Sirul Azhar's mother en route to Australia with Mahfuz

Datuk Mahfuz Omar has departed for Sydney, Australia to visit former corporal Sirul Azhar Umar who is being held at the immigration detention centre there.

The PAS information chief brought along with him Sirul Azhar's mother, Piah Samad, 72, and younger sister, Noriatin Umar, 37, for the trip.

When met by reporters just before their departure at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Sunday night, Mahfuz said the trip was a humanitarian mission to 'bring a mother to visit her son whom she misses dearly'.

"I have received the visa approval from the Australian embassy and have asked for protection from the Australian authorities while we are there.

"We hope this trip will not pose a threat to any party and will not be met with any interference upon our departure from Malaysia," said Mahfuz, who is flying Malaysia Airlines on an 11.30pm flight.

He hoped that all parties would respect the special mission trip.

He also said, by bringing Piah, hopefully she could also verify that the person whom he contacted via teleconference last Monday was indeed Sirul Azhar.

When asked if he brought anything for the 43-year-old murder convict, Mahfuz said: "Only a pair of sports shoes, as per his request."

The Pokok Sena MP said, he would continue to update the media via WhatsApp during his trip.

"I understand that we cannot bring a camera into the detention centre. We can only take photos outside.

"Please pray for our safety," he added.

The special mission, which included four others, is estimated to arrive in Sydney at 10.30am local time (1.30pm Malaysian time on Monday).

The group is expected to return to Malaysia on March 7.

Sirul Azhar had been sentenced to death after he was found guilty of murdering Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu in 2006.