A group of 12 Angolans stranded in Dubai due to airport closure following the Middle East conflict is expected to return to Luanda on Saturday on an Emirates flight, according to a representative of the Angolan community.
Speaking to Lusa, Aliondy Garcia explained that these individuals were in the United Arab Emirates on short visits and are not part of the resident community.
“We are talking about around 12 Angolans who were in Dubai for tourism or short trips and wanted to return to Luanda. In addition to those, there are also two Angolans whose final destination was Portugal,” said the president of the Association of Angolans and Friends in the United Arab Emirates.
The businessman said these people became stranded after Dubai International Airport was hit by drones and temporarily closed due to military tensions in the Middle East, which led several countries and airlines to suspend flights for security reasons.
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According to Aliondy Garcia, the airport is expected to reopen on Saturday the 7th, and the expectation is that these passengers will return to Luanda that day on an Emirates flight.
“Emirates was screening passengers who were in Dubai so they could benefit from that flight to Angola. We hope Luanda remains among the priority destinations,” he said.
The representative stressed that the situation in the Emirates remains calm and that there is no cause for alarm among residents.
“Life here in Dubai is running normally. Public transport is working, supermarkets are open and people are continuing to work. We are not in a situation of direct conflict,” he said.
The Angolan community in the United Arab Emirates is relatively small, currently estimated at around 220 residents, the majority concentrated in Dubai. According to Aliondy Garcia, Angolans based in the emirate are mainly involved in business, particularly real estate and trade and investment activities.
“Dubai is a city of opportunities, where around 85% of the population is foreign, and many Angolans came here precisely because of the business opportunities,” he explained.
The representative added that the Angolan community association, working alongside Angola’s consulate and embassy, has been providing support to citizens stranded there while they await the resumption of air links.
Dubai International Airport is one of the world’s leading aviation hubs and the busiest in the Middle East, serving as Emirates’ main hub and one of the largest connection points between Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania. UAE authorities temporarily restricted flights for security reasons, as the regional airspace became unstable and potentially dangerous for civil aviation due to the possibility of military attacks or interceptions.
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In recent days, some flights have begun to gradually resume, but the airport continues to operate on reduced schedules, giving priority to essential or repatriation flights.
The United States and Israel launched a military strike against Iran on February 28, killing ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s supreme leader since 1989, during the offensive. The Iranian Leadership Council is currently running the country.
Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz and launched retaliatory strikes against targets in Israel, US bases and other infrastructure in countries across the region, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Oman, Iraq, Cyprus and Turkey.
Since the start of the conflict, more than one thousand deaths have been recorded, the majority Irani
