On April 15, Francis Kihumuro, his wife, and two children found themselves trapped in a war zone in Sudan’s capital Khartoum. For about two weeks, they stayed in their home, located about 300 metres from the presidential palace, one of the first targets of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Then, on April 25, thanks to a ceasefire between the RSF and the Sudanese army, Kihumuro’s family was able to leave the war-torn capital and board a bus to Egypt.
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Kihumuro and his family were among 42 Rwandan and foreign nationals who safely arrived in Kigali from the Egyptian city of Aswan in the early hours of Tuesday, May 2.
"Back in Khartoum, when you made it today, you wouldn’t hope to survive the next day,” said Kihumuro, who worked as a teacher at an international school.
"Every time there was the sound of gunfire and of heavy machinery. And at some point, even our house was hit by a rocket.”
On his arrival at Kigali International Airport, Kihumuro couldn’t contain his relief. "Finding ourselves back in Rwanda is really a miracle. Our leaders have been following up on our situations and we thank the President, and the embassy and immigration officials.”
Kihumuro’s family arrived in Kigali with their Ugandan friend.
More than 500 people have been killed and thousands wounded in clashes between the Sudanese army and the RSF.
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Countries are racing to evacuate their citizens and tens of thousands of Sudanese who are escaping the war-ravaged country for safety. Some governments arrange with diplomatic missions of friendly countries to evacuate their citizens.
Along with Kihumuro on board the chartered RwandAir flight were five Syrian nationals and five citizens from Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, and Burundi.
Khaled Al-Alem, a Syrian with investments in Rwanda, said the country’s leadership showed the best sign of love anyone needs to see in times of war.
"I have the feeling of deep happiness after arriving in Rwanda and joining my family,” he said. "We’ve been really at high risk. Now we are happy, grateful, and thankful.”
Al Alem said living in Rwanda as people of other nationalities and as investors, they always felt at home. "And this has been especially emphasised during this period, where the country treated us as Rwandese,” he said.
Daniel Ogendo, a Kenyan national arrived in Kigali with his Rwandan wife, a six-year-old son, and a three-week-old baby.
"We thank God for everything. It will take time to even reflect back on what has happened. It’s been a rollercoaster of events, with things getting worse by the hour,” Ogendo said.
By the time the war broke out, the baby was about one week old and had no papers yet. Ogendo thanked the Rwandan government for giving them an emergency travel document, which made it possible for them to cross the Egyptian border in spite of a bureaucratic process.
"As a family, we are happy to be back home again,” he said, adding he would consider applying for Rwandan citizenship.
All Rwandans who lived in Sudan have been evacuated, except for two who chose to stay in the country, said Clementine Mukeka, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"As a government, we remain committed to helping any Rwandans who are stranded in zones of conflict to be evacuated,” Mukeka said.
"We evacuated foreign nationals as well because we cannot leave behind anyone in need of help. When they approached us, it was natural to welcome them home to Rwanda as a country that is open.”
Mukeka said the foreign nationals were free to choose whether to stay in Rwanda or go back to their countries or Sudan.