Israel brings home stranded citizens after Iran strike
Israel has begun flying home citizens stranded abroad, launching a phased airlift operation after the country's surprise military strike on Iran left tens of thousands of Israelis stuck overseas.
The first rescue flight, operated by national carrier El Al, touched down at Ben Gurion Airport early on Wednesday morning, bringing home passengers from Larnaca, Cyprus.
Worldwide, Israel's transport ministry estimates that more than 50,000 stranded Israelis are trying to come home.
El Al has said repatriation flights are already scheduled from Athens, Rome, Milan and Paris.
Smaller rivals Arkia and Israir are also taking part in the operation.
"We are preparing for the airlift to bring all Israelis home," Transport Minister Miri Regev told the captain of the arriving El Al flight before it landed, according to a statement released by the Israeli Aviation Authority.
"We are very emotional about receiving the first rescue flight as part of 'Safe Return'. Land safely."
Tel Aviv's airport has been closed to passenger traffic since Israel launched its attack on Friday.
Iran has fired more than 400 ballistic missiles at Israel since Friday, a large number of them targeting the Tel Aviv area. At least 24 people have died so far in the strikes.
There are still be no passenger flights leaving Israel, meaning up to 40,000 tourists are stranded in the country.
El Al has cancelled all scheduled flights through to June 23.
Large numbers of Israelis seeking to get home have converged on Cyprus, the European Union member state closest to Israel.
Flights from the coastal city of Larnaca to Tel Aviv take 50 minutes.
Nine flights were expected to depart Cyprus Wednesday for Haifa, and four for Tel Aviv, carrying about 1000 people, sources in Cypriot airport operator Hermes said.
Cruise operator Mano Maritime, whose Crown Iris ship carries 2000 passengers, has said it will make two crossings from Cyprus to Israel's Mediterranean port city of Haifa.
Earlier on Wednesday, a cruise ship arrived in Cyprus carrying 1500 participants to a Jewish heritage programme who had left Israel on Tuesday.
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Perth Now
2 hours ago
- Perth Now
Aussies in Israel remain defiant despite Iran threat
As the threat of missiles fly overhead, Australians in Israel are vowing to continue living their lives as normally as possible in an act of defiance. For Australian mother-of-three Emily Gian, life in the days since Israel launched strikes on Iran and triggered waves of missile fire in retaliation has been spent in and out of underground bunkers. With only minutes to shelter as sirens signal the arrival of projectiles, sleep has come in dribs and drabs for her family. "We could hear it so loud that my kids thought that it was near our house," Ms Gian told AAP on Wednesday. "It's a really loud boom. You feel the house shake." But unlike earlier conflicts with Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, Ms Gian said the fire from Iran came with the added fear that the nation was believed to be working on nuclear weapons. "There's always been a fear in Israel that an escalation with Iran is the ultimate and scariest escalation that could be," she said. Nevertheless, Israelis remained resilient, hardened from many years of wars and conflict, Ms Gian said. "We've been told to stay close to home, and people follow the protocols, but you see people out and about trying to go about their daily life," she said. And she won't flee. Amid suggestions the US is preparing to enter the conflict, more than 1000 Australians in Israel have registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs for help to leave, while 870 Australians and family members seek help to leave Iran. "Our plans are to stay here for now because we live here, our house is here, our life is here, our work," Ms Gian said. The conflict began on Friday after Israel moved to wipe out Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program, claiming the Islamic Republic was on the verge of developing nuclear weapons. US President Donald Trump has since met his national security council and demanded that Iran unconditionally surrender, adding he knew where Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was hiding. Iran has warned if "all-out war" if the US joins the fray. Melbourne lawyer Leon Zweir, who is in Jerusalem attending a conference, had registered with DFAT to be repatriated but will not leave until the event ends on Thursday. "I want to make sure I finish the conference before I leave," he said. He said the mood of Israelis was "resolute", despite the missiles flying overhead. At least 585 Iranians had been killed, mostly civilians, Washington-based organisation High Rights Activists said, while Israel said 24 civilians had been killed.
