As part of a massive effort to bring home its stranded citizens abroad, Israel’s first rescue cruise ship arrived at Ashdod port this morning carrying 2,000 passengers.
Operated by Mano Maritime, the luxury vessel Crown Iris sailed from Limassol to Ashdod with Transportation Minister Miri Regev welcoming the returnees alongside Israeli officials and port authorities.
“Operation Safe Return is a national mission,” Regev said. “We continue to work vigorously, with all tools and means, to return Israeli citizens home safely.”
Fifty buses and minibuses waited at the port to transport passengers free of charge to the Ashdod train station and cities including Beersheba, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, a total of 12 flights carrying more than 2,000 Israelis landed at a mostly empty Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday, kicking off a large-scale air repatriation mission. However, according to the ministry, only two repatriation flights per hour are allowed for each airline, operating only during daylight hours due to repeated nighttime missile barrages from Iran.
Israel’s airspace shut down last Friday after the IDF launched “Operation Rising Lion,” targeting Iranian nuclear facilities and military infrastructure. Thousands of Israelis who were traveling when the crisis erupted have already made their way to Greece and Cyprus, hoping to catch rescue flights. Iran has fired more than 400 ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation, triggering air raid sirens and a rush to bunkers. At least 24 people, all civilians, have died so far in the strikes.
While land crossings with Egypt and Jordan technically remain open, Israel’s National Security Council issued Level 4 travel warnings for both countries, advising citizens to wait for the airport to reopen rather than risk overland routes
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