The terrorists opened fire on the camp housing labourers of a private company working on construction of a tunnel at Gund area in the district, they said.

Two labourers died on the spot while two others sustained injuries, they said, adding further details are awaited.

Police and army have cordoned off the area to track the attackers.

Fire engines, bomb squad a police forensic team have been rushed to the spot near the CRPF school, Sector 14, Rohini to ascertain the source of the loud blast.

The wall of the school, nearby shops and a car received damage, police said.

DFS officials said, “We received a call regarding a blast near the boundary wall of CRPF school at 7.50 am. We immediately rushed two fire engines to the spot. There was no fire and no one was injured due to the blast, so our vehicle returned.”

Senior police officers, including from the crime branch and the Special Cell, reached the spot.

“Our forensic team and crime unit are at the spot to collect samples from the blast location. It could be a firecracker, but we are investigating the entire matter from all angles,” a senior police officer said.

Police said that they are checking the CCTV footage.

In a statement, police said they received a PCR call at 7.47 am regarding a loud blast.

“SHO/PV and staff reached at the spot, where the school wall was found damaged with a foul smell. The glasses of nearby shop and car parked near the shop were found to be damaged. No one was injured,” they said.

“Crime team, FSL team and bomb disposal squad is called to the spot. Crime spot has been cordoned. Fire brigade team is on the spot. The matter is being looked into on the cause of blast,” it said.

In four days, more than 20 flights of various Indian airlines received bomb threats, including international flights, and some of them were diverted. Most of the threats have turned out to be hoaxes.

Against this backdrop, the ministry is looking at amending existing rules, including those related to the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), in order to ensure stringent punishments are in place for the culprits, the official in the know said.

Placing individuals making hoax bomb threats in the airlines’ no-fly list is one of the proposals being looked at, the official said.

The official also said legal opinions are being gathered with respect to making the changes in the rules.

The provisions being followed in foreign countries to deal with hoax bomb threats are also being examined by the ministry.

Further, the official said that if necessary, legislative amendments will be explored for having a strong deterrent to prevent people from making hoax bomb threats to airlines.

Currently, there are strict norms against unruly passenger behaviour onboard flights but there are no specific provisions under the aviation regulations to deal with instances where a bomb threat has come from outside sources such as social media.

At present, the actions against hoax bomb threat incidents are taken by the police under criminal laws.

The official also said that discussions are going on with home and law ministries while inputs are being gathered from airlines.

“We want rules that can act as a deterrent,” the official said.

On Wednesday, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said law enforcement agencies are actively pursuing all cases of bomb threats against airlines and the government is closely monitoring the situation.

He also condemned any attempt to compromise the safety, security and operational integrity of the aviation sector.

A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud noted that both the women were major and have stated that they were residing at the ashram voluntarily and without any coercion.

A habeas corpus petition is filed seeking direction to produce before the court a person who is missing or has been illegally detained.

The bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, also noted that in pursuance of its October 3 order, the police has submitted a status report before it. The bench observed it would be unnecessary for the apex court to expand upon the ambit of these proceedings which arises from a habeas corpus petition which was initially filed before the Madras High Court.

On October 3, the top court had effectively halted the police probe into the alleged illegal confinement of two women at the Foundation’s ashram at Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.

Transferring to itself the habeas corpus petition which was filed before the high court, the top court had directed the Tamil Nadu Police to not take any further action in pursuance of the high court’s direction asking it to inquire into the alleged illegal confinement of the women.

The apex court had passed the order after the Isha Foundation approached it challenging the high court’s order directing the Coimbatore Police to collect all case details registered against the Foundation and produce them before the court for further consideration.

Two buffaloes also died in the incident in which some other members of the family sustained minor injuries.

The incident occurred in Bhakri village around 2.15 am when Sarjeet, his wife Babita and grandson Nakul were sleeping in a room on the first floor of his house, they said.

A gas leak in their room led to the cylinder explosion, causing the roof to collapse, trapping them under the debris, police said.

