09/03/2026 (Agence Europe) – European repatriation operations are multiplying in the Middle East. As of Monday 9 March, the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) had been activated by 23 Member States, enabling 44 flights to be co-financed and more than 4,100 European nationals to be evacuated from the region. In addition, and for the first time, the European Commission mobilised its own airliners as part of the ‘rescEU’ reserve. At the request of the Romanian authorities, two flights entirely financed by the EU were chartered and were able to bring 356 European citizens from Oman back to Romania with the support of the Emergency Response Coordination Centre and the European External Action Service. In a press release, the European Commission said it was “fully mobilised to support the repatriations”, adding that “more flights are planned in the coming days”. Read the full press release: https://aeur.eu/f/l38 (JM)