Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she has asked Oman for use of its airspace “if necessary, for Canadian citizens to get out” of the Middle East.

Anand says Ottawa’s top priority in the ongoing war involving Iran is safety for Canadians in the region and Oman still had “viable” airspace as of this morning.

She said that in a conversation with her Omani counterpart today she asked for Canada to use airspace of that country, which sits across the Gulf of Oman from Iran.

However Anand’s office says the minister is urging Canadians to leave the region by their own means, and that there is no current plan for Ottawa to co-ordinate evacuations.

Global Affairs Canada says more than 97,000 Canadians have registered as being in the Middle East.

Her comments to the Toronto Board of Trade come as the U.S. State Department says it’s preparing military and charter flights for Americans who want to leave the Middle East, as other nations have done.

Anand says she has been in touch with multiple foreign ministers from the Persian Gulf and broader Middle East, “making sure that there are possibilities for Canadians to have supports in those countries.”

As reported earlier, Air Canada has suspended its Tel Aviv and Dubai flights until March 22, with a potential March 23 restart date.

Air Canada’s flexible rebooking policy includes, in addition to Dubai and Tel Aviv, Abu Dhabi, Beirut, Amman, Erbil and Dammam. The policy applies to passengers who purchased an Air Canada ticket no later than Feb. 28, 2026 for travel to, from or through DXB, AUH, TLV, BEY, AMM, EBL and DMM between now and March 15, 2026.

Meanwhile Emirates, which serves YYZ and YUL with flights to Dubai, is currently operating very limited flights from DXB.

According to the latest update from Emirates, all scheduled Emirates flights to and from Dubai remain suspended until at least 11:59 p.m. UAE time on March 4.

“Emirates continues to operate a limited number of passenger repatriation and freighter flights on 3 and 4 March,” said the airline in an X post earlier this morning. “We are accommodating customers with earlier bookings as a priority on these limited flights. Please do not go to the airport unless you have been notified directly by Emirates, or hold a confirmed booking for these flights.”

With file from The Canadian Press
Lead image caption: Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand speaks at the Toronto Region Board of Trade on March 3, 2025 (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young)