KLM Is Flying to the Middle East Tonight to Bring Stranded Dutch Travellers Home
Thousands of Dutch nationals are stuck across the region after US and Israeli strikes on Iran triggered sweeping airspace closures and the cancellation of over 9,500 flights.
On 28 February 2026, Israel and the United States carried out attacks on targets in Iran. The strikes triggered immediate retaliatory attacks across the region, and country after country closed their airspace. Airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha, which are major hubs for travel between Europe, Africa, and Asia, were directly hit by Iranian strikes and remained closed.
Cancellations across seven major Middle East airports, including Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Dubai World Central, exceeded 9,500 flights between February 28 and March 3. The disruption did not only affect people travelling to and from the Middle East. Because Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi are some of the world's most important transit hubs, passengers travelling between Europe, Asia, and Africa were caught up in the chaos as well.
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KLM cancels all Middle East flights
KLM cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv, Dubai, Riyadh, and Dammam through March 5, 2026, citing the security situation. The airline stated it would not resume flights until the airspace was confirmed safe for civil aviation.
KLM confirmed that 237 of its passengers were stranded in Dubai alone, having been due to fly back to Amsterdam on Saturday when their flight was cancelled. The airline began trying to transport passengers overland to a location from which they could depart, and announced it would cover hotel and food costs in the meantime.
The Dutch government acts
Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen, of the CDA party, announced in the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, on Tuesday that a KLM flight would depart that evening to pick up some of the stranded Dutch nationals in the region. That flight is departing from Oman, though further details remain unclear. "We are preparing at this moment for all possibilities, including repatriation in addition to the commercial flights that are available," Berendsen said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also asked all Dutch nationals currently in the Middle East to fill in a crisis contact form, which the ministry is using to build a clearer picture of how many Dutch people are in the region and what assistance they might need. The call applies to people travelling in Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, the Palestinian territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Dutch nationals who live in those countries are not eligible for this assistance.
A surreal situation on the ground
For Dutch nationals stranded in Qatar's capital Doha, the situation has taken on a particularly unsettling character. Explosions have been heard for three consecutive days as Qatar's air defence systems intercept Iranian drones and missiles, with strikes initially targeting the American air base but since expanding to civilian targets including energy infrastructure and the international airport.
One Dutch traveller told NOS he woke in his hotel room to the sound of loud bangs and saw flashes in the sky. A 28-year-old Dutch woman named Charlotte, stranded in Dubai with her husband and two young children, said: "Everyone sympathises with us, but really all we can do is pray that we get out of here alive."
The wider picture
The Netherlands is far from the only country scrambling to bring people home. The Czech Republic dispatched planes to Egypt and Jordan to retrieve its nationals, while Britain said it was preparing for all options including possible evacuations. More than 102,000 British nationals in the region registered with the UK government in the days following the outbreak of conflict. Around 30,000 German tourists were stranded on cruise ships, in hotels, and at closed airports, with the German government saying a military evacuation was not possible due to the airspace closures.
The Dutch government said on Monday that repatriation was currently impossible due to the closed airspace, making Tuesday's announcement of the KLM rescue flight the first concrete step toward bringing Dutch nationals home.
Dutch nationals currently in the region who have not yet done so are urged to fill in the crisis contact form via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
