Turkmenistan facilitates safe transit for people evacuating from Iran
Turkmenistan has been actively facilitating the safe evacuation of foreign nationals from neighboring Iran, as air travel across the Middle East remains restricted.
To ensure uninterrupted transit through the country, Turkmen authorities have opened a 24-hour humanitarian corridor.
So far, about 290 people from 16 countries have crossed the border, according to data released by authorities, while another 500 people are expected to be evacuated via the corridor.
A key spot along the evacuation route is a hotel in the country's capital Ashgabat. The hotel, with a capacity accommodating up to hundreds of guests, serves as the first stop and a transit station for those crossing the border to work out their next travel routes, while providing them with food, immediate communication services, access to their diplomatic missions, as well as translation service.
For many evacuees, the journey fleeing from Iran has been long and tense.
"We spent 10 hours driving from Tehran to Nishapur, and today we spent another three hours to reach the border. I am very grateful to the embassy for its help. We crossed the border today, and this afternoon we are already flying back home. The journey was relatively smooth, but inside Tehran there were terrible traffic jams. Everyone was trying to get out of the city, so we had to take detours. Instead of the usual six hours, we spent almost 11 hours on the road," said Liu Xiao, a Chinese student studying at the Tehran University.
"We came from Iran. At the border they were friends, they act friendly with us. And they, you know, escorted us from the border to here.Very nice people," said Kheravi Talemi Sayed Farzin, a Canadian national.
The southeastern city of Serakhs has become a main hub for Turkmenistan's evacuation mission.
To accelerate procedures, local authorities have opened four additional checkpoints. At the Farap crossing, a special regime is in place for Uzbek and Tajik citizens, who are returning home via a dedicated railway linking Ashgabat and Turkmenabat.
Despite heavier traffic, officials said all international border posts along Turkmenistan's frontier continue to operate normally.
