150 Indians trapped in Kazakhstan after brawl in oil field leaves 30 Arabs wounded

The Department of Non Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA Roots) got in touch with the Indian Embassy after reports claimed that as many as 150 Indians are stranded in an oil field in Kazakhstan’s Tengiz after a brawl between workers broke out there. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan directed the NORKA to take immediate action and the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) has requested for the details of the Indians trapped.

The brawl between Kazakh workers and their Arab colleagues in one of Kazakhstan's largest oil fields has left 30 people wounded and led to an outcry in Lebanon and Jordan. Videos of the attacks on Arab engineers and workers were widely circulated on social media in Arab countries. The scenes showed them being kicked and punched by large numbers of local workers. Some of those attacked were covered in blood and badly bruised.

This is an oil field in Kazakhstan. Arab engineers and their colleagues were severely assaulted after a Lebanese guy posted a selfie with a local woman. All in the name of "honor culture". Astonishing that this happens in 2019. H/T: @ChristerSfeir. https://t.co/73kk0UplGu

— Amir Sariaslan (@AmirSariaslan) June 30, 2019

On Twitter, MoS for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said: “Some Indian workers were present when the incident took place. However no serious injury to any Indian has been reported to our embassy.”

Some Indian workers were present when the incident took place. However no serious injury to any Indian has been reported to our embassy @indembastana. @narendramodi @PMOIndia @AmitShah @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia @VMBJP

— V. Muraleedharan (@MOS_MEA) June 30, 2019

The Indian Mission in Kazakhstan tweeted an emergency number to help the stranded Indians.  

“The embassy is in constant touch with the local authorities and local Indians in Atyrau,” Muraleedharan said.

Interfax-Kazakhstan said Saturday's brawl erupted after a Lebanese contractor reportedly posted a photo on WhatsApp featuring a Kazakh female colleague that many in the former Soviet nation saw as insulting. It reported on Sunday that the field is managed by Tengizchevroil, or TCO, a joint venture that includes Chevron and ExxonMobil.

Nurlan Nogayev, the governor of Atyrau region, said during a meeting with company management that the brawl resulted from disparities in working conditions between foreign contractors and local Kazakh employees.

According to Lebanese and Jordanian officials, the wounded engineers and workers include Lebanese, Jordanians and Palestinians. Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri ordered officials to follow the case.

Lebanese Defence Minister Elias Bou Saab also called his counterpart in Kazakhstan to discuss protecting the Lebanese workers. Maj Gen Mohammad Kheir, head of a government agency charged with rescue and relief operations, told the local MTV television that the situation is under control. He said a total of 17 Arabs, including one Lebanese and six Palestinians using Lebanese travel documents, were among those wounded.

Lebanon's ambassador to Kazakhstan, Jescar Khoury, told local media that all Lebanese citizens who worked at the oil field are now under police protection in a hotel in a nearby city.

In Jordan, Crown Prince Hussein asked the country's prime minister and foreign minister to follow the case. In September 2017, a brawl erupted between Kazakh and Indian construction workers in the Kazakh capital, Nur-Sultan, formerly known as Astana.

The fight was sparked when a Kazakh guard attempted to prevent an allegedly intoxicated Indian contractor from leaving the construction site.

Official figures say that just 30 people were involved in the brawl. But independent outlets reported up to 700 engaged in the fight, which led to road closures in the capital.

In the end, 61 Indian nationals were expelled from Kazakhstan for disciplinary violations. 

(With AP inputs)