During the regular government press briefing on 2 March, Foreign-Office spokesperson Sebastian Giese outlined the federal response to the Middle-East escalation. A cross-ministerial crisis staff chaired by Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul is meeting daily, and all German embassies in the region are “fully operational and working around the clock” to support nationals. Giese urged citizens to enrol in the ELEFAND database to receive real-time SMS alerts and confirmed that more than 12,000 new registrations had been processed over the weekend.
![Berlin activates crisis task-force and 24/7 hotline for Germans abroad]()
Travellers who still need to verify visa requirements or secure transit documents on short notice can streamline the process through VisaHQ’s digital platform; the Berlin-based service (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) maintains live data on entry regulations for more than 200 destinations and offers hands-on support for German nationals and residents facing sudden itinerary changes.
Consular teams are liaising with airlines to secure contingency seats and are arranging charter buses from Doha and Dubai to Muscat, where limited evacuation flights are operating. He reminded companies of their duty of care under the German Civil Code (§ 618 BGB) and encouraged HR departments to ensure that mobile workers have comprehensive travel-health insurance with “war and civil unrest” riders. The ministry is also coordinating with EU peers on possible joint evacuation flights under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism. Observers note that Germany’s swift activation of its crisis toolkit contrasts with slower responses during the 2020 COVID shutdowns and could become a best-practice template for future large-scale mobility disruptions.
Travellers who still need to verify visa requirements or secure transit documents on short notice can streamline the process through VisaHQ’s digital platform; the Berlin-based service (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) maintains live data on entry regulations for more than 200 destinations and offers hands-on support for German nationals and residents facing sudden itinerary changes.
Consular teams are liaising with airlines to secure contingency seats and are arranging charter buses from Doha and Dubai to Muscat, where limited evacuation flights are operating. He reminded companies of their duty of care under the German Civil Code (§ 618 BGB) and encouraged HR departments to ensure that mobile workers have comprehensive travel-health insurance with “war and civil unrest” riders. The ministry is also coordinating with EU peers on possible joint evacuation flights under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism. Observers note that Germany’s swift activation of its crisis toolkit contrasts with slower responses during the 2020 COVID shutdowns and could become a best-practice template for future large-scale mobility disruptions.
