He added that the eight, with seven Angolans and one Lesotho national, are safe at the Egyptian border.
“They have not been abandoned. Evacuations are never easy or without challenges. The important thing was to get people out of harm's way. Saudi Arabia has also agreed to receive SA nationals who made it to Port Sudan.
“Arrangements are being made. This is not an easy operation logistically. There are many nationals of other countries all desperately trying to get out.
“People are hungry and desperate, tired and deprived of sleep, but we must get the job done. The goal remains to ensure that everyone comes home safely.”
The government has been evacuating South Africans from Sudan since Monday.
Eight South Africans stuck at Egypt border without travel documents
Department of international relations & co-operation 'doing all it can' to assist South Africans without documentation who have been refused entry into Egypt
Image: Maxar Technologies/Handout via Reuters
The department of international relations & cooperation (Dirco) says it is doing all it can to ensure eight South Africans who have been refused entry into Egypt receive assistance.
They are part of a group evacuated from war-torn Sudan and are not allowed into Egypt as they don't have travel documents.
“These people were fleeing from a war, so they probably left the documents behind. We are negotiating with the Egyptian government to allow them entry, but we are also trying to arrange temporary documents for them,” said Dirco's head of public diplomacy Clayson Monyela.
He added that the eight, with seven Angolans and one Lesotho national, are safe at the Egyptian border.
“They have not been abandoned. Evacuations are never easy or without challenges. The important thing was to get people out of harm's way. Saudi Arabia has also agreed to receive SA nationals who made it to Port Sudan.
“Arrangements are being made. This is not an easy operation logistically. There are many nationals of other countries all desperately trying to get out.
“People are hungry and desperate, tired and deprived of sleep, but we must get the job done. The goal remains to ensure that everyone comes home safely.”
The government has been evacuating South Africans from Sudan since Monday.
Evacuation plan for South Africans in Sudan is 'far advanced'
Monyela said a family — a husband and wife and their three children — are still stuck in Sudan as they are in a far-flung area. He added that three women who work for an airline are also still in the country.
“We are busy with arrangements to get to them today [Wednesday]. There's another bus fetching foreigners today and they'll be accommodated,” he said.
Monyela could not confirm when the first group of people evacuated from Sudan will land in the country due to the complexity of the evacuation operation.
TimesLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending
Related articles
Latest Videos