Operation Sindhu: Over 800 Indians Safely Evacuated from Iran Amid Rising Tensions

Successful Evacuation of Indian Nationals

New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced that over 800 Indian citizens have returned from Iran as part of Operation Sindhu, which was initiated to ensure their safety amid escalating military tensions with Israel.

The MEA provided updates regarding the evacuation through a series of posts on social media.

On Friday night and early Saturday morning, additional Indian nationals, including students, arrived in Delhi after being evacuated from Iran.

Operation Sindhu was officially launched on Wednesday to facilitate the return of Indian nationals.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal tweeted, "#OperationSindhu flight brings citizens home. India evacuated 290 Indian nationals from Iran, including students and religious pilgrims by a charter flight. The flight arrived in New Delhi at 2330 hrs on 20 June and was received by Secretary (CPV & OIA) Arun Chatterjee."

He also expressed gratitude to the Iranian government for their assistance in the evacuation process.

In another update, Jaiswal mentioned that a special evacuation flight from Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, landed in New Delhi at 0300 hrs on 21st June, bringing the total number of evacuees from Iran to 517.

The first group of 110 Indian nationals evacuated from Iran arrived in India on Thursday, with many sharing their harrowing experiences before reaching safer areas.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh welcomed the evacuees at the Delhi airport after their challenging journey.

Later that evening, Jaiswal announced the arrival of another evacuation flight from Mashhad, which brought 310 more Indian nationals back to New Delhi, raising the total to 827.

Additionally, the Indian embassy in Iran stated that, at the request of the governments of Nepal and Sri Lanka, their evacuation efforts would also assist citizens from those countries.