[hang nadim] Egypt evacuation: Students being taken to Jeddah at no cost.....

Malaysian students recite doa at KL International Airport upon arrival from Cairo Friday.

CAIRO: Malaysian students are being evacuated from strife-torn Egypt to Jeddah by the federal government at no cost, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom.

Dismissing claims that the students would be charged for the evacuation, he said the government also provided accommodation, bus transportation, food and drinks for them.

He said the government also arranged the process of issuing passports and visas for the students free-of-charge and paid their airport tax.

Malaysian students recite doa at KL International Airport upon arrival from Cairo Friday.
"We need cooperation from all parties but ironically, certain quarters are casting aspersion on our rescue effort," he told reporters here Friday.

Jamil Khir said the Royal Malaysian Navy's Bunga Mas 5 auxiliary ship, which had called at the Cairo Port, had yet to be mobilised as the aircraft were sufficient to fly out Malaysian students from Cairo.

"Anyway, travel by sea will take a longer time. From our meeting with the National Security Council, Wisma Putra and the Putra 1Malaysia Club yesterday, we feel that we will able to complete the rescue mission by deploying additional MAS, AirAsia and the Royal Malaysian Air Force planes," he said.

About 3,000 Malaysian students are expected to be flown from Cairo to Jeddah Friday, he added. Meanwhile, political secretary to the prime minister, Datuk Shahlan Ismail, said the evacuation process of Malaysian students from Egypt to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was going on smoothly.

He said the students were transported by bus from their respective residential colleges to the Malaysian Hostel in Cairo and Mara Hostel in Alexandria before being taken to the airport, also by bus.

"We are moving in convoys for safety reason. The students, either those at the airport or at the hostels, are fine," he told Bernama when contacted.

He said that there would be 12 flights to Jeddah Friday involving three C-130 aircraft belonging to the Malaysian Royal Air Force and two aircraft operated by Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia.

"They are mounting shuttle flights between Cairo and Jeddah but this depends on the landing rights approval in Jeddah. If they can provide more, then we can push for more flights," he said.

He said that two of the C-130 aircraft and one each from Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia would fly out of Cairo International Airport while the rest would be from Alexandria airport.

In a related development, chairman of the Malay Association in the Arab Republic of Egypt, Mohd Sulaiman Ismail, said the Malaysian Embassy had provided 13 buses to transport students from Tanta to Cairo.

"Five buses have just left for Tanta; we are still waiting for the rest," he said when contacted.

The evacuation process Friday involved 800 students in Tanta, about 80km from Cairo, mostly students of the University of Tanta and Al-Azhar University.

Mohd Sulaiman said that although there were rioting in Tanta, it was not as bad as in Cairo.

Deputy Foreign Minister Senator A. Kohilan Pillay said earlier that curfew and landing rights were among the challenges faced in evacuating over 11,000 Malaysians from crisis-stricken Egypt, .

He added that the curfew, imposed between 4pm and 8am previously, had been lengthened to between 1pm and 8am.

"We need to move swiftly to ensure as many people can be evacuated within the limited period. We make use of that limited time to bring them to the airport," he told Bernama when contacted on Friday.

He added that landing rights at Cairo airport was also difficult to obtain due to the tense situation in Egypt.

On Friday, the operations would cover areas outside Cairo, among them Alexandria, Mansoura, Tanta and Zagazig, he said.

In JEDDAH, an operations room has been set up at the Madinatul Hujaj transit centre, where Malaysian students from Egypt are being accommodated following their evacuation from the troubled country.

Malaysian Consul General in Jeddah, Datuk Mohd Hidayat Abdul Hamid, said the transit centre could accommodate 3,000 people.

"So far, more than 300 students have arrived here and more will be arriving with the expected arrival of the Mas, Air Asia and Royal Malaysian Air Force aircraft in the next few hours," he told Bernama here.

He said parents of the affected students could contact the operations room at the transit centre at telephone number 0096626301678 or 0096626726191 for more information.

Mohd Hidayat said if the need arose, the students would be placed at the Tabung Haji hostel and assured parents that their children would be well taken care of during their stay at the transit centre.

One of the students met at the centre, Eizat Rejab, 20, said they gathered at the Perlis House in Cairo before being taken by an officer from the Malaysian Embassy to the Cairo airport.

He said the first batch of students who were evacuated were from Perlis, Penang and Kelantan and majority of them were women.

