(Update) Japan to Send SDF Aircraft to Djibouti to Evacuate Japanese

   Tokyo, June 19 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said Thursday that the government will send Air Self-Defense Force transport aircraft to Djibouti to prepare for evacuating Japanese nationals from Israel and Iran amid heightened tensions in the Middle East.
   Two ASDF C-2 transporters will be on standby at an SDF antipiracy base in the northeast African country.
   At the request of Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, Nakatani ordered the commander of the Joint Operations Command to dispatch the transporters, which will leave for Djibouti as soon as they are ready.
   "Ensuring the safety of Japanese citizens abroad is an important responsibility of the government," Nakatani said at a press conference at the Defense Ministry.
   There are approximately 1,000 Japanese living in Israel and some 280 in Iran, according to the Foreign Ministry.

(2025/06/19-17:07)