DeSantis charters flights through Tampa for stranded Americans in Israel
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
More than 1,000 young tourists stranded in Israel evacuated on luxury cruise ship
Crown Iris, an Israeli cruise ship operated by Mano Maritime, arrived in Cyprus today (17 June) with approximately 1,500 program participants of Birthright Israel onboard. The ship’s 13-hour journey from Ashdod Port, south of Tel Aviv, to Larnaca, Cyprus, was escorted across the Mediterranean by the Israeli navy. The majority of these are young adults from the United States. Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis chartered four wide-body planes to fly all evacuated US participants from Cyprus port to Tampa, Florida.
More than 1,000 young adults visiting Israel on a heritage trip have been evacuated to Cyprus by luxury cruise ship amid ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran.
Crown Iris, an Israeli cruise ship operated by Mano Maritime, arrived in Cyprus today (17 June) with approximately 1,500 program participants of Birthright Israel onboard.
The ship’s 13-hour journey from Ashdod Port, south of Tel Aviv, to Larnaca, Cyprus, was escorted across the Mediterranean by the Israeli navy.
Birthright Israel, an organisation part funded by the Israeli government, is a free 10-day “heritage trip” to Israel for Jewish young adults aged between 18 and 26.
Nearly 2,800 international participants had been stranded in Israel since the country first attacked Iran’s nuclear sites and capital of Tehran on Friday morning, escalating regional tensions.
Crown Iris , an Israeli cruise ship operated by Mano Maritime, arrived in Cyprus today ( דוד שי/CC BY-SA 4.0 )
The majority of these are young adults from the United States, said the organisation.
Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis chartered four wide-body planes to fly all evacuated US participants from the Cyprus port to Tampa, Florida.
In an update on 13 June, Birthright Israel said: “All participants are safe, currently located near secure zones and shelters, and are being closely cared for by the operational teams and staff on the ground.”
According to Birthright Israel, evacuation efforts “whether by air or sea” will continue for the remaining international participants in Israel.
It said that priority had been given to participants towards the end of their 10-day educational experience.
Gidi Mark, CEO of Birthright Israel, said: “This was a complex and emotional operation, carried out under immense pressure, and we are proud to have brought 1,500 young adults safely to Cyprus. Our team continues to work around the clock to secure solutions for the remaining participants still in Israel.”
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Hundreds of young Americans on Israel birthright trips evacuated by cruise ship after surviving ballistic missile attacks by Iran
Hundreds of Americans on Israel are being evacuated from the Jewish state on a cruise ship to Cyprus. The group, which had about 2,800 participants in Israel when the conflict began, had initially evacuated the youth to start the fight. The battle for the U.S. presidential election is expected to last until the end of the year. The winner will be crowned the new president of the United States. The loser will be known as the loser of the presidential election, which will take place in November. The victor will be the winner of the race for the White House, which took place in April and May. The race is now on to decide who will win the Nobel Peace Prize and who will take the Nobel Prize for Literature. The winners will be announced on June 17, 2025. The U.N. will announce the winner on June 18, 2025 and the loser on June 19, 2025, and so on.
The Israeli navy escorted the Birthright Israel ship, with 1,500 people on board, on its ten-hour voyage Tuesday.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis chartered four jets to pick up the Americans and fly them to Tampa, where they can return home.
4 Birthright evacuees at Ashdod port on June 17, 2025. Erez Uzir, courtesy of Birthright Israel
There are nearly 2,800 people on birthright trips in Israel — the vast majority being young Americans, the nonprofit Birthright Israel said.
One New Yorker on board said that tensions were mixed over the Iranian ballistic missile strikes that cut the group’s Israeli tour short.
“Some are like me and calm while others are scared,” Jaxon Zemachson, 20, of Scarsdale, told The Post.
“For me the whole experience has made for a great story to tell my kids. I have honestly been pretty calm about the whole thing, like the Israelis,” he added.
“The first missile attack was a bit scary but from there it was much calmer.”
4 Birthright evacuees safely moved after airstrikes in Israel. Erez Uzir, courtesy of Birthright Israel
Robbie Schwartz, a 20-year-old from the Upper West Side, said he and 10 friends were left shaken after they heard one of the explosions when they were taking shelter in Israel.
“It was a ballistic missile and it shook the building,” he said with disbelief. “It was insane.
“It almost doesn’t feel real, even when I’ve seen it with my own eyes,” the college student added.
Read the latest on the conflict between Israel and Iran
“I feel so sad this is happening – it’s a beautiful country and I wanted to stay here… It’s very hard to leave,” he said of the evacuation.
Noa Bauer, Birthright Israel’s vice president of global marketing, told The Post that the cruise ship was the safest alternative to evacuate its participants following Iran’s retaliatory attack last week.
“This was a complex and emotional operation, carried out under immense pressure, and we are proud to have brought 1,500 young adults safely to Cyprus,” Birthright Israel CEO Gidi Mark said in a statement.
4 Birthright Israel program participants were evacuated to Cyprus amid Israel’s conflict with Iran. Erez Uzir, courtesy of Birthright Israel
The group, which had about 2,800 international participants in Israel when the conflict broke out, had initially evacuated the youth to protected areas.
Despite reports that the participants, many of whom are minors visiting Israel for the first time, were stranded due to the violence, Zemachson claimed that wasn’t the case as he refused to let the conflict define his trip to the Jewish state.
“I was given the opportunity to fly for free to Israel and back to the US through birthright and basically a free summer in Tel Aviv through Onward,” he said. “I had the best time.”
