Thiruvananthapuram-Bahrain flight recalled mid-air amid rising tensions in Middle East

DOHA: Following Iran's Operation Basharat al-Fath targeting US military bases, India warned expats in Qatar not to step out of their homes. Qatar decided to temporarily close its airspace in the wake of the Iran-US conflict. US and UK citizens in Qatar have been issued a cautionary warning.

The conflict will also significantly affect flight services to India. The flight service from Kochi to Riyadh was cancelled on Monday night. The flight from Thiruvananthapuram to Bahrain was recalled mid-air after Bahrain closed its airspace. The flight from Kochi to Abu Dhabi has also been recalled. Qatar is home to a sizable Indian diaspora, with Malayalees dominating the list.

Six Iranian missiles were fired at US military bases in Qatar. However, all of them were reportedly shot down. Qatar had closed its airspace following a warning that US military bases would be targeted.

US President Donald Trump has reportedly stepped into the situvation room with his team and is closely monitoring the proceedings.

Qatar closed their airspace while the officials said that there were no casualties in the Iran strike. It is said that Iran fired six missiles at the US military base in Doha late Monday evening. The sudden retaliation comes three days after the US made their official entry into the Iran-Israel war by attacking three nuclear facilities of Iran. The superior US B-2 bombers had dropped 14 bunker-buster bombs on three nuclear facilities in Iran.

Last day, a declaration came on the Iranian state television channel to massacre US soldiers en masse and send the coffins back to Washington. The operation was titled as Bhasarat-al-Fath.

There are 45,000 American troops stationed in bases and on warships in Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the UAE.