SEAL Team 6, Army special forces rescue US diplomats in Sudan; aid workers urged to 'shelter in place': Updates

Details emerged Sunday from the dramatic evacuation of U.S. diplomats from the Sudanese capital of Khartoum while aid workers and other Americans remained imperiled amid the raging warfare pitting rival generals.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner said most of the thousands of Americans remaining in Sudan are aid workers or Sudanese Americans. He said they need to "shelter in place" while the U.S. works with international partners to arrange a “safe way to get them out," likely via a land corridor. The violence has paralyzed Sudan's airports, destroying civilian planes and damaging runways.

Warner, speaking Sunday on ABC's "This Week," commended the U.S. military and intelligence community for the evacuation of scores of diplomatic personnel and their families. The effort was completed late Saturday.

"That was a dangerous mission to take them out by helicopter," Warner said.

Developments:

►European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said Sunday he spoke to leaders of both sides in the conflict, urging an immediate ceasefire, protection of civilians, and guaranteed safe evacuation of EU citizens.

►Pope Francis on Sunday urged the faithful to pray for "our Sudanese brothers and sisters." The pope appealed for an immediate end to violence “and a return to the path of dialogue.”

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

SEAL Team 6, Army special forces aided clandestine evacuation

U.S. officials have released few details on the evacuation. Elements of SEAL Team 6 – which rose to fame for killing Osama Bin Laden 12 years ago – and the Army’s 3rd Special Forces Group took part in the evacuation, a security official told The Washington Post.

The Americans were airlifted out on three MH-47 Chinook helicopters that flew first from Djibouti and then refueled in Ethiopia, according to a senior Pentagon official who briefed reporters Saturday night.

CBS News National Security Correspondent David Martin says the aircraft "went in at night, low-level. ... They were on the ground for a little more than half an hour. No shots were fired."

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin thanked authorities in Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia, saying they were "critical to the success of this operation."

Secretary Blinken says US had no choice but to flee Sudan Embassy

Suspending operations at the U.S. Embassy in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum was a difficult decision, but the safety of U.S. diplomats must come first, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement late Saturday.

Blinken said all U.S. personnel and their dependents had been evacuated from Khartoum because of the increasingly violent conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. The widespread fighting has caused civilian deaths and injuries and damage to essential infrastructure while posing "an unacceptable risk" to our embassy personnel, he said.

"We remind both belligerents of their obligations under international humanitarian law, including obligations related to the protection of civilians," Blinken said. "The United States, in partnership with the region and international community, will continue to press efforts to bring an end to this fighting and a return to the process of transition to civilian government."

Britain, France, Greece, Italy evacuate staff

Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tweeted that the U.K. armed forces evacuated British diplomatic staff and their families “amid a significant escalation in violence and threats to embassy staff.” Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said more than 1,200 military personnel were involved.

France, Greece, and other European nations also rushed people out. The Netherlands sent two Hercules C-130 planes and an Airbus A330 to Jordan to rescue 152 Dutch citizens who made their way from Sudan to an undisclosed evacuation point, but “not without risks,” said Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren.

Italy sent military jets to Djibouti in the Gulf of Aden to extract 140 Italian nationals from Sudan, many of whom took refuge in the embassy, said Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.

How we got here: The fight for control of Sudan

The power struggle between the Sudanese military, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the RSF, led by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, comes amid hopes for a democratic transition.

The rival generals came to power after a pro-democracy uprising led to the ouster of the former strongman and longtime ruler, Omar al-Bashir. In 2021, they joined forces to seize power in a coup. The current violence came after Burhan and Dagalo fell out over a recent internationally brokered deal with democracy activists that was meant to eventually lead to civilian rule.

Fighting has killed more than 400 people since erupting April 15, according to the World Health Organization, The violence has included an unprovoked attack on an American diplomatic convoy and numerous incidents in which foreign diplomats and aid workers were killed, injured or assaulted.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sudan war updates: US aid workers shelter in place, await rescue