US to send additional troops to Djibouti in case of eventual evacuation in Sudan, as heavy gunfire breaks out

Washington: According to a US official, as new heavy gunfire broke out on Thursday, the US is ready to send a sizable number of extra troops to its base in Djibouti in case an ultimate evacuation from Sudan occurs.

The official declined to go into further detail while speaking on the condition of anonymity.

Last weekend saw the start of a violent power struggle between forces led by two formerly associated members of Sudan’s ruling council that have so far claimed more than 330 lives and plunged the country into what the UN has dubbed a humanitarian crisis.

“We are deploying additional capabilities nearby in the region for contingency purposes related to securing and potentially facilitating the departure of US Embassy personnel from Sudan if circumstances require it,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

White House spokesperson John Kirby said President Joe Biden ordered the pre-positioning of military forces to be ready, adding that Biden was closely following developments.

Kirby added that there are no indications Americans are being targeted, but that it was a dangerous situation.

The best thing that can happen is for the two sides to lay down arms, abide by the ceasefire and let humanitarian aid get to the people in Khartoum, Kirby said.

The State Department previously told US citizens in Sudan to remain sheltered in place indoors.

A State Department spokesperson said Washington does not provide numbers of US citizens living in or travelling to a particular country and for security reasons declined to say how many embassy staff are in Sudan.

The fiercest battles between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been around Khartoum, one of Africa’s largest urban areas, and in Darfur, still scarred by a brutal conflict that ended three years ago.

Sudan’s military ruler, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, heads a ruling council installed after the 2021 military coup and the 2019 ouster of veteran autocrat Omar al-Bashir. Paramilitary leader General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti, who analysts say may command more than 100,000 fighters, was his deputy on the council.

The latest violence was triggered by disagreement over an internationally backed plan to form a new civilian government. Both sides accuse the other of thwarting the transition.

A group of four countries known as the Quad – the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia – have pushed international efforts to find a political solution in Sudan, along with the United Nations, the African Union and African trade bloc IGAD.

Sudan has been a focus of US diplomatic efforts in Africa as Washington works to counter Russian influence in the country and the wider region. Russia is investing in gold mining in Sudan and has been trying to finalize an agreement to establish a naval base on Sudan’s Red Sea coast.

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