Opposition urges gov't to evacuate Ugandans caught up in Sudan war
The Opposition in Parliament has challenged the government to initiate the process of evacuating all Ugandans caught up in the Sudan war before the situation gets worse.
It also asked the government to urgently verify the actual number of Ugandan nationals currently trapped in war-torn country.
The Shadow Minister in charge of Foreign Affairs, Muwadda Nkunyingi blamed the government for failing to issue a timely travel advisory to Ugandans who are now trapped at the airport in Khartoum amidst intense fighting.
"We are concerned by media scenes on the ongoing Sudan armed conflict and intense fighting.As a result we have received distress calls from several Uganda nationals stranded in Sudan. Several narrate that they are trapped in areas of intense fighting including Uganda transit travellers at Sudan Airport,"said Nkunyingi during a news briefing.
Several Uganda citizens estimated in thousands live, work or regularly exit Sudan.
The legislator urged the government through the Foreign Affairs Ministry and the country's mission in Khartoum to immediately initiate diplomatic measures of rescuing the thousands of Ugandans caught up by the Sudan armed Conflict.
"We condemn the Uganda regime and Foreign Ministry for failure to issue timely travel advice for Ugandan nationals exiting for or through Sudan. We accordingly advise Uganda travellers to avoid travel to or through Sudan for now until the situation normalises. We encourage passengers to use alternative transit routes instead of Sudan airports or the border,"he said.
He urged the conflicting sides in Sudan to avoid any form of human rights violation and ensure protection of lives of innocent people.
The Ugandan ambassador to Sudan Rashid Yahya Ssemuddu has, however, assured the country that Ugandan nationals caught up in the war in Sudan are safe.
He said the embassy is in contact with Ugandan students and workers in Sudan as authorities monitor the situation.
Explosions rocked the Sudanese capital Khartoum as fighting between the army and para- military forces led by rival generals raged for a third day with the death toll surpassing 100.
The violence erupted Saturday after weeks of power struggles between the two generals who seized power in a 2021 coup, Sudan's army chief Abdel Fat- tah al-Burhan and his deputy, Moham ed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The intense conflict, which has seen air strikes, tanks on the streets, artillery fire and heavy gunfire in crowded neighbourhoods both in Khartoum and other cities across Sudan, has triggered international demands for an immediate ceasefire.
