US Evacuates 9,000 Citizens from the Middle East; UAE Repatriates 44,000 Tourists
WASHINGTON — The United States has evacuated at least 9,000 of its nationals from Middle Eastern countries as Iran’s military retaliation against Gulf Arab states hosting US bases continues. Tehran’s retaliation follows what the United States and Israel describe as aggression against Iran, with direct strikes on Tehran since Saturday, 28 February 2026, escalating into open warfare in the region.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the evacuation of American citizens was undertaken after observing the ongoing high level of warfare in the area. “About 9,000 Americans have been evacuated from the Middle East since the start of the joint US-Israel attack on Iran,” Rubio told Al Jazeera, on Wednesday 4 March 2026.
Meanwhile, from Abu Dhabi, the Government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) repatriated 44,000 foreign nationals who were tourists. UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdullah bin Thauq al-Marri said the repatriation of 44,000 tourists was prompted by the Zionist-US–Iran conflict, which has affected the country. “More than 44,000 tourists will be repatriated gradually,” al-Marri told Al Jazeera.
Al-Marri stated that the first phase of repatriation for foreign tourists involved 17,498 passengers, using operations of 60 domestic civil flights. “The second phase is planned to enable the repatriation of more than 27,000 passengers with 80 flights per day,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian government in Jakarta, through Foreign Minister Sugiono, has reportedly ordered the evacuation of Indonesian citizens (WNI) in Iran.
Open hostilities between Zionists-US and Iran began on Saturday 28 February 2026. Zionists and Uncle Sam bombed Tehran, resulting in the martyrdom of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, including generals and senior Iranian military officials. The attack by the US-Israel coalition also spread to 24 provinces in Iran. By the third day (3 March 2026) the attacks on Iran had left at least around 750 dead, most of them civilians.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has withstood the attack and retaliated by striking at Israel’s occupied territories. Iran’s retaliation also involved deploying attacking drones and large-destruction missiles against US military bases spread across the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.
In recent days, several Arab countries that host US bases have expressed anger that their territories were targeted by Iran as well. Some of these countries have even threatened to assist the US and Zionist Israel in pressing Iran.