Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced repatriation flights have been arranged for 26 Maldivian students in Belarus who were unable to return home on July 18 as scheduled.
The foreign ministry revealed the issue faced by 26 Maldivian students stranded in Belarus has been resolved following discussions held with the government of Belarus, Belavia Airlines and Qatar Airways and the nearest diplomatic mission of the Maldives, which is located in Germany. As such, the foreign ministry revealed the Maldivian embassy in Germany has provided consular assistance to Maldivian students in Belarus.
The foreign ministry announced the 26 students in Belarus would be repatriated across five separate flight routes. In this regard, 3 students have begun their journey back home on the Minsk-Istanbul-Doha-Male’ route, while another 6 students began their journey on the Minsk-Milan-Doha-Male’ route. A further 5 students are returning through the Minsk-Amsterdam-Doha-Male’ route while another 6 students are returning through Minsk-Frankfurt-Doha-Male’ route. The remaining 6 students are scheduled to return to Male’ from Minsk after stopping over at Istanbul and Doha.
The foreign ministry urged all returning and departing Maldivians to confirm their flight routes through the respective airlines, noting international flights have still not returned to normal with borders of several countries still closed. The ministry also noted there are some changes to the visa arrangements of countries and called on passengers to confirm the visa requirements of transit countries before purchasing the ticket. The ministry also urged all returning Maldivians to register at the designated portal of Health Protection Agency (HPA) to monitor their health conditions.