The Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and AirAsia have started evacuating Malaysian students from strife-torn Egypt to Jeddah today.

Deputy Foreign Minister A Kohilan Pillay said the first batch of Malaysian students, numbering about 350, were flown out of Egypt by MAS at 3pm local time while the second batch of 300 students would be flown out by AirAsia shortly.

They will be sheltered at the Tabung Haji Hostel in Jeddah, he told Bernama in Cairo today.

Tabung Haji chief executive officer Ismee Ismail said 35 Tabung Haji employees, including seven from Kuala Lumpur, were tasked with arranging the transfer of the students to the hostel in Jeddah.

Meanwhile, AirAsia deputy group chief executive officer Kamarudin Meranun said the airline was awaiting permission from the Cairo aviation authority to fly out more students.

In Abu Dhabi, the Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) had yet to obtain permission from the Saudi Arabian aviation authority for its C130 Hercules aircraft to land in Jeddah.

The aircraft which took off from the Subang RMAF Base at about 9.30pm last night landed at the Abu Dhabi International Airport at noon (Malaysian time) today.

Besides bringing food for the students, the aircraft will also be used to fly out Malaysian students from Cairo to Jeddah.

MAS executive vice-president (External Relations) Capt Mohd Nawawi Awang said the airlines was trying to maximise the number of students and other Malaysians to be taken out on the aircraft from Cairo to Jeddah.

"This aircraft can fly to and fro the two cities three times a day. On the first day, it wasn't too difficult for it to land in Cairo and everything went on smoothly as planned," he said today.

The Malaysian students were visibly delighted to have been flown out of Cairo.

Some of them cried, some laughed while others were busy on their mobile phones, calling their parents in Malaysia to inform them on the latest development.

Haslisah Khalil, 19, a first-year medical student of Ain Shams University in Cairo, said here that she was grateful for the Malaysian government's concern and initiative in bringing them out of the Egyptian capital.

"I feel relieved...the situation there was really frightening although we were placed under curfew by the Selangor State House management. We were only allowed to go out after 1pm and must return fast.

"The curfew was from 8am to 1pm. After that, we would go out to buy some daily necessities like bread and sugar, and we had to jostle for the items with the local women," she said.

Another student, Mohd Shauqi Ismail, 26, from Melaka, said the government's move to help Malaysian citizens in difficulties including overseas showed that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak was a caring and responsible government.

"I am grateful and happy. Whether we're rescued by air or sea, it doesn't matter. What is important is our safety," he said.

The first-year Syariah student of Al-Azhar University in Cairo was accompanied by his wife, also a student at the university, and their two-year-old child.

All the students are now temporarily housed at the Tabung Haji hostel here.

The transfer of Malaysian students out of Egypt has also received the cooperation of AirAsia, Royal Malaysian Air Force and Royal Malaysian Navy.

At the moment, about 14,000 Malaysian students in Egypt have registered with the Malaysian embassy in Cairo.

Since Jan 28, street demonstrations have been taking place in several Egyptian cities including Cairo, Dumyat, Suez, Tanta, Alexandria and Mansoura, demanding President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

- Bernama