4 The destruction in the northern Israeli city of Tamra, on June 17, 2025. AFP via Getty Images
Melissa Rabinovich, a Staten Island mom whose 22-year-old son Ethan was on board the ship, said she was thankful for the evacuation that got the young adults to safety quickly.
“When the news alerts started coming in, it was a definite state of panic and concern,” she said. “This has been a never ending cycle since Thursday.”
After arriving in Cyprus, the American participants will be boarding four, wide-body planes bound for Florida.
Birthright Israel said it is also making travel plans for participants from all other countries.
Birthright evacuates 1,500 participants stuck in Israel due to Iran attacks — on a luxury cruise ship
The Crown Iris, a Mano Maritime luxury cruise ship, carried just over half of the 2,800 participants yet to be repatriated. Once in Cyprus, all U.S. participants will board four planes to Tampa, Fla., that were chartered by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The roughly 1,300 participants still in Israel have all been moved to hotels in areas that have been deemed “less risky,” a Birthright Israel spokesperson said. “We are asking everyone to go home. Some people are signing a waiver [to stay], but we need to make sure that they have [access to a bomb shelter],” she said.“Today we witnessed the true spirit of Birthright. Israel —not only as an educational journey, but as a global family committed to the safety and well-being of every participant.”
After five days stranded in Israel due to the conflict between Tehran and Jerusalem, approximately 1,500 Birthright Israel participants are on their way home — via a luxury cruise ship from Israel’s Ashdod port to Larnaca, Cyprus.
The Crown Iris, a Mano Maritime luxury cruise ship, carried just over half of the 2,800 participants yet to be repatriated. The majority of the participants are from the United States, according to a statement from Birthright Israel. Once in Cyprus, all U.S. participants will board four planes to Tampa, Fla., that were chartered by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis before returning to their respective cities.
Birthright Israel will also coordinate travel arrangements for international participants. Arrangements for the participants still in Israel have not yet been finalized, but all transportation costs will be covered by Birthright Israel, the organization said.
“This was a complex and emotional operation, carried out under immense pressure, and we are proud to have brought 1,500 young adults safely to Cyprus. Our team continues to work around the clock to secure solutions for the remaining participants still in Israel,” Birthright Israel’s CEO Gidi Mark said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the organization, Noa Bauer, told eJewishPhilanthropy that the organization started working “around the clock” to find a way to get its participants out of the country from Friday morning after Israel launched its strikes on Iranian nuclear and military facilities.
“It’s a lot of people, a lot of logistics, a lot of security, a lot of Israeli authorities involved,” Bauer said.
Mark led the operation on the ground in Cyprus, meeting the participants when they arrived in Larnaca and coordinating their departure, according to the statement.
“Today we witnessed the true spirit of Birthright Israel —not only as an educational journey, but as a global family committed to the safety and well-being of every participant,” said Mark.
Bauer said that Birthright Israel participants were not required to leave Israel but were encouraged to do so for their own safety.
“We are asking everyone to go home. Some people are signing a waiver [to stay], but we need to make sure that they have [access to a bomb shelter],” she said.
Bauer said that several other Israel trip providers have asked Birthright Israel for assistance in getting their participants out of the country as well, and that the organization is willing to help where it can.
“We have a lot of requests,” she said. “We are prioritizing Birthright [participants].”
The roughly 1,300 participants still in Israel have all been moved to hotels in areas that have been deemed “less risky,” Bauer said.
“We are providing everything they need — emotional support, laundry, medicine,” she said.
Birthright Israel has also brought in comedians, musicians, lecturers, people to lead meditation and other speakers to keep the participants entertained, Bauer added.
While some participants are “more stressed” by the situation, Bauer said that there is a “real sense of resilience” among many of them.
Ed. note: This story was updated with additional information about the evacuation effort.
DeSantis charters flights through Tampa for stranded Americans in Israel
Gov. Ron DeSantis chartered four jets to bring almost 1,500 Jewish Americans on a Birthright Israel trip home through Tampa International Airport. The Florida Division of Emergency Management wrote on Facebook Sunday that it is “actively coordinating efforts to assist Americans seeking evacuation from the hostile situation in Israel.”Birthright Israel said it will pay for all its participants’ transportation costs.
The American participants fled from Israel to Cyprus, an island nation in the Mediterranean Sea, via cruise ship. There, they were to board flights bound for Tampa, according to a statement from Birthright Israel, which funds trips to the country, largely for young Jewish adults.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management wrote on Facebook Sunday that it is “actively coordinating efforts to assist Americans seeking evacuation from the hostile situation in Israel.”
Birthright Israel said it will pay for all its participants’ transportation costs.
Two local nonprofits are helping rescue stranded Americans.
Sierra Dean, a spokesperson for the governor, urged other Americans stranded in Israel to fill out an emergency evacuation form from Grey Bull Rescue, a Tampa nonprofit that helps rescue citizens in conflict zones.
State Sen. Jay Collins, R-Tampa, wrote on X Sunday that he was “en route to Israel to assist the State of Florida and Grey Bull Rescue with evacuation efforts.”
Project Dynamo, another Tampa nonprofit, also has teams on the ground in Israel and Jordan to help evacuate Americans, according to Fox 13.
Ashley Pontius, a spokesperson for Grey Bull Rescue, said she’ll announce when the first flights to Tampa are scheduled to arrive later today.
In October 2023, at the start of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, DeSantis’ office said they had flown nearly 700 Americans from Israel to Florida. Then, a multi-agency resource center was established at Tampa International to coordinate state resources and nonprofit support, according to the Governor’s Office.
A spokesperson for Tampa International referred a request for comment to the Florida Department of Transportation. The department did not respond in time for publication.
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