A night of terror for Italians stranded in the Middle East. In the United Arab Emirates , the telephone alarm system urging citizens to retreat to basements or safer areas rang several times in the middle of the night .

Among the testimonies is that of Sardinian Gianluigi Spano, stranded in Doha on his way back from a trip to Sri Lanka with another Sardinian couple. "We've been in Doha since yesterday. They canceled flights to all destinations and moved us to a hotel last night, as the airport is a sensitive site. They haven't let us know anything about the situation or our possible return to Italy." "There are other Italians in our hotel," Spano continues. "Yesterday, after canceling the flight to Rome scheduled for 4 p.m., they then rescheduled it for 9:30 a.m. today, and then canceled that as well, along with all the other flights, as the airspace is closed. Around 2 a.m., they began transferring thousands of passengers to their hotels, as mentioned, as the airport is a high-risk site. We're still hearing noises. The alert message continues to ring on our cell phones. We even called the embassy, but we haven't gotten an answer regarding our possible return to Italy."

There is also concern for a group of Sardinians stranded at the port of Dubai aboard the MSC Euribia cruise ship. A fire broke out at the port overnight, but "it was quickly extinguished," local authorities said.

"They've been intercepting missiles for hours ," says Valentina, an Italian who's been in Dubai for work with her family for two years. "We're stuck at home , we've stocked up on water , and as soon as we receive the alert or hear the explosions, we lock ourselves in a room with mattresses propped up against the windows to protect ourselves from breaking glass. We follow the instructions of the local authorities."