Kenya has evacuated 29 Kenyan students who were stranded in Sudan due to fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Alfred Mutua, Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, said in a statement on Monday that the students had crossed into Ethiopia, from where they would fly to Addis Ababa and then to Nairobi.
“I wish to thank South Sudan, Ethiopia, Egypt and Saudi Arabia for granting permission for Kenyan planes meant to evacuate stranded Kenyans in Sudan, to overfly their airspaces,” Cs Mutua said.
” I also, in particular, thank the Governments of South Sudan and Ethiopia for heeding to our request and allowing Kenyans to cross their borders and make it to safety.”
CS Mutua stated in the same statement that a Kenya Airforce plane was on standby to evacuate a group of 18 students travelling by road to the South Sudan border.
According to CS Mutua, another larger group of Kenyans on a well-planned itinerary will be transported by two aircraft from Port Sudan to Jeddah, and then by Kenya Airways (KQ) to Nairobi.
“We estimate to ferry 300-400 Kenyans this way, if not more,” Mutua added.
“I wish to thank and encourage the Kenya Foreign and Diaspora staff in our missions in the various nations plus the multi-agency teams in Nairobi for the seamless co-ordination.”
