Sudan war: I recognised my Eritrean sister in video of captured refugees

Eritreans tell the BBC their relatives are being detained incommunicado by Sudan's military.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUK General ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersI recognised my sister in video of refugees captured in Sudan war16 hours agoBy Tesfalem Araia & Netsanet Debessai, BBC TigrinyaShareNerayo Ghebru TesfamichaelLuwam Gebru said people smugglers were taking her across Sudan's war zone to LibyaMihret Gebru was recently watching with concern two viral videos on her phone which showed people from the Horn of Africa being beaten and assaulted by armed men in Sudan - and was then horrified to spot her sister among the captives.

“Instantly I was able to identify Luwam, who is wearing the orange scarf I know very well - and her shoes, which can be partly seen,” she told the BBC.

The sisters are from Eritrea - and like many young people Luwam Gebru had fled the country’s indefinite military conscription that they feel denies them a future.

She had ended up in neighbouring Ethiopia in 2019, where she had refugee status. But being a refugee can be like living a life in limbo - and many choose to make dangerous journeys in search of new lives and opportunities.

Ms Mihret said her 24-year-old sibling had decided to risk traversing the war zone of Sudan to reach Libya last year, several months after the conflict erupted.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3g3nk15jrdo

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