Two repatriation flights chartered by the European Commission have landed in Warsaw, Poland, bringing 303 European citizens home from the Middle East. The flights are part of a larger EU effort that has so far returned over 8,000 citizens to their home countries.
EU Repatriation Flights Bring Citizens Home from Middle East
The two flights departing from Saudi Arabia and Oman transported 277 Polish nationals and 76 citizens from other European countries who had been stranded in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. This is the second time the Commission has mobilized its own transport capacity under rescEU, following a request from Polish authorities.
The EU’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) has coordinated more than 70 flights to facilitate the return of citizens from Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, France, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Sweden.
Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, stated: “The EU solidarity in full action. Thanks to EU repatriation flights, more than 8,000 people have already returned safely from the Middle East. Today, we chartered 2 additional flights landing in Poland, bringing families, children, and people who simply wanted to return home. We will continue to protect our citizens wherever they are, stepping in to help when challenges are too great for any one country to face alone.”
The EU supports repatriation flights by coordinating transport capacities between countries following requests for assistance. These operations can be co-financed by the EU, and the Centre can charter planes if no country can offer assistance.
More repatriation flights, including those utilizing rescEU planes, are planned in the coming days, as 23 countries have requested EU assistance in repatriating their citizens from the Middle East.
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