The Sudanese authorities announced that a ship carrying 16,000 sheep sank while leaving the port of Suakin (northeast of the country).
The Sudan News Agency estimated the losses caused by the sinking of the ship, which was on its way to Saudi Arabia, at 15 million Saudi riyals (about 4 million dollars), and it sank at the beginning of its movement from the port.
Head of the Meat Exporters Division in Sudan Khaled al-Maqbool told Sudan News Agency that the "Badr" ship - which sank yesterday on the berth of Suakin port - caused the closure of the port, which poses a danger to the flow of exports and imports, especially with the approach of export operations and the presence of livestock in the quarries.
Al-Maqbool added that the sunken ship was suffering from malfunctions, and had previously been maintained in the Suez Canal, and stressed the need to establish controls for the movement of ships to transport livestock in the absence of the national carrier.
He indicated that an urgent meeting will be held today in the exporters' room to come up with a vision in the interest of the public and private sectors, and the National Chamber of Exporters will hold a press conference at its headquarters to clarify the circumstances of the ship's sinking.
The media of the Red Sea State Police had stated - in a statement on its Facebook page today - that the ship sank as a result of its imbalance when leaving the berth, and the statement added that the rescue teams managed to save the sailors, but their efforts to prevent the ship from sinking were unsuccessful.
The Sudan Tribune newspaper reported that it is believed that the sheep died as a result of the ship capsizing, and the newspaper quoted government sources as saying that the ship was transporting sheep intended for slaughter.
An official at the port - who declined to be named - told AFP that the ship was operating with a maximum tonnage of 9,000 heads, and modifications were made to it to increase its tonnage, and indicated that it was the first time that it carried more than 15,000 heads, but it had previously transported 12,000.
previous accidents
It is noteworthy that the port of Suakin is one of the main centers for transporting livestock to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and a fire broke out last May in goods in the historic port, which is about 60 km from Port Sudan (the main port in the country), and an investigation was opened to find out the causes of the fire. Its results have not yet been announced, and plans have been made to redevelop the port.
In 2017, an agreement was signed with Turkey to rehabilitate the historic island of Suakin and build a center for the maintenance of civilian and military ships, but the agreement was suspended after the overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir.
The incident comes at a time when the country is suffering from an economic crisis that exacerbated after the measures taken by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on October 25, 2021. The army’s seizure of power led to Western countries imposing sanctions on Sudan, including reducing declared aid to support the transitional period that began after the overthrow of the regime. Omar al-Bashir in 2019.