Nigerians attempting to travel to or from Qatar, Israel, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have been stranded following the ongoing United States and Israel war against Iran.
The situation has forced carriers, including Air France, Air India, Turkish Airlines, Norwegian, Air Algerie, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Lufthansa to announce mass flight cancellations.
After the airstrikes against Iran, the latter attacked US military bases in Qatar, Kuwait Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, among others.
Passengers attempting to travel through Qatar Airways outbound from Nigeria were stopped from flying on Saturday morning.
Airspaces shut
It was gathered that to a large extent, flights across Middle East countries were cancelled on Saturday, as several countries shut their airspaces after the US, Israel and Iran launched attacks and counterattacks.
The civil aviation authority said Syria closed part of its airspace in the south along the border with Israel for 12 hours.
Jordan’s Air Force was said to be conducting drills to defend the kingdom’s skies.
Kuwait closed its airspace, with its military later saying it had engaged incoming missiles.
Russia’s air transport authority, Rosaviatsia, said it was cancelling all commercial flights to both Israel and Iran in the wake of the strikes until further notice.
Nigerian passengers stuck
Earlier on Saturday, passengers who were already onboard a Qatar Airways flight said that the airline deboarded all passengers over claims that the airspace in Doha had been closed.
One of them said, “I had planned so many things around this trip. Suddenly, they announced that the airport in Doha is not responding, and honestly, I don’t even understand what that means. I’m wondering if they can reroute us through another destination without passing through Doha. This situation is really painful.”
Another passenger, who was travelling with a family member, said, “With this development, only God knows when my sister will be able to return to school. We understand this is a genuine situation, but it is really painful.”
Qatar Airways Group, in a statement on Saturday, announced a temporary suspension of flights due to Qatari airspace closure.
The aviation company stressed the temporary suspension of its flights to and from Doha due to the closure of Qatari airspace.
The statement partly read, “The safety of our passengers and employees is always our highest priority, and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
Also, Air India suspended flights to all destinations in the Middle East.
Speaking through its X account, the airline said, “In view of the developing situation in parts of the Middle East, all Air India flights to all destinations in the Middle East have been suspended.”
The Chairman of the International Airlines Operators Committee, Damilola Ogunyeye, confirmed that outbound airlines were beginning to cancel flights following the closure of airspaces in the troubled zones.
Ogunyeye said, “It is an unfortunate situation that we have currently in the world; more trouble to travel experience and people will start having less confidence in safety in their travel via air. As we all know, in the sky there is no parking space when things happen, so it’s quite sad, but we only hope that things will soon come back to normal.
“Today, Qatar cancelled, Emirates cancelled because they don’t want to take any risk and in aviation, safety comes first. We don’t take risks, not even when we don’t know how much things can escalate. We can only pray that things get better fast and peace comes back to reign in the troubled regions.”
Also, the President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agents, Yinka Folami, said passengers had become stuck after the cancellation of their travel plans.
He said, “Yes, airlines have started turning passengers back home. Just this morning, Qatar Airways asked passengers to disembark and return home because the airspaces have been shut. There are dangers in the airspace and you know safety is most paramount in aviation.”
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, in a statement on Saturday, warned that ongoing restrictions were affecting international flight operations to and from Nigeria.
According to the agency, several scheduled flights linking Nigerian airports with Middle Eastern destinations have either been cancelled or delayed as airlines adjust routes to avoid conflict zones.
FAAN advised affected passengers to maintain direct communication with their airlines for updated information.
The statement partly read, “Passengers affected by these disruptions are strongly advised to contact their respective airlines directly for up-to-date information on flight status, rebooking options and further guidance.”
The agency said it was working closely with international aviation regulators and airline operators to track developments and ensure passenger safety remained paramount.
“FAAN continues to monitor the situation in collaboration with relevant aviation authorities and airline operators and will provide updates as necessary.
“We regret the inconvenience and appreciate the understanding and cooperation of the travelling public,” the authority added.
The United States and Israel have struck multiple locations across Iran, including the capital, Tehran, in what US President Donald Trump described as ‘major combat operations’.
The attacks started after failed negotiations between the US and Iran over the latter’s suspected nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
This was after weeks of mounting threats from Trump and eight months after the US and Israel waged a 12-day war against Iran.
Iran has struck back with missiles aimed at northern Israel and at US military bases in the Middle East.
Details of casualties and damage in Iran and Israel are sparse at the moment.