The Indian Air Force (IAF) has successfully evacuated 165 Indian nationals from Israel under Operation Sindhu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed on Tuesday.

Using its C-17 Globemaster aircraft, the IAF carried out the evacuation via Jordan amid escalating tensions in West Asia. The evacuees arrived in New Delhi at 8:45 a.m. and were received by Union Minister of State for External Affairs Dr. L. Murugan.

The MEA posted on X: “Operation Sindhu: An IAF C-17 flight evacuated 165 Indian nationals from Israel. They were received by MoS Dr. L. Murugan upon arrival in Delhi. The aircraft landed at 0845 hrs on 24th June from Amman.”

The IAF echoed the announcement, stating that its aircraft had commenced missions from Jordan and Egypt to evacuate Indian citizens as well as nationals of friendly countries like Nepal and Sri Lanka. “The IAF remains committed as first responders to provide assistance within the country and across the globe in times of need,” the Air Force said in a statement.

This was the second flight in the Israel leg of Operation Sindhu. The first successful repatriation took place on June 23, when 161 Indian nationals were flown from Amman to New Delhi.

Minister of State Pabitra Margherita welcomed the earlier batch, saying, “We are closely monitoring the situation and are committed to providing all possible and necessary assistance to our citizens in Iran and Israel.”

Meanwhile, evacuation efforts from Iran continue, with over 2,290 Indian nationals already repatriated under Operation Sindhu.

Launched by the Indian government, Operation Sindhu is a strategic mission to ensure the safe return of Indian citizens stranded in conflict-hit regions of Iran and Israel.