US Evacuates Officials from Sudan Amid Civil War

The U.S. has evacuated close to 100 officials from Sudan amid the ongoing conflict.

The Details: The Biden Administration temporarily closed the U.S. Embassy and said it will not aid the remaining 16,000 U.S. nationals in Sudan with evacuation.

For Context: The conflict between the Sudanese military and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began on April 15. The World Health Organization reported 413 deaths so far, including one American that didn’t work for the embassy. U.S. Africa Command and Gen. Mark Milley were in contact with both the RSF and Sudanese military, who voiced commitments to diplomatic missions regarding the evacuation of foreign officials.

Key Quotes: President Joe Biden said, “Belligerent parties must… respect the will of the people of Sudan,” and thanked “Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Saudi Arabia, which were critical to the success of (the) operation.”

How The Media Covered It: Media outlets have reported differently on whether the evacuation was assisted by the RSF or not. The Hill says Washington Post (Lean Left bias) reported the RSF aided in the evacuation of U.S. officials, however, the linked Washington Post article does not. Reuters (Center bias), Associated Press, and Fox News mention the RSF’s claim to have assisted in evacuations, but Fox News and Associated Press highlight the U.S. government’s denial of such assistance. CNN (Lean Left bias) reported the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group has been supplying the RSF with weaponry.