Four Indian Navy warships will dock at Beirut on Wednesday morning to help, if required, in the evacuation of the estimated 12,000 Indians living in the country, facing the brunt of Israeli ground and air strikes after the Shia Islamic Hezbollah movement abducted two Israeli soldiers on July 12.
The four warships - destroyer INS Mumbai, guided missile frigates INS Brahmaputra and INS Betwa, and auxiliary fleet tanker INS Shakti - were "exiting" the Suez Canal after a successful overseas deployment mission when they were asked to "turn back" and head for the Lebanese coast.
"Evacuation, of course, is voluntary. It will depend on the people (many of whom work in olive plantations) who want to leave Lebanon. If the number is around 800-1,000, then our warships can bring them all the way back to India," said the officer.
"But if the numbers are large, then the warships will run shuttle services to nearby ports like Larnaca in Cyprus," he added.
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