Americans Evacuate Israel Aboard Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship

A Royal Caribbean cruise ship in the Mediterranean Sea is transporting American citizens fleeing war between Israel and Hamas.

Sailing at the request of the U.S. embassy in Israel, the Rhapsody of the Seas arrived at Israel's Haifa Port on Monday morning, loaded an unknown number of passengers and departed en route to the Port of Limassol in Cyprus.

Many flights departing Israel have been canceled, leaving countless trapped inside the country as violence rages on.

"The U.S. government is assisting U.S. nationals and their immediate family members with a valid travel document to depart Haifa via sea for Cyprus on October 16, 2023," the U.S. embassy in Israel said in a recent security alert.

“Royal Caribbean Group is actively supporting the U.S. Department of State in the assisted departure of American citizens,” Royal Caribbean confirmed in a statement.

Americans began boarding the Rhapsody of the Seas at 8 a.m. on Monday on a first-come, first-serve basis. The vessel has a maximum capacity of 2,416 passengers, though it's unclear how many were taken aboard the ship.

The Royal Caribbean International-operated Rhapsody of the Seas is a 78,878 GT Vision-class cruise ship commissioned in 1997. The vessel was scheduled to be operating in the region before its voyages were canceled due to the Israel-Hamas war.