Turkey sends seabus to Lebanon to evacuate Australians

Turkey sent a seabus to Lebanon on Thursday to evacuate Australian citizens from the country under Israel-Hizbollah conflicts, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.

The report said that the seabus, capable of carrying 305 passengers, will dock at the Beirut port on Friday and make shuttle between Beirut and Gazimagusa port in northern Cyprus or Turkish southern port city of Mersin to evacuate 7,000 Australian citizens from Lebanon.

According to the report, the seabus can make two trips a day if the evacuees are brought to northern Cyprus, and only one voyage if they are taken to Mersin.

The seabus service is scheduled to continue for three days. But it may continue if more people are to be evacuated from Lebanon.

The Turkish authorities decided to send the seabus, owned by the Kocaeli Municipality, to Lebanon after Australia asked for Ankara help to evacuate its citizens who are stranded in Lebanon.

On the other hand, a 450-passenger capacity ferryboat will get Turkish citizens out of Lebanon on Monday.

Meanwhile, 280 Swedish citizens have arrived in Mersin on Thursday after being evacuated from Beirut by another seabus and they will fly to Stockholm by a charter plane, according to Anatolia.

Source: Xinhua