APA-Pretoria (South Africa) Some 22 South Africans who managed to escape from war-torn Sudan are stranded in Egypt awaiting a rescue mission to enable them reach home, head of a humanitarian charity said on Monday.
Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman said he had received an alert from the stranded South Africans in Egypt asking for help – just days after what was thought to be the last batch of 51 South Africans evacuated from the war-torn country arrived home on Sunday.
“The process of evacuating South Africans from Sudan is not over yet. Gift of the Givers received a call from a group of 22 South Africans caught up in Safaga port in Egypt,” Sooliman said.
According to him, the stranded South Africans went by boat from Port Sudan to Safaga port in Egypt.
“The boat was chartered by the company that had employed the South Africans for a project that started in September last year – with just two more weeks left for completion when the war started,” Sooliman said.
He said the South Africans have been waiting in that boat in Egypt for the last three days for clearance so they could catch a flight from Cairo to South Africa.
“Unfortunately, they have had to postpone the flight due to lack of travel documents,” Sooliman said.
International Relations Ministry spokesperson Clayson Monyela said he was aware of the stranded South Africans and his office had started activating a plan to bring them home.
NM/jn/APA