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Sudan fighting: Civilian death toll rising as thousands flee Sudan fighting: Civilians in untenable situation without food or water, Red Cross says
(about 1 hour later)
The civilian death toll in Sudan is increasing daily, the Red Cross has said, while also warning of water and electricity shortages. People trying to leave Khartoum wait on the street with their belongings
Alyona Synenko, from ICRC, said the situation had become "untenable" for civilians, amid fighting between the regular army and a paramilitary force. People are making "desperate attempts" to flee Sudan after more than a week of fighting there, the Red Cross says.
About 10,000 refugees have reportedly entered South Sudan - and some have fled to other neighbouring nations. The situation was now "untenable" for civilians left without food or water, and some hospitals had stopped working, spokeswoman Alyona Synenko said.
Many countries have evacuated diplomats and citizens from the capital Khartoum. Convoys leaving the capital Khartoum had encountered robbery and looting, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
People were making "desperate attempts" to escape Sudan, said Ms Syneko, regional spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross. People getting out of Khartoum have spoken of corpses left lying on the street.
Many were trapped without food and clean water, and hospitals had stopped functioning, she told the BBC in an interview from Kenya. "We saw bodies everywhere - there's no security whatsoever so nobody dares go collect them - but there's utter destruction too. Everything is just devastated," Italian NGO boss Stefano Rebora told the BBC.
"This is extremely dangerous, and we see the toll of civilian deaths going higher and higher every day," she said. South African diplomat Clayson Monyela said all routes out of Khartoum - a city of six million people - were "risky and dangerous".
More than 400 people have died in the conflict, and thousands have been injured, according to the latest tally from the World Health Organization. It is feared the true toll is much higher. "The airport remains closed, the fighting continues," he told the BBC. He reiterated a call for a ceasefire to allow people to leave, and aid to enter.
Sudan was suffering an "internet blackout" with connectivity at 2% of ordinary levels, monitoring group NetBlocks said on Monday. In Khartoum, the internet has been down since Sunday night.
Meanwhile, water and electricity have been restored to some parts of the capital, but not all of them.
One Nigerian student told the BBC: "The taps are outside in the street and that's the scary part - sometimes we are going out to get water but there is shooting or explosions going on, so we just have to run there and get the water and come back."
Numerous countries have evacuated their civilians - and thousands of other people have made risky escapes.
Many of those who have left Khartoum have headed to other parts of the country where they have family ties - leaving parts of the city centre completely deserted.
Others have gone north to Egypt by bus, or headed south.
Officials in neighbouring South Sudan said the roughly 10,000 refugees who had arrived in recent days came from Eritrea, Kenya and Uganda - as well as from Sudan and South Sudan themselves.
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Many of those who have left Khartoum have headed to other parts of the country where they have family ties - leaving parts of the city centre completely deserted. Multiple countries have stepped up efforts to evacuate diplomats and civilians from Khartoum.
Others have gone north to Egypt by bus, or headed south. Officials in northern South Sudan said about 10,000 refugees had arrived from Sudan in recent days. By Monday about 1,100 European Union citizens had been taken out of Sudan, an EU diplomatic source told the BBC. The bloc believed about 1,700 EU citizens had been in Sudan when the fighting began.
They said those who crossed the border were from Eritrea, Kenya and Uganda - as well as from Sudan and South Sudan. The US said it had airlifted fewer than 100 people by helicopter on Sunday in a "fast and clean" operation. The American embassy in Khartoum is now closed, and a tweet on its official feed says it is not safe for the government to evacuate private US citizens.
South African diplomat Clayson Monyela said the fighting meant that all routes out of Khartoum were "risky and dangerous". The UK government airlifted British diplomats and their families out of the country. Foreign Minister James Cleverly said options to evacuate remaining Britons were "severely limited". Canada has evacuated its diplomatic staff.
"The airport remains closed, the fighting continues," he told the BBC. He reiterated a call for a ceasefire to allow people to leave, and aid to enter. Turkey - a key player in Sudan - began evacuation efforts by road from the southern city of Wad Medani on Sunday, but plans from one site in Khartoum were postponed after a nearby explosion.
Aid groups have warned that fighting in Sudan has led to a huge humanitarian crisis in the country. More than 150 people - mostly citizens of Gulf countries, as well as Egypt, Pakistan and Canada - were evacuated by sea to Saudi Arabia.
