The Pakistanis who chose to stay in Sudan, despite conflict

Pakistani national Irfan Khan in Sudan's capital Khartoum before the conflict began [Courtesy of Irfan Khan]

Islamabad, Pakistan – On April 21, as the conflict in Sudan entered the sixth day, more than 1,500 Pakistanis got a message from their embassy in the capital, Khartoum: “Come to the embassy compound if you want to be taken back to Pakistan.”

Braving rockets, incessant shelling and violence in the streets, Irfan Khan, a 35-year-old Pakistani, volunteered to drive some other fellow nationals to the embassy.