Second C-27 aircraft picks up Greeks evacuated from Sudan at Djibouti

A second Hellenic Air Force C-27 cargo plane flew from Aswan, Egypt, to Djibouti on Tuesday to collect Greeks to be evacuated from Sudan, where an internal conflict had been raging for a second week. A ceasefire enabled the evacuation.

Earlier on Tuesday, a second C-27 transported 17 people to Greece, as Greek evacuation attempts continue under the guidance of the Greek Foreign Ministry. The number of Greeks who have been safely evacuated from war-torn Sudan came to 43 on Tuesday afternoon and was expected to continue rising, as at least 80 individuals who are Greek or related to one are still in Khartoum waiting to be taken out.

The operation to evacuate foreign nationals trapped by the outbreak of fighting between rival military factions in the northeast African country 10 days ago has been accelerated by a 72-hour ceasefire negotiated by the United States. Greek diplomats have been put on standby in Aqaba in Jordan, in Djibouti, and in Aswan and Cairo in Egypt to assist nationals fleeing the fighting.

Assistance from France, the Netherlands and Italy has been instrumental in getting the Greeks out of Sudan, diplomats in Athens noted, adding that the United Arab Emirates and Egypt also helped stop attacks on locations where Greeks were known to be trapped, including in the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral.