RIYADH: A Saudi Royal Air Force plane flew a group of Yemeni patients and their families back to their homes on the island of Socotra on Wednesday. The flight is part of a series of missions to transport inhabitants of the isolated island to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment. The flight on Wednesday took off from Jazan carrying 18 Yemenis, many of them children. They were treated in hospitals in Riyadh as well as the port city of Jazan. Arab coalition forces have been evacuating islanders for several months as part of its humanitarian efforts. Many have been unable to take regular flights due to the coronavirus pandemic. Wednesday’s flight “falls within the framework of the efforts of the joint coalition forces to alleviate the suffering of the people of Socotra, by conducting free flights to transport citizens from the province, due to sea disturbances and the lack of a safe and free means of marine transportation,” the coalition said. This is the sixth trip conducted by the joint forces in support of the Yemeni people. It was preceded by another flight carrying 45 citizens, which took them from Al-Ghaydah, the capital of Al-Mahra Governorate, to Socotra. On Aug. 6, the joint forces transferred 162 students from Socotra, who are studying in Yemeni universities, to the temporary capital, Aden and on July 22, they transported 139 passengers from Socotra who were stranded in the governorate of Mahra via a Yemeni airlines (Yemenia) plane.