How many Indians are stranded in Israel and how safe are they?

The war is still going on. Indian expats in Israel awoke to sirens on Saturday when militants from the Palestinian group Hamas launched a well-planned attack on the country on Saturday early morning. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu steeled the nation for a “long and difficult” war and declared a state of war in the country after the unprecedented attack. So far, at least 1,100 people have died and thousands wounded on both sides, according to AFP. Hamas fired a barrage of thousands of rockets at Israel and sent a wave of fighters who gunned down civilians and took at least 100 hostages, the news agency reported. Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi on Sunday said that she received multiple messages overnight about Indians stranded in Israel and added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s office is actively monitoring the situation, ANI reported. Also read: Israel-Palestine conflict: The big wars fought over 15 years Indians stranded in Israel According to PTI, there are about 18,000 Indians living and working in Israel. A large number of Indians living in Israel work as caregivers of the elderly but there are also about a thousand students, several IT professionals, and diamond traders. A report by NDTV suggests there are roughly 85,000 Jews of Indian descent living in Israel. [caption id=“attachment_13221262” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Palestinians inspect the rubble of a building after it was struck by an Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City. AP[/caption] Indian immigration to Israel reportedly began in the 1950s and 1960s, according to a news channel located in Delhi. Jews from Mizoram and Manipur have immigrated to Israel recently. They are “safe, so far…” According to Indian Express, a Kerala native in Israel was reportedly injured on Saturday in a missile attack in Ashkelon, a coastal city located in the southern part of Israel. Her family in the Kannur district informed the news outlet that Sheeja Anand, who has been a caregiver in the conflict-hit country for the last seven years, is out of danger. The 41-year-old was reportedly hit by shelling on Saturday noon when she was speaking to her family. The newspaper quoted Sheeja’s sister Shiji as saying, “The incident happened when she was making a video call to her husband Anand. During the call, she herself indicated the impending danger of a shell attack. Anand then told her to be careful. Suddenly, the call got lost with an alarming sound in the background, leaving all of us in panic. Later, we tried to call back but could not get in touch with her. On Sunday, we learned from her colleagues in Israel that she was injured in the missile attack.” She added that on Sunday late night, they learned from her colleagues that she was being shifted to another hospital for better treatment and they are yet to get further details. According to the newspaper, the last time Sheeja visited India was for a vacation over one-and-a-half years ago. Moreover, other Indians stuck in Israel are “safe, so far…” Bindu, a doctoral student at Hebrew University, told PTI that she “followed the instructions in letter and spirit throughout the day” on Saturday. She also informed that all Indians are in touch with each other. Vikas Sharma, a postdoctoral fellow at the Givat Ram campus of the same university said, “There is a tense situation in Israel because of the attack, but all the Indian students are safe. Most of the students are staying in dorms and accommodations provided by the institutions. We are in contact with each other as well as the Indian embassy through WhatsApp.” [caption id=“attachment_13221302” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] ball of fire and smoke rise from an explosion on a Palestinian apartment tower following an Israeli air strike in Gaza City. AP[/caption] Elle Prasad, who lives in Ashkelon where the maximum number of rockets have fallen, said, “They have to be very alert so that they reach the shelter house as soon as possible after the siren wails.” While another Indian national living in Gaza, when contact, said that the situation was “scary” but she and her family were safe. “There is no internet connection and electricity,” she added. According to Indian Express, Jiby Yohannan who hails from Kerala and currently lives over eight kilometers away from Israel’s Tel Aviv, said that while local residents were used to sporadic missile strikes, Saturday’s attack had caught everyone off-guard. He said, “When tension escalates, we watch missile attacks, and see how they are being intercepted and destroyed by the Iron Dome (Israel’s air defense system). But this time, the attack was from those who infiltrated the country by road. The assailants mainly targeted people on the road.” Yohannan added that the assailants came in vehicles and sprayed bullets on civilians out on the streets. The news outlet quoted him as saying, “Jews have been observing Simchat Torah (a Jewish holiday) and Sabbath (day of religious observance) since Friday evening. Only a few people were out,” adding that the Indian community was “safe, so far.” Also read: How Hamas breached Israel’s sophisticated security, hoodwinked its intelligence Calls for help The Indian Embassy in Tel Aviv has received from the Indian nationals to help them return to India. According to Livemint, some businessmen are also believed to be stranded in the war-torn country and are looking to be evacuated. A PTI report suggests Bollywood actor Nushrratt Bharuccha was also stranded in Israel and was being evacuated safely. She had traveled to Israel to attend the Haifa International Film Festival, which was from 28 September to 7 October. [caption id=“attachment_13221322” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Smoke rises after a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit a house in Ashkelon, southern Israel. AP[/caption] Citing the actor’s publicist’s statement, the news agency reported, “We have finally managed to get in touch with Nushrratt, and with the help of the embassy, she is being safely brought back home. We did not get a direct flight so she is on a connecting flight home.” The statement added, “We are relieved and thank god that she is safe and on her way to India.” Embassy sources told PTI that they are readily available to all Indian nationals around the clock and have been proactively guiding them. The Indian mission in Tel Aviv and the Representative Office of India in Palestine on Saturday issued advisories asking Indian nationals on respective sides to “remain vigilant” and “directly contact the Office” in case of an emergency.

