The Federal Government is set to evacuate 271 stranded Nigerians from South Africa on Monday amid growing concerns over potential xenophobic attacks targeting undocumented foreign nationals.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, an Air Peace aircraft will depart Nigeria at 3:00 p.m. on Monday, June 29, for the evacuation exercise. The flight is expected to arrive in South Africa at about 9:00 p.m. local time before departing at midnight for Lagos.

The Ministry’s spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, said the return flight is scheduled to land at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Tuesday morning with 271 evacuees.

The evacuation follows rising tensions in South Africa after anti-immigration vigilante groups issued a June 30 ultimatum demanding that undocumented foreign nationals, particularly black Africans, leave the country. The threats have raised fears of renewed xenophobic violence, prompting several African countries to begin evacuating their citizens.

Although South African authorities have condemned the threats and deployed security personnel nationwide to maintain law and order, Nigeria has proceeded with the evacuation as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of its citizens.