New Delhi, Apr 25 (IANS): The first batch of 278 Indian citizens from war-torn Sudan on Tuesday left the African nation to return back home, as they boarded the Indian Navy warship INS Sumedha from Port Sudan to be ferried to Saudi Arabia's Jeddah.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted pictures of Indians boarding INS Sumedha at Port Sudan. Some of them could be seen waving the Indian flag while on board the carrier.

"First batch of stranded Indians leave Sudan under Operation Kaveri. INS Sumedha with 278 people onboard departs Port Sudan for Jeddah," he posted.

The evacuation process named Operation Kaveri, started on April 23, as apart from INS Sumedha, two Indian Air Force aircraft were sent to bring back Indian citizens stuck in Sudan's capital Khartoum, where civil war broke out on April 15 after its army and paramilitary forces clashed with each other, leading to large scale violence, which has led to the death of hundreds of people, including an Indian citizen.

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had undertaken a review meeting with top officials on the situation prevailing in Sudan. He had asked for the preparation of a contingency plan to evacuate Indians stuck in that country.

There are around 3,000 Indians in Sudan.

The security situation in Sudan continues to be volatile with reports of fierce fighting coming from several parts of the country.