Heritage National Defense Center Director Robert Greenway talks to “The Evening Edit” about how the Pentagon is sending more U.S. troops to the Middle East amid rising tensions between Hezbollah and Israel.
The US Embassy in Lebanon has warned Americans there to “book all available flights” as the number of flights leaving the country has been reduced due to a rapid escalation of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
“Most airlines have suspended or cancelled flights and many flights are sold out. However, limited commercial transport options are still available to leave Lebanon,” the embassy said in an alert issued on Tuesday.
“We urge anyone wishing to leave Lebanon to book any available flight, even if that flight does not depart immediately or does not take their first choice route,” the embassy warned.
“Americans who choose not to leave Lebanon are encouraged to prepare contingency plans in case of an emergency and be prepared to evacuate for an extended period of time,” it added.
Lebanon bans pagers and walkie-talkies on planes after blast targeting Hezbollah terrorists
People gather in front of a building targeted in an Israeli attack in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Friday, September 20. (AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The warning comes as Israeli forces and Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah have been trading frequent rocket attacks across the Israel-Lebanon border.
Two days of pager and walkie-talkie explosions targeting Hezbollah members last week reportedly prompted Lebanese authorities to ban the devices from planes departing from Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport.
Smoke rises into the sky over southern Lebanon as cross-border fighting continues between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, on Tuesday, September 24. (REUTERS/Aziz Taher/REUTERS)
The US Embassy in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, said on Tuesday that “US nationals who do not have the funds to return to the United States can contact the embassy for financial assistance in purchasing a plane ticket through a repatriation loan.”
US to send more troops to Middle East as Israel-Hezbollah conflict escalates, Netanyahu warns Lebanon
People carry luggage outside Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport on Thursday, September 19. (REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/Reuters)
“U.S. military-assisted evacuations of civilians from abroad are rare, and Americans should not rely on the U.S. government to assist them in leaving the country or evacuating in a crisis,” it said. “If you are evacuated, you may not be able to accompany your loved ones, and you may not take your pets with you. You will be expected to reimburse the U.S. government for the cost of transportation to safety.”
Airlines are cancelling flights to Lebanon due to the destabilising security situation there.
A Lebanese Middle East Airlines plane parks on the tarmac at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, September 24. (REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/Reuters)
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Lufthansa Group, whose passenger airlines include Lufthansa Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings, told Fox Business last week that flights to Beirut would be suspended until Oct. 26, 2024 “due to the current situation” in the Middle East.
