Sweden will send armed forces to Sudan

Sweden’s government has urgently called the Riksdag to a meeting on Sunday. They want to send an armed force to Khartoum to evacuate Swedish citizens, and will assist other countries.

At short notice, the Swedish government has called a press conference to tell about the evacuation of citizens and diplomats from Sudan.

Around 100 Swedish citizens will be in Sudan and the capital Khartoum. The Swedish government wants to send an armed force to the capital, to get them out.

– The force must be able to carry out a rescue and liberation effort on its own and together with other countries, if the need arises, says Defense Minister Pål Jonson.

– The situation on the ground and future developments contain many uncertainties. Sweden simply needs to be prepared to be able to react, says Jonson.

The Riksdag has now been called to an emergency meeting on Sunday at 10 a.m. to approve the government’s plans. It is still unclear when the Swedish citizens can be evacuated.

– We depend on the Riksdag’s support to be able to send an armed force to another country, says Foreign Minister Tobias Billström.

Since Saturday 15 April, fighting has been going on in the capital, Khartoum, between the top general in the army and the leader of the paramilitary group.

The civilian population is caught in the crossfire and has gone into hiding in their homes while the fighting continues. Several say that they will soon run out of water and food, but they do not dare to go out into the streets.

Norway’s embassy residence in Sudan was hit by a shell. The employees have taken cover.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has set up a crisis team in the last week to work around the clock with the security of Norwegian Foreign Ministry employees. They want to extract three embassy employees caught in the crossfire.

– This is one of the most serious situations Norwegian diplomats have been in. The area where our people are located is characterized by ongoing, fierce fighting. And it is now the sixth day, Siv Kaspersen, operational crisis manager at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told VG on Thursday.

On Saturday, the United States, Great Britain, China and France began the evacuation of citizens and diplomats in the city. They are helped by the help of the army in Sudan and evacuate with the help of military aircraft.