'The Modi government did not deny it had acquired the NSO platform, and did not deny it was spying on its citizens by hacking into their phones,' says Aakar Patel.
Smoking of the traditional hookah was banned due to concerns that images of soldiers sharing a hookah may damage the prestige of the Israeli army.
Croatia, helped by a mistake by veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, held Italy to a 1-1 away draw on Sunday, but their evening was ruined by their fans who twice interrupted play by throwing flares onto the pitch.
Brazil held 10 presumed Islamist militants in isolation cells at a maximum security jail on Friday as police combed their computers and mobile phones for information about possible threats to next month's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Punjab chief minister Capt.Amarinder Singh has announced Rs 5 lakh to kin of each deceased and free treatment to injured in government and private hospitals.
World leaders voiced solidarity with the United Kingdom after the deadly attack near the Houses of Parliament.
Malaysia recently claimed it had arrested a man who was plotting major strikes in India. This is significant for India as it has links with the arrest of Sri Lankan operative Shakir Hussain in Chennai.
Do Modi's foreign visits actually serve India or they nothing more than expensive tools for domestic positioning and image-building, asks Shehzad Poonawalla.
'The bigger challenge and dilemma for Pakistan would be if the US and Saudi Arabia go full throttle against Iran and enforce regime change in Tehran.' 'That would be bad news for Pakistan, especially with the current instability in Balochistan,' notes Brigadier Narender Kumar (retd).
Aseem Chhabra is impressed by Rima Das's Bulbul Can Sing, Ritesh Batra's Photograph and eight other outstanding films.
As the pandemic unfolded, the India-China relationship has come under severe stress. To restore normalcy, agreements between the two countries must be respected scrupulously in their entirety. Where the Line of Actual Control is concerned, any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo is unacceptable, declares External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
The fashion police fell in love with the yellow Emilio Pucci gown the US First Lady wore for Modi's White House visit. But then the former Slovenian model rarely gets it wrong.
Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd), former general officer in commanding, 15 Corps, explains what may have happened during the Indian Army's anti-terrorist operation in Kashmir in which four soldiers and one policemen, including the commanding officer 21 Rashtriya Rifles, made the supreme sacrifice for the Motherland.
Sandeep Pandey salutes women who have contributed to social transformation in India after 1980.
Currently women are allowed in a number of select areas including in medical, legal, educational, signals and engineering wings of the army.
Here's a look at the events that shaped the world last week.
The Manchester and Salford Magistrates' Court heard that the attacker, Karl Anderson, had 25 convictions for 37 offences, including football-related violence, the BBC reported. The 29-year-old will pay a 100 pound ($134) fine.
Driven from its self-styled caliphate in Iraq and Syria, Islamic State is down but not out. Where once they confronted armies, the extremist Islamist group's adherents have now staged hit-and-run raids and suicide attacks. In some cases, the group has claimed responsibility for atrocities, including the bombings of churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed at least 253 people. Its involvement is not always proven, but even if the link is ideological rather than operational, Islamic State still poses a security threat in many countries.
In India, many cities lack bicycle lanes and proper pavements. This, coupled with heavily congested roads, creates a danger to cyclists. Furthermore, the low costs of bicycles may make it more economical to buy than to rent.
The teenager, Nikolas Cruz, accused of using a semi-automatic rifle to kill 17 people at a Florida high school did not appear to be a peaceful man on social media. He made quite clear his desire to perpetrate the exact type of violence of which he now stands accused. Charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder, here's what we know about him so far.
Detailed reports have been sought from the state's chief secretary and from the chairman of the Railway Board in four weeks, an NHRC spokesperson said.
The suspect behind a pro-Islamic State Twitter account followed by foreign jihadis has been arrested in Bengaluru, senior police officials said.
It is time to throw an outer ring around India's national security by proactively engaging in areas immediately outside our neighbourhood. Such a ring will not only insulate India from emerging threats, but also create new leverage in securing our own neighbourhood, says Nitin Pai.
Modi wants a 'change in the Indian citizen's character.' 'An internal transformation.' 'This is reformation of the sort that is usually done by spiritual and religious leaders.' 'It is not in the domain of popular politics,' points out Aakar Patel.
'The problem in Kashmir is not about pellets, bullets or tear gas.' 'It is the government's policy and intention to criminalise the protest.'
Union Minister Gen (Retd) V K Singh has said that the Indian Army is capable of executing daring operations to avenge 26/11-like attacks by eliminating offshore criminals but certain "considerations" preventing it from doing so.
Senior journalist Sandeep Unnithan, author of Black Tornado, a semi-official account of the 26/11 attacks, was on Rediff.com chat on November 26. In what was a frank and instructive interaction Rediff users spoke to the scribe about his views on the status of security and possible upgrades to the same.
Top 20 images of all the events of the week that was.
A round-up of our favourite photographs from the week gone by.
Here's a collection of some of the best photos from around the world shot in the last 24 hours.
'The Pakistani military has encouraged and supported terrorist organisations, especially in Kashmir, as a means of waging proxy war against the Indian military and the country's superior economic resources.' 'The evidence is irrefutable with the recent killing of 46 paramilitary troops being just the latest example.'
'If religious scholars and preachers declare suicide attacks as un-Islamic and decree that suicide bombers will be denied an Islamic burial and funeral rites, it may dissuade some would-be terrorists who dream of an afterlife in heaven,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Aseem Chhabra lists the top 10 films at the recent Toronto International Film Festival.
The Indian Mujhadeen wants to shed the Indian tag and focus more on the global issues -- something that has caused a rift between the terror outfit and the Pakistani ISI. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
The Opposition parties also demanded stopping the use of pellet guns on protesters, even as one member demanded withdrawal of AFPSA from the Kashmir Valley and withdrawal of the dominating presence of army from civilian areas.
From the Syrian civil war to the Ukrainian crisis to the terror unleashed by the dreaded Islamic State, there was no lack of news in 2014. In this five-part series, rediff.com presents a selection of the year's most enduring moments year from around the world.
The arrest of three foreigners in connection with a case relating to possession of satellite phones once again goes on to show the lacklustre approach many have towards the Indian law. Three persons were arrested at Jalpaiguri in west Bengal for possessing satellite phones and were charged with violation under the Indian Wireless Telegraph Act 1933, Indian Telegraph Act 1885, the Indian Penal Code and the Foreigners Order of 1948.
'A Russia-Iran-China-Pakistan geopolitical grouping is evolving at this point of time.' 'Given that the grouping is in its nascent stages, will this week's terrorist attack in Mirjaveh affect it?' asks Aveek Sen.
Sadly, governments and their agencies can't be trusted to use private data, or decryption methods responsibly, says Devangshu Dutta.
Here are some of the best photographs clicked across the globe in the month of October.
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