Amidst escalating conflict and continuing airstrikes by Israel, the Iranian government said on Friday (June 20, 2025) that it had agreed to open its otherwise closed airspace to facilitate chartered flights carrying about 1,000 Indian nationals back to India.

The returning Indians, including students, professionals and tourists will travel in three or more flights operated by an Iranian airline company and organised by the Indian Embassy in Tehran. They will fly from Mashaad near the Iran-Uzbekistan border to Delhi, with the first flight arriving on Friday night, and others on Saturday and Sunday as required, Iran’s Acting Ambassador said at a press conference in Delhi. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that another chartered flight would bring over Indians who have already crossed over to Turkmenistan, and will fly from Ashgabat on Friday.

Israel-Iran conflict updates: June 20, 2025

“The airspace is closed because of this issue [conflict with Israel] but we are making arrangements to open it for the safe passage of Indians, and we are doing our best to send Indian nationals wanting to leave, back safely,” said Mohammad Javed Hossaini, the Deputy Chief of Mission officiating. He added that most of the 10,000 Indians in Iran have not been harmed by Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks over the past week, other than a few who were injured during a strike that hit a college hostel in Tehran.

‘Condemn aggressions’

Mr. Hossaini called on India to join the international community, especially countries of the Global South, to pressure Israel to stop its aerial bombardment that entered an eighth day on Friday. Not “condemning” the Israeli government for its actions would “incentivise” other countries to carry out unilateral actions, he warned.

“We believe every country, including India, should condemn these aggressions, not because of Iran or because of this conflict, but because there are other also countries who in their mind [want] to attack a neighbour over baseless allegations. If you don’t condemn it [Israel’s actions], you are giving them incentive,” he said, citing Israel’s previous attacks on Lebanon and Syria in 2024.

Iran’s ‘expectation is more’

The MEA has only issued one statement on the conflict so far, although it has commented separately on evacuation plans for Indians from Iran and Israel. In its June 14 statement, India had expressed “deep concern” about the strikes, called for “dialogue and diplomacy” to discuss de-escalating the conflict, and said it was monitoring the situation, especially the “reports related to attacks on nuclear sites”. The statement did not criticise either side.

India has disassociated itself from a statement by the Russia and China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) that includes Iran, which criticised Israel for its “aggression”. In its statement, the MEA said that India was not a part of the negotiations on the SCO release. When asked, Mr. Hosseini denied that Iran was “disappointed” by India’s move. “We understand India’s position, but of course, our expectation is more,” he said.

Wider impact

Responding to a question from The Hindu, Mr. Hosseini did not rule out the possibility of Iran closing the Straits of Hormuz as a pressure tactic if the conflict continued. Such a move would disrupt travel and trade across the region. He expressed hope that negotiations, slated between Iran and the E3- European countries for Friday, would help ease the situation. On the impact of the conflict on India’s port project in Chabahar, the envoy said that it was a matter for the whole region, not just the project.

“If the situation escalates, it will affect many things — the flow of the oil, shipments, commodities going through these channels, they will all be affected,” he said, noting that a prolonged Israel-Iran war would impact both the region and the world.

Retaliatory attacks

Over the past week, Israeli jets have bombed Iranian nuclear facilities in Natanz, Isfahan, Fordow, and the Arak heavy water facility, which was bombed on Thursday night. In retaliation for the attacks, Tehran has sent waves of missiles that have pierced Israel’s ‘Iron Dome’, targeting military sites in Tel Aviv and across the country.

Mr. Hosseini denied Israel’s accusation that Iranian forces had deliberately struck a hospital in Be’er Sheva, saying that the hospital had suffered some impact due to an Iranian strike on a military technology facility nearby.

The Indian Embassy in Tel Aviv is working on a plan to evacuate Indians wishing to leave Israel, via the land routes to Jordan and Egypt, the MEA had said on Thursday.