ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Ethiopia Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) on Saturday announced the repatriation of 840 Ethiopian nationals who had been stranded in Saudi Arabia.
In a press statement issued Saturday, MoFA said the 840 Ethiopian nationals many of whom were serving long prison sentences were returned home in several batches earlier this week.
The 840 Ethiopian nationals were returned home through the coordinated effort from the Ethiopia Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UN migration agency, International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Saudi authorities.
The 840 Ethiopian nationals were given temporary accommodation and free medical service when they arrived at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport earlier this week.
The MoFA statement said the ministry is stepping up efforts to return home thousands of Ethiopians estimated to be living in precarious situations in various Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia.
Despite a growing economy and public awareness campaigns on the dangers of human trafficking by the Ethiopian government, it is estimated that thousands of Ethiopians are trafficked to Saudi Arabia as well as various other countries, where they are mainly engaged in the informal economy.
In addition to imprisonment and various other hurdles, desperate Ethiopian and other East African migrants also often encounter many deadly calamities as they attempt to cross the dangerous Red Sea route hoping to reach the Middle East via war-torn Yemen. They are mainly aiming at reaching Yemen's northern neighbor Saudi Arabia.
