India evacuates 17 more from Iraq

New Delhi: Seventeen more Indians have been evacuated from Iraq's conflict zone, the government announced Tuesday.

"With the help of (Iraqi) authorities, we have been able to evacuate 17 more Indian nationals from the conflict zone. They are now in Baghdad and will come back very soon," the ministry of external affairs said.

Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said the 39 Indians abducted and in captivity in Mosul had "not been hurt or harmed".

The 46 Indian nurses in Tikrit were also safe, he added.

The government Monday said a total of 120 Indians were stranded in the conflict zone in Iraq where Sunni insurgents have made rapid advances against the Iraqi authorities.