Taipei: Taiwan’s government has facilitated the departure of 14 Taiwanese citizens from Israel via land routes after the country’s airspace was closed to civilian flights due to escalating tensions with Iran. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) announced that these citizens reached Jordan early Sunday through transportation arranged by Taiwan’s representative office in Israel.

According to Focus Taiwan, Taiwan’s representative office in Jordan is currently working to assist these nationals in returning home. MOFA has also expressed its commitment to support nine Taiwanese citizens who remain in Iran, ready to assist should they wish to leave the region.

MOFA raised its travel alert for Israel to orange on Friday, advising Taiwanese nationals to avoid travel to the country unless necessary. Concurrently, the alert for Iran was elevated to the highest red level, urging Taiwanese citizens in Iran to depart immediately. The four-tier travel alert system ranges from gray as the lowest to red as the highest.

These travel advisories follow Israel’s recent airstrike targeting Iran’s nuclear program, resulting in significant casualties and injuries over the past two days, as reported by Al Jazeera. Iran’s retaliatory actions have further heightened tensions between the two nations.