Abdulrazak Abdulrahman Abubakar, President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in Diaspora has reached out to Nigerian students in crisis-ridden Sudan to remain indoors and assured them that help will come their way soon.
NANS in Diaspora in a statement signed by its President expressed concern about the rising conflict in Sudan, saying the impact, no doubt, has had a devastating impact on their studies and general well-being.
The statement read, “The National Association of Nigerian Students in Diaspora is deeply concerned about the escalation of Conflict in Sudan, and the impact it has on our students studying there.
“The leadership of NANS-Diaspora led by Comr. Abdulrazak Abubakar has been in contact with the Nigerian embassy in Sudan and has requested the evacuation of our students with immediate effect which they assured us of their intervention.
The NANS-Diaspora headquarter Zone has maintained regular contact with the NANS Sudan Representative to get a steady update on the progress of the evacuation and with the information that reach us is that the evacuation should have been done but the Federal government of Nigerian said they are waiting for a cease-fire to commence the evacuation.
“We advise all students to stay indoors and be rest assured that we are with them in prayers, and this shall pass soon, and we promise to continue keeping in touch with the respective quarter regarding the evacuation process.”
It could be recalled that the Federal Government, on Monday, confirmed that some Nigerian students fleeing the conflict in Sudan were denied entry into Ethiopia, but stated that the situation was being handled.
The government said Nigerian authorities in Ethiopia were addressing the issue, as they had sought clearance for the fleeing students, stressing that it was, however, risky for the students to have embarked on such a journey.
However, there are indications that the Nigerian government plans to get nearly 3,000 nationals, mostly students, out by convoy to Egypt this week.
On the list of countries that have evacuated their nationals are Saudi Arabia which led the first large-scale evacuations Saturday by sea for hundreds of Saudis and foreigners from more than 20 countries have been taken to the port city of Jeddah.
Other citizens rescued by the Saudi Arabian government include nearly 350 people including Palestinians, Iraqis, Syrians and Germans to a military airport in the kingdom, and on Monday announced “20 Jordanians arrived” aboard a German plane.
Egypt’s military last week evacuated 177 soldiers, and on Sunday said 436 citizens had left by land. More than 10,000 Egyptians are thought to live in Sudan.
Also, more than 50 Lebanese and 105 Libyans have left on a Saudi vessel just as Turkey began operations on Sunday, taking some of its estimated 600 nationals by road from Khartoum and elsewhere.
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, the Chad Republic, Kenya and Mauritania have evacuated their citizens and other distressed nationals of other countries fleeing the embattled country.
Uganda has evacuated more than 200 nationals on buses via Ethiopia, its ambassador told AFP.
A host of other foreign countries have rushed to evacuate their nationals from Sudan as deadly fighting raged into a second week between forces loyal to two rival generals.
Foreigners also fled the capital Khartoum in a long-United Nations convoy, while millions of frightened residents hunkered down inside their homes, many running low on water and food.
Across the city of five million, army and paramilitary troops have fought ferocious street battles since April 15, leaving behind charred tanks, gutted buildings and looted shops.
More than 420 people have been killed and thousands wounded, according to UN figures, amid fears of wider turmoil and a humanitarian disaster in one of the world’s poorest nations.
