Over 10,000 Chinese citizens returned from Middle East amid war

BEIJING, March 10 (Reuters) – Chinese authorities and airlines have assisted over 10,000 Chinese citizens in returning from the Middle East, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday, after the war in the region forced airspace closures and grounded commercial flights. 

* Over 10,000 Chinese people have safely returned fromcountries including the United Arab Emirates, Oman and SaudiArabia, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry,said in a press briefing on Tuesday.  * China’s foreign ministry and civil aviation administrationhave guided domestic airlines to increase capacity to repatriateChinese citizens stranded in the Middle East, Guo said. * More than 3,000 Chinese citizens had been evacuated fromIran, the foreign ministry said last week. * The war in the Middle East, which broke out after theUnited States and Israel launched strikes against Iran onFebruary 28, led to flight cancellations across the region. * Major Chinese airlines, including Air China and ChinaSouthern Airlines, resumed flights earlier this month betweensome Chinese cities and Gulf hubs such as Riyadh and Dubai.   * China has condemned the U.S. and Israeli strikes,repeatedly called for a ceasefire and sent an envoy to theMiddle East for mediation. 

(Reporting by Xiuhao Chen and Ryan Woo; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Kevin Buckland)