Fifteen children and six adults from five Maldivian families who travelled to Syria to fight in the war have been repatriated to Maldives.
They were brought on a charter flight in the early hours of Tuesday.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Homeland Security Minister Ali Ihusan said that the returned Maldivians have been placed at a rehabilitation centre in Himmafushi upon their arrival this morning.
Ihusan said that over 100 Maldivians are involved in wars abroad in various locations, and that the authorities have been in contact with over 90 of them.
"Those 90 individuals want to return to the Maldives," the Minister said.
He further revealed that the 15 children, their mothers - five women, as well as one adult male were returned to Maldives today.
"This includes a child who is three years of age," the Minister said.
Work to repatriate these individuals had begun in June 2022, upon receiving news of the hardships they were facing at the Turkey-Syria border.
Police have since met with the individuals on several occasions. Before repatriation, DNA tests were conducted to confirm that all are of Maldivian nationality.
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