FG to Repatriate Over 700 More Nigerians from South Africa as Xenophobic Violence Forces Mass Evacuation

Nigeria is intensifying efforts to rescue its citizens from South Africa, with arrangements finalized to evacuate over 700 more Nigerians in the coming days. This latest operation addresses the ongoing xenophobic attacks targeting foreign nationals in South Africa, Africa's most industrialized economy.

The upcoming evacuation will increase the total number of Nigerians repatriated under the emergency operation to nearly 1,300. This makes it one of the largest government-led rescue missions from South Africa in recent years. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that three additional special evacuation flights have been scheduled for Nigerians who voluntarily registered for repatriation.

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For the avoidance of doubt, all the special evacuation flights are fully paid for by the Federal Government and at no cost to the returnees.

The ministry confirmed that the first of these flights will arrive at Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Friday morning, carrying 271 returnees. This follows the successful evacuation of 593 Nigerians in three previous batches. The first batch of 258 arrived on June 11, with subsequent evacuations including 66 Nigerians whose airfares were covered by a philanthropist, and 269 who arrived on June 30.

Addressing social media allegations, the ministry firmly dismissed claims that Nigerian Mission officials in South Africa demanded money for evacuation lists. It reiterated that all special evacuation flights are fully funded by the Federal Government and are at no cost to the returnees, labeling such claims as "totally false, fake news and should be discarded."

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totally false, fake news and should be discarded.