The Advertiser
4 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Iran's Khamenei rejects Trump's call for surrender
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed his country will not accept US President Donald Trump's call for an unconditional surrender, and warns that any military involvement by the Americans will cause "irreparable damage" to them. In his first remarks since Friday, when he delivered a speech broadcast on state media after Israel began bombarding Iran, Khamenei said peace or war could not be imposed on the Islamic Republic. "Intelligent people who know Iran, the Iranian nation, and its history will never speak to this nation in threatening language because the Iranian nation will not surrender," he said in a statement read by a state TV anchor on Wednesday. "The Americans should know that any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage." Thousands of people were fleeing Tehran on Wednesday after Israeli warplanes bombed the city overnight, and a source said Trump was considering options that include joining Israel in attacking Iranian nuclear sites. Israel's military said 50 Israeli jets had struck about 20 targets in Tehran overnight, including a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components. A source familiar with internal discussions said Trump and his team were considering a number of options, which included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear sites. Iran responded with a fresh volley of missiles at Israel. Roads north out of Tehran were jammed with traffic. Iran had conveyed to Washington that it would retaliate against the United States for any direct participation, its ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said. He said he already saw the US as "complicit in what Israel is doing". A flurry of social media posts from Trump on Tuesday, including a demand for Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" and a post musing about killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, increased speculation that he could bring the United States into the war. With Khamenei's main military and security advisers killed by Israeli strikes, the leader's inner circle has been narrowed, raising the risk that he could make strategic errors, according to five people familiar with his decision-making process. Iranian officials have reported at least 224 deaths, mostly civilians, though that toll has not been updated for days. In Israel, Iran's retaliatory strikes are the first time in decades of shadow war and proxy conflict that a significant number of missiles fired from Iran have penetrated defences, killing Israelis in their homes. Since Friday, Iran has fired about 400 missiles at Israel, some 40 of which have pierced through air defences, killing 24 people, all of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities. Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv on Wednesday. The military said two barrages of Iranian missiles were launched towards Israel in the first two hours of Wednesday morning. Trump's social media posts - which have ranged from diplomatic offers to end the war to threats to join it - have created uncertainty over his intentions. The US has so far taken only indirect actions in the conflict, including helping to shoot down missiles fired towards Israel. But Washington has capabilities that Israel lacks, including massive bombs able to destroy Iran's nuclear enrichment plant, built deep under a mountain at Fordow. On Tuesday Trump mused about killing Khamenei: "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," he wrote on Truth Social. "We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now ... Our patience is wearing thin." Three minutes later Trump posted, "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" The US was deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes, three US officials told Reuters. Iran, for its part, has lost much of its capability to retaliate against Israel through proxy fighters close to Israeli borders during the past 20 months of Israel's war in Gaza. Israel has pounded Iranian allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, propped up by Iran through 13 years of war, was toppled in 2024. with AP Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed his country will not accept US President Donald Trump's call for an unconditional surrender, and warns that any military involvement by the Americans will cause "irreparable damage" to them. In his first remarks since Friday, when he delivered a speech broadcast on state media after Israel began bombarding Iran, Khamenei said peace or war could not be imposed on the Islamic Republic. "Intelligent people who know Iran, the Iranian nation, and its history will never speak to this nation in threatening language because the Iranian nation will not surrender," he said in a statement read by a state TV anchor on Wednesday. "The Americans should know that any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage." Thousands of people were fleeing Tehran on Wednesday after Israeli warplanes bombed the city overnight, and a source said Trump was considering options that include joining Israel in attacking Iranian nuclear sites. Israel's military said 50 Israeli jets had struck about 20 targets in Tehran overnight, including a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components. A source familiar with internal discussions said Trump and his team were considering a number of options, which included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear sites. Iran responded with a fresh volley of missiles at Israel. Roads north out of Tehran were jammed with traffic. Iran had conveyed to Washington that it would retaliate against the United States for any direct participation, its ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said. He said he already saw the US as "complicit in what Israel is doing". A flurry of social media posts from Trump on Tuesday, including a demand for Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" and a post musing about killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, increased speculation that he could bring the United States into the war. With Khamenei's main military and security advisers killed by Israeli strikes, the leader's inner circle has been narrowed, raising the risk that he could make strategic errors, according to five people familiar with his decision-making process. Iranian officials have reported at least 224 deaths, mostly civilians, though that toll has not been updated for days. In Israel, Iran's retaliatory strikes are the first time in decades of shadow war and proxy conflict that a significant number of missiles fired from Iran have penetrated defences, killing Israelis in their homes. Since Friday, Iran has fired about 400 missiles at Israel, some 40 of which have pierced through air defences, killing 24 people, all of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities. Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv on Wednesday. The military said two barrages of Iranian missiles were launched towards Israel in the first two hours of Wednesday morning. Trump's social media posts - which have ranged from diplomatic offers to end the war to threats to join it - have created uncertainty over his intentions. The US has so far taken only indirect actions in the conflict, including helping to shoot down missiles fired towards Israel. But Washington has capabilities that Israel lacks, including massive bombs able to destroy Iran's nuclear enrichment plant, built deep under a mountain at Fordow. On Tuesday Trump mused about killing Khamenei: "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," he wrote on Truth Social. "We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now ... Our patience is wearing thin." Three minutes later Trump posted, "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" The US was deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes, three US officials told Reuters. Iran, for its part, has lost much of its capability to retaliate against Israel through proxy fighters close to Israeli borders during the past 20 months of Israel's war in Gaza. Israel has pounded Iranian allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, propped up by Iran through 13 years of war, was toppled in 2024. with AP Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed his country will not accept US President Donald Trump's call for an unconditional surrender, and warns that any military involvement by the Americans will cause "irreparable damage" to them. In his first remarks since Friday, when he delivered a speech broadcast on state media after Israel began bombarding Iran, Khamenei said peace or war could not be imposed on the Islamic Republic. "Intelligent people who know Iran, the Iranian nation, and its history will never speak to this nation in threatening language because the Iranian nation will not surrender," he said in a statement read by a state TV anchor on Wednesday. "The Americans should know that any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage." Thousands of people were fleeing Tehran on Wednesday after Israeli warplanes bombed the city overnight, and a source said Trump was considering options that include joining Israel in attacking Iranian nuclear sites. Israel's military said 50 Israeli jets had struck about 20 targets in Tehran overnight, including a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components. A source familiar with internal discussions said Trump and his team were considering a number of options, which included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear sites. Iran responded with a fresh volley of missiles at Israel. Roads north out of Tehran were jammed with traffic. Iran had conveyed to Washington that it would retaliate against the United States for any direct participation, its ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said. He said he already saw the US as "complicit in what Israel is doing". A flurry of social media posts from Trump on Tuesday, including a demand for Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" and a post musing about killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, increased speculation that he could bring the United States into the war. With Khamenei's main military and security advisers killed by Israeli strikes, the leader's inner circle has been narrowed, raising the risk that he could make strategic errors, according to five people familiar with his decision-making process. Iranian officials have reported at least 224 deaths, mostly civilians, though that toll has not been updated for days. In Israel, Iran's retaliatory strikes are the first time in decades of shadow war and proxy conflict that a significant number of missiles fired from Iran have penetrated defences, killing Israelis in their homes. Since Friday, Iran has fired about 400 missiles at Israel, some 40 of which have pierced through air defences, killing 24 people, all of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities. Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv on Wednesday. The military said two barrages of Iranian missiles were launched towards Israel in the first two hours of Wednesday morning. Trump's social media posts - which have ranged from diplomatic offers to end the war to threats to join it - have created uncertainty over his intentions. The US has so far taken only indirect actions in the conflict, including helping to shoot down missiles fired towards Israel. But Washington has capabilities that Israel lacks, including massive bombs able to destroy Iran's nuclear enrichment plant, built deep under a mountain at Fordow. On Tuesday Trump mused about killing Khamenei: "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," he wrote on Truth Social. "We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now ... Our patience is wearing thin." Three minutes later Trump posted, "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" The US was deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes, three US officials told Reuters. Iran, for its part, has lost much of its capability to retaliate against Israel through proxy fighters close to Israeli borders during the past 20 months of Israel's war in Gaza. Israel has pounded Iranian allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, propped up by Iran through 13 years of war, was toppled in 2024. with AP Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed his country will not accept US President Donald Trump's call for an unconditional surrender, and warns that any military involvement by the Americans will cause "irreparable damage" to them. In his first remarks since Friday, when he delivered a speech broadcast on state media after Israel began bombarding Iran, Khamenei said peace or war could not be imposed on the Islamic Republic. "Intelligent people who know Iran, the Iranian nation, and its history will never speak to this nation in threatening language because the Iranian nation will not surrender," he said in a statement read by a state TV anchor on Wednesday. "The Americans should know that any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage." Thousands of people were fleeing Tehran on Wednesday after Israeli warplanes bombed the city overnight, and a source said Trump was considering options that include joining Israel in attacking Iranian nuclear sites. Israel's military said 50 Israeli jets had struck about 20 targets in Tehran overnight, including a facility used to make uranium centrifuges and another that made missile components. A source familiar with internal discussions said Trump and his team were considering a number of options, which included joining Israel in strikes against Iranian nuclear sites. Iran responded with a fresh volley of missiles at Israel. Roads north out of Tehran were jammed with traffic. Iran had conveyed to Washington that it would retaliate against the United States for any direct participation, its ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said. He said he already saw the US as "complicit in what Israel is doing". A flurry of social media posts from Trump on Tuesday, including a demand for Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" and a post musing about killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, increased speculation that he could bring the United States into the war. With Khamenei's main military and security advisers killed by Israeli strikes, the leader's inner circle has been narrowed, raising the risk that he could make strategic errors, according to five people familiar with his decision-making process. Iranian officials have reported at least 224 deaths, mostly civilians, though that toll has not been updated for days. In Israel, Iran's retaliatory strikes are the first time in decades of shadow war and proxy conflict that a significant number of missiles fired from Iran have penetrated defences, killing Israelis in their homes. Since Friday, Iran has fired about 400 missiles at Israel, some 40 of which have pierced through air defences, killing 24 people, all of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities. Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv on Wednesday. The military said two barrages of Iranian missiles were launched towards Israel in the first two hours of Wednesday morning. Trump's social media posts - which have ranged from diplomatic offers to end the war to threats to join it - have created uncertainty over his intentions. The US has so far taken only indirect actions in the conflict, including helping to shoot down missiles fired towards Israel. But Washington has capabilities that Israel lacks, including massive bombs able to destroy Iran's nuclear enrichment plant, built deep under a mountain at Fordow. On Tuesday Trump mused about killing Khamenei: "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," he wrote on Truth Social. "We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now ... Our patience is wearing thin." Three minutes later Trump posted, "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" The US was deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes, three US officials told Reuters. Iran, for its part, has lost much of its capability to retaliate against Israel through proxy fighters close to Israeli borders during the past 20 months of Israel's war in Gaza. Israel has pounded Iranian allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, propped up by Iran through 13 years of war, was toppled in 2024. with AP
7NEWS
5 hours ago
- 7NEWS
MAGA split emerges as Donald Trump weighs next steps on Iran
