Family of woman found dead in car in London accuses police of failing to protect her

Exclusive: Sister says Harshita Brella reported abuse but ‘police processes made her feel more scared and alone’

The family of a woman found dead in a car boot in east London have accused police of not doing enough to protect her, saying she had filed a complaint alleging domestic abuse by her husband weeks before.

The body of Harshita Brella, a 24-year-old Indian citizen who was living in Northamptonshire, was discovered last Thursday in a car in Ilford. Police have named her husband, Pankaj Lamba, as the main suspect for the killing. Officers believe he has fled the country.

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Keir Starmer to restart UK-India talks after previous negotiations stalled

Whisky and migration thwarted earlier deal but UK PM hopeful of reaching agreement with Narendra Modi

Keir Starmer is to restart the aborted UK-India trade talks in the new year after an agreement stalled amid disagreements over whisky tariffs and migration.

No progress has been made on the deal since early this year after the last round of talks concluded. As prime minister, Boris Johnson promised a swift deal, but Rishi Sunak was said to be deeply uneasy with some of the provisions that had been negotiated by his predecessor. Talks were put on hold in March while both countries prepared for general elections.

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Pollution in Delhi hits record high, cloaking city in smog

Indian capital imposes emergency measures including closing schools and offices and barring heavy vehicles

Pollution levels in India’s capital, Delhi, have soared to their highest levels this year, forcing schools and offices to close and cloaking the city in thick brown smog.

In some parts of the city, a live air quality ranking by IQAir put pollution levels at more than 30 times the maximum level deemed healthy.

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Bangladesh to seek extradition of ousted leader Sheikh Hasina from India

Interim leader Muhammad Yunus confirms plans to put former PM on trial accused of crimes against humanity

Bangladesh will seek the extradition of the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to face trial on charges including crimes against humanity, the country’s interim leader, Muhammad Yunus, has said in a speech.

Hasina, whose autocratic regime governed Bangladesh for 15 years, was toppled in a student-led revolution in August. Since then she has been living in exile in India after fleeing the country in a helicopter as thousands of protesters overran the presidential palace.

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Narendra Modi to make ‘historic’ Guyana visit for energy talks

Indian PM’s trip expected to focus on trade and investment as oil-rich Caribbean country’s economic boom continues

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, will make a “historic” state visit to the oil-rich Caribbean nation of Guyana this week when the two countries are expected to sign energy and defence agreements.

Modi’s visit to the country, from Tuesday to Thursday, will be the first from an Indian prime minister since Indira Gandhi’s in 1968, two years after Guyana gained independence from Britain.

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Ten newborn babies die after fire breaks out at Indian hospital

Another 16 infants were in critical condition after the blaze at a neonatal unit in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh

Ten newborn babies have died after a fire broke out at the neonatal unit of a hospital in northern India, with another 16 clinging to life.

The fire broke out late on Friday at the Maharani Lakshmibai Medical College in Jhansi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, 450km (280 miles) south of Delhi.

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Smog crisis envelops Indian capital as Pakistan province declares emergency

Schools ordered to close in Delhi and Punjab province as neighbouring countries battle dangerous air pollution

India’s capital, Delhi, has ordered all primary schools to cease in-person classes until further notice because of an air pollution crisis that has also prompted Pakistan’s Punjab province to declare a health emergency and ban construction, shut schools for another week and move universities online.

Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area, home to more than 30 million people, consistently tops world rankings for air pollution in winter. It is estimated to reduce life expectancy for the capital’s residents by up to seven years.

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World watches with bated breath as US votes for Harris or Trump

Election watchers in Europe, Asia and elsewhere will be tuning in – and some have a particular interest in the result

From Brazil to Ireland and Germany to the Caribbean, this year’s knife-edge – and more than usually momentous – US presidential vote will be watched at a multitude of election-night events, some with a particular interest in the outcome.

In St Ann Parish, Jamaica – and most particularly in Browns Town, where Harris’s father Donald was born and the Democratic candidate spent many happy childhood holidays – her supporters plan watch parties, drink-ups and other social gatherings.

