Dear members,
We would like to inform you that, due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, many European and non-European postal operators have temporarily suspended or restricted their shipments to several countries in the region. These disruptions affect the shipment of goods, parcels and, depending on the country, certain types of mail.
❗ What is the current situation?
The conflict is causing significant logistical disruptions worldwide:
- Airspace closures and flight cancellations, preventing postal delivery to several destinations in the Middle East.
- Attacks in the Red Sea and large-scale rerouting of maritime routes, causing significant delays.
- Overall reduction in cargo capacity, resulting in congestion, delays and shipping restrictions.
- Disruptions to exports from the Middle East: shipments departing from the region are also affected. Several carriers have suspended new bookings from Gulf ports, outbound flights are significantly reduced and certain maritime routes are no longer accessible, which leads to major delays and capacity limitations for shipments destined for international destinations.
These factors are forcing postal operators to temporarily suspend certain destinations or limit the services offered.
📍 Middle Eastern postal operators
Several postal operators in the region are reporting significant disruptions linked to the conflict. Shipments to and from the Middle East may experience long delays due to airspace closures, reduced commercial flights and restrictions on maritime transit.
- United Arab Emirates (UAE Post): inbound and outbound flights are frequently suspended or rerouted. Traffic through Dubai and Abu Dhabi is heavily affected due to partial airspace closures and the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz.
- Israel Post: severe disruptions due to the suspension of most commercial flights. Outbound international shipments experience long delays, and some destinations are temporarily no longer served.
- Iran Post: flights are suspended or limited, with major delays for international shipments. The closure of multiple air routes around the country has slowed down the export of mail.
- Qatar Post – Oman Post – Kuwait Post – Bahrain Post: widespread delays due to flight cancellations in the Gulf, reduced cargo capacity and rerouting via other regional hubs.
- Saudi Post: disruptions to postal traffic caused by flight restrictions and large-scale rerouting of air and maritime routes (Red Sea). Export delays are significantly increased.
- Jordan Post: possible delays, particularly for international parcels transiting through closed airspace zones.
Overall, Middle Eastern postal services are operating with reduced capacity and are experiencing the same disruptions as private carriers: cancelled flights, reduced cargo capacity, rerouted maritime lines and significantly extended delivery times.
📮 Status of other international postal operators
Below is information provided by several postal operators (non-exhaustive list):
🇺🇸 USPS (United States)
Suspension of shipments to 18 countries, including:
Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Djibouti, Madagascar, Tanzania, Seychelles, Armenia, Eritrea.
🇵🇱 Poczta Polska
Suspension of shipments to: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, United Arab Emirates.
🇱🇹 Lithuanian Post
Suspension of all postal shipments to several Middle Eastern countries due to a lack of air links.
🇸🇮 Pošta Slovenije
Full suspension of shipments to: Iran, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates.
🇭🇷 Croatian Post
Major disruptions and intermittent interruptions to: Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran.
🇪🇪 Omniva (Estonia)
Suspension of shipments to: United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Israel, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia.
✈️ Private carriers
DHL
Significant reduction in logistical capacity and prolonged delays to multiple Middle Eastern destinations.
DPD
Application of emergency surcharges for: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates.
FedEx / UPS
Announcement of significant delays and strong instability in shipping capacity to the region.
📦 Recommendations for sellers
- Inform your buyers of possible disruptions to the countries concerned.
- Check with your postal operator whether shipping is currently possible.
- Temporarily adjust your delivery zones in your Delcampe shop if necessary.
- Keep all proof of shipment in case of dispute.
🛒 For buyers
Before finalising a purchase, we recommend that you:
- Check with the seller whether shipment to your country is possible.
- Take into account unusually long delivery times.
- Anticipate possible additional fees depending on the carrier.
We are monitoring the situation closely and will update this page as soon as postal operators provide new information.