Lebanon on the Brink: Vietnamese Government Urges Citizens to Flee Amid Rising Tensions

In the context of the conflict continuing to escalate dangerously and at risk of expanding in the region, on September 23, the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt and Lebanon issued an urgent notice advising Vietnamese citizens living and working in Lebanon to leave the country while commercial flights are still operating.

In an urgent announcement, the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt and Lebanon also recommended that Vietnamese citizens planning to go to Lebanon should stop/cancel their trips until the situation stabilizes.

For citizens living and working in Lebanon, the Embassy emphasizes that in case of force majeure and inability to leave Lebanon, they need to be vigilant, closely monitor developments on local media, minimize gatherings in crowded places and absolutely do not go near the Lebanon-Israel border, the area south of the capital Beirut and the northern area near the border with Syria.

Smoke rises from the village of Kfar Rouman, southern Lebanon, after an Israeli airstrike on September 23. (Photo: AP)

The Embassy recommends that people seek temporary shelter in safer areas and have plans to stock up on food and medicine in case of an emergency.

The Embassy continues to monitor and keep in close contact with our people to prepare contingency plans in case of emergency situations.

The Embassy is also ready to coordinate with relevant agencies in case of need to evacuate or protect citizens from Lebanon.

In case of emergency, the Embassy recommends that you also contact the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt and Lebanon via hotline: +20 102 613 9869; Honorary Consulate of Vietnam in Lebanon: +961 70 229 300; or Citizen Protection Hotline +84 981 84 84 84.

Regarding the situation in Lebanon, on September 22, world powers urged Israel and the Hezbollah Islamic Movement in Lebanon to refrain from escalating the conflict in the context of the conflict between Israel and the Hamas Islamic Movement in the Gaza Strip that threatens to spread throughout the Middle East.

Since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel sparked a conflict between the two sides in Gaza, Hezbollah and the Israeli army have been engaged in a series of border clashes, but fears of a full-blown conflict in the region have increased this week, with both sides escalating their conflict with Israeli airstrikes killing dozens in Lebanon, including senior Hezbollah commanders. Hezbollah has also launched hundreds of rockets into Israeli territory.

On CNN, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about “the possibility of Lebanon becoming another Gaza”.

On social network X, UN special coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert warned that the Middle East region is “on the brink of an impending disaster” and that no military solution can guarantee safety for both sides.

Meanwhile, in the US, President Joe Biden said that the US is “making a strong effort” and will do everything possible to prevent a larger conflict in the Middle East region.

Also on this issue, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby stated that escalating the conflict is not in the “best interests” of Israel, a key US ally. Washington is discussing this directly with its “Israeli partners” and believes there may be time and space for a diplomatic solution.

In Egypt, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said he was very concerned about the possibility of an escalation of the conflict in the region leading to a full-scale war. Abdelatty added that the latest increase in violence between Israel and Hezbollah negatively affected the ceasefire talks in Gaza that Egypt had been brokering for months with Qatar and the United States.

Also related to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said the EU is “very concerned” about the escalation of violence, and called for an urgent ceasefire. According to Mr. Borrell, it is necessary to avoid all-out war, including renewing “strong diplomatic mediation efforts”.