All the 46 Indian nurses who were in the captivity of ISIS militants in Iraq, are now free and will be flown back home. External Affairs Ministry spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said that the nurses are in touch with Indian Embassy officials in Baghdad and will be moved to Erbil tonight from where they will board an Air India plane. The plane will also carry 70 other Indian nationals from Kirkuk. The plane has already taken off from New Delhi. He said, the flight will directly take them to Kochi as most of them are from Kerala. The spokesman said, resources are being pushed into extricating other Indian nationals stranded in conflict zone in Iraq.

Mr Akbaruddin said besides one thousand five hundred, who have signed up to depart largely from southern part of Iraq, there are also people wanting to leave the northern part. He said, so far, two thousand Indian nationals have indicated their willingness to leave the country.

The move to release 46 Indian nurses comes a day after 32 abducted Turkish truck drivers were released by ISIL militants.

AIR correspondent reports that 39 Indian construction workers kidnapped two weeks ago are still in captivity in Mosul and are safe. It has been difficult to contact them since either their cellphones are switched off or phones have been taken away from them. However reliable sources have informed that they are unharmed and safe.

In Kochi, a special counter will be opened at the airport to facilitate quick immigration and customs clearance of the nurses coming in the special flight from Erbil. Sources said the special flight with 46 Indian nurses will reach Kochi international airport by 7 am tomorrow. Airport sources said a review meeting of all the agencies were held at Kochi today and arrangements were made to face all the emergencies.

President Pranab Mukherjee has expressed relief and happiness over the news that 46 Indian nurses have reached secure area in Iraq. In a message, the President said that he is looking forward to their early and safe return to India.

Meanwhile Kerala Chief Minister Oomen Chandy thanked the efforts of Government of India, Indian Embassy in Iraq for resolving the issue. Mr Chandy was in the national capital for the last two days and held series of meetings with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and senior officials of the Ministry in this regard.