It is learnt that the second group of Malaysian students who will be evacuated are from Selangor and Sarawak, said the Al-Azhar University student.

Another student, Mohd Ainur Rabbani, 19, of the University of Jordan, said he was in Egypt for a holiday and was initially doubtful that they would be able to leave the country.

It was a relief that through the action taken by the Malaysian government, we were able to leave Egypt, said Mohd Ainur, who is from Subang Jaya, Selangor. - Bernama

Bangga semangat patriotik

PUTRAJAYA 3 Feb. - Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak melahirkan rasa bangga dengan semangat kenegaraan dan cintakan negara oleh rakyat Malaysia yang berada di seberang laut yang dilihat amat kuat dan membara.

Menarik perhatian itu ketika mengadakan persidangan video dengan para pelajar dan profesional Malaysia dari tujuh negara di sini, Perdana Menteri berkata, beliau mendapati walaupun mereka berbeza keturunan tetapi masih tetap menjunjung Perlembagaan dan undang-undang negara.

"Para pelajar dan profesional Malaysia di seberang laut tetap beriltizam untuk menjadikan Malaysia sebagai negara berjaya yang hebat dan disanjung tinggi.

"Inilah kebanggaan kita, di mana kita berada itu tidak penting tetapi yang bermakna adalah apa yang kita tanam dalam hati dan jiwa kita tanpa mengira apa keturunan dan agama," katanya ketika berucap dalam program tersebut di Seri Perdana di sini hari ini.

Turut menyertai persidangan video tersebut ialah isteri beliau, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor; Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon; Menteri Kesihatan, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai dan Menteri Pelancongan, Datuk Seri Dr. Ng Yen Yen.

Tujuh perwakilan negara yang terlibat dalam program itu adalah perwakilan dari Vancouver, Kanada; Los Angeles, Amerika Syarikat; Seoul, Korea Selatan; Guangzhou, China; Warsaw, Poland; Perth, Australia dan Abu Dhabi, Emiriyah Arab Bersatu (UAE).

Pesawat TUDM tunggu kebenaran mendarat

Oleh Johardy Ibrahim
ABU DHABI 3 Feb. – Tiga pesawat Charlie C-130 milik Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) yang menyertai misi pemindahan pelajar Malaysia keluar dari Kaherah, terpaksa menunggu hampir seharian di lapangan terbang antarabangsa di sini hari ini.

Misi yang diistilah sebagai Misi Operasi Piramid itu, menanti kebenaran untuk mendarat di Jeddah, Arab Saudi.

“Ia sedang diurus di peringkat tertinggi kedua-dua kerajaan,” kata seorang pegawai yang enggan disiarkan namanya.

Sejak berlepas dari Kem TUDM Subang pukul 9 malam Rabu, tiga pesawat tersebut telah berhenti di Maldives dan kemudian di lapangan terbang Al Ain di Emiriah Arab Bersatu, ekoran ribut pasir di Abu Dhabi.

Seramai 14 wakil media menyertai penerbangan itu bagi membuat liputan misi tersebut yang akan menjadikan Jeddah sebagai pusat pemindahan sementara pelajar Malaysia dari Kaherah.

Selain itu, seramai 62 pegawai TUDM dan agensi-agensi kerajaan yang turut terlibat dalam misi tersebut.

Semalam, kerajaan memutuskan untuk membawa keluar pelajar Malaysia dari Mesir menerusi laut dan udara berikutan pergolakan yang semakin meruncing di negara itu.

Dua penerbangan pertama, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) dan AirAsia akan membawa kira-kira 600 pelajar Malaysia yang menunggu untuk dipindahkan dari Kaherah, Mesir, dan dijangka tiba di Jeddah, Arab Saudi menjelang tengah malam ini.

Pesawat Boeing 747 MAS dan A340 AirAsia berlepas dari Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA) awal hari ini menuju ke Kaherah.

Tiga pesawat pengangkut C-130 TUDM, yang berlepas ke Jeddah semalam, akan memulakan penerbangan membawa keluar pelajar Malaysia dari Mesir pagi esok.

Perpindahan pelajar lancar

Oleh NORILA DAUD
dan HISYAMUDDIN AYUB
pengarang@utusan.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR 3 Feb. – Usaha membawa keluar rakyat Malaysia dari Mesir berjalan lancar dengan 545 pelajar diterbangkan ke Jeddah dengan pesawat Malaysia Airlines (MAS) dan AirAsia bermula 2 petang ini waktu Kaherah atau 8 malam waktu Malaysia.

