Several times Maheen (22) has had to run for cover from bombs and gunfire in the Sudanese capital. The 22-year-old is from Kerala, a state in southern India. On his Instagram account, the travel vlogger takes his 225,000 followers on adventures around Asia and Africa. When Maheen decided to travel to Sudan from Egypt, he was completely unaware of what would happen next. Only days into the journey to Khartoum, conflict broke out. The travel vlogger had visited several countries before traveling to Sudan. Here from Oman. Photo: Maheen. S/Instagram The Sudanese army and the paramilitary group Raid Support Forces (RSF) have now been fighting for five days. It says about power and influence in a new future government for Sudan. Between 10,000 and 20,000 people have fled the country in recent days. Over 270 civilians have lost their lives in the fighting. Hearing shots and bombs news has been in contact with Maheen by phone and video call. For the first two days, he stayed indoors in a house in fear of what was happening outside on the streets. Through the windows he has seen people fleeing. They take with them what they can carry – possessions and animals. He has heard gunshots and the sound of bombs. Even Maheen has nowhere to run. He has been in contact with the Indian embassy in the city and has been told that any evacuation of Indian citizens will take place from the capital via Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and on to India. After three days indoors, the 22-year-old ran out of water. There was no electricity in the house either. He therefore ventured outside to get water. Maheen says that he was greeted by empty shelves in all stores. – I had to buy Pepsi because it was cheaper than water, he says to news. Store shelves in Sudan were quickly emptied after the conflict broke out. Photo: Maheen. S / Instagram: @hitchhiking.nomad Seeking refuge in a mosque Maheen says that he heard shooting nearby when he was outside and that he tried to hide in a bush. At one point he had a weapon pointed at him and had to run away, he says. He could not go back to the house he had lived in, and therefore sought refuge in a mosque some distance away. There he broke his fast and finally had access to clean water. He could still hear the sound of bombs and hear the fighter jets that regularly flew over the city. On Instagram, the 22-year-old shares dramatic videos of the situation in Sudan with his followers: Drone video from Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. Video: Maheem. S / Instagram: @hitchhiking.nomad A difficult situation In conflict-ridden Sudan, all citizens are now warned not to go outside. People news has spoken to say that soldiers from both sides have barricaded themselves in residential buildings in the city. When Maheen is interviewed by news, he says that people in the city talk about soldiers looting both homes and shops. He has been in contact with his parents – they are worried and scared. The 22-year-old says that only when the situation has calmed down can India assist with evacuation. In the meantime, he is encouraged to stay indoors. – But without water and food it is very difficult, concludes Maheen. Facts about the unrest in Sudan since 2019 April 11, 2019: Omar al-Bashir, Sudan’s president for 30 years, is removed in a military coup. It comes after several months of demonstrations in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum. October 25, 2021: Another military coup leads to the arrest of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and several other civilian members of the transitional government installed in 2019. A state of emergency is introduced, several demonstrators are killed by the military, and the international community stops a lot of aid to Sudan. November 11: The African Union (AU) suspends Sudan as a member. Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan forms a new military junta. November 21: Burhan agrees to reinstate a transitional government with Hamdok as prime minister. Several civilian leaders are released, and a plan is introduced to hold elections in July 2023. However, Hamdok resigns as early as January 2022. July 4, 2022: Burhan says the army is withdrawing from UN-led negotiations, allowing civilian groups to form a government . The announcement is met with skepticism from all quarters. December 5: Sudan’s military, paramilitary and many civilian leaders sign a preliminary agreement on a civilian transfer of power within two years. Protesters complain that the agreement does not contribute to justice for more than 120 pro-democracy activists who were killed in the aftermath of the coup in October 2021. April 13, 2023: Tensions rise between the army and the paramilitary group RSF. The plan is for the RSF to be integrated into the regular army, but when Burhan’s second-in-command Mohamed Hamdan Daglo calls the 2021 coup a blunder that has revived the remnants of Bashir’s regime, it leads to a full-blown crisis. The signing of a final agreement on transition to democracy is postponed twice. The army warns that Sudan is at a dangerous tipping point. April 15: Shooting and explosions erupt in Khartoum. The RSF and the army accuse each other of starting the fighting. The RSF says it controls the airport and the presidential palace, the army insists it is still in control and in power. Fighting also breaks out in Darfur, where three employees of the UN Food Program (WFP) are killed. 16 April: WFP temporarily suspends all operations in Sudan. At least 56 civilians and dozens of soldiers have been killed, according to the country’s medical association. Civilian leaders, the African Union (AU), the UN and several others are calling for an immediate ceasefire. The army and the RSF agree to open a humanitarian corridor for several hours, but this does not seem to ease the shootings in Khartoum. (NTB).
ttn-69
Stuck in war-torn Sudan – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
