New Delhi/Mumbai:
46 Indian nurses who were freed by militants in Iraq on Friday evening are on their way to Kochi and will reunite with their families shortly. The special Air India plane that was sent to bring them back from the war-torn country will land at the Kochi international airport around noon.
The flight made a brief stop at the Mumbai airport this morning for refueling and then headed to Kochi.
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The special plane is also bringing back over 100 other Indians who were trapped in Iraq. Most of them belong to Kerala. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy is likely to receive them at the airport, where special arrangements have been made to help them. From Kochi, the plane will fly to Hyderabad and then to New Delhi.
Speaking to NDTV earlier this morning, Mr Chandy thanked Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj for her help in securing the nurses' release. He met her four times in the last two days to discuss the matter, he said. Many have credited the diplomatic coup to Ms Swaraj, who, officials said, "worked day and night" to tackle the crisis.
Last night, the plane's arrival at the Erbil international airport got delayed and it had to be diverted to Iran reportedly because it was initially not granted permission to enter Iraq's airspace. According to sources, the delay happened due to "information deficit" or because of security concerns in the troubled region. (Air India Plane Leaves for Iraq to Bring Back Freed Indian Nurses)
The plane was finally allowed to land at Erbil at 2 am. It took off for India nearly two hours later. (How India Secured its Nurses' Release in Iraq)
The nurses were working at a hospital in Tikrit, the birthplace of former president Saddam Hussein which has seen fierce fighting this week as Iraqi troops battle to regain control of the city from the Sunni insurgent group ISIS or the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
On Thursday, they were forced to board two buses and were taken to Mosul. They were reportedly kept at a hospital there. (We Are Like Prisoners, Say Stranded Kerala Nurses in Iraq to NDTV)
On Friday evening, the government confirmed that they had been freed. "Hope has triumphed. The nurses moved against their will are free," foreign ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said in New Delhi. (46 Indian Nurses in Iraq Freed by Militants, Say Sources)
One of the nurses, Marina Jose, told NDTV at Erbil that the militants behaved well with them. "We all are very happy... We never thought we will come back," she said. (Captive Indian Nurses in Iraq 'Are Safe, Getting Food': 10 Developments)
While the nurses have been brought back safely, 39 Indian construction workers kidnapped two weeks ago in Mosul remain in captivity. Mr Akbaruddin said there were a "significant number of other Indians" in ISIS captivity and added that the government "will leave no stone unturned to get back our nationals from an extremely difficult situation."
About 10,000 Indians work in Iraq. Scores of them have returned to India since fighting began.
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