Islamabad: The Pakistani embassy in Riyadh and the country’s consulate in Jeddah have set up helplines and deployed teams at regional airports to facilitate Pakistani passengers suffering flight disruptions, state media reported on Sunday. 

Several regional countries shut down their airspace when Iran launched strikes against US bases in the Gulf following US-Israeli strikes on Iran last week. The conflict has affected key air corridors and forced airlines to cancel or reroute thousands of flights.

Hundreds of international and domestic flights have been canceled in Pakistan since the conflict began on Feb. 28, with most of them scheduled to fly between the South Asian country and destinations in the Middle East.

“As per the instructions of the Government of Pakistan, the Pakistani Embassy in Riyadh and the Consulate General of Pakistan in Jeddah have set up round the clock helplines and deployed teams at regional airports to facilitate Pakistani passengers,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 

The state media outlet noted that the Middle East war has disrupted air travel, particularly for Pakistani Umrah pilgrims and other passengers in the western regions of Saudi Arabia. 

“The situation of Pakistani pilgrims and passengers in Jeddah, Makkah and Madinah is stable, while minor operational restrictions and risk warnings are in place in these airspaces,” Radio Pakistan added. 

Earlier this week, the Pakistan Aviation Authority (PAA) denied media reports of a partial closure of the Pakistani airspace from Mar. 3 and Mar. 31.

It said Pakistan’s entire airspace remains fully open, safe, and available for all civil aviation traffic, including commercial flights. It added that alternative routing options are routinely used for affected flows.

“There are no restrictions on commercial operations, arrivals, departures, or overflights across Pakistan,” the PAA said. “Our air traffic controllers and airport teams are fully operational and managing traffic normally.”