A mother in Karnataka is praying for her two children in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain; a Kerala trader in Manama is watching panic unfold around him; a Punjabi industrialist in Dubai is reaching out to stranded passengers at the airport.For nearly ten million Indians whose lives are entwined with West Asia, the attacks on Iran by the US and Israel, and the retaliation that has engulfed the Gulf, is their worst nightmare come true — plumes of smoke streaking across the sky, mobiles buzzing with alerts and messages full of concern from “back home”.For their families and friends in India, desperately hoping their loved ones remain unharmed, daily routines have given way to dread and waiting, eyes fixed on phone screens.And then there are the travellers caught in between, neither here nor there, stranded at airports across the Gulf, waiting for the clouds of conflict to clear.For all of them, this war is far more than geopolitics and strategy, it’s personal.“When I heard about the attacks, I immediately started praying for my two children there. It was only after they called to assure that they were safe that I breathed a sigh of relief,” said 56-year-old Asiya from Laila in Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada district. Her two sons live in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain.“The attack is intense. One can openly see drones and missiles passing across the sky from Dubai. A lot of debris is also falling, which has caused some losses here as well,” said S P Singh Oberoi, a Dubai-based industrialist and philanthropist hailing from Jalandhar.Story continues below this adThe Indian diaspora in West Asia is among the largest overseas Indian populations, with more than nine million residents across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries alone as of 2024, mainly concentrated in the UAE and Saudi Arabia (see chart). There are over 100,000 Indians in Israel and more than 10,000 in Iran, according to Government data, apart from thousands of students in the region.The GCC countries are also among India’s top remittance sources. According to the RBI’s Remittances Survey 2025, inward remittances to India totalled $118.7 billion in 2023-24. And on this list, the UAE ranked second after the US, contributing 19.2 per cent, followed by Saudi Arabia at 6.7 per cent (fourth), Qatar at 4.1 per cent (sixth), Kuwait at 3.9 per cent (seventh) and Oman at 2.9 per cent (ninth).In the UAE, Indians constitute the largest ethnic community, accounting for about 35 per cent of the population. The number of resident Indian nationals is estimated at 43 lakh in 2024, with around 15 per cent living in Abu Dhabi and the rest spread across the other six Emirates, including Dubai. Kerala has the highest representation, followed by Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, with significant numbers also from UP, Bihar and Punjab.Gulf destinations dominate Indian outbound travel, too. In 2025, the UAE received about 86 lakh Indian travellers, Saudi Arabia 34 lakh and Qatar 11 lakh. However, Iranian drone and missile attacks targeting hotels and airports in the region have led to the closure of major hubs in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, the cancellation of over 1,000 flights, disruption at hubs handling around 90,000 passengers daily, and at least four reported injuries at Dubai International Airport.Story continues below this adAccording to Oberoi, the UAE government has advised residents not to step out “unless absolutely necessary”. “Thousands of passengers from India and other countries are stranded at Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah airports due to flight disruptions,” he said.Oberoi says his organisation, Sarbat Da Bhala, is trying to assist stranded passengers despite movement restrictions. “We are accommodating several people at our own places. I appeal to people not to panic. The UAE government is cooperative. We have faced a pandemic like Covid before, and we will overcome this too. People must remain calm,” he said.Badruddin Azman, an HR professional in Dubai from Dakshina Kannada, says much of the panic is driven by misinformation. “Our parents and relatives back home are worried due to the constant stream of messages on WhatsApp and other platforms. The misinformation there, especially in family WhatsApp groups, is causing panic,” he said.“Authorities have asked us to remain indoors as debris from intercepted missiles is causing problems,” Azman said, citing the death of a Pakistani national after missile debris fell on his car. “Schools are closed till March 4 and children will have remote learning till then.”Story continues below this adIn Abu Dhabi, Mohammed Adam and Akbar Ali recall “the scare of our lives” when sirens warned of a missile attack. “We ran inside our homes fearing that residential buildings could be targeted. So far, only US bases are being hit. There hasn’t been any attack on the city as such, though it was a tough night because of the loud explosions when the missiles were intercepted,” Adam said.Among those affected by the closure of airspace in the Gulf is Deendayal Shetty, who was due to return to Dubai from Bengaluru this week. “I don’t know how long the airspace will remain closed. I had to be back in Dubai this week, which seems very unlikely now,” he said.Blast sounds are being heard repeatedly, says a trader in Manama, Bahrain’s capital, who belongs to Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala.“Food and provisions are available, although not all shops are open. The Juffair area, which witnessed missile attacks, is closed. The Bahrain government has urged both nationals and expatriates to move to shelters. Volunteers are getting calls from people seeking medicines. People are panicking mainly because several places were hit by missiles. We are told to move to shelters whenever alerts come,” he said.