India has launched Operation Ajay to facilitate the return of citizens from Israel amid a full-blown war with the Hamas group in Gaza. There are 18,000 Indians in Israel.
Bharat Launches “Operation Ajay”
“Special charter flights and other arrangements are being put in place. Fully committed to the safety and well-being of our nationals abroad,” Foreign Minister S Jaishankar said in a post on X. Israel has formed an emergency government to conduct the war against Hamas, five days after the group’s fighters killed civilians in their homes and on the streets in an unprecedented assault on Israeli soil.
What is Operation Ajay? All you need to know
1. Operation Ajay is not technically an evacuation operation. It is an operation to repatriate its citizens from Israel.
2. Special chartered flights will bring back the Indians. Indian Navy ships will be deployed if the need arises.
3. Indians in Israel who wish to return will be facilitated in this operation. There are around 18,000 Indians in Israel including students, professionals and traders.
4. The first flight is on Thursday as the embassy in Tel Aviv emailed the first batch of registered Indians in Israel. “Messages to other registered people will follow for subsequent flights,” the mission said.
5. A 24-hour control room in New Delhi is monitoring the situation in Israel and Palestine. The phone numbers for the control room are 1800118797 (toll free), +91-11 23012113, +91-11-23014104, +91-11-23017905 and +919968291988, and the email ID is [email protected]. The Indian embassy’s 24-hour emergency helpline can be accessed on the numbers +972-35226748 and +972-543278392, and the email ID [email protected]
Injured Bhartiya’s
Israel’s Consul General in Mumbai Kobbi Shoshani said he had no information of any Indian national injured or killed in the ongoing fight. Actor Nushrratt Bharuccha was in Israel to attend the Haifa International Film Festival when the conflict began. The actor was safely brought back to India.
Stranded Bhartiya’s
Around 27 people from Meghalaya including Rajya Sabha member Wanweiroy Kharlukhi, were stranded in Bethlehem when the conflict broke out. The MEA arranged for their safe passage into Egypt.
Hostages Condition
Hamas also took around 150 hostages, Israel said. They include at least 14 Thais, two Mexicans and an unknown number of Americans and Germans.
Multi-front War
Israel faced the threat of a multi-front war after days of back-and-forth shelling with the Iran-backed Shiite militant group Hezbollah on the northern border with Lebanon.
Major Rescue Operation of Bharat
Operation Maitri (2015)
Operation Sankat Mochan (2016)
Operation Samudra Setu (2020)
Operation Devi Shakti (2021)
Operation Ganga (2022)
Operation Dost (2023)
Operation Kaveri (2023)
