700 Pakistanis reach Port Sudan for repatriation: FM Bilawal

Another convoy carrying 211 Pakistanis dispatched from Sudan's capital Khartoum has arrived in Port Sudan for repatriation, taking the total number to 700, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto said on Tuesday, as fighting in the North African country triggers a humanitarian crisis .

Earlier it was reported that some 427 Pakistanis had reached the port city in eastern Sudan.

More than 400 Pakistanis reach Port Sudan for repatriation, says FO

As per a statement by the Foreign Office (FO), the FM said he is grateful for the hard work "of our missions in the region and the entire Foreign Office Team led by Foreign Secretary Dr Asad Majeed Khan who is leading the inter-agency coordination process".

The minister said Meer Bahrose Regi, Ambassador of Pakistan to Sudan, and his team are working hard to help Pakistanis who are still in Sudan until they are repatriated home.

"We remain engaged with friendly countries in the region especially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to facilitate this process," the FO quoted the minister as saying.

Fighting in Sudan has triggered a humanitarian crisis in the impoverished country, where millions of people have been left without access to basic services.

At least 420 people have been killed since the fighting broke out on April 15, four years after long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir was toppled.

Amid the clashes, the Pakistan Embassy building in Sudan was hit by at least three bullets, the Embassy said in a statement earlier, advising Pakistanis to avoid leaving their homes.

Earlier today, a US-brokered 72-hour ceasefire between Sudan’s warring generals officially came into effect after 10 days of urban combat 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 in a statement, as per AFP.

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

“This ceasefire aims to establish humanitarian corridors, allowing citizens and residents to access essential resources, healthcare, and safe zones, while also evacuating diplomatic missions,” the RSF paramilitary tweeted.

In a statement on Facebook, the SAF said it would also abide by the ceasefire on condition its rivals did so.