The State Department said Friday it had provided ‘information and support’ to over 25,000 people in Israel, the West Bank or Iran seeking guidance on what to do and how to get out.
When pressed on the matter during a State Department briefing Friday afternoon, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce declined to go into further detail about how many of those 25,000 people are American citizens or any other breakdown of the number.
News of the number of people the State Department has assisted comes after the agency announced the formation of a task force to assist Americans looking to leave Israel or other Middle Eastern countries.
Bruce said during a press briefing Friday that the United States does not intend to help transport American citizens directly from Iran, and they will have to make it out first before they can be assisted by the government.
United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said earlier this week the embassy in Jerusalem was ‘working on evacuation flights & cruise ship departures’ for Americans trying to leave Israel.
Huckabee released his statement hours after the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem wrote in its own X post that there was ‘no announcement about assisting private U.S. citizens to depart at this time,’ but it simultaneously acknowledged ‘the Department of State is always planning for contingencies to assist with private U.S. citizens’ departure from crisis areas.’
So far, the U.S. has not engaged in a large-scale effort to help Americans get out of Israel. But, according to ABC News, the military did assist in flying some American diplomats and family members from the U.S. Embassy this week.
Private flights for American citizens did begin landing in Florida Thursday after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dispatched four planes to pick up U.S. citizens stuck in Israel during the ongoing violence. Other private options to get out of Israel are also available.
On Monday, the State Department raised its travel warning for Israel to the highest level possible.