Coronavirus outbreak: UAE flies in 215 people from China

The UAE has evacuated 215 people of various nationalities from China's Hubei province, state news agency Wam reported on Wednesday, March 4. The evacuees were flown to the newly established Emirates Humanitarian City, where they will undergo medical testing and monitoring to ensure their health and safety. They will be in quarantine for 14 days before they return home.

A special aircraft equipped with HEPA cabin air filtrations systems, medical supplies and equipment carried out the humanitarian mission. The evacuation operation was carried out on the order of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, based on the directives of the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

This came after some countries sought the UAE's assistance in evacuating their citizens from Hubei - the epicentre of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed took to Twitter to say that he "shared the UAE's commitment to the greater good for humankind". "They will receive the best medical care before they return home. We thank the Chinese government for its assistance and acknowledge the great work of our citizen volunteers," he tweeted.

The UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the UAE Embassy in China coordinated with the embassies of the countries concerned for the mission. This is part of the UAE's ongoing efforts to enhance cooperation with the Chinese government to contain the spread of the virus.