The escalation of the war tension in the Middle East, now with the ground invasion and attacks by Israel on Lebanon, once again tests the response capacity of Spain's foreign services. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has accounted for around 1,000 Spaniards currently in Lebanon. While absolute discretion is maintained regarding the evacuation plan - when it will be activated - as other countries have already begun operations, citizens in Lebanon are urged to leave the country through the still operational commercial routes: three weekly air connections and by boat.
"I will not give details for security reasons, but we have a detailed evacuation plan. We have the Spaniards perfectly located and positioned," stated the Foreign Affairs Minister, José Manuel Albares, who has not provided any details, except to ask Spaniards to check their emails to confirm that their mobile phones and addresses are correct. An indication that the evacuation is being finalized.
In previous operations such as Afghanistan, Niger, Ukraine... information was only provided once they were already underway or had occurred. Another sign that the entire operation is being fine-tuned is that Albares himself has acknowledged being "in constant contact" with the Defense Minister, Margarita Robles, "so that when we make the political decision to evacuate, Defense can deploy all necessary means."
While "the political decision" to activate the evacuation is made - as Albares has defined it, as a "political decision" - the public message being conveyed is to urge leaving Lebanon by plane or boat. "As of today, there are still commercial flights with three weekly frequencies. Beirut airport is still operational. There are also maritime departures to Cyprus, Greece, and Turkey."
"Spaniards can be certain and assured that when we consider that conditions have deteriorated enough, we will activate the evacuation plan," Albares conveyed in response to questions from journalists after the meeting of the Council of Ministers, where he presented a report on the situation in Lebanon.
The thousand Spaniards in Lebanon are citizens residing in the country, journalists, people in transit..., but do not include the Spanish contingent of 650 military personnel deployed on the border between Lebanon and Israel as part of the Unifil, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, who spent the night in bunkers: "Everyone is fine." The withdrawal of this contingent is not a decision for Spain to make, as it is a United Nations mission, so it is this organization that must determine how to proceed. Hence, Spain also calls for the Security Council to assume responsibilities.
The Government continues to "monitor with concern" the war escalation caused by Israel's decision to attack Lebanon and initiate a ground invasion. "It is an unbearable conflict for the most basic humanity and must cease as soon as possible," Albares's message has been. "The ground invasion must stop," is what is conveyed, with a clear recipient: Israel. "A ceasefire is needed in Lebanon and a halt to the fighting in Gaza, as the situation in Palestine continues to deteriorate. "The weapons must be stopped once and for all, leaving room for diplomacy."