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Modi to visit Germany, Denmark and France

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a three-day visit to Germany, Denmark and France from May 2, aimed at further strengthening bilateral cooperation.

This will be the Prime Minister’s first visit abroad in 2022.

In Berlin, the Prime Minister will hold bilateral talks with Olaf Scholz, Federal Chancellor of Germany, and the two leaders will co-chair the sixth edition of the India-Germany Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC).

The biennial IGC is a unique dialogue format that also sees participation of several Ministers from both sides. This will be Prime Minister’s first IGC with Chancellor Scholz, and also the first such Government-to-Government consultations of the new German government, which assumed office in December 2021. During his visit, Prime Minister and Chancellor Scholz would also jointly address a Business Event. He will address and interact with the Indian community in Germany.

In 2021, India and Germany commemorated 70 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations and have been strategic partners since 2000. This visit will be an opportunity to enhance and intensify cooperation in a broad range of areas and for the two governments to exchange views on regional and global matters of mutual interest.

Prime Minister Modi will, thereafter, travel to Copenhagen on an official visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen. He will also participate in the 2nd India-Nordic Summit being hosted by Denmark.

The bilateral component of the visit will include talks with PM Frederiksen as well as an audience with Queen Margrethe II. The Green Strategic Partnership was the first of its kind arrangement between India and Denmark. The visit would provide both sides an opportunity to review its progress, as well as examine ways to further expand our multifaceted cooperation.

During the visit, he will attend an India-Denmark Business Forum and also address members of the Indian diaspora.

Prime Minister Modi, during the second India-Nordic Summit, will also interact with other Nordic leaders – Prime Minister Katr�n Jakobsd�ttir of Iceland, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store of Norway, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden and Prime Minister Sanna Marin of Finland.

The Summit will focus on subjects like post-pandemic economic recovery, climate change, innovation and technology, renewable energy, the evolving global security scenario and India-Nordic cooperation in the Arctic region. The 1st India-Nordic Summit took place in 2018 in Stockholm.

On his return journey on May 4, the Prime Minister will briefly stop over in Paris and meet Emmanuel Macron, President of France.

India and France are celebrating 75 years of their diplomatic relations this year and the meeting between the two leaders will set a more ambitious agenda of the Strategic Partnership.

International News

Pakistan rebuilds Jaish-e-Mohammed Bahawalpur base destroyed by India during Operation Sindoor: Report

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New Delhi, Aug 25: UN-designated terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) headquarters in Pakistan’s Bahawalpur, which were damaged in strikes launched by India under Operation Sindoor last year, have been rebuilt, according to reports.

According to images and intelligence inputs accessed by several media reports, the Markaz Subhanallah, which was badly damaged in India’s strikes last year, has been rebuilt with new plaster, paint, and polished marble.

The central hall of the facility, which had been damaged, has been repaired, with the craters filled and the structure refurbished. The structure, which was fully damaged, now seems to be prepared for regular use by JeM.

The Pakistani establishment provided approximately (Pakistani) Rs 25 crore to JeM in cash instalments, with approximately Rs 11 crore reportedly given for reconstruction of the central hall, several media reports claimed, citing intelligence inputs.

The structures adjoining the main complex, including the Madrasa Al-Sabir, described as an indoctrination centre, and residential quarters used by JeM commanders, which were damaged during Operation Sindoor, have been cleared or demolished, and new construction has taken place at the site.

The Bahawalpur facility was among the sites targeted by India during Operation Sindoor launched in May last year, in response to the terrorist attack carried out in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.

India struck at the heart of Pakistan-based terror infrastructure, targeting well-known training camps in Muridke and Bahawalpur in a joint operation conducted by the Indian Army, Air Force, and Navy.

The highly coordinated operation, launched on May 6 and 7, saw firing of 24 missiles that precisely hit nine terror facilities across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), killing an estimated 70 terrorists.

Only verified terror camps were targeted, including the Lashkar-e-Taiba headquarters in Muridke and key facilities in Bahawalpur — both long identified as hubs of extremist training and indoctrination.

Operation Sindoor was a significant demonstration of India’s military and strategic capability, combining both military and non-military measures.

India launched the operation in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that took place on April 22, 2025, in which Pakistan-backed attackers singled out victims after asking about their religion, forcing them to recite the Islamic ‘kalima’ to identify non-Muslims. Among those killed were 25 tourists and one local pony ride operator who tried to save the tourists.

