Malaysia prevents students from traveling to Egypt

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said Monday that Malaysian students registered in Egyptian Universities for the fall semester, to begin in September, will not be allowed to travel to Egypt due to political and security instability witnessed there. Yassin said in a press statement that the Malaysian Ministry of Education coordinated with the Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education concerning the postpone of Malaysian students' enrolment for one semester. In addition, he called upon students who returned to Malaysia for the summer vacation, not to return to Egypt until further notice. Meanwhile, the Malaysian National Security Council sent today a team to Egypt to assess the situation and evacuate Malaysian citizens, due to increase of violence and the lack of security in the country. According to a statement issued by the Malaysian National Security Council, the team sent to Egypt is headed by the Secretary General of the Council Mohammed Taj al-Din Abdel Wahab, as he will coordinate and prepare with concerned sectors in Egypt the evacuation plan. He further explained that the Malaysian government has ordered the National Security Council to coordinate with governmental and non-governmental agencies to evacuate Malaysians in Egypt, a result of the deteriorating political and security situation in the country.