Dozens of U.S. embassy staff and families were evacuated from Sudan by members of the U.S. military Saturday, President Joe Biden said in a statement.
The evacuation comes days after the the U.S. State Department issued a Level 4 warning about the war-torn nation, calling the situation “violent, volatile, and extremely unpredictable, particularly in the capital city Khartoum.” Biden said the U.S. is “temporarily suspending operations” at the Embassy but remains committed “to the Sudanese people and the future they want.” (RELATED: Pentagon Moves Troops To Prepare For Possible Sudan Embassy Evacuation)
“Today, on my orders, the United States military conducted an operation to extract U.S. Government personnel from Khartoum,” said Biden in a press release issued Saturday. “I am grateful for the unmatched skill of our service members who successfully brought them to safety.”
I am receiving regular reports from my team on their ongoing work to assist Americans in Sudan, to the extent possible. We are also working closely with our allies and partners in this effort.
— President Biden (@POTUS) April 23, 2023
Rick Hogg, a retired Special Operations Forces member, is familiar with Embassy evacuation operations using military forces, including special operations capabilities. Hogg told the Daily Caller News Foundation, “The Special Operations Forces are capable of conducting noncombat evacuation operations [NEO] and have conducted numerous NEO operations. The special operations members likely worked alongside their Marine counterparts to facilitate this evacuation.”
On Friday, Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said, “It is not our standard procedure to evacuate American citizens living abroad.” Sixteen thousand U.S. citizens remain in Sudan, according to ABC News.
The Defense Department also deployed military forces to nearby Djibouti in preparation for a potential evacuation earlier in the week, according to a press release.
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