Digital Media Center
Bryant-Denny Stadium, Gate 61
920 Paul Bryant Drive
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0370
(800) 654-4262

© 2024 Alabama Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Americans Are Safely Airlifted Out Of South Sudan

A day after abandoning a rescue mission because of incoming fire, American citizens were safely airlifted from Bor, South Sudan, on Sunday.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement:

"U.S. citizens and citizens from our partner nations were flown from Bor to Juba on U.N. and U.S. civilian helicopters. The United States and the United Nations, which has the lead for securing Bor airport in South Sudan, took steps to ensure fighting factions were aware these flights were a humanitarian mission.

"The U.S. government is doing everything possible to ensure the safety and security of United States citizens in South Sudan. We are working with our allies around the world to connect with and evacuate U.S. citizens as quickly and safely as possible. For their safety and security, we will not outline specific evacuation plans."

Psaki said that so far about 380 American officials and private citizens and 300 foreign nationals have been airlifted from the country.

As we've reported, South Sudan was thrown into chaos when the president accused the vice president of attempting a coup.

On Saturday, three CV-22 Ospreys were hit by fire as they approached Bor. Four service members were injured and the evacuation mission was aborted.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.
News from Alabama Public Radio is a public service in association with the University of Alabama. We depend on your help to keep our programming on the air and online. Please consider supporting the news you rely on with a donation today. Every contribution, no matter the size, propels our vital coverage. Thank you.