Sudan army says it will help foreigners leave amid fighting

KHARTOUM, Sudan —  The Sudanese army says it is coordinating efforts to evacuate foreign citizens and diplomats from Sudan on military aircraft, as the bloody fighting that has engulfed the vast African nation entered its second week.

Army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan says he will facilitate the evacuation of American, British, Chinese, and French citizens and diplomats from Sudan after speaking with the leaders of several countries that had requested help.

The prospect has vexed officials as most major airports have become battlegrounds and movement out of the capital, Khartoum, has proven intensely dangerous.

Burhan “agreed to provide the necessary assistance to secure such evacuations for various countries,” Sudan’s military says.

Questions have swirled over how the mass rescues of foreign citizens would unfold, with Sudan’s main international airport closed and millions of people sheltering indoors. As battles between the Sudanese army led by Burhan and a rival powerful paramilitary group rage in and around Khartoum, including in residential areas, foreign countries have struggled to repatriate their citizens — many trapped in their homes as food supplies dwindle.

The White House will not confirm the Sudanese military’s announcement.

“We have made very clear to both sides that they are responsible for ensuring the protection of civilians and noncombatants,” the National Security Council says.

On Friday, the US said it had no plans for a government-coordinated evacuation of the estimated 16,000 American citizens trapped in Sudan.