ASTANA — Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry has strongly urged citizens to refrain from planning trips to the Middle East until the situation in the region stabilizes, spokesperson Yerlan Zhetybayev said at a March 10 briefing.
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The ministry, together with other competent state agencies, continues efforts to evacuate Kazakh citizens from countries in the Middle East and ensure their safe return home.
According to the ministry, no information has been received about injured or deceased Kazakh citizens. Since the beginning of the evacuation, more than 8,585 Kazakh citizens have returned to Kazakhstan.
Additional evacuations are planned in the coming days, including 78 citizens from Israel, around 350 people from Qatar, nearly 550 from the United Arab Emirates and approximately 300 from Saudi Arabia.
Evacuations are being carried out not only by air but also via land routes through the borders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkmenistan.
Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions in the region continue to coordinate evacuation efforts and maintain constant communication with citizens. The ministry called on Kazakh nationals abroad to follow official updates from the Foreign Ministry and Kazakhstan’s diplomatic missions in their respective countries.
Due to ongoing hostilities in the Middle East and the closure of airspace in many countries in the region, the ministry advised citizens to avoid travel to Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Yemen, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Syria until a ceasefire is reached and the situation fully stabilizes.
Citizens currently in the region are urged to take increased personal safety measures, avoid potentially dangerous areas, follow instructions from local authorities and immediately seek shelter in the event of missile threats.
Despite earlier warnings, some citizens continue attempting to travel to countries in the region. The ministry reiterated its call to refrain from such trips and encouraged people to share this information with relatives, friends and acquaintances.
