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Tag: Libya

  • FG commences mass evacuation of Nigerians stranded in Libya

    FG commences mass evacuation of Nigerians stranded in Libya

    A Federal Government Delegation has arrived Libya to commence mass evacuation of Nigerians stranded in the North African country home.

    Mr Sani Datti, the Head of Media and Public Relations, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) made this known in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

    Datti said the delegation was led by Mr Geoffrey Onyema, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, accompanied by the Director-General of NEMA, Engr Mustapha Maihaja and other heads of relevant agencies.

    Datti said that the delegation arrived Tripoli, on Wednesday ahead of the actual evacuation operation expected to commence on Friday to transport stranded Nigerians with two indigenous carriers engaged for the exercises.

    “A total of 5, 037 stranded citizens have been identified for evacuation home.

    “The Nigerian mission in Libya is coordinating the identification of the Nigerian migrants with the support of the International Organisation for Migration.

    “They are being joined by a technical team for the evacuation exercise comprising representatives of all relevant agencies.

    “A reception centre has been established in Port Harcourt where the returnees on their arrival would be formally received and profiled before being transported to their various states,” Datti said.

    He said that the evacuation exercises was being led by the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and coordinated by the National Emergency Management Agency with the involvement of all the relevant agencies.

    Datti said that among the delegation are; Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, the Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Mrs Julie Okah-Donli, the Director-General, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking.

    Others are, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Comptroller-General, Nigerian Immigration Service, Mr Muhammadu Babandede, and representatives of other security agencies.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the evacuation exercise was in line with the directives of President Muhammadu Buhari to evacuate all Nigerian nationals stranded in Libya and other countries.

  • Govt delegation in Libya to evacuate trapped Nigerians

    Govt delegation in Libya to evacuate trapped Nigerians

    The Federal Government’s special delegation, led by Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama, is in Tripoli, the Libyan capital to evacuate Nigerians trapped in that country.

    The Head, Press and Public Relations of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Mr Josiah Emerole said the delegation left the country yesterday.

    Emerole said the “others members are the Director-General, NAPTIP, Julie Okah-Donli, and Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Senior Special Assistant to the President of Diaspora Matters,’’ he said.

    He said that the delegation departed the Presidential wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Wednesday at 9:20a.m on-board the Nigeria Air Force Flight N5FGS.

    According to him, facts finding mission on the level of the enslavement of Nigerians in that country would be part of their engagements in Libya.

    He said that they would also engage the Libyan Authorities, Nigerian officials and Nigeria citizens living there, as well as International organisations working on migration issues in Libya.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that following reports of the enslavement of Nigerian Migrants in Libya, President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the evacuation of all Nigerians trapped in the country back home.

    The President also set up a team led by the Foreign Affairs Minister to work out modalities for carrying out the mass evacuation.

    Since then, some high level meetings have been held among various Federal Government Agencies with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, presiding.

    Emerole quoted the NAPTIP’s Director-General as saying that, “the Agency is ready to assist victims of human trafficking who will be returning to Nigeria to get properly reintegrated back into the Nigerian Society.

    ’”Our Counsellors are fully ready to receive the returnees and give them the needed psycho-social assistance for proper reintegration into the society.

    “We will also help them with all the necessary tools to sustain themselves including vocational training and education assistance.

    “This will be done with assistance from Government, Corporate bodies and the international organisations.

    “This is not the time for anybody to stand aloof and watch the Federal Government to do it alone; all hands must be on deck now.  Doing nothing will affect all of us,” she said.

  • Nigeria will be prosperous, says Osun lawmaker

    Nigeria will be prosperous, says Osun lawmaker

    A member of the Osun House of Assembly, Mr Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has called on Nigerians to renew their hope and trust in the imperative of  a prosperous nation.

    Oyintiloye ( APC-Obokun ) also said on Wednesday in Osogbo that there was the need to re-awaken the consciousness of nation building and self-esteem among Nigerians.

