Russia’s Consulate General in Dubai published what appeared to be an AI-generated infographic on Monday that refers to Russian tourists stranded in the country as “orphans” and “anti-social people.”
The image, which gives guidance to travelers unable to find a return flight home due to the ongoing Middle East conflict, was posted on the consulate’s Telegram channel.
In the bottom right-hand corner of the infographic, a section labeled “extreme scenario” addresses tourists as “orphans or anti-social people with no friends or acquaintances.”
For an unknown reason, that sentence is crossed out, though the words are still legible. The crossed-out sentence is then followed by instructions for those “who do not have the financial means to continue staying at a hotel” to secure “no-frills” accommodation with the consulate’s assistance.
“If your hotel insists on you leaving the premises and you have absolutely no money, email us with a brief description of the situation,” the Russian consulate said in a statement.
It remains unclear why the consulate referred to stranded Russians as “orphans” and “anti-social people.” The infographic remained on its Telegram channel as of Monday evening.
The Moscow Times contacted the consulate in Dubai for comment.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry estimates that more than 20,000 Russian tourists are stranded in the United Arab Emirates and 500 more in other Gulf countries.
On Saturday, the UAE announced it had closed its airspace “temporarily and partially” as an exceptional precautionary measure amid ongoing strikes by Iran in response to U.S. and Israeli attacks.
It said “limited” flights would resume at Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports on Monday evening.
The government of Abu Dhabi has meanwhile promised that hotels will bear the costs of accommodating tourists who were unable to leave on their checkout date.
Iran, Iraq, Israel, Syria, Kuwait and Qatar had all announced at least partial closures of their skies.
AFP contributed reporting.
