Zambia first African nation to evacuate citizens from ‘restive’ Ethiopia

The Zambian government has become the first on the continent to evacuate its nationals out of Ethiopia over security concerns in that country.

The United Nations and a number of western governments have warned that there is a risk that the conflict in Ethiopia might descend into a full-blown civil war.

Earlier this week, the Zambian government-chartered an Ethiopian Airlines commercial aircraft in order to evacuate 31 of its citizens living in the capital, Addis Ababa.

The evacuation comes as Ethiopia teeters on the edge of outright civil war over the worsening conflict in the Tigray region.

President Hakainde Hichilema confirmed that he ordered the evacuation.

“Fellow Zambians, on my orders, we have today safely evacuated our fellow citizens from Ethiopia. We thank the Ethiopian authorities for their cooperation and everyone involved in this operation. We pray that the conflict in Ethiopia is resolved as soon as possible,” President Hichilema said.

He has since called on the African Union and the United Nations to work with the Ethiopian Authorities to quickly address the situation.

“We will remain fully engaged on the matter as a conflict-free Africa is good for everyone. For us, the life of our Zambian citizens matter wherever they are, we will do everything to get them home safely when faced with insecurity.”