TOKYO: The Japanese government is planning to help South Korean nationals evacuate from Israel on board Self-Defense Forces aircraft, a government source said Thursday.

In order to prepare for a possible evacuation of Japanese nationals from Israel amid its conflict with Palestinian militant group Hamas, Japan has sent a total of three SDF aircraft to be on standby in Jordan, which neighbors Israel, and Djibouti in eastern Africa, where an SDF base is located.

Japan expects to start transporting its citizens from Israel as early as this week.

“We are asking other countries whether they need help, expecting that vacant seats may remain,” Chief Cabinet Secretary MATSUNO Hirokazu told a press conference.

“The local situation is getting increasingly tense,” he said. “We’ll take all possible measures to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals while monitoring the situation.”

Last week, a total of 51 Japanese nationals flew out of Israel on board a military transport aircraft South Korea sent to evacuate its own citizens.

Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio told his government to offer Seoul a help in evacuating South Korean nationals on the SDF aircraft, the government source said.

“South Korea has helped us,” the source said. “We’ll provide available seats if any.”

JIJI Press