SPECIAL FLIGHT CARRYING 123 MALAYSIANS DEPARTS FROM BANGLADESH

By Nik Nurfaqih Nik Wil

DHAKA, July 23 (Bernama) -- A total of 123 Malaysians, including 80 students, safely departed from Bangladesh on a special AirAsia flight at 11.05 am local time.

According to Bernama’s observations, the evacuation process at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka proceeded smoothly despite a slight delay due to slow immigration clearance.

The airport in the Bangladeshi capital was also heavily guarded by soldiers due to a nationwide curfew.

The flight, which is part of the mission to evacuate Malaysians from Bangladesh led by Foreign Ministry’s South and Central Asia Division undersecretary Datuk Dr Shazelina Zainul Abidin, is expected to take three hours and 55 minutes before landing at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 2.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail is expected to be on hand to welcome the evacuees upon their arrival.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the government has decided to bring back all Malaysians in Bangladesh due to security concerns following escalating tensions in this country.

The mission involves 15 officers of the Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister’s Department and the National Security Council.

The Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) representatives covering the mission are assistant editor (news service) Nik Nurfaqih Nik Wil and photographer Muhammad Izzuddin Abd Radzak.

Thousands of students in Bangladesh have been protesting since July 1 after a court reinstated the quota for public sector jobs, which had been abolished in 2018.

Last Saturday, the Bangladesh government imposed a nationwide curfew in response to deadly protests that have claimed over 130 lives.

-- BERNAMA