DFA: Over 600 Filipinos out of Khartoum, Sudan

At least 616 Filipinos were already evacuated out of Khartoum, Sudan, while more of them will be repatriated to the Philippines in the next few days, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Monday.

In a Super Radyo dzBB interview, DFA Assistant Secretary Paul Cortes said of the 616 Filipinos who left Khartoum, 414 were already in Egypt, while others were either at the Sudan-Egypt border or at the Port Sudan bound for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

He said around 750 Filipinos in Sudan, most are undocumented, have sought for the Philippine government’s help amid the ongoing clashes there between the Sudanese military and a paramilitary group.

The first batch of repatriates from Sudan, involving 17 Filipinos, arrived in Manila on Saturday.

“Ngayong gabi may 15. In the next few days, there’s something like 60. Unti-unti nang nakakabalik ang mga kababayan natin,” Cortes added.

(Tonight there are 15 Filipinos who will be repatriated. In the next few days, there’s something like 60. Our compatriots are coming back to the Philippines little by little.)

DFA said on Sunday that despite the conflict in Sudan, there are still less than a hundred Filipinos who decided to stay there because of their families and other work commitments.

DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega, in a television interview, appealed to Filipinos who remain in Sudan to also consider being repatriated.

“I think we can say that everybody who wanted to leave Khartoum, has left Khartoum. Eventually, there may be more that may be coming in the next few days,” he said on ANC.

De Vega said that the DFA has already spent about $1 million to sustain its relief and repatriation efforts for the affected Filipinos.—AOL, GMA Integrated News

Source: DFA: Over 600 Filipinos out of Khartoum, Sudan | GMA News Online (gmanetwork.com)