Japan, China and Indonesia say they are preparing to evacuate citizens from Israel, Iran

Japan, China and Indonesia say they are preparing to help evacuate their citizens from Iran and Israel as the conflict between the two countries intensifies.

Japan says it is dispatching two military aircraft to Djibouti ahead of a possible airlifting of Japanese nationals from Iran. Defense Minister Gen Nakatani says he ordered the dispatch of two C-2 transport aircraft, along with 120 servicemembers, to the Horn of African nation where Japan has a military base. About 280 Japanese are based in Iran and 1,000 others are in Israel.

The Chinese Embassy in Israel, meanwhile, says it will organize group evacuations by bus from Israel starting Friday.

A notice posted on the embassy’s WeChat social media account says Chinese citizens will be taken out through the Taba border crossing to Egypt.

And the Indonesian government says it will evacuate its citizens from Iran. Foreign Affairs Minister Sugiono says, “Our citizens are at risk. Over the past two days, Israel’s attacks have grown more intense, not only targeting the military, but also civilians.”

About 386 Indonesians, mostly students, are in Iran, primarily in the city of Qom, he said. His ministry, meanwhile, said earlier that about 194 Indonesians are in Israel, the majority of whom are in the southern Gazan city of Rafah.