The German airforce completed the evacuation of about 200 people from the South Sudanese capital Juba on Wednesday including citizens of Germany, the Netherlands and other countries.
Germany has also closed its embassy in South Sudan ‘temporarily’ owing to violent conflict in the capital.
According to the German foreign ministry, the evacuation consisted of four flights of about 50 people each from Juba to Entebbe in Uganda.
Germany’s foreign ministry stated in an article published on its website that the last flight out also witnessed the departure of its diplomatic staff and closure of its embassy.
Johannes Lehne, the country’s ambassador in Juba said, “There was street to street fighting directly in front of the homes of many employees and aid workers… after four days of heavy fighting, which we had to witness up close, there remained no other option but to evacuate.”
The Netherlands, which also has an embassy in Juba, relied on the German airforce for evacuation of 11 of its nationals. Foreign Minister Bert Koenders thanked Germany for its assistance in a statement online and in a message to his German counterpart, saying, “This high-risk operation brought many people to safety. I’m glad the evacuation went smoothly.”
Only a “skeleton staff” remains at the Dutch embassy, according to the government’s official website, including the ambassador, Robert van den Dool.
Meanwhile, several diplomats and nationals of Japan and other countries have also evacuated. Japan Times reported that the country’s self-defense force dispatched a transport airplane to Juba, which successfully brought embassy staff members out to Djibouti yesterday.
The involvement of military transport aircraft from India, Germany, Japan and other countries is partly due to the suspension of commercial flight into and out of Juba.
Photo: Ambassador Johannes Lehne leaving Juba (German Foreign Ministry)