The fifth and final Air Peace evacuation flight bringing Nigerians home from South Africa has landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, marking the conclusion of the Federal Government’s emergency repatriation exercise following weeks of xenophobic attacks and security concerns in parts of South Africa.
The aircraft, which departed Johannesburg at 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday, touched down in Lagos at approximately 11:30 a.m. with 315 returnees on board, bringing to a close an airlift operation coordinated by the Federal Government in collaboration with Air Peace and relevant agencies.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, who announced the final flight in a statement on Tuesday, said the returnees were among Nigerians who voluntarily indicated interest in coming home following the recent wave of xenophobic violence.
“The Air Peace-operated flight marks the conclusion of the Federal Government’s evacuation of Nigerians who indicated interest in returning home following the recent xenophobic attacks and security concerns in parts of South Africa,” Ebienfa said.
The Federal Government had earlier conducted four evacuation flights before Wednesday’s final operation.
According to the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, four Air Peace flights conveyed 258, 266, 262 and 282 returnees, respectively, while a ValueJet flight brought back 66 Nigerians, bringing the total number of returnees before Wednesday’s flight to 1,174.
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With the 315 returnees on board Wednesday’s flight, the total number of Nigerians evacuated from South Africa under the Federal Government’s programme now stands at 1,489.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting Nigerians wherever they reside and expressed appreciation to Air Peace and all agencies that supported the evacuation exercise.
