Iran-Israel Escalation: Mass Launch of Evacuation and Withdrawal Phases
Calls for evacuation and withdrawal have ushered in a new phase in the confrontation between Israel and Iran, potentially signaling further escalation and reciprocal attacks.
Early signs of this tension appeared when several countries urged their citizens to evacuate Israel, while former U.S. President Donald Trump called on Tehran residents to evacuate the city.
On Tuesday, the Chinese Embassy in Israel urged its citizens to leave the country “as soon as possible.”
In a statement on WeChat, the embassy said: “The Chinese mission in Israel urges Chinese nationals to leave the country as soon as possible through land border crossings, provided they can ensure their personal safety.”
It added, “We recommend exiting via Jordan.”
The embassy further stated that the conflict “is escalating continuously (…) a large part of civilian infrastructure has been damaged, civilian casualties are rising, and the security situation is becoming increasingly dangerous.”
Last Friday, Israel launched a wide-scale assault on Iran, mainly targeting military and nuclear facilities, with the declared goal of preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Iran responded with drone and missile strikes on the Israeli state.
Cyprus and Germany
On Monday, Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos stated that his country had received requests to help evacuate citizens of Portugal and Slovakia from the Middle East.
“There are two active requests… This clearly depends largely on their citizens reaching neighboring countries by land,” he told reporters.
At the same time, Germany’s Foreign Ministry announced that it would organize evacuation flights for German nationals from Israel via Jordan, as conflict in the region intensifies.
The ministry said chartered flights would depart from Amman, Jordan, to Frankfurt, Germany, on Wednesday, given that Israeli airspace is currently closed due to ongoing strikes between Israel and Iran.
German nationals wishing to leave Israel must arrange their own travel to Jordan.
Earlier, a Polish Deputy Foreign Minister said her country was preparing to evacuate around 200 citizens who were visiting Israel, also via Amman.
“We expect to be ready in the coming hours… The evacuation will cover stranded tourists and short-term residents,” said Henryka Mościcka-Dendys.
Trump’s Call
Former U.S. President Donald Trump called for the immediate evacuation of the Iranian capital, Tehran, warning that Iran must not obtain nuclear weapons under any circumstance.
Meanwhile, Russia announced on Sunday that it had evacuated some of its nationals from Iran and had suspended consular operations in Tehran.
“The embassy’s consular services are suspended temporarily due to the current situation. The resumption will be announced later,” read a Telegram post from the Russian embassy.
Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova stated on Sunday that members of the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra, who were in Iran, had been evacuated.
She said on Telegram that the orchestra “crossed the border into Azerbaijan yesterday, and the crew of the Fyodor Bondarchuk film also exited Iran via the same route,” referring to the Russian director and actor.
Russian authorities had advised their citizens on Friday to refrain from traveling to Iran and Israel.
Civilian Flight
A large number of Tehran residents fled the capital after Israeli strikes, resulting in traffic jams on the main highway heading north, according to images posted on social media on Monday.
Photos taken by AFP from a bridge above the highway show a massive queue of vehicles on Tehran’s northern exit, with the opposite direction nearly empty.
The airspace has been closed until further notice, making land routes the only option to leave the heavily bombarded capital.
Israel has urged Tehran residents to avoid all military sites, but security forces are widely deployed throughout the city, including in residential neighborhoods.
Traffic has been concentrated on the highway connecting Tehran to the city of Chalous on the Caspian Sea, according to footage from “Iran International,” a Persian-language outlet based abroad, and images from well-known Iranian bloggers.
Videos circulating online also show long lines at fuel stations.
