China's evacuation of citizens from Lebanon is almost over with a 143 being taken to safety by Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that evening.

The evacuees included seven compatriots from Hong Kong, a foreign ministry statement said.

With most embassy staff evacuated, eight officials in the Lebanon Chinese Embassy, including ambassador Liu Xianghua, remained behind to ensure the safety of other Chinese citizens, the statement said.

Israel has intensified its air raids on Lebanese targets since launching a massive assault on July 12 when Lebanon's Hezbollah guerillas kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed eight in cross-border attacks.

The Chinese government has been greatly concerned about the safety of Chinese citizens in Lebanon.

Closely following the development the Chinese Foreign Ministry launched the emergency response mechanism last week. The ministry also warned Chinese citizens against traveling to Lebanon.

Since last Friday the Chinese embassy in Lebanon started to evacuate citizens. Most were transported to Syria. The last group of 22 were on their way to Cyprus Thursday noon on board a Greek vessel.

Before the evacuation, Assistant Foreign Minister He Yafei talked by telephone with ambassadors from other countries informing them of the Chinese decision to evacuate and seeking cooperation from them to safeguard the security of Chinese nationals.

Thanks to the coordinating efforts of the Syrian border departments, the Chinese Embassy in Syria assisted the evacuees' settlement. The Embassy in Israel also launched its emergency response plan and issued advice warning Chinese citizens against traveling to the region.

The Chinese Embassy in Israel even arranged for Chinese citizens to leave the troubled north region of Israel.

Governments around the world have been scrambling to evacuate their nationals from Lebanon as the intense Israeli military offensive entered its ninth day in the worst fighting across the border in more than two decades.

In April and May this year China evacuated 243 and 325 Chinese nationals, including Hong Kong compatriots, from the Solomon Islands and East Timor where there was growing unrest. 

(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2006)