9 hours ago
China evacuates 119 citizens from Israel to Egypt - Foreign Affairs
China evacuated 119 Chinese citizens from Israel to Egypt on Thursday via the Taba border crossing in Egypt's South Sinai governorate, Chinese News agency Xinhua reported.
According to Xinhua, the evacuees entered Egypt from the crossing around 15:30 local time (12:30 GMT) and were then guided onto buses after completing the necessary procedures.
The group included 117 students and two Hong Kong residents, who will be transferred to Cairo, the embassy said.
"China is highly concerned about our compatriots overseas. Their well-being and safety are always our priority," Xinhua quoted Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liao Liqiang.
"We completed all preparatory work efficiently within 24 hours and dispatched an action group to Taba overnight to organize the process of entry," Liao said.
He added that the embassy worked closely with the Egyptian government overnight to request passage permits, necessary assistance, and security guarantees.
Sun Xue, a postdoctoral fellow at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said that the journey from Jerusalem to the Taba border crossing took about four hours.
He noted that during the entry process at the crossing, staff and volunteers from the Chinese embassy in Egypt provided assistance and coordination.
'We are truly grateful to them," Sun said.
China is the latest country to use the Taba border as a safe exodus path for its citizens from Israel, after Poland, France, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, following the Iranian retaliation on Israeli attacks.
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