28 Korean nationals return to Korea from Sudan

A KC-330 military tanker transport aircraft that took off from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia arrived at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi at around 3:57 p.m., carrying 28 Korean evacuees from Sudan.

Two Korean nationals who wished to stay in Jeddah changed their minds at the last minute and boarded the aircraft headed to Korea, the presidential office said. Of the 29 Korean residents in Sudan, one ethnic Korean with Sudanese citizenship wished to stay in the country, according to a Foreign Ministry official.

The evacuation mission took days to carry out due to the threat of clashes on the ground, but succeeded thanks to help from Korea’s allies, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to the presidential office, the 28 Korean evacuees departed from Khartoum, the capital of Sudan where fierce fighting has been ongoing, after gathering at the Korean Embassy on Sunday. Intense battles broke out near or at Khartoum International Airport, about 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles) away from the Korean embassy.

Gathering people at the embassy was the direst moment during the evacuation, an official at the Foreign Ministry said, as even standing near a window or walking on the road was dangerous.

The evacuees then moved to Port Sudan by bus, about 850 kilometers away from Sudan’s capital, amending their initial plan to head to Djibouti. Korea deployed a C-130J Super Hercules military transport aircraft, putting it on standby at a U.S. military base in Djibouti. Some 50 military personnel, including security and medical staff, were dispatched as well.

The aircraft then flew from Djibouti to Port Sudan to pick up the evacuees and carry them to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Port Sudan is about 300 kilometers closer to the capital of Sudan than Djibouti.

“We drove about 1,174 kilometers, trusting the information shared by the UAE,” a high-ranking official from the presidential office told the JoongAng Ilbo, noting that the bus took a circuitous route for safety reasons.

According to the presidential office official, the evacuation process was extremely chaotic as decisions had to be made based on various unconfirmed sources of information.

“The UAE had very strong sources of information,” the official said, adding that the country reached out to Korea first.

“They were connected with the Sudanese military and the rival Rapid Support Force (RSF).”

Some Japanese nationals also accompanied the Korean nationals evacuating the country.

“We received great help from our allies, including the United States, the UAE and Saudi Arabia,” Deputy National Security Adviser Lim Jong-deuk said in a press briefing.

An official from the Foreign Ministry also stressed that the Korean government has been in close contact and sharing information with other major countries such as France since the clash broke out in Sudan.

To ensure the Korean nationals were evacuated safely, President Yoon Suk Yeol presided over a satellite-linked video meeting about the evacuation mission on Air Force One as he headed to Washington on Monday.

“Yoon was briefed about the situation in real time and instructed the deployment of military planes and security agents from the early stage of the mission,” Kim Eun-hye, senior presidential secretary for press affairs, told the reporters in Washington on Monday.

President Yoon also ordered the deployment of the Cheonghae naval unit from the port of Salalah in Oman to the waters off Sudan on Friday in case of emergency.

A KC-330 military tanker transport aircraft arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Monday morning to carry the evacuees back to Korea. The aircraft is capable of carrying 300 people and 47 tons of cargo. It had been previously used in “Operation Miracle,” when Korea evacuated 391 Afghans from Kabul in August 2021.

The Korean nationals who arrived in Korea on Tuesday afternoon will be supported with some accommodation and transportation, according to a Foreign Ministry official. Related ministries, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare, will also offer necessary support such as counseling and treatment.

Clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the rival RSF, led by rival generals, broke out across Sudan on April 15 after the RSF launched a surprise attack on multiple Sudanese army bases.

The two factions have agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire starting at midnight Monday local time.

According to the United Nations, at least 420 have been killed and 3,700 injured in the bloodshed.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO, HYUN IL-HOON [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]