More than 1,110 Americans have fled Lebanon so far, officials said, as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continues to escalate.
U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that the United States has thousands of seats available for U.S. citizens for departure, and that 50 people will be on board the latest flight to Istanbul on Wednesday morning. said.
“We've had some flights with about 150 people on board, some with fewer people, but that's something we're going to continue to look at and continually evaluate,” Miller said. Deaf,” he said. A trip is planned for Americans.
Miller said he would continue to fly if necessary, as hundreds of other foreign nationals have also chosen to flee Lebanon to escape the bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
Hundreds of thousands of people have already been evacuated from southern Lebanon, where Israeli shelling is heaviest and the IDF is carrying out ground operations to destroy Hezbollah weapons depots.
Lebanese officials say those fleeing the region include thousands of Syrian refugees who have returned to their homeland, where they fled during the bloody civil war in 2011.
Asked about the escalation in Lebanon, Miller said the United States continues to support Israel's targeted attacks on Hezbollah's terror infrastructure while calling for de-escalation.
“We cannot and must not see the situation in Lebanon becoming like that in Gaza,” Miller added, referring to Israel's ongoing operations across the Palestinian enclaves.
But the Israeli military has said it has no plans to scale back its current offensive in Lebanon, and the Israel Defense Forces touted on Wednesday that it had carried out more than 1,100 airstrikes across the border in recent weeks.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Helj Halevi said Israel would continue its fierce offensive against Lebanon because it “will not forgive.” [Hezbollah] There will be any rest or recuperation,” the Times of Israel reported.
“Our attacks will be powerful, precise and above all surprising,” Halevi said. “They won't understand what happened or how it happened.”
Meanwhile, Hezbollah fired at least 90 missiles across the border on Wednesday, the IDF said, with the rockets either being intercepted or crashing into a field in northern Israel and bursting into flames.
with post wire
