Search
  1. Home
  2. West Africa
  3. Nigeria

Ship refugees seek asylum

    ABIDJAN

    Most of the former passengers of a Swedish-registered ship which landed in Nigeria just over a week ago are seeking asylum there, UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond said in Geneva on Friday. Following initial interviews by UNHCR last week there were indications that a large number want to stay in Nigeria, Redmond reported.

    The MV Alnar Stockholm was carrying 156 people, mostly Liberians, when it arrived in Nigeria following nearly four weeks at sea. The ship, which left Monrovia on 1 June, was denied entry by the authorities in Ghana, Togo and Benin before Nigeria decided on humanitarian grounds to allow it to dock in Lagos on 24 June.

    The passengers left the ship two days after it docked and received assistance from UNHCR and other relief agencies at the port. They were given medical examinations and their overall condition was deemed satisfactory, UNHCR said. Food, water, blankets and tools were distributed and they were taken by bus to Oru refugee camp, some 120 km west of Lagos, UNHCR said.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join