Rizwan Haider, a resident of Behta Hajipur in Ghaziabad’s Loni, is pursuing MBBS in Tehran. He was living in a university hostel that was recently destroyed in a missile strike amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Iran, said his family.

“I do not know what to do and whom to ask for help. We can only speak to the media and request Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring my son back to India,” said Rizwan’s mother, Yaman Rani, 45.

She said she last heard from her son on Tuesday afternoon. Since then, there has been no call. “He told us his hostel building had collapsed and his laptop and phone were all gone.”

According to his family, Rizwan narrowly escaped the recent missile attack. He had gone to a nearby hotel with friends for a meal when the missile hit the hostel building. Upon returning, he found the building was reduced to rubble. He then called his family using someone else’s phone to inform them he was safe.

“From childhood, he dreamed of becoming either a scientist or a highly qualified doctor. We sent him to Iran as it was economically feasible for us,” said his father, Mohammad Ali, 51, a grocery store owner in Loni.

Ali said Rizwan was planning to come home after his second-year exams, which were scheduled to begin on Wednesday. “He secured admission at Tehran University last July. He was to return home this month, but everything changed. We do not know what to do or who to talk to. It has been a year, we have not seen our son’s face,” Ali told The Indian Express.

“He told us he was fine, but we are worried. He has no phone, and we do not know when the next call will come. We want to tell the government to bring him home,” said Ali.

Recalling the building collapse, Ghulam Abbas, Rizwan’s maternal uncle, said the family had told him to go out to get something to eat. “I urge the Indian government to bring my son and all Indian students in Iran back safely,” said his uncle.

Iran and Israel have been engaged in an intense conflict since last week, with both sides raining missiles on each other. While Israel says it struck Iran in self-defence, fearing a nuclear threat, Iran launched an attack in retaliation.

India on Tuesday asked its nationals to leave Tehran. At least 110 Indian students who were stranded in Iran are reported to have crossed the border into Armenia, through arrangements made by the Indian Embassy in Tehran.