Source: Africa Publicity
Nigeria has repatriated the first batch of its citizens from South Africa amid ongoing xenophobic attacks.
The group of 268 Nigerians arrived in Lagos on Thursday, June 11, 2026.
They touched down at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport around 10:30 am. They were brought from South Africa on board Air Peace.
Initially, the repatriation was supposed to start on Monday but was moved to Wednesday due to documentation delays.
More than 1,000 Nigerians are said to have expressed interest in returning home.
Nigeria’s Foreign Minister, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, says on Monday that the “numbers keep increasing” after Nigeria’s high commission in Pretoria stated it had “negotiated waivers with host authorities” so that those with “immigration-related offences” would be allowed to leave on the eventual repatriation flights rather than be detained.
Screening for interested nationals began last Thursday and was set to conclude on Saturday.
But in a statement on Wednesday, the ministry of foreign affairs said the screening exercise had been extended to Sunday “to accommodate more persons”.
