Separated on Middle East Honeymoon... Husband Left Alone Says "Witnessed Several Missiles Exploding"

Amid a series of airport closures across the Middle East following airstrikes on Iran by the United States and Israel, a Chinese newlywed couple was separated during their honeymoon.

On March 6 (local time), the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that more than 1 million passengers were affected after numerous flights in the Middle East were canceled in the wake of the airstrikes. The report included the story of a newlywed couple from Zhejiang Province, China.

According to the report, the couple from Zhejiang Province departed on their honeymoon on February 19 to witness sunsets in the Middle East. Their final stop in the region was Doha, Qatar. Since the husband works in Melbourne, Australia, they planned to travel from Doha to Sydney.

Passengers whose flights were canceled are waiting at the departure terminal of Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, amid disruptions to local air traffic caused by airstrikes from the United States and Israel and retaliatory attacks by Iran. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

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The couple upgraded their tickets to business class, but due to airline policy, they could not secure seats on the same flight. As a result, the wife booked a flight departing at 9:00 a.m. on February 28, while the husband reserved a flight at the same time the following day. However, on that very day, the United States and Israel launched airstrikes against Iran, dramatically altering the situation.

The wife managed to leave Doha, but the husband, Mr. Wei, became stranded there. Advancing his flight would have required an additional payment of 35,000 yuan (approximately 746,000 KRW), and switching to another airline was also not easy. Ultimately, he decided to reschedule for a free flight departing on the 13th.

Mr. Wei is currently staying at a hotel in downtown Doha. He said he personally witnessed several missiles exploding in the air from his hotel. However, he added that there have been no major inconveniences, as breakfast is still served at the hotel and he can order food deliveries without any issues.

Meanwhile, major airports across the Middle East have been experiencing disruptions to air traffic since the airstrikes. Key aviation hubs such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha have been shut down in succession. Some airlines from the UAE and other countries have partially resumed flights, but confusion continues, with thousands of flights already canceled.

According to aviation data analytics firm Cirium, more than 11,000 flights have been canceled in the Middle East due to the fallout, affecting over 1 million passengers.

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