Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., is in Israel to help Americans flee the country, which has been decimated by violence since Saturday’s attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas.

According to former Rep. Mayra Flores, R-Texas, the Florida congressman traveled to Israel to help U.S. citizens evacuate amid the ongoing retaliation by Israel.

“My friend, Florida Representative Cory Mills, is currently on the ground in Israel, helping to evacuate American citizens who are trapped in Israel,” Flores wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “May God keep them safe as they continue their rescue efforts! @CoryMillsFL.”

In a phone interview with The Floridian, Mills said he helped get 32 Americans out, but added there are still “hundreds trapped.” The Iraq and Afghanistan combat veteran said, “Helping and showing solidarity with our Israeli brethren and helping Americans evacuate” was something he felt compelled to do.

On Wednesday, the State Department confirmed that 22 American citizens have died in Israel since Saturday’s attack. U.S. citizens are also among the hostages being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the White House said.

Republican Rep. Brian Mast, who volunteered in the Israel Defense Forces after leaving the U.S. military, told The Floridian that Mills had notified him and the other members of Florida’s congressional delegation that he would be flying to Israel.

Before being elected to Congress, Mills and a team of military contractors reportedly evacuated an American family from Afghanistan during the Biden administration’s chaotic withdrawal from the country in 2021.

Mills’ trip to the Jewish state comes as House Republicans scramble to elect a new speaker after the historic ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., from the position last week. Mills had reportedly endorsed Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, but Republican Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., secured the nomination during a test vote of the GOP conference on Wednesday.

Scalise, 58, told reporters House Republicans were “working hard to get unified.”

“We need to get unified because the world is not waiting," he said. "Obviously we still have work to do."

With their narrow majority, Republicans can only afford a handful of defections as Democrats are not expected to vote for any Republican candidate; at least four Republicans have said they would not support Scalise in a floor vote.

"It's not over yet,” Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said of the speaker’s race. “That was the inside race. Now the outside race starts.”

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