New Delhi, Sep 13: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit here on Sunday.

Earlier in the day, President El-Sisi and PM Modi joined leaders of BRICS member and partner countries, outreach invitees and heads of international organisations for a family photo in New Delhi.

PM Modi welcomed the leaders of the expanded BRICS grouping as they arrived for the second day of the BRICS Summit at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Sunday.

President El-Sisi, several leaders and representatives of nations attended the gala dinner hosted by PM Modi for BRICS leaders at Bharat Mandapam on Saturday evening.

On Saturday, the leaders of 11 BRICS member countries unanimously adopted the ‘New Delhi Declaration’. The declaration commended India for hosting the Outreach/BRICS Plus Dialogue segment of the 18th BRICS Summit, asserting that India’s chairship has injected “new impetus” to strengthen international cooperation and solidarity.

The leaders of BRICS countries reaffirmed their commitment to the BRICS spirit of mutual respect and understanding, sovereign equality, solidarity, democracy, openness, inclusiveness, collaboration and consensus.

India’s BRICS Chairship is guided by the theme: “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, reflecting PM Modi’s vision of a people-centric approach rooted in the spirit of “Humanity First.”

BRICS comprises Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates. The partner countries are: Belarus, Cuba, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

President El-Sisi arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the 18th BRICS Summit. He was warmly received at the airport by the Minister of State (MoS) for Defence Sanjay Seth.

“Warmly welcome the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, to the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi. He was received by MoS Sanjay Seth at the airport. India and Egypt share deep bonds of friendship, as we work together to build a stronger BRICS partnership,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated on X.

Ranchi, Sep 13: Three people were killed, and several others are feared trapped under debris after an illegal coal mine collapsed in Jharkhand Dhanbad district on Sunday morning, Vimalesh Chaubey, Regional President of the National Colliery Mazdoor Union, said.

The accident took place at around 7 a.m. in Keshalpur Kumharpatti, located in the Ramkanali OP area of Katras in Dhanbad district.

According to Chaubey, a number of men and women had entered the illegal mine tunnel to cut and collect coal when the upper portion of the tunnel suddenly collapsed, trapping several people beneath the debris.

“Some men and women had gone into the illegal tunnel to cut and pick coal. The upper part of the tunnel suddenly collapsed, burying several people under the debris. Following the accident, nearby villagers rushed to the scene and began removing the debris using spades, pickaxes, and other tools. We know that three people are confirmed dead,” Chaubey said.

He said that three injured people were also rescued from the site and subsequently admitted to a local nursing home for treatment.

Chaubey added that locals fear that several more people could still be trapped beneath the debris following the collapse. The possibility of additional people being buried under the rubble has led to intensified rescue efforts at the site.

According to reports, illegal coal extraction has been taking place through tunnels in the area, with coal extracted from these unauthorised mines reportedly being transported and sold in nearby markets using motorcycles.

At the time of the accident, people had reportedly entered the tunnel to cut and collect coal in a similar manner when the structure suddenly gave way, resulting in the collapse and trapping those inside.

Following the incident, police reached the spot and began investigating the circumstances surrounding the mine collapse.

Authorities are also monitoring the rescue operation as efforts continue to determine whether more people remain trapped under the debris.

Tehran/Doha, Sep 13: Iran and Oman have agreed on the details of new entry and exit routes for the Strait of Hormuz and will brief Gulf countries on the outcome of their consultations at a regional meeting in Muscat on Monday, Iranian officials said.

Citing a source close to Iran’s negotiating team, the semi-official Tasnim news agency said that the understanding was reached after “intensive technical and diplomatic talks between Iran and Oman, which culminated in a final agreement in late August.”

Under the understanding, the Gulf’s entry route “lies entirely within Iran’s territorial waters,” and a portion of the exit route also falls “within Iranian territorial waters,” the source said.

The source stressed that the route would operate under Iranian arrangements and the waterway’s southern route will be closed once the new system becomes operational, noting that the United States had insisted that the southern route must be opened.

“The understanding in no way means that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened,” the source said, adding that Iran has seven conditions for reopening the waterway and has conveyed them to the United States.

The source underlined that the waterway will remain closed unless those conditions are implemented, with reopening depending entirely on the US behavior, Xinhua news agency reported.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei announced on Friday that Gulf littoral states’ foreign ministers are scheduled to meet in Oman on Monday to exchange views on regional issues, including the Iran-Oman talks on designating safe routes in the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking to media on Saturday, Baghaei said the gathering would “hopefully” be attended by foreign ministers from Gulf states as well as Iran and Iraq.

“As part of the agenda, we are going to brief the delegations about the results of the Iran and Oman consultations regarding the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, adding that the two countries had conducted the consultations as “the two coastal states of the Strait of Hormuz.”

Late last month, Iran and Oman said in a joint statement that they had exchanged views on a proposed phased framework that includes establishing a temporary joint shipping corridor in the strait.

Following US-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran restricted passage through the strategic waterway, while US forces imposed a naval blockade targeting vessels traveling to or from Iranian ports.

The Strait of Hormuz, linking the Gulf with the Arabian Sea, is one of the world’s most important routes for oil and gas shipments. Oman and Iran sit on opposite sides of the strait and have maintained consultations over maritime security and navigation in the strategic waterway.