CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte doctor from Sudan is worried about the country on the brink of a civil war. 


What You Need To Know

  • Hundreds have died and thousands have been injured in Sudan 
  • The conflict comes from a power struggle between two rival generals 
  • A Charlotte doctor with ties to Sudan is worried about the future of his home country on the brink of a civil war 

According to the World Health Organization, at least 420 people have been killed and 3,500 others have been injured. 

Plans to transition to a civilian-led government in Africa’s third largest country were in the works. Instead, earlier this month violence erupted after a power struggle between two rival generals. 

Abdelrahman Nimeri of Charlotte was born and raised in Sudan. 

“I think the No. 1 way I define myself and people in Sudan define themselves is they are Muslims first, Arabs second and Africans third,” he said.

Nimeri, a bariatric surgeon, has lived in the U.S. for a total of 18 years. 

The last time he visited in Sudan was in 2018.

He keeps in touch with his extended family living in the capital, Khartoum, where the conflict is taking place. The violence started at the end of Ramadan, the holiest month of the Islamic calendar.

"One of the hallmarks of living in Sudan is safety. Typically is a very safe place, from them to go from that to planes hovering overhead and shootings, it's just very foreign to us," Nimeri said.

Nimeri doesn’t get into the politics but is more concerned about the humanitarian toll. 

“There are many people in Sudan suffering,” Nimeri said. 

Recently, one of his friends, a U.S.-trained doctor, was killed in his own home. 

“He was killed for senseless reasons. I’m sure the people who killed them don’t even know him,” Nimeri said. 

Some of Nimeri’s family members are fleeing the country while others stayed but had to leave their homes. 

“There are bullets coming. There is fighting and you can hear gunfire all around. It’s not safe,” Nimeri said. 

He hopes people in North Carolina can help those fighting for their lives back in Sudan. 

“The biggest concern is to get the war to stop and to take care of the people who died, maimed or got injured,” Nimeri said. 

The Sudanese American Physicians Association is one of the organizations providing emergency relief. 

The U.S. evacuated its embassy in Sudan and its diplomatic personnel over the weekend. The federal government said it’s also helping Americans wanting to depart Sudan.