An Etihad flight landing at Israel's Ben Gurion International airport in Lod, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv (file image). Photo: JACK GUEZ / AFP
The government is putting on a special flight to get New Zealanders and other eligible Pacific people out of Tel Aviv.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nanaia Mahuta said the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories remained highly volatile so any New Zealanders who can get out of the region on commercial airlines should do so.
On Saturday, Palestinian Islamic group Hamas launched an unexpected attack on Israel which saw rockets fired and gunmen cross the border.
In response, Israel began firing back. More than 1000 people have lost their lives and even more are wounded.
The initial government flight, on Etihad Airways, will depart in the coming days and arrive in Abu Dhabi, but there were a limited number of seats, she said.
"Passengers will be responsible for onwards travel from Abu Dhabi to New Zealand, including costs incurred for that leg.
"There is only a limited number of seats we can secure at any given time, so it is important that those wishing to leave, who already have commercial bookings, do not forgo those tickets for these flights because there is no guarantee a seat can be assigned."
Mahuta said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade was in direct contact with Kiwis and eligible people in the area.
"Work remains ongoing, alongside partners, on how we can support those New Zealanders having difficulty securing flights out.
"We encourage all New Zealanders in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories to register on Safetravel in order to receive the most up to date government information, and ensure all their details are accurate and up to date."
Details on how to register are on the Safe Travel website.
This picture taken on 11 October shows an aerial view of buildings destroyed by Israeli air strikes in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City. Photo: AFP / Yahya Hassouna
'Devastating' scenes in Gaza
The smell of smoke is in the air, buildings reduced to rubble and human misery.
That is the scene in Gaza Sarah Davies of the International Committee of the Red Cross is having described to her by teams on the ground.
Speaking to Checkpoint, Davies said the scenes being described to her were "just devastating".
"The human misery, buildings have been reduced to rubble, we can see things like children's toys mixing with the rubble on the ground, there's the sound of explosions, constant emergency sirens, people are huddled around generators trying to extract as much power to charge things like phone so that they can be in touch with family members for as long as possible.
"The smell of smoke is in the air, people are inhaling and tasting dust, it really is a very concerning humanitarian situation."
Davies said yesterday, Gaza's power plant was "within hours" of shutting down and there was a possibility of the hospitals losing power.
"Without electricity, hospitals really risk turning into graveyards unfortunately."
Water could not be pumped without power and wastewater could become an issue, creating the risk of disease outbreak, she said.
"We are incredibly concerned. We have teams on the ground, we have pre-positioned supplies but of course, without any supplies like food, water or aid being able to get into Gaza, it's turning into an incredibly difficult situation."
Davies said political decisions needed to be made to create solutions.
Red Cross stood ready to assist once those decisions were made, she said.
Davies said ICRC had launched an emergency appeal, and any support was appreciated.
