Sudan crisis: Nigerian students, others stranded at Egyptian border

CHAIRMAN of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) Abike Dabiri-Erewa has said about 7,000 people, including Nigerian students being evacuated from Sudan, are stranded at the Egyptian border.

According to a statement by the Commission’s Media, Public Relations and Protocol Officer, Gabriel Odu, on Friday, April 28, Dabiri-Erewa said the Nigerian Mission in Egypt was making efforts to secure the students’ entry into the country.

“Dabiri-Erewa said over 7,000 Nationals, including Nigerians, are not being allowed to cross the border into Egypt since their arrival late yesterday evening.

“She added that The Nigerian mission in Egypt has been working tirelessly on this as the Egyptian authorities are insisting on visas by fellow Africans to transit back to their countries. She appealed to the Egyptian authorities to kindly allow the already traumatised travellers to transit to their final destinations in various countries in Africa,” the statement noted.

The students had left Khartoum, the Sudan capital, by road for Aswan, in Egypt, early on Wednesday, April 28.

During the journey to Aswan, a video circulated on social media in which students complained of being abandoned in the desert due to non-payment of fees to the bus operators by the Federal Government.

However, Dabiri-Erewa later confirmed that the issues were settled, and the students arrived at the Aswan border in Egypt on Thursday, April 27.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had confirmed that they would be airlifted from Aswan, Egypt, to Abuja, Nigeria.

The Sudan crisis had frustrated the Nigerian government’s efforts to airlift the stranded students directly from Khartoum.

Thousands of foreigners, including at least 10 000 Nigerian students and over five million Sudanese of Nigerian origin, were trapped in Sudan, following intense fighting between two rival forces in the country.

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Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via vopara@icirnigeria.org or @ije_le on Twitter.