Israel-Iran conflict | In a special gesture, Iran opens airspace to evacuate Indians

In a special gesture, Iran opened its airspace for evacuation flights to India. Iran's Deputy Chief of Mission to India Mohammad Javad Hosseini, speaking to WION's Sidhant Sibal, said,' In the first phase, Indians were moved from Tehran to Mashhad via Qom. 1,000 Indian nationals in Mashhad made arrangements with the Indian Embassy in Iran, they have been allocated Mahaan Airlines.

The first flight will arrive tonight (June 20) as India has launched operations Sindhu to evacuate its nationals from the country as the West Asia conflict widens.

Talking about Pakistan, and meeting between Field Marshal Munir and US President Donald Trump, the Iranian diplomat said, 'parties should not enter this conflict, regional players or the US...I am sure they have got the message'.

Earlier this week, India started Operation Sindhu to begin the evacuation of its nationals from Iran as the West Asia crisis intensifies. A batch of 110 Indian students, around 90 of which are from the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir landed in Delhi.

In a statement, the Ministry of external affairs said, “In view of the deteriorating situation as a result of the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel, the Government of India has been taking various steps over the last several days for the safety and security of Indian nationals in Iran.”

The students have been evacuated via Armenia who crossed into the country from Iran through the land border. The MEA statement said, "The Government of India is grateful to the Governments of Iran and Armenia for the smooth facilitation of the evacuation process."

EAM Jaishankar had spoken to the foreign minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan on Sunday on the evacuation India was planning. The name "Sindhu" has a historic connection with Iran. The name "India" evolved from the Sanskrit "Sindhu", meaning the Indus River, transformed through Old Persian "Hindu," Greek ""India " (pronounced Hindia), Latin, and English.

The Indian embassy in Iran has asked Indian nationals in the country to leave Tehran. It had also last week issued helpline numbers and advisory to Indians to stay "vigilant".