11 hours ago
Countries work to evacuate nationals amid Israel-Iran conflict
Countries have begun evacuating their citizens as the Israel-Iran conflict intensifies, prompting both countries to close off their airspace since the clash broke out on Friday.
Israel and Iran have both closed their airspace since the conflict broke out when Israel began striking military and nuclear targets in Iran on Friday.
Flights carrying evacuees from Israel have arrived in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, authorities said on Tuesday, putting the two countries among the first to bring citizens home to flee the conflict between Iran and Israel.
Another Central European country, Poland, said on Tuesday that the evacuation of Poles from Israel was planned for Wednesday and Thursday.
Slovak authorities said the first evacuation flight with 73 people, including 25 Slovak tourists and five family members of Slovak diplomats working in Tel Aviv, had arrived in the capital Bratislava late on Monday.
Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar said Slovakia had also helped bring citizens of other countries to Europe, including 15 Poles, mainly children, 14 Czechs, nine Austrians, two Slovenians and one citizen each of Estonia, Spain and Malaysia.
'Our partners are contacting us and we are preparing another flight on Tuesday, which should include citizens of the Slovak Republic, as well as citizens of the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Latvia, and France,' Blanar said.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Slovakia had helped evacuate seven Hungarians.
Czech Defense Minister Jana Cernochova said that a flight with 66 people evacuated from Israel had landed near Prague.
Poland said on Monday that it was organizing the evacuation of around 200 of its citizens from Israel via Jordan.
On Tuesday, the Polish foreign ministry said it planned to use two planes from Egypt and Jordan for the evacuation, the first of which would take off on Wednesday.
'The plane from Sharm el-Sheikh will take off first, the one from Amman will take off second, most likely on Thursday morning,' said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Henryka Moscicka-Dendys.
'We want to service this connection with a military plane, because we see that there are not as many people willing to evacuate as it might seem.'
A government official in Baku said that more than 600 foreign nationals have crossed from Iran into neighboring Azerbaijan since Israel began striking the country.
'Since the start of the military escalation between Israel and Iran, more than 600 citizens of 17 countries have been evacuated from Iran via Azerbaijan,' the government source told AFP on Tuesday.
'Evacuees are transported from the border to Baku International Airport and flown to their home countries on international flights.'
The Japanese government said on Tuesday that it is looking into 'various options' to evacuate Japanese nationals from areas affected by ongoing military conflicts between Israel and Iran.
Thailand also said that it has ordered its military to prepare planes to evacuate citizens from Israel and Iran, according to a spokesman.
There are an estimated 40,000 Thais currently living in Israel, most working on farms under a government labour scheme, and around 300 nationals living in Iran.
'We are ready to evacuate people and have coordinated with the military to prepare planes to bring them home from Israel and Iran,' government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsub told reporters after a cabinet meeting.
Jirayu said Thai embassies in both countries have prepared evacuation plans for nationals.
The Thai embassy in Tehran announced on its official Facebook page that it had set up a temporary shelter for citizens outside the capital.
As for China, the country's foreign ministry said embassies and consulates have been offering assistance to those seeking to evacuate since the outbreak of fighting, though it did not offer details on what efforts were being carried out.
Chinese authorities, meanwhile, were in communication with Iran, Israel and various parties to promote a ceasefire, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular press briefing on Tuesday.
'China calls on all relevant parties, especially those countries that have a special influence on Israel, to shoulder their due responsibilities, take immediate measures to cool down the tense situation and prevent the conflict from escalating and spreading,' Guo said, without naming any countries.
Chinese embassies in Israel and Iran have issued multiple advisories in recent days for Chinese citizens to step up safety precautions and closely follow developments.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Chinese embassy in Israel urged Chinese citizens to return to China or leave the country via land border crossings as soon as possible, warning that the security situation has worsened.
It said many had contacted the embassy asking about the resumption of airport operations and Hainan Airlines flights.
But Israeli airspace remained closed, and the Israeli government has extended a national state of emergency until June 30, the embassy explained.
The notice listed several land crossing points but recommended Chinese citizens leave via Jordan.
'At present, the Israeli-Iranian conflict continues to escalate, with civilian facilities damaged and civilian casualties increasing, making the security situation even more severe,' the embassy warned in a notice on WeChat.
The Chinese embassy in Iran issued a similar evacuation notice on its official WeChat account later on Tuesday.
Iran's airspace is still closed, and there are risks that Iran's land border crossings will also be closed in the near future, the embassy said.
The notice listed border points for people to enter Turkey, Armenia and Turkmenistan, with travel distances from Tehran ranging from 760 to 910 km (472 to 565 miles).
