As Israel-Iran war rages on, Telangana migrant worker’s body awaits repatriation 

Stuck in the war between two countries is the body of a person from a third country. While Israel and Iran engage in air combat launching missiles and drones, a migrant worker from Telangana passed away due to ill health in Israel. 

R Ravinder is a native of Jagtial district in Telangana. He is one of the hundreds of migrant Telugu workers eking out a living in the Middle East country. He was employed in the private sector. He had passed away due to an illness and his body has been preserved at a hospital in Tel Aviv, the capital of Israel. 

According to the members of Israel Telangana Association who are completing the formalities, uncertainty looms over when the body could be repatriated to India. The airspace over Israel remains closed and the flight services have been suspended due to the ongoing war. The family, who are aware of the developments, has been told to be prepared for a long waiting period.

“The embassy has been informed about the worker’s death. We have no choice but to wait for the flights to resume as airports are closed. It may even take 2-3 weeks for the body to be transported to India. Under usual circumstances, we transport the body within one week,” said Soma Ravi, President of Israel Telangana Association. 

A large number of migrants from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are in Israel, mostly working in the healthcare and construction industries. Though they are accustomed to the war drills in Israel, the intense missile attacks from Iran over the last few days, have kept them, along with the local population, on high alert. 

In the last 48 hours, a missile had landed in the colony on the outskirts of Tel Aviv where a sizeable number of people are from Telangana. “At around 5 am we received a phone alert which was followed by a siren. We woke up and hurried into the bunkers. Fortunately, no Telugu worker was injured in the explosion which occurred a few hundred meters away from where we live,” said Ravi. 

India