Dozens of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip who had been brought to Malaysia for medical treatment staged a riot and vandalized their accommodation in Kuala Lumpur over the weekend, according to Malaysian authorities.
The riot reportedly started at 5 p.m. on Saturday after the Palestinians received word that they would be barred from leaving the Wisma Transit Kuala Lumpur guesthouse ahead of their possible return to the Strip.
The wounded Gazans and their relatives were reportedly furious and demanded to be returned to Egypt instead. At least one Gazan woman raised a sign that read, “No to deportation; we need to return to Egypt.”
Other local reports claimed that the violent protest was sparked by the Palestinians’ “desire to expedite their return” to the war-torn Gaza Strip.
Video footage of the disturbances at the hotel that went viral on social media showed the Gazans setting fire to the premises, climbing its entry gate and destroying furniture and other property.
“MAF officers and personnel on duty initiated discussions with the Palestinians involved, and the situation was brought under control,” the Malaysian Armed Forces was cited by state media as saying on Saturday.
The MAF claimed the incident, which it said led to “minor damage to the furniture,” ended after some two hours. No injuries were reported.
The Palestinian Authority envoy to Malaysia apologized for the incident, claiming the group’s actions were not in line with Palestinian culture.
“The issue is under discussion with the Malaysian authorities. I am truly saddened by what happened,” Walid Abu Ali told state outlet Bernama. “This is not our ethics and goes against our culture. The government of Malaysia and the Palestinian embassy are doing our best to help.”
The Malaysian government was set to discuss the incident during its weekly meeting on Wednesday, local media reported on Tuesday.
Abu Ali was also forced to issue an apology after a group of Palestinians on Oct. 2 rioted and attacked security personnel at the hotel, which is managed by Kuala Lumpur’s Defense Ministry.
Malaysia took in 127 Gazans in August. Forty-one wounded Palestinians received treatment at Kuala Lumpur’s Tuanku Mizan Military Hospital, while their relatives were provided accommodation at Wisma Transit.
Following the October riot, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail warned the Malaysian public against using the “incident” as a pretext to call for the wounded Palestinians and their families to be deported.
Hamas’s “military wing,” which sparked the ongoing war with Israel with its Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border massacre, is known to run the terror group’s operations in Malaysia.
Ethnic Malays, all of whom are considered Muslim under Malaysian law, make up some two-thirds of Malaysia’s 34 million-population. The country’s population also includes large Chinese and Indian minorities.