A fourth group of 130 Thais arrived from Israel at Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport this morning (Monday) on a Royal Thai Force Airbus 340-500.

The 127 men, two women and a five-year-old girl went through immigration and medical checks at the airport, before being taken to the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Disease Institute for physical assessment. They will then be allowed to return to their home provinces.

Among the arrivals was one person with a leg injury and broken arm, which they sustained in a fall and for which they had undergone surgery. Five others have colds, but tested negative for COVID-19.

Defence Minister Sutin Klungsang was on hand to welcome the evacuees. The next Air Force flight to pick up Thai evacuees will be on Wednesday and the Air Force is expected to repatriate about 800 Thais on the remaining five flights this month.

Sutin said, however, that about 6,000 Thais will be flown back by the end of this month on 32 commercial and special Air Force flights, adding that other options are also being explored to bring more Thais back home.

More than 7,000 Thais have applied to be repatriated, 28 are believed to have been killed and 17 are being held hostage by Hamas.