Canada claims Indian government assassinated Sikh leader

Published

1 year ago

September 19, 2023

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said there are “credible allegations” that the Indian government was behind the assassination of a Sikh leader in Canada earlier this summer.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, was shot dead outside a Sikh temple in Surrey, British Columbia, on 18 June.

He had been a prominent supporter of the Khalistani separatist movement, which wants to establish an independent homeland for Sikhs in India, where they are a minority.

Khalistani groups are banned in India on national security grounds and Mr Nijjar, 45, had previously been branded a “terrorist” by its government, according to local reports.

Mr Trudeau’s comments came as Canada’s foreign ministry announced it had expelled a top Indian diplomat.

The prime minister said he had raised his concerns “personally and directly” to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at last week’s G20 summit in India.

In an address to Canada’s House of Commons on Monday, Mr Trudeau said: “Over the past number of weeks, Canadian security agencies have been actively pursuing credible allegations of a potential link between agents of the government of India and the killing of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar.”

He added: “Any involvement of a foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is an unacceptable violation of our sovereignty.

“In the strongest possible terms, I continue to urge the government of India to cooperate with Canada to get to the bottom of this matter.”

Mr Trudeau also said his government had been “working with our allies on this very serious matter”.

He added: “I know many Canadians, particularly members of the Indo-Canadian community are feeling angry, or perhaps frightened right now.

“Let us not allow this to change us. Let us remain calm and steadfast in our commitment to our democratic principles and our adherence to the rule of law. This is who we are, and what we do, as Canadians.”

Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said the head of Indian intelligence in Canada has been expelled over the allegations.

She said: “If proven true this would be a great violation of our sovereignty and of the most basic rule of how countries deal with each other.

“As a consequence we have expelled a top Indian diplomat.”

The Indian government is yet to respond to the claims. The country’s embassy in Ottawa also did not immediately reply to media requests for comment.

Canadian police have been hunting for two “heavier-set” suspects who were seen fleeing the scene of Mr Nijjar’s murder, along with a getaway driver.

World

More than a dozen people missing after tourist boat sinks off coast of Egypt

Published

4 hours ago

November 25, 2024

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More than a dozen people missing after tourist boat sinks off coast of Egypt

More than a dozen people are missing after a tourist boat sank in the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt, officials have said.

The boat, Sea Story, was carrying 45 people, including 31 tourists of varying nationalities and 14 crew.

Authorities are searching for 17 people who are still missing, the governor of the Red Sea region said on Monday, adding that 28 people had been rescued.

The vessel was part of a diving trip when it went down near the coastal town of Marsa Alam.

Officials said a distress call was received at 5.30am local time on Monday.

The boat had departed from Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam on Sunday and was scheduled to reach its destination of Hurghada Marina on 29 November.

Some survivors had been airlifted to safety on a helicopter, officials said.

It was not immediately clear what caused the four-deck, wooden-hulled motor yacht to sink.

The firm that operates the yacht, Dive Pro Liveaboard in Hurghada, said it has no information on the matter.

According to its maker’s website, the Sea Story was built in 2022.

The incident comes after the Egyptian Meteorological Authority issued a warning on Saturday about turbulence and high waves on the Red Sea.

The organisation had advised against maritime activity for Sunday and Monday.

Some tourist companies have stopped or limited operations on the Red Sea due to the potential dangers from conflicts in the region.

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv – as commander ‘sacked for lying about war progress’

Published

17 hours ago

November 25, 2024

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv - as commander 'sacked for lying about war progress'

Russia launched a large drone attack on Kyiv overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning the attack shows his capital needs better air defences.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 50 of 73 Russian drones launched, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries as a result of the attacks.

Russia has used more than 800 guided aerial bombs and around 460 attack drones in the past week.

Warning that Ukraine needs to improve its air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “An air alert has been sounded almost daily across Ukraine this week”.

“Ukraine is not a testing ground for weapons. Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state.

“But Russia still continues its efforts to kill our people, spread fear and panic, and weaken us.”

Russia did not comment on the attack.

It comes as Russian media reported that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the country’s southern military district, had been removed from his role over allegedly providing misleading reports about his troops’ progress.

While Russian forces have advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the invasion, forces have been much slower around Siversk and the eastern region of Donetsk.

Russian war bloggers have long complained that units there are poorly supported and thrown into deadly battles for little tactical gain.

Russia’s ministry of defence has not commented on the reports.

World

Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports

Published

19 hours ago

November 24, 2024

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Russian forces capture 'former British soldier' fighting for Ukraine - reports

Russian forces have reportedly captured a British man while he was fighting for Ukraine.

In a widely circulated video posted on Sunday, the man says his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson, aged 22.

He says he is a former British Army soldier who signed up to fight for Ukraine’s International Legion after his job.

He is dressed in army fatigues and speaks with an English accent as he says to camera: “I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment.”

He tells the camera he was “just a private”, “a signalman” in “One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron”.

“When I left… got fired from my job, I applied on the International Legion webpage. I had just lost everything. I just lost my job,” he said.

“My dad was away in prison, I see it on the TV,” he added, shaking his head. “It was a stupid idea.”

In a second video, he is shown with his hands tied and at one point, with tape over his eyes.

He describes how he had travelled to Ukraine from Britain, saying: “I flew to Krakow, Poland, from London Luton. Bus from there to Medyka in Poland, on the Ukraine border.”

Russian state news agency Tass reported that a military source said a “UK mercenary” had been “taken prisoner in the Kursk area” of Russia.

The UK Foreign Office said it was “supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention”.

The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment at this stage.