Edmonton family escapes Sudan, but worry persists for those left behind

After two sleepless nights, Mohammed Jaffar finally got word Tuesday that some of his family members are on their way out of Sudan.

The Edmontonian's wife and 13-year-old daughter had been in the country's capital, Khartoum, for a few months, helping to look after Jaffar's mother-in-law after a surgery. He and his family members are Canadian citizens.

The scramble to leave Khartoum started almost two weeks ago, when violent conflict erupted between the Sudanese armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group. Hundreds of people have been killed since the fighting began on April 15.

Jaffar told CBC Edmonton's Radio Active last week about how his family members were staying in a home in a dangerous area close to the airport, and they could hear shooting outside.

By the second day of fighting, the family didn't have electricity or water, and Jaffar often couldn't contact them at all.

"It was so frustrating, sitting around powerless, and you have no information about what's going on," he said.

He told CBC News this week that word of an available flight out of Khartoum late Sunday sent him and his older daughter desperately searching for hours for anyone who could get a message to the family about where to go.

He didn't go to bed until around 5 a.m. in Edmonton, only to hear from his wife later that said it had been too dangerous to try to make it.

But on Monday, they heard about another evacuation effort, and Jaffar started a new search for someone to drive the family to the pick-up point.

"It was so difficult because I was calling Khartoum to find people who have cars, have fuel and are willing to take the risk," Jaffar said.

"My [older] daughter got numbers from a Facebook group. We were just calling randomly, we didn't know the people."

Jaffar said Tuesday he last heard from his wife saying that she and their daughter successfully made the three-hour journey to the airbase, and they were getting ready to board a plane.

"This is one part of the relief," Jaffar said.

"But my sister, her kids, her family and my little brother — they're still there. I don't know what happens after the diplomatic missions and [helping] those who have dual citizenship. It's not a good indicator that all the political representation is leaving Sudan."

Canadians fleeing Sudan

Many countries, including Canada, have moved their diplomats out of Sudan in recent days.

Sudanese-Canadians have been calling on the federal government for more help to get Canadians stuck in the conflict out of danger. Earlier this week, a German plane airlifted 58 Canadians from the country.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly said Wednesday that roughly 1,800 Canadian citizens or permanent residents have now registered their presence in Sudan, and 700 of those have asked to be helped out of the country. About 150 have been helped out of the country so far.

Joly also said Canada is considering a request from Sudanese diaspora groups for relatives to be able to come to Canada on a temporary basis until the violence abates.

Modathir Bashir, with the Sudanese Cultural League of Edmonton, said everyone in his community is scared for friends and family back home.

"The situation is really, really bad. Every day is getting worse and worse," he said Tuesday.

Several of his family members live in Khartoum, and they have few options to leave if the conflict continues.

"They are afraid — not all of them have passports," he said.

"They didn't know they would have an issue like this. They were not even thinking of leaving Sudan. And they're afraid of the unknown for them. No one knows what's going to happen tomorrow."

Bashir said people in Sudan need help not just escaping the chaos, but getting the support they need if they have to flee their homes and start over in a new country.

For Jaffar, that danger is still a major concern.

"Those who are going to suffer the most are Sudanese people who have no connection with other countries," he said.

"They don't have support from their own government. They need to be looked after by the international community as well."