Kochi: A group of Malayali pilgrims who were stuck in Israel after Hamas attacked the country have returned safely to Kerala. They have thanked the Indian embassy for its prompt intervention in helping them escape the war zone.

The group of Malayalis had set out for the pilgrimage from Kochi on October 3. After visiting Jordan and Palestine, they reached Israel and visited holy places there. The war between Hamas and Israel broke out when they were going to Egypt.

“If our return journey was postponed even by a day, we would have been trapped in the war zone. Anyway, we are home now," said Moulavi, a native of Aluva. Moulavi and his wife were part of a 45-member group from Kerala that went to Israel on a pilgrimage.

The group of pilgrims reached the Nedumbassery Airport here Thursday morning. Moulavi and his wife said they did not initially understand the seriousness of the situation, but fear and anxiety gripped them after they heard the sounds of missiles and saw the tense atmosphere around them. Their return was scheduled for October 7, and everyone in the group was happy and excited to go back home after the tour.

"Then, suddenly, we received information about the Hamas attack. When we started the journey, we had to stop midway and stay at the same place the whole day. Those hours were filled with fear and uncertainty," he recalled.

The thought that they were getting isolated in a foreign country and no one could do anything immediately for their rescue made them tense, he said. "But, we could restart our journey the next morning itself. Our group could enter Egypt via the Taba border. We were relieved when we crossed the borders of Israel," Moulavi said. When asked whether they were witnesses to any war horrors in the West Asian country, he said they could see missile strikes kilometres away.

Moulavi expressed heartfelt gratitude to all who supported and prayed for their safe return. He singled out the Indian Embassy officials, whose prompt response in the wake of the conflict was instrumental in their eventual return, saying," they rushed to our hotel within hours after the war broke out." In the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israeli defence forces, thousands have died so far.
(with PTI inputs)