Nearly 200 French citizens arrived in France from Israel on Monday as French officials stepped up efforts to evacuate people from the Middle East following the decision of the American President Donald Trump to deploy his war planes against nuclear facilities in Iran.
One hundred and 60 people, described as in emergency situations and vulnerable, landed at Orly airport just outside Paris accompanied by medics from the CDCS - a special crisis unit set up by the French foreign affairs ministry.
They were on board an Airbus A320 operated by the German company LEAV.
France's foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, who was at Orly airport to welcome the plane load, hailed the efforts of the repatriation units on social media.
"Thank you to our teams who are working around the clock," said Barrot. "France stands by all its citizens" .
France has 250,000 nationals in Israel, 100,000 of whom are registered on consular lists.
Since Israel launched its attack on Iran last week, the CDCS has reported more than 4,500 calls seeking advice and assistance.
Macron reiterates call for resumption of diplomacy to stop Middle East conflict
On Monday, a commercial flight operated by Royal Jordanian from Amman at France's request, is expected to arrive with 150 French nationals. On Tuesday, another flight chartered by France's foreign ministry, will enable more than 150 vulnerable nationals to return to France.
Iran and Israel traded fire on Monday as Iranian leaders vowed to hit back against Trump's decision to send American bombers into Iran.
Retaliation
Iran's armed forces threatened to inflict "serious, unpredictable consequences" on the US in retaliation for Trump's move against sites in Isfahan, Natanz and the underground uranium enrichment facility at Fordo.
"This hostile act ... will widen the scope of legitimate targets of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran and pave the way for the extension of war in the region," said armed forces spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari on state television.
Governments scramble to evacuate their citizens from Israel and Iran
The Israeli military said it had struck missile sites in western Iran as well as six Iranian regime airports across the country, destroying fighter jets and helicopters.
In Israel, sirens wailed across the country for more than 30 minutes as the military warned of multiple missile barrages launched from Iran and said there were reports of fallen projectiles.
