'One of the lucky ones': Toronto resident shares story of evacuation from war-torn Sudan

Long-time Toronto resident Azza Ahmed never imagined in her life that she’d be caught in the middle of a war zone, but that’s exactly what happened when she visited family in Sudan last month.

On April 8, Ahmed, who is 36, and her 74-year-old mother, Salma Sarour, arrived in their homeland for what was supposed to be a four-week visit. It was their first time back in Sudan since the pandemic.

However, just one week after they got there, on April 15, a violent conflict erupted between the northeast African nation’s military and a rival paramilitary group called the Rapid Support Forces. Most of the fighting has been centered on Sudan’s capital of Khartoum.

“We woke up to the news that there had been a coup attempt and literally half an hour later we heard bombs,” said Ahmed, who was staying with relatives at a family home in the city of Omdurman, which is roughly 15 kilometres northwest of Khartoum.

“It was insane. Never in my life did I think I’d be in a war. It was the first time I’d even experienced such a conflict.”

During an interview with CP24.com late last week from her home in Scarborough, Ahmed said that she and her mother along with an elderly aunt, who is also a Canadian citizen, and a number of other family members found themselves in an especially precarious situation as the house where they were staying is near a television station, which she said was likely to be one of the first places the rebels would bomb in an effort to gain control of the country. Airports are also often targeted, she noted.

“We couldn’t even go outside to the front or back yard,” she said.

“We were literally fearing for our lives. We were stuck inside.”

Luckily, they did have some food stocked up, however on Day Four the power went out. They also ran out of filtered water and had no choice but to drink somewhat unsanitary tap water, she said.

“We were there without electricity and it was like 40 degrees outside,” said Ahmed.

“It was a big disaster, but we were one of the lucky ones. We didn’t have electricity, but we had running water.”

On the fifth day, Ahmed and a cousin were forced to leave the house to do a supply run at a store a few blocks away. On the way back, she said they encountered a group of rebel soldiers armed with assault rifles. The militia men were standing next to a truck with a big gun used to shoot down planes, she said. Fortunately, there were no issues and Ahmed and her cousin made it home safely.

“That was a terrifying experience,” said Ahmed, who'd seen photos and videos of the horrors and deaths experienced by mostly civilians in the capital region and knew she could easily have met the same fate.

Finally after 10 days of being trapped inside the house, another cousin, who was able to secure some gasoline for their vehicle, arrived to give them a lift to a safer area north of Omdurman after hearing word of significant bombing being planned for their neighbourhood that night and the following day.

“We had basically half an hour to pack everything up,” said Ahmed, who was one of nine women, including four seniors, who fled. Of the group, five were foreigners: Ahmed, her mother and an aunt are Canadians, while one cousin is a French citizen and another is a Swiss national.

Ahmed said they brought some food, water, a few necessities, and literally the clothes on their backs. The women also wore adult diapers to transport their passports, money, gold, and cell phones.

“We’d heard reports of people being robbed by the rebels,” she said, adding that as foreigners, there was a real fear that they could have been kidnapped and held hostage.

“It was just extremely, extremely dangerous.”

Ahmed, who had been in some communication with the Canadian Embassy throughout the ordeal, said at 1 a.m. that morning she received a call advising her and her two aunts to get to a military base about 25 kilometres away to catch a plane out of the country. They had nine hours to get there and were responsible for finding their own way, Ahmed said.

Fortunately, that same cousin who’d given them the first ride out of Omdurman was once again able to secure some fuel.

“We had just 10 minutes to repack. It was a big mess. We left most of our stuff behind,” she said, adding they carried just one bag for the three of them.

Under normal circumstances, the trip would have taken about 40 minutes, but due to the unsafe conditions on the main roads it took more than two hours as they had to take the back roads and “cross areas that had heavy fighting,” she said.

The three Canadian women were then flown to Berlin, Germany, but Ahmed said they were again left to fend for themselves as the Canada did not offer them any assistance with food, accommodation, transportation, or even their flight home.

“(The Canadian government) basically abandoned us,” said Ahmed, noting some countries got their citizens out of Sudan in just two or three days and paid for all of their needs.

Ahmed, her mother, and her 84-year-old aunt arrived back in Canada on April 27, 12 days after the conflict broke out. Her two cousins have also made it back to their respective countries, while the four other women are now in a safer part of Sudan.

“It was a very expensive, terrifying, and exhausting experience. … It was an absolute nightmare. I don’t think anyone was expecting this,” shared Ahmed, who told CP24.com that they still haven’t fully processed what happened.

“I’ve never been so glad to be in a quiet, normal place. I never thought we’d make it back (to Canada).”

Ahmed said she wanted to share her story in the hope that Canada will do a better job of evacuating and taking care of its citizens abroad when conflicts break out.

“I don’t think that (the government) realized how serious the situation was or they didn’t care,” said Ahmed, who credited her relatives back in Canada for all of their support and advocacy.

“We would have still been there if it wasn’t for them,” she said, adding the family home that they were trapped in for 10 days in is now occupied by rebels.

“In the end, we got out with our lives.”

CP24.com contacted Global Affairs Canada and was told that it doesn’t comment on individual cases.

Instead, the department pointed to two statements it recently issued about the “very dangerous” situation in Sudan and what is being done to assist people in evacuating the country.

At this time, Global Affairs said it is helping Canadians wishing to depart Sudan in accessing commercial transportation to exit the country. Those who are able to travel by road are being urged to head to Port Sudan.

Global Affairs also said Canadian officials in its missions in nearby countries would provide ongoing assistance to Canadians who have made it to third countries.

A small team from the Canadian Armed Forces will also remain in the region to support Global Affairs for as long as required.

In total, Canada evacuated roughly 550 people from Sudan on six evacuation flights from the Wadi Sayyidna Air Base between April 27 and 29.

Additionally, more than 210 Canadian citizens and permanent residents left on flights organized by international partners.

Global Affairs said it is aware that dozens of other Canadians departed Sudan by other means.

And while evacuation flights have ended, Global Affairs said it continues to be “concerned by the unfolding political and humanitarian crisis.”

“This will require a long term response by the international community. Canada will actively work with the people of Sudan, international organizations, regional partners and allies to address the situation,” Global Affairs said.

“Canada continues to work with the international community to coordinate a response to the crisis, to support the people of Sudan and to reach a negotiated settlement that returns Sudan to lasting peace and democracy.”

Any Canadian citizens in Sudan in need of emergency consular assistance are being urged contact Global Affairs Canada’s Emergency Watch and Response Centre.

All Canadians currently in Sudan are being encouraged to check travel.gc.ca as often as possible for updates and sign up with the Government of Canada’s Registration of Canadians Abroad service.