UAE urges all its citizens to return home amid rising travel restrictions

The UAE has called upon all its citizens travelling outside the country to return back due to growing travel restrictions being imposed worldwide to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation advised its students and citizens abroad who are unwell to coordinate with the UAE embassy in their country of residence.

All Emiratis abroad have been asked to contact the nearest embassies or call 80044444 for assistance.

The ministry also called on all Emirati travellers to register on its website to facilitate communication in emergency cases.

The UAE had issued an advisory to all citizens and residents earlier this month, urging them not to travel outside the country unless it was essential.

Several countries worldwide have gone into lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, with GCC states such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait temporarily banning all international flights. Lebanon is also set to soon close it airport and suspend all flights.

The UAE has also stopped all flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Turkey and announced that it will suspend issuing tourist visas. Those with diplomatic passports and visitors who are eligible for visa-on-arrival will be exempt.

Read: Passengers from these countries can travel to Dubai despite entry visa suspension

Dubai airline Emirates is suspending flights to 30 destinations starting Tuesday, March 17, while Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways has also temporarily suspended flights to certain destinations and reduced capacity to others.

Read: Etihad suspends flights to Beirut, Istanbul as part of network changes due to virus

Abu Dhabi Airport also announced on Monday that it was closing Terminal 2 and migrating all existing flights to Terminal 1.