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8,000 Uganda citizens evacuated from South Sudan

Xinhua, July 17, 2016 Adjust font size:

Ugandan military on Sunday announced that it has so far evacuated by road over 8,000 citizens trapped in the recent fighting between two rival army factions in the neighboring South Sudan.

Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda, Uganda's military spokesperson, told Xinhua by telephone that 4,500 citizens, mainly business people were successfully evacuated on Sunday from the troubled country, bringing the number brought by road to over 7,500 people.

He said another 500 pregnant women, young children and the sick were due to be airlifted by helicopter to the East African country. The evacuation exercise started on Friday.

"The ongoing evacuation mission is rated highly successful. But the number is overwhelming. We have more than 10,000 Ugandans in South Sudan," said Ankunda.

Ankunda, who is also Uganda People's Defense Forces spokesperson, said another batch of people will be evacuated to the country on Tuesday still by road.

"We can't decide when to end the exercise. It will depend on the number of people who will be showing up," said Akunda

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni last Tuesday ordered the country's military to immediately evacuate citizens trapped in the fighting between government troops of President Salva Kiir and forces loyal to Vice President Riek Machar in the capital, Juba as measure to ensure their safety and security.

Henry Okello Oryem, the state minister for foreign affairs told Xinhua last Wednesday that 11 Ugandans were killed and over 10 others injured in the deadly clashes between the two rival army groups in Juba.

The country's military Thursday said three of its soldiers on evacuation mission were injured after a group of unknown armed gunmen attacked one of the trucks in the convoy at Pagiri, Magwi County South Sudan's Eastern Equatorial State.

A convoy of around 50 trucks, escorted by machine gun-mounted armoured vehicles on Thursday, crossed the border at Nimule, some 200 kilometers from Juba to help evacuate the citizens caught up in the fighting. Endit