Nigeria Issues Final Evacuation Call As Xenophobic Attacks Persist In South Africa
With two Nigerian lives already lost and no sign of an improvement in security, the Federal Government has issued a final call to citizens at risk in South Africa to leave while evacuation flights remain available.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said another government-chartered flight will depart for Johannesburg on Tuesday, 7 July, while the final evacuation flight is expected in South Africa on 10 July.
The warning follows the deaths of Musa Yunana Joe and Charles Iroegbu amid ongoing xenophobic protests and attacks on migrants.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu urged Nigerians still undecided about leaving to carefully consider the risks, warning that distress calls after the evacuation exercise ends may come too late.
“Properties and investments lost can be replaced, but not lives lost,” she said.
The Federal Government has also demanded an urgent investigation by South African authorities and the prosecution of those responsible for the deaths.
President Bola Tinubu had extended the evacuation exercise beyond the initial 30 June deadline, with the fourth flight arriving in Nigeria on 3 July.
The government reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the safety and welfare of Nigerians abroad.
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