‘Narrowly escaped missile barrage': Kerala duo describe fleeing Tehran with local family amid Israel-Iran conflict
Two men from Kerala, who are based in Dubai, have found themselves stranded in Iran after arriving in Tehran on a work-related trip on Friday, the day that Israel attacked multiple locations in Iran, killing several key military leaders and scientists.
Iran responded to the attack by firing missiles at Israel, and in the four days since then, the two countries have traded strikes, leaving hundreds dead in Iran and at least 24 dead in Israel.
Hafsal and Muhammed, the men from Kerala's Malappuram district who work as business development officers in Dubai, have fled Tehran amid a number of strikes on the capital city, and are now over 600 km away in Yazd. During their 10-hour drive away from Tehran, they said they narrowly escaped a barrage of missiles.
They said they were being supported by a local family in Yazd and are seeking further guidance from the Indian embassy.
'We are at a loss and do not know what to do next. We escaped from Tehran and travelled 10 hours to reach Yazd, where a local family has given us shelter. We need guidance from the Indian embassy. Yesterday, the embassy wanted us to remain where we are staying. But the situation is getting grim here also. Now, a local family supports us,' Hafsal said in a series of text messages.
They were slated to return to Dubai on Sunday. 'We were staying in a hotel, but tensions started escalating from Sunday. From our hotel room, we watched in shock as missiles fell in the vicinity. Soon, missiles started falling everywhere, and people started fleeing. Then taxi services were suspended. There was an underground metro nearby and we sought shelter in it. Many others were running to that underground metro, and hence we also followed them,' Hafsal said.
'Embassy officials wanted to remain in Tehran, but we realised that our lives would be in danger if we continued there. Our local friend was escaping from Tehran along with his family, and he allowed both of us to join them on the journey early on Monday morning,' he said.
Hafsal said that during the 10-hour road journey, they narrowly escaped from a barrage of missiles. 'We saw missiles crisscrossing the sky. We felt death was stalking us. The local friend's family advised us to stay in Yazd, which is a heritage city. We were told this city will be safe, but things are turning grim here also,' Hafsal said.
He requested help from the Indian embassy to cross the border into either Armenia or Turkey. 'Officials of NORKA ROOTS, the Kerala government department for expatriates, are in touch with us. However, the embassy has to help us for an exit,' he said.
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