Air force helicopters flew another 310 people out of a neighboring country’s southern province on Wednesday, bringing the total number evacuated in four days to 1,240, as aid organizations urged the warring sides to open safe corridors for civilians who cannot reach the airlift.
The flights shuttle citizens, their families and staff of international aid groups from a desert airstrip near the provincial capital to a staging base across the border, where they are checked by medical teams and given food and water before buses take them to Port Alden and Riverton.
A narrow window
The defense ministry said the airlift would continue as long as conditions allowed, but warned that dust storms and fighting near the airstrip had forced crews to suspend flights twice this week.
Our crews are flying long days in very difficult conditions. Every person who wants to leave and can reach the airstrip will be taken out.
Colonel Arvid Lindholm, defense ministry spokesperson
The foreign ministry estimates that around 600 citizens remain in the province, many of them in towns too far from the airstrip to travel safely. Officials have urged them to register with the embassy hotline and to stay indoors until they receive instructions.
Aid groups warn of growing needs
A coalition of relief organizations, led by the Open Hands relief network, said that tens of thousands of residents had fled their homes and that water and medicine were running short in several towns. It called on both sides to agree to safe corridors so that civilians could leave and aid convoys could enter.
An airlift helps the few who can reach it. Corridors would help everyone. Without them, families are trapped between the fighting and the desert.
Sabine Achter, regional coordinator for the Open Hands relief network
The foreign minister said the country was working with other governments at an international summit to press for a ceasefire and humanitarian access. Envoys from several neighboring states are due to meet later this week.
What happens next
The government has set aside an additional 15 million euros for humanitarian aid to the region and said it would offer temporary shelter to evacuees without family in the country. Flights are expected to continue at least through the weekend, weather permitting.
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