{"id":506632,"date":"2026-03-01T04:15:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T04:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/506632\/"},"modified":"2026-03-01T04:15:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T04:15:11","slug":"queens-university-students-stranded-in-doha-after-iran-attack-shuts-down-airspace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/506632\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen\u2019s University students stranded in Doha after Iran attack shuts down airspace"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A group of Queen\u2019s University students is stranded at an airport in Doha, Qatar, after escalating hostilities in the Middle East prompted regional airspace closures and widespread flight disruptions.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/70c8fc80.png\" alt=\"\" style=\"position:absolute;width:1px;height:1px\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Claire Haffner, a fourth-year undergraduate biology student, said the group had boarded a flight to Toronto following a field course in Sri Lanka, with a stopover in Doha, when they heard an announcement.<\/p>\n<p>After being in the air for an hour and a half, \u201cthere was an announcement that the airspace was closed and we had to turn back,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>The disruptions follow major strikes by the United States and Israel on targets in Iran, sharply intensifying tensions in the region.<\/p>\n<p>In return, Iran responded by launching missiles in Israel and nearby Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar, which resulted in an immediate shutdown of airspaces across the region.<\/p>\n<p>Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was an initial panic among me and my classmates,\u201d Haffner said.<\/p>\n<p>She said the Qatar Airways flight returned to Doha, where passengers were briefly kept on board before disembarking into what she described as a \u201cchaotic scene\u201d inside the airport.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"170\" height=\"225\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767930311_275_national.jpg\" alt=\"Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\tGet daily National news<\/p>\n<p>Get the day&#8217;s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverybody rushed off the plane in a big mob,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was chaotic earlier \u2014 there were crowds everywhere and lines, and trying to talk to staff. Everybody is dealing with it differently, but we\u2019re all overwhelmed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After several hours, the group was told they would not be flying out Saturday night.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\tMore on World<br \/>\n\t\t\tMore videos\n\t\t<\/p>\n<p>Haffner said they were still waiting for word on when the airspace would reopen.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s been a feeling of uneasiness ever since,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s a sinking feeling in your gut, and you can read the news, and you know what\u2019s going on outside \u2026 even though you\u2019re protected in the airport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She said some students quickly purchased electronic SIM cards to stay in touch with family back home.<\/p>\n<p>Trying to stay optimistic, Haffner told Global News, \u201cWe are in a safe place, the airport feels like a safe space. I am very lucky to be travelling with these classmates and my professor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\tTrending Now\n\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/news\/11711337\/world-reactions-to-us-israel-attacks-iran\/\" class=\"c-posts__inner\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-posts__thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/iran-attack-reaction.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"336\" height=\"224\" alt=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\tAs U.S. and Israel attack Iran, the world reacts: \u2018Grave consequences\u2019\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/news\/11710673\/wwe-hall-of-fame-ring-belonging-to-wrestling-legend-recovered-after-stolen\/\" class=\"c-posts__inner\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-posts__thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1772338511_582_643031593_18196590679339302_1127571266576644776_n.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"336\" height=\"224\" alt=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\tWWE Hall of Fame ring belonging to wrestling legend recovered after stolen\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Queen\u2019s University said it is in direct contact with faculty leaders travelling with the group.<\/p>\n<p>Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe recognize that this situation may be distressing for the students and their families, and their safety and well-being is our top priority,\u201d the university said in a statement to Global News.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cQueen\u2019s is in direct contact with the faculty leaders in Doha to offer support and assistance. We have been advised that the group is safe and currently at the airport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The university said it partners with International SOS to provide emergency assistance for community members travelling on university-sanctioned activities and that the group has access to 24-hour multilingual support, including help with flight arrangements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will remain in close contact with the faculty leaders and continue to offer support as they await further information on next steps,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n<p>Global Affairs Canada has updated its travel advisories for Canadians travelling to and from Gulf nations, including Israel, Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Syria and the United Arab Emirates, warning of \u201congoing military activity\u201d in the region.<\/p>\n<p>Flights in and out of Canada to the region have faced cancellations and delays.<\/p>\n<p>\u2013 With files from Darya Zargar<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t&amp;copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A group of Queen\u2019s University students is stranded at an airport in Doha, Qatar, after escalating hostilities in&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":506633,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[48,43,5897,201875,44,54348,41,39,42,40,3275],"class_list":["post-506632","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-canada","tag-headlines","tag-iran","tag-iran-attacks","tag-news","tag-queens-university","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/506632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=506632"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/506632\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/506633"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=506632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=506632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=506632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}