A man pulls his luggage upon his arrival at Cairo International Airport (CAI), as Egypt ramps up its efforts to slow the spread the coronavirus disease in Cairo March 19, 2020. ― Reuters pic

KUALA LUMPUR, March 27 ― The government is set to repatriate 51 out of 86 Malaysians stranded in Cairo, Egypt due to flight cancellations and travel ban following the Covid-19 pandemic, via the help of the Brunei government.

Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jaffar said the Brunei government had agreed to board some of the Malaysian citizens in their flight following the communication between the Malaysian foreign minister and Brunei foreign minister ll yesterday.

“Due to the limited space, only 51 Malaysians are allowed to board the Brunei government flight,” he said in a press conference streamed live on Wisma Putra’s Facebook page today.

He stressed that priority was given to elderly citizens and tourists in this matter.

He said that the 51 Malaysian citizens will be part of the Brunei government’s repatriation mission, which is scheduled on March 28 (tomorrow).

“The flight is expected to arrive at Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei at 8.40am on March 29 (Sunday),” he said.

“To make sure this repatriation process goes smoothly, the Ministry via the Malaysian Embassy in Cairo has been communicating closely with the Brunei Embassy there,” he added.

Kamarudin also expressed gratitude to Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah on behalf of Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and the Malaysian government for giving the consent to board the Brunei government's flight.

Separately, he also said that a total of 162 Malaysian tourists stranded in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam have returned to Malaysia yesterday via Malaysia Airlines.

He said the repatriation mission was coordinated by the Malaysian Consulate General's Office in Ho Chi Minh with the cooperation of the Malaysian Embassy in Hanoi.