Several ceasefires that seemingly been agreed have been ignored - including a three-day pause to mark the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which started on Friday. Long lines of UN vehicles and buses were seen leaving Khartoum on Sunday, heading east towards Port Sudan on the Red Sea and carrying "citizens from all over the world", a Sierra Leonean evacuee told AFP news agency.
The UN's World Food Programme has warned that the violence could "plunge millions" more into hunger in a country where a third of the population "already struggles to get enough to eat". However many foreign students from Africa, Asia and the Middle East are among the foreigners still trapped in Khartoum.
Sudan was in the midst of an "internet blackout" with connectivity at 2% of ordinary levels, monitoring group NetBlocks said on Monday. In Khartoum, the internet has been down since Sunday night.
Sources said the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) - the paramilitary group fighting the army - cut one provider because it wanted to prevent its enemy from streaming programmes onto national television.
Meanwhile, water and electricity have been restored to some parts of the capital, but not all of them.
Watch: Shocking sounds of heavy bombardment in Sudanese capital KhartoumWatch: Shocking sounds of heavy bombardment in Sudanese capital Khartoum
Watch: Shocking sounds of heavy bombardment in Sudanese capital KhartoumWatch: Shocking sounds of heavy bombardment in Sudanese capital Khartoum
Over the past several days, multiple countries have been evacuating diplomats and civilians from Khartoum, where much of the fighting has been concentrated. The western region of Darfur - where the RSF first emerged - has also been badly affected by the fighting.
The US said it had airlifted fewer than 100 people by helicopter on Sunday in a "fast and clean" operation.
The American embassy in Khartoum is now closed, and a tweet on its official feed says it is not safe for the government to evacuate private US citizens.
The UK government managed to airlift British diplomats and their families out of the country. Foreign Minister James Cleverly said options to evacuate remaining Britons were "severely limited".
Turkey - a key player in Sudan - began evacuation efforts by road from the southern city of Wad Medani on Sunday, but plans from one site in Khartoum were postponed after a nearby "explosion".
More than 1,000 European Union citizens had been taken out of Sudan, according to an update from the EU's foreign policy chief on Monday morning. Canada has evacuated its diplomatic staff.
Earlier, more than 150 people - mostly citizens of Gulf countries, as well as Egypt, Pakistan and Canada - were evacuated by sea to Saudi Arabia.
Long lines of UN vehicles and buses were seen leaving Khartoum on Sunday, heading east towards Port Sudan on the Red Sea and carrying "citizens from all over the world", a Sierra Leonean evacuee told AFP news agency.
Among those still stuck in Khartoum - a city of six million people - there have been desperate calls for help from many foreign students, from Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
As well as Khartoum, the western region of Darfur - where the RSF first emerged - has also been badly affected by the fighting.
The UN has warned that up to 20,000 people - mostly women and children - have fled Sudan to seek safety in Chad, across the border from Darfur.The UN has warned that up to 20,000 people - mostly women and children - have fled Sudan to seek safety in Chad, across the border from Darfur.
In other parts of the country, some semblance of normalcy has emerged. However in other parts of the country, some semblance of normalcy has emerged.
In Omburdman, north of Khartoum, there has been less gunfire and explosions than in previous days, possibly to allow civilians to leave. Heavy fighting outside the army headquarters has stopped. In Omdurman, across the Nile from Khartoum, there has been less gunfire and explosions than in previous days, possibly to allow civilians to leave. Heavy fighting outside the army headquarters has stopped.
As a result, for the first time since hostilities broke out more than a week ago, women and children have been out on the streets, visiting neighbours and going to markets, which still have some basic supplies such as oil and wheat. There are long queues outside the few bakeries that remain open.As a result, for the first time since hostilities broke out more than a week ago, women and children have been out on the streets, visiting neighbours and going to markets, which still have some basic supplies such as oil and wheat. There are long queues outside the few bakeries that remain open.
More than 400 people have died in the conflict, and thousands have been injured, according to the latest tally from the World Health Organization. But it is feared the true toll is much higher.
Several ceasefires that seemed to have been agreed were subsequently ignored - including a three-day pause to mark the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which started on Friday.
The UN's World Food Programme says the fighting could plunge millions more Sudanese into hunger in a country where a third of the population already struggles to get enough to eat.
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