New Delhi, June 26 India on Thursday expressed gratitude to the governments of Israel, Iran, Jordan, Egypt, Armenia, and Turkmenistan for their support in the evacuation efforts carried out under ongoing Operation Sindhu.
Addressing a weekly media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal detailed that, India has so far mounted 14 flights to bring back its nationals from the warzone in Iran. He noted that flights operated from Iran, Armenia and Turkmenistan and the final flight from Armenia will land in New Delhi later this evening.
Due to the closure of the Israeli airspace, Indian nationals were also taken to the bordering countries of Jordan and Egypt, from where they were flown back to India on special flights.
"We would like to thank the governments of Israel, Jordan, and Egypt for their support in Operation Sindhu. We would also like to thank the government of Iran. As you know, we made a request and they opened their airspace for us to evacuate our nationals. We are grateful to the government of Iran for this special gesture. We are also thankful to the government of Turkmenistan and Armenia for helping us evacuate our people," said Jaiswal.
India launched Operation Sindhu on June 18 to evacuate its nationals from Iran and Israel.
"We have around 10,000 members of the Indian community in Iran and around 40,000 Indian nationals in Israel. From Iran, we have so far evacuated 3,426 Indian nationals, 11 OCI card holders, nine Nepalese nationals, some Sri Lankan nationals and one Iranian national who happened to be a spouse of an Indian national," the MEA spokesperson mentioned.
"As far as Israel is concerned, we have so far evacuated 818 Indian nationals in four flights. Since the air space in Israel was closed, Indian nationals had to be taken to bordering countries of Jordan and Egypt. From both these countries they were put on special flights and brought back home," he added.
India, he said, is currently assessing the situation on the ground before taking any decision on continuation of Operation Sindhu.
"As far as Operation Sindhu is concerned, we are assessing the situation on the ground, and based on that, we will decide whether to continue with it or not. We will keep you updated in this regard. As you know, there is a ceasefire, and we have welcomed it," he remarked.
The MEA on Thursday confirmed that a total of 275 people -- 272 Indian nationals and three Nepalese -- arrived safely in New Delhi from Mashhad, Iran, earlier in the day.
"272 Indian and three Nepalese nationals were evacuated from Iran on a special flight that arrived in New Delhi from Mashhad at 00:01 hrs on 26th June. 3426 Indian nationals have been brought home from Iran as part of Operation Sindhu," Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of MEA, posted on X.
Additionally, the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday successfully evacuated 224 more Indian nationals from Israel, taking the total number of citizens brought back safely to 818, under Operation Sindhu.
Minister of State Shobha Karandlaje greeted the Indian nationals upon their arrival in New Delhi.
As 818 Indian nationals returned home from Israel as part of Operation Sindhu, the MEA reiterated that the safety and security of Indian nationals remains a top priority for the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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