The Ministry of External Affairs has said that over 75 Indians stranded in strife-torn Syria have been evacuated. The move comes as the security situation in the country worsened after the rebel forces led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham wrested power, toppling Bashar al-Assad's regime.
The evacuation, coordinated by the embassies of India in Damascus and Beirut, was put into effect following an assessment of the security situation, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.
"The Government of India today evacuated 75 Indian nationals from Syria, following recent developments in that country," it said in a late-night statement. "The evacuees included 44 'zaireen' from Jammu and Kashmir who were stranded at Saida Zainab. All Indian nationals have safely crossed over to Lebanon and will return by available commercial flights to India," it said.
All 75 Indian nationals evacuated from Syria including 44 ‘zaireen’ from Jammu & Kashmir who were stranded at Saida Zainab, have now reached Beirut. Ambassador @NoorRahman_IFS received them upon their arrival in Beirut. They will return by available commercial flights to India. https://t.co/UWdEDDW7Cj pic.twitter.com/WVGGQ2K12g
— India in Lebanon (Embassy of India, Beirut) (@IndiaInLebanon) December 10, 2024
The MEA said the government accords the highest priority to the safety and security of Indian nationals abroad. "Indian nationals remaining in Syria are advised to stay in touch with the Indian Embassy in Damascus," it said. "The government will continue to monitor the situation closely," the MEA added.
In its first reaction to the events in the country, the MEA said on Monday that it was monitoring the unfolding developments in Syria and called for a peaceful and inclusive Syrian-led political process.
The MEA had also issued a strong advisory a few days ago calling for Indian nationals against travelling to Syria and urging those currently in the country to leave immediately due to the escalating conflict.
"In view of the situation prevailing in Syria, Indian nationals are advised to avoid all travel to Syria until further notification," the MEA stated in its advisory. It further urged Indians in Syria to depart via the earliest available commercial flights and requested others to prioritise their safety and restrict movement to a minimum.
HTS seizes Deir Ezzor
Clashes continue in Syria with the rebels claiming they took the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor from the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). "We announce the city of Deir Ezzor and its military airport as completely liberated," Military Operations Command spokesperson Hassan Abdul Ghani said.
However, CNN reported that the SDF has only retreated from the western bank of the Euphrates in Deir Ezzor city. The SDF took control of the portion of the city east of the Euphrates in 2017 after ISIS was driven out.
