The Federal Government, on Sunday, said it had ended the evacuation of Nigerians trapped in war-torn Sudan, noting that the last batch of returnees arrived in Nigeria on Saturday.
It, however, stated that it was organising a programme to mop up other Nigerians who might want to return home after the end of its evacuation exercise in Sudan.
The government also said it was happy to announce that no Nigerian life was lost in the course of the evacuation exercise.
The government disclosed this in a joint statement issued in Abuja by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, and the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
It stated that in fulfilment of the directives of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), that no Nigerian fleeing the crisis in Sudan should be left behind, the government had brought back home the last batch of stranded Nigerians from Port Sudan.
“They arrived the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 6:36pm aboard Tarco Aviation. This batch of returnees numbering 147 was the second Tarco Aviation flight received on Saturday. The earlier flight brought back 125 evacuees,” it stated in the statement.
Confirming the end of the exercise, the government said, “As earlier indicated, this latest batch of returnees marked the end of the emergency evacuation exercise put in place for stranded Nigerians in Sudan. An exercise will be organised to mop up other Nigerians who may want to return home hereafter.”
The statement stated that 15 flights were deployed by the Federal Government to airlift a total number of 2,518 Nigerian nationals from Sudan.
