As Russia bombarded key cities in Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of civilians attempted to leave the country. Many were welcomed by neighboring governments in Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova, and Romania. But according to multiple reports, some nonwhite people fleeing Ukraine, including Nigerians and Indians, were prevented from escaping the war zone.
Around 20 percent of Ukraine’s foreign students are Africans. Moroccans make up the largest group with 8,000 students, Nigerians are second with 4,000 and Egyptians are third with 3,500. In one video viewed over two million times, a crowd of Nigerian students can be seen pleading with armed border guards. Some kneel on the ground shouting, “We are students. We don’t have arms.”
