Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and his British counterpart, James Cleverly, discussed the situation in Sudan in a phone call on Sunday, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency.
The two foreign ministers addressed cooperation on evacuations from the country, where clashes between rival Sudanese military factions have entered its second week. The fighting continued on Sunday despite a 72-hour cease-fire declared for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
There have been reports of explosions and fighting, particularly around the military headquarters and presidential palace in Khartoum. At least 413 people have died, and more than 3,500 have been injured in Sudan since the fighting erupted on April 15 between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Ankara began operations at dawn on Sunday, taking some of its estimated 1,000 nationals by road from two Khartoum districts and the southern city of Wad Madani to the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, from where they will travel to Turkey by plane.
A day before the call with Cleverly, Çavuşoğlu spoke with Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali al-Sadiq in a phone call during which they discussed the latest situation in the North African country. According to Turkey’s Foreign Ministry, the two foreign ministers addressed the evacuation of Turkish nationals from Sudan.