U.S. special forces in Sudan stage helicopter rescue of staffed embassy staff

U.S. special operations forces hastily rescued American embassy staff from Sudan Sunday, airlifting employees in helicopters to safety from intense fighting in the east African country.

In a carefully calculated mission, the U.S. helicopters landed at the embassy in Khartoum, picked up about 70 American workers and took off within an hour for an undisclosed location in Ethiopia.

Thousands of private U.S. citizens remain in Sudan, however, after U.S officials said a broader evacuation mission would be too dangerous.

Other governments also were evacuating diplomats, staff and others trapped in the chaos and bloody power struggle between the Sudanese military led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Security Forces (RSF) led by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo.

The two generals rose to power in a 2021 coup but now are fighting over an internationally brokered deal that was intended to incorporate the RSF into the military and lead to civilian rule.

Violence in Khartoum erupted on April 15, and repeated ceasefire attempts have failed. More than 420 people, many of them civilians, have been killed.

President Biden said in a statement that he was getting regular reports on efforts to assist the remaining Americans in Sudan “to the extent possible.”

Thanking the embassy staff for showing courage and professionalism, Biden said: “I am grateful for the unmatched skill of our service members who successfully brought them to safety.”

About 100 U.S. troops used three MH-47 helicopters to carry out the mission, and the nations of Djibouti, Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia assisted, Biden said.

The skies were thick with black smoke over Khartoum’s crippled international airport, where civilian aircraft and runways have been heavily damaged. Residents reported overland travel to bordering countries has grown increasingly dangerous.

Khartoum looked like a ghost city, one observer said, as millions of people were trapped in their homes amid the explosions, gunfire and looting without enough power, food or water.

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The country has experienced a “near-total collapse” of internet connection and phone lines nationwide, according to NetBlocks, an internet monitoring service.

Britain said its armed forces evacuated diplomatic staff and their families, while France, Greece and other European nations were organizing rescue efforts. The Netherlands sent aircraft to rescue more than 150 Dutch citizens, and Italy sent military jets to the aid of 140 Italian nationals, many of whom had taken refuge in its embassy.

The rival generals accused each other of obstructing the evacuations.

John Bass, a U.S. undersecretary of state, denied claims by the RSF that it had assisted in the U.S. operation.

“They cooperated to the extent that they did not fire on our service members in the course of the operation,” Bass said.

An estimated 16,000 private U.S. citizens were registered with the embassy as being in Sudan, although the figure is uncertain because not everyone registers nor gives notice when they leave the country.

With News Wire Services