A British woman stranded in Israel said she has still not heard from the Government about chartered evacuation flights – despite registering and paying hundreds of pounds last week.
The first RAF flight set off from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on Monday afternoon carrying 63 British passengers, who landed in Cyprus and were then flown back to Birmingham Airport, where they arrived in the early hours of Tuesday.
In the days since, more Britons have made the journey home as part of the Government’s evacuation strategy.
It comes as Israeli airspace reopened on Monday after being closed for 10 days following the start of the conflict between Israel and Iran on June 13.
British-Israeli Mali Smith, 66, said she has not heard from the Foreign Office since registering for the repatriation flights on Wednesday 18 June, leading her to book a flight home to London for 600 US dollars (£439) as she “can’t bear the stress anymore”.
Mrs Smith, a solicitor born in Tel Aviv but who now lives in Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, with her husband, had arrived in Israel on 11 June to see her mother and friends.
British-Israeli Mali Smith
The mother-of-two has twice booked flights to Luton Airport, one with Wizz Air and one with Israir, which were both cancelled.
She said: “After my flights were cancelled, the Foreign Office sent many of us an email saying that they were planning on sending an RAF plane to rescue us and take us back to the UK.
“But it’s been days now and I’m still waiting for a response – even though we had to pay them £350 for the pleasure.
“They have been in touch with some Brits but many of us are still waiting and I don’t understand why they are sending such a small aeroplane with only 63 seats, while there are thousands who have applied for the flights.
“I sent them emails and I called them, but they couldn’t give me an answer – I have been in touch with my MP and she has tried hard to help some of us here, but we’ve had no success.
“It’s nerve-wracking and it’s really hard to sit around and wait for them to do something.
“Now the war has a ceasefire, so I don’t know what’s going to happen – they might cancel it all even before they have rescued us.”
Mrs Smith says that the lack of information about the flights has left those who remain in the country feeling stranded waiting for more support.
She said she had also been told that British nationals have had phone calls from the Foreign Office as late as 3am in the morning, asking them to be at the airfield just six hours later at 9am, only for their flight to be delayed until 1pm.
Mrs Smith said: “The organisation of the evacuation has not been good enough.
“I’m in Tel Aviv, right next to the Iron Dome, and the noise is really loud and scary, and it means you can’t sleep properly.
“The community has been great, they’ve been so supportive and there’s a lot of warmth from everyone.
“But the UK Government has been so slow to respond and I‘m just disappointed that it’s taken them that long and that the communication is that bad.
“I don’t know whether to book another flight and forget about the evacuation flight, and whether I can claim the money back.
“The situation has improved here with the ceasefire which seems like it’s holding, but the Foreign Office needs to be so much better.”
An FCDO spokesperson said: “The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority. The Foreign Office is working around the clock to respond to the crisis and support British nationals affected.
“The UK has organised multiple flights evacuating British nationals and their dependants from Tel Aviv, prioritising the most vulnerable.
“We have also deployed specialist staff near the borders in Jordan and in Egypt to help provide support and advice on onward travel to British nationals crossing.”
