Nancy Mace joins veteran-led mission to bring back 155 stranded Americans out of Middle East

WASHINGTON, DC: Rep Nancy Mace said on Thursday, March 12. that her mission to help a South Carolina family stranded in the Middle East turned into a massive "full scale evacuation" of hundreds of Americans.

Mace shared on X that she returned from Israel on a flight filled with fellow Americans.

Nancy Mace leads efforts to bring stranded families home

Mace, who is currently seeking the GOP nomination for governor in South Carolina, shared the news in an early morning post on X shortly after returning from Israel.

While she initially traveled to the region to assist one specific family from her home state, she soon discovered the scale of the crisis was far larger than expected. 

She noted that the family she went to help has returned safely, but they were far from the only ones needing a way out.

“When your people are stranded in a war zone getting hit with missiles and rockets, the only answer worthy of the office – worthy of our country – is to get them out,” she said. 

The congresswoman recounted how she learned that “thousands” of people were still trapped in the Middle East after the family she initially went to help returned safely to the US.

State Department collaborates with veteran-led rescue group

To facilitate the evacuation, Mace said she worked with the State Department to help secure transportation for Grey Bull Rescue, a Florida-based, veteran-led nonprofit that specializes in extracting Americans from high-conflict zones. 

The congresswoman played a pivotal role in securing the necessary transportation after the organization identified a large group of citizens ready to leave but lacked the means to move them.

“They had the people but didn’t have the plane. I jumped in to get the plane,” Mace said, adding that Grey Bull Rescue evacuated 155 Americans, including infants, during its 808th rescue mission.

According to the organization's founder and chair, Bryan Stern, the group has rescued a total of 591 Americans from the region since the joint US Israeli operations began on February 28.

In another post, Mace reported, "There are thousands still stranded, begging for help. We were turning Americans away last night. Pregnant mothers. Babies. Students. Because the plane I was able to secure could only seat 140. We got 155 on it by putting kids on laps. And it would only go to Athens, Greece."

Grey Bull Rescue details mission while thanking State Department

In a statement detailing the conditions, the group highlighted the ongoing threat from indiscriminate strikes in the region.

“Families. Children. Babies. People who have spent weeks in bomb shelters praying for their very lives, listening to warning sirens, feeling the ground shake from impacts, and watching missiles fly overhead in an indiscriminate war zone where Iranian missiles prey on anything. This is when Grey Bull Rescue goes to work,” the group said. 

Although Stern emphasized that the organization is “absolutely apolitical,” he expressed gratitude for the support from Mace, the State Department, and the US embassies in Amman and Jerusalem.

“We watched the Consular Staffs of both embassies work tirelessly to assist Americans to the best of their ability within the confines of policy limitations,” Stern noted. “While policies may be problematic, the consular officers work day and night for Americans.”