Iran protests: India to begin evacuation of citizens from the country, first flight on Friday

India has started making arrangements to evacuate its citizens from Iran amid widespread and deadly protests across the country, news agency PTI reported on Thursday. Iran had lifted its clearance (NOTAM) for commercial flights earlier in the day. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has issued an urgent advisory asking Indian nationals to leave Iran, and announced plans to facilitate their safe return. The first evacuation flight is scheduled to fly from the Iranian capital Tehran to New Delhi on Friday.

The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association said that all Indian students in Iran have been registered and their details collected by the Indian mission. "All students have been duly registered, the Indian embassy has collected their personal details and passports, and the first batch has been informed to remain ready by 8 am," the association said in a statement, according to NDTV. As per estimates, more than 10,000 Indians, including students, currently live in Iran.

On Wednesday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had received a telephone call his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi. The two leaders discussed the evolving situation in and around Iran. "Received a call from Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi. We discussed the evolving situation in and around Iran," Jaishankar had said in a post on X. Earlier, the MEA had issued an advisory urging Indian citizens to avoid travel to Iran until further notice and asked those already in the country to leave immediately using commercial flights.

The violent protests in Iran started late last month after the national currency plunged to record lows, and have since spread to all 31 provinces of the Islamic Republic. The demonstrations continue to escalate across Iran, with reports of clashes between protesters and security forces, resulting in the deaths of thousands of people, according to reports.

(With inputs from news agency ANI).