187 Maltese evacuated from UAE land in Malta

All Maltese people in the United Arab Emirates who requested to be evacuated following the outbreak of war in Iran landed safely in Malta on Saturday morning.

Foreign Minister Ian Borg said the 187 Maltese on board the chartered aircraft were all based in the UAE. The flight was organised by the Maltese government, which announced earlier this week it would be shouldering the cost of travel.

As the Airbus A330 landed in Malta, relatives were relieved to see their loved ones disembark safe and sound.

The evacuation was made necessary after the UAE and other Gulf states were targeted by Iranian missiles and drones in retaliation for US and Israel bombing Iran. As a result, the airspace over the Gulf region was closed down and thousands of flights were cancelled.

Over the past week, diplomatic staff on the ground from the Maltese embassy in the UAE and officials from the Foreign Ministry worked hard to make the necessary arrangements to evacuate Maltese who wanted to leave. Everything was put in place so that on a moment’s notice, when a flight slot opened up, the evacuees would be transported back to Malta.

In a Facebook post, Malta’s Ambassador to the UAE Maria Camilleri Calleja said: “All Maltese nationals who contacted the Embassy of Malta in UAE and the Consulate General of Malta in Dubai on the emergency lines circulated on email and social media and expressed the wish and willingness to depart the UAE, arrived safely in Malta on special repatriation/evacuation flight from the UAE.”

She thanked the UAE leadership and Maktoum airport staff for the assistance to make the flight possible. “Thanks also to the EU Delegation in the UAE and EU ambassadors and colleagues who worked closely in the exchange of information in the spirit of EU solidarity,” Camilleri Calleja said.

She added that the Maltese embassy in the UAE remain “available and present” in the UAE to continue to provide additional assistance.