Thais studying in Damascus on the way home: Foreign Ministry
The Foreign Ministry has facilitated the evacuation of 17 Thai students from Syria's capital Damascus, which has been rocked by violence in recent weeks.
The group is expected to arrive in Bangkok on Wednesday, Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tohvichakchaikul said.
The ministry, which contacted the Thai honorary consulate in Damascus to help evacuate the students, provided them with airtickets.
Surapong said there are some 50 Thais in Damuscus, some of them women married to Syrians. They did not want to leave.
Earlier, the Thai Labour Department had said no Thai labourers were currently working in the Syrian Arab Republic, where fierce fighting and other violence is now endemic.
Some 13 Thai labourers, who had been permitted to work in restaurants and Thaistyle massage parlours there since 2009, returned to Thailand several months ago.
No other skilled Thai workers have been employed in Syria. Syria suspended constructionrelated employment, as it has had no city development plans, infrastructure or any building of industrial facilities for many years.
