India’s Operation Kaveri to rescue its citizens from conflict-ridden Sudan continues to be the highlight of New Delhi’s effective cross-country evacuation flair. The Indian Air Force on Monday said that it has evacuated almost 1,400 Indians over the past few days.
The Indian Air Force wrote in a tweet, “With almost 1400 Indians evacuated in IAF aircraft over the past few days, two C-130 J aircraft have evacuated 260 personnel including elders who were above 90 years of age & one above 102 years of age.”
On Monday, a total of 186 Indians from Sudan arrived in southern India’s Kochi city in Kerala state.
“OperationKaveri continues to bring Indians back home. Flight carrying 186 passengers touches down in Kochi,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Official Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted on Monday.
Earlier on Sunday, India’s foreign minister Dr S. Jaishankar said that nearly 2300 evacuee Indians have reached India.
“A C-130 Indian Air Force flight has landed in New Delhi with 40 passengers. With this flight, around 2,300 people have reached India,” India’s foreign minister Jaishankar tweeted.
The Indian government is working to evacuate nearly 3,000 Indians from conflict-ridden Sudan, of which so far, more than 2,500 have been successfully evacuated.
On Monday, three more flights carried 229, 288 and 135 Indian citizens from Sudan.
Sudan conflict: What is happening?
Sudan’s army and its paramilitary Rapid Support Force (RSF) are battling out intense armed combat across the Sub-Saharan nation.
The two sides were jointly running the country since October 2021 after deposing President Omar al-Bashir. The two banded together a Sovereign Council, led by Army Chief General Abdel al-Burgan and co-led by the RSF Chief General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.
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The RSF led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), and army soldiers loyal to General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan engaged in combat for the first time on April 15, 2023. The conflict between the two sides continues to rage ever since with both sides accusing each other of not honouring the ceasefire they agreed upon three times since April 15.
On Monday, the people of Sudan braced for more bloodshed after rival military forces accused each other of fresh violations of a ceasefire on Sunday.
Both sides said a formal ceasefire agreement which was due to expire at midnight would be extended for a further 72 hours, in a move the RSF said was “in response to international, regional and local calls”.
Reports of prison breaks amid the conflict have gripped the country, stoking speculations related to the revival of Sudan’s political Islamic movement.
So far, neither side has gained control of the capital Khartoum.
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