TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese traveler who recently escaped Iran amid its escalating conflict with Israel described hearing explosions and witnessing panicked crowds as she made her way to safety in Turkey.
Kang Cheng-hsuan (康承暄), who was previously stranded in Iran, has crossed into Turkey by land and is expected to transfer via Thailand on her return to Taiwan. In an interview with CNA, Kang said she left the southern Iranian city of Isfahan on Sunday and traveled to Turkey via Tehran by bus.
She recalled a tense atmosphere upon arriving in the capital, with crowds of more than 3,000 people rushing to flee the city. Kang said that as soon as she got off the bus, she heard a series of explosions, adding the locals said such sounds had become common even during the day.
At that time, a loud blast could be heard about a kilometer away, triggering screams from the panicked crowd. “Thick smoke could be seen rising in the distance," Kang said.
Despite the stressful circumstances, Kang said she remained calm. “Because the locals were still living their lives as usual, and there were media reports that the attacks were mainly targeted at government agencies,” she said.
Traffic in Tehran was severely disrupted. A 100-kilometer trip that normally takes two to three hours stretched to nearly eight.
Kang said bus tickets were hard to come by, and it took her four hours to secure one heading northwest. While waiting at the station, she estimated thousands of people were coming and going.
She crossed the border into Turkey around 11 p.m. on Monday. She then took another bus to Istanbul, a journey that lasted about two days.
Kang said restricted internet access in Iran was further disrupted by the conflict, making it difficult for her family and friends to contact her, causing them great anxiety. She also encountered two military checkpoints while traveling through Turkey to Istanbul.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday that since Sunday, three groups totaling 20 Taiwanese nationals had crossed into Jordan via the Israeli border, while another three citizens had reached Turkey by land. The ministry again urged Taiwanese citizens to avoid travel to Israel and Iran for their safety.
