Cambodians Stranded in Myanmar Evacuated
A group of 21 Cambodians who have been stuck in Myanmar due to the pandemic will return home on Dec. 22. Photo from TVK.
- Phoung Vantha
- December 22, 2020 4:42 AM
A group of 21 Cambodians who have been stuck in Myanmar due to the pandemic will return home on Dec. 22, according to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
PHNOM PENH--The Cambodian Embassy in Myanmar has today coordinated the evacuation of a group of 21 Cambodians who have been stranded abroad due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The group, who mostly consist of students, monks and nuns, land in Phnom Penh at 12.30 p.m. on Dec. 22 aboard Myanmar Airways International flight 8M40. Most of the returning Cambodians recently graduated from studying abroad, but are now being evacuated due to restrictions on entry to and exit from Myanmar in response to the pandemic.
COVID-19 has hit Myanmar far worse than Cambodia, with official figures as of Dec. 22 standing at 116,982 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 2,465 deaths, and 96,685 recoveries, according to the Ministry of Health and Sports of Myanmar.
Koy Kuong, spokesperson for Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that the Cambodian Embassy has coordinated the return of the group, but did not say whether the government had covered the costs of its citizens’ evacuation.
Kuong also added that he could not confirm how many Cambodians remain in Myanmar, saying he didn’t have an exact number at the time.
