Ukraine war: Jordan loses contact with three nationals in Mariupol, foreign ministry says

Jordan said on Sunday that it has lost communication with three of its citizens in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, as it worked to evacuate its nationals from the war-torn European nation.

Official spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Haitham Abu Al-Ful, confirmed to local Ammon news agency that the ministry was unable to reach the three nationals who were stuck in the southern port city of Mariupol, which has been witnessing heavy fighting and Russian bombardment for days.

News had circulated earlier on social media about the three, as their relatives called on Jordanian authorities to help locate them.

"The Jordanian ministry and embassy in [Turkey’s capital] Ankara are in contact through diplomatic channels and international organisations regarding the Jordanians, with whom communication has been cut off in Ukraine," he said.

Fifty Jordanians decided to stay in Ukraine for personal reasons, while 20 others want to leave with their families but are stuck in flashpoint areas, Abu-Ful added.

Earlier this month, the ministry said hundreds out of at least 3,500 Jordanians in Ukraine had been evacuated.

Ukraine has been a popular destination for Jordanian and Palestinian students for decades, with many choosing to study and settle down there.

Other Jordanian and Arab nationals are stranded in Ukraine, including in the capital Kyiv, which has come under an all-out assault by Russian forces who have begun closing in on it from nearly all sides.