After more than two weeks of fighting between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, civilians in Khartoum have little choice but to run for their lives.
Some 70 people - a mix of foreign nationals, including women and children, and this reporter - took the risky road Thursday from Khartoum to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, a journey that takes more than 10 hours by bus.
As our bus made progress, passengers could see the destruction in neighborhoods. Rapid Support Forces fighters could be seen at many intersections but they didn’t attempt to stop the bus nor ask where it was going.
After 25 minutes, the bus arrived at the first military checkpoint, where some individuals were asked to disembark with their identity cards, including me. The process went smoothly and in a friendly manner, as I showed them my South Sudanese passport.
Not far from the military checkpoint, the bus also passed an RSF checkpoint, where the personnel were also friendly to everyone.
Shortly after leaving Shendi town in River Nile state, two bus tires got punctured. The people were nervous and terrified by the sound. Women had to remain on the bus, but men had to help replace the tire. Unfortunately, the driver had only one spare tire. The bus had to wait on a desert road for an hour, until a good Samaritan came by to give the second tire.
Mixed feelings
One of the bus passengers was Mohammed Azam, a Syrian national who has been working in Sudan as a medical doctor.
“Whenever they see that we are foreigners, and we are trying to flee for our lives, they will reassure us and tell us that the road will be safe," he said, "and actually it was. The road was safe till Port Sudan.”
Azam said he was leaving Sudan with mixed feelings because he didn’t plan to leave the country now.
"I have the feeling of joy and a little bit of sadness," he said. "It is like a home for me over here. I am here since 2018. Right now, I am going to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Part of my family are over there and it is a happy moment for me because I am going to meet them, if God [is] willing.”
A Tanzanian national who identified himself only as Hussein said this was his first time seeing such heavy fighting.
Speaking to VOA after his safe arrival Thursday night in Port Sudan, Hussein said Khartoum was no longer a safe place.
“It is the first time to see a big battle like this one, yeah," he said. "Before, we used to see the small ones, but [they] never affected us. But like this one, it's really different because many people have been killed.”
At the southern port in Port Sudan, foreign nationals are being screened before they board a ship to Saudi Arabia. From there, they are expected to leave for their respective home countries.
