France says evacuated 538 people from Sudan

France has evacuated 538 people from Sudan, President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday, as a ceasefire came into force after 10 days of urban combat.

French citizens made up 209 of the total number of evacuees, Macron said at the start of a defense council at the Elysee palace.

Macron also said that the injuries sustained by a French soldier during the evacuation were no longer life-threatening.

A US-brokered 72-hour ceasefire between Sudan's warring generals officially came into effect Tuesday after fighting killed hundreds, wounded thousands and sparked a mass exodus of foreigners.

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to the ceasefire "following intense negotiations", Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

Previous bids to pause the conflict had failed to take hold, but both sides confirmed they had agreed to the three-day halt.

The French foreign ministry announced Monday that it had closed its embassy in Khartoum "until further notice".

The mission could therefore no longer serve as a rallying point for people  trying to leave the country, it said.

 

AFP