with police
Anti-corruption agency and police officials met representatives of the presidential security service on Tuesday morning for unspecified discussions regarding efforts to execute the detention warrant for Mr Yoon.
It was not immediately clear at the time if any kind of compromise was reached.
What happened on 3 December?
Mr Yoon declared martial law and deployed troops around the National Assembly at the beginning of last month.
It lasted only hours before politicians managed to get through the blockade and voted to lift the measure.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
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How six hours of martial law unfolded in South Korea
Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at the presidential residence in Seoul on the day he was impeached. Pic: AP
Mr Yoon has argued his declaration of martial law was a legitimate act of governance, calling it a warning to the main liberal opposition Democratic Party which he has described as “despicable pro-North Korean anti-state forces”.
He claimed the party used its legislative majority to impeach top officials and undermine the government’s budget.
Over the past two weeks, thousands of anti-Yoon and pro-Yoon protesters have gathered daily in competing rallies near his office in Seoul, in anticipation of the second detention attempt.
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A Gaza deal is “on the brink”, President Joe Biden has said in his final foreign policy address.
The outgoing US leader said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians.
“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve
peace,” he said.
“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”
Pic: Reuters
The US president also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.
“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” he said.
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Mr Biden was delivering his final foreign policy address before he leaves office next week.
Monday’s address will be the penultimate time he speaks to the country before the end of his presidency. He is due to give a farewell address on Wednesday.
US and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip – but a deal has not been reached yet, officials said.
A round of ceasefire talks will be held in Doha on Tuesday to finalise remaining details related to a ceasefire deal in Gaza – including over the release of up to 33 hostages – officials added.
Mr Biden went on to claim America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.
“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.
“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”
World
IDF admits ‘serious offence’ after using vehicle marked ambulance in raid in which a grandmother was killed
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has admitted to a “serious offence” after a Sky News investigation analysed CCTV footage showing the moment an 80-year-old Palestinian grandmother was shot in the West Bank.
Halima Abu Leil was shot during a raid in Nablus. The grandmother died soon after.
During the course of the investigation, we noted that a blue vehicle marked as an ambulance and with a red light on its roof was used by IDF troops to enter the West Bank.
Our investigation stated: “Figures who appear to be Israeli military forces exit the ambulance in the foreground. They are equipped with helmets, backpacks, rifles, and other gear.”
The use of a marked medical vehicle for a security operation could be a contravention of the Geneva Convention and a war crime – as well as Halima’s killing.
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CCTV shows Palestinian grandmother shot in IDF raid
The IDF has subsequently told Sky News: “On December 19, 2024, soldiers from the ‘Duvdevan’ unit took part in an operational mission to detain terrorists in Nablus.
“During the operation, an ambulance-like vehicle was used for operational purposes, without authorisation and without the relevant commanders’ approval.”
It added: “The use of the ambulance-like vehicle during the operation was a serious offence, exceeding authority, and a violation of existing orders and procedures.”
It also said the commander of the ‘Duvdevan’ unit was “reprimanded”.
However, it gave no update into the death of Halima, saying “the circumstances of the incident are being examined”.
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The United Nations Special Rapporteur on occupied Palestinian territory Francesca Albanese watched the CCTV video and told Sky News her death could be a “war crime”.
She said: “When I look at the footage, what emerges prima facie is that there were no precautions taken – within these operations whose legality is debatable – to avoid or spare civilian life.
“No principle of proportionality because there was wildfire directed at the identified target and ultimately no respect for the principle of distinction.
“So this was a murder in cold blood and could be a war crime as an extrajudicial killing.”
According to the United Nations Office Of Human Rights in occupied Palestinian territory, Israeli security forces and settlers have killed at least 813 mostly unarmed Palestinians, including 15 women and 177 children, since 7 October 2023.
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