18/07/2006

UK begins evacuation of British citizens in Lebanon

The first Royal Navy warship has arrived in Beirut to begin evacuating British citizens from Lebanon.

The HMS Gloucester is expected to to take around 100 of the most high priority cases, including pregnant women and children, to Cyprus.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Tony Blair also confirmed that six more Royal Navy ships were on their way to the region, as plans to evacuate as many as 22,000 British nationals in the area got underway.

Around 60 Britons were evacuated from Lebanon on Monday and the government has been criticised because France has already removed around 1,000 citizens from the country.

However, Mr Blair said that a "big logistical operation" was underway with the government doing everything it could to get people out as quickly as possible.

Other countries, including Spain, France, Italy and Greece have already begun evacuating their nationals from the Lebanese capital, Beirut.

The move comes as Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon enter into their seventh day. The airstrikes were launched last Wednesday following the kidnap of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah fighters and the deaths of eight others.

Israeli launched an air offensive on Lebanon, while Hezbollah has responded by bombarding northern Israel with missiles.

More than 200 Lebanese and 25 Israelis are reported to have been killed since the fighting began.

(KMcA)




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