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Narendra Modi condemns attack on Hindu temple in Canada as tensions rise

Indian prime minister blames Sikh activists for clash in Brampton over which three people have been arrested

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, has condemned a “deliberate attack” on a Hindu temple in Canada, blaming Sikh activists for the violent clash at a time of escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

Videos on social media showed demonstrators protesting outside the Hindu Sabha Mandir temple in the city of Brampton, where Indian diplomats were visiting ahead of Diwali celebrations. Some protesters held yellow Khalistan flags, representing a region of India they hope to one day carve out as a Sikh homeland.

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‘More toxic than ever’: Lahore and Delhi choked by smog as ‘pollution season’ begins

As air pollution hits toxic levels, one proposal is to introduce a ‘smog diplomacy’ initiative between Pakistan and India

As the smog descended over Lahore, people began to feel the familiar symptoms. First came the scratchy throat and burning eyes, then the dizziness, tightness in the chest and the dry racking cough.

“It’s become a physical ordeal just to go outdoors,” said Jawaria, 28, a master’s student living in the Pakistani city.

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Canada alleges Indian minister behind plot to target Sikh separatists

Parliamentary committee told of Narendra Modi ally’s alleged role in campaign of violence and threats

The Canadian government has publicly alleged that India’s home affairs minister, Amit Shah, the prime minister, Narendra Modi’s, closest political ally, was behind a recent series of plots to murder and intimidate Sikh separatists on Canadian soil.

Testifying before a parliamentary committee, the Canadian deputy foreign affairs minister, David Morrison, acknowledged he had leaked information to the Washington Post about Shah’s alleged role in a campaign of violence and threats against the Sikh diaspora over the last few years.

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Putin calls for alternative international payment system at Brics summit

Russian president’s goal to de-dollarize world economy alarms members that do not want bloc to turn against west

Vladimir Putin has opened the expanded Brics summit by issuing a call for an alternative international payments system that could prevent the US using the dollar as a political weapon.

But the summit communique indicated that little progress had been made on an alternative payment system.

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Israelis told to urgently leave Sri Lankan tourist areas after terrorist threat

Israel tells citizens in Arugam Bay area to hide Jewish identity and not gather in large groups

Israel’s national security council has warned Israelis to immediately leave popular tourist areas in southern Sri Lanka after threats of a possible terrorist attack.

According to the council, Sri Lankan authorities had informed it of “a terrorist threat focused on tourist areas and beaches” around the popular surfing area of Arugam Bay in the south of the island.

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Putin plays host to 36 world leaders at Brics summit in Russia

West infuriated as UN secretary general accepts invitation to meeting of countries including China, India and Iran

Vladimir Putin, ostracised by the west and labelled a possible war criminal by the international criminal court, has played host to 36 world leaders from nations including China, India and Iran as part of a summit of the Brics group designed to display Moscow as anything but isolated.

One of the main aims of the summit will be to speed up ways to reduce the number of dollar transactions, and so mitigate the US ability to use the threat of sanctions to seek to impose its political will.

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Two men plead guilty to contract killing of Sikh man in Canada but don’t say who hired them

Tanner Fox and Jose Lopez trade blows in court after confessing to shooting Ripudaman Singh Malik

Two men have pleaded guilty to the contract killing of a Sikh man who was acquitted in the 1985 bombing of an Air India flight from Montreal to Mumbai.

According to an agreed statement of facts released by a British Columbia court on Monday, Tanner Fox and Jose Lopez confessed to shooting Ripudaman Singh Malik in 2022. But they remained silent over who hired and paid them for the murder.

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Tuesday briefing: Canada puts India ‘on notice’ as row over alleged killing of Sikh activists escalates

In today’s newsletter: Justin Trudeau says there are ‘credible allegations’ that Modi’s government was involved in the killing of a Sikh separatist in British Columbia. What does say about India’s global standing?

