First evacuees arrive back from Libya

A plane carrying 32 Dutch nationals and 50 others arrived at Schiphol airport from Libya in the early hours of Wednesday morning.


Around 40 Dutch nationals still hope to be evacuated but were unable to reach the airport in Tripoli in time for yesterday’s flight. A second, smaller, plane will be sent out later on Wednesday.
A separate charter flight carrying oil company workers also made it back last night, Nos television said.
The UN Security Council has condemned the Libyan authorities for using force against anti-government protesters. At least 300 people have been killed so far in the uprising.
Some 20 Dutch firms are making plans to bring out all their foreign staff. Most of the Dutch companies operating in the Middle Eastern country are in the construction and oil and gas sectors.
Exports
The Netherlands exported €191m worth of goods to Libya in the first 10 months of last year, including machinery, food and chemical products.
But the Netherlands has also exported transport helicopters and night vision glasses to the Libyan regime, according to RTL news.
The defence ministry has sent the frigate HMS Tromp to Libya to help the evacuation effort. The ship had been on its way to join the Nato anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia.

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