Thousands of Aussies stranded in Beirut

Washington Times, DC
July 15 2006

Some 25,000 Australian tourists are reported trapped in Lebanon in
the fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants.

The Age newspaper said some people had managed to cross to Syria
to fly home from there, despite the bombing of the Beirut-Damascus
highway by Israeli warplanes. But others remained trapped in and
around the Lebanese capital, including 43 performers of an Armenian
dance troupe based in Sydney.

Roland Jabbour, chairman of the Australian-Arabic Council, was
reportedly stuck in a Beirut hotel with his family after Israeli jets
bombed the runway of the international airport.

The Department of Foreign Affairs in Canberra said the situation was
being reviewed constantly and Australia had no immediate plans for
evacuation, The Age said.