Evacuation of Pinoys in Sudan begins

MANILA, Philippines — The evacuation of Filipinos in war-hit Sudan may start in 24 hours as widespread fighting continues, a Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official said yesterday.

Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Eduardo Jose de Vega said Filipinos would be evacuated in batches and travel by land to Egypt or by water through the Port of Sudan.

“The government will start in 24 hours. We already have batches who can board evacuation buses going to Egypt,” De Vega said in Filipino and English at a public briefing.

The evacuees will be brought to Aswan City, then travel to Cairo, Egypt’s capital, from the airport in Aswan.

De Vega said 156 Filipinos, who are not undocumented, are ready to be repatriated.

“Our embassy said over 500 have already messaged. Out of the 500 plus, 156 are ready and at any moment, will return home,” he added.

The three Filipinos in Sudan who were evacuated to Jeddah last Saturday are three female airline workers, according to De Vega.

They and other employees of the airline were taken by the Saudi government to the Port of Sudan. They were fetched by the military vessel from Saudi Arabia, which took them to Jeddah, he added.

The three Filipinos were met by officials of the Philippine consulate general in Jeddah.

The Philippine embassy in Egypt and the Philippine consulate in Khartoum were finalizing arrangements for the departure of Filipino nationals from Sudan.

The embassy said all airports in Sudan remain closed and there is still no option for air evacuation at this time.

Clashes, gunshots and bombings continue in various areas of Khartoum and other places in the country.

Filipinos were advised to remain in their homes and away from windows and rooftops.

“We kindly ask you to remain in your homes, and away from windows and rooftops. Stay at the lower levels of your shelter,” the embassy said in its advisory.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry announced that Filipinos were among the first evacuees from war-hit Sudan who arrived in Jeddah on Saturday.

In a statement, the foreign ministry said over 150 people, including foreign diplomats and officials, were rescued from Sudan and brought to Jeddah in the first evacuation of civilians since fighting began.

The widespread fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has caused significant numbers of civilian deaths and injuries and damage to essential infrastructure.

Shelters

Meanwhile, the Philippine government is setting up temporary shelters to save Filipinos from any worry while being evacuated and repatriated from Sudan.

Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Susan Ople also reported that her agency is sending two teams to ensure the safe evacuation of Filipinos from Sudan.

“We will set up temporary shelters, as recommended by the (Philippine) embassy. They need not worry about not having clothes for changing and not having money,” Ople said mostly in Filipino in a radio interview.