📢*IMPORTANT ADVISORY FOR INDIAN NATIONALS IN ISRAEL*

For details visit-
Israel Home Front Command website: https://t.co/Sk8uu2Mrd4

Preparedness brochure: https://t.co/18bDjO9gL5 pic.twitter.com/LtAMGT9CwA

— India in Israel (@indemtel) October 7, 2023

Govt making all efforts to evacuate Indian nationals According to Hindustan Times, Minister Lekhi also told reporters, “Indian government is striving to bring back stranded students of India from Israel. Prime Minister and his office are monitoring the situation and huge efforts are underway to get back our students who are stuck in that country.” She added that India has successfully evacuated its citizens from abroad during the Russia-Ukraine war or in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. “So whether it was Operation Ganga or Vande Bharat, we brought everyone back and I’m sure the Government of India and the Prime Minister’s Office are directly in touch with those people and are working and monitoring the situation,” the minister added.

#WATCH | On Hamas terrorists' attack on Israel, MoS MEA Meenakashi Lekhi says, "I received many messages last night and through the night we were working but I'm also aware that Prime Minister's office is directly supervising the situation and we are on the job. Even in the past,… pic.twitter.com/7gwyiE2X76

— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2023

Israel-Palestine conflict On Saturday morning, Hamas launched around 5,000 rockets on Israel, the biggest attack on the country in years. According to The Associated Press, more than 40 hours after Hamas launched its unprecedented incursion out of Gaza, Israeli forces were still battling with militants holed up in several locations. At least 700 people have reportedly been killed in Israel — a staggering toll on a scale the country has not experienced in decades — and more than 400 have been killed in Gaza. Israel said it brought in special forces to try to wrest control of four Israeli sites from Hamas fighters, including two kibbutzim that militants entered earlier in their attacks. Footage released by Israeli police from one area showed forces kneeling in tall grass as they exchanged fire with Hamas militants across an open field. The Israeli military estimated that 1,000 Hamas fighters took part in Saturday’s initial incursion. The high figure underscored the extent of planning by the militant group ruling Gaza, which has said it launched the attack in response to mounting Palestinian suffering under Israel’s occupation and blockade of Gaza. In response, Israel hit more than 800 targets in Gaza so far, its military said, including airstrikes that leveled much of the town of Beit Hanoun in the enclave’s northeast corner. The declaration of war portended greater fighting ahead, and a major question was whether Israel would launch a ground assault into Gaza, a move that in the past has brought intensified casualties. With inputs from agencies