UK will charter flights from Oman to evacuate Britons from region amid Iran strikes

UK will charter flights from Oman to evacuate Britons from region amid Iran strikes Government working to transport stranded nationals in coming days, prioritising most vulnerable Middle East crisis live – latest updates The UK government will charter a flight from Oman in the coming days, prioritising vulnerable British nationals in the region amid continued strikes by Iran , the foreign secretary has said. Yvette Cooper said the closure of the airspace and the ongoing threat of strikes from Iran, retaliating for US-Israeli attacks , meant the situation was “fast-moving”. The charter flight will take off from Muscat “in the coming days”, Cooper said, adding that the government was working on increasing the capacity of flights able to depart from Oman . She said 130,000 British nationals had registered their presence with the Foreign Office, allowing them to receive updates as the situation unfolds. Speaking in the Commons, Cooper said airspace was still closed but that many British nationals stranded in countries in the Gulf, including the UAE , were receiving assistance from the local governments. “I am in close contact with my counterparts across the region, speaking again yesterday with the UAE on the excellent support that they are providing and some of the departures that they are now securing as this becomes viable,” she said. Cooper said that the government was “working with airlines on increasing capacity out of Muscat for British nationals”, and that a charter flight would fly from Muscat in the coming days, prioritising vulnerable nationals. She said Britons in Oman would have to wait to be contacted by the Foreign Office . “This is a very fast-moving situation. We have unprecedented numbers of British nationals in the region, and I will continue to update members and affected British nationals as the situation evolves,” she said. No 10 said the FCDO had taken 2,700 calls from British nationals, half in the UAE. Citizens have registered to be kept informe...