Thousands of refugees gather at border with Ethiopia

Tens of thousands of Sudanese flee to neighbouring countries to escape fighting

Traces of clashes on a street in Khartoum. AFP

As foreign governments continue to evacuate their nationals from Sudan due to fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), tens of thousands of Sudanese have fled by land to neighboring countries at the risk of their lives.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said yesterday that "civilians are fleeing areas affected by the fighting, to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan," explaining that thousands of refugees are also massing at the border with Ethiopia.

Officials in South Sudan's Renk region said about 10,<> refugees had entered the country from Sudan in recent days fleeing the fighting.

District Commissioner Kak Badet told Reuters that about 6500,3000 people crossed the border on Saturday and another <>,<> crossed the day before yesterday.

Renk's army chief, Daw Atturjung, said three-quarters of the arrivals were South Sudanese nationals, and the rest were citizens of Sudan, Eritrea, Kenya, Uganda and Somalia.

Sudan hosts 800,<> South Sudanese refugees who have fled long-running conflicts there.

"Local authorities and residents are providing assistance to the new arrivals, and so far humanitarian organizations have not intervened in the provision of aid," Aturgung told Reuters.