The Haarlem couple were traveling to New Zealand, where they would visit their son. Last Friday they made a planned stop in Qatar, which was supposed to last twelve hours. But the outbreak of the war against Iran closed the airspace above Qatar. That’s why Wendy and Frank still have nowhere to go.
And this while Iran is again carrying out retaliatory attacks on Doha, among others, this morning. “We just got another one alert on the phone,” Frank tells NH. “It says: stay inside and stay away from the windows. We are still in our hotel and we have not heard anything from the authorities here.”
Repatriation flights
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is trying to collect as many Dutch travelers from the Middle East as possible. For example, two flights will depart tomorrow from Oman and Egypt to Schiphol.
But that doesn’t help Frank and Wendy: “The airspace is still closed here. Repatriation from Oman is nice for them, but of little use for the Dutch in Qatar.”
The people of Haarlem have completed a special Crisis Contact Form. The Dutch authorities therefore know where they are. But the Haarlem couple has not yet heard anything from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to the authorities in Qatar, the airspace there will remain closed until at least next Monday.
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