Kabul: Blast near U.S. Embassy, casualties feared

Speaking during the weekly press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India opposes attacks on merchant shipping "from any quarters" and confirmed that several Indian nationals have been affected in recent incidents.

"There have been maritime incidents involving Indian crew on foreign-flagged vessels. Of these vessels, there were 78 Indian seafarers. Of these, 70 are unhurt and escaped. Four sustained injuries over the last few days, but are stable. Unfortunately, there have been three casualties, and one seafarer is missing," he said.

India on Thursday rejected Pakistan's allegations of aggravating skirmishes with Afghanistan, calling them "baseless" and accusing Pakistan of blaming others for its own misdeeds.

An Indian crew member was killed after the US-owned tanker Safesea Vishnu was attacked near Basra, Iraq, on March 11. The Indian Embassy in Baghdad confirmed that 15 other Indian sailors were successfully evacuated and are receiving assistance as regional maritime tensions continue to escalate.

A drone strike on a Kuwaiti residential building has caused casualties and "material damage," following revelations that a previous Iranian attack on US forces was more severe than disclosed. While "robust air defences" are in place, dozens of personnel suffered "brain trauma" and other "urgent" battle injuries.

According to the Indian Embassy in Beirut, the first batch of 177 Indian nationals was repatriated to New Delhi on a charter flight arranged by their employer on Wednesday. The group was seen off at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport by India's Ambassador to Lebanon, Noor Rahman Sheikh.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday reiterated his stance on cutting trade with Spain over the NATO ally's refusal to allow the use of its military bases for operations linked to the war with Iran.

MEA official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, while addressing an Inter-Ministerial Briefing on Recent Developments in West Asia, said that the Indian Embassy in Tehran remains fully operational and is on high alert. The government is assisting Indian nationals, including students and pilgrims, who wish to leave the country. He further added that those choosing to exit Iran via land, the embassy is assisting citizens in crossing into Armenia and Azerbaijan, from where they can board commercial flights to return to India.

The Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Randhir Jasiwal, on Wednesday confirmed that the two Indian nationals have lost their lives and one still remains missing amid the ongoing West Asian conflict.

Saar said that due to Iran's strikes, which were in blatant flagration of international law, 13 civilians had died in Israel.