Stung by a stunning leak of classified records indicating links between the Inter State Intelligence and the Taliban-Al Qaeda network, the White House came out in defence of Pakistan, insisting that the US-Pak alliance has led to significant blows against the Al Qaeda leadership since 2009.
An explosion occurred outside a temple in Amritsar, Punjab, India, when a motorcycle-borne person threw an explosive device towards it, damaging a portion of its wall and shattering window panes. While no one was hurt in the incident, the explosion caused panic among residents. The incident has sparked concern about law and order in the state and led to accusations against the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government. The police are investigating the incident and have collected samples from the site to identify the material used in the explosion.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna has disapproved of Home Secretary G K Pillai's remarks on the Inter State Intelligence's role in Mumbai terror attacks on the eve of Indo-Pak talks.
'Had Haji Pir and/or Skardu been taken, the message would have gone out not just to General Asim Munir and his cohort in the Pakistan army but to the Pakistani people that every terrorist incident in India would lead to substantial loss of territory in PoK.'
Even as the Inter State Intelligence stands completely exposed in the eyes of the public for its terror links, in particular those against India, the Obama Administration has argued that New Delhi should continue its dialogue process with Islamabad.
The Delhi police chargesheeted disgraced diplomat Madhuri Gupta on Tuesday accusing her of passing secret information to Pakistan's Inter State Intelligence during her posting in Islamabad.
India has rejected Pakistan's claim that it was in agreement with it that Home Secretary G K Pillai's remarks regarding Inter State Intelligence role in Mumbai attacks were uncalled for.
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a Canadian national accused of involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, has been extradited to India from the United States. Rana's interrogation is expected to shed light on the role of Pakistani state actors in the attacks, which claimed 166 lives. Indian authorities are particularly interested in his travels across India in the days leading up to the attacks, including visits to Hapur, Agra, Delhi, Kochi, Ahmedabad, and Mumbai. Rana's extradition follows a lengthy legal battle, with the US Supreme Court ultimately denying his application to challenge it. Rana is known to be associated with Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley, one of the main conspirators of the 26/11 attacks. The investigation into the Mumbai attacks has implicated senior members of terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul Jihadi Islami (HuJI), as well as officials from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Slamming Pakistan for failing to check terror groups operating from its soil against India, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday demanded that organisations like Pakistan's Inter State Intelligence be put under "international watch" and the US government be asked to stop extending financial aid to it as it was being misused.
The US gave a heads up to India, besides Afghanistan and Pakistan, on the leak of more than 90,000 classified US military documents on the war against terrorism, a senior administration official said.
The Nagpur district court on Monday handed life imprisonment to former BrahMos Aerospace Pvt Ltd engineer Nishant Agarwal under the Official Secrets Act for spying for Pakistan's intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Terrorists targeted Pakistan's powerful Inter State Intelligence for the second time in less than a month on Tuesday, as suicide bombers struck its office in eastern Multan city detonating their vehicle packed with up to 1,000 kg of explosives, killing at least 12 people and injuring 47 others.
Inter State Intelligence chief Lt Gen Shuja Pasha has cancelled a scheduled visit to Britain in protest against Prime Minister David Cameron's remarks that Pakistan must stop promoting "export of terror," though President Asif Ali Zardari will go ahead with a planned trip to London next week.
In the wake of India's assertion that the Inter State Intelligence was involved in the Mumbai attacks, the Obama Administration has said it was investigating the matter to find out whether Pakistan's spy agency played a role in the 26/11 terror strikes.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has undergone a significant transformation, evolving from hit-and-run attacks to carrying out sophisticated operations with tactical precision. The group's tactics and targets have become increasingly audacious, targeting security forces, Chinese nationals, and innocent civilians. Experts attribute the BLA's evolution to various factors, including the leadership of Bashir Zeb, the group's growing intelligence network, and its exploitation of the grievances of the Baloch people. The BLA's actions are a cause for concern, as the group's sophisticated attacks pose a major challenge to security forces.
'If Pakistan's army wants to escalate violence in Kashmir, they have an unlimited supply of jihadis they can train and send. That's not an issue for them.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi advocated for a global framework for artificial intelligence (AI) based on open source, emphasizing the need for trust, transparency, and the elimination of biases. Co-chairing the AI Action Summit with French President Emmanuel Macron, Modi highlighted the transformative potential of AI across various domains, including politics, economics, security, and society. He stressed the importance of democratizing technology, addressing concerns about cyber security and disinformation, and developing quality data sets free from biases. Modi also acknowledged the need for open-source AI ecosystems to foster trust and transparency, while emphasizing the importance of localized technology for effectiveness and usefulness. Recognizing the potential of AI to improve health, education, and agriculture, Modi proposed pooling resources and talent to leverage the technology for sustainable development goals. Addressing concerns about job displacement, he emphasized that while the nature of work may evolve, technology creates new opportunities. Modi highlighted India's leadership in AI adoption and data privacy solutions, emphasizing the nation's readiness to share its expertise and contribute to an AI future that benefits all.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into allegations of Pakistan links of Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi's British wife Elizabeth Colburn. Sarma alleged that Colburn had visited Pakistan after her marriage and that there are apprehensions of ISI infiltration into the Chief Minister's Office when Gogoi's father, the late Tarun Gogoi, was the chief minister. Sarma also shared screenshots of social media posts by Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, an advisor of the Pakistan Planning Commission and a former colleague of Colburn, claiming that the relationship between the Gogois and Sheikh appeared to be "deeply rooted." Sarma's allegations have been rejected by the Congress as "laughable and entertaining."
