Nigeria Govt To Evacuate Citizens From S’Africa On Tuesday
The Federal Government will evacuate 271 Nigerians from South Africa on Tuesday as fears grow over fresh xenophobic attacks and anti-immigration tensions.
The operation is being coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with Air Peace handling the flight.
The aircraft is scheduled to leave Nigeria on Monday afternoon, arrive in South Africa later in the evening and return shortly after midnight.
The evacuees are expected to land at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Tuesday morning.
The exercise follows an earlier evacuation that brought home 262 Nigerians. Government officials said more than 1,000 citizens had registered for voluntary return as concerns over their safety continue to rise.
Nigerians remain among the foreign nationals most affected by xenophobic violence in South Africa.
Rights groups have repeatedly accused local authorities of failing to protect migrants, while critics say foreign nationals are often blamed for the country’s economic and social problems.
