2000 Ethiopians evacuated from Sudan amid disease fears
November 23, 2014 (EL-DABBA) – Sudanese authorities and popular bodies have evacuated two thousands Ethiopian nationals from the locality of El-Dabba in the Northern state following discovery of several Hepatitis and AIDS cases among them.
The commissioner of El-Dabba locality, Isam Abdel-Rahman, told Sudan Tribune that the security committee in the state conducted a random medical examination for several foreigners, saying 6 of the 15 Ethiopian nationals who were examined tested positive for Hepatitis C.
He added that another sample containing 54 Ethiopian nationals showed that 5 of them tested positive for the disease, saying they decided to transfer them to the capital, Khartoum and hand them over to the police department of passports and immigration to take the necessary action.
A source within the popular body El-Dabba Development Authority said the random examination revealed that 12 Ethiopians are infected with Hepatitis C while 2 others have tested positive for AIDS, pointing that residents of El-Dabba embarked on collecting signatures to remove foreigners from the locality.
The commissioner said that nearly 2000 foreigners had left the locality, adding there are only 10 foreigners currently residing in El-Dabba.
Eyewitnesses told Sudan Tribune that dozens of Ethiopians were seen leaving El-Dabba locality to Khartoum, saying that few of them are waiting to sell their household appliance before they leave.
The commissioner further pointed the local authorities put in place new measures requiring undergoing medical examination before hiring any foreigner worker.
Sudanese towns have recently seen large influx of illegal Ethiopian workers who enter the country through the porous border with Ethiopia.
(ST)