President Donald Trump has warned Iranian military officials to surrender or be killed.
Multiple New Zealanders across the Middle East have struggled to register with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ SafeTravel portal amid escalating hostilities.
The Government has advised citizens across affected countries to register on the online portal and remain in place, since the beginning of the conflict on Saturday, New Zealandtime.
Catherine Benneto, whose husband and 19-year-old son are currently based in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, were attempting to follow the advice but experienced technical issues.
“[My son] rang and he was really frustrated. He did all the RealMe and he was getting quite panicked,” she told the Herald.
“Once it got to the stage where you had to say which country you were in after you had put in all your passports, he was getting a page saying ‘Page not found’.”
He was getting quite anxious because the New Zealand Government wouldn’t know where he was, as he couldn’t do the last bit, she said.
Bennetto rang the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and asked what her husband and son should do, however, she was told they should register on SafeTravel, pack a grab bag and stay put.
Two Kiwis based in Saudi Arabia encountered a "Page not found" message when attempting to register on SafeTravel. Photo / Catherine Bennetto
Kiwis have expressed frustration with the website on social media.
“Hi kiwis, the embassy link is not working to register for safe travel, has anyone had success with it. Does anyone has any information on what to do,” one person wrote.
“I did mine on my laptop as couldn’t register on my phone,” wrote another.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said officials were aware some users were having trouble registering on SafeTravel or receiving SafeTravel messages updating them on the Middle East situation
“We are working to address it,” they said.
“Due to registration numbers increasing daily, we will also be resending earlier messages to ensure new registrants receive important information from us.”
According to MFAT figures, 29 New Zealanders are registered in Iran, and 78 are registered in Israel.
