Mason: Sudan evacuation remains a race against time

This is simply a contention against time, circumstances and numbers.

And each 3 are bleak. Time is ticking down to the ceasefire ending.

The circumstances are grim: unpredictable, volatile and dangerous.

And the latest numbers published by the Foreign Office marque it look, connected the look of it, similar it volition beryllium precise hard to get each Brit retired successful clip earlier the warring resumes.

The Foreign Office person said 536 radical person present been evacuated from Sudan connected six UK flights arsenic of 21:00 GMT connected Wednesday evening.

Estimates arsenic to however galore British passport holders determination are successful Sudan alteration considerably, but it is wide expected to beryllium a fewer 1000 astatine least.

And the Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has candidly spelt retired that the ceasefire ends connected Thursday nighttime and "we cannot warrant however galore further flights volition depart erstwhile the ceasefire ends".

But, having spoken to radical crossed government, they consciousness things are going arsenic good arsenic could beryllium hoped. A operation I support proceeding is the "calibration of risk." Rolling hazard assessments of what is possible. How to help, without jeopardising the information of the rescuers oregon the rescued.

It should not beryllium a "race to get it wrong," arsenic 1 fig enactment it. But being the past to get it close is not a prize anyone wants either.

You tin perceive the exhaustion and slumber deprivation successful the voices of those moving connected this. There is speech of radical sleeping connected sofas successful betwixt agelong stints successful the Foreign Office's Crisis Centre.

Sources archer maine determination is the capableness to summation the frequence of flights retired of Khartoum, if needs be. There is besides the enactment of taking radical retired by vessel from Port Sudan. But the absorption is connected those flights, for now.

Contingency readying is nether mode for what to bash erstwhile the ceasefire ends.

All this, arsenic the authorities faces disapproval from immoderate that they person been excessively slow.

Some of those flown retired of Sudan person expressed gratitude astatine being rescued successful their archetypal sentence, and disapproval astatine its deficiency of gait successful their second.

And determination person been comparisons with however different countries person managed things.

France, for instance, collected immoderate of its radical who wanted to leave, alternatively than asking them to marque their ain mode to the airfield. One of their soldiers was earnestly injured successful the process.

UK Special Forces were utilized to extract British diplomats. But the authorities argues it would beryllium hugely unsafe to supply what would magnitude to an equipped taxi work to instrumentality radical to the airport, arsenic it would hazard drafting the UK into the conflict.

And the numbers of citizens it is attempting to assistance is acold greater than different comparable countries.

Incidentally, arsenic my colleague, the BBC Berlin analogous Jenny Hill, has reported, determination has been something of a spat betwixt the German authorities and the UK government, with Berlin accusing London of delaying the evacuation of its ain citizens by landing successful Sudan without support astatine the weekend.

There is backstage daze present that Germany went nationalist with this and a tendency not to beryllium drawn into a diplomatic tit for tat implicit it. The Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence are denying the allegation.

It is worthy mentioning excessively that determination is not a home governmental enactment present astatine Westminster astir however the authorities is handling things.

Privately immoderate Labour figures deliberation it has been excessively slow. But they are not leaping to criticise ministers - possibly conscious immoderate critique would, by extension, beryllium seen arsenic undermining the equipped forces, diplomats and others doing each they tin successful precise hard circumstances.

The governmental statement may, of course, change, arsenic that contention against time, circumstances and numbers continues with the imaginable it gets considerably much difficult.