Passengers checking departures at Beirut International airport. The UK government has told British citizens in Lebanon to 'leave now'. AFP
Passengers checking departures at Beirut International airport. The UK government has told British citizens in Lebanon to 'leave now'. AFP
Passengers checking departures at Beirut International airport. The UK government has told British citizens in Lebanon to 'leave now'. AFP
Passengers checking departures at Beirut International airport. The UK government has told British citizens in Lebanon to 'leave now'. AFP

UK government tells Britons in Lebanon to 'leave now'


Matthew Davies
  • English
  • Arabic

The UK Foreign Office has told British citizens still in Lebanon to “leave now”, following a series of explosions that destroyed several apartment buildings in Beirut amid escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah.

A statement released by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said it was “working to increase capacity” and find seats for British nationals on flights out of the country, adding that they “should take the next available flight”.

On Saturday, Hezbollah confirmed the death of its leader Hassan Nasrallah, hours after Israel announced it had killed him in an air strike in Beirut on Friday. More than 720 people have been killed in Lebanon since the conflict escalated on Monday, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

On Saturday, the European Commission and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued conflict zone information bulletins (CZIBs), recommending airlines not to operate within the airspaces of Lebanon and Israel “at all flight levels”.

“The recommendation is valid until October 31, 2024, and can be reviewed earlier and adapted or withdrawn subject to the revised assessment,” EASA said, adding it “will continue to closely monitor the situation”.

Meanwhile, Ettie Higgins, Unicef's deputy representative in Lebanon, said “thousands and thousands” of people had fled southern Beirut, and hospitals were “overwhelmed”.

“There was already a humanitarian crisis in Lebanon given that it's been hosting over one million refugees from Syria for over a decade, so it's rapidly escalating into a catastrophe,” she told the BBC.

If spaces on commercial airlines for British nationals looking to leave Lebanon run out, evacuations by air and sea using British forces based in Cyprus could be the response if security deteriorates. Around 5,000 British citizens are estimated to be in Lebanon.

Smoke rising from destroyed buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs on Saturday. AP Photo
Smoke rising from destroyed buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs on Saturday. AP Photo

Risk of escalation

UK Defence Secretary John Healey said on Friday that air strikes and exchanges of rocket fire between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah present a “risk that this escalates into something that is much wider and much more serious”. He added that his “first concern remains the safety of British nationals in Lebanon”.

“The travel advice remains the same – don't go to Lebanon,” Mr Healy said. “If you are in Lebanon, then get out and there are still commercial flights leaving so people can do that.”

When asked about the possibility of a ground invasion of Lebanon by Israeli forces, Mr Healy said the UK government was “watching this really carefully”, adding that “at the moment, it's air strikes. At the moment, there are missiles from the Lebanese Hezbollah directed at Israel. This conflict serves no one.”

Addressing the United Nations earlier this week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called for a ceasefire. “Stop the violence. Step back from the brink,” he said. “We need to see an immediate ceasefire to provide space for a diplomatic settlement and we are working with all partners to that end.”

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1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56

2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14

3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21

4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24

5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05

2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05

3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18

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5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Xpanceo

Started: 2018

Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov

Based: Dubai, UAE

Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality

Funding: $40 million

Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)

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1.

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2.

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3.

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4.

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5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

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Scoreline

UAE 2-1 Saudi Arabia

UAE Mabkhout 21’, Khalil 59’

Saudi Al Abed (pen) 20’

Man of the match Ahmed Khalil (UAE)

OPENING FIXTURES

Saturday September 12

Crystal Palace v Southampton

Fulham v Arsenal

Liverpool v Leeds United

Tottenham v Everton

West Brom v Leicester

West Ham  v Newcastle

Monday  September 14

Brighton v Chelsea

Sheffield United v Wolves

To be rescheduled

Burnley v Manchester United

Manchester City v Aston Villa

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

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Overview

Cricket World Cup League Two: Nepal, Oman, United States tri-series, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu

Fixtures
Wednesday February 5, Oman v Nepal
Thursday, February 6, Oman v United States
Saturday, February 8, United States v Nepal
Sunday, February 9, Oman v Nepal
Tuesday, February 11, Oman v United States
Wednesday, February 12, United States v Nepal

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Gothia Cup 2025

4,872 matches 

1,942 teams

116 pitches

76 nations

26 UAE teams

15 Lebanese teams

2 Kuwaiti teams

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Empty Words

By Mario Levrero  

(Coffee House Press)
 

RESULTS

6.30pm UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (TB) US$100,000 (Dirt) 1,400m

Winner Final Song, Christophe Soumillon (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).

7.05pm Handicap (TB) $135,000 (Turf) 1,000m

Winner Almanaara, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.

7.40pm Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,900m

Winner Grand Argentier, Brett Doyle, Doug Watson.

8.15pm Meydan Challenge Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 1,400m

Winner Major Partnership, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.

8.50pm Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m

Winner Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.

9.25pm Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m

Winner Universal Order, Richard Mullen, David Simcock.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.

Name: Colm McLoughlin

Country: Galway, Ireland

Job: Executive vice chairman and chief executive of Dubai Duty Free

Favourite golf course: Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club

Favourite part of Dubai: Palm Jumeirah

 

Uefa Champions League last 16 draw

Juventus v Tottenham Hotspur

Basel v Manchester City

Sevilla v  Manchester United

Porto v Liverpool

Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain

Shakhtar Donetsk v Roma

Chelsea v Barcelona

Bayern Munich v Besiktas

In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

Updated: September 28, 2024, 12:02 PM`