Daunting task for India in Yemen as fighting rages

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 1

After evacuating 349 Indians from Aden, India now faces a daunting task of rescuing another 3,000 nationals stuck in trouble-torn Yemen.

Saudi Arabia-led coalition forces and the Hauti rebels are involved in a tough fight to hold onto the territory and safe spaces are shrinking rapidly.

Majority of the Indians are in Sanaa and one of the available ports is Aden, 434km road journey away and on the coast of Gulf of Aden. The territory in between is held by the Hauti rebels.

Sources said an evacuation is likely to be attempted tomorrow using the INS Sumitra from the port city of Al Hodeidah on the West coast of Yemen on the Red Sea coast located at 143 driving distance from Sanaa. The signal to allow the warship into the port will be given by the Saudis, while the US is providing real time information using a mix of drones and satellites.

Two Indian Navy warships, the INS Mumbai, a destroyer, and the INS Tarkash, a BrahMos missile carrying Frigate, are on the way to Yemen. The ships are so well armed that they cannot just protect themselves but destroy a small flotilla of ships or elements on land. Officials downplayed the choice of ships saying most Naval warships are well armed and carry a team of commandoes, the Marcos, as part of the crew on board. They are expected to reach Yemen on April 4.

The two Indian Navy warships will be escorting two passenger liners MV Kavaratti and MV Corals which departed from Kochi on March 30.

Minister of State in the External Affairs Ministry General VK Singh (retd) is camping in Djibouti and coordinating the operations.