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Good morning.

In September 2023, Justin Trudeau stood up in parliament and made extraordinary allegations against the Indian government. The prime minister said Canadian authorities were investigating “credible allegations” about the potential involvement of Indian officials in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian Sikh separatist activist in British Columbia.

Middle East | Israel has accused Hezbollah of keeping hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and gold in a bunker under a hospital in the southern suburbs of Beirut, though it said it would not strike the complex. The Sahel hospital in Dahiyeh was evacuated shortly afterwards, and Fadi Alame, its director, told Reuters that the allegations were untrue.

Labour | A cross-party group of 30 MPs has urged Rachel Reeves to impose a 2% tax on wealth above £10m on Britain’s rich in next week’s budget rather than announce spending cuts that would hit the most poor hardest.

Ukraine | Britain is to lend Ukraine an additional £2.26bn and allow Kyiv to spend the money on weapons to fight off the Russian invasion as part of a wider $50bn (£38.5bn) loan programme expected to be confirmed by G7 members later this week.

Sudan | Refugees and aid agencies have warned of deteriorating conditions in overcrowded camps in Chad, as intensifying violence and a hunger crisis in Sudan drive huge numbers across the border. About 25,000 people – the vast majority women and children – crossed into eastern Chad in the first week of October. Read an explainer.

European Union | Moldovans have voted by a razor-thin majority in favour of joining the EU, nearly final results showed on Monday after a pivotal referendum clouded by allegations of Russian interference. With 50.18% supporting EU membership, the decision was much closer than pre-referendum polls suggested.

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India’s airline industry in chaos after 90 hoax bomb threats in a week

Authorities yet to uncover source and motive of surge in fake bomb threats, as dozens of planes forced to reroute

A reported 90 hoax bomb threats have been made against Indian airlines in the past week, provoking international travel chaos as planes were grounded, diverted and flown to safety by fighter jet escorts.

The unprecedented surge in fake bomb threats against multiple Indian and international airlines has caused severe disruption to India’s aviation industry and created a growing sense of panic among air passengers.

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Allegations suggest India is now part of the assassination club | Hannah Ellis-Petersen

Canada’s PM, Justin Trudeau, claims Indian diplomats are implicated in murders on Canadian soil

A gruelling week for Indian diplomacy began with an explosive Canadian press conference on Monday. Senior Canadian police officials accused Indian diplomats of being involved in “criminal” activities on Canadian soil, ranging from homicide and targeted assassinations to extortion, intimidation and coercion against members of the Canadian Sikh community.

They alleged that Indian diplomats – including the high commissioner himself – were implicated not only in the high profile killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh activist who was gunned down outside a gurdwara in a suburb of Vancouver last June, but also linked to other murders on Canadian soil. The diplomats had even worked with a gang run by India’s most notorious mob boss to get their dirty work done, they alleged.

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Indian diplomats put ‘on notice’ in Canada after links to anti-Sikh activity uncovered

Canada expelled six Indian diplomats as fallout continues from 2023 killing of Canadian Sikh Hardeep Singh Nijjar

Canada’s foreign minister has warned India’s remaining diplomats in the country that they are “clearly on notice” not to endanger Canadian lives after New Delhi’s top envoy in Canada was named a person of interest in the assassination of a Sikh activist.

India’s high commissioner was expelled on Monday along with five other diplomats, prompting the Canadian foreign minister, Mélanie Joly, to compare India to Russia, saying Canada’s national police force has linked Indian diplomats to homicides, death threats and intimidation in Canada.

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US charges former Indian spy allegedly linked to foiled murder plot

Justice department says Vikash Yadav, who remains at large, planned to murder a Sikh separatist in New York

The United States has charged a former Indian intelligence officer who allegedly directed a foiled plot to murder a Sikh separatist in New York City last year.

An indictment of Vikash Yadav was ordered to be unsealed on Thursday, court records showed. Yadav was a former officer in India’s Research and Analysis Wing spy service, the records said. He remains at large.

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