Bus only goes to Jordan
Germany recommends scheduled flights to those stuck in Israel
October 10, 2023, 8:32 p.m
Germans are still stuck in Israel and want to go home. The Foreign Office is checking with airlines whether special flights are possible and is currently referring to commercial offers. A bus is also organized from Tel Aviv to Jordan – from where travelers are on their own.
The federal government is considering special flights to bring citizens back from Israel because of the military conflict there. The government is considering expanding flight capacity from Israel. The Foreign Office’s crisis response center is “in contact with airlines under high pressure,” the ministry said. Spokespeople for Lufthansa and Condor confirmed that they were in contact with the federal government about this. Like many other airlines, the Lufthansa Group has suspended all scheduled flights to Tel Aviv up to and including Saturday due to the risky security situation in Israel. Condor does not yet fly to the country.
In response to a request from ntv.de, the Foreign Office said that 4,500 German citizens are on a crisis preparedness list. They are in close contact with the Israeli authorities and the people in Israel, with whom they are discussing possible exit options. They would be continuously informed about possible ways to leave Israel.
In this context, the Foreign Office also refers to commercial flights, which still exist. On Tuesday, planes from Tel Aviv landed in Berlin and Frankfurt, among others. According to the BER airport website, more are expected in the coming days. “You can also use lesser-known airlines, such as TUS-Airways, which offer direct flights to Düsseldorf, but also Arkia or Israir,” says the German Embassy in Tel Aviv on its website.
Flights via third countries
A message from the embassy, which is available to ntv.de, also states that a bus transfer from the city to Amman Airport in Jordan was organized on Wednesday for people with a valid German passport. Once there, travelers should use commercial flights and book them themselves.
“We started evacuation flights with other airlines. We arranged flight connections through the crisis hotline – those who were at the airport could contact us -. You then had to change trains on some routes. I understand that this was a terrible situation Situation is, but if you have 100,000 calls at the same time, then you have to prioritize,” said Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on ZDF. There had previously been criticism that the Foreign Office did not care enough about German nationals.
Several groups of students have already left Germany via third countries, for example via Antalya in Turkey. A group from Kirchheim/Teck was lucky. By chance, the participants were flown via Reykjavik, Iceland. In the bunker of their hotel they met a couple from the country, their school confirmed. With the help of the couple, they were then able to get seats on an Icelandic Foreign Ministry plane.
EU states are starting return campaigns
Several European countries are bringing their compatriots home from Israel in view of the fighting. The Lufthansa subsidiary Swiss explained that after the first special flight on Tuesday, it was planning another one on Wednesday. The 215 available seats on the plane can be booked via a special hotline. According to the government in Bern, around 28,000 Swiss are in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories.
Austria is also preparing to evacuate its citizens from Israel on Wednesday and is using a military transport aircraft for this purpose. Around 200 Austrians have so far informed the authorities that they want to leave the country. Hungary, Portugal and Iceland have also already organized evacuation flights. France wants to bring citizens back from Israel on a special flight on Thursday. Foreign Minister Catherine Collona announced in Paris that Air France would operate the flight.
Meanwhile, Israeli airline El Al is continuing to expand its capacity to fly Israelis home after the country called up 300,000 reservists for military service to fend off the Hamas attack.