163 Malaysians Arrive On First Evacuation Flight From West Asia

SEPANG, March 11 (Bernama) -- A total of 163 Malaysians stranded in several West Asian countries arrived home at 12.32 pm today on the country’s first evacuation flight.

According to the Foreign Ministry, the group comprised umrah pilgrims in Saudi Arabia as well as Malaysians in Qatar, Jordan and Syria, who were affected by flight schedule disruptions and airspace closures in the region.

The chartered Malaysia Airlines flight MH8503 for the Operation to Evacuate Malaysians from the West Asia Conflict Zone, which departed from Jeddah early this morning, also carried seven non-citizen family members comprising five Thai nationals, one Indonesian and one Moroccan national.

The passengers were seen exiting the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1 Arrival Hall at 1.45 pm, greeted by family members who had been waiting since early morning.

The operation to bring Malaysians home was coordinated by the National Security Council under the directive of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, ensuring immediate measures were taken to safeguard the safety and welfare of citizens in the conflict zone.

The Airbus A330-300 had departed KLIA at 4.10 pm on Tuesday and safely landed at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah at 8.35 pm local time.

The mission was allotted only a short window by local authorities in Jeddah for passenger pick-up before the flight returned to Malaysia.

Media personnel from the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) and Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) joined the repatriation flight.

Tensions in West Asia have escalated since Feb 28 following a series of Israeli and United States attacks on Iran, followed by Tehran’s retaliatory strikes on Israel and US interests in the Gulf region.

-- BERNAMA