A group of 22 South African nationals who were stranded on a boat in Egypt for days after fleeing from conflict-ridden Sudan have finally received a release order from Egyptian authorities.
The group contacted the Gift of the Givers Foundation on Monday and told the humanitarian organisation that they had been waiting on the boat for three days for clearance to catch a flight home from Cairo.
They received the release order late on Monday night.
Gift of the Givers Foundation founder Imtiaz Sooliman said they needed consular support to sign them off at Port Safaga.
“From there, they travel to Hurghada airport, fly to Cairo, Addis Ababa and Cape Town. If they have a problem with their flights, we will speak to the general manager of Ethiopian Airlines in Cape Town,” he said.
The group had been working in Sudan since September last year.
Sooliman said they were also considering the option of asking Ethiopian Airlines to fly Adam Young, who would have returned to South Africa, but stayed behind because he couldn’t take along his two Scottish terriers.
Sooliman said they were waiting for clearance from Egyptian veterinary authorities.
He added: “Clearance from OR Tambo veterinary services has already been granted.”
“Authorities have granted the group permission to disembark from the boat so they can continue their journey”, Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) spokesperson Clayson Monyela told News24.
“The lesson from this experience is private companies choose their travel arrangements for their employees. It is always beneficial to talk to the government because there are certain interventions that the government can only do.”
Monyela described the operation to evacuate South Africans as challenging.
On Sunday, the department welcomed a group of 53 evacuees home from Sudan, declaring it the final group of South Africans who were trapped in the conflict-torn country.