According to police, the explosion was so strong that debris also fell on Laxmi and her son, who were sleeping on the roof of a neighbouring house.

The villagers gathered at the spot after the explosion and informed the police. A police team reached the spot and began the rescue operation with the help of a Hydra machine, a senior police officer said.

The officer said that the bodies of Nakul and his grandparents were pulled out of the debris while Laxmi and her child were taken to a hospital, where she died during treatment.

The bodies have been handed over to their respective kin after postmortem on Friday, Dabua Station House Officer Vidya Sagar said.

The cause behind the cylinder blast is yet to ascertained yet and an investigation is underway in the matter, he added.

Based on specific information, raids were carried out by the Crime Branch in Panvel and Karjat in neighbouring Raigad district, leading to the arrest of these five persons for conspiracy related to the crime and its execution, he said.

The arrested persons were also in touch with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, which is accused of gunning down Siddique, the official added.

“The total number of arrests in the case now stands at nine. Further probe is underway,” he added.

Siddique was shot at and grievously injured on October 12 near his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Nirmal Nagar in Mumbai’s Bandra area. The Congress-turned-NCP leader died some time later in nearby Lilavati Hospital.

The four persons arrested earlier include two alleged shooters who were overpowered by police and passersby at the spot itself.

Yahya Sinwar death news live updates: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Thursday that the killing of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar was the “beginning of the end” of the war in Gaza. He, however, clarified, that the war will not end until the remaining 97 hostages in Hamas custody since October 7, 2023, are returned.

The Israeli military said that after a lengthy hunt, troops had on Wednesday “eliminated Yahya Sinwar, the leader of the Hamas terrorist organisation, in an operation in the southern Gaza Strip”. Hamas has not confirmed his death or made any statement yet.

Sinwar was believed the mastermind behind the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, after which conflict between Israel and Gaza escalated.

Sinwar’s death is the latest in a series of Israeli offensives against top commanders of Hamas and Hezbollah, causing major damage to the militant organisations.

The United States has said that Sinwar’s death was a positive sign for ceasefire talks, as he had been a roadblock to the mediation process.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on May 30, 2022 on money laundering charge due to four companies allegedly linked to him. 

“Considering the delay in trial and long incarceration of 18 months, and the fact that trial will take long to start, let alone conclude, the accused is favourably suited for the relief,”PTI quoted Special Judge Vishal Gogne as saying.

Air Arabia, the leading low-cost carrier in the Middle East and North Africa, earlier unveiled an extraordinary early bird promotion called ‘super seat sale’ with discounted offers on 500,000 seats across the company’s entire network. Limited seats are available as the offer is still going on and will conclude by October 20th. Those who did not book still have an opportunity to benefit from the lower fares.

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This early bird offer is available for booking from September 30th to October 20th, 2024, with travel dates spanning from 1st March, 2025, to 25th October, 2025.

The INR 5,727 ticket sale extends to nonstop flights originating from Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Nagpur, Kolkata, Goa, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Coimbatore, and Kozhikode into Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, and beyond.

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Back to work
According to India Today, Salman shot for an episode of Bigg Boss 18 late on Thursday night. He arrived on the set with heavy security. As per a source, Salman stayed at his chalet within the premises to ensure his safety ahead of the scheduled call time on Friday.

Salman’s filming schedule will continue uninterrupted, despite the heightened security concerns. To ensure his safety, the actor’s team is working closely with production and channel officials to coordinate his movements.

Several stringent security measures have been implemented on set, with over 60 personnel deployed to safeguard the area. In fact, access to the compound has also been restricted. The guards have been told to check theAadhar card before allowing any individual inside the compound.

In addition to this, the Bigg Boss 18 crew has been asked to remain on-site until the shoot ends. Salman shoots for weekend specials, Weekend Ka Vaar episodes, as a host of the show.

Fresh threats against Salman Khan
Earlier in the day it was reported that a threatening message was received on a WhatsApp number of Mumbai Traffic Police, in which ₹5 crore was demanded from Salman.