UN chief Antonio Guterres urges leaders to pull Sudan back from 'edge of the abyss'

Secretary General says he is in constant contact with parties to the conflict, calling on them to de-escalate tension and return to negotiating table

A member of the Saudi Navy carries a child from a ship at Jeddah's port during the kingdom's evacuation of civilians from Sudan. Reuters

Indian nationals evacuated from Sudan arrive at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. EPA

Sudanese refugees queue to receive aid from the World Food Programme near the border between Sudan and Chad in Adre, Chad. Reuters

Tunisian citizens evacuated from Sudan leave a military aircraft upon their arrival at Tunis-Carthage International Airport. AFP

Indians evacuated from Sudan arrive on a flight at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India. AP Photo

Moroccan nationals, who have been evacuated from Sudan, arrive at Mohammed V airport in Casablanca, Morocco. EPA

A boat with 1,687 civilians from more than 50 countries fleeing violence in Sudan, arrives at King Faisal naval base in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. AFP

RSF fighters in the East Nile district of greater Khartoum. AFP

Passengers disembark a plane from Djibouti at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport near Paris after being evacuated from Sudan. AFP

Buildings destroyed in recent fighting in Khartoum, Sudan. AP

Passengers fleeing the fighting in Sudan arrive at Wadi Karkar bus station in Aswan, Egypt. EPA

Ali Mazloum, a Lebanese citizen who was evacuated from Sudan, is welcomed upon his arrival at Beirut airport. Reuters

A woman helps another after fleeing clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum. Reuters

Soldiers attend to Greek citizens evacuated from Sudan as they disembark from a military aircraft in Attica, Greece. EPA

People carry hibiscus juice and cold water for those being evacuated from Khartoum to Port Sudan. Reuters

Thais wait to be evacuated by boat at a port in Sudan. EPA

Greek citizens arrive from Sudan on a military plane in Elefsina, south of Athens. AFP

Japan's senior Vice Foreign Minister Shunsuke Takei welcomes his country's citizens in Djibouti after they were rescued from Sudan. AFP

A member of the Saudi Royal Navy carries a child who was rescued from Sudan, in Jeddah. Reuters

A military plane carrying evacuees arrives at Ciampino Airport near Rome, Italy. Reuters

Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani greets the country's ambassador to Sudan, Michele Tommasi, as he arrives at Ciampino Airport. Reuters

South Korea's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Park Joon-yong, at a Saudi Air Force base in Jeddah, where he met diplomats from his country evacuated from Sudan by the kingdom's air force. Reuters

Having fled from Sudan, a South Korean nun disembarks from a military plane after landing at King Abdullah Air Base in Jeddah. AFP

People gather as they seek to escape the violence in Khartoum. Reuters

Spanish diplomatic personnel and citizens wait to disembark from a military plane after being evacuated from Sudan, in Djibouti. Reuters

A closed pharmacy and shops in the south of Khartoum as battles rage in the capital between the army and paramilitaries. AFP

Passengers from Sudan disembark from a Spanish Air Force plane at Torrejon Airbase in Madrid. AP

People evacuated from Sudan arrive at a military airport in Amman. AFP

Jordan was among those countries to have rapidly flown its citizens in Sudan to safety. AFP

This child was one of those to have arrived safely in Amman. AFP

A building in Khartoum burns as violence rages in Sudan. EPA

Italian citizens are flown out of the Sudanese capital on a military aircraft. Reuters

The fighting has caused heavy damage to parts of Khartoum. EPA

Indonesian citizens travel on a bus during an evacuation operation in Khartoum. EPA

A Spanish military aircraft takes off from Khartoum as European countries rescue citizens from Sudan. Reuters

Jordanians arrive at a military airport in Amman after their evacuation from Sudan to escape the fighting. AP

French troops arrive at an air base in Djibouti to prepare to evacuate about 100 people from Sudan. AFP

Smoke rises from buildings during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army in Khartoum. Reuters

Saudis are met by Saudi Royal Navy staff as they arrive at Jeddah on the Red Sea after being evacuated from Sudan. Reuters

The streets of southern Khartoum bear the scars of fighting between two factions of the Sudanese military. AFP

A convoy leaves Khartoum for Port Sudan as fighting between military factions in the Sudanese capital continues. AFP

A civilian convoy leaving Khartoum for Port Sudan. AFP

Saudi citizens and people of other nations are evacuated by the Saudi Royal Navy from Port Sudan to escape the conflict. Reuters

A photo from October 2017 of the US embassy in Khartoum. AFP

Saudi citizens are met by Saudi Royal Navy staff as they arrive at Jeddah after being evacuated from Sudan. Reuters

Smoke hangs over Khartoum as factions belonging to the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces go back to trading gunfire after a ceasefire failed. AP

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UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on the Security Council to exert maximum leverage on the warring parties in Sudan to end the violence, restore order and return to the path of the democratic transition.

