V.K. Singh says Govt. won't abandon its missing citizens in Mosul

Commenting on status of the missing 39 Indians in Iraq's Mosul, Minister of State for Ministry of External Affairs V.K. Singh said the Government would not abandon its citizens.

"We have always said that till the time we don't get proof, the government cannot abandon its citizens. That is the bottom line," he said.

Singh further said that he had brought certain information from Iraq that has been shared with the families of missing Indians and as well as the media.

Singh had visited Iraq last week to locate the missing Indians.

Earlier in the day, the Iraq Embassy to India informed that search operations are underway to locate the 39 missing Indians, further assuring there is a high level coordination between concerned Iraqi and Indian authorities to locate them.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah had also defended External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj and said that the search operation of 39 missing Indians in Iraq's Mosul was underway and the Centre was not misleading the nation.

The 39 Indians had allegedly been held hostage by the fighters aligned to the ISIS in Mosul since 2014.