The flight with the first group of Portuguese who wanted to leave Israel, from Larnaca, Cyprus, arrived at Figo Maduro airport in Lisbon this Wednesday morning, according to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (MNE).
Arrival at the Figo Maduro Aerodrome in Lisbon was scheduled for 10:45 a.m., according to a message from the MNE on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
In the message, the MNE indicated that the repatriation operation involved a C-130 aircraft to remove these civilians from the Israeli capital.
TAP aircraft, chartered by the Portuguese state, in Larnaca. Scheduled arrival at the Figo Maduro Aerodrome in Lisbon, at 10:45 AM.
The repatriation operation involved a C-130 aircraft @fap_pt in the removal of these civilians from the Israeli capital. pic.twitter.com/33PiRluFyb
– PT Foreign Affairs (@nestrangeiro_pt) October 11, 2023
The AP reported on Tuesday that a 25-year-old Portuguese woman who was studying in Tel Aviv and reported missing after the Hamas attack was found dead.
Rotem Neumann had been missing for at least three days when her body was found.
This young woman of Portuguese nationality was at the Teva Festival, a music event near the Gaza border that was invaded by militants in the early hours of Saturday.
On Tuesday, the MNE said that “the Portuguese repatriation operation was underway, with the Portuguese Air Force C-130 aircraft transporting around 80 people from Tel Aviv to Larnaca.
This repatriation operation was carried out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MNE) and the Ministry of National Defense, the MNE had previously explained in a statement, which initially indicated that 150 Portuguese were willing to leave Israel.
Minister João Gomes Cravinho warned that “the complex operating conditions on Israeli territory may require changes in flight plans.”
According to the MNE, there are 3,000 Portuguese registered in Israel, and “the vast majority live there, have dual citizenship and have shown no interest” in traveling to Portugal.
The Islamist group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israeli territory on Saturday, dubbed Operation ‘Storm al-Aqsa’, with the launch of thousands of rockets and the incursion of armed militiamen by land, sea and air.
In response to the surprise attack, Israel bombed several Hamas facilities in the Gaza Strip from the air, in an operation it dubbed “Iron Swords”.
The armed conflict has already caused hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries on both sides.
Source: DN
