File pic: Insurgents of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) celebrate the fall of Mosul
Some 40 Indians are stranded in the violence-torn Iraqi town of Mosul, which fell to Islamist militants on June 10. New Delhi says they cannot be contacted.
India is sending seasoned diplomat Suresh Reddy, who was ambassador to Iraq till recently, to help with repatriation efforts.
Here is your 10 point cheat-sheet to this developing story
The foreign ministry confirmed this morning that 40 Indians were in the oil-rich city of Mosul, and were not contactable.
Spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said, "Despite our best efforts, we haven't been able to establish contact with them at this stage." Responding to reports that the Indians had been kidnapped, he said, "There are no reports of any Indians targeted or involved in any violent incidents."
Officials say these are construction workers who are difficult to track as they are directly recruited by contractors, without proper registration.
India has set up a 24-hour helpline and is trying to find a way of evacuating its citizens as Islamic insurgents continue their violent takeover of Iraqi cities. The militants are around 60 km from Baghdad, according to latest reports.
At least 100 more Indian workers could be stranded in Tikrit, which also fell to Sunni insurgents, and Erbil, a city where many are taking refuge from the violence.
Among them are 46 nurses from Kerala who are stranded in Tikrit. They sent out an SOS to the Kerala government on Friday.
"We are literally prisoners within the hospital premises," one of the nurses, Marina Jose said to NDTV on the phone, explaining how tough it is to contact families in Kerala. "We are afraid because we have no security here. All the military, police, everybody escaped from here. Only we are here," she said.
The situation is somewhat better for Indians stuck in other parts, like Navin, a hotel worker who spoke to NDTV this morning from a town 80 km from Baghdad. "There is firing around, but we are safe so far," he said, adding that he had been able to contact his family in India.
Over 10,000 Indians are estimated to be living in Iraq, where insurgents of the Al Qaeda inspired Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have overrun cities, killing hundreds of Shia troops in their march to Baghdad.
The Obama administration has not ruled out air strikes and say they are pursuing every possible option, including working with Iran, to try and resolve the conflict.
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