An eight-deck cruise liner carrying more than 1,000 Americans sailed out of Beirut's port Wednesday, the first mass US evacuation from Lebanon since Israeli airstrikes started more than a week ago.

Dozens of Americans waved from the top decks of the Orient Queen as the luxury ship blew its horn. US Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman waved back from the dock below. "We expect this to go on for the next week until every American who has asked us for help to leave, gets to leave," Feltman said.

American citizens wave and look back at the city from the deck of the Orient Queen cruise ship in the port of the capital Beirut, Lebanon Wednesday, July 19, 2006. Hundreds of Americans wiped tears, hugged relatives and grumbled about delays in evacuation efforts as well as confusing directions as they boarded a luxury cruise ship on Wednesday that was to evacuate them from war-torn Lebanon to Cyprus. [AP]

Many of those aboard were relieved to depart, after complaints of slow action by the United States compared to European countries that sent cruise ships, ferries and warships over the past three days to move out thousands.

Just moments before the Orient Queen, a Greek vessel left Beirut carrying as many as 500 Europeans, ship owner ANEK Lines said. Denmark evacuated more than 4,000 of its citizens Wednesday; Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Germany and India were among nations either evacuating citizens or preparing to.

The Americans also stepped up evacuations Wednesday by military aircraft from their hilltop embassy. Four Chinook transport helicopters ferried 800 Americans from Beirut to nearby Larnaca airport in Cyprus. The Chinooks can carry twice as many people as the Sea Stallion choppers that have carries evacuees for the past three days.

Despite the increased efforts, some expressed frustration.

"I can't believe the Americans," said Danni Atiyeh, a civil engineer from Kansas City, Mo., waiting earlier Wednesday with his pregnant wife and sons, ages 6 and 10, for a bus to take them to the cruise ship. "Everybody else has gone home ... We're still here."

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