India working closely with Somalian authorities for return of 33 nationals: EAM Jaishankar

India's foreign minister Dr S. Jaishankar on Friday, October 23 said that Indian High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya is working closely with the Somalian authorities on "relief and return" of the 33 Indian citizens stuck in Mogadishu, Somalia. Jaishankar in a Tweet informed that the Ministry of External Affairs is also in touch with the Somali Embassy in India, adding that he hopes for an early resolution. 

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The 33 Indian citizens, who went to Somalia as labourers are being held hostage by the company where they have been working for the last ten months. As per reports, the first two months for the labourers, who are mostly from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, went smoothly but then they faced trouble as the company stopped their salary and started treating them poorly. 

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The Indian embassy in Somalia was shut down following the civil war in the country broke out in 1991. Since then, the Indian embassy in Nairobi, Kenya is jointly accredited to Somalia and now they have been tasked with the job to work with the Somalian authorities in getting the labourers out of the West African nation. Somalia, however, maintains an embassy in New Delhi and as per Jaishankar, they are being contacted for help. 

Read: Somalia: Security Forces End Deadly Siege At Mogadishu Hotel; At Least 15 Dead

Somalia instability

Somalia is a fragile state with a lot of uncertainties, and the civil war that was sparked in 1991 following the fall of the Somali Democratic Republic, which was established in 1969, is still ongoing. The war created a power vacuum in the country and many warring factions have been formed in the country ever since, whose primary objective is to take control and assert influence. In 2012, constitutional reforms were brought in the country and a federal government was formed the same year. 

Read: Somalia Sees Internet Blackout After Prime Minister Ousted