The White House announced that the U.S. government will begin operating evacuation flights to help Americans leave Israel as Israel prepares to escalate retaliatory action against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
The evacuation flights are expected to begin Friday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said. The U.S. government is arranging for at least four charter flights a day out of Israel, according to people familiar with the planning.
The announcement came as the White House confirmed that the death toll in the fighting now includes at least 27 Americans. The war has claimed at least 2,600 lives on both sides since Hamas launched its attack on Israel last Saturday.
Fourteen U.S. citizens in Israel remain unaccounted for. The White House has said a “handful” of Americans are among the dozens of people that Hamas took hostage.
There are still some commercial carriers flying in and out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport, and ground routes are open to leave Israel. White House officials, however, have voiced concern that those options may not be feasible or affordable for some Americans in Israel who want to leave.
