Two naval ships carrying the evacuated nationals and their families would arrive at the southern Turkish port of Mersin «in the early hours» of Thursday morning, Turkish Ambassador to Beirut Ali Barış Ulusoy told reporters.

The two ships set sail overnight for the Lebanese capital whose southern suburbs were hit overnight by fresh Israeli bombardments.

«These ships, with a capacity of around 2,000 people, will be ready to take those of our citizens who requested it from Lebanon to Mersin port,» Ulusoy said.

Türkiye, which is estimated to have 14,000 citizens registered with its consulate in Lebanon, announced the move on Tuesday because of the deteriorating security situation on the ground in Lebanon.

Images showed a crowd of people at Beirut port waiting to board the boats.

The ambassador said the two ships were also bringing «approximately 300 tonnes of humanitarian aid» to show Türkiye’s support for the Lebanese people, including tents, bedding, hygiene kits and kitchenware.