May 31, 2026 05:56 am (IST)
Follow us:
Another 200 Indians return from Iraq
New Delhi, July 6 (IBNS): A day after 46 Indian nurses caught in conflict-torn Iraq reached Kochi on Saturday, a special chartered flight carrying 200 more Indians from Najaf arrived at the Delhi International Airport on Sunday, reports said.
This is the second batch of Indians that has returned from Iraq.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin on Saturday said that another 400 Indians are expected to return to various destinations, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad, through commercial flights.
On Saturday, a special Air India flight with 46 Indian nurses caught in conflict-torn Iraq, whose freedom was secured by the Indian authorities, reached Kochi shortly after noon as an emotional reunion with their anxious families followed where Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy himself was present.
While the CM himself had turned up to receive them at the airport, the families and kins of the nurses who underwent an ordeal for several weeks were happy to finally see them back home happy.
"We are happy," said the nurses and their families, beaming in joy and relief.
The nurses thanked the Indian government for their freedom and safe return to India. Many said they had not got their salaries for months in Iraq. However, they said the militants did not harm them or misbehave with them. Rather during a bombing they were asked to go to the basement, said the nurses.
The aircraft on Saturday brought back about 100 other Indian nationals besides the nurses from at Erbil airport in Iraq.
With the nurses mostly hailing from Kerala, the flight first landed in Kochi after a refuelling in Mumbai and then headed for New Delhi via Hyderabad.
"Air India plane with nurses & other workers from Iraq changes crew in Mumbai & heads for Kochi," tweeted Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin on Saturday.
The nurses were held in captivity in Tikrit in Iraq by the Sunni militant group ISIS. They were working in Tikrit, the birthplace of former president Saddam Hussein.
Support Our Journalism
We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism
IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.
Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Latest Headlines
'Rulers became killers': Mamata blames BJP after Abhishek Banerjee assaulted in Bengal
Sat, May 30 2026
TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee heckled in Sonarpur, eggs thrown at him
Sat, May 30 2026
Western Railways announces special trains for IPL final clash
Sat, May 30 2026
Delhi Police foils major terror plot, 9 suspects linked to Pakistan network arrested
Sat, May 30 2026
'PM also personally supervised the leak': Rahul Gandhi's swipe at Modi over NEET row
Sat, May 30 2026
Mamata Banerjee stares at political collapse as TMC implodes: Mass revolt, shock resignations rock party after poll rout
Sat, May 30 2026
India prepared for kharif season amid global uncertainty, says agriculture minister
Fri, May 29 2026
Hormuz under siege, but Indian vessels keep moving: Know how?
Fri, May 29 2026