US Arranges Flights to Bring Americans Out of Lebanon as Others Seek Escape

Washington: US-arranged flights have brought about 350 Americans and ir immediate relatives out of Lebanon this week during escalated fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, while thousands of ors still re face airstrikes and diminishing commercial flights.

In Washington, senior State Department and White House officials met Thursday with two top Arab American officials to discuss US efforts to help American citizens leave Lebanon. two leers also separately met with officials from Department of Homeland Security.

Michigan state Rep. Alabas Farhat and Abed Ayoub, executive director of American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, used White House meeting to "really drive home a lot of important points about issues our community members are facing on ground and a lot of logistical problems that y're encountering with it when it comes to this evacuation,” Ayoub said.

Some officials and community leers in Michigan, home to nation's largest concentration of Arab Americans, are calling on US to start an evacuation. Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said that was not being considered right now.

“ US military is, of course, on rey and has a whole wide range of plans. Should we need to evacuate American citizens out of Lebanon, we absolutely can,” Singh told reporters.

Israel has opened a pounding air campaign deep into Lebanon and a ground incursion in country's south targeting Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group. Iran on Tuesday fired nearly 200 ballistic missiles toward Israel, leaving region bracing for any Israeli retaliation and fearing an all-out regional war.

Israel and Hezbollah have tred fire across Lebanon border almost daily since day after Hamas, anor Iranian-backed militant group, attacked Israel on Oct. 7, triggering war in Gaza.

Or countries, from Greece to United Kingdom, Japan and Colombia, have arranged flights or sent military planes to ferry out ir citizens.

As Israeli bombardments targeting senior Hezbollah leers shook sourn neighbourhoods in Lebanon's capital last week, “We could still see, hear and feel everything” despite fleeing to mountains outside Beirut, said Nicolette Hutcherson, a longtime humanitarian volunteer living in Lebanon with her husband and three children.

only seats Hutcherson's family could find on commercial carriers were for flights weeks away and for thousands of dollars, she said. Ultimately, Hutcherson and her young children joined crowds heing to Lebanon's Mediterranean marinas, finding spots on pleasure boats turned evacuation ships for nine-hour ride to Cyprus.

Her husband was able to find a single seat out on a plane days later to join m.

Anor American family was mourning Kamel Ahm Jaw, a resident of metro Detroit's Dearborn area, who was killed in sourn Lebanon on Tuesday. Family members said he stayed to help civilians too old, infirm or poor to flee.

He h been on phone with his daughter Tuesday when impact of a strike knocked him off his feet, his daughter, Nine Kamel Jaw, said in a statement.

“He simply got up, found his phone, and told me he needed to finish praying in case anor strike hit him,” she said.

State Department has been telling Americans for almost a year not to travel to Lebanon and vising m to leave country on commercial flights for months. It also has me clear that government-run evacuations are rare, while offering emergency loans to aid travel out of Lebanon.

Some Americans said relatives who are U.S. citizens or green-card holders have been struggling for days or weeks to get seats on flights out of Lebanon. Limits on withdrawing money from banks due to Lebanon's longstanding economic collapse and intermittent electricity and internet have me it difficult, y said.

Rebecca Abou-Chedid, a lawyer based in Washington, paid $5,000 to get a female relative on last seat of a flight out of Beirut on Saturday.

“She was on her way to airport” when Israel began one of its first days of intensified bombing, Abou-Chedid said.

By Thursday, some Americans said ir loved ones h been able to secure tickets for upcoming flights and were hopeful.

State Department spokesman Matw Miller said U.S. would continue to organize flights as long security situation in Lebanon is dire and re is demand.

Miller said Lebanon's flag carrier, Middle East Airlines, also h set aside about 1,400 seats on flights for Americans over past week. Several hundred h taken m, he said.

Miller could not speak to cost of airline's flights, over which U.S. government has no regulatory oversight, but said maximum fare that would be charged for a U.S.-organized contract flight would be $283 per person.

More than 6,000 American citizens have contacted U.S. Embassy in Beirut seeking information about departing country over past week.

Not all of those have actually sought assistance in leaving, and Miller said department understood that some Americans, many of m dual U.S.-Lebanese nationals and longtime residents of country, may choose to stay.

Miller said embassy is prepared to offer temporary loans to Americans who choose to remain in Lebanon but want to relocate to a potentially safer area of country. embassy also would provide emergency loans to Americans who wish to leave on U.S.-contracted flights.