    The lawmaker, who spoke against the backdrops of gross abuse and maltreatment of  Nigerians in Libya, said the creation of a  conducive environment, transparency and good governance  would fast-track restoration of hope and inspire a sense of nationhood in the country.

    Oyintiloye, who noted that the dehumanisation of Nigerians outside the country was  unfortunate, said lack of trust and faith in the system had led to  forced immigration.

    Read also: ‘Osun is second wealthiest state in Nigeria’

    The lawmaker, who is the House  Committee Chairman on Information and Strategy, urged Nigerians, especially the youths, to “ resist the temptation of squandering their future for a morsel of bread.’’

    He said there were  enormous potentials and vast opportunities in the country  if properly harnessed.

    While calling on Nigerians  to take advantage of  the numerous government programmes, Oyintiloye enjoined government at all levels to intensify efforts on initiatives  that would lead to job creation and improved  productivity  in the country.

    NAN

  • UN repatriated 19,370 illegal immigrants from Libya in 2017

    UN repatriated 19,370 illegal immigrants from Libya in 2017

    The UN International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has repatriated  19,370 illegal immigrants from Libya in 2017, an IOM official said yesterday.

    “The programme helped 19,370 illegal immigrants return to their countries of origin in 2017 by airlifting them to the capitals of those countries,” Juma Ben-Hassan, coordinator of the IOM Voluntary Return Program in Libya, told Xinhua.

    “The immigrants assisted by the organization to return to their countries are of 27 African and Asian nationalities,” Ben-Hassan added.

    The IOM and the Libyan authorities launched a humanitarian repatriation program to return immigrants detained in Libyan shelters to their countries of origin.

    Libya, which suffers insecurity and chaos, is a major departure point for illegal immigrants hoping to cross the Mediterranean toward European shores.

    Immigration officials said the number of illegal immigrants in Libya currently reaches 700,000.

    In 2006, the IOM and the Libyan authorities launched a humanitarian program to repatriate immigrants stranded in Libyan shelters to their own countries.

    Libya has become a preferred departure point for illegal immigrants hoping to cross the Mediterranean into Europe, because of insecurity and chaos in the North African country following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi.

  • Max Air to evacuate 3,184 Nigerians from Libya

    Max Air to evacuate 3,184 Nigerians from Libya

    Max Air Ltd. has sealed a deal with the Federal government to evacuate 3,184 of the 5,037 Nigerians expected to return from Libya.

    The airline’s spokesman Alhaji Ibrahim Dahiru said in Kano yesterday that the contract agreement was signed between the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the representative of the airline Malam Shehu Wada.

    “With this development, Max Air is expected to operate six flights to bring in 3,184 Nigerians from Libya, using its large fleet of Boeing 747-400 series aircraft,” he said adding that recently, Niger Republic engaged the Airline to evacuate over 5, 000 Nigeriens which it did successfully.

    He added: “Max Air Ltd. has also been the leading Airline in Hajj and Umrah Operations in the last 11 years in Nigeria.

    “The airline has also been involved in the evacuation of Nigerians from Libya and Egypt recently as well as the movement of many Nigerians, especially sports men and women and military personnel.”

    According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Federal Government appointed the Med-View Airline also through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), to participate in the evacuation of 5,037 Nigerians from Libya.

    The Airline’s Executive Director, Business Development and Commercial, Mr Isiaq Na’Allah, and Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, the spokesman of NEMA, South-West Zone, confirmed the development in Lagos on Saturday.

    The agreement was signed between the parties on Friday in Abuja. It is expected to facilitate the smooth repatriation of Nigerians from the volatile North African country.

    The agreement was signed on behalf of the airline by Na’ Allah, while the Director-General of NEMA, Alhaji Mustapha Maihaja and Mrs Fatima Bukar, a Senior Legal Officer of NEMA, signed on behalf of the agency.

  • Medview Airlines appointed for evacuation of 5,037 Nigerians from Libya

    The federal government has appointed Med-View Airline to participate in the evacuation of 5,037 Nigerians facing social challenges of various degrees in the Northern African country, Libya.

