The students will be evacuated from Egypt in a phased manner
within the next few days as nationwide protests against President Hosni Mubarak
gain momentum in Egypt.
The first two planes, carrying about 600 Malaysian students,
were expected in Jeddah early Friday.
"Jeddah will serve as a transit point for Malaysian
students," said Ahmad Husni A. Basri, spokesman for the Malaysian
Consulate in Jeddah, on Thursday. Ahmad thanked Saudi officials for their help
and providing all logistical support in facilitating the evacuation.
According to a report published in the Malaysian media on
Thursday, Prime Minister Najib Razak sent a message to Custodian of the Two
Holy Mosques King Abdullah thanking him for his support. The premier expressed
gratitude for allowing Malaysian aircraft to use Jeddah’s Haj Terminal as a
transit point for the evacuees before they proceed to Malaysia.
A Malaysian diplomat said more than 11,000 students from
Egypt would be evacuated. The students will be flown out on Malaysia Airlines
and AirAsia planes. Plans have been made to fly at least 3,000 students from
Cairo to Jeddah every day from Friday, he added.
He said Malaysia's National Security Council has been
entrusted with the rescue mission in Egypt. Each flight from Cairo to Jeddah
will carry a total of at least 345 stranded Malaysians.
The Kingdom has already evacuated a large number of its own
nationals. Currently, the United States and Iraq are evacuating their citizens,
while Turkey, India, Greece and Canada have sent planes to do so.
About 18,000 to 25,000 travelers can be seen at any given
time at Cairo International Airport trying to find a way out of the country as
protests against Mubarak mount.
Check-in counters remain poorly staffed, mainly because many
employees are unable to reach work due to curfew, while others are delayed
because of severe traffic congestion across the Egyptian capital.
