Biden under fire over closure of 'four embassies' since taking office

US President Joe Biden has come under fire at home for evacuating "four embassies" since he took office less than three years ago.

Mary Miller, an Illinois Republican representative, slammed the incumbent president on Sunday for his administration's tactless diplomacy.

"Joe Biden has had to evacuate FOUR embassies in less than 3 years," Miller wrote in a tweet that became viral, taking a swipe at American media for saying Biden and his Secretary of State Antony Blinken are "experts and "the adults are back in charge."

"The world has been on FIRE since their disaster in Afghanistan. Pray for our country & the 16,000 Americans Biden left in Sudan," she hastened to add.

Miller’s tweet came after the US suspended operations at its embassy in Sudan on Saturday amid fierce fighting between the country's army and its rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has plunged the country into an unprecedented crisis. 

The US military evacuated nearly 70 remaining American employees from the embassy in Khartoum on Sunday by airlifting them from a landing zone in Khartoum. They were transferred to an undisclosed location in Ethiopia, according to reports.

US officials say thousands of Americans remain stranded in Sudan because it was too dangerous to conduct a broader evacuation.

Meanwhile, US Undersecretary of State for Management John Bass said on Saturday that temporarily shutting down the embassy in Sudan was "the only really feasible option for us in this case," according to CNN.

The US has already suspended diplomatic operations in Afghanistan after its chaotic withdrawal from the country in August 2021, more than two decades after invading the South Asian country on the pretext of eliminating Al-Qaeda and Taliban. 

The Biden administration also ordered the closure of the US embassy in Ukraine for three months after Russia launched a military campaign there last year.

The US government has also suspended its diplomatic operations in Belarus, a close ally of Russia, citing "security and safety issues stemming from the unprovoked and unjustified attack."

US evacuates embassy staff from Sudan; thousands of private citizens left behind

The United States has evacuated its embassy staff and their families from Sudan as fierce clashes continue between the country

Echoing Miller's remarks on Saturday, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told CNN's State of the Union that he is "worried" about Americans who are still in Sudan. There are an estimated 16,000 Americans presently stationed in the Northeast African country.

"You have got thousands of people in the middle of a civil war," Graham said when asked what he thinks of Biden handling the situation.

"And have we been late about sort of telling them to leave? Could you see this coming? Those questions will be asked and answered later on. If I was an American in Sudan, I would shelter in place. Hopefully, we can find a way to end the fighting, get humanitarian aid, and get our people out."

However, Christopher Maier, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, said on Sunday that there will be steps to help Americans who might want to leave Sudan.

"In the coming days, we will continue to work with the US State Department to help American citizens who may want to leave Sudan," he said.

The ongoing conflict in Sudan is between forces commanded by two previously allied leaders of the country's ruling council.

Hundreds of people have been killed and thousands wounded since the deadly clashes broke out in mid-April between forces loyal to Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohammed Hamdan Daglo.

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