Karam, a U.S. citizen stuck in Lebanon, feels neglected by the U.S. administration while the country is under continuous Israeli bombardment-in an American-backed offensive that has killed hundreds of people and displaced over one million others, according to the United Nations. Things took a turn for the worse with the recent land incursion by Israel in southern Lebanon.
On Monday, Karam visited the U.S. embassy in Beirut to ask for assistance in leaving the violence but was told to make her own arrangements. Identifying herself only by her nickname for fear of her safety, she voiced anger that American citizens in Lebanon are being treated differently from those in Israel, who were quickly evacuated following the October 7 attack by Hamas.
On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced it would facilitate its first evacuation flight from Beirut to Istanbul, nine days into the Israeli offensive. The State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said it carried just 100 Americans – a fraction of the near 6,000 who have requested its assistance. More flights are expected, but the U.S. government plans to rely on commercial airlines as demand dictates.
Safety concerns regarding the civilian aviation sector are, however not yet over as there have been strikes by Israel in recent times close to the airport. Since September 23, all foreign airlines have stopped flying to Lebanon except MEA, which operates a limited number of flights at high prices.
Detroit Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, meanwhile, decried the U.S. government’s failed effort to serve its people abroad, citing exorbitant costs for available commercial flights. As hostilities in the war in Lebanon intensify so does the jeopardy for its 30,000-strong population of U.S. citizens, who’d like to see the kind of full-scale evacuation that was accorded Americans in Israel last year.
