After leaving Lebanon during the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Isobel Taper described her sorrow at leaving the country behind. She explained that her life feels surreal after returning to the UK. Taper arrived on Wednesday on the first UK government chartered flight for evacuating British Nationals from the area. Although staying with her parents in Ealing, west London, she felt guilty for leaving her boyfriend and cats behind.
The Foreign Office has stated that they will charter a “limited” number of flights to evacuate “hundreds” of British nationals and their dependents. Continuing for as long as security permits, more flights are scheduled to depart on Thursday. Taper had moved to Lebanon in July last year to study for her master’s degree. She decided to leave when the conflict reached the part of the city where she was residing. She hopes to return home soon.
Dia and Amine, who are dual British-Lebanese nationals, moved back to Beirut from London after retirement in 2000. Their daughter, Mona Deeley, explained the “hard” decision to evacuate Dia, leaving behind Amine, who requires 24-hour care. Ms Deeley stated that the elderly people also worry about their medication, physician, and hospital access along with the risk of bomb strikes. She added that for her mother, it was now or never, and it felt reassuring for them to have one of her parents home.
According to last week’s data, an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 UK nationals, including dependants, were present in Lebanon. Some have had the opportunity to leave on commercial flights, but seats were challenging to find. In response, the UK government is working to increase commercial flight capacity for British nationals. Moreover, contingency planning has been put into action as around 700 troops and government staff have been deployed to Cyprus
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