Türkiye pledges to continue humanitarian efforts amid Israeli attacks on Lebanon in region

By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) — Türkiye said Thursday that it would continue its humanitarian efforts in its region amid Israel's continued attacks on the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

"Our country will continue to extend a helping hand to the peoples of the region in the face of the humanitarian crisis created by the war Israel has spread," Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on X.

He added that Ankara would continue to take all necessary steps to protect its citizens abroad.

Turkish naval vessels have successfully evacuated the country's nationals from Lebanon, Fidan noted, adding that the ships had also delivered aid to the "brotherly Lebanese people" before departing for Türkiye's southern port of Mersin.

The operation, involving the ships TCG Bayraktar and TCG Sancaktar, comes as Lebanon faces massive Israeli airstrikes against what Tel Aviv claims are Hezbollah targets since Sept. 23. The strikes have killed at least 1,323 people, injuring over 3,700 others, and displacing more than 1.2 million people.