A Royal Caribbean International cruise ship reportedly helped evacuate U.S. nationals from Israel recently.
Since the conflict erupted on Oct. 7, cruise ships have been avoiding Israel's once-bustling shores and major airlines have stopped flying to and from Israel, while governments have scrambled to get their citizens home.
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At least 1,300 people have been killed. Most were civilians, including children.
Royal Caribbean cruise ship evacuated Americans from Israel https://t.co/ZiUJu6eEZT
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) October 17, 2023
Across Israel and the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank, hotels have emptied and at least six companies have stopped trips to top destinations like Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as the fighting escalated, according to Reuters.
Royal Caribbean's Rhapsody of the Seas vessel had been sailing in the region but canceled its itineraries in the wake of the war.
“Now, with enhanced safety precautions in place, our ship is providing free passage, including accommodation and food, for Americans in the region wishing to leave and find safer ground,” Jason Liberty, president and CEO of the line’s parent company Royal Caribbean Group (RCL) -), said in an email to employees that was shared with USA Today.
The evacuation was conducted in partnership with the U.S. State Department, Liberty said.
The U.S. Embassy in Israel said in a security alert Sunday that boarding would begin in order of arrival on Oct. 16 at 8:00 a.m. local time, and the ship would sail from Haifa to Limassol, Cyprus.
"Each traveler must be a U.S. national or the immediate family member (spouse/partner, children under age 21) of a U.S. national and have a valid passport,” the alert said.
The embassy said travelers would be responsible for arranging their own accommodations and travel from Cyprus, but that chartered flights were also being arranged.
The U.S. State Department said on Oct. 16 that it is continuing charter flights out of Tel Aviv for now. The state department is urging American citizens to get on those charter flights as soon as they can because they won’t always be available.
The conflict began with a series of coordinated attacks, conducted by the Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas, from the Gaza Strip, onto bordering areas in Israel.
News reports indicated that Hamas has taken at least 200 hostages, most of whom are civilians.
A Hamas spokesman said about 50 others were being held by other “resistance factions and in other places” and claimed that at least 22 hostages had been killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, the Guardian reported.
Meanwhile, Ayman Nofal, a member of the General Military Council and commander of the Central Brigade in the al-Qassam Brigades, was killed in an Israeli airstrike, CNBC reported.
The Israeli military has said that the next steps of its campaign against Hamas need not be a long-anticipated ground incursion.
“We are preparing for the next stages of war. We haven’t said what they will be. Everybody’s talking about the ground offensive. It might be something different,” a spokesperson said.
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