The government has initiated the process of sending a plane of Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) to rescue the Nepali people stranded in war-torn Israel.
On Wednesday morning, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ called the chiefs of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal and Nepal Airlines along with Tourism Minister Sudan Kirati at Baluwatar and instructed them to immediately send a plane to rescue the Nepalis in Israel.
Prime Minister's Press Adviser Govinda Acharya told Nepalkhabar that the process of sending a NAC plane to Israel has been started in the first phase for rescue.
“Currently, this issue is being discussed with Minister Kirati, the Director General of the CAAN and General Manager of Nepal Airlines Corporation, following which the plane will be sent.”
“In line with the instructions of the Prime Minister, the plane is kept standby," Prime Minister's Press Coordinator Surya Kiran told Nepalkhabar. The plane is scheduled to take off at 11pm tonight.
Since the war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas is going on, a permission to fly and land an aircraft in Israel is mandatory. The government has taken approval from Israel to this effect.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is collecting the data of Nepali people who want to return to Nepal.
As the insurance of the plane has to be done before flying to the conflict-hit country, the process of completing the paper work regarding this will be done from the UAE and the landing permit at the Israeli airport will also be taken today itself. Then the plane will fly to Israel.
On Saturday (Oct 8), Palestinian rebel group Hamas attacked various locations in Israel with rockets, killing 10 Nepali students and injuring four others. Similarly, a Nepali is missing from the attack of the rebel group while two others escaped unharmed.
A total of 49 students who went to Israel from Sudurpaschim University, on Learn-and-Earn program were trapped in the area attacked by Hamas. Thirty-two of them were rescued by the Israeli army and kept in Tel Aviv.
The rescued people are asking for help to return to Nepal as the war is still going on. Israel has intensified operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
