Second humanitarian flight started that will bring 150 Colombians from Lebanon

A new Air Force flight arrived in Beirut, capital of Lebanon with the mission of rescuing 105 Colombians who decided to leave this Middle Eastern country due to the war between Israel and the Islamist movement Hezbollah.

>>> See more: Israel confirms death of Nasrallah’s successor in Hezbollah during offensive in Lebanon

“I want to thank President Gustavo Petro for giving us the opportunity of this trip, the Foreign Ministry, the Colombian embassy here in Lebanon and the Consulate,” said one of the Colombians who will return to the country.

Another Colombian woman said that “I want to thank the ambassador and his entire team in Colombia for the opportunity to leave the country, taking into account the situation we are in and being able to reunite with my family who is there.”

When will the Colombians arrive on the humanitarian flight?

The flight departed at 3:00 in the morning on October 23, Colombia time, from the Beirut international airport. According to the Colombian ambassador to Lebanon, Edwin Ostos, Of the 105 nationals who return, 2 are babies and there are another 35 minors. Several older adults also travel.

“This has been a joint effort between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Air Force and the Colombian embassy in Lebanon. The citizens are on board the flight and we hope to have them on Colombian soil soon,” said Ambassador Edwin Ostos.

The official explained that it will be a long trip, which will last more than 24 hours and will have several stops. This humanitarian flight is expected to land at the Catam Military Base on Thursday, October 24 at 5:00 p.m.

How is the war in Lebanon going?

The Israeli Army began this Wednesday, October 23, to attack the city of Tire, in southern Lebanon, after sending an evacuation announcement in the town, official sources reported.

“A hostile (Israeli) aggression targeted Sawt al Farah Street in Tyre,” the Lebanese National News Agency (ANN) reported, without giving further details.

The town of Tyre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the most important city in southern Lebanon, a region where Israeli attacks have been concentrated since the beginning of the campaign that began just a month ago against the Mediterranean country.

Lebanese Civil Defense teams are working to transfer elderly people and citizens in difficult situations to safe places, according to ANN.

This is the first large-scale Israeli operation against the city of Tyre.

-/AFP

People in Lebanon cannot leave

A witness in the city told the EFE news agency by telephone that The population cannot go out as the situation is “too dangerous” and is sitting on the sidewalks.

The Israeli Army ordered this Wednesday to evacuate a large part of the city of Tire, where thousands of displaced people from the southern border are taking refuge, although the number of those who remain in the city is unknown.

“The warning is specifically directed at those in the buildings between the streets: Al Hiram, Jafar Sharaf al Din, Abu Dib and Al Azar,” warned today Israel’s Arabic military spokesman, Avichay Adraee.

“You should immediately move away from the area marked in red and go north of the Awali River,” said Adraee, who shared a map with the affected neighborhoods tinted red.

According to UN data, more than a quarter of Lebanon has been placed under evacuation orders from Israel, a country that began an escalation of war against Lebanon just a month ago.

In a year of war more than 2,500 people have died, the vast majority in the last month, while more than 11,000 have been injured.

>>> You may be interested in: Colombian family in Lebanon begs to be allowed to board humanitarian flight with their 3 cats