Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary Sripriya Ranganathan, currently on an official visit to Palestine, inaugurated a government of India-supported Quick Impact Project at the Jericho Women’s Charitable Society School, in Ramallah on Thursday.

“Amb. Sripriya Ranganathan, together with H.E. Dr. Hussein Hamayel, Governor of Jericho and the Jordan Valley, inaugurated a Government of India-supported Quick Impact Project at the Jericho Women’s Charitable Society School,” the Representative Office of India to the State of Palestine in Ramallah stated on X.

“The project upgraded educational facilities and provided computers and essential equipment, creating a better learning environment. It marks the successful completion of India’s 8th QIP in Palestine — translating partnership into tangible benefits for local communities,” it added.

Earlier in the day, Secretary Ranganathan visited the Palestine-India Techno Park and welcomed its role as a hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and technological advancement in Palestine.

Honouring the enduring legacy of peace, non-violence and justice of Mahatma Gandhi, Secretary Ranganathan paid a floral tribute at the bust of Mahatma Gandhi in Ramallah, along with the Mayor of Ramallah, Jack Saadeh.

Secretary also reviewed India’s recently completed and ongoing flagship development projects in Palestine.

A statement by the Representative Office of India said that the visit provided further momentum to the longstanding India-Palestine partnership with a focus on health cooperation, development partnership, skills and capacity building and community engagement.

The statement noted that the major outcome of the visit was Wednesday’s ground-breaking of the Indian Super Speciality Hospital in Arrabeh, Jenin, a major government of India-funded development project being taken forward pursuant to the commitment made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Earlier, Secretary Ranganathan called on Majed Abu Ramadan, Health Minister of Palestine, where they discussed further deepening cooperation in the health sector, including training cooperation.

Secretary Ranganathan informed of India’s decision to organise a prosthetic limb camp in Palestine and donation of Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita and Maitri (BHISHM) Cube, a mobile health centre, for use in Gaza. She also handed over the first tranche of life-saving medicines.

According to the statement, the visit also highlighted the breadth of India’s development partnership with Palestine across education, institution building, vocational training and women’s empowerment.

“In the education sector, cooperation was advanced through the “School-in-a-Box” initiative, undertaken with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, which includes provision of digital educational resources to support modern learning environment in Palestinian schools, especially in Gaza,” the statement said.

The Secretary also visited ongoing Government of India-funded projects in Palestine, including the India-Palestine Centre for Empowering Women ‘Turathi’ and the Palestinian Institute of Diplomacy, reflecting India’s continued support for women’s economic empowerment, institutional capacity building and human resource development.

Palestinian leaders and officials welcomed the initiatives advanced during the visit and expressed appreciation for India’s longstanding support to the Palestinian people.

They highlighted the importance of India’s development partnership in strengthening essential public services, building institutional capacity and responding to Palestinian development priorities.

“India remains firmly committed to supporting the Palestinian people through initiatives that respond to Palestinian priorities, strengthen institutions and public services, and contribute meaningfully to people’s lives,” highlighted the statement from the Representative Office of India.

A detailed Intelligence assessment relating to the future of internal security threats states that the ISI and its stooges are looking to exploit the social media platforms to the maximum their attempt to gather information and plot terror attacks.Influencers and those who thrive on making reels are the primary targets of the ISI. These persons in a bid to expand their reach and get more likes have become the easiest targets for the Pakistan’s ISI.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that outfits such as the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Tayiba have been scouting for such persons in very large numbers. Some of their recruits have been told to reach out to influencers and others who are active on the social media.These persons are lured with likes and money so that the ISI can push its agenda in India. While the Indian agencies have busted several influencer modules, the focus has now largely shifted to the honey trapping network that is being run by the ISI.

The ISI is running a multi-pronged strategy when it comes to using the social media. On one hand, it picks up influencers to set a narrative that is favourable to Pakistan. On the other, it is also looking for officials who are privy to sensitive information and data relating to the Union Government and the armed forces. The third part of the ISI’s strategy involves setting fake narratives against India and also running a disinformation campaign.An official said that the social media is becoming a nightmare for the security agencies. Our agencies are perfectly capable of busting such networks. However the problem lies in the scale and the manner in which the ISI is targeting people on the social media is extremely overwhelming, the official said.

