The Nigerian government has finally initiated plans to evacuate its citizens from Lebanon, amidst the escalating crisis in the country. This decision comes after a multi-stakeholder meeting was convened by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to receive updates on the situation of Nigerians in Lebanon .
Lebanon’s crisis has taken a devastating turn, with large-scale cross-border attacks in September 2024 resulting in over 1,000 deaths and 6,352 injuries in just two weeks, as reported by the International Organisation for Migration.
This brought the total number of fatalities to more than 1,800, with 9,100 injured since the conflict intensified in October 2023.
IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix reported that as of September 30, 2024, 346,209 people had been internally displaced, including over 31,000 families (137,000 individuals) living in 820 collective shelters.
Additionally, more than 175,000 Lebanese and Syrians have fled to Syria.
NEMA, in its statement, said it was coordinating the evacuation process, which has commenced with the mobilization of Nigerian citizens and would soon proceed with the necessary steps to bring them home.
“The leader of the Nigerian community, through a telephone conversation acknowledged the support by the Nigerian Mission in Lebanon especially in their safe movement out of high-risk areas, adding that no Nigerian life has been lost so far,” the statement read.
Nigerians willing to be evacuated are advised to report to the Nigerian Embassy in Beirut for profiling ahead of the airlift.
