Nigerian evacuees from Sudan arrive in Abuja after border ordeal

The first group of Nigerian evacuees from Sudan has finally arrived in Abuja after being stranded at the border with Egypt for several days.

Nigerian authorities have organized the evacuation plan to cover over 3,500 nationals affected by the conflict in Sudan.

One of the evacuees, Aisha Aliyu-Kaga, a female student, shared her harrowing experience, stating, “Bullets passed through our heads, we laid down at our own homes, we had to lay down on the ground. You can’t even sit down because the noise is very bad to hear.” Muhammad Abdulrahman, a male student, also expressed the distressing situation, saying, “I have never experienced this kind of situation. And it is in the period of Ramadan. We are fasting, no food, no water, and there is gunfire across.”

After an intervention by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Egyptian authorities granted permission on Monday for the evacuees to cross the border into Nigeria. The evacuations are being carried out in two batches, with around 90 individuals arriving on a Nigeria Air Force C130 aircraft and the remaining on Air Peace, a Nigerian airline, according to Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Director General of Nigeria In Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM).

The ongoing fighting in Sudan has resulted in the loss of at least 550 lives, displaced tens of thousands of people, and triggered the departure of both foreign nationals and international staff from the country. The arrival of the Nigerian evacuees brings some respite to those affected, as efforts continue to address the dire situation in Sudan.