Iran's Bold Move: Why Land Borders Opened For Indian Evacuation Amid Conflict? Know How Many Students Stranded

Iran allowed 10,000 Indian students' evacuation via land borders amid Israel conflict, June 2025. Embassy aids safety. Check helpline numbers here.

Firefighters work at the scene of a damaged building in the aftermath of Israeli strikes, in Tehran (ANI)

Iran has agreed to India's request to enable safe evacuation of nearly 10,000 Indian students stuck between mounting Israeli airstrikes, and provided land border crossings into Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan after the Iranian airspace has been shut down, officials said on Monday.

The Indian Embassy in Tehran is closely tracking the security situation and liaising with students to keep them safe. "In some cases, students are being relocated with Embassy facilitation to safer places within Iran. Other feasible options are under examination," the embassy said on Sunday. India is now mulling over a mass evacuation effort for its citizens.

The situation heightened after an attack close to the boys' hostel for foreign students at Tehran University of Medical Sciences on Sunday evening, where two Indian Kashmiri students were injured. They are in stable condition and have been shifted to Ramsar for their safety, university officials said.

Students voiced increased terror as the war intensifies. Imtisal Mohidin, a 22-year-old MBBS student from Jammu and Kashmir pursuing his studies at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, shared with ANI, "We haven't slept in three days. I woke up to loud explosions at 2:30 am on Friday and rushed to the basement. One blast was just 5 km away." More than 350 Indian students are studying at the university.

Reacting to this, the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) asked External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to speed up evacuations. JKPCC president Tariq Hameed Karra tweeted on X, "Urgent action needed by @DrSJaishankar to evacuate J&K students studying in Iran amid escalating tensions. Prioritise their safety." 

PDP leader Iltija Mufti posted on X, "For Kashmiri students stranded in Iran, please leave a WhatsApp message or call on these Indian Embassy (@India_in_Iran) numbers +98 9128109115 and +98 9128109109. In case you can't get through, please tag us (@jkpdp, @YouthJKPDP) on your tweets."

For Kashmiri students stranded in Iran please leave a WhatsApp message or call on this Indian Embassy @India_in_Iran number -

+98 9128109115 & +98 9128109109.

In case you can’t get through please tag us on your tweets @jkpdp @YouthJKPDP.

— Iltija Mufti (@IltijaMufti_) June 14, 2025

Scores of Jammu and Kashmir students, who are mostly seeking medical degrees, are stranded at various Iranian universities as the Israel-Iran war, which has seen "Operation Rising Lion" by Israel and "Operation True Promise III" by Iran, rages on. Updates on the evacuation plan are pending.