Seoul, March 7 (IANS) A chartered plane to evacuate South Koreans from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will take off this weekend amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, the foreign ministry said Saturday.
The ministry said it is arranging a 290-seat Etihad Airways chartered flight, set to depart from Abu Dhabi at noon on Sunday (local time).
Starting early Saturday, the South Korean Embassy in the UAE will receive applications from South Korean nationals wishing to board the plane, with priority given to critically ill patients, people with severe disabilities, pregnant women, the elderly and infants.
The planned departure comes as Seoul seeks to bring home some 3,000 nationals stranded in the UAE due to flight disruptions amid the escalating conflict between Iran and the United States.
Earlier in the day, South Korean nationals stranded across the Middle East in the wake of a regional crisis are continuing to evacuate to safer areas with assistance from local diplomatic missions.
According to the ministry, 65 South Koreans who had been staying in Qatar safely moved to neighboring Saudi Arabia from Tuesday to Friday.
In Jordan, where commercial flights remain in operation, 41 South Korean short-term visitors departed the country from Thursday to Friday. The South Korean Embassy in Jordan dispatched a support team to an airport in Amman to assist with departure procedures.
In Kuwait, 14 South Korean nationals and one foreign spouse also traveled to Saudi Arabia with the support of the embassy.
The ministry said it has also supported South Koreans in other parts of the region, helping 25 people in Iran, 113 in Israel, 14 in Bahrain and five in Iraq move to neighboring countries so they can return home, Yonhap news agency reported.
Earlier, on March 6, more than 370 South Koreans returned home aboard the first direct flight from Dubai since last week’s US-Israeli air strikes on Iran.
The Emirates flight arrived at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, around 8:25 p.m., carrying 422 passengers, including 372 South Koreans, the officials had said.
It was the first direct commercial flight to head for Incheon from the United Arab Emirates (UAE)’s Dubai since the war on Iran began last weekend.
The government earlier said it had consulted with the UAE government to enable the safe return of South Koreans from the Middle East on direct flights.
Around 18,000 South Koreans are currently believed to be in 14 Middle Eastern nations, including 4,900 short-term travelers, of whom 3,500 are stranded due to canceled flights, according to the government.
Returning travelers embraced with family members at the airport, with some wiping tears of relief following days of uncertainty.
Others also told similar stories of hearing loud bangs from drone interceptions and bombing.
–IANS
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