More than 2,500 Czechs remain in Middle East conflict region

More than 2,500 Czech citizens remain in countries affected by the current conflict in the Middle East, according to the voluntary travel registration system Drozd. The Czech Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that 2,532 people were registered in the region, about 500 fewer than on Monday.

The largest number, more than 1,300, are in the United Arab Emirates, followed by smaller groups in Oman, Qatar and Israel. The number of registered travellers has been steadily falling since early March, when about 6,700 Czechs were recorded in the region.

The Czech government has so far organised 11 repatriation flights for travellers stranded by disrupted air traffic. The latest plane returned to Prague early on Tuesday morning from Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt.

Earlier flights brought more than 1,500 Czech citizens home, while thousands of others returned on commercial airlines. Authorities are now considering whether to send another evacuation flight to the region.