BANGKOK: Thailand is readying to evacuate its citizens from the Middle East by military or charter flights, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul (pic) said Sunday (March 1), after the United States and Israel attacked Iran -- which answered with its own missile strikes.
The government has "coordinated with the Royal Thai Air Force to prepare aircraft to evacuate Thai citizens, prioritising those in Iran", Anutin told reporters in Bangkok, adding that charter flights were also under consideration.
"We have to check the closure of airspace, whether we need to evacuate them to the third country first," he said.
"The Thai government will do everything to bring Thai citizens back safely. If they want to return, we will take them back."
About 110,000 Thais were living in the region, including around 65,000 in Israel and about 250 in Iran, Thai foreign ministry spokesman Panidone Pachimsawat told a press briefing Sunday evening.
About 29 Thai nationals in Iran and 20 in Israel have registered their wish to return to Thailand with the government, Panidone said.
Evacuation plans "have been prepared should the need arise, and may involve coordination with other countries or international organisations that are likewise preparing their own evacuation arrangements", he said.
More than 20,000 Thais resided in the United Arab Emirates, with thousands more in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and other Gulf nations, according to the ministry.
Nearly 59,000 Thais were registered with Thailand's labour office in Israel, and more than 11,000 were registered with Thailand's labour office in Abu Dhabi -- which covers the UAE, Qatar, Oman and Iran, according to the labour ministry.
The United States and Israel began launching waves of strikes against Iran on Saturday, sparking swift retaliation by the Islamic republic.
US President Donald Trump has vowed to continue striking Iran until its government falls.
Iranian state television confirmed the death of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday, after Trump said he had been killed.
Fresh explosions were heard in Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Manama on Sunday.
Amid the bombardments, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Syria, the UAE and Israel all have closed their airspaces to civilian traffic, at least in part, and multiple airlines have cancelled flights to and from the region. - AFP
