As the situation in Lebanon deteriorates due to the advance of Israel’s ground offensive on southern parts of the country and the intensification of bombardments against Hezbollah targets, several countries intensified their efforts to evacuate their citizens.
Many embassies are using their social networks to communicate evacuation guidance and warnings to their respective citizens, which is mainly carried out by air, taking advantage of the fact that Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport is still operational.
Actions taken by different countries for the evacuation of their citizens:
Colombia
On September 28, 2024, a Boeing 737 of the Colombian Air Force (FAC) was deployed from the Military Air Transport Command (CATAM) in Bogota. The objective of this mission is to return 114 Colombians to Colombia, as well as to transport humanitarian aid to Beirut. The FAC also put on alert a Boeing 767 as an alternative aircraft.
Spain
The Spanish Air and Space Force deployed an A400M and an A330 to manage the return of at least 350 people wishing to travel back to Spain. The first repatriation flight has already landed in Torrejón.
🔴 Última hora
Preparado para despegar desde Beirut #Líbano el #A400 del @EjercitoAire con un nuevo grupo de civiles a bordo. Tanto esta aeronave como el #A330, que partió previamente, vuelan en estos momentos rumbo a España. ¡Os esperamos! pic.twitter.com/3LmWD1h6sd— Ministerio Defensa (@Defensagob) October 3, 2024
Argentina
The Argentine embassy in Lebanon advises its citizens to try to leave the country by their own means, as long as the Beirut international airport is operational.
EE.UU.
As of September 28, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut declared Security Alert Level 4, and asked its approximately 86,000 citizens to leave Lebanon on commercial flights. There is no information yet on an eventual evacuation by USAF military aircrafts, but it is known that it has military forces deployed in Cyprus preparing for such a scenario.
Australia
Canberra urges its citizens in Lebanon to return immediately. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “We reiterate the call for Australians in Lebanon to return home. These are volatile circumstances and we want to make sure they are safe.” In addition, the Australian government is providing financial assistance to some of its nationals, estimating that around 15,000 Australians currently reside in Lebanon.
United Kingdom
Foreign Secretary David Lammy advising Britons to leave the country. Lammy announced that the government will arrange charter flights from Beirut airport, although citizens will have to pay a fee of 350 pounds (approximately $465) per seat. It is estimated that between 4,000 and 6,000 British nationals are in Lebanon.
France
Paris began planning for the evacuation of its approximately 20,000 French citizens from Lebanon. A French army spokesman confirmed the deployment of a helicopter carrier to the eastern Mediterranean for possible evacuations, following Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot’s recent meeting with the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon.
Canada
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said the security situation is becoming “increasingly dangerous and volatile.” Canada has secured an additional 800 seats on commercial flights in the coming days to facilitate the departure of its citizens, estimated at between 40,000 and 75,000 in Lebanon.
Germany
The evacuation process of its non-essential personnel and citizens at medical risk has begun. The Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense stated that they will provide assistance to the approximately 1,800 German citizens registered in Lebanon, with a first evacuation flight having already taken place.
Unsere @A330_MMU ist jetzt gerade im Auftrag des @AuswaertigesAmt und @BMVg_Bundeswehr im Einsatz, um 130 Personen aus dem Libanon auszufliegen. Die Maschine befindet sich momentan auf dem Heimflug.
Hier unser Artikel dazu:https://t.co/iEQ6fX7xrl pic.twitter.com/b4JbZrtDkA
— Team Luftwaffe (@Team_Luftwaffe) October 2, 2024
Italy
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani stressed the complexity of the situation and advised Italians to return as soon as possible. It is estimated that there are around 300 Italians in Lebanon for work purposes and 3,000 with dual nationality.
Bulgaria
The country managed to evacuate 89 citizens, mainly families with children, and is organizing additional flights to continue the operation. So far, 160 Bulgarians have requested to be evacuated.
Japan
The Japanese government is urging its citizens to leave on commercial flights and is preparing military aircrafts in case they are needed for evacuation. Approximately 50 Japanese are currently residing in Lebanon.
Philippines
Plans to evacuate 11,000 of its citizens are underway, with thousands of people to be transferred by sea.
Portugal
Lisbon was already able to evacuate 44 people on a military flight via Cyprus, and Turkey. There are approximately 14,000 registered citizens in Lebanon to be evacuated.
Russia
It has already started the evacuation of its citizens and a special flight with family members of Russian diplomats left Beirut. About 3,000 Russian and CIS citizens wish to leave the country.
Poland
It will limit staffing at its embassy in Beirut and arrange transportation for citizens wishing to leave Lebanon.
Netherlands
A military aircraft will be sent to repatriate its nationals in two flights scheduled for October 4 and 5.
Defensie biedt komende dagen militair luchttransport aan voor de repatriëring van Nederlanders uit Libanon. Vluchten zijn gepland op 4 en 5 oktober.
We treffen ook voorbereidingen voor een eventuele evacuatie en monitoren de situatie in Israël: ➡️ https://t.co/iFmsWq3fAw pic.twitter.com/caDAgnCFSo
— Ruben Brekelmans (@DefensieMin) October 2, 2024
Cyprus
It managed to evacuate 38 of its citizens on a flight provided by Greece and Denmark. It urges its citizens to leave as soon as possible on the commercial flights still available.
China
It was able to evacuate more than 200 of its citizens.
Belgium
It advises its nationals to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.
The humanitarian crisis in southern Lebanon is worsening by the day, with nearly one million people displaced due to clashes between the Israel Defense Forces and Hezbollah. While the situation does not reach the levels of traumatizing chaos we saw in the 2021 evacuation of Kabul, escalating tensions and Iranian missile attacks threaten to destabilize the entire Middle East region.
