The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, on Thursday, confirmed the arrival of the first set of stranded Nigerians in Sudan at the Aswan border in Egypt.
Dabiri-Erewa, who confirmed the development in a post on Twitter, said the border was already closed when the students got there, adding that they would proceed to the airport in the morning.
“The first set has arrived at the Aswan border in Egypt but the border is already closed. They will leave early in the morning and then proceed to the airport,” the tweet read partly.
This was as the Federal Government on Thursday said that the Nigerian Air Force, Air Peace and other airlines had received clearance to fly to Egypt to pick up stranded Nigerians.
This was contained in a joint press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development on the evacuation of Nigerians caught up in the ongoing crisis in Sudan.
The statement said, “Nigerian Mission in Egypt is liaising with the Egyptian authorities to facilitate the evacuation exercise, by providing emergency entry documents and holding shelters, until the stranded Nigerian are airlifted back to Nigeria.
“The Nigerian Air Force, Air Peace and other Airlines have received clearance to fly to Egypt. The NAF C-130H is scheduled to leave Abuja tomorrow, 28th April, 2023 to commence the airlifting of the evacuees.”