Flights to evacuate up to 500 Australians and their families from Lebanon as situation deteriorates
The Australian government will fly up to 500 people out of Lebanon today, as it continues to urge citizens to leave the country.
The two charter flights will take Australian citizens, permanent residents, and their family members out of the Lebanon capital Beirut to the nearby island of Cyprus.
Federal government minister Catherine King said people who had registered and secured a seat on the flights needed to be at the airport by 6am local time.
A plane will travel from Cyprus to Sydney. (Reuters: Yiannis Kourtoglou)
“Our message very clearly to people in Lebanon at the moment is do not wait to get the perfect flight home,” Ms King said.
“If you are offered a flight, then you need to go. You need to leave now and take that first available opportunity.
“The situation on the ground is very serious and we can not guarantee we can get everybody out.”
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said there were still seats available on the flights.
Once in Cyprus, Qantas will run two flights free of charge to Sydney next week.
In a statement on Friday, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said “vulnerable passengers” will be prioritised and further flights are being planned.
Up to 500 Australians are due to leave Beirut. (Reuters: Yara Abi Nader)
“Operation of the Australian government-supported charter flights is subject to the airport in Beirut remaining open and other operational constraints,” Senator Wong said.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will be in contact with registered Australians to facilitate their departure and will continue to provide updates to registered Australians.”
Ms King said contingency planning was underway in case the airport was forced to close, describing the situation as “very fluid”.
A Canadian assisted-departure flight earlier this week evacuated 41 Australians from Lebanon.
The Mediterranean Island of Cyprus has been preparing to potentially scale up its operations to assist evacuations, with the island acting as a transit point for many people fleeing.
The federal government has been urging Australians to leave Lebanon for months as conflict has deepened between Israel and Hezbollah.
The government estimates at least 15,000 Australians remain in Lebanon but the true figure could be as high as 30,000.
As of Friday, 2,338 Australians and their immediate family members have registered interest in leaving.
Australians who do wish to leave must register with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on its crisis registration portal.
Australians needing emergency consular assistance can contact the 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 (within Australia) or +61 2 6261 3305 (from overseas).
Since October 2023, the Australian government advice has been for Australians to not travel to Lebanon.
