First batch of US citizens leaving Israel arrive in Cyprus by boat

U.S. citizens arrive at Limassol port after their evacuation from Haifa in Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Limassol, Cyprus October 17, 2023. REUTERS

LIMASSOL, Cyprus — Dozens of U.S. citizens from Israel arrived in Cyprus early Tuesday on the first evacuation boat organized by the United States amid the escalating crisis in the Middle East.

Some 159 people were on board the luxury liner Rhapsody of the Seas which left Haifa and sailed into Limassol port in Cyprus early Tuesday.

Cypriot government official Victor Papadopoulos told Cyprus state TV more evacuation vessels were expected to arrive over the next 12 hours.

Cyprus has been used as a transit hub for foreign governments to evacuate their civilians since just after the latest outbreak of violence on Oct. 7.