No:092/26, Press release regarding the evacuation of citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan
07 March 2026 16:31
Following the ongoing military escalation in the Middle East and the immediate closure of Gulf countries’ airspace, urgent measures have been initiated to evacuate Azerbaijani citizens remaining in those countries.
Based on instructions provided to our diplomatic missions in the Gulf countries, lists of citizens requiring evacuation have been compiled.
According to preliminary registration results, approximately 1,000 Azerbaijani citizens across five countries requested evacuation (United Arab Emirates – 490, Saudi Arabia – 220, State of Qatar – 200, Kingdom of Bahrain – 23, and State of Kuwait – 26).
In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), one of the main tourist destinations for Azerbaijani citizens, particularly in Dubai, flights on the Dubai–Baku route were arranged through negotiations conducted by our Consulate General with FlyDubai after the UAE airspace was partially reopened. 755 Azerbaijani citizens returned to the country on flights operated on the mentioned route on March 3-5. Currently, due to the UAE airspace being closed again, necessary planning is underway to bring remaining Azerbaijani citizens home.
For the second main evacuation route, Saudi Arabia, a special flight of Azerbaijan Airlines from Jeddah on 4 March 2026 evacuated 193 Azerbaijani citizens (in addition, 9 ethnic Azerbaijanis holding Georgian citizenship and 5 ethnic Azerbaijanis holding Russian citizenship) (totaling 207 individuals). Moreover, Azerbaijani citizens registered in Qatar, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia were transported by buses organized by our diplomatic missions to Jeddah and evacuated on an AZAL Jeddah–Baku flight on 7 March 2026, returning 203 citizens (including 2 ethnic Azerbaijanis holding Russian citizenship and 1 ethnic Azerbaijani holding Georgian citizenship) to Azerbaijan.
To ensure that our citizens in the Islamic Republic of Iran can cross into our country by land without obstacles, the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan issued a resolution and directed relevant state bodies. To date, 300 Azerbaijani citizens have entered Azerbaijan from Iran by land.
The situation in the region continues to be closely monitored, and all necessary measures are being taken to ensure the safe evacuation of our citizens.
