All citizens evacuated from Sudan return to Georgia

Thirty-three employees of two Georgian-based airlines, evacuated from Sudan earlier this week amid severe clashes between the country’s regular army and a powerful paramilitary group, have been returned to Georgia, the Foreign Ministry said. 

Twenty employees of Geosky airlines were transported back to the country on Thursday, while 13 employees of Myway airlines arrived early on Friday before thanking the foreign office for its “active engagement” in their safe evacuation. 

The body on Monday announced evacuations of the country’s nationals from the Sudanese capital Khartoum - where they had been trapped since April 15 - and confirmed their transportation to a “safe location” at the Sudan-Egypt border on Tuesday. 

They told the press they were then transported to the Egyptian city of Aswan by bus and met with a Ministry representative before arriving in Cairo, taking a flight to Turkey and finally arriving in Tbilisi from the neighbouring state. 

The situation in Sudan was really unbearable with shooting and shelling every morning, every hour probably. We had to go through a very complicated and tense period. I want to express my gratitude to the Foreign Ministry, our company leadership, and everyone involved in our safe evacuations. We have been in constant communication with them”, a Geosky pilot told the media on Thursday. 

The power struggle in Sudan pits General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the commander of the country’s armed forces, against General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the leader of the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group. The former allies jointly organised a military coup in October 2021. 

The ongoing hostilities have left more than 400 killed and thousands injured since April 15.