“The violence must stop. It risks a catastrophic conflagration within Sudan that could engulf the whole region and beyond.” Mr Guterres said, according to a statement from the council.

He added that the world body would not be leaving Sudan and that he has authorised the temporary relocation, both inside and outside the country, of some UN personnel and their families.

Street battles broke out on April 15 between the forces of military chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan and those of his former deputy Gen Mohamed Dagalo, who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The dispute between the Sudanese military and the RSF centres on the proposed integration of the paramilitary group into the regular army.

As the fighting rages, countries are working to bring their citizens out of Sudan.

UK Armed Forces Minister James Heappey hinted at possible further military action to help Britons in the country, recognising that “the job isn’t done” when it comes to rescuing the 4,000 or more British and dual citizens trapped in Sudan.

"Work is under way and has been all weekend, and all the back end of last week, to give the Prime Minister [Rishi Sunak] and Cobra options for what else could be done to support the wider community of British nationals in Sudan," he said.

Cobra is the UK's Civil Contingencies Committee. It is an emergency response committee made up of ministers, civil servants and others.

The British government swiftly evacuated diplomats and their families from Sudan, but has come under fire for leaving thousands of British citizens behind, with many saying they feel abandoned by the UK.

Lebanon, Tunisia and Iraq became the latest countries to begin high-risk evacuation operations from Sudan as the death toll climbed to more than 420 on Monday.

About 60 Lebanese citizens were evacuated from Khartoum at the weekend, Lebanon’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday.

Most were evacuated from the city in a convoy before arriving in Port Sudan by land, from where they will sail to Lebanon.

The Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it would begin the evacuation process for its citizens in Sudan on Monday.

People evacuated from Sudan arrive at a military airport in Amman, Jordan. AFP

“We are closely following, around the clock, the conditions of the Tunisian community [in Sudan] … and in co-ordination with the Tunisian embassy in Khartoum we will prepare for the evacuation of the Tunisian community, starting Monday, April 24, 2023,” the statement said.

Iraq is co-operating with other countries to evacuate its citizens, foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Al Sahaf said. He added that so far, 14 Iraqis have been evacuated from Khartoum to Port Sudan.

Jordan's foreign ministry said four military planes left Port Sudan airport overnight heading to Amman with 343 evacuees on board.

Jordanian citizens made up most of the evacuees but there were also Palestinians, Germans, Syrians and Iraqis on board, the ministry said.

A military plane carrying 101 evacuees landed in Berlin on Monday morning, a German military source said. The military said it had so far evacuated 313 from Sudan.

Der Spiegel said Germany had to turn back three military transport planes that were originally due to start taking people out of Sudan last Wednesday.

On Monday, Sweden said that its embassy staff in Khartoum and their dependents, in addition to a number of civilians, were flown to Djibouti.

The Danish government said six of its citizens had chosen to remain in Sudan.

The Spanish government said it flew out about 100 people, including 30 Spanish citizens and 70 others from Europe and Latin America. They were taken from Khartoum to Djibouti at about 11pm local time on Sunday.

Citizens of Argentina, Colombia, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Mexico, Venezuela and Sudan were also on the plane, the Spanish government said.

France said it had helped transport 388 people out of Sudan while Italy evacuated about 300 people, according to the countries' foreign ministries.

“We reiterate the call for a ceasefire and resumption of dialogue in Sudan,” Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares tweeted.

Endre Stiansen, Norway's ambassador to Sudan, tweeted from a “safe place” outside the country that he feared for the future of his Sudanese colleagues and friends.

Switzerland has closed its embassy in Khartoum and evacuated staff and their families, the Swiss foreign ministry wrote on Twitter.

Ireland said it was sending an emergency team to assist with evacuating its citizens and their dependents.

Egypt, Sudan's neighbour to the north, said it had evacuated 436 citizens by land.

Long convoys of UN vehicles and buses were seen leaving Khartoum, heading east to Port Sudan, about 850km away on the Red Sea, carrying “citizens from all over the world”, according to one Sierra Leonean evacuee.

Several other nations have also begun evacuating their citizens from Sudan, including the UK and US.

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell held a telephone call to discuss Sudan.

“Protection of civilians is a priority,” Mr Borrell tweeted after the call.

The World Health Organisation said the death toll had climbed to more than 420. The Sudan Doctors' Trade Union said 264 civilians had been killed and 1,543 injured.

“Out of Khartoum's 79 hospitals, 55 are out of service,” the union said in a Facebook post.

Thirteen hospitals have been struck during the fighting and 19 were forcefully evacuated, it said.