The KC-30 aircraft of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), provided for Operation Raízes do Cedro, to repatriate Brazilians, took off from the São Paulo Air Base, in Guarulhos (SP), at 2:12 pm (Brasília time) this Sunday (6 ), bound for Beirut, Lebanon.
The plane continues with donations of health supplies from the Brazilian government to Lebanon: 20 thousand syringes with needles and 4 thousand individual needles.
The aircraft will make a stopover in Lisbon, Portugal, before continuing its journey. This is the second repatriation flight for Brazilians since the beginning of the operation.
According to the Air Force commander, Air Lieutenant Brigadier Marcelo Kanitz Damasceno, Operation Raízes do Cedro will be ongoing with the aim of repatriating around 500 Brazilians per week. The new group of repatriates should arrive in Brazil on Tuesday (8), around 10 am.
It is estimated that 20 thousand Brazilians live in Lebanese territory. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) accounts around 3 thousand Brazilians who want to leave the countryamid the escalation of military operations by the Israeli Armed Forces.
First phase
The first 229 Brazilians repatriated arrived this Sunday morning at the São Paulo Air Base.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva welcomed the group. Shortly after disembarking, he gave a quick speech criticizing Israel’s position of “killing innocents, women and children, without any respect for human life”.
“Brazil is a generous country and does not have disputes with any country in the world because we do not want war. War only destroys. What builds is peace”, said the president.
See the arrival of the first repatriated Brazilians