New York-based Sudanese activist tells of horrors of fighting in his native country
By NAVEEN DHALIWAL
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NEW YORK (WCBS) — As fighting in Sudan rages on with no sign of a truce, staff at the U.S. Embassy are already out of the country.
So far, the fighting between two rival generals has left over 400 people, including 264 civilians, dead and more than 3,700 hurt.
It’s a conflict that hits close to home for the Sudanese community in the Tri-State Area.
Intense fighting in Africa’s third largest country continues as people are running out of food, water, and even medical supplies.
“It is a nightmare. It is a nightmare,” New York-based Sudanese activist Osama Mostafa told CBS2 on Sunday night.
Mostafa said he hasn’t been able to contact his father, sister, and brother-in-law in days.
“They were so scared to get out of the house, so they left everything in the house — the communications, the cellphones. So right now, I lost them,” Mostafa said.
The conflict in Sudan between two rival generals began earlier this month. The World Health Organizations says the violent attacks, so far, have killed more than 400 people, including one American. On Sunday morning, President Joe Biden announced the U.S. Military had evacuated 70 U.S. diplomats and their families to undisclosed locations. France and the United Kingdom did the same.
“We continue to work directly and through our international partners to call for a ceasefire and an end to this violence,” British Foreign Prime Minister James Cleverly said.
It has been nine days of fighting with no end in sight. Sudanese-Americans are urging the U.S. government to provide humanitarian relief for those suffering.
“The top priority right now for American to … with the Red Cross to work there for humanistic relief for our people who are under siege … I think the American, the U.S. aid and American Red Cross will have a lot of access,” Mostafa said.
There has been some discrepancy on the number of U.S. citizens in Sudan, whether it’s hundreds or thousands, but with the U.S. Embassy and airports closed, the hope of them coming home soon is diminishing.
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