Hoekstra says he’s happy they’re safe now. “We will continue to do everything we can to evacuate other Dutch who want to.”
The first Dutch evacuation flight from Sudan landed in Jordan on Monday morning, carrying 32 displaced people. There were 15 Dutch people on this flight. The flight was not full, reports the Foreign Ministry. “At the time of departure, there were no more people present who could be boarded on this flight.”
A few dozen Dutch left Sudan for Jordan on German evacuation flights. A number of the Dutch also arrived in the East African country of Djibouti via a French flight on Sunday evening.
The displaced people who disembarked in Jordan on Monday morning were assisted by employees of the Consular Rapid Support Team (SCOT). The SCOT is a team of foreign affairs employees who can be deployed quickly in an area where many Dutch people need help.
Not sure
The ministry said earlier that a number of Dutch people in Sudan have not joined the evacuation. Some did not want to leave relatives. Others said they could not get to the airport because they had no transport. A number of Dutch people also thought it was not safe enough to travel. Participation in the evacuation is voluntary.
Heavy fighting broke out between the government army and militias in the capital Khartoum in Sudan in mid-April. There is also fighting in various places outside the area. Earlier, the ministry announced that more than 150 Dutch people in Sudan had turned up for evacuation.