The first of three chartered chartered evacuation flight carrying Indian students from conflict-hit Iran landed safely in New Delhi late Friday night, as part of India’s Operation Sindhu rescue effort. The flight, operated by Mahan Air, touched down at around 11.40 pm with 290 Indian nationals, most of them students from Jammu and Kashmir, onboard.Operation Sindhu was launched earlier this week to evacuate around 1,000 Indian citizens stranded in Iran amid intensifying hostilities between Iran and Israel. The Indian Embassy in Tehran, in coordination with the Iranian government, facilitated the relocation of students from Tehran to safer cities such as Qom and Mashhad, from where they are being flown back to India.Two more evacuation flights are scheduled for Saturday, one from Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in the morning, and another from Mashhad in the evening. A senior Iranian diplomat indicated that additional flights may be organised over the weekend if necessary.Similarly, a separate batch of 110 Indian nationals who were moved to Armenia from Tehran reached Delhi on Thursday on a flight from Yerevan.Earlier, Mohammad Javad Hosseini, deputy chief of mission at the Iranian Embassy in Delhi, said during a media briefing, “We consider Indians as our own people. Iran’s airspace is closed, but because of this issue, we are making arrangements to open it for the safe passage of Indian nationals.” He had also confirmed that the Iranian foreign ministry is working closely with India’s external affairs ministry to ensure the evacuation proceeds smoothly.None of the chartered flights are operating through Pakistani airspace due to prevailing geopolitical sensitivities.The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, which has been in close contact with many of the evacuees, issued a statement following the arrival of the first flight: “Mahan Air evacuation flight from Mashhad, Iran, carrying 290 students, the majority of whom are from Kashmir, has landed safely in New Delhi just now. Heartfelt thanks to the Government of India, Ministry of External Affairs, and all concerned authorities for their timely intervention and support. A great relief for families who had been anxiously awaiting their return.”
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