India has evacuated nearly 3,000 of its nationals from Iran and Israel as part of Operation Sindhu, a massive evacuation exercise started last week with rising tensions in West Asia. The Indian Air Force (IAF) employed C-17 heavy transport planes and chartered aircraft to transport Indians stranded in war-torn areas through neighboring nations.
Evacuation From Israel Through Jordan and Egypt
More than 600 Indians who had been evacuated from Israel to Egypt and Jordan by road were evacuated by India by Tuesday morning under Operation Sindhu. The initial batch of 161 Indians who crossed into Jordan was brought to New Delhi at 8:20 am on a chartered flight from Amman. They were welcomed by Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed on social media.
The Indian Air Force flew back another 165 Indians from Jordan to New Delhi in a C-17 aircraft, which landed at 8:45 am. Minister of State L Murugan received them at the airport.
Officials added that the Indian Air Force evacuated another group of nearly 300 Indians from Sharm-el-Sheikh after they entered Egypt through the Taba land border.
Flights out of Jordan were delayed as regional nations closed airspace in response to Iran’s late Monday missile attacks.
Evacuation Operations Out of Iran Ongoing
Indians evacuating out of Iran also went on unabated Tuesday, with 292 nationals evacuated from Mashhad to New Delhi at 3:30 am on a chartered plane. India has thus evacuated 2,295 nationals out of Iran since last week.
India had previously instructed its citizens in Israel to go to Jordan or Egypt by road for evacuation. In Iran, the trip started by road to Armenia and then flights from Mashhad once Iranian authorities opened airspace restrictions as a gesture of goodwill.
As per the Indian embassy in Tehran, all 10,000 Indians in Iran, such as students and pilgrims, would be evacuated. Israel itself has over 32,000 Indians, who are primarily caregivers and construction workers.