The Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah led by Consul General Edgar Tomas Q. Auxilian, together with the Officers and Staff of the Consulate and the Migrant Workers Office in Jeddah met and greeted another batch of 10 Filipino evacuees (including one infant) who arrived at the King Faisal Naval Base and the King Abdullah Air Base on 27 April 2023 form the Port Sudan, Sudan.
The said evacuees, albeit distressed, appeared to be in good health. They were provided by the Philippine Consulate General with cash assistance and care packages, as well as assistance with respect to their travel documents, border entries, exit visas among others. The said evacuees were repatriated to the Philippines on 29 April 2023.
During the welcoming of the evacuees at the King Faisal Naval Base in Jeddah, one of the evacuees, Ms. Florenda Cantire Villarino (upper left in the photo above), immediately ran fast towards Consul General Auxilian while profusely crying with joy. Unmindful of the Saudi military guards, she crossed the cordon running towards ConGen Auxilian. She was in great relief and expressed her thanks for being alive, and for the Consulate General’s help in bringing her out of Sudan to Jeddah. The evacuees brought by Saudi naval boat to the King Faisal Naval Base were composed of various nationalities and Ms. Villarino was the lone Filipino national.
Another evacuee, Mr. Nuhman Sahilluh Again (lower left in the above photo), narrated his harrowing experience saying that he was injured when he encountered a group of Sudanese in Khartoum who attacked him and wanted to extort or rob him at the height of the unrest. Fortunately, he only suffered a small wound in his head which was hit by something pointed, perhaps a block of wood with a nail, as well as a wound in his chin. He eventually managed to escape from Khartoum, along with his fellow Thais students, in going to Port Sudan. Mr. Again stated that he is a doctoral student studying Islamic Law in an International University in Sudan. Upon arrival in Jeddah and while at the naval base, Consul General Auxilian personally sought the assistance of the resident Saudi doctor to check the health condition. Mr. Again appeared to be generally in good physical and mental condition.
The Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah is continually monitoring and providing assistance to other prospective Filipino evacuees stranded at Port Sudan. On 27 April, the Philippine Consulate General deployed a three-member team to Port Sudan to assist on the ground in providing consular and welfare assistance, and in facilitating their immediate evacuation to Jeddah.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Department of Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Philippines.
