Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — A Saudi Arabian Airlines flight carrying 250 stranded Saudi citizens from Indonesia landed at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Friday morning in one of the first trips of the repatriation operation, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The operation follows the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, the deputy premier and defense minister, out of their concern for the safety and health of citizens aboard amid the outbreak of coronavirus pandemic.

As part of the royal directives, the authorities were asked to follow up on the affairs of the stranded citizens, their families and companions since the beginning of the global outbreak and ensure their safety in their respective countries of stay until their return to the homeland.

Meanwhile, the Saudi citizens, who arrived at Riyadh airport on Friday, were greeted by representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Health and the Civil Aviation Authority.

Upon their arrival at the airport, they were subjected to all health and preventive measures with regard to coronavirus. The flight had left the Indonesian capital Jakarta late Thursday with Saudi Ambassador Issam Abed Al-Thaqafi and other embassy officials bidding farewell to the citizens.

The government agencies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Health and the General Authority of Civil Aviation have taken a number of measures to ensure health and the safety of the returnees. As part of the exercise, they have identified 12 stages, which the citizens need to go through, beginning from the arrival of the citizens to the airport of the country of departure.

The Ministry of Health has allocated a checkpoint where all incoming passengers must pass through the thermal camera devices. In case of a passenger is suspected to showing sign of coronavirus, he or she is isolated from the rest of the passengers. The passengers are required to sterilize the hands before starting passport stamping procedure, and a distance of at least 1.5 meters must be maintained between immigration officers and passengers.

In the last step, the passengers are sorted at the exit by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Tourism as per the itineraries and are transported to the guesthouses prepared by the Ministry of Tourism and supervised by a health ministry for a period of 14 days.

The first stage of trips for the return of citizens will include many international destinations coming from different continents of the world to the Kingdom's international airports King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.