Indians should avoid travel to Iran or Israel till further notice: MEA

New Delhi: With the threat of a retaliatory strike by Iran against Israel looming large, India has advised its citizens not to travel to any of the two West Asian countries.

New Delhi also asked Indians in Iran and Israel to observe utmost precautions.

“In view of the prevailing situation in the region, all Indians are advised not to travel to Iran or Israel till further notice,” the Ministry of External Affairs stated in a travel advisory issued in New Delhi.

New Delhi issued the travel advisory on Friday in view of the escalating tension between Israel and Iran. Tehran vowed to retaliate after an Israeli air strike on a consulate of Iran in Syria on April 1 killed 13 people, including military commanders of the West Asian Islamic Republic.

 “All those who are currently residing in Iran or Israel are requested to get in touch with Indian embassies there and register themselves,” the MEA stated, signaling that New Delhi’s missions in Tehran and Tel Aviv were preparing to help the Indians in the two countries and eventually evacuate them if the conflict escalates.

 “They (Indians in Israel and Iran) are also requested to observe utmost precautions about their safety and restrict their movements to the minimum,” the MEA added in its advisory issued on Friday.

The travel advisory was issued just days after more than 60 construction workers from India left for Israel, even as the West Asian Jewish nation’s armed forces continued military operations that resulted in the death of over 30000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7. The Embassy of Israel in New Delhi arranged a farewell ceremony for the first batch of 64 construction workers recruited from India. Israel’s construction industry has been purportedly looking for workers from India to replace the Palestinians, who have been denied work permits since the conflict started.

After a missile fired from Lebanon killed one and injured two other Indians in northern Israel, New Delhi’s diplomatic mission in Tel Aviv early last month urged the country’s citizens in the West Asian Jewish nation to move to safer areas.

New Delhi, however, allowed Israel recruit construction workers from India, in accordance with an intergovernmental agreement.

However, after the tension between Tehran and Tel Aviv escalated over the past few days, New Delhi is rethinking and, according to the sources, may not allow more construction workers from India to travel to Israel.

New Delhi also asked Israel to ensure safety of the workers recruited and taken from India.