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British nationals in Sudan have been warned the UK “cannot guarantee” how many more evacuation flights will leave Khartoum after the 72-hour ceasefire expires.

So far, 536 British nationals have been airlifted to safety on six flights, according to the Foreign Office.

The US-Saudi mediated ceasefire between Sudan’s two warring factions is due to expire at midnight local time, amid fears that the bloody clashes which have killed hundreds of people will continue.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said the UK “cannot guarantee” how many further flights will depart after the deadline is reached.

He urged UK nationals who want to leave Sudan to make their way to the Wadi Saeedna air strip near the capital “as soon as possible”.

At least 459 people have died according to the World Health Organisation, and thousands of others injured since the power struggle between Sudan’s army and paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out into fighting almost two weeks ago.

More than 2,000 British nationals in Sudan have registered with the Foreign Office under evacuation plans, but thousands more could be in the war-torn country.

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Sudan: Relief and joy to be back

Only British passport holders and immediate family members with existing UK entry clearance are being told they are eligible for evacuation.

They have been told to make their own way to the airfield near the capital to be evacuated to Cyprus before being flown on to London.

The home secretary ruled out introducing a safe and legal route for asylum seekers in Sudan to seek refuge in the UK on Wednesday.

Asked whether the UK was going to “start looking at safe routes for refugees from Sudan”, Suella Braverman said “we have no plans to do that” adding that the government’s focus “first and foremost” is to “support British nationals and their dependents”.

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How can British nationals get to the RAF base?
Traumatised Sudan evacuees describe ‘horrendous’ scenes

But some have criticised the government for being too slow in its “large-scale” evacuation, which started on Tuesday, with other countries like Germany, completing its evacuations on Tuesday night. UK diplomats and their families were evacuated from Sudan on Saturday.

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‘No plans for safe routes for refugees’

Africa minister Andrew Mitchell said the evacuation mission was “going very smoothly” at the air strip but warned we are “in the hands of the ceasefire”.

He told Sky News “we are doing everything we can” to prolong the truce adding that “if the combatants don’t lay down their arms and return to barracks” there will be a “humanitarian catastrophe” in Sudan.

On Wednesday evening, the chief of Sudan’s army said it had “initially accepted” a plan to extend the ceasefire by another 72 hours.

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‘Situation in Sudan is dire’

An army statement indicated General Abdel Fattah al Burhan was open to sending an envoy to the capital of South Sudan, Juba, for talks.

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development, an eight-country trade bloc, proposed the truce deal, which includes both the army and the RSF sending representatives to the city discuss the details of a longer ceasefire.

There was no immediate comment from the RSF on the initiative, which, if accepted by both sides, would mark a major breakthrough after days of talks.

The fighting has pushed the population to near breaking point, with food growing more difficult to obtain, electricity cut off across much of the capital and other cities and many hospitals shut down.

Multiple aid agencies have had to suspend operations and the UN refugee agency said it was gearing up for potentially tens of thousands of people fleeing into neighbouring countries.

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs – in worst day for indexes since COVID

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs - in worst day for indexes since COVID

Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.

While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.

As it happened: Worst week’s trading in five years

All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.

The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.

Read more: What’s a bear market?

Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.

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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.

The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.

And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.

Pic: Reuters
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US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters

Trump holds trade deal talks – reports

It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indian and Israeli representatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.

The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.

Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.

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Do Trump’s tariffs add up?

Read more:
Markets gave Trump a clear no-confidence vote
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow

China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.

Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.

Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.

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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump

He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’

“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they’re also battling with another problem

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they're also battling with another problem

Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.

The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.

The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.

Tariffs latest: FTSE 100 suffers biggest daily drop since COVID

Financial investors had been gradually re-calibrating their expectations of Donald Trump over the past few months.

Hopes that his actions may not match his rhetoric were dashed on Wednesday as he imposed sweeping tariffs on the US’ trading partners, ratcheting up protectionism to a level not seen in more than a century.

Markets were always going to respond to that but they are also battling with another problem: the lack of certainty when it comes to Trump.

More on Donald Trump

He is a capricious figure and we can only guess his next move. Will he row back? How far is he willing to negotiate and offer concessions?

Read more:
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow
Trade war sparks ‘$2.2trn’ global market sell-off

These are massive unknowns, which are piled on to uncertainty about how countries will respond.

China has already retaliated and Europe has indicated it will go further.

That will compound the problems for the global economy and undoubtedly send shivers through the markets.

Much is yet to be determined, but if there’s one thing markets hate, it’s uncertainty.

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

South Korea’s constitutional court has confirmed the dismissal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached in December after declaring martial law.

His decision to send troops onto the streets led to the country’s worst political crisis in decades.

The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.

The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.

Demonstrators who stayed overnight near the constitutional court wait for the start of a rally calling for the president to step down. Pic: AP
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Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP

Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.

The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.

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Highs and lows of Five-Year Keir
MP tells Sky News she was targeted online by Tate brothers

More on South Korea

The Constitutional Court is under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement of the impeachment trial. Pic: AP
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The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP

After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.

He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.

His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.

The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.

South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.

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