Turkey’s navy evacuates its citizens from Beirut

Turkey’s navy started evacuating more than 2,000 Turkish citizens and some foreign nationals from Beirut on Wednesday night as Israeli airstrikes targeted Hezbollah.

The evacuees boarded Turkish military ships, including the TCG Bayraktar and TCG Sancaktar, which had arrived to deliver humanitarian aid. The two ships were part of a six-vessel convoy that left Mersin, Turkey, earlier in the day, bringing 300 tons of supplies, including food, hygiene kits, kitchenware, tents and beds.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel on October 8, 2023, a day after Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. Hezbollah claims its actions are meant to support Palestinians, while Israel’s response has intensified, leading to full-scale warfare.

The ongoing conflict has resulted in the deaths of more than 1,300 people in Lebanon, with more than a million displaced since mid-September.

Earlier Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized Israel during a parliamentary session, declaring that Turkey “has more than enough power to thwart expansionist ambitions” of Israel and doubling down on his claims that Israel would target Turkey after Gaza and Lebanon.

Turkish Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Baris Ulusoy underscored the mission’s dual purpose of providing aid to Lebanon and ensuring the safety of Turkish citizens in a difficult situation.

“We are carrying out an operation today with two aims: to provide humanitarian aid to our Lebanese brothers and to ensure the safe return of our citizens who are in a difficult situation,” Ulusoy said.

Newsweek has reached out to the Turkish Embassy in Beirut for comment via email.

Zehra Cibbin, 46, an ethnic Arab from Mardin in southeastern Turkey, fled with her children after a bombing near her home.

“It’s indescribable,” she said. “They bombed the street below our house. From that moment on, it was over for me. I said I didn’t want to stay in Beirut anymore.”

Cibbin said they decided to leave Beirut out of fear for their lives, putting no thought into what will happen when they arrive in Turkey. She spoke to The Associated Press before getting in line to board the TCG Bayraktar amphibious landing vessel.

Abir Gokcimen, another Turkish citizen, said she left her extended family behind and hoped to return once the danger passed.

The journey to Mersin is expected to take about 10 hours. Turkey’s government is prepared to carry out additional sea evacuations if needed and is considering organizing charter flights to repatriate more citizens.

In addition to Turkish nationals, citizens from Bulgaria, Romania and Kazakhstan also prepared to evacuate.

While exact numbers weren’t provided, many boarded the ships as Turkish soldiers conducted security checks, including luggage inspections by metal detectors and drug-sniffing dogs.

This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.