New Delhi: The first chartered flight evacuating Indian nationals out of strife-torn Israel reached Delhi at 6 am on Friday. Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar received the passengers at the airport. There were seven Malayalis among the 212 Indian citizens who returned home from Israel.
Named 'Operation Ajay', the first flight left Thursday evening from the Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv carrying 211 adults and an infant living in the war-battered region. The passengers were chosen on a "first come first serve" basis after a drive launched by the Indian embassy for all Indians to register at the mission's database. The government is bearing the cost of their return.
The flight, which took off at 10.14 pm (IST), was arranged to facilitate the return of those who were unable to do so because Air India had immediately suspended its flight on the day fighting began on October 7, and its commercial operation remains suspended till now.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said around 18,000 Indians are currently residing in Israel while about a dozen odd people are in the West Bank and three to four in Gaza. He further said if necessary, a special plane of the Indian Air Force would be deployed in Israel to evacuate Indian nationals. As per reports, Air India might operate more chartered flights to bring back people from Israel, depending on the requirement.
Meanwhile, Sheeja Nandan, a Malayali caregiver in Israel who sustained injuries in Hamas' rocket missile attack, is in stable condition. The embassy is monitoring her situation. Bagchi said there are no reports of other Indian nationals being attacked in the war.
A 24-hour control room has been started at the Kerala House in Delhi to assist Malayalis returning from Israel. Contact: 011 23747079.
Kerala House Resident Commissioner Saurabh Jain informed that a help desk will be arranged at the Delhi International Airport.
Hamas' assault on October 7 killed more than 1,300 people in Israel, including 247 soldiers, a toll unseen in Israel for decades, and the ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed more than 1,530 people in Gaza, according to authorities on both sides. Israel says roughly 1,500 Hamas militants were killed inside Israel, and that hundreds of the dead in Gaza are Hamas members. Thousands have been wounded on both sides.