India Evacuates Over 1000 Students From Iran Amid Israeli Airstrikes

Hundreds of Indian students have been evacuated from Iran where Israeli air strikes have begun afresh on Saturday morning, June 21. Termed as “Operation Sindhu,” India’s evacuation efforts were aided by Iranian authorities temporarily lifting their airspace ban to allow charter flights to depart, the Indian government said.

Iran had lifted its air space ban on Friday to let out three chartered flights carrying over 1000 Indians, students from cities such as Mashhad and Tehran. The initial flight, carrying 110 students—most of them from Urmia Medical University in north‑west Iran—landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport early on Thursday. The Jammu & Kashmir Students confirmed that 290 more students landed in New Delhi on Friday night at 11:30am. 

“The Mahan Air flight carrying 290 students landed in Delhi at 11:30 PM last night. Among them, 190 students were from Kashmir. It brought a sigh of relief to many anxious parents,” said the Association. 

The students who were evacuated said they had a harrowing experience with being caught over missile and drone strikes. Tamheed Islam, a student on the flight, said he had seen missiles overhead and felt unsafe in areas beyond the university campus, reported PTI. Another evacuee reported a missile landing near their bus en route to Armenia, reported NDTV. 

 “The Indian embassy and Ministry of External Affairs were very good,” said the students when asked about their experience.

The evacuation is a result of escalating hostilities between Iran and Israel following the Jewish State’s June 13 air strike on the Islamic Republic. India had earlier issued advisories urging students to relocate to safer areas such as Qom and Mashhad, and facilitated overland travel to Armenia for those without transport 

Dozens of countries—including Bulgaria, China, France, Germany, Japan and the United States—are evacuating citizens from Iran and Israel amid the conflict