As the Israel–Iran conflict intensifies, airspace closures across the region have grounded flights, forcing India to scramble to bring its citizens, especially students home through land corridors.
🛑 Airspace Lockdown Halts Evacuations
Israel closed Ben Gurion Airport “until further notice,” and Iran shut down key hubs like Imam Khomeini International Airport. With both skies off-limits, tens of thousands of travelers, including over 50,000 Israelis, are stranded abroad.
🚧 Land Routes Are Now the Only Path
With no flights possible, India is coordinating with Iran, Armenia, and the UAE to open safe land passages. Iranian authorities have kept land borders open for foreign evacuees .
🇮🇳 India’s Strategic Evacuation Steps
- Student safety first: Around 10,000 Indians—including 6,000 students—are in Iran. Approximately 100 have reached the Armenia border so far.
- Ministry coordination: The MEA and Indian embassy in Tehran are organizing registrations, securing travel details, and arranging border transit.
- Government advisories: Indians are urged to register with the embassy and use self-arranged transport if feasible.
- State alert: Nine med students from Karnataka, including six from Bengaluru, have been moved to safer zones—though parents remain anxious
⚠️ Civilians in the Line of Fire
Missile sirens echo in Tehran, Tel Aviv, and Haifa. Tehran ordered large-scale evacuations, and domestic life—busy bazaars, schools, exams—is grinding to a halt. In Israel, the Home Front Command app is directing citizens—Indians included—toward shelters amid continued Iranian missile barrages
India is executing a high-stakes, ground-based evacuation—land corridors, embassy coordination, and relentless diplomacy. But with skies closed and missiles flying, the mission is messy and uncertain.