‘Bring them home for Pesach’: Pressure mounts to evacuate Britons stranded in Israel

Senior Conservative and Jewish community leaders have demanded urgent government action to help British nationals stranded in Israel, warning families risk being unable to return home in time for Pesach.

In a letter to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, shadow home secretary Chris Philp and shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel said: “As you know, there are still British nationals in Israel seeking to return to the UK.”

They questioned whether ministers had properly assessed the scale of the issue, asking: “Has the Government assessed the number of British Nationals in Israel who want to come home and whether the commercial flight capacity at Ben Gurion Airport is sufficient to meet demand?”

They also pressed the government on why it had not facilitated return flights, adding: “Are there specific reasons why the UK is not facilitating flights from Israel to the UK, such as those organised for British nationals in Oman?”

Highlighting international comparisons, they wrote: “The US is also working with El Al Airlines to arrange flights for American citizens to return home. Is the British Government exploring similar schemes with airlines?”

And on alternative routes, they asked whether the UK was considering coordinated, government-supported travel out of Israel – noting that “the US is assisting its nationals to travel by land to Jordan so they can fly home” – rather than the current UK guidance, which leaves individuals to make their own way out.

At the same time, the Jewish Conservative Alliance (JCA) urged Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch to press the government to act, warning that British Jews remain stranded with no safe or viable way out.

“We have received several approaches from families and community members regarding a number of British nationals – including families, yeshiva students and seminary girls – who are currently stranded in Israel and unable to return to the United Kingdom,” the letter said.

It warned that current guidance to leave via neighbouring countries was not practical or safe, adding: “The current advice from the FCDO… is for people to make their own way back to the UK through Egypt and Jordan. However… there have been security and safety issues on these routes, and as such, the community have been advised not to take those routes.”

The JCA added: “Whilst the UK Government has facilitated repatriation flights from Dubai, no equivalent provision appears to exist for British nationals seeking to return from Israel… and we are anxious that this oversight be urgently rectified.”

The political pressure comes as families told Jewish News they are weighing risky alternatives to try and get home before Pesach.

Rabbi Yitzy David, who runs UK organisation Chazak’s Israel gap-year programme, said the vast majority of his 26 British students now want to return to the UK, but remain stuck.

“Everyone’s running on lack of sleep,” he said. “There’s very little programming… You can’t really do anything outdoors… a lot of the time they’re just stuck… running between sirens.”

He said parents were now being pushed towards unsafe decisions.

“It’s crazy that British kids in a country, which is ultimately a war zone, are left with no options other than trying to smuggle themselves through Arab countries in a time of war,” he said. “And there’s no other option – it’s mental.”

He added: “At a minimum, there should be another level of advice and guidance… I don’t see why there can’t be flights as there have been from any other war zone in the world.”

“The sad reality of a British Jewish citizen in 2026 has become that the last place you can turn for help is your own government.”

One father, who asked not to be named, said his 18-year-old son, who is studying at yeshiva in Jerusalem, has spent weeks trying to get home after multiple flights were cancelled.

He said his son was initially booked on a British Airways flight, followed by an El Al flight to London, and then a route via Larnaca – all of which were cancelled. A further planned journey via Taba, involving a coach transfer out of Israel, has also been repeatedly delayed.

After contacting the British Embassy, he said his son was told: “The advice they gave him was just to check the flights and try and book a ticket… there are no tickets, there are no flights.”

“For all purposes, the English government are leaving their citizens stranded in a war zone,” he added. “That’s what it looks like, that’s what it is.”

He said routes through Egypt had been ruled out due to safety concerns.

“There were options of going via Egypt… which he was a bit nervous to do, and the yeshiva was very strong against that,” he said.

The father added that concerns escalated after a strike landed near the Old City of Jerusalem, close to where his son is based.

“I think from then, he’s more scared because his little patch is being threatened as well.”

Another Briton in Israel, Natan, who is in the country on a student visa, said he and his wife are trying to return with their two young children after their flight was pushed back to the eve of the festival.

“We were meant to arrive home yesterday,” he said.

Describing the impact, he said: “We packed… told the kids… thinking they were going to fly, but by the time they woke up the next morning the plans had changed”.

He said overland routes were not realistic for families.

“As a small family with children, I don’t think it’s realistic for us to be doing these marathon travelling journeys,” he said, warning of long journeys, border crossings and safety risks.

He added: “The price gouging has got out of control.”

Comparing the UK response with other countries, he said: “All my American friends seem to have made it home.”

For families still waiting, frustration is turning into anger as Pesach approaches, with many still unsure if – or how – they will make it back.