It took off from Lebanon at 1:15 pm this Wednesday (9), Brasília time, with 218 passengers and five domestic animals. There are 11 children on board.
The KC-30 aircraft is expected to arrive at the São Paulo Air Base, in Guarulhos (SP), on Thursday (10), at around 7:30 am. The plane must make a technical stop in Lisbon, Portugal, before continuing its journey to Brazil.
In addition to rescuing Brazilians and their families, the KC-30’s deployment is used by Brazil to send health supplies to Lebanon. The aircraft transported 491 kilograms of medicines, rehydration envelopes and disposable syringes.
According to the Federal Government, the country will reach the mark of 674 Brazilians and family members rescued from Lebanon, when the plane arrives in Brazil. . The embassy’s most concrete projection, according to minister Mauro Vieira, is that three thousand people will be repatriated.
The priority in composing the lists is for women, children and the elderly. The estimate is that the Brazilian community in Lebanon is 20 thousand people.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, , said in an interview with the program “Good morning, Minister” this Wednesday (9) that the operation in Lebanon has the potential to be even bigger than the one carried out last year in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, when around 1,560 Brazilians and their families, in addition to more than 50 domestic animals, were rescued.
“There is constant contact, a dialogue between the embassy and the Brazilian community. An email system, WhatsApp, brings together Brazilians in the region. There are around 20 thousand in Beirut, surrounding other cities in Lebanon and a large number expressed interest in returning”, said the minister.
