AN SNP MP has raised the concerning case of a Scots family hiding in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum amid a bloody conflict in the war-torn African nation.
One estimate said up to 4000 UK citizens could be stranded in the fight between the Sudanese army and a powerful paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces.
Tory Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell was giving an update on the situation in Sudan in the Commons when SNP MP for Argyll and Bute Brendan O’Hara raised the case of a constituent and her family.
He said: “My constituent … and her four young children aged between two and fifteen are currently hiding in Khartoum.
"Yesterday (she) reported a significant lull in the fighting just at a time when other foreign nationals were being airlifted out of the city by their governments and she wants to know was that lull in the fighting coincidental or has the UK missed a critical window in which to get its nationals out?
“In the last couple of hours she’s been back in touch having heard rumours that the Royal Navy could be heading to Port Sudan and she wants to know if those rumours are true, but in the absence of consular staff how will she and her family and others be evacuated from Khartoum to Port Sudan?”
Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell replied: “I cannot comment on rumours about the Royal Navy and Port Sudan. Obviously his constituent and her family should make sure that they are registered with the Foreign Office.
“We will keep in touch and everyone should be receiving at least one communication per day, but I’m advised that today the internet has only been 2% available, so there are real issues with that, but we will do everything we can.”
This comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak chaired an emergency Cobra meeting on Monday on rescuing British nationals.
Labour former minister Chris Bryant asked for clarification on the number of UK citizens in Sudan, and said on communication with MPs: “My memory of the Afghanistan situation was the way MPs had to relate to ministers was a complete and utter shambles.”
Mitchell responded: “The number of people who have replied to the Foreign Office’s request for information and registered themselves is of the order of 2,000.
“There are public speculations that there is about 4000 British nationals. That is, of course, British nationals and dual nationals, because if you have a British passport you are effectively in the same category.”
He reiterated that lessons have been learned from Afghanistan, and addressing the point on communication with MPs, he said: “We hope that the word shambles will not be applied to the work that we are doing seamlessly across Government to make sure that we achieve the aims that are common across the whole House.”
SNP frontbencher Dave Doogan told the Commons that the UK is “trailing” other nations in supporting citizens trapped in Sudan.
He said: “In terms of deploying our military professionals to support ordinary citizens trapped in Sudan, the UK is trailing, as usual.
"Just as it did at the start of the Covid crisis when other nations stepped up to repatriate their people, as it expected in such circumstances, the UK dithered.
“Can the minister explain to the House the root cause of this unfathomable inertia?”
Doogan added: “Ceasefire is the answer to this crisis is the official UK Government advice. Well, what comfort is that to the thousands of UK nationals still on the ground?
"You might as well tell them to hold their breath while they wait for food and water to run out.”
