Turkish FM extends Eid greetings to Rohingya Muslims

By Tevfik Durul

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's foreign minister on Thursday shared Eid greetings with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh over a video call.

Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke to refugees receiving treatment at the Turkish Sahara Hospital in Cox's Bazar region, according to a source who asked not to be named due to restriction on speaking to the media.

He also talked with surgeon Metin Aciel and inquired about the hospital.

"Our friends, Turkish doctors, AFAD [Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency] and Turkish Red Crescent are always with you," Cavusoglu told the patients.

Twenty staff, including five doctors, work at the hospital which provides free-of-cost treatment to 1,000 people daily.

According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017.

*Writing by Burak Bir