India

Salman Khan again targeted; crime branch probes firing at actor’s Mumbai home

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The chilling act was committed by at least two unidentified persons sporting helmets who came speeding on a motorcycle and fired at least four shots in the direction of Galaxy Apartment, before zooming off on the dark and deserted road.

Published Date – 14 April 2024, 11:49 AM


Salman Khan again targeted; crime branch probes firing at actor’s Mumbai home


Mumbai: With Bollywood megastar Salman Khan again targeted, the Mumbai Police Crime Branch entered the scene to probe at least three-four bullets fired at the actor’s Bandra West home early this morning, officials said on Sunday.

The chilling act was committed by at least two unidentified persons sporting helmets who came speeding on a motorcycle and fired at least four shots in the direction of Galaxy Apartment, before zooming off on the dark and deserted road.

For the past several years, Salman Khan and his family have been facing death threats from certain Punjab-based mafia groups like the Bishnoi gang.

In the past couple of years, he and his father Salim Khan have been issued death threats in different ways, including dropping a letter to the family.

It was not immediately known if Salman Khan was at home or not on a weekend holiday just after the Ramzan Eid celebrations.

On learning of the incident, a Bandra Police team rushed to the Khan household and launched preliminary investigations, and also tightened security in the vicinity.

The police are scanning the CCTV footage in the area to trace out the shooters and check their motives and targets, and more details are awaited.

Hours later, a Crime Branch and Forensic Team with ballistics experts also arrived on the scene and found at least one bullet mark on the gate of the building entrance.

Salman Khan, 58, lives with almost his entire joint family comprising parents, brothers and their kin at the landmark Galaxy Apartments on the picturesque Bandra sea-face area of suburban north-west Mumbai.

For several years, Salim Khan and Salman Khan have been getting death threats from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang after the 1998 blackbuck poaching incident in Rajasthan.

In 2022, while on a morning stroll near his home, Salim Khan found a note saying “Salim Khan…Salman Khan… bahut jald aapka Moose Wala hoga” — a reference to Sidhu Moose Wala, a Punjabi rapper, who was brutally shot dead near his home on May 29, 2022, shaking the entertainment industry.

Following the multiple threats to the Mumbai-based actor, the city police have upgraded the security cover of Salman Khan, plus issued him a permit for a gun licence and last year, the actor acquired a new bullet-proof SUV as additional protection to move around.

India

Ayodhya gears up to welcome 25L devotees on Ram Navami

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Police officials deployed at Ayodhya for the Ram Navami celebrations, which will begin from midnight on April 16, have been asked to do 24-hour long shifts.

Published Date – 14 April 2024, 10:39 AM


Ayodhya gears up to welcome 25L devotees on Ram Navami


Ayodhya: With just two days left for Ram Navami, Ayodhya is gearing up for massive crowd control — bigger than the one seen in the holy city during the pran pratistha ceremony in January.

Police officials deployed at Ayodhya for the Ram Navami celebrations, which will begin from midnight on April 16, have been asked to do 24-hour long shifts.

Chief Secretary D.S. Mishra said that the government is anticipating the arrival of around 25 lakh devotees in the temple town.

He said that the Health Department had been directed to station ambulances at all main areas while all hospitals have been directed to remain in alert mode. Temporary health centres have been set up at 12 spots and they will be equipped with all necessary medicines and facilities, he said.

“For crowd control and the convenience of devotees, large LED screens are being set up in the Ayodhya and in holding and parking areas where live streaming from the sanctum sanctorum of the temple will be done. Security personnel will be stationed in the temple premises and the Mela area on 24×7 duty. CCTV coverage of the entire area will be done around the clock. These should be used to monitor the movement of devotees, for traffic control and crowd assessment,” the chief secretary said.

He further said that 24 automatic number-plate recognition cameras had been installed across Ayodhya and cameras installed at the borders of Ambedkar Nagar, Sultanpur and Barabanki districts would be monitored to get an assessment of visitors entering the city.

India

Five youths arrested for forced conversion and gang-rape of minor in UP

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The incident was reported from the Hardi area of the district where a Dalit minor girl, staying in her grandmother’s house, was kidnapped, converted, and gang-raped by the accused.

Published Date – 14 April 2024, 08:52 AM


Five youths arrested for forced conversion and gang-rape of minor in UP


Bahraich: Five youths have been arrested for the forcible conversion and gang-rape of a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh‘s Bahraich.

