According to the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), a total of 2,518 Nigerians have been evacuated from Sudan to their home country, Nigeria.

Abdur-Rahman Balogun, the NIDCOM head of Media, Public Relations, and Protocols Unit, stated this in Abuja on Sunday, May 14, while providing an update on the evacuation exercise.

The evacuation process began on Wednesday, April 26, when stranded Nigerians embarked on the journey from Khartoum, the Sudan capital, to Egypt via chartered buses.

Speaking on the development, Balogun said, ”As of today being Sunday, this is where we are with the evacuation exercise.

“The evacuation is done through a total number of 15 flights, with four from Aswan, Egypt and 11 from Port Sudan.

“As I said earlier, a total of 2,371 evacuees have safely returned home as of Saturday, May 13.

“The new arrivals just now are 140 adults, comprising three infants and 30 children, making a total evacuation to 2,518″.

The Nigerian government has been evacuating its citizens, largely, from Sudan after fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The Sudanese military, under army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, have been fighting since April 15 with his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the heavily armed paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Hundreds of people have been killed, thousands wounded and nearly a million displaced by the fighting.

On Saturday, Sudan launched a call to the international community, including the United Nations, the African Union, and other regional organisations, “to provide humanitarian assistance” to the embattled country.

The government said it was committed to “dedicating the port and airports of Port Sudan” on the Red Sea, Dongola airport in the country’s north and Wadi Seidna air base near the capital “to receive aid”.

i-News Nigeria