KATHMANDU, OCTOBER 10

Foreign Minister NP Saud held telephonic conversation with his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen and requested the Israeli government to facilitate early repatriation of the mortal remains of deceased Nepalis, safety, security and relocation of Nepali nationals to safer area, and repatriation of those who wish to return home.

Ten Nepali nationals were killed when Hamas militants launched surprise ground and air attack on Israel on Saturday.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote on X, formerly known as twitter, that the foreign minister of Israel thanked the Government of Nepal for expression of solidarity and assured Israel Government's full support in the early repatriation of the mortal remains and return of Nepalis desiring to come home.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a press release saying that the government had coordinated with the forensic department of Israel to bring back the bodies of Nepali nationals killed in Israel immediately.

Minister Saud also told his Israeli counterpart that Nepal was with Israel.

According to MoFA, 55 Nepali students, including 32 from Sudurpaschim University and 23 from Agriculture and Forestry University, who were sheltering in bunkers near the Gaza border had been relocated to safer area. Efforts to relocate Nepali students studying in Kinneret College of Israel are also under way. Rescuers have intensified their search to find Bipin Joshi, whose whereabouts remain unknown. As of today, 324 Nepali nationals have registered their names online out of which 288 wish to return to Nepal and 36 want to be relocated.

MoFA has urged all who want to go to study in Israel or for other purposes not to visit Israel for the time being.

MoFA will hold a press briefing at 4:30pm everyday from tomorrow to give updates on the situation of Nepalis in Israel.

Meanwhile, International Relations and Tourism Committee of the House of Representatives held a meeting today and directed the government to repatriate the bodies of Nepali nationals who have died in the violence in Israel immediately, provide relief to the victims' families and to relocate Nepali nationals to safer places in Israel. It also urged the government to repatriate those Nepali nationals who wish to return to Nepal immediately.

The House panel also urged the government to direct Nepali missions abroad to keep updated list of Nepalis living in those countries and have contingency plans ready for such situations.

It also urged the government to increase efficiency of Nepali missions abroad and to provide enough resources so that they can deal with such situations efficiently. FM Saud had briefed the House panel about the government's effort to rescue Nepali nationals in Israel and bring the mortal remains of Nepali nationals from there.

A version of this article appears in the print on October 11, 2023, of The Himalayan Times