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fullscreen Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong. Archive image. Photo: Pamela Smith/AP/TT
The Australian government has secured 500 seats on flights out of Lebanon on Saturday for its own nationals who want to leave.
– If you get a seat on a flight, please take it, says Wong according to Australia’s public service channel ABC.
For months, Wong and the government she is part of have urged people with Australian citizenship or residency to leave Lebanon.
– It is not time to wait and see, says Wong.
– We are very concerned that the situation will worsen. If the airport in Beirut closes, the opportunities to get out will be even fewer.
About ten countries, including the UK and Canada and the Netherlands, have announced that they have reserved airline seats or chartered flights for citizens who want to leave.
The Swedish government and the Foreign Ministry have so far given no such signals. The message has long been to leave Lebanon on its own.
“The security situation in Lebanon has worsened with canceled flight departures and a reduced number of tickets as a result. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urges Swedes who are still in Lebanon to try to book a seat on available flights as soon as possible,” wrote the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ press service in an email to TT on Wednesday.
Since October, the Foreign Ministry has advised against all travel to Lebanon.