Three Malayalis return from strife-torn Yemen; the stranded hope for 'clear ... - Times of India

KOCHI/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Although India's efforts to rescue its citizens stranded in war-torn Yemen picked up pace on Monday, for hundreds of them the tense wait for the return trip home continued. In Aden, about 450km away from Yemen's capital Sana'a, about 550 Indians were waiting to hear about the government's plan for their evacuation.

Speaking to TOI from Sana'a, Pravasi Indian Association of Yemen vice-president Francis Xavier Gomez said the Indian government should engage with the ministry of interior in Yemen to facilitate the return of 2000-odd 'illegal' Indians who do not have valid documents.

Gomez said the Pravasi Indian Association urged the Indian embassy officials on Sunday to strike a deal with Houthi rebels so that they will allow all Indians who have their passports, irrespective of their visa/work documents, to leave.

Gomez said of the 6000-odd Indians there, about 95% were from Kerala.

Meanwhile, amidst the mounting tension in Yemen, three Malayalis - Reuben Jacob Chandy, Lijo George and Jacob Korah - reached home on Monday morning. Chandy landed at the Thiruvananthapuram airport while George and Korah touched down at the Nedumbaserry airport.

Korah, who has been working for a shipping company for the last four years in Sana'a, said he was not confident of going back. "Last week, aerial attacks lasted for only two to three hours in the night. Now all night they are bombing. But when you wake up in the morning, there is no indication that a war is on. But things do not sound good. I hope the Indian government is going to help the Indians there," said Korah.

George's friends said he had spent six years in Yemen and he wanted get out badly.

Chandy said the Indian embassy negotiated with Yemen Airways to get them out of the country. "In our group there were 79 people. We were taken to Djibouti airport and put on flights to Mumbai, Delhi, Kochi, and Thiruvananthapuram," said Chandy.

Those who have come back expressed their concern over the state of nurses in Yemen.

Speaking from the Military Hospital in Sanaa, paramedic Ranjith Cheerakathil told Reuters that he and his wife, a nurse, were among the few who had decided to stay. Most of the hospital's 240 Indian staff were waiting for a flight to leave.

"Most of the operations in the hospital will be shut down when they leave. There will not be anybody to care for those who suffer injuries in the attack," Cheerakathil said by telephone.

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