Foreign Minister confirms the withdrawal of 21 Portuguese from Sudan. Among the 22 people with Portuguese citizenship, one did not want support, as she was in a safe zone.
“We followed the withdrawal of the Portuguese from Sudan, in total we had 22 Portuguese in Sudan. 11 are already outside Sudan. [menos um que recusou o apoio] are on their way to the border,” João Gomes Cravinho said on Monday.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed that everyone is out of “a situation of heightened danger.” The Portuguese, who have withdrawn their support, will continue to keep in touch with Portugal in order to follow the development of the situation of armed conflict in Sudan.
Clashes began in Khartoum, the African capital, on April 15. The conflict pits rival military factions against each other and has already resulted in more than 400 deaths.
João Gomes Cravinho rejected the hypothesis of a belated intervention by the Portuguese and recalled the “hundreds” of Europeans who are still in Sudan.
“There is very close coordination between me and the Minister of Defense with the allies, namely with Spain and France,” confirms the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The Portuguese were recalled by missions from Spain, France and the United Nations. The citizen of the country, recalled by the Spanish mission, is already in Madrid.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs reports that the possibility of sending an aircraft of the armed forces by Portugal to evacuate the missing Portuguese is being studied.