Thousands of Australians are registered to leave Lebanon – but even getting to the airport could prove deadly.
There’s not much left of Melbourne woman Samar’s home in Lebanon.
She is safe, but her father is not.
“I really don’t wish this upon anyone – it’s like living a nightmare. No one can sleep. No one can work properly,” she said.
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Insiders people need to take the fights that are on offer.
“There’s a lot of planning and a lot of operations going on trying to assist in this moment but people need to take the opportunities provided to them,” he said.
“It is the reality of the situation.”
At 75, Samar’s father, an Australian citizen, isn’t risking the trip to the airport with airstrikes nearby.
“The reality is he could die. Why is our government OK with this reality?” Samar said.
More evacuation flights are scheduled.
Meanwhile, in Australia there’s a political fight over planned protests tomorrow, the anniversary of the October 7 terror attacks that reignited the conflict.
In Sydney, a memorial service was held at Rose Bay this evening.
“You can only be doing it to celebrate the loss of Jewish lives so these protests should not go ahead,” Senator James Paterson told Weekend Agenda.
Thousands of pro-Palestine protesters march in Australian cities
MP Josh Burns responded: “This is not a time for political points – this is a time for recognising the real devastation from what occurred on this day and the real consequences facing the world right now.”
Meanwhile, Nationals leader David Littleproud said: “It’s time for these people to lay down, get on with life. We want to see peace, we do, but you can’t achieve that from here.”
