Atrain carrying 748 tons of humanitarian aid materials departed from Turkey to reach its final destination in Afghanistan on Thursday, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.
The aid campaign is being conducted through the contributions of civil society and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) under the coordination of Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and the Turkish State Railways (TCDD), following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's instructions to send a "train of kindness" to Afghanistan carrying humanitarian aid.
Aid workers will deliver hundreds of tons of food, clothing, blankets and hygiene materials brought to the country aboard the "kindness train," consisting of 46 wagons, to those in need in Afghanistan.
Speaking at the train's flagging off ceremony in Ankara, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said: “We are the country that has provided the most aid in the last four years. However, America and Europe are richer than us. We are the children of a nation that is rich at heart and sensitive to this issue."
Also speaking at the ceremony, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoğlu said Turkey has always proven that it stands with the oppressed and those in need of kindness.
The materials will be transported on TCDD wagons through Iran and then transferred to Turkmen wagons that will continue to Torghundi, Afghanistan's border station with Turkmenistan. The total journey will take 16 days.