SINTOK: The Home Ministry is looking into the possibility of issuing the injured Palestinian civilians brought into Malaysia with different passes to grant them more freedom.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, commenting on the incident where two Palestinian women were caught on camera misbehaving at Wisma Transit in Kuala Lumpur, acknowledged that they may be uncomfortable with their current situation.
Saifuddin said the Palestinians are placed in Wisma Transit to facilitate their medical treatment.
He said the incident occurred because some of them were unhappy at being confined to a transit point and having their movements restricted.
He said the Palestinians were brought to Malaysia for treatment and issued with a special pass.
He noted that there were many types of entry passes under the Immigration Act, such as those issued to Syrian war refugees brought to Malaysia in 2015.
"They were brought here for medical treatment. At the same time, we are also taking their safety into account. Is it logical to allow them to be scattered?
"However, they may be uncomfortable as they have been here awhile.
"They (the Palestinians) are hoping that the government will allow them to expand their travel radius. The ministry will look into options to issue them with passes more suited to their needs," he said.
He was speaking to reporters after attending a town hall session with Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) students here today.
Present was UUM vice-chancellor Prof Dr Mohd Foad Sakdan.
Saifuddin said it was also illogical to ask the government to deport the Palestinian civilians brought to Malaysia just because of an isolated incident involving two of its citizens.
"The Palestinians here comprise those injured as well as parents of children who were injured. We took them and provided them with treatment as a humanitarian gesture.
"Following the incident, I agree with the Defence Minister's (Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin) stand in appealing to Malaysians not to make generalisations, playing the blame game and (demanding) they be deported to their war-ravaged country," he said.
On Wednesday, two Palestinians were caught on video causing a commotion and damaging public property at Wisma Transit in Kuala Lumpur.
The duo were part of 127 wounded Palestinian civilians who had arrived in Malaysia on Aug 16 to receive medical treatment here following Israel's attack on Gaza last year.
that the women in the video would be sent home to Gaza.
He said this was decided upon following his meeting with the Defence Ministry and Ops Ihsan representatives to discuss the incident.
Walid had condemned the incident and apologised on behalf of the Palestinian community. He said the incident was exaggerated by some quarters on social media, and was resolved and dealt with on the same day.
The ambassador also asked Malaysians to understand the emotional struggles and pressure that the Palestinians were undergoing.