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has accused Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi of raising questions on sensitive defence matters in Parliament after his marriage to a British citizen. Sarma alleged that Gogoi's wife, Elizabeth Colburn, has links with the Pakistani establishment, including working for an organisation allegedly a front for the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Gogoi has rejected the allegations as "baseless" and said the BJP is trying to divert attention from its own failures.
'It could take the form of sporadic LoC violation through heavy artillery and mortar fire, focusing on border villages where the Hindu Dogra population is predominant.'
'Militants are playing Pakistan's game in the name of Islam in Kashmir,' daughter-in-law of Maqbool Butt told Pakistan's Daily Times.
The FIR pointed out that the accused persons booked by the Central agency were instructed to hurl hand grenades at public gatherings and processions in order to create communal tension.
Once identified, these individuals are drawn into private groups where they are exposed to manipulative content, including fabricated videos depicting atrocities allegedly committed by security forces, the officials said.
A terror operative who was the main shooter in the grenade attack on the Punjab police intelligence headquarters in Mohali last year has been arrested from Uttar Pradesh, an official of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Wednesday.
Asim Malik's shift to the important DG, ISI post comes as something of a surprise now, but it indicates the army chief's confidence in him, notes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
De-centralised execution should drive the operational concept and support military strategy, under a unified command architecture. Enablers and technology need to be positioned first for such an activity to be undertaken, recommends Lieutenant General Anil Chait (retd).
A joint team of multiple forces are undertaking the offensive to target some senior and most-wanted Naxal commanders, official sources said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday mooted the idea of "One Nation, One Uniform" for the police, saying it is just a suggestion for consideration and he is not trying to impose it on the states.
Vikas Yadav, 39, was employed by the Cabinet Secretariat, which houses India's foreign intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the federal prosecutors claimed on Thursday in an indictment filed in a US court in New York.
Former ISI DG Faiz Hameed's arrest sends a strong message to PTI supporters that Imran Khan's culpability for the May 9, 2023 violence could well be drawn within the purview of military courts, especially if General Hameed turns approver to save his skin, explains Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
'The focus of the legislation will be to minimise user harm and increase the accountability of platforms, while also promoting innovation.'
The NIA on Wednesday took over the probe in the murder case of Shaurya Chakra awardee Balwinder Singh Sandhu, who was gunned down by two bike-borne men under a conspiracy by Pakistan-based Khalistani terrorists and ISI handlers, an official said.
Shah said there is a need to not only combat terrorism but also dismantle its entire ecosystem, and for this "we must work with the spirit of the whole of government and Team India".
Sheikh Hasina, who quit as prime minister and fled Bangladesh, will be back in the country as soon as democracy is restored, his son Sajeeb Wazed Joy said on Thursday and blamed Pakistan's intelligence agency, ISI, for fuelling the ongoing unrest in the country.
A high-level security review meeting held between senior police official of Assam and Meghalaya in Guwahati on Wednesday decided to launch joint operation against marauding Garo National Liberation Army militants. The ultras have killed 12 people, including five policemen and seven villagers on both sides of the inter-state boundary since Sunday.
Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad launched to fight terrorism across country.
Pakistan military Thursday said it used multiple weapons, including killer drones, to carry out effective strikes against hideouts inside Iran used by militants of two leading Baloch terrorist groups responsible for recent attacks in the country.
Officials said this was another example of Pakistan misusing higher studies as bait for recruitment in terror groups.
Reports (not denied by India) that the USA had 'for the first time provided real-time details to their Indian counterparts on the Chinese positions and force strength in advance of a PLA incursion' into Tawang at the LAC in December 2022, helping India thwart China's expansionist designs, show how operationally effective the USA-India friendship has become on the ground. A engaging excerpt from Sreeram Chaulia's must-read new book, Friends: India's Closest Strategic Partners.
The probe into the November 19 explosion in Karnataka's coastal city of Mangaluru is expanding across two more southern states, as the "global terrorist organisation-inspired" key suspect behind the blast is said to have visited Tamil Nadu and Kerala and police teams are looking into possible local accomplices and links to the Thirthalli native.
