US ambassador to Sudan injured in crash

John Godfrey has been in the post, which was vacant for 25 years, since August 2022

US ambassador to Sudan John Godfrey with a presidential guard during a ceremony at the palace in Khartoum. AFP

US ambassador to Sudan John Godfrey was taken to hospital after a traffic incident on Wednesday, the US embassy in Khartoum said.

"We can confirm that Ambassador Godfrey and two other embassy employees were involved in a car accident in Khartoum, Sudan today," the embassy tweeted.

"They were transported to a local hospital for evaluation."

He was transferred to Royal Care Hospital. While no details have been released as to the ambassador’s injuries, his bodyguard reportedly suffered a broken hand, Sudanese media reported.

"Ambassador Godfrey was released and is now resting at home," the embassy said. "He and his team experienced only minor injuries."

Mr Godfrey had recently hosted an iftar at the US embassy in Khartoum, where he met artists, entrepreneurs and community leaders.

"It was helpful to hear their insights about issues important to the Sudanese people and learn about the ways they contribute to the diverse social fabric of Sudan," he wrote on Twitter.

Mr Godfrey is the first US ambassador to Sudan in 25 years.

The veteran State Department official took over the post in August 2022, a move that suggested a thaw in relations that had been strained since the early 1990s when the US blacklisted Sudan as state sponsor of terrorism.

Mr Godfrey arrived in Sudan as the country had been struggling with deepening unrest and the unravelling of its economy since a military coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah Al Burhan in October 2021.

He is a career diplomat and a senior foreign service member, who has risen to the rank of Minister-Counsellor.

Mr Godfrey, who speaks Arabic and Russian, has worked on some of the State Department’s most pressing files.

Most recently he was the acting co-ordinator for counter-terrorism and acting special envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.

Before that he held a host of senior positions in the counter-terrorism bureau.

Mr Godfrey has had overseas postings in Riyadh, Vienna, Baghdad and Tripoli in Libya.