ANKARA - Another 550 Canadian nationals fleeing war-torn Lebanon have arrived in Turkey, bringing to 9,700 the total number of foreigners to have been evacuated via this country, officials said Friday.
A seabus carrying 250 Canadians docked at the Mediterranean port of Mersin late Thursday, followed by a second one Friday morning with another 300 on board, the Anatolia news agency reported.
The evacuees were taken to the nearby city of Adana, from where they were scheduled to fly to Canada.
Mersin, along with Cyprus, is one of the main hubs for the evacuation of foreigners from Lebanon, hit by relentless Israeli strikes that have so far claimed 425 lives, including 354 civilians.
Canada organized the largest evacuation operation via Turkey, repatriating a total of 3,150 of its citizens, according to the Turkish foreign ministry.
Evacuees from Australia, the United States, France, Sweden, Brazil, Germany, Mexico and Moldova, among others, have also been evacuated via Turkey.
07/28/2006 08:46 GMT