Bhairahawa [Nepal], April 2 : Nepal repatriated nine bodies of migrant workers from Kuwait whose bodies had been stranded due to the ongoing West Asia conflict. Along with the bodies, hundreds of stranded migrant workers were also rescued from the Gulf region.
A chartered Kuwait Airways flight landed at the Gautam Buddha International Airport (GBIA) on Wednesday late evening with the bodies and the rescued migrant workers.
"Those Nepali migrant workers who were stranded in Kuwait have been evacuated and brought here on a Kuwait Airways Boeing 777-300 aircraft. The aircraft has a passenger capacity of 345 seats, and a total of 318 passengers have arrived here today. Apart from that, the bodies of the nine Nepali migrant workers who died in Kuwait have also been flown in," Shyam Kishor Shah, the General Manager at Gautam Buddha International Airport, told ANI.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had granted permission for the flight on Monday. According to the authority, the airline had informed it of deploying a Boeing 777-300 aircraft for the operation. The charter flight was arranged in coordination with the Nepali Embassy in Kuwait, based on demand from Nepalis there. It will return empty.
According to the Foreign Employment Board, the deceased have been identified as Ramesh Kumar Mochi of Siraha, Khushiram Chaudhary of Dang, Samjhana Gole of Sindhupalchok, Kopila Dhami of Udayapur, Basanta Rai of Khotang, Yamuna Sunar of Surkhet, Krishnamraj Budha of Salyan, Manju Moktan Pakhrin of Sindhuli, and Ramesh Nepali of Kaski.
Dwarika Upreti, Executive Director of the Foreign Employment Board, said arrangements have been made to transport the bodies from Gautam Buddha International Airport to the victims' homes.
Air travel in Kuwait had been disrupted following the escalation of hostilities in the region. On February 28, the United States and Israel carried out strikes on Iran, prompting retaliatory attacks by Iran targeting American military installations in Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman. The war has entered its second month. The situation led to the suspension of operations at Kuwait's airport, delaying the repatriation process.
Flights between Nepal and Kuwait have been affected following the conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran. Regular flights between the two countries have remained suspended for 32 days since the incident.
Regular operations have not resumed since the attack at Kuwait International Airport.
Following the attack in Iran, both Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways suspended their regular flights between Kuwait and Nepal. Kuwait Airways has permission to operate five weekly flights, while Jazeera Airways is authorised for two.
Kuwait Airways, which began flights to Nepal on October 31, 2022, currently operates a fleet of 34 aircraft and serves 56 international destinations, including Nepal.
Previously, airlines including Qatar Airways, flydubai, Jazeera Airways, and Thai AirAsia operated international flights from Bhairahawa. Nepal's Himalaya Airlines and Nepal Airlines have also conducted international operations from the airport.