With multiple Middle Eastern airspaces closed and commercial schedules in flux, Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MSZ) has activated a dedicated emergency hotline— +48 22 523 88 80— for citizens who cannot leave the region. The line went live at 17:00 CET on Sunday, 1 March, and will be staffed daily from 08:00 to 22:00. Local embassies continue to operate 24-hour duty phones for life-and-death cases.
MSZ spokesman Maciej Wewiór told public radio on 2 March that consular officers are tracking more than 600 Polish nationals across the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Many arrived on package holidays that were curtailed when airlines pulled services. The ministry is liaising with Gulf authorities, which have offered temporary accommodation for stranded tourists, and is working with European partners on potential evacuation corridors once conditions permit.
Officials strongly urged Poles in the region to register in the Odyseusz traveller-tracking platform—a step many tourists neglect until crises hit. Registration enables the ministry to push real-time security updates and, if necessary, verify eligibility for state-chartered repatriation flights. Social-media scams offering paid “rescue tickets” have already appeared, prompting MSZ to warn citizens to rely solely on official channels.
![Foreign Ministry Opens Hotline for Poles Stranded in Middle East]()
Travellers who suddenly find themselves needing updated transit documents or replacement visas may also benefit from third-party assistance. VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) aggregates the latest Gulf entry requirements and can expedite paperwork for Polish citizens, offering courier pickup, embassy filing and live-chat support—useful stopgaps until government-organised flights resume.
For Poland-based employers with staff on assignment in the Gulf, the advisory has practical implications: under labour-law changes introduced last year, companies must prove they exercised due-diligence in safeguarding employees abroad. Maintaining Odyseusz records and documenting contact with the hotline can serve as evidence of compliance should an incident occur.
Although Warsaw currently rules out mass airlifts, it says a decision could come within days if hostilities spread. In the interim, the government recommends that citizens follow local shelter-in-place guidance, keep travel documents handy and monitor official MSZ feeds on X and Telegram.
MSZ spokesman Maciej Wewiór told public radio on 2 March that consular officers are tracking more than 600 Polish nationals across the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Many arrived on package holidays that were curtailed when airlines pulled services. The ministry is liaising with Gulf authorities, which have offered temporary accommodation for stranded tourists, and is working with European partners on potential evacuation corridors once conditions permit.
Officials strongly urged Poles in the region to register in the Odyseusz traveller-tracking platform—a step many tourists neglect until crises hit. Registration enables the ministry to push real-time security updates and, if necessary, verify eligibility for state-chartered repatriation flights. Social-media scams offering paid “rescue tickets” have already appeared, prompting MSZ to warn citizens to rely solely on official channels.
Travellers who suddenly find themselves needing updated transit documents or replacement visas may also benefit from third-party assistance. VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) aggregates the latest Gulf entry requirements and can expedite paperwork for Polish citizens, offering courier pickup, embassy filing and live-chat support—useful stopgaps until government-organised flights resume.
For Poland-based employers with staff on assignment in the Gulf, the advisory has practical implications: under labour-law changes introduced last year, companies must prove they exercised due-diligence in safeguarding employees abroad. Maintaining Odyseusz records and documenting contact with the hotline can serve as evidence of compliance should an incident occur.
Although Warsaw currently rules out mass airlifts, it says a decision could come within days if hostilities spread. In the interim, the government recommends that citizens follow local shelter-in-place guidance, keep travel documents handy and monitor official MSZ feeds on X and Telegram.
