Europeans evacuated from Lebanon
About 350 people – most of them European citizens – were evacuated overnight from Lebanon to Cyprus through Syria on Italian military flights, officials said today.
The evacuees – who included Spaniards, Italians, Austrians, Czechs and Irish - were flown to Cyprus’ Larnaca airport on five flights from Latakia, said Giorgos Yiangou, a foreign ministry official.
Italian C-130 military transport planes were used for the flights.
Mr Yiangou said about 100 of the evacuees stayed in Cyprus, but there was no way to independently confirm that figure.
“The rest either boarded planes to their final destination or are expected to do so by the end of the day,” he added.
At noon today, an Olympic Airways flight chartered by the Greek government briefly landed in Larnaca with 140 people – mostly Greeks and Cypriots - evacuated from Lebanon. It continued to Athens after dropping off 40 Cypriots and 10 other foreign nationals.
Meanwhile, a ferry chartered by France was preparing to sail from Cyprus to Lebanon later today.
“It is a French initiative for the transport of all European citizens from Lebanon with maritime means,” said Sotos Zackheos, foreign ministry permanent secretary.
France, which has historic ties to Lebanon, moved aggressively to protect its more than 20,000 citizens there – some 17,000 of them residents of Lebanon - sending military planes and vessels and providing a ferry service to Cyprus.
Cyprus has said it will provide port and airport facilities for the evacuation of European and other nationals from Lebanon.
Since Wednesday, Israel has hit hundreds of targets in Lebanon, closing down the country’s sole international airport and damaging the main highway to neighbouring Syria. Israeli ships are also blockading the coast.
