India is putting in place plans for chartered flights and making other arrangements to help Indians wishing to leave Israel, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar announced late on Wednesday evening.

He did not give any details about when the operation —christened Ajay — will begin. Earlier in the day, his ministry had announced the setting up of a control room at its office in Delhi. There are around 18,000 Indians in Israel.

Round-the-clock emergency helplines have been set up in the Indian embassy in Tel Aviv and the Representative Office of India to the State of Palestine in Ramallah.