Syria Situation: Modi government is continuously active amidst the ongoing uproar from Syria to Canada and Bangladesh. The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday spoke on various issues related to these countries. The safety of Indians is extremely important amid the ongoing violence in Syria. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, ‘So far 77 Indians have been evacuated, these are the people who wanted to return. Others have settled there and are still living there, and if they wish to return, we will facilitate their return. These 77 people were evacuated through Lebanon, and our embassies in Lebanon and Syria coordinated very closely. We brought them by road, after which the embassy in Lebanon provided them immigration facilities. Jaiswal said, ‘Out of 77 people, 44 were on pilgrimage to various places in the area and they have left Beirut for other places. The remaining 30 have either returned or are travelling. These people will return to India soon. We are in touch with other people in Damascus and if they need it, the Indian Embassy will help them. In Israel, we have 32000 Indian citizens and the Indian Embassy is in touch with them… There is no plan for evacuation from any other country as of now. In fact, there has been a coup in Syria and the rebels have declared Syria free from the rule of President Bashar-al-Assad. Assad has fled to Russia. After this, the period of violence continues in Syria. Apart from this, attacks on Hindus and temples are continuing in Bangladesh. Minority Hindus are living in fear there. Recently, India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had visited the neighboring country. On his visit, Jaiswal said, ‘During the talks, the Foreign Secretary talked about India’s support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh. He also reiterated India’s desire to build positive and constructive relations with Bangladesh on the basis of mutual trust, respect and mutual sensitivity. They also discussed many other issues, which were related to the security of minorities and India’s concerns. The murder of Indian students in Canada last week shocked everyone. The Foreign Ministry expressed grief over this incident. Jaiswal said, ‘Unfortunate tragedies occurred in Canada last week. Three Indian students were murdered. We are saddened by these terrible tragedies that have happened to our citizens in Canada. We stand with the grieving families. Our High Commission in Ottawa and Consulates in Toronto and Vancouver are providing all possible assistance in this matter. They are maintaining contact with local authorities to investigate these incidents. Jaiswal said, ‘The security of Indian citizens in Canada, especially students, is very important for us. We have also issued an advisory for our citizens and Indian students to exercise utmost caution and remain vigilant as the security environment in Canada is deteriorating due to increasing incidents of hate crimes and criminal violence. On reports related to Indian visas being granted to Canadians, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal says, “We have seen media reports about this. This is another example of the Canadian media’s disinformation campaign to defame India… Granting visas to Indians is our sovereign function and we have the legitimate right to deny visas to those who undermine our territorial integrity. This amounts to foreign interference in sovereign affairs.”
