Skopje, 19 April 2024 (MIA) – There are no new requests for possible evacuation of our citizens in Israel and the Middle East region, Foreign Minister Bujar Osmani said Friday.

“At present, we haven’t received any new requests for evacuation. We’re closely monitoring the situation. This morning, I spoke again with our ambassador in Israel. There were reports of Israel allegedly attacking Iran overnight, but they’re yet to be confirmed, so I’m not able to provide any information on that matter. However, these are details from this morning’s conversation with our ambassador. Nonetheless, we haven’t received any requests for evacuation, neither through SOS line nor through our embassy,” Osmani told reporters after his address at the Chamber of Commerce of North Macedonia as part of his presidential election activities.

He underlined that today the USA has advised its citizens not to leave Tel Aviv and certain areas of Israel due to potential attacks. He announced that Ministry of Foreign Affairs will issue caution message to our nationals there.

“Throughout the day, we will also inform our nationals, although we are constantly in communication with those who are there,” Osmani said.

The US Embassy in Israel today instructed its employees and their families to restrict their movements following reports that Israel conducted retaliatory strikes on targets in Iran.

Following Iran’s attack on Israel on Saturday, the Foreign Ministry set up a crisis HQ with the primary task of extracting Macedonian nationals from Israel and the broader Middle East region if necessary.

At the start of the week, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that only one Macedonian national has requested evacuation from Israel in response to the Ministry’s call to nationals currently located in Israel and the broader Middle East region.

It is estimated that around 50 Macedonian nationals are currently in Israel. The crisis HQ does not have a specific number of Macedonian nationals in the neighbouring countries, and the only way to obtain this information is through their registration at our embassies. Besides the Tel Aviv-based embassy, Macedonian nationals can also turn to the embassies in Cairo, Abu Dhabi and Doha.

All nationals located in the region can contact the country’s Embassy in Tel Aviv (+972 549 267 378) and the MFA SOS lines (075 273 732 and 075 268 376) for the purpose of making preparations for a possible evacuation.

Photo: MIA archive