Student pleads for visa to complete Al-Quran Studies in Egypt

A student of Al-Quran Studies who was deported to Malaysia has appealed for a visa so that she can return to complete her studies in Egypt.

Nur Afiqah Elia Mohd Nazim, 21, from Shah Alam, said she has studied for 14 months in Egypt and did not encounter any visa problem.

"I applied for a visa since December but has not received any reply. I hope the relevant parties can help me to get a visa and return to Egypt. Please have mercy as I want to study until the end," she told reporters when met on arrival at KL International Airport (KLIA) here, Sunday.

Nur Afiqah Elia was one of the 104 students of Markaz Tahfiz Makkah AlMukaramah who were deported for not possessing visas.

Meanwhile, the founder of the tahfiz school, Nor Anisah Abdul Malek said of the 19 students who returned today, 17 were female while the rest were male.

All were between 10 and 23 years-old. The other students will return in stages tomorrow.

Nor Anisah said the tahfiz school has been operating for 19 years and did not encounter visa problem until recently.

Recently, Bernama reported that 126 Malaysian students of a tahfiz school in AlSharqia, Egypt, were detained on Feb 27 for visa offences.

Second Secretary of the Malaysian Embassy in Cairo, Mohd Husaini Zainuddin said on Feb 28, the National Security Service (NSS) of Egypt decided to deport 104 students while the rest were released.

The Malaysian Embassy in Cairo believed the visa problem arose because the tahfiz school failed to register with the Al-Azhar School Sector causing Egyptian authorities to refuse granting visas to the students. --Bernama