TEHRAN — Hundreds of Chinese workers, students and tourists have fled or been evacuated from Iran to neighboring countries as the conflict with Israel spirals.

Masa Li, a 24-year-old Chinese citizen who has lived and worked in Tehran for the past few years, fled the city on Monday after three days of bombing.

“At night, we took turns keeping watch. There were explosions every night, lasting until two or three o’clock in the morning,” she said, adding that she saw several strikes hitting the city from where she lived.

On the final day, Li decided to flee with nine colleagues and friends. It took them more than 30 hours to reach a border crossing in Armenia — a drive stalled by repeated car breakdowns and frequent stops for questioning and phone checks by police and military officers.

“I didn’t expect this to really happen,” Li told CNN from the Armenian capital of Yerevan. “There were two minor flare-ups last year, but I didn’t expect things to escalate so quickly this time.”

Many Chinese in Iran work for Chinese companies that have invested in the oil-rich country. China has for years been Iran’s largest trading partner and the biggest buyer of Iranian oil. The Middle Eastern nation is an enthusiastic supporter of Beijing’s “Belt and Road Initiative,” a global infrastructure and investment drive.

The Chinese Embassy started evacuating Chinese citizens from Tehran on Tuesday, according to state media.

China’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday that more than 1,600 Chinese nationals had been relocated from Iran, while several hundred Chinese citizens had been evacuated from Israel.

China, a key diplomatic and economic backer of Iran, has condemned Israel for violating Iran’s sovereignty and escalating tensions in the Middle East by launching the attack. It has urged both sides to de-escalate tensions and offered to play a “constructive role” in resolving the conflict. — CNN