Sudanese continue to flee the country as fighting enters its fifth week

As fighting in Sudan entered a fifth week, air strikes pummelled Khartoum Saturday, even as representatives of the country’s warring factions continued meeting in Saudi Arabia for talks to prevent a “humanitarian catastrophe”.

Meanwhile, Sudanese continue to flee the ongoing fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

At the Argeen border with neighbouring Egypt, new families arrive every day, making the 1,000 kilometre journey from Khartoum through the desert in search of safety.

But not everyone has the financial means to be able to leave.

“The bus ride costs $250 a person. Then there’s the official tariffs on both sides of the crossing and rental for a place to live in Egypt. Not everyone can afford this, it’s a large expense,” said evacuee Wahag Gafar Ibrahim.

She said the trip was “really tiring and scary”, adding that the war in her country had “affected everyone”.

Another issue is that of holding a passport to enable them to enter Egypt.

“Some families lost their passports in the war, or they can’t afford to get one. They are living in the middle of a war zone. I hope they will find someone to help them flee,” said Sudanese bus owner, Ayman Mohamed.

The latest arrivals in Egypt are some of the almost 200,000 people who have escaped Sudan, in addition to the hundreds of thousands who have been displaced internally.

They’re carrying small suitcases, all they could bring with them from their lives back home as Ibrahim explained.

“There is no solution. I don’t see a solution. The Rapid Support Forces won’t surrender and the army is unable to change the situation. And we are lost between them. We left our homes, families, papers, diplomas, and our interests. We left our country.”