Dutch airline KLM is sending a plane to the Middle East on Tuesday evening to pick up stranded Dutch nationals from the Oman capital Muscat. Foreign minister Tom Berendsen told MPs on Tuesday afternoon that the flight was taking place in cooperation with his ministry.

Thousands of Dutch nationals have been stranded in Qatar, Dubai and Saudi Arabia since the US and Israel launched their attack on Iran, which has since spread to other parts of the region.

Only Dutch nationals who are registered via the crisis contact formula and meet the conditions for evacuation will be eligible for the flight and places are limited, the ministry said.

The cabinet, Berendsen said, is now doing all it can to bring back Dutch nationals, including possible repatriation flights, which would operate in addition to commercial airlines.

The Dutch foreign ministry’s latest information in English is available here.

Berendsen said on Monday the Dutch government “understood” the US and Israel’s decision to attack Iran, but said it is important to “restore stability to the region” as soon as possible and work towards “diplomatic solutions”.

“We’ve seen the attacks on Iran and as a cabinet we can understand them, given the huge risk that the Iranian regime poses, not just the murder of its own citizens but also the wider risk for the region and beyond,” he said.