As concerns are mounting following a fatal assault in South Sudan, Britain said on December 19, 2013 that it has dispatched an airplane in order to evacuate British nationals. The decision was made as the clashes reportedly spread after claims of an attempted coup.
According to the foreign office, around 150 out of the 500 Britons in the newly-created country were in touch with the British officials and the majority of them were waiting to leave the country. The recent development came one day after the South Sudanese Army announced that it lost control in the north area of the country.
In July 2011, South Sudan announced its independence struggling for years to break away from the Arab-dominated north of Sudan. In the past couple of days, president Salva Kiir accused his former vice president, Riek Machar of attempting a military coup. This accusation, however, was denied by Machar on Wednesday, December 18, 2013.
Tension has been reducing since Kiir dismissed his cabinet – including Machar – in July 2013. However, the British Foreign Office did not disclose when the plane will land in Juba, which is the capital of Sudan, but it was announced that the evacuation will take place on December 19, 2013.
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