The incident was reported from the Hardi area of the district where a Dalit minor girl, staying in her grandmother’s house, was kidnapped, converted, and gang-raped by the accused.

All five accused were arrested on Saturday.

The mother told police that her minor daughter, who was at her grandmother’s residence near Raji Chauraha, was kidnapped on February 2 by five youths from the neighbourhood, who converted her to their religion and gang-raped her.

A case was registered and Superintendent of Police (SP) Vrinda Shukla along with other officers visited the site and gave directions for evidence collection and stringent action against the accused. The girl said that the youths had threatened to kill her if she spoke up.

The accused — Anees, Saddam, Mohiuddeen, Aleem and Baura — were taken into custody and legal proceedings have been initiated against them under sections 363, 342, 376-D, 506, of IPC, the SP said on Sunday.

The girl will be sent for medical examination.

India

Why Surveys Are Predicting Rishi Sunak's Defeat In UK Polls

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Unpopular Rishi Sunak In 'Doom Loop' As UK PM Stares At Election Defeat

Rishi Sunak is striving to revive his party’s fortunes

He’s failed to meet key pledges, hit an opinion poll low, and even cramped the style of a popular Adidas shoe: Britain’s beleaguered Conservative leader Rishi Sunak appears destined to lose a looming general election.

Two tax cuts and a slightly improving economy have failed to boost Sunak’s political fortunes, while criticism from ex-prime minister Boris Johnson and speculation over Brexit figurehead Nigel Farage’s intentions are adding to his woes.

Political scientist Rob Ford reckoned Sunak has been left looking “hapless” in the face of seemingly unstoppable political momentum away from his ruling Tories.

“When the herd moves, it moves. There’s not much you can do,” he told AFP.

Sunak, 43, has yet to announce the date of the election. He is expected to call it for October or November but is legally allowed to wait until January at the latest.

Surveys overwhelmingly show that Britons want an end to 14 years of Tory rule, and nothing that Sunak has done since he became PM 18 months ago appears to be changing their minds.

A YouGov poll released this month found that the Conservatives would win just 155 seats in the UK parliament, down from the 365 that they won under Johnson at the last election in December 2019.

Keir Starmer’s opposition Labour Party would win 403 seats, the same survey found, leading to a whopping 154-seat majority.

“Right now, it’s very difficult to see how the Conservatives remain in government after the next election simply because of the scale of shift they need,” said Keiran Pedley, director of politics at polling firm Ipsos.

– ‘Moving the dial’ –

Sunak succeeded Liz Truss in October 2022 after Tory MPs forced her out following a disastrous 49 days in office, during which her mini-budget spooked financial markets, sank the pound and sent mortgage payments skywards.

She had followed Johnson, who himself had been defenestrated by colleagues following a series of scandals, including over illegal parties in Downing Street during Covid-19 lockdowns.

While the turmoil of the two previous administrations has hamstrung Sunak, political analysts say he has also contributed to his own plight by falling short on promises and failing to connect with voters.

Despite promising to, he has not stopped migrants arriving from France on small boats. National Health Service waiting lists are higher than when he took office. Economic growth is stagnant, although inflation has more than halved.

Sunak has also tried a number of leadership and policy resets that have fallen flat, including watering down carbon net zero commitments in a pitch to motorists and recently talking about extremism.

The rightward tilt comes as the fringe Reform UK party threatens to deprive the Conservatives of key seats, particularly if Farage stands for them as he has teased.

“(Sunak has) been trying to find this magic wand or silver bullet to turn things around but at the moment none of it seems to be moving the dial,” Pedley told AFP.

An Ipsos poll published in March found that 58 percent of voters view the Conservatives unfavourably, the highest percentage this parliament. Only 19 percent view them favourably.

The survey gave Sunak a net favourability rating of minus 38, the lowest of any politician included.

– ‘Rather awkward’ –

Critics often accuse the wealthy ex-financier of being out of touch with average Britons.

“He is a combination of being rather awkward and nerdy, and then if challenged he always sounds really irritable,” Ford, politics professor at Manchester University, said.

Sunak is striving to revive his party’s fortunes, traversing the country to meet voters as rumours swirl that a disastrous showing in local elections on May 2 could spark a leadership challenge.

He can’t seem to catch a break, though.

This week, Johnson slammed Sunak’s proposed comprehensive smoking ban as “nuts”, while Sunak’s spokesperson had to deny that the PM was preparing to run an AI fund in the event of election defeat.

