After the intensification of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, countries around the world have begun to formulate emergency plans to evacuate their citizens from Lebanon.
While no country has initiated large-scale military evacuation operations yet, several nations have already leased aircraft as dedicated evacuation planes. Nations have also urged individuals to leave Lebanon on commercial flights while they are still available.
Here are the detailed emergency plans according to the alphabetical order of country names:
Australia has arranged hundreds of flight seats to evacuate its citizens from Lebanon and has redirected military planes to Cyprus as part of its emergency plan. Around 15,000 Australian citizens are currently in Lebanon, with authorities urging them to leave during the opening hours of Beirut airport. Contingency plans for possible sea evacuations have also been established.
Belgian news agency reported that Belgium’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has advised its citizens to leave Lebanon promptly.
Brazil has stated that 3,000 of its nationals wish to be evacuated from Lebanon. They have dispatched an Air Force Airbus A330 aircraft to transport those seeking to leave. On Friday, 220 people took this flight out of Beirut, with the aircraft expected to make two round trips per week.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated on Saturday that over 200 Chinese citizens have been safely evacuated from Lebanon.
Canadian media reported that Canada will collaborate with Australia to evacuate citizens via sea, including the chartering of a commercial ship that can transport 1,000 people per day.
Cyprus utilized a plane provided by Greece on Thursday to evacuate 38 of its citizens. There are an estimated 1,000 to 1,500 Cypriots in Lebanon.
Denmark has urged its citizens to leave promptly but has not initiated evacuation operations as commercial flights are still operational.
The Danish Foreign Ministry mentioned that Middle East Airlines, based in Lebanon, will increase flights from Beirut to Europe to meet the rising travel demand.
France has had an emergency plan in place for months but has not yet issued evacuation orders. The plan includes evacuations primarily through Cyprus and Beirut airport while discussing evacuation through Turkey as well. France has a warship in the region, and an aircraft carrier is expected to arrive in the eastern Mediterranean in the coming days to assist in citizen evacuations.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry stated that on Friday, 219 German nationals would be evacuated from Lebanon by plane, with continued efforts to evacuate non-essential staff, embassy personnel, and nationals with special medical conditions. They also mentioned providing support to others attempting to leave Lebanon.
Greece evacuated 22 of its citizens and several Cypriots on Thursday. Greece has urged its citizens to leave Lebanon and has deployed a frigate on standby for emergency situations.
Italy has reduced the number of diplomatic personnel at its Beirut embassy and heightened security staff. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has repeatedly urged nationals to leave Lebanon and requested Israel ensure the safety of Italian peacekeepers in the region.
Japan dispatched two C-2 military transport planes to Lebanon on Thursday, ready to evacuate Japanese nationals. There are only 40 to 50 Japanese citizens in Lebanon.
The Dutch Ministry of Defense declared that the Netherlands would send a military aircraft to evacuate Dutch and other countries’ citizens to Cyprus using two flights on Friday and Saturday. The ministry added that if there was enough space, flights to Eindhoven Air Base could also accommodate people from other nations.
On Friday, a plane carrying several dozen Poles and nationals of other countries landed in Warsaw. Poland had previously stated it would limit the number of embassy staff at its Beirut mission.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro advised citizens against traveling to Lebanon and facilitated the evacuation of a small number of Portuguese citizens residing in the area.
Romania’s Foreign Ministry and Defense Ministry announced that Romania had evacuated 69 citizens from Lebanon on Thursday. The ministry stated that 1,100 Romanian citizens and their families had registered their presence in Lebanon at the embassy.
The Minister of Emergency Situations of Russia declared that Russia had commenced evacuation of its citizens from Lebanon, with diplomatic families departing Beirut on Thursday on a special plane. About 3,000 Russians and CIS citizens expressed their desire to leave, according to TASS news agency.
Slovakia will dispatch a military aircraft to transport its citizens and citizens of other nations to Cyprus from Lebanon.
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry stated on Saturday that a South Korean military aircraft had evacuated 97 citizens and their families from Lebanon.
Spain announced plans to send two military aircraft to evacuate 350 citizens from Lebanon.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that they were prepared to evacuate Turkish nationals from Lebanon by air and sea, collaborating with around 20 countries to evacuate foreign nationals through Turkey. Approximately 14,000 Turkish citizens had registered at the consulate in Lebanon, though the exact numbers were not confirmed.
The United Kingdom mentioned on Thursday that it had leased limited flights as dedicated evacuation planes and reiterated the advice for people to leave Lebanon immediately. On Wednesday, over 150 British nationals and their families departed Beirut on a government-chartered plane.
The UK has deployed around 700 soldiers to Cyprus, strengthening its military presence, which includes two naval vessels.
The United States had ordered the deployment of dozens of soldiers to Cyprus to assist in evacuating American citizens from Lebanon. The US State Department said on Tuesday that they were collaborating with airlines to increase flights departing Lebanon, providing more seats for Americans.
(This article references relevant reports from Reuters)