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Iran’s President says Washington must change tone, approach toward Tehran

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Tehran, Aug 25: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that the United States must change its tone and approach toward Iran.

“The US reliance on coercion and bullying will only complicate executive processes,” Pezeshkian said at a meeting with Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir in Tehran on Monday (local time), according to a statement published on the website of the presidential office.

Pezeshkian stressed the need for the United States to remain committed to its obligations toward Iran “based on the (country’s) legitimate rights and international regulations.”

He expressed hope that the objectives stipulated in the US-Iran peace memorandum of understanding (MoU) would be achieved “with the continuation of the will and joint cooperation.”

On June 18, the United States and Iran signed the MoU, under which the two were scheduled to hold negotiations within a period of 60 days, which ended on August 17, to reach a final agreement. However, the talks’ fate remains unclear following renewed escalation between the two countries, reports Xinhua news agency.

Meanwhile, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that Iran will not let the war end based on conditions set by the “aggressive” parties.

“We have definitely not been the party to start the war, but we will not let the war’s end be based on the aggressive parties’ conditions,” Baghaei told a weekly press conference in Tehran.

He said that Iran remained determined to defend its territory and would not “compromise with the aggressive parties” or surrender to their “excessive demands.”

Baghaei dismissed US claims that the Strait of Hormuz was open and that millions of barrels of oil were passing through it each day, describing them as part of “psychological and media warfare”.

He also slammed Washington’s newly announced anti-Iran economic operation, saying Tehran would use all its “multilateral capacities” to counter US sanctions, which he described as a blow to free trade and national sovereignty.

The spokesman also warned that countries assisting US anti-Iran operations could face consequences, and called the US naval blockade an “act of aggression”.

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Bangladesh: Two arrested over brutal killing of four members of Hindu family in Rangpur

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Dhaka, Aug 24: Bangladesh police have arrested two young men in connection with the killing of a retired Hindu schoolteacher and three members of his family in Rangpur city.

Police said the duo planned and carried out the murders after the former Rangpur Zilla school teacher tried to prevent them from using yaba, a potent illicit methamphetamine-based drug, on the rooftop, according to local media reports.

The accused were identified as 23-year-old Siddhartha Das and 19-year-old Mugdha Das, both detained from the Dakhiganj cremation ground in the city. They allegedly ransacked the house to make the killings appear to be linked to a robbery.

The incident occurred on August 20, with police recovering the bodies of all four family members two days later, on Saturday night.

After the incident, the accused allegedly used the bathroom, ate dates from the table, and consumed yaba. They further allegedly soaked the mobile phones of Ganapati and Pritilata in washing-powder solution to wipe away fingerprints, according to police, Bangladeshi daily Dhaka Tribune reported.

The deceased were identified as retired Rangpur Zilla School teacher Ganapati Chakraborty, 65; his wife, Pritilata Chakraborty, 50; their daughter, Agami Chakraborty Prarthi, 23; and their son, Priyam Chakraborty, 12.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday afternoon, Rangpur Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mohammad Abdul Mabud said that the suspects were allegedly consuming yaba on the rooftop of Ganapati’s house late Thursday night when the retired teacher went upstairs after hearing a noise.

Ganapati reportedly spotted the suspects consuming drugs and asked them to stop, following which they allegedly strangled him with a towel.

Hearing his screams, his wife, Pritilata, and daughter, Prarthi, rushed to the rooftop and were also allegedly strangled. The suspects then went inside the house and killed Priyam, the couple’s only son, in the same manner, the commissioner said. They allegedly stayed inside the house until Friday morning.

Following the brutal incident, hundreds of Rangpur Zilla School students on Sunday abstained from classes and staged a protest seeking the immediate arrest and capital punishment of those responsible for the killings.

The students marched to the offices of the Rangpur Metropolitan Police Commissioner and the district administration and submitted separate memorandums demanding justice. They later staged a human chain and demonstration on the main road in front of the school, Dhaka Tribune reported.

Meanwhile, the leading minority human rights organisation Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council strongly condemned the brutal killing, calling for proper investigation and exemplary punishment for those responsible.

The incident comes amid escalating attacks on minorities across Bangladesh that have persisted since the tenure of the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim government and continue under the current Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) administration.

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