Sunak even offered a “fulsome apology to the Samba community” after photographs of him wearing the Adidas trainers sparked headlines like: “Eight trainers to wear now that Rishi has killed Sambas.”

“There’s a kind of a doom loop that politicians can get into where they’re unpopular,” explained Ford.

“The media know they’re unpopular so everything they do is reported negatively, which further reinforces their unpopularity.”

Political observers say polls usually narrow as voting day nears and suspect liberal Conservatives might ultimately stick with the party to reduce the size of a Labour win and ensure the Tories are an effective opposition.

“Everything at this point really is becoming about damage limitation,” said Ford.

 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

India

Explained: Who Are Revolutionary Guards, Group That Calls The Shots In Iran

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Explained: Who Are Revolutionary Guards, Group That Calls The Shots In Iran

The IRGC oversees Iran’s ballistic missile programme

Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards launched a drone attack against targets in Israel on Saturday, Iranian English-language press TV cited Iranian sources as saying.

A senior commander in the Corps’ Quds force, Mohammad Reza Zahedi, had been killed on April 1 in an airstrike on Iranian diplomatic premises in the Syrian capital, Damascus, that Iran blamed on Israel, prompting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to vow revenge.

Following are some questions and answers about the IRGC, Iran’s dominant military force, which has its own army, navy, air force and intelligence wing: 

WHAT IS THE IRGC?

It was set up shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution to protect the Shi’ite Muslim clerical ruling system and provide a counterweight to the regular armed forces.

It answers to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The IRGC has an estimated 125,000-strong military with army, navy and air units. It also commands the Basij religious militia, a volunteer paramilitary force loyal to the clerical establishment that is often used to crack down on anti-government protests. 

Basijis mounted “human wave” attacks against Iraqi troops during a war in the 1980s. In peacetime, they enforce Shi’ite Iran’s Islamic social codes. Analysts say Basij volunteers may number in the millions, with 1 million active members.

The Quds Force is the IRGC’s overseas arm , which heavily influences its allied militias across the Middle East, from Lebanon to Iraq, Yemen and Syria. Its members have fought in support of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria’s civil war and have backed Iraqi security forces in their battle against Islamic State militants in recent years.

Its top commander, Major-General Qassem Soleimani, was killed by the United States in a drone attack in Iraq in 2020 that raised fears of a major conflict.

The IRGC, branded a terrorist group by the United States, has sought for years to shape the Middle East according to Iran’s interests. In 1982, it founded the heavily armed Shi’ite political movement Hezbollah in Lebanon as a vehicle to export Iran’s Islamic Revolution and fight Israeli forces that had invaded Lebanon that year. 

Hezbollah is now a major military force that has played a role in regional conflicts. 

WHAT ARE THE IRGC’S MILITARY CAPABILITIES?

The IRGC oversees Iran’s ballistic missile programme, regarded by experts as the largest in the Middle East.

The Guards have used the missiles to strike Sunni Muslim militants in Syria and Iranian Kurdish opposition groups in northern Iraq. The United States, European powers and Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for a 2019 missile and drone attack that crippled the world’s biggest oil processing facility in Saudi  Arabia, though Iran denied any involvement. 

Former U.S. president Donald Trump pointed to Iran’s missile programme as one of the points not addressed in its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and cited that as a reason for pulling out of the agreement in 2018. 

The Guards have extensive conventional combat hardware and capabilities, which were showcased in their involvement in the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.

WHAT IS THE IRGC’S POSITION IN IRAN’S POLITICAL SYSTEM?

Former Revolutionary Guards officers occupy key positions in Iran’s establishment, from the government to parliament. Most of President Ebrahim Raisi’s cabinet are former IRGC officers.

The IRGC’s mandate to protect revolutionary values has prompted it to speak out when it felt the system was threatened.

WHAT ABOUT BUSINESS INTERESTS?

After the 1980s war with Iraq, the IRGC became heavily involved in Iran’s reconstruction. It has since expanded its economic interests to include a vast network of businesses worth billions of dollars, ranging from construction and telecommunication to oil and gas projects.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

India

Iran Warns US To "Stay Away" From Conflict With Israel Amid Drone Strikes

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Iran Warns US To 'Stay Away' From Conflict With Israel Amid Drone Strikes

“Should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe.”

Tehran:

Iran warned the United States Sunday to “stay away” from its conflict with Israel after Tehran launched a drone and missile attack in retaliation for a deadly strike on its Damascus consulate.

