Japan will send two Self-Defense Forces airplanes to eastern Africa for a possible operation to evacuate its nationals from the Middle East, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said Thursday, amid the escalating Israel-Iran conflict.
Nakatani told reporters that two C-2 transport aircraft with a total of about 120 crew members will fly to an SDF base in Djibouti and be on standby there, following a request from Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya earlier that day.
The planes are likely to leave Japan on Saturday, sources familiar with the matter said.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani speaks to reporters at his ministry in Tokyo on June 19, 2025. (Kyodo)
“The situation in the Middle East has become more strained as Israel and Iran continue tit-for-tat attacks,” Nakatani said, while stressing that the government “is still at the preparatory stage for a possible transportation” of Japanese citizens.
The government is working to ascertain how many of the about 280 Japanese nationals in Iran and 1,000 in Israel wish to flee the countries. Ahead of the departure of the C-2s, about 10 SDF personnel left Japan for the Middle East to gather information, Nakatani said.
Later Thursday, Japan also began to evacuate nationals and their family members by bus from Tehran to neighboring Azerbaijan, and from Tel Aviv to Jordan, as major local airports have been closed, according to a Japanese government source.
Israel said Friday it has begun striking nuclear facilities and military targets in Iran, claiming that the regional archrival is getting close to acquiring a nuclear weapon. The strike has triggered retaliatory attacks from Tehran.
In the latest developments on Thursday, an Iranian missile hit a hospital in southern Israel, while Israeli forces bombed a heavy-water reactor in Arak in western Iran, according to local media reports.
Tensions have been further fueled by speculation that U.S. President Donald Trump may decide to join Israel in striking Iran.
Trump, who has demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender,” told reporters in Washington on Wednesday that he gave Tehran an “ultimate ultimatum,” while remaining ambiguous about potential U.S. military action, saying, “I may do it, I may not.”
Related coverage:
Japan mulls pulling 90 nationals, family members out of Iran by land
Japan urges all nationals in Iran to evacuate amid Israeli attacks
AloJapan.com