Emirates, Qatar Airways Suspend Flights as U.S.–Iran Hostilities Escalate

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Major Gulf carriers Emirates and Qatar Airways have temporarily suspended flight operations following airspace closures in the Middle East, as the United States and Iran exchanged ballistic missile strikes on Saturday.

In separate statements, the airlines cited ongoing hostilities between the U.S. and Iran as the reason for the disruption.

“Due to multiple regional airspace closures, Emirates has temporarily suspended operations to and from Dubai,” the airline said. “Emirates urges customers to check emirat.es/travelupdates and emirat.es/flightstatus for the latest updates before proceeding to the airport.”

The airline added that it “apologises to customers affected by disruptions for any inconvenience caused” and is assisting them with rebooking, refunds, or alternative travel arrangements.

Similarly, Qatar Airways announced that “flight operations to Doha remain temporarily suspended until midnight UTC this evening, due to the closure of Qatari airspace.”

“At Hamad International Airport, affected passengers are being assisted by additional ground staff deployed to manage the situation,” the airline said. “Qatar Airways is providing all necessary arrangements to ensure that every effort is made to minimise inconvenience during this disruption.”

The airline suspensions followed a series of airstrikes launched earlier on Saturday by the U.S. and Israel targeting Iran, including the office of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and nuclear facilities.

In a broadcast, U.S. President Donald Trump declared that the United States was pursuing members of Iran’s “terrible regime” and said the government is carrying out “major combat operations” against the country.

The escalating tensions have prompted regional authorities to close or restrict airspace as a safety precaution, leaving thousands of passengers affected and airlines scrambling to adjust operations.