“Iran’s military action was in response to the Zionist regime’s aggression against our diplomatic premises in Damascus,” Iran’s United Nations mission said on X. 

“Should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe,” it warned. “It is a conflict between Iran and the rogue Israeli regime, from which the US MUST STAY AWAY!”

It said it hoped its action to punish the strike on its diplomatic mission would lead to no further escalation and “the matter can be deemed concluded.”

But any Iranian hopes that Israel would be left to defend itself alone were swiftly dashed, with a Pentagon official confirming that US forces were shooting down Israel-bound drones and Britain saying it stood ready to.

The April 1 strike, which was widely blamed on Israel, levelled the five-storey consular annexe of the Iranian embassy in Damascus and killed seven Revolutionary Guards, two of them generals.

The Guards warned Israel and the United States that any action they took against Iran would be reciprocated.

“We emphasise that any threat by the terrorist government of America and the Zionist regime from any country will result in a reciprocal and proportionate response,” the Guards said in a statement. 

Iran said it had carried out its attack on Israel as an act of “self-defence” following the strike on its diplomatic mission. 

“Iran emphasises its determination to decisively defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity and national interests against any illegal use of force and aggression,” the foreign ministry said.  

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

India

Sydney Stabbing That Killed 6 Was Not Ideological Attack, Say Cops

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Sydney Stabbing That Killed 6 Was Not Ideological Attack, Say Cops

“This was a terrible scene,” Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cooke told a media conference.

Sydney:

Sydney police on Sunday ruled out terror or ideology as a motive after a man killed six people in a random stabbing attack on Saturday in one of the city’s busiest shopping centres.

Police were called to the Westfield Bondi Junction mall in the city’s east just before 4 p.m. (0600 GMT) on Saturday after the stabbing reports.

Witnesses described how the man, who was identified by police as Joel Cauchi on Sunday, wore shorts and an Australian national rugby league jersey. He was seen running through the mall with a knife randomly attacking people. Some shoppers and staff at the mall tried to stop him and crowds sheltered in shuttered shops.

The 40-year-old assailant fatally knifed six people and injured at least 12 before he was shot dead by a senior female police officer who confronted him, it was reported.

“This was a terrible scene,” Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cooke told a media conference Sunday, who confirmed the man was known to police in Queensland.

“There is still to this point, nothing that we have, no information we received, no evidence we have recovered or intelligence that we have gathered that would suggest that this was driven by any particular motivation, ideology or otherwise.”

Cooke said it had been determined Cauchi had suffered mental health issues in the past and police had spoken to his family after the attack.

Five of the six victims killed were women, and a number of people including a nine-month-old baby were taken to hospital with stab wounds, police said on Saturday. The baby was in a serious but stable condition, police said.

The mother of the baby was reported by local media as having died in hospital from her injuries.

“Our hearts go out to the families and loved ones of those who have been so brutally killed during such a senseless attack,” a statement from King Charles in reference to the attacks said on the Royal Family’s X account.

Australia, a country of about 26 million people, has some of the world’s toughest gun and knife laws, and attacks such as the one on Saturday are rare.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

India

Hamas Rejects Israel's Ceasefire Response, Sticks To Main Demands

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Hamas Rejects Israel's Ceasefire Response, Sticks To Main Demands

There was no official Israeli comment on Hamas’ response.

Cairo:

The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has rejected an Israeli ceasefire proposal, saying on Saturday it had handed to mediators in Egypt and Qatar its response to the proposal it had received last Monday.

After more than six months of war with Israel in Gaza, the negotiations remain deadlocked, with Hamas sticking to its demands that any agreement must end the war.

“We.. reaffirm our adherence to our demands and the national demands of our people; with a permanent ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation army from the entire Gaza Strip, the return of the displaced to their areas and places of residence, intensification of the entry of relief and aid, and the start of reconstruction,” the Islamist faction said.

Israel wants to secure the return of hostages seized by Hamas in its Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war, but says it will not stop fighting until Hamas is destroyed as a military force. It also says it still plans to carry out an assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than a million civilians have taken refuge.

Hamas said on Saturday it was ready to conclude a prisoners-for-hostages swap deal with Israel that would see the release of 133 hostages still believed to be held in Gaza in return for hundreds of Palestinians jailed in Israel.

There was no official Israeli comment on Hamas’ response.

