Royal Caribbean evacuates 160 Americans by cruise ship from Israel: report
Rhapsody of the Seas arrives at the Mediterranean island of Cyprus
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A Royal Caribbean cruise ship carrying 160 Americans and other foreign nationals arrived at the Mediterranean island of Cyprus on Tuesday, a report says.
The Rhapsody of the Seas was met by U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus Julie Fisher after docking at dawn Tuesday morning at the island’s main port of Limassol, according to The Associated Press.
The news agency says the passengers onboard were processed by Cypriot authorities and U.S. embassy officials before being taken away by bus to temporary accommodations.
"It’s a big relief to be out of there in a safe place. No alarms, no sounds of the planes going about all the time," said Naama Kopelman, whom the AP reports has relatives in Israel believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas.
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The Rhapsody of the Seas leaves Haifa on Monday. (Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Kopelman decided to leave Israel for the sake of her daughter, it added.
Another passenger, 73-year-old Barbara Zwillick, told the AP she was escorting her granddaughter to New York City on behalf of her own daughter, who works in Israel as a nurse.
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"She doesn’t want to leave. I don’t want her to leave. But she wants her daughter out," Zwillick reportedly said.
FOX Business has reached out to Royal Caribbean for further comment. The Rhapsody of the Seas departed Monday from the northern Israeli port city of Haifa.
ROYAL CARIBBEAN HELPING AMERICANS EVACUATE ISRAEL
The Rhapsody of the Seas, carrying U.S. citizens, leaves the Israeli port of Haifa on Monday, Oct. 16. (Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
A spokesperson for the company told FOX Business on Monday that it is "actively supporting the U.S. Department of State in the assisted departure of American citizens."
Prior to the Israel-Hamas war, the Rhapsody of the Seas was set this week to make a five-day round trip cruise to Cyprus and the Greek Isles, based out of Haifa.
The State Department also says it is "facilitating charter flight transportation" for Americans out of Israel through at least this Thursday.
Israeli soldiers gather in a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip on Tuesday. (AP/Ariel Schalit)
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"Please go to Ben Gurion International Airport, Terminal 3 if you wish to depart Israel," reads a message on the State Department’s website. "U.S. Embassy personnel will be present to direct you and provide specific flight information. Be prepared to wait."