While cease-fire attempts in Sudan have failed, the evacuation of scores of Egyptian troops that had been held there has raised hopes that more foreigners trapped in the fighting could be leaving soon.
Sudanese military officials announced early Thursday that 177 technical personnel of the Egyptian Air Force, who had been detained in the town of Marawi, were evacuated to Egypt from Dongola Airport by four Egyptian military transport planes.
The military said the Egyptians were in Sudan for training when fighting broke out Saturday between Sudanese armed forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The Rapid Support Forces also announced in a statement Thursday that they handed over 27 Egyptian nationals to the International Red Cross.
The RSF statement described their health as "excellent," and said they handed them over with all their belongings.
Hundreds of other foreign nationals are effectively trapped in Sudan, unable to leave because of heavy fighting this week around Khartoum's international airport.
Clashes continued Thursday in Khartoum, despite cease-fire agreements announced by the warring parties over two consecutive days.
Khalifa Saddiq, a lecturer on extremist and terrorist groups at the International University of Africa in Khartoum, said the release of the Egyptian captives is a positive move by both warring parties.
Speaking to VOA by a messaging application in Khartoum, Saddiq said that under international law, both warring parties have no choice other than to respond positively to calls for a humanitarian cease-fire.
He said both the military and the RSF are expected to abide by the terms of the cease-fire because suspending hostilities has a strong positive impact on the humanitarian situation. This is one of the fruits of the continued external pressure on the parties to suspend hostilities and create a safe passage for humanitarian activities.
Saddiq believes the cease-fires were not respected because some fighters have no direct contact with their field commanders.
He said the RSF is now an unbounded group that lost leadership directives and the majority of its members didn't know that a cease-fire had been announced. Therefore, they are unable to comply with this practice of international law.
Thousands of Khartoum residents have fled their homes in the past two days, seeking safety and basic necessities. Food supplies in the capital have dwindled and most parts of the city have no electricity or running water.
The fighting was triggered over Sudan's political future — which has been in flux since the overthrow of longtime leader Omar al-Bashir in 2019 — and plans to integrate the RSF into the national army.
Ambassadors of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States, known collectively as the Quad countries, are urging the two warring sides to halt the fighting and return to dialogue.
The Quad ambassadors urged the parties of the conflict to commit to the safety and protection of civilians, diplomatic missions and humanitarian workers and to provide safe corridors for humanitarian operations.