    An agreement to that effect was signed at the Nigeria Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) headquarters in Abuja on December 29 between the two organisations to facilitate the  smooth airlifting of Nigerians out of the troubled zone.

    Med-View will be participating in the airlifting of 5,037 evacuees with another Nigerian carrier.

    “This kind of responsibility is meant for Nigerian carriers, because it’s our responsibility and we have the capacity to carry out this operation. We have demonstrated the capacity that we can do it and we are honoured to have been appointed by the federal government through NEMA”, said Med-View’s Executive Director, Business Development and Commercial, Mr. Isiaq Na’Allah who participated in the signing of the agreement.

    “It is a known fact that Med-View Airline has been in operations for the past 10 years. We do Hajj operations and we do it successfully and the record is there for everybody to see, that is a factor I think the government considered before we are assigned this national project. We will deliver professionally up to international standard and the government is not making any mistake for entrusting Nigerian carrier to this kind of project.”

    NEMA’s Director-General, Mustapha Maihaja; Fatima Bukar, a Senior Legal Officer to NEMA; Med-View’s Executive Director, Business Development and Commercials, Mr. Isiaq Na’Allah and Med-View Corporate Affairs Officer, Johnson Omole, participated in the signing of the agreement.

    Recently, President Muhammadu Buhari constituted a 17-man fact finding committee to aid the evacuation process of 5,037 Nigerians. The 17-man team is headed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama.

    Members of the team includes Comptroller-General of Immigration, Mohammed Babandede; NEMA Director-General, Mustapha Maihaja; Senior Special Assistant to the President on the Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa; National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) Director-General, Julie Okah-Donli; National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouq; amongst others.

    The federal government has also established a Reception Centre in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, to be managed by the Zonal Coordinator of NEMA, to receive the 5, 037 returnees.

    News Agency of Nigeria – Subscription Service

  • Italy to deploy 470 troops to tackle traffickers in Niger

    Italy to deploy 470 troops to tackle traffickers in Niger

    Italy aims to deploy up to 470 troops to Niger to help tackle traffickers, the military General Staff said.

    Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on December 24 that some of the 1,400 Italian troops now stationed in Iraq could be transferred to the Sahel region in West Africa, which includes Niger, after victories against Islamist militants in Iraq.

    Gentiloni said the redeployed troops could also help to combat terrorism in the Sahel.

    The military said in a statement that a reconnaissance mission was underway in Niger to help decide the scale of the assistance, which the African country’s government has requested but which still needs to be approved by Italy’s parliament.

    The general staff said if the necessary approval is given, Italy would aim to gradually send up to 470 troops, probably posting an average of 250 over the course of a year.

    Read also: Dogara leads Nigerian delegation  to Italy over Human Trafficking

    “The aim of the mission is to increase the operational capacity of the Niger forces and put them in a position to guarantee stability in the area and fight illegal trafficking of migrants,” the military added.

    Italy’s president dissolved parliament on Thursday ahead of an election due in March, but lawmakers will continue to meet, and could approve Gentiloni’s request to transfer the personnel.

    Italy is especially keen to help tackle the people-smuggling gangs because it has borne the brunt of seaborne illegal migration to Europe from Africa.

    No fewer than 600,000 people have made the perilous journey across the central Mediterranean from Libya in the past four years.

    Arrivals have fallen sharply since officials working for the UN-backed government in Tripoli persuaded smugglers to stop boats leaving and the Libyan coastguard stepped up interceptions at sea.

