Will India be able to rescue citizens trapped in the Gaza Strip amid the war?

The Israel-Hamas war continues on, killing person after person and causing unprecedented devastation. As of Day 14 of the war, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said 3,785 people have been killed, the majority women, children and older adults. Nearly 12,500 were injured, and another 1,300 people were believed buried under rubble, authorities said.

This includes the 477 people that died in the hospital blast. However, this figure is being disputed by US intelligence, which estimates the toll was between 100 and 300 people.

The situation in Gaza is expected to become worse, as a ground invasion looms with Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant telling troops on Thursday (19 October) that they will soon see the Palestinian territory “from the inside”. “You see Gaza now from a distance, you will soon see it from inside. The command will come,” said Gallant, suggesting a ground invasion could be nearing.

As the crisis continues to unfold, India has carried out several flights from Israel as part of Operation Ajay to repatriate citizens. But are there Indians in the Gaza Strip? What happens to them?

How many Indians in Gaza?

The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday held a press briefing in which it said that the government was keeping a close watch on events unfolding amid the Israel-Hamas war.

MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told reporters that there are around four Indian nationals in the Gaza Strip and another 12-13 in the West Bank, which has seen tensions on the boil. “There are around four Indian nationals in Gaza… we don’t have exact numbers and are coordinating. There are 12-13 Indian nationals in the West Bank… It’s a little tough to get out from Gaza. There are some reports that some have already got out of there, but we will wait for confirmation,” he was quoted as saying by ANI.

And how safe are they in Gaza? The MEA spokesperson stated they hadn’t received any information about an Indian casualty or injury from the region.

However, one Indian caregiver in Israel’s Ashkelon was injured in the war between Israel and Hamas. Sheeja Anand, 41, was on a call with her husband when a rocket launched by Hamas landed on her house, injuring her on 7 October. She was taken to the hospital where she was operated upon.

What plans to evacuate them?

The Gaza Strip has been suffering fierce Israeli bombardment since 8 October when the country declared war against the Hamas, and vowing to ‘annihilate each of its members’.

When asked about evacuating Indians from the violence-torn Strip, the MEA spokesperson said: “The situation in Gaza is difficult for any evacuation but if we get a chance, we will get them out.”

Earlier, Lubna Nazir Shaboo, an Indian from Jammu and Kashmir, had told news agency PTI that she and her family were in Gaza and were seeking immediate evacuation. “We are facing a brutal war here and everything is being destroyed in bombardments in a matter of seconds. We are paying the price of this conflict as civilians are being targeted.”

She added that she has already sought help from the Representative office of India in Ramallah.

India has been carrying out repatriation flights from Israel through Operation Ajay under the close watch of Indian envoy to Tel Aviv, Sanjeev Singla.

As of today, around 1,200 Indians and 18 Nepalis have been evacuated from Israel in five different flights from Tel Aviv.

The MEA also stated that more flights would be arranged by India if and when required.

On returning to India on the first flight of Operation Ajay, Deepak, a student, told PTI, “As the attack happened, we could hear the sound. Israeli authorities were instructing us to take safety measures. It was a continuous attack. I am happy to return home, but sad also, as our friends are there (in Israel).”

According to official figures, there are around 18,000 Indians in Israel and all of them have been asked to register with the Indian embassy so that it will be easy to know their locations in case they have to be evacuated.

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How bad is the situation in Gaza?

Death and devastation is omnipresent in the Gaza Strip with the death toll climbing each minute. The United Nations has released some startling data on the destruction in Gaza. According to the world agency, at least 30 per cent of all housing in the densely-populated area has been either destroyed, rendered uninhabitable or lightly damaged.

Moreover, the number of people internally displaced within Gaza has reached one million, including more than 527,500 people sheltering at 147 UN-designated emergency shelters.

The situation in Gaza is only compounded by the lack of vital aid – food, water and medicine. Earlier, the Israel authorities had announced a total siege of the area, blocking off water, food and power. They, however, have reversed their decision and after much discussions, vital aid is expected to reach the people of Gaza today (20 October) through the Rafah Crossing.

In fact, due to the shortage of water people are consuming water from “unsafe sources, risking death and placing the population at risk of infectious disease outbreak”.

Residents have also been forced to starve or sustain only on bread, as food stocks are almost depleted. Only one of five flour mills is functioning due to a lack of fuel and electricity.

Hospitals warn they are on the verge of collapse, with emergency generators that power machines like ventilators and incubators down to about one day of fuel and supplies of medicine almost exhausted.

On 18 October, the world was shell-shocked when an explosion took place at the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, killing hundreds of innocent civilians. While the Gazan health ministry has blamed Israel for the dastardly attack, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pointed fingers at the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, adding that it was the Hamas ally that misfired a rocket.

Following the explosion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas – a first since the war broke out – and conveyed the country’s condolences over the loss of civilian lives at the hospital.

He also reiterated India’s “long-standing principled position on the Israel-Palestine issue”.

With inputs from agencies