Operation ‘Ajay’: 1st flight carrying 212 Indians returns home from Israel

New Delhi: The first batch of 212 Indians, including students, returned to the country from Israel onboard a chartered flight in the early hours of Friday.

India has launched Operation Ajay to facilitate the return of those who wish to come back home as a series of brazen attacks on Israeli towns by Hamas militants over the weekend triggered fresh tension in the region.

Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar welcomed the passengers at the Delhi airport as they streamed into the lounge area from the tarmac side. He greeted them with folded hands and also shook hands with many of them saying, “Welcome home”.

MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday said around 18,000 Indians are currently residing in Israel while about a dozen people are in the West Bank and three to four are in Gaza.