New Delhi: As US and Israel’s war against Iran enters the fourth week, other countries continue to suffer collateral damage. India is no exception.
In the latest casualty, an Indian national was killed in Saudi Arabia’s capital city Riyadh.
Aseem Mahajan, additional secretary (Gulf), said on Friday that the ministry received the confirmation of the death late on Thursday night.
A total of six Indian nationals have lost their lives so far during the ongoing conflict in the Gulf region, while one person is still missing.
“We send deepest condolences to the family and our mission in Riyadh is in touch with the authorities and closely monitoring the return of his mortals to India,” Mahajan said during the interministerial briefing.
“Our missions in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iraq, and the UAE are in regular touch with the concerned authorities regarding the missing Indian national and for the early repatriation of mortal remains of the deceased Indian nationals to India,” Mahajan informed.
Fifteen Indian crew members of oil tanker MT Safesea Vishnu were safely rescued in Iraq, and are expected to return on Friday via Saudi Arabia route.
Twenty-four Indian mariners, 16 from MD MKD Vyom and 8 from MT Skylight, have already arrived in India from Oman.
The flight situation in West Asia is gradually improving. Around 300,000 passengers have returned to India from the Middle East since the war broke out on February 28.
“From the UAE, airlines continue to operate limited non-scheduled flights based on operational and safety considerations. Today again, around 90 flights are expected to operate from various airports in the UAE to India,” said Mahajan.
