<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced this Friday that the Ministry has launched two evacuation operations from Iran and Israel, which have so far allowed for the voluntary departure of approximately 240 Spanish citizens.</strong></h4> "Since yesterday, Spain has launched two evacuation operations from Iran and Israel due to the security situation in the region," Albares stated in a video released by the Ministry. "At this time, just over 40 Spaniards who voluntarily wished to leave Iran have been safely in Armenia since last night and are completing the necessary formalities in its capital, Yerevan, to board a flight that will take them to Spain later today," he continued. Separately, "for those who voluntarily wished to leave Israel," a similar operation has been offered "to all Spaniards of whom we were aware at the Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Consulate in Jerusalem," he explained. “Just as we did with the Embassy in Tehran, we are currently seeing around 200 people crossing,” he stated. “Some of them have already done so at the border with Jordan, and in the coming hours we also hope they will safely board a flight to return to Spain,” he added. “I want to thank the Spanish Embassy in Tel Aviv, the Consulate General in Jerusalem, our Embassy in Tehran, and all the diplomats and foreign service personnel, both in Israel and at the Consulate General in Jerusalem, as well as in Iran, for the extraordinary work they have done to guarantee the safety of the Spanish people” and for the transfer of bus convoys “from Tehran to the border with Armenia and from Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to the border with Jordan.” Albares also asked "Spaniards who have decided to remain in Israel and those who have decided to remain in Iran to maintain contact with our embassies, to keep an eye on social media, and if there is any Spaniard who, for whatever reason, is passing through Israel or Iran and has not contacted the embassy, please do so and provide us with your information."
