6 Indians killed in Saudi-led air strikes in Yemen: MEA

#Update on the Indian seamen in Yemen pic.twitter.com/sF45DRfyQI

— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) September 11, 2015

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the six Indian victims were being cremated in Yemen after taking the consent of their family members.

The six were among the Indian nationals who were reported missing when two boats, Mustafa and Asmar, carrying a total of 21 Indian nationals, came under aerial attack on September 8.

“It is now regrettably informed that late at night on September 10, the bodies of six of the missing persons present on the two boats were recovered and were brought to the Military Hospital. The families of the deceased have been informed, and their verbal consent has been taken for appropriate funeral rites to be performed in Hodeidah as per religious practices,” MEA’s official spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

Some media reports, quoting residents and fishermen, on Tuesday had claimed that at least 20 Indian nationals were killed in air strikes by Saudi-led coalition forces on fuel smugglers at Hodeidah port. India does not have an Embassy in Yemen. It which was shut down in April after evacuation of its nationals.

He also noted that the Indian embassy in Yemen’s Camp Office in Djibouti has been in constant touch with authorities and local contacts to ascertain more details.

“Of the remaining 15 Indians on the two boats, 14 are safe in Hodeidah, and of these four are undergoing treatment in a local hospital. All 14 are in regular touch with their families. One person is still missing, and the Mission is working with the local authorities and contacts to ascertain his whereabouts,” he added. Later, Swarup said that according to available information, most of the men on the boat were from Gujarat.

The India Embassy in Yemen was shut down in April after evacuation of its nationals. This had put the Indian government in a spot over finding the missing Indians.

The conflict between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, which began in April, had prompted India to evacuate more than 6,000 Indians and thousands of foreign nationals.

Titled Operation Rahat, it had surprised many by its scale and speed. The Indian Air Force, Navy, aviation authorities and shipping agencies had coordinated with the Ministries of External Affairs, Defence, Railways, and several state governments to execute the evacuation process.

They had been able to get coordinated “window periods” — when the Saudis won’t conduct airstrikes and Yemen won’t shoot at the airplanes — and New Delhi had proudly hailed it as a diplomatic success to get both warring parties to suspend fighting while Indians carried out the evacuation.