Embassy: 79 more Ukrainians evacuated from Israel
Another evacuation plane with 79 Ukrainian citizens on board left Israel for Romania late on Oct. 19, Ukraine's Embassy in Israel reported on Oct. 20.
This is the fourth evacuation flight organized by the embassy since the fighting in Israel and Gaza broke out on Oct. 7, bringing the total number of rescued Ukrainians to over 500.
The embassy has provided consular assistance for Ukrainian citizens during registration, passport control, and customs procedures.
Meanwhile, over 300 people are on the evacuation list from the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian enclave besieged by the Israeli military, and their number is constantly increasing, Ukraine's Ambassador in Israel Yevhen Korniichuk said on Oct. 19.
Read also: Ukrainians trapped in besieged Gaza: ‘We are constantly bombed’
The militant group Hamas, which governs Gaza, launched unprecedented attacks on Israeli settlements on Oct. 7.
Tel Aviv responded by retaliatory airstrikes against Gaza and a total blockade of the enclave. Thousands of people, mostly civilians, have been killed on both sides so far.
The hostilities claimed the lives of a Ukrainian woman in the Gaza Strip and 18 more Ukrainians in Israel, which is reportedly the second highest number of foreigners killed in the conflict, right behind the U.S.
There is a large Ukrainian community in Israel, estimated by the Foreign Ministry as being around 500,000, most of whom left Ukraine after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Most of them are Jews from Ukraine, but there are also tens of thousands of ethnic Ukrainians.
Read also: ‘A wave of terror:’ Hamas attack brings back haunting memories of war for Ukrainians in Israel
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