Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel admitted he had “not slept well in the last few days” during his television appearance on RTL’s Journal on Friday evening, as he reflected on the pressure of overseeing Luxembourg’s repatriation efforts from the United Arab Emirates.
Bettel revealed that the decision to route returning passengers via Oman had rested squarely on his shoulders. Advised that zero risk was impossible, he concluded there was no viable alternative, given that Dubai airport had remained closed for much of the time and Abu Dhabi was similarly unavailable. He therefore took the decision to bring Luxembourg residents, as well as nationals from neighbouring countries, home through Muscat.
A further aircraft, a military plane, landed at Findel on Friday evening. “That is a NATO plane that we also organised”, said Bettel, “and had we not taken the initiative, together with Luxair, to organise the first flights, the first people would only have arrived home today.” He explained that securing authorisation from the other co-owners of the shared aircraft had presented an additional hurdle, but noted that cooperation with Belgium had been constructive, with efforts ongoing to bring home one or two individuals still remaining on the ground.
The Foreign Minister confirmed that a total of 500 people had been repatriated so far, though he acknowledged that further residents were only now coming forward, including some who had initially wanted to fly home from Dubai independently or had chosen to remain there.
“I cannot force anyone”, Bettel said. “We currently have around 150 people who have expressed an interest in returning on the next flight we are able to organise.”
A further military aircraft is currently stationed in Egypt, awaiting clearance to depart. Bettel expressed confidence it would arrive on Saturday or Sunday at the latest. The flight is being organised by Belgium, with Luxembourg securing seats on board.
While praising the solidarity shown between nations, Bettel was keen to manage expectations: “We are not a travel agency”, he underlined. He said he would prefer people to return as quickly as possible and was relieved that 500 had already made it home safely.
In conversations with political leaders from the UAE, Bettel noted that the message had been consistent: the region must now stand firm against Iran’s attacks, raising concerns that the situation could yet deteriorate further.
Arrival of fourth repatriation flight:
