Grlić Radman announces evacuation of Croatian diplomats from Israel and Iran

Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman announced on Wednesday the evacuation of Croatian diplomats from Israel and Iran.

“Given that other countries are also evacuating their diplomats and representative offices from Tehran, it has been decided that we will also evacuate the ambassador and embassy staff from Tehran via secure border crossings used by other diplomats. Such an evacuation will also be carried out for the embassy, or rather, the staff from Tel Aviv,” Gordan Grlić Radman told reporters after the government session.

When asked when the evacuation from Tel Aviv would begin, he said that the ministry is in constant contact with the ambassador and staff. “You saw what happened to a colleague in a residential building where his apartment was completely destroyed. That terrible explosion occurred three meters from him. It is generally a miracle that he survived such a devastating explosion at all,” said Grlić Radman.

The Minister spoke about the Croatian consul Ivica Sertić and his wife Katica, who were slightly wounded in the first Iranian response to the Israeli attack. They were scratches and cuts. Their apartment was completely destroyed.

The Minister also emphasized that work is underway to evacuate, or repatriate, Croatian citizens from Israel and Iran.

“Given the fact that air traffic is closed or largely limited, land routes and communication via safe countries, such as Egypt and Jordan, are mainly used,” he said.

“A plane from a Slovak airline that transported five of our citizens from Egypt is landing in Bratislava today,” said Grlić Radman.

When asked about the specific numbers of Croatian citizens who are not diplomatic personnel, the minister said that there are 15 in Iran, according to data recorded at the embassy, while there are around 150 in Israel.

“There are around 150 in Israel. Some of them are dual citizens, some come forward and some don't, we can't ask them to do that due to the protection of personal data,” he continued.

Grlić Radman added that he had spoken to the ambassador in Tehran, Drago Štambuk.

“I just heard from him. He informed me about what other countries such as Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Hungary are doing, which have already decided to evacuate their diplomats. The situation is relatively stable at the moment. However, it is not known what will happen in the coming hours or days, but it is better for them to be in a safe place than to be exposed to possible threats there,” concluded Grlić Radman.

Source: HRT