US Has Begun Evacuating Citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents From Israel

The evacuation effort comes as the U.S. Embassy has faced closure for most of the past week, amid the ongoing Israel–Iran conflict.

A U.S. flag flies at the U.S. embassy complex in Jerusalem on Sept. 27, 2023. Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. government has begun arranging flights for U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents seeking to leave Israel, as Israeli and Iranian military forces continue to trade blows.

“The Department of State has begun assisted departure flights from Israel,” U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee announced in a social media post on June 21.

Huckabee then directed citizens and lawful permanent residents seeking to depart Israel and the West Bank toward a form they can fill out to receive departure assistance from the U.S. State Department.

News of these evacuation flights comes amid disruptions in U.S. Embassy operations after Israeli forces launched a surprise bombing campaign against Iran, hoping to cripple Iran’s nuclear program and offensive military capabilities more broadly.

Iranian forces have launched salvos of ballistic missiles and explosive attack drones at Israel in retaliation, and some of these weapons have breached Israel’s air defense network, causing deaths and injuries and damaging buildings throughout the country.

On June 17, the U.S. Embassy in Israel announced that it had advised its employees to shelter in place. The embassy also announced it would halt in-person operations starting on June 18.

As of its latest update, the embassy is set to remain closed through the weekend, with a tentative plan to resume limited in-person operations on June 23.

“We have no announcement about assisting private U.S. citizens to depart at this time,” the embassy said on June 17. “The Department of State is always planning for contingencies to assist with private U.S. citizens’ departure from crisis areas. We will alert the U.S. citizen community if there is additional information to share regarding departure options.”

Huckabee has continued to post updates throughout the week, telling U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents that the U.S. government is working to arrange military, commercial, and charter flights out of Israel, as well as arrange for cruise ships to provide additional seating in an evacuation effort.

“If you’re offered a seat, take it,” Huckabee wrote in a June 19 social media post. “Family in Israel? Tell them stay close to shelter & don’t ignore sirens!”

At a June 20 press briefing, State Department press secretary Tammy Bruce announced the department had recently provided information and support to more than 25,000 people seeking guidance on conditions in Israel, the West Bank, and Iran. Bruce did not specify how many of those were citizens seeking assistance to leave Israel or Iran.

The Epoch Times reached out to the State Department for more details about the scope of the evacuation effort and did not receive a response by publication time.