Dubai: More than 400 tourists stranded on a Yemeni island after flights were halted due to fighting on the mainland will be able to fly out starting on Wednesday, a Yemeni airport official told AFP.
Over the past few days, flights in and out of Yemen had been largely restricted following a flare-up of violence between rival armed factions.
An official at the airport on the island of Socotra told AFP on Tuesday that the 416 stranded tourists would be able to leave from Wednesday via Yemenia Airways flights to Aden, then on to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
The airport in Aden on the mainland has been functional since Sunday after disruptions that lasted for several days.
The stranded tourists had arrived from the UAE's Abu Dhabi airport via Air Arabia, an Emirati airline.
"But the Yemeni and Saudi governments have prohibited direct flights from the UAE to Yemen, including those bound for Socotra" after the UAE- and Saudi-backed groups clashed over territory, the official said.
The tourists include at least 60 Russians, he said, with a Western diplomat telling AFP other nationalities were present including French, British and American citizens.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the Russian embassy to Yemen shared details for a $700 Yemenia Airways flight from Socotra to Jeddah scheduled for Wednesday.
More flights on the same route "are planned later, but for now there is no precise information", it added.
With its lush landscape, distinctive "dragon blood" trees, unique animals and turquoise waters, Yemen's Socotra archipelago has been a magnet for adventurous travellers for years.
