Turkey to send medical aid to Palestine
ANKARA
Turkey will dispatch medical supplies to Palestine to help it combat with the novel coronavirus outbreak, the presidential spokesman said on Thursday, while a second cargo plane carrying medical equipment to the United States departed from Ankara to Washington D.C.
“By the instruction of President [Recep Tayyip] Erdoğan, medical supplies including masks, overalls and test kits will be sent to Palestine [on Thursday night] for distribution in the West Bank and Gaza,” İbrahim Kalın said on Twitter on April 30.
He further expressed solidarity with Palestine, saying Turkey will continue to stand by the Palestinian people. “Keep humanity alive so that people can live,” he added.
Meanwhile, a Turkish military cargo plane carrying a second batch of medical supplies departed for the U.S. on April 30 to deliver aid to its NATO ally battling the coronavirus outbreak.
“Second part of the medical aid supplies, prepared at the direction of President Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with the aim of combatting the #COVID19 outbreak, have departed Ankara onboard the Turkish Armed Forces aircraft,” the Turkish Defense Ministry said on Twitter.
The aircraft was sent off to its destination by Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim Kıran and U.S. Ambassador to Ankara David Satterfield, along with Turkish and U.S. military personnel.
The first part of the medical aid supplies that included masks, face visors, N95 masks and overalls was sent on April 28.
The shipment included 500,000 surgical masks, 4,000 overalls, 2,000 liters of disinfectant, 1,500 goggles, 400 N95 masks and 500 face shields, according to the Turkish Presidency.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sent a letter to his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, along with the medical aid Turkey delivered.
In addition to the critical supplies whose export to the U.S. Turkey previously granted, Erdoğan recalled that Turkey also sent a cargo of medical supplies urgently needed by the American people via a Turkish Air Force aircraft on April 28.
“I hope that this humble assistance will assist your fight against this pandemic and contribute to the speedy recovery of your citizens who contracted this virus,” the president stated.
Meanwhile, a Turkish military plane carrying medical supplies departed for South Africa on April 29 to support the country’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic as it reported more than 5,300 confirmed cases. The A-400M military plane carrying supplies including masks and disinfectants departed from Kayseri Erkilet Airport, according to the Defense Ministry.
Turkey has helped 57 countries, including the UK, Spain, Italy, Britain, Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Libya and Somalia, with aims to combat the pandemic.