The first evacuation plane with Russian citizens onboard arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport from riot-torn Libya on Wednesday.
The first evacuation plane with Russian citizens onboard arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport from riot-torn Libya on Wednesday.
The plane landed at 10.29 a.m. Moscow time; there were 118 Russian citizens onboard, including 6 children, a spokesman for the Russian Emergencies Ministry said. According to a source from the Health Ministry, the plane also evacuated a dozen of non-Russian citizens.
According to international organizations, up to 500 people have been killed and up to 4,000 wounded in clashes with government forces since protests against longtime Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime began on February 15.
In the photo: Russian evacuees meet with their relatives at the airport.
Psychologists were among those who met the Russians, however no one needed help.
The Russians were glad to return home. “There was constant shooting at the streets, we were afraid to stir out,” one of the passengers of the plane said.
A second evacuation plane with 111 people onboard left Libya for Moscow on Wednesday.
Russia has sent four airplanes to evacuate a total of 563 Russians from Libya. Most of them are employees of the Russian Railways monopoly and the Gazprom energy giant or families of Russian diplomats.
