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Heraklion, Greece (AFP) Feb 26, 2011 A third Greek ferry chartered by China to evacuate its nationals from Libya cast anchor in the port of Heraklion on the southern Greek island of Crete early Saturday. The Venizelos, which had come from the Libyan second city Benghazi, now in the hand of insurgents, immediately began disembarking its 2,911 passengers. The Olympic Champion and Hellenic Spirit had already put into Heraklion on Thursday, disembarking 4,400 people from Benghazi, mostly Chinese but also including 46 Greeks and nationals from Thailan, Sir Lanka, Italy and Romania. Both ferries turned back to Libya and are expected back in Heraklion, the main city on Crete over the weekend. China is planning to evacuate around 15,000 of its nationals out of the 33,000 of its workers based in Libya. A first group of 600 evacuees were due to be flown back to China on Saturday afternoon on a Boeing 747 and an Airbus 330 of the Chinese airlines Air China and Hainan from Chania airport, west of Heraklion. Greek authorities were continuing their efforts Saturday to evacuate eight Greek nationals who have found themselves cut off with some other Europeans on an isolated building site in the desert in southern Libya. Athens estimates it has around 300 of its nationals in Libya, including some permanently settled there and who want to remain. It evacuated some 200 Greeks on Thursday on three C-130 troop transport planes.
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British warship ferries Benghazi evacuees to MaltaValletta (AFP) Feb 26, 2011 A British warship with evacuees from Libya docked in Malta on Saturday as governments raced to pull thousands of foreign nationals away from turmoil in the oil-rich North African state. The HMS Cumberland frigate had left the rebel-held port of Benghazi in eastern Libya on Thursday carrying 207 passengers but was forced to travel at a reduced speed because of the rough weather in the Mediter ... read more |
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