The government has a ready plan to evacuate citizens from high-risk Middle East areas, with daily monitoring of the volatile security situation.
SEREMBAN: The Cabinet has approved in principle a plan to relocate or evacuate Malaysians from high-risk areas in the Middle East.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan said the approval enables the government to act promptly without waiting for a new Cabinet decision if the security situation deteriorates.
“The evacuation plan has been approved by the Cabinet; it’s just a matter of when we will trigger it,” he said after officiating an event here today.
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He stated the National Security Council, together with the Foreign Ministry and other agencies, is monitoring the situation closely through embassy offices.
“If there really is a need, we will carry out the evacuation plan, but as of today, there has been no need for us to activate it,” he added.
Mohamad advised Malaysians in the region to avoid sensitive areas like military bases, which are potential targets for retaliatory attacks.
He also urged Malaysians stranded overseas due to flight disruptions to update their local embassy once they secure confirmed return flights.
This is crucial for the government to determine the exact number of citizens still stranded and coordinate assistance effectively.
“My advice is that those who have received confirmation from any airline company, contact the embassy again and inform them,” he said.
He reiterated advice for Malaysians planning to perform umrah to defer their plans due to the unstable regional security situation.
The government is monitoring the latest developments to assess safety levels before making any decisions.
“We will issue daily updates on the developments there, because we don’t know what to expect as anything can happen,” Mohamad said.
He noted the reopening of several Middle Eastern airspaces has allowed flight operations to resume in stages.
This has aided efforts to bring home stranded passengers across the region.
As of yesterday, a total of 2,367 Malaysians were reported stranded in locations including Jeddah, Qatar, Madinah and Abu Dhabi.