Timbalan Menteri Luar, A. Kohilan Pillay berkata, kumpulan pertama terdiri daripada 345 pelajar diterbangkan menggunakan pesawat MAS pukul 2 petang ini waktu Kaherah manakala selebihnya menerusi pesawat AirAsia 30 minit selepas itu.

Menurutnya, pelajar perempuan tahun pertama dan yang tidak sihat diberi keutamaan untuk dibawa keluar dari Mesir seberapa segera.

“Kita ambil pelajar-pelajar tersebut dari rumah-rumah negeri di sekitar Mesir termasuk yang menuntut di madrasah di samping melengkapkan sijil kecemasan kepada yang kehilangan pasport,” katanya ketika dihubungi di Kaherah, hari ini.

Kohilan berkata, setakat ini seramai 11,700 pelajar telah berdaftar dengan Kedutaan Malaysia di Kaherah sementara 5,000 lagi tidak berdaftar.

Dalam pada itu, katanya, pihak kerajaan akan berusaha sedaya upaya untuk membawa keluar kesemua rakyat Malaysia dari Mesir secepat mungkin mengikut giliran dan keadaan.

Kohilan memberitahu, beliau menerima ratusan khidmat pesanan ringkas (SMS) meminta kerajaan mempercepatkan proses tersebut.

Beliau menjelaskan, kesemua pelajar yang dipindahkan ke Jeddah itu akan tinggal di beberapa buah asrama milik Tabung Haji dalam tempoh dua minggu hingga sebulan.

“Sekiranya keadaan kembali aman, pelajar-pelajar tersebut akan kembali ke Mesir untuk meneruskan pengajian masing-masing,” ujarnya.

Mengenai pergolakan politik di Kaherah, Kohilan memberitahu, keadaan semakin pulih yang mana penduduk boleh bergerak bebas dari satu tempat ke satu tempat manakala pasar mula dibuka seperti biasa.

Beliau menjelaskan, rusuhan hanya berlaku di sesetengah kawasan dan bukan di seluruh negara itu, manakala, sistem telekomunikasi sudah boleh digunakan termasuk penggunaan Internet.

Di KOTA KINABALU, Menteri Luar, Datuk Seri Anifah Aman berkata, kerajaan memilih Jeddah sebagai lokasi penempatan sementara kerana ia merupakan negara jiran Mesir yang paling dekat dan selamat.

Menurut beliau, kerajaan bukannya tidak mahu membawa mereka pulang terus ke Malaysia, tetapi jumlah terlibat terlalu ramai iaitu kira-kira 11,379 pelajar yang mendaftar di Mesir.

“Kerajaan tidak mahu membuang masa untuk pulang ke Malaysia yang mengambil masa selama lapan hingga sembilan jam perjalanan.

“Kita berusaha memastikan semua rakyat Malaysia dapat dikeluarkan terlebih dahulu dan berada di tempat yang selamat,” katanya pada sidang akhbar hari ini.

Ditanya mengenai kapal Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) KD Bunga Mas 5 yang sedang dalam perjalanan menyelamatkan rakyat Malaysia di Mesir, Anifah berkata, kapal tersebut ketika ini terpaksa menukar destinasi.

Katanya, kapal tersebut ketika ini sedang melalui Teluk Eden dan dijangka berlabuh di Pelabuhan Ain Sukhna, Mesir pada Sabtu ini.

Beliau memberitahu, KD Bunga Mas 5 mempunyai kapasiti mengangkut kira-kira 500 pelajar dan rakyat Malaysia di Mesir untuk satu perjalanan.

Mengenai tempoh misi menyelamat semua rakyat Malaysia di Mesir akan selesai, Anifah berkata, berdasarkan jumlah rakyat yang direkodkan oleh kedutaan negara di Mesir iaitu seramai 11,379 orang, ia mungkin mengambil masa selama empat hari setengah.

Nukilan hati hang nadim

Kerajaan urus membawa balik dengan percuma.....ada pula yang buat
cerita kena bayar.....untuk apa ya.....Politik atau nak ambil
kesempatan nak kutip duit dekat ibu bapa.....AWas mereka ini.....