Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 26) — More than 300 more Filipinos in violence-stricken Sudan are being evacuated amid the ongoing ceasefire, an official of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Wednesday.
Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega reported that at least seven more buses carrying the repatriates “are leaving for Egypt” as of Wednesday morning in Sudan time, which is six hours behind Philippine time.
The latest number is in addition to the 50 Filipinos who have already been evacuated as of Tuesday.
According to the DFA, securing buses to transport people out of Khartoum – the capital of the North African country – has been difficult due to the scarcity of bus providers, which have also been raising rent.
Another challenge is the long processing at the Egyptian border which is taking over a day, De Vega explained.
He said the Philippine embassy has sent teams to address this.
The official also reported that while “in their rush to get to border by car to help incoming Filipinos cross through,” Philippine Ambassador to Egypt Ezzedin Tago and Vice Consul Bojer Capati got into a car accident.
De Vega said the vehicle carrying the two diplomats rolled over two times, but he added that they survived and are still proceeding to the border.
“This is the DFA’s commitment to our overseas Filipinos and we hope the public can be advised and reassured that we are doing what we can,” he wrote in a message sent to reporters.
Based on the Philippine government’s latest count, there were at least 740 Filipinos residing in Sudan when the conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces broke out nearly two weeks ago.
The DFA noted that the majority of this number are professionals, while there are also students and household service workers.
It said 350 Filipinos have so far requested repatriation, 80 of whom have already left Sudan, including the first batch of 50 evacuees.
Meanwhile, the death toll in the war-torn country has climbed to at least 459, according to the World Health Organization. Over 4,000 others have been injured.
There are no reported deaths yet among Filipinos, but the DFA earlier said one was wounded.
On Tuesday, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the warring factions agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire, although the two sides have accused each other of violating the agreement since then.
