Operation Sindhu: 570 Indians evacuated so far from war-torn Iran; MEA leading coordinated rescue effort

Indian nationals come back from Iran (Image credits: ANI)
NEW DELHI: Ministry of external affairs official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Saturday that so far 517 Indian nationals have returned to India from Iran under the initiative 'Operation Sindhu.
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In a post on X, Jaiswal confirmed that a special flight from Turkmenistan's Ashgabat arrived in New Delhi early in the morning.
"Operation Sindhu continues. A special evacuation flight from Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, landed in New Delhi at 0300 hrs on 21st June, bringing Indians from Iran home. With this, so far 517 Indian nationals from Iran have returned home under Operation Sindhu," the post read.
— MEAIndia (@MEAIndia)
As tensions between Israel and Iran continue to escalate, more Indian citizens are being brought back home under Operation Sindhu, with the Indian Embassy in Tehran and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) coordinating efforts on the ground.
Deputy chief of mission at the Iranian Embassy, Mohammad Javad Hosseini, confirmed Tehran's full cooperation with Indian authorities for the safe evacuation of Indian nationals. He added that more flights can be arranged if required, with the ongoing operations being carried out by Iranian carrier Mahan Air.
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Iran lifts airspace ban to evacuate 1,000 Indians amid conflict; 3 planes flying out with rescued citizens
"We are arranging for the safe passage of Indians who want to leave via air or via road through third countries, or directly from Iran," he said, reaffirming Iran's support in facilitating the evacuation.
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Zaffar Abbas Naqvi, one of the evacuees, described the escalating situation in Iran, saying his family initially stayed indoors after hearing about the Israeli airstrike, but later fled to Mashhad, which too came under attack.
'We then moved to Mashhad. Soon Mashhad came under attack. We then contacted the Indian government. The action was so swift that we cannot express our gratitude in words. I want to thank Modi ji and Yogi ji who made all the arrangements for us...,"
The first batch of 110 Indian students, including 90 from Kashmir and mostly from Urmia Medical University, were earlier evacuated from northern Iran to Armenia before being flown to Delhi.
The conflict, now in its ninth day, began on June 13 with Israel's massive airstrike on Iranian military and nuclear facilities, known as 'Operation Rising Lion.' In retaliation, Iran's Islamic revolutionary guard corps (IRGC) launched 'Operation True Promise 3', targeting Israeli fuel and energy infrastructure.

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