What happened
Pakistan International Airlines suspended flight operations to several Gulf destinations, a halt announced on 28 February 2026 that remained in force on Sunday 1 March, citing the worsening security situation and restricted airspace across parts of the Middle East after US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
A PIA spokesperson said flights to the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait had been stopped with immediate effect, and would not operate “until tomorrow evening or until the restoration of airspace, whichever comes later”. Services to Saudi Arabia continued, but with changed routes: PIA shifted those flights to its wide-body Boeing 777 aircraft, which were flying longer paths to avoid restricted zones.
The suspension came as major international carriers grounded aircraft across the region. Dawn reported that the skies over Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Jordan were virtually empty as civilian aircraft were rerouted around a no-fly zone, and that British Airways, Lufthansa, Air France, ITA Airways, Wizz Air, Qatar Airways and Kuwait Airways were among the airlines suspending routes. The European Union’s aviation regulator recommended that its airlines stay out of the affected airspace.
Evacuation through Azerbaijan
With flights disrupted, Pakistan’s Foreign Office activated a 24/7 crisis management unit and issued an advisory urging Pakistanis in the region to remain indoors where possible, avoid unnecessary travel and follow instructions from host governments. Emergency contact numbers were published for missions in Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the foreign ministry to arrange the safe return of Pakistanis in Iran via Azerbaijan, and the government designated Baku as the evacuation base. Pakistan’s embassy in Azerbaijan said staff were deployed to the Astara land border crossing and that 31 Pakistani nationals crossed into Azerbaijan on Sunday, before being moved to Baku for onward flights home. The embassy credited Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry with supporting the movement.
The Pakistani embassy in Abu Dhabi said flight operations from the UAE had not yet been restored and advised nationals to check with airlines before going to the airport. A Pakistani national was among the civilians killed in the UAE when debris from intercepted Iranian missiles caused damage in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, according to Independent Pakistan. The wider regional response, including the countrywide protests that followed the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, is covered in KhabarWire’s report on the protests.
What is still uncertain
It was not clear when PIA’s Gulf routes would resume or how many Pakistanis remained in Iran and the wider Gulf. The advisory covered citizens in several countries, but no consolidated figure of those seeking repatriation had been published. Officials described the suspensions and the evacuation as precautionary and dependent on the regional security situation, and the Pakistani embassy in Abu Dhabi did not say when UAE flights would restart.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 2026-03-02.
- Dawn — PIA joins worldwide rush to halt Gulf flights amid warPublished 1 March 2026 · PIA's suspended routes and Boeing 777 rerouting, the regional airspace shutdown and the list of international carriers that halted flights.
- Profit by Pakistan Today — PIA halts gulf flights over airspace restrictionsPublished 1 March 2026 · Confirmation that UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait routes were suspended while Saudi operations continued via longer Boeing 777 diversions.
- The Diplomatic Insight — Pakistan Rushes to Evacuate Citizens from Iran via AzerbaijanPublished 2 March 2026 · The Foreign Office advisory, the Baku evacuation base, the Astara crossing and the 31 nationals who crossed on Sunday.
- Independent Pakistan — Pakistan condemns assassination of Iran's supreme leader as breach of international lawPublished 1 March 2026 · The 24/7 crisis management unit, emergency contact numbers, UAE flight status and the Pakistani national killed in the UAE.
