Egyptian embassy staff member shot in Sudan, foreign ministry spokesperson says

An Egyptian embassy staff member in Sudan has been shot, the Official Spokesperson for the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Abu Zeid said on Sunday, underscoring the need for a safe evacuation plan from the conflict-hit country.

Abu Zeid did not specify when the incident took place or who is suspected of being behind it but said that the event “stresses once again the need to exercise the utmost caution in order to preserve the safety of our citizens and members of our missions in Sudan.”

Abu Zeid also said that countries like Egypt that have many citizens in Sudan need a safe and an organized plan to ensure that the evacuation is being done safely.

Egyptian diplomats’ ethics “[require] them to be the last to leave the arena after ensuring that the evacuation operation for those wishing to leave [Sudan] is completed,” he said.

Sudan has entered its second week of conflict between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s forces and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) over a dispute on the planned integration of the RSF into the army.

Egypt, which has more than 10,000 citizens in Sudan, on Sunday also urged its nationals outside Khartoum to head to its consulate in Port Sudan, and to a consular office in Wadi Halfa on the border with Egypt, in preparation for their evacuation. It encouraged those in Khartoum to shelter in place and wait for the situation to improve.