    (Reuters/NAN)

  • More than 25,000 Nigerians held in slave and sex camps Libya in 2017

    More than 25,000 Nigerians held in slave and sex camps Libya in 2017

    The Director General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons(NAPTIP), Julie Okah-Donli, has disclosed that more than 25,000 Nigerians have been held in slave and sex camps in Libya.
    Okah-Donli made this known while defending the agency’s 2018 budget before the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters on Tuesday.
    She said of the figure,  about 5000 of the victims were repatriated within the period.
    ”A large number of Nigerians have also been returned from other countries in Europe and Africa.
    ”All these people need to be properly received, profiled and assisted.
    ”NAPTIP has been working in conjunction  with other governmental and non governmental agencies such as NEMA, International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and others to provide help to these unfortunate Nigerians,”she said.
    She lamented  that in spite of the evils of human trafficking not so much attention was focused on the menace.
    She said the recent trend which marked the resurgence of slave trade was more alarming and required the attention it deserved.
    According to her, the task before the agency is  enormous while budgetary allocations have been comparatively low.
    ”It is my honour and privilege to raise a cry for help in this hallowed chamber on behalf of the most vulnerable members of the society, especially women and children.
    ”In recent months the odious and perverse consequences of human trafficking and irregular migration were forcefully brought to our television screens with gory tales,”she said.
    She said if human trafficking was to be reduced or eliminated, massive public awareness as well as behavourial change campaigns must be sustained from the grassroots to the national level.
    The NAPTIP boss further said many victims of trafficking needed to undergo skills acquisition training or formal education.
    The NAPTIP bossm however, commended the Federal Government and other stakeholders for their support in the wake of recent slave trade of Africans.
     ”I wish to place on record my deep appreciation to President Muhammad Buhari for consistently putting the issue of human trafficking at the centre of global discourse at various international fora.
    ”In the aftermath of the recent crisis stemming from the inhuman treatment of  Nigerians in Libya and elsewhere, both the Presidency and National Assembly came out strongly with statements band actions to to strengthen national response to irregular migration, ”she said. (NAN)
  • NEMA receives another batch of 167 from Libya

    NEMA receives another batch of 167 from Libya

    The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) yesterday received 167 stranded Nigerians from Libya, bringing the number of Nigerians brought back to the country in the last four days to 532.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Boeing 737-800 aircraft, marked 5A-DMH, arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at 7:47p.m.

    The returnees were brought back by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the European Union (EU).

    They comprised of 21 women, 145 men and a child.

    NEMA’s Director-General Mustapha Maihajja, who received the returnees confirmed that three of them had medical cases and were promptly given treatment by doctors and paramedics.

    Maihajja, who was represented by the Southwest Zonal Coordinator of NEMA,  Suleiman Yakubu, said two of the returnees were now in stable condition, while the third person had been referred to hospital for further treatment.

    He advised the returnees to acquire vocational skills or further their education to contribute their quota to national development.

    Also on hand to receive the returnees were officials of Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Police.

     

     

     

  • Protest over maltreatment of Nigerians in Libya

    Members of the Neo Black Movement (NBM) of Africa, Northern Region, have protested over Nigerians who are being sold into slavery in Libya.

    At the rally, which took place at the UNITY Fountain, Abuja, the group condemned the killings and the slave trade in Libya.

    Addressing reporters, its Northern Regional President, Chief Duncan Amadi, called on the government to create an enabling environment for development in the country to forestall the influx of people to Libya.

    He urged the Libyan government to remember the advocacy of its late leader, Moamar Ghadaffi, on the need for a United Africa, and that this could be achieved if all Africans, irrespective of colour, were treated based on the principles of social justice and equality.

    He reminded the Libyan authorities that Africans are stronger if they live in peace and unity. He called for the eradication of the slave trade in Libya and that all those culpable should be brought to justice.

    Amadi also advised Africans who are fleeing their countries, to stay and learn a trade that would be useful to themselves and family.

    In response, operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS) and the police who received the protesters  thanked them for conducting themselves peacefully and promised to communicate the group’s concerns to the appropriate quarters. They urged them to hang the association’s banner at the Unity Fountain so that people could read and get our message.

    Relatedly, a similar protest also held in Victoria Island, Lagos at the weekend. The members of the group marched from Four Point by Sheraton Junction to the old Libyan Embassy at Landmark Events Centre to Etim Inyang Crescent back to their take off point.

    Its National Legal Adviser Chief Hope Aliyu also reiterated the injustice meted to Nigerians in the African country, urging for a stop and for the Federal Government to assist those who were maltreated.