FG Deploys NAF C-130H Aircraft to Evacuate Nigerians in Sudan

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The federal government has approved an aircraft in the fleet of the Nigerian Air Force, NAF C-130H, for the evacuation of Nigerians that are currently stranded in Sudan following the political crises raging in the country.

A statement jointly signed by the Director Overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Janet Olisa, and the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Dr. Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, announced the resolution in a joint statement.

The statement said the NAF aircraft, which departed Abuja on Friday, has receive clearance alongside Air Peace and other airlines to fly to Egypt to pick the stranded Nigerians.

Olisa and Sani-Gwarzo said the Nigerian Mission in Egypt was liaising with the Egyptian authorities to facilitate the evacuation by providing emergency entry documents and holding shelters, until the stranded Nigerians were airlifted back to Nigeria.

The statement added that arrangements are being concluded to airlift all Nigerians that have already escaped on their own to safety in other countries neighbouring Sudan.

The Foreign Affairs and the Humanitarian Affairs ministries convened a Situation Room, on the evacuation of Nigerian nationals from Sudan chaired by Sani-Gwarzo. The Situation Room meets daily.

Members of the Situation Room also include the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), Office of the Chief of Staff, National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Nigerian Air Force (NAF). 

Other members include the various Nigerian Foreign Missions relevant to the evacuation exercise.

The statement said after President Muhammadu Buhari approved the immediate deployment of both human and financial resources towards the evacuation of Nigerians caught up in the Sudan crisis, 40 buses had been secured in Sudan to convey the students and other Nigerians from Khartoum to Aswan border in Egypt, which is one of the identified safe reception borders.

Olisa and Sani-Gwarzo added that arrangements are being concluded to airlift all Nigerians that have already escaped on their own to safety in other countries neighbouring Sudan. 

Some Nigerian students who found their way to the Ethiopian border Saturday, last week and got stranded were allowed entry into Ethiopia on Monday following the intervention of some Nigerian leaders.

They said the students were safe and in good condition and had already made personal travel arrangements to return to Nigeria.

Also, another group of Nigerians assisted by the government of United Arab Emirates (UAE) arrived in Jeddah and are being taken care of by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Nigerian Embassy in Saudi Arabia.

They said arrangements were being made to bring them back home safely, adding that the initial hitches encountered during the commencement of the exercise, including incidents of bus drivers stopping in the desert due to non-payment, had been resolved.