A schism has opened among President Donald Trump's most devout MAGA supporters and national security conservatives over the Israel-Iran conflict, as some longtime defenders of the president's America First mantra call him out for weighing a greater US role in the region. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, commentator Tucker Carlson and conservative firebrand Charlie Kirk — with legions of their own devoted followers — are reminding audiences of Trump's 2024 promises to resist overseas military involvement after a week of deadly strikes and counterstrikes between Israel and Iran, and discussion of US involvement. On social media and their popular airwaves, questions about Trump's stance from these central validating voices are exposing a crack in his forward guard. They are also warning that the schism could deter progress on other priorities. 'No issue currently divides the right as much as foreign policy,' Kirk wrote on X, adding he was 'very concerned' that a massive split among MAGA could 'disrupt our momentum and our insanely successful Presidency.' The State Department and US military last week directed a voluntary evacuation of nonessential personnel and their loved ones from some diplomatic outposts in the Middle East. Trump on Monday abruptly departed this week's G7 Summit in Canada due to the intensifying conflict, returning to Washington for urgent talks with his national security team. He also posted an ominous social media warning that 'Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!' The moves sparked new speculation from his isolationist devotees that the US might be deepening its involvement, perhaps by providing the Israelis with bunker-busting bombs to penetrate Iranian nuclear sites or offering other direct military support. Other strong Trump backers, including South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, are making the case that this is Trump's moment to deliver a decisive blow against Iran. Graham is calling for Trump to 'go all-in' in backing Israel and destroying Iran's nuclear program. 'If that means providing bombs, provide bombs,' he said Sunday on CBS's Face the Nation. 'If that means flying with Israel, fly with Israel.' Should the US wade into a war in the Middle East, Trump would begin unravelling his own political base, built on ending foreign entanglements, curbing illegal immigration and reducing the trade deficit, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon said Monday. 'It's going to not just blow up the coalition,' Bannon said on Tucker Carlson's show. 'It's also going to thwart what we're doing with the most important thing, which is the deportation' of immigrants in the US illegally. Any option comes with political risk for Trump, who, as he returned to Washington, expressed exasperation at Iranian leaders' failure to reach an agreement. 'They should have done the deal. I told them, 'Do the deal,'' he told reporters on Air Force One. 'So I don't know. I'm not too much in the mood to negotiate.' On Tuesday, Trump said on social media that the US knows where Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is hiding during the conflict but doesn't want him killed 'for now.' He also called for Iran's 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER.' A look at what some of Trump's top MAGA-world backers are saying: Tucker Carlson On Monday, Carlson's increasingly critical rhetoric toward Trump reached a new level, as the longtime supporter who headlined large rallies with Trump during the 2024 campaign suggested Trump's posture was breaking his pledge to keep the United States out of new foreign entanglements. 'You're not going to convince me that the Iranian people are my enemy,' Carlson said as a guest on War Room, the podcast led by 2016 Trump campaign adviser Bannon. 'It's Orwell, man. I'm a free man. You're not telling me who I have to hate.' Carlson posted to X that same day his call to challenge other Trump media supporters like Sean Hannity and Mark Levin to push the president to uphold his campaign pledge. Trump has bristled at the criticism, posting on social media, 'Somebody please explain to kooky Tucker Carlson that,' IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!'' Marjorie Taylor Greene The Georgia Republican — the epitome of MAGA, sporting the signature red cap for President Joe Biden's 2024 State of the Union address — has publicly sided with Carlson, directly calling out Trump for deriding 'one of my favourite people.' Saying the former Fox News commentator 'unapologetically believes the same things I do,' Greene wrote on X Monday night that those beliefs include that 'foreign wars/intervention/regime change put America last, kill innocent people, are making us broke, and will ultimately lead to our destruction.' 'That's not kooky,' Greene added, using the same word Trump used to describe Carlson. 'That's what millions of Americans voted for. It's what we believe is America First.' Charlie Kirk The founder of Turning Point USA has been generally supportive of Trump, saying Monday in an interview with Fox News that 'this is the moment that President Trump was elected for,' but he's also warned of a potential MAGA divide over Iran since last week. Days later, Kirk said, 'Trump voters, especially young people, supported President Trump because he was the first president in my lifetime to not start a new war.' He also wrote that 'there is historically little support for America to be actively engaged in yet another offensive war in the Middle East. We must work for and pray for peace.' That same day, Kirk noted, 'The last thing America needs right now is a new war. Our number one desire must be peace, as quickly as possible.' There have been other divides The evolving situation surrounding Iran isn't the first time Trump and some of his base have diverged, and it's possible the current tension is more of a disagreement than a breakup between the president and the MAGA faithful. In April, some thought leaders and influential podcasters who backed Trump's campaign voiced doubts as global markets buckled under the pressure of impending tariffs. Trump has been critical of US support for Ukraine, in December calling Biden's decision to allow Ukrainian forces to use American long-range weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory 'a very stupid thing to do.' But Trump stopped short of cutting off all funding, something for which other allies, including Carlson, have advocated.
