“I never thought I would come back alive from the strife torn Yemen. I am thankful to the Indian government for arranging my safe return,” this was how Iqbal Basha Abdul Khuddus reacted after coming here on Tuesday.
Mr. Basha, a mechanical engineer, is from Aminpur Oni in Koppal town. He had been working in a construction company in Eden for the past 16 years.
As the airport and harbour in Eden were destroyed, no plane or ship could land there. Therefore, he had to reach Djibouti, 280 km away, in a boat from where he was flown to Mumbai in an Indian Air Force plane.
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“For the past 15 days, we were fear stricken owing to the air strikes and bomb explosions. In a way, we were a bit away from danger as we were in a desert, 5 km from the strife torn city, yet not safe. We had to spend several days without food and water before being evacuated,” he told presspersons.
Mr. Basha has decided to stay here permanently. “Earning will not become important at a time of crisis and when life is at risk,” he said.