Another official explained that it is not just a bunch of people that the agencies are dealing with. The ISI has created an army to scout for recruits in India. In fact, their operations runs 24/7 and this explains the scale at which Pakistan is using the social media to run their terror campaigns the official said.Officials say that there are multiple modules that are at work in such cases. The ISI has not only set up recruitment and scouting hubs in Pakistan, but in India as well. The aim is to create scores of agents in India so that information could flow in at all times. Modules have been set up in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh to keep a close watch on the social media, officials say.

The ISI has understood that there are many influencers who chase fame or money and this has become their weakness. In a bid to get more likes or views on their reels or videos, these persons are not thinking about the ramifications their actions would have for national security, an official said.This weakness is being exploited to the maximum by the ISI and that is the reason, why their modules have been so successful, the official said.Recent investigations have clearly shown that apart from running disinformation campaigns and setting a narrative in favour of Pakistan, this network of the ISI has also focused on honey trapping top ranking officials.

When it comes to honey trapping those from the armed forces, the ISI agents do a detailed study on the individual. They study the persons in detail, to understand what their weaknesses are. The conversation usually with these persons last for many months before the real trap is set.The investigation into the case of Indian Air Force Wing Commander, M S Sabharwal details the manner in which he was allegedly honey-trapped. The probe found that he had allegedly used a personal device to record drone trial firings inside an exercise area. One of the communications he had with the ISI agent was relating to the interval between a drone’s launch and its arrival at a target.

The ISI has been on overdrive mode post Operation Sindoor. The operation carried out by the Indian armed forces not just exposes Pakistan’s nuclear bluff, but also dealt a major embarrassment to Islamabad.Following that operation, the ISI has been doing everything possible to try and embarrass the Indian establishment and the armed forces, in particular. They have found the social media to be the easiest tool to carry out this large-scale exercise and this is proving to be a major headache for the Indian security agencies, an official explained.

North Korea fired a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Thursday, despite a recent olive branch offered by US President Donald Trump, who signalled a willingness to reengage with the North’s leader Kim Jong-un.The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected roughly a dozen short-range ballistic missiles launched from the Pyongyang area at around 5 pm, adding that further analysis is under way in cooperation with the United States.

The military has stepped up surveillance and vigilance for possible additional launches while closely sharing related information with the US and Japan as they maintain a full readiness posture, the JCS said.”Under a staunch South Korea-US combined defence posture, our military is closely monitoring various North Korean activities as we maintain the capability and readiness to overwhelmingly respond to any provocation,” it added.

The latest missile launch came after Trump expressed his willingness to resume dialogue with Kim, whom he met three times during his first term in 2018 and 2019, when a flurry of nuclear diplomacy with Pyongyang was in full swing, Yonhap News Agency reported.Nuclear talks have been dormant after their 2019 meeting in Hanoi ended without a deal.Trump floated an overture on a social media post earlier this week, stating he had instructed the Pentagon to scale down military drills with South Korea that he sees as sending an “inappropriate and hostile” message to Pyongyang.

Seoul and Washington announced Wednesday they will cut short the ongoing Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise by half, ending the annual drills this Friday.Pyongyang has strongly denounced the drills as rehearsals for invasion and typically responded with a series of weapons tests in protest.In a White House press availability Wednesday (US time), Trump said he would meet Kim later this year, claiming that the recalcitrant state possesses “57 very powerful” nuclear weapons, a specific figure he has cited for the first time regarding the North’s nuclear stockpile.

Despite Trump’s olive branch, the North appears to have given Washington the cold shoulder. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of the North’s leader, said in a statement late Wednesday that Pyongyang has no interest in the reduction of the allies’ military exercise, calling it “unworthy of comment.”Following the launch, the presidential national security office said it convened a meeting attended by officials from the defence ministry and JCS to review South Korea’s response and assess the move’s impact on national security.

“With the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise currently underway, the office stressed the need to maintain a thorough readiness posture,” it said, urging Pyongyang to halt such provocations in violation of UN Security Council resolutions.The latest missile launch took place about a week after Pyongyang fired a short-range ballistic missile eastward on Aug. 12, following the launch of another short-range ballistic missile on Aug. 6.