The United States (US) on Friday said that it was evacuating families but not diplomats from Abuja due to a security threat, clarifying an earlier statement.
According to a State Department statement issued Thursday, the US has ordered the departure of families as well as non-emergency personnel from Abuja, stepping up precautions following an earlier warning to US citizens.
The State Department clarified on Friday that the order to leave only applied to family members and that non-essential workers were given the option but were not required to leave.
“The Department of State made the decision to recommend ordered departure for (family members) in Abuja out of an abundance of caution related to an elevated risk of terror attacks in Nigeria,” a department spokesperson said.
The threat’s specifics have not been disclosed, but Nigeria has been on high alert since Sunday after the United States and several other Western nations issued travel warnings.
Nigerian security forces are primarily fighting jihadist fighters in the country’s northeast, but Islamic State-affiliated militants have claimed several recent attacks near the capital.
The US has also warned of the possibility of a terror attack in South Africa, prompting authorities there to insist that a series of weekend events be adequately protected.
The US asks embassies to send out security alerts at the same time it warns its embassy personnel, arguing that it is unfair not to provide the same information to private US citizens.
