New Delhi: India on Wednesday announced launching “Operation Ajay” to facilitate the return from Israel of those Indians who wish to come back home as a series of brazen attacks on Israeli towns by Hamas militants over the weekend triggered fresh tensions in the region.
Israel has already mounted a massive military offensive to avenge the attacks.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who is on a visit to Sri Lanka, announced the launch of “Operation Ajay” in a post on X on Wednesday night.
The Indian embassy in Tel Aviv informed on X that it has emailed the first lot of registered Indian citizens for the special flight tomorrow. “Messages to other registered people will follow for subsequent flights”, the embassy added.
Earlier in the day, the Ministry of External Affairs announced it has set up a 24-hour control room to monitor the situation in Israel and provide information and assistance. The Indian embassy has also issued helpline numbers for the Indian nationals.
At least 2,200 people have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war which entered the fifth day. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu along with a leading opposition leader formed an emergency war-time cabinet to oversee the fight against Hamas.
Israel has unleashed an increasingly destructive bombardment in Gaza that has flattened entire city blocks and left unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris. Militants in Gaza continued to fire rockets at Israel on Wednesday, including a heavy barrage at the southern town of Ashkelon.
India has already extended its support to Israel in its fight against Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday had spoken to his Israeli counterpart Netanyahu over phone about the current situation in the Jewish country. “I thank Prime Minister @netanyahu for his phone call and providing an update on the ongoing situation. People of India stand firmly with Israel in this difficult hour. India strongly and unequivocally condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations”, Modi had posted on social media platform X.