The Hamas statement came a few days after Israel killed several members of the family of the group’s chief Ismail Haniyeh in Gaza, raising fears among the families of hostages that it would derail efforts to secure their release from Gaza.

Speaking to Reuters in Qatar a day after the killing, Haniyeh said his group still sought a deal but accused Israel of procrastinating and evading a response to the group’s demands.

Global calls for a ceasefire have been growing as the war has entered its seventh month, but there has been little sign of progress in the talks.

Hamas is demanding an end to the Israeli offensive, a withdrawal of Israeli forces, and permission for Gaza’s displaced Palestinians to return to their homes.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

India

Israel Says Iran Launched Drone Salvo, Monitoring Airspace To Shoot Them

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Israel Says Iran Launched Drone Salvo, Monitoring Airspace To Shoot Them

Joe Biden has pledged to stand with Israel against Iran, the White House said.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said it launched dozens of drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday, an attack that may trigger a major escalation between the regional archenemies, with the U.S. pledging to back Israel.

Israel’s military said the drones, which Iraqi security sources said were seen flying over the country from Iran, would take hours to reach their targets.

Israeli Channel 12 said missiles Iran had launched would likely strike sooner but that some missiles and drones had been shot down over Syria or Jordan.

Iran has vowed retaliation for what it called an Israeli strike on its Damascus consulate on April 1 that killed seven Guards officers including two senior commanders and said its strike was a punishment for “Israeli crimes”. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for the consulate attack.

U.S. President Joe Biden, who on Friday warned Iran against attacking Israel after saying such a scenario appeared imminent, has pledged to stand with Israel against Iran, the White House said.

A retired Israeli general, Amos Yadlin, told the country’s Channel 12 news that the Iranian drones were equipped with 20 kg (44 pounds) of explosives each.

Israel’s military said sirens would sound in any threatened areas and that its defences were poised to deal with them.

Israel and neighbouring Jordan, which lies between Iraq and Israel, said they were closing their airspace on Saturday night and Jordan announced a state of emergency.

Syria, an ally of Iran, said it was putting its ground-to-air defence systems around the capital and major bases on high alert, army sources there said.

The Gaza war between Israel and Hamas, now in its seventh month, has driven up tensions in the region, spreading to fronts with Lebanon and Syria and drawing long-range fire at Israeli targets from as far away as Yemen and Iraq.

Those clashes now threaten to morph into a direct open conflict pitting Iran and its regional allies against Israel and its main supporter the United States.

Earlier on Saturday, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported that a Guards helicopter had boarded and taken into Iranian waters the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries.

MSC, which operates the Aries, confirmed that Iran had seized the ship and said it was working “with the relevant authorities” for its safe return and the wellbeing of its 25 crew.

MSC leases the Aries from Gortal Shipping, an affiliate of Zodiac Maritime, Zodiac said in a statement, adding that MSC is responsible for all the vessel’s activities. Zodiac is partly owned by Israeli businessman Eyal Ofer.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused Iran of piracy.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

India

Man Kills Live-In Partner With Hammer, Poisons Son, Later Dies By Suicide

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Man Kills Live-In Partner With Hammer, Poisons Son, Later Dies By Suicide

Police have registered a case of murder against deceased Raut.

Nagpur:

A 30-year-old man allegedly committed suicide after killing his live-in partner and their three-year-old son in a hotel room in Nagpur city of Maharashtra on Saturday evening, police said.

The bodies of Sachin Vinodkumar Raut, Naznin (29), and their son Yug were found in a room in Golden Key hotel situated near Gajanan Colony in MIDC area by staff, who in turn informed the police.

“Raut was found hanging from the ceiling fan, while his live-in partner Naznin was found with a head injury and a hammer with blood stains lying nearby. No injuries were found on Yug’s body,” a police official said.

Preliminary investigation suggests that Raut fatally attacked Naznin with the hammer before either poisoning or strangling the boy to death. He then hanged himself, the official added.

A truck driver by profession, Raut was already married with two children. He was having an extra-marital affair with Naznin, originally from Madhya Pradesh, he said.

Raut never divorced his wife and started living with Naznin.

“He later started avoiding Naznin. This led to frequent arguments between them. Finally, they decided to stay separately. On Friday, both signed a mutual agreement on a stamp paper of Rs 500 that they would stay separately. Police have seized the stamp paper for investigation,” the official said.

Raut, Naznin, and the boy checked in at the hotel in the afternoon, he said, adding that further investigation is on.

Police have registered a case of murder against deceased Raut. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)