KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian authorities are rounding up undocumented migrants as part of efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus, the country’s police chief said late on Friday, after hundreds of migrants and refugees were detained in the capital Kuala Lumpur.
Over 700 migrants were taken into custody, including young children and ethnic Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, during Friday’s raid in a downtown area where thousands of migrants and asylum-seekers live, rights groups had said.
The operation was aimed at preventing undocumented migrants from traveling to other areas amid movement curbs imposed to contain the spread of the outbreak, Inspector-General of Police Abdul Hamid Bador told state news agency Bernama.
“We cannot allow them to move freely... as it will be difficult for us to track them down if they leave identified locations,” Abdul Hamid was quoted as saying.
Those detained would be placed at a single location for monitoring until the movement curbs were lifted, he said according to Bernama.
The arrests followed public anger in recent days over the presence of migrant foreigners, particularly Rohingya refugees, with some in Malaysia accusing them of spreading the coronavirus and being a burden on state resources.
Malaysia has around 2 million registered foreign workers but authorities estimate many more are living in the Southeast Asian country without proper documents. Malaysia does not formally recognize refugees, regarding them as illegal migrants.
Malaysia rounding up migrants to contain coronavirus spread, police say
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Malaysia rounding up migrants to contain coronavirus spread, police say
- Over 700 migrants were taken into custody, including ethnic Rohingya refugees from Myanmar
- Malaysia does not formally recognize refugees, regarding them as illegal migrants
Ukraine’s Zelensky says allies to provide new energy and military aid within 10 days
- Kyiv is aiming to rally support among partners as it struggles to fend off Russian battlefield advances and air attacks
KYIV: Ukraine has agreed new energy and military support packages with European allies ahead of the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday.
Kyiv is aiming to rally support among partners as it struggles to fend off Russian battlefield advances and air attacks on its energy system while under US pressure to negotiate peace.
“In Munich, we agreed with the leaders of the Berlin Format on specific packages of energy and military aid for Ukraine by February 24,” Zelensky wrote on X.
Zelensky said on Friday after a meeting of the so-called Berlin Format of about a dozen European leaders in Munich that he had hoped for new support, including air-defense missiles.
“I am grateful to our partners for their readiness to help, and we count on all deliveries arriving promptly,” he added.
Russian attacks on major cities such as Kyiv have battered Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, plunging millions of residents into power outages of varying periods in freezing cold weather.
Zelensky added that Russia had launched around 1,300 attack drones, 1,200 guided aerial bombs and dozens of ballistic missiles at Ukraine over the past week alone.
