The FCDO has issued numerous warnings and advice for British citizens planning to travel to, or already in, affected countries. The latest was issued earlier this afternoon and covers 31 countries
Thousands of flights have been grounded so far during the war(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has issued new travel advice for 31 countries amid the war in the Middle East.
Israeli and US strikes on Iran over the past three weeks triggered a response that has grounded thousands of flights, killed more than 2,000 people and caused flight paths and ship routes to be shut down.
The FCDO has issued numerous warnings and advice for British citizens planning to travel to, or already in, affected countries. The latest was issued earlier this afternoon and covers 31 countries.
“Escalation in the Middle East has caused widespread travel disruption, including airspace closures, delayed and cancelled flights. Your travel plans may be affected, even if your destination is not in the Middle East,” the advice reads.
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The FCDO advises that before travelling, UK passport holders:
- check travel advice for any countries or territories you are transiting through
- check for the latest updates from your airline or tour operator before travelling
- review your travel insurance policy for coverage before you travel
- monitor local and international media for the latest information and sign up for travel advice email alerts
Countries with updated advice
- Singapore
- Vietnam
- Phillipinnes
- Tuvalu
- Laos
- Thailand
- Uzbekistan
- New Zealand
- Bangladesh
- Australia
- Indonesia
- Brunei
- Japan
- Georgia
- Tajikistan
- Nepal
- Maldives
- Fiji
- Malaysia
- India
- Papa New Guinea
- Cambodia
- South Korea
- Samoa
- Solomon
- Tonga
- Nauru
- Vanutu
- Marshall Islands
- Kiribati
- Sri Lanka
More than 1,300 people in Iran have been killed during the war. Israeli strikes against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon have displaced more than 1 million people — roughly 20% of the population — according to the Lebanese government, which says more than 1,000 people have been killed. Israel says it has killed more than 500 Hezbollah militants.
In Israel, 15 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire. Four people were also killed in the occupied West Bank overnight by an Iranian missile strike, according to officials. At least 13 U.S. military members have been killed.
Iran announced the execution of three men detained in January’s nationwide protests, the first such sentences known to have been carried out, the judiciary’s Mizan news agency reported.
Today, three weeks since the war began, Iran intensified its attacks on oil and natural gas facilities around the Gulf.
The strikes, in retaliation for an Israeli attack on a key Iranian gas field, sent fuel prices soaring and risked drawing Iran’s Arab neighbors directly into the conflict. Tehran’s targeting of energy production further stressed global supplies already under pressure because of Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
Since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28, Iran’s top leaders have been killed in airstrikes and the country’s military capabilities have been severely degraded. Still, Iran — now led by the son of the supreme leader killed in the war’s opening salvo — remains capable of missile and drone attacks rattling its Gulf Arab neighbors and a global economy dependent on the energy they produce.