Senator and Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has held a press conference in Geelong, Victoria to address the Australian government’s contingency plan to evacuate citizens from Lebanon amid the current war with Israel. This has been initiated by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) flight landing on Cyprus.
Wong affirmed calls for Australians in Lebanon to leave, and take “whatever option is available to you”.
She said 1,700 Australians and their immediate family have registered with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) indicating their desire to exit Lebanon.
Wong confirmed that 80 seats have been secured on flights that are leaving today, and only 35 of those seats have been used.
This builds on our work with partners and with commercial airlines which has already secured seats on flights on Monday, Tuesday and departing today.
— Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) October 3, 2024
Saturday’s flights will be subject to the security situation and to the airport in Beirut remaining operational.
She also said an additional 500 seats have been secured for Australians and their immediate family on two flights to Cyprus, which will be leaving on Saturday, October 5.
“What I would say to Australians who wish to leave – please take whatever option is available to you. Please do not wait for your preferred route …”
“If you are able to secure a seat on a flight, please take that seat. If you have a seat on today’s flight, don’t delay. Now is not the time for you to wait and see, now is the time to leave.”
This contingency plan comes after tensions flared in the Middle East this week when Israel approved a ground invasion of Lebanon. In response, Iran launched approximately 200 missiles targeting Israel, marking a significant escalation following the deaths of key leaders from Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
Source: The Guardian.
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