A coalition of Nigerian youth leaders and political parties has given South Africans living in Nigeria thirty days to leave the country, a demand announced at a news conference in Abuja and reported on Channels Television. The groups framed the call as a direct reaction to the anti-immigrant protests and attacks that have targeted foreigners, including Nigerians, in South Africa in recent days.
Speaking on behalf of the youth of the country, the organisers said the measure with which their compatriots had been treated in South Africa would be applied to South Africans and their businesses in Nigeria if they did not leave by the end of July 2026. The statement was that of the youth leaders and political groups and did not represent the position of the Nigerian government, which has continued to pursue diplomatic and consular channels.
The ultimatum came as the federal government pressed ahead with the evacuation of Nigerians affected by the unrest in South Africa. According to the authorities, 593 nationals have already been brought home, while about 700 more who have voluntarily registered, been screened and cleared are awaiting evacuation, with a further batch set to be airlifted on an Air Peace flight.
In a statement attributed to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the government said all the special evacuation flights had been fully paid for by the federal government and were being carried out at no cost to the returnees. The ministry said the operation underscored the priority accorded to the protection of Nigerian citizens overseas.
The ministry also moved to debunk reports and allegations that some staff of the Nigerian missions in South Africa had been requesting money from nationals before enlisting them for the evacuation flights. It described such claims as untrue and reaffirmed that registration and clearance for the flights were free for those who qualified.
In South Africa, the authorities have defended the manner in which the protests were handled. The acting national police commissioner, Tebello Mosikili, was quoted as saying that South Africans had exercised their constitutional rights and that the overwhelming majority had done so within the bounds of the law, even as foreign nationals reported being chased and attacked.
At the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, where correspondents have been monitoring the situation, many of those preparing to leave said they had been forced to sell their belongings and abandon their businesses in order to run for safety. Community representatives appealed to the federal government to arrange more flights, noting that large numbers of people, including more than two hundred children, were still waiting to be taken home.