Germany preparing mass evacuation of citizens through Cyprus

Germany is preparing to evacuate thousands of its nationals from Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East via Cyprus on Tuesday, amid concerns over escalation of conflict between Israel and Iran.

Germany’s air force has been readying a small fleet of A400M transport aircraft that could shuttle people from Beirut to Cyprus, according to German news daily Spiegel.

The news was confirmed by state broadcaster CyBC which reported that the fleet of A400M aircraft had been on stand-by in Lower Saxony for weeks.

Within the week, thousands of German citizens are expected to be evacuated from the region, by air as well as by sea, in repeated ferries as needed.

At least 2,000 German citizens are residing in the region, CyBC reported.

Elsewhere, the Swedish Embassy in Cyprus confirmed it has temporarily moved its mission to the island from Lebanon, due to the deteriorating security situation in the region.

The move is valid for the month of August but may be extended, the embassy told the Cyprus News Agency.

The embassy said they had received instructions from the Swedish Foreign Ministry to remove staff to safety on August 1.

“The ministry of foreign affairs is closely monitoring the events and the security situation is under constant assessment,” Deputy Head of mission Bengt Baedecke told CNA.