Middle East conflict: 'Everyone has a responsibility to inform themselves before travelling'

Faced with the nearly 5,000 Swiss citizens stranded in the Middle East, the foreign ministry maintains that government assistance will be provided only as a last resort. Interviewed by Swiss public broadcaster RTS, the head of the foreign ministry's consular directorate, Marianne Jenni, defends this firm stance, noting that the risk of escalation had been known for several weeks. The law is the law. That, in essence, is the message delivered by Marianne Jenni, director general of the consular directorate of the foreign ministry on the RTS morning broadcast on Wednesday. When questioned about the anger and distress of Swiss citizens stranded in the Middle East due to the war in Iran, she reiterated that it is the law concerning Swiss citizens abroad which applies. "The administration only intervenes in a subsidiary capacity, and any person staying abroad assumes their own responsibility," she stressed. The high number of people affected – around 5,000 Swiss according to the ministry ...