Sudan crisis: Family tells of 'nightmare' being stranded

Sarra Eljak and her husband Mustafa Abbas (pictured with three of their children) had gone to Sudan to visit family

A British family who were stranded in Sudan have managed to return to the UK but said they continued to fear for the lives of their loved ones.

Sarra Eljak, from Langley, near Slough, Berkshire, said being unable to leave Sudan while street battles were ongoing was a "nightmare".

She had flown to Khartoum with her husband, three daughters and son to visit family for Easter.

But they became trapped when fighting began on 15 April.

Ms Eljak and her family managed to get on a RAF flight back to the UK

The family said a bullet hit the front door of the family home in Sudan while they were staying there

The clashes between the regular army and a paramilitary force called the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are a result of a power struggle within the country's military leadership.

After days spent "hearing gunshots every single minute" and a bullet hitting the front door of the family home in Sudan, Ms Eljak and her family managed to get on a RAF flight back to the UK.

They told BBC Radio Berkshire they are now safe but very worried about the future of their parents and siblings who could not leave Sudan as they did not have British passports.

The entire experience had been very stressful, Mr Eljak said

"As I said before we have a feeling we are going to lose one of our family members at any point," Ms Eljak said.

She said the entire experience and the constant thought about the loved ones they left in Sudan made her very stressed.

"But as a mother I have to stay strong, I have to put my children back to the right track," she added.

Her husband Mustafa Abbas hoped the conflict would come to an end soon.

"At the end of the day Sudan will pay a huge price," he said.

Drone footage shows dense smoke rising from fires near Khartoum