Foreign News
FG Evaluates 3,000 Stranded Nigerians in 2 Months, says Citizens’ Welfare priority
Amb. Bolaji Akinremi, Director, Legal and Consular, Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the Federal Government has so far evacuated 3,000 Nigerians stranded abroad in two months.
Accirding to him, the welfare of Nigerians remains government’s top priority.
Akinremi made this known on Wednesday in Abuja when the Federal Government received another batch of 418 stranded Nigerians from Saudi Arabia at the FCT Hajj Camp, a temporary shelter for returnees.
Akinremi said the 418 returnees were among the three batch of stranded Nigerians that were evacuated from Saudi Arabia in one week.
He said that aside the evacuation, the Federal Government would be giving each of the returnees above 10 years of age #20 000 each for transportation back to their states and to aid their resettlement.
“This set of returnees from Saudi Arabia came in three batches. 255 came in on Monday, 398 came in on Tuesday and today the third batch of 418 have just arrived,
“They will be staying in this facility, the FCT Hajj camp which has been provided by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) for three days.
“In line with the COVID-19 protocols, the first day will be for arrival, the second day for COVID-19 testing and profiling while the third day would be to get their results and depart to their various states.
“The Federal Government beyond evacuation, has made provision for a new life for them. N20,000 will be given to adults and anyone above 10 years. This will help them for transportation and to start a little business.
“Within two months we have received 3,000 stranded Nigerians abroad and the Federal Government is doing everything possible to ensure no Nigerian outside the shores of the country is in crises”, Akinremi said.
Akinremi also explained that the evacuation process was not just focused on Saudi Arabia but across all countries where Nigerians were stranded.
He said that last week, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) also facilitated the return of 120 stranded Nigerians from Libya.
Mrs Imaan Suleiman-Ibrahim, Director-General, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) said the Nigerian government was keen on rescuing all trafficked and stranded citizens abroad.
Suleiman-Ibrahim said the profiling of the returnees by the Federal government would allow for proper planning of their resettlement and rehabilitation process.
She explained that the returnees consist of trafficked victims, willing participants who went to seek greener pastures abroad and some who were born in Saudi Arabia.
“Form January till now, we have been able to profile 1,250 returnees from Saudi Arabia, in March from Libya we profiled 117 and right now with the recent people coming back we have been able to profile 437.
“They have all been captured and this helps the government to be able to plan toward any future interventions to ensure that these people are being able to reintegrate into society properly and they are properly rehabilitated.
“I want to assure you that the government is doing all it can to ensure that these people are back home.
“There is no government that has made the most interventions like this government and we will continue to do our best,” Iman-Suleiman said.
Responding to concerns that some of the returnees do not look Nigerian, Iman-Suleiman said a few of the returnees were citizens of West African countries.
“During our profiling in January, out of 1,250 people, only five people were non-Nigerians and the ones that are non-Nigerians are from ECOWAS countries.
“And we make the right kind of arrangement to make sure they get home as well,” Iman-Suleiman said. (NAN)
Israel’s Army Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi has referred to October 7, 2023, as the day “when we failed in our mission to protect the citizens of the State of Israel.”
In a letter to Israeli soldiers marking the anniversary of the brutal attack on Israel, he wrote that “Oct.
7 is not only a day of remembrance, but also a call for deep introspection” and “a recognition of our failures and a commitment to learning from them. ”On October 7, 2023, terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups killed more than 1,200 people in Israel and abducted about 250 more as hostages to the Gaza Strip.
This triggered the Gaza war, in which, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority, some 42,000 Palestinians have been killed so far, mostly civilians.
Halevi said that Hamas’ military wing had been defeated, but that the fight against the organisation’s terrorist structures would continue.
With regard to the fighting against Hezbollah in Lebanon, he said that the militia had been dealt a serious blow.
“We will not stop,” Halevi emphasised.
“We are destroying our enemies’ capabilities, and we will ensure that these capabilities are not rebuilt, so that Oct. 7 is never repeated,” he added. (dpa/NAN)
UN humanitarians on Monday condemned Russian attacks on Sumy city in the northeast of Ukraine over the weekend that damaged a hospital.
Matthias Schmale, the top UN aid official in Ukraine, said that the Russian military strikes killed and injured several people. He insisted that health centres must not be targeted.
Local officials reported that nine had been killed in the twin drone strikes on the northeastern city close to the Russian border, with 12 injured and more than 120 evacuated for their own safety.
Schmale’s comments came amid continuing violence on Monday, including a reported wave of drone attacks on Kyiv and protective air defence manoeuvres launched in response, according to the Ukraine military.
Outside the capital, media indicated explosions as Russia launched drone and guided bombs attack on Zaporizhzhia that damaged railways and buildings, while in Russia, Ukrainian armed forces reportedly shelled the Belgorod region.
Meanwhile, authorities in Algeria were on Monday urged by top independent human rights experts to reverse a prison sentence handed down to a poet for supporting widespread protests against the Government.
Djamila Bentouis received a two-year prison sentence and 100,000 Algerian dinars fine (worth around $750) for participating in the Hirak social protest movement via her songs and poetry recitals.
Initial charges levelled against Bentouis accused her of belonging to a terrorist entity.
The Hirak demonstrations began in February 2019 – initially against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika – but evolved into demands for political reforms and other freedoms.
The independent experts who include Alexandra Xanthaki, Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, said that the criminal charges against Ms. Bentouis appeared “directly linked” to her wish to exercise her right to freedom of expression.
The experts – who are not UN staff and receive no salary for their work – also expressed their hope that Algeria “will abide by its international obligations to guarantee the right to freedom of expression” when the appeals court considers the case on Wednesday. (NAN)
At least 20 people died after Hurricane Helene slammed into the south-eastern United States as a dangerous Category 4 storm, before later weakening to a tropical depression by Friday afternoon.The deaths were reported in US media across the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida.
The governor of Georgia said at least 11 people had died in his state. Around 3 million people were without power across those states and beyond, with houses destroyed and entire communities flooded. There were fears that many people could still be trapped under collapsed and damaged buildings. Many roads across the region were not passable.The National Weather Service said Helene made landfall on the west coast of Florida as a Category 4 hurricane – the second highest category – but then began losing steam.The service had warned of “historic and catastrophic flooding,” and in some places on Friday the water was about 5 metres high. There were also threats of mudslides due to the extreme rain.Many victims were killed or injured by falling trees, while others died in their cars. In Florida, a woman drowned in her home, CNN reported.In North Carolina, authorities warned that a dam could break and urged nearby residents to move to safety.After pummelling the south-east, it began moving over the Appalachian mountains and affecting states like Tennessee and Virginia.Helene had already caused flooding and power outages in Cuba as it barrelled toward the U.S. (dpa /NAN)
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