Defense Min.: Dutch military plane to repatriate thousands of citizens from Middle East

The Dutch government is sending its first military plane Sunday evening to the Middle East to bring back “thousands” of Dutch citizens stranded abroad, Defense Minister Dilan Yesilgöz confirmed. About 11,000 Dutch nationals have requested assistance, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Berendsen. Many face lengthy travel to reach airports. “That transportation sometimes runs into difficulties,” Berendsen said Friday evening at Café Kockelmann. “That is why we asked Defense to bring people home.”

“That transportation sometimes runs into difficulties,” Berendsen said Friday evening at Café Kockelmann. “That is why we asked Defense to bring people home.”

“Yes, it will probably mean they go from Oman toward Egypt and then return home,” Yesilgöz said in the television program WNL op Zondag. “But Foreign Affairs has been handling this very carefully all week. We have thousands of people we want to bring back. We will provide exact details later about how, what, and where so people know what to expect.”

The operation involves an A330 MRTT aircraft of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. Foreign Affairs Minister Berendsen announced Friday that he had requested Defense’s help to carry out repatriation “to locations where we currently cannot use charter flights and where no commercial flights operate,” a spokesperson said.

Yesilgöz promised to release more details about the repatriation flights later. “So people know what to expect,” she said. She also noted that more flights will follow “if necessary.” Sunday’s flight will depart from the Netherlands to Oman and transport passengers back via Egypt to the country, the minister said.