UPDATE - Egypt announces freeing of nationals kidnapped by paramilitary RSF in Sudan

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS

By Ibrahim Khazen and Mohammad Sio

CAIRO (AA) - Egypt announced Thursday that its security agencies, in coordination with Sudanese authorities, had successfully freed a group of Egyptian nationals abducted by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in neighboring Sudan.

According to Egypt’s official news agency MENA, the operation was carried out following directives from President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to take all necessary measures to secure their release.

The report did not specify the number of freed individuals but confirmed that they were transported from conflict zones in the capital Khartoum to Port Sudan before being safely repatriated to Egypt.

The state-affiliated Al-Qahera News channel shared images on X showing emotional reunions between the released individuals and their families.

Local media said seven Egyptian nationals had been held since 2023, approximately two months after the outbreak of the conflict in Sudan.

There was no immediate comment from the Sudanese army or the RSF on the report.

Sudan has been embroiled in a war between the Sudanese army and the RSF since mid-April 2023, with over 20,000 people killed and 14 million displaced, according to the UN and local authorities. However, research from US universities estimates that the death toll is around 130,000.

Egypt has been a backer of Sudan’s ruling Sovereign Council under Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and has repeatedly called for the RSF to end its war against the Sudanese army.