The Bundeswehr has flown another 120 people from the embattled Sudan to Jordan. This was announced by the operational command on Tuesday evening on Twitter. An onward journey to Germany is being prepared. The Air Force has thus evacuated a total of more than 600 people in the past few days. The military action was justified by the federal government with the tense security situation: Heavy fighting broke out between the military and paramilitaries in Sudan more than a week ago.
The federal government wanted to end the evacuation operation, in which around 1,000 soldiers are deployed, on Tuesday. Germans who have remained in Sudan and who have not yet been able to come to the airport will be taken along by international partners on their evacuation flights over the next few days. “If other nations ensure the operation of air traffic, no further German evacuation flights from this region are planned,” said the Ministry of Defense and the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) said before the meeting of the SPD parliamentary group in Berlin: “Through the Foreign Office, everyone who was reachable was also reached and made their way to the airport.”
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces, Eva Högl, was satisfied with the performance of the Bundeswehr. “The fact that the evacuation mission in Sudan went so smoothly is very good news, which I take with relief,” said the SPD politician to the editorial network Germany (RND). “The Bundeswehr has impressively demonstrated that it can react quickly and is ready for action in crises.” Högl continued: “My thanks and appreciation go to the approximately 1,000 soldiers who were deployed in the Middle East and North Africa.” The Foreign Office and the Ministry of Defense carried out the operation professionally.
Legal basis for the continuation of the mission until the end of May
The Federal Government estimates additional expenditure of 22.4 million euros for the deployment of the Bundeswehr in Sudan. With a mandate text, which the cabinet approved in circulation due to the urgency, the armed forces are to receive a formal legal basis for the continuation of the rescue mission until the end of May. The Bundeswehr should be able to use up to 1,600 men and women for this, but more for a limited time or in emergency situations, according to the decision that is available to the German Press Agency. The Bundestag is to decide this week on the mandate, which can also be granted retrospectively in an emergency.
The German government justified the deployment with the fighting between the regular Sudanese armed forces and the militia forces of the so-called Rapid Support Forces in Sudan. The conflict claimed several hundred lives and several thousand injured, including many civilians.
“The continuing escalation of violence in large parts of the country and in the capital Khartoum makes it necessary for the Bundeswehr to intervene with the aim of protecting the life and limb of German nationals and other authorized persons and, within the scope of available capacities, nationals of third countries,” it said. “The Federal Ministry of the Interior supports the evacuation operation with specialized forces from the Federal Police. These are deployed under the leadership of the Bundeswehr and support their measures.”
The Union still sees a need for clarification in the Bundestag mandate for the evacuation operation. Group leader Friedrich Merz (CDU) said in Berlin that the text presented by the government contained “some inconsistencies” that now had to be discussed in the defense and foreign affairs committees. Among other things, it is about information on data on which the government had made decisions about the deployment that could not be correct. “In principle, we are always willing to agree to Bundeswehr operations,” emphasized Merz. But they must be plausible, understandable and well-founded.
