Eleven Indian nationals will fly home from Karachi by a special flight in a rare show of cooperation between India and Pakistan that has arisen from the conflict in Yemen.
The 11 Indians arrived at Karachi port on Tuesday after sailing from Mokallah in Yemen, where they were rescued by Pakistani naval personnel onto the PNS Aslat.
Special plane
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif offered a special plane to transport them back to India, which was accepted by the Indian government. Last week, India evacuated three Pakistani nationals from Al Hodeidah to Djibouti as part of its rescue mission for Indians.
At least 26 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia and France, several Asian countries and nearly all SAARC countries requested and received Indian assistance to help evacuate their citizens from Yemen in the past week.
U.S. advisory
“U.S. citizens may be able to board Indian planes leaving from Sana’a to Djibouti,” announced the U.S. government’s travel advisory on Yemen, which noted that the U.S. government would not launch an evacuation effort for its citizens.
The government is now preparing to end its mammoth rescue mission, Operation Raahat, that has evacuated nearly all the 4,000 Indians and more than 230 foreign nationals stranded in the war-zone.
“We have not refused anyone,” said Minister for Overseas Indians General (Retd.) V.K. Singh, who is coordinating operations from Djibouti and Sana’a, adding: “Wherever we can help foreign nationals, we have done that.”
Tuesday was one of the most successful days for the operations, with more than 1,100 Indian citizens flown back home, on board three Air India flights and two IAF C-17 Globemasters while hundreds more boarded three Indian ships INS Mumbai, INS Tarkash and INS Sumitra from Yemen.
Three ATCs involved
“We’ve faced innumerable difficulties with the operations, having to coordinate flights with three different ATCs [Air Traffic Controllers] in Sana’a, Djibouti and Jeddah, and that too in a conflict zone. But eventually it is the teamwork that paid off.” Gen. Singh said in a telephone interview to The Hindu from Djibouti.
Violence escalates
The escalation of violence between Houthi rebels and government forces as well as Saudi airstrikes led to several flights being turned back, and a ship faced gunfire in Aden port even as it boarded passengers.
“The government is now planning the last flights from Sana’a on Wednesday,” said MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin, who in a tweet added that all those who remained and wished to be evacuated should try and take those flights.
April 1 | Navy: INS Sumitra from Aden: 348 |
April 2 | Navy: INS Sumitra from Al Hudaydah: 300+ |
April 3 | Air India: Two flights: 351 |
April 4 | Air India: Two flights: 325 Navy: INS Mumbai: 439 |
April 5 | Air India : Three flights out of Sana’a: 488 IAF : 2 flights of C-17 Globemaster: 225+229 Navy: INS Sumitra from Ash Shihr port: 203 |
April 6 | Air India : 3 flights from Sana'a: 574 IAF: C-17 with 176 Navy: INS Mumbai from Al Hudaydah: 479 |
Nations that made requests for evacuation:
1. | Bahrain |
2. | Bangladesh |
3. | Cuba |
4. | Czech Republic |
5. | Ethiopia |
6. | Egypt |
7. | France |
8. | Germany |
9. | Hungary |
10. | Iraq |
11. | Indonesia |
12. | Ireland |
13. | Lebanon |
14. | Malaysia |
15. | Maldives |
16. | Nepal |
17. | Netherlands |
18. | Philippines |
19. | Romania |
20. | Slovenia |
21. | Sri Lanka |
22. | Singapore |
23. | Sweden |
24. | Thailand |
25. | Turkey |
26. | United States |
