EKO HOT BLOG reports that a group of Nigerian students who fled Sudan due to the ongoing unrest are currently stranded in the desert with no way to escape.
With a temporary ceasefire in effect for three days, nations are scrambling to evacuate their citizens from Sudan.
On Wednesday, the Nigerian government said N150m was released for hiring 40 buses to convey some Nigerians from Sudan to Cairo in Egypt, from where they would be airlifted to Nigeria.
But some of the students being evacuated to safety shared bitter experiences about the journey.
An affected student, who did not disclose her identity, said the drivers have vowed not to continue the journey owing to lack of funds.
“Before we started this journey, we experienced different things. Can you believe that we have been stuck in this desert for 5 hours. We don’t know the situation we are in.
“We don’t have water. Our money has finished. Can you imagine? The drivers said they are not moving their buses because they have not been paid. We are stuck in the desert. We don’t have anything. We don’t even know where we are. We are in an unknown location and in a very big danger.”
Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), confirmed that the evacuation had begun.
Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Zubairu Dada, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, had said they wanted to utilise the 72-hour ceasefire to evacuate as many Nigerians in Sudan as possible.
About 5,500 Nigerians, including students, were stranded in Khartoum and other cities of Sudan as a result of the conflict.
Clashes broke out between erstwhile allies, General Abdel al-Burha, who heads the Sudanese Armed Forces and leader of the RSF paramilitary group, General Mohamed Dagalo, over a power-sharing disagreement.
The conflict had so far claimed about 500 lives, with thousands of others injured and millions displaced.
Foreigners are also fleeing Khartoum in a long-United Nations convoy while millions of frightened residents hunkered down inside their homes, many running low on water and food.
At the time of filing this report, the Federal Government is yet to react to the development.
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