Ammon News - The US said on Sunday it had evacuated members of its embassy in Sudan and their dependents, and declared the nation's diplomatic mission in Khartoum temporarily closed.

The evacuation was announced by President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

“This tragic violence in Sudan has already cost the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians,” Biden said. “It's unconscionable and it must stop.”

Blinken said “all US personnel and their dependents” had been safely evacuated. The US would “continue to assist Americans in Sudan in planning for their own safety”, he added.

All US government personnel and a small number of diplomatic personnel from other countries were evacuated in the operation, which removed fewer than 100 people, according to US officials.

A little more than 100 US special forces members were involved in the evacuation, entering and leaving Sudan without being fired upon by the warring factions, US military officials said.

Sunday's US announcement followed a statement by the RSF saying it co-ordinated at dawn with a US military mission that arrived in Sudan on board six aircraft. The RSF supervised the preparations that preceded the evacuation and provided protection, it added.

A video clip that surfaced early on Sunday morning purported to show Gen Dagalo for the first time since the fighting began, riding in the passenger seat of one of the British-made, all-terrain vehicles the RSF are known to use.

In desert camouflage fatigues and with a matching scarf on his head and neck, he waved in acknowledgement of cheering fighters.

The location appeared to be the Nile-side Republican Palace, Sudan's traditional seat of power in central Khartoum. The authenticity of the video could not be immediately established.

The National News