JEDDAH: Malaysian students who have been evacuated here from Egypt will be sent home in stages from today, Malaysian Consul-General in Jeddah Datuk Mohd Hidayat Abdul Hamid said.
He said priority would be given to those who were sick, couples with small children, women and those requiring urgent attention.
"God willing, we will start sending the back tomorrow (today)," he told Malaysian reporters here on Friday.
He appealed for patience among parents, saying the students were safe and that the government would ensure their safety.
He said that up to 9.20pm on Friday night (2.20am Saturday Malaysian time), a total of 1,036 students had been evacuated from crisis-stricken Egypt using Malaysian Airlines and AirAsia aircraft.
They are now housed at the transit centre at Madinatul Hujaj, here.
On those still stranded in Egypt, he said, information received showed that they were fine.
"There are no untoward incidents happening to them ... let's pray for their safety," he said.
There are up to 14,000 Malaysians in Egypt, most of them students.
