Three more Rafale jets arrive in India from France
New Delhi, Mar 31: A fourth batch of three Rafale fighter jets landed in India on Wednesday evening after flying non-stop from France, in a further boost to the strike capability of the Indian Air Force.
The jets were provided mid-air refuelling by air force tankers of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the IAF said.
The 4th batch of three IAF #Rafales landed on Indian soil after a direct ferry from #IstresAirBase France," it tweeted.
The IAF also thanked the UAE air force for refuelling the Rafale jets, describing it as yet another milestone in the strong relationship between the two air forces.
The IAF did not disclose the base where the Rafale jets landed.
"Another batch of #Rafale take to the skies on non stop flight to India with mid air refueling by UAE. Indian Air power grows further," the Indian Embassy in France tweeted earlier.
With the arrival of the three jets, the size of the Rafale fleet has increased to 14.
The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.
The formal induction ceremony of the fleet had taken place at Ambala on September 10 last.
A second batch of three Rafale jets arrived in India on November 3, while a third batch of another three jets joined the IAF on January 27.
The first Rafale squadron is based in Ambala air force station.
The Indian Air Force is set to raise the second squadron of the Rafale combat jets in mid-April and it will be based in Hasimara air base in West Bengal, according to military officials.
India is expected to get more Rafale jets from France in the next few months.
The Rafale jets, manufactured by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 years after the Sukhoi jets were imported from Russia.
The Rafale jets are capable of carrying a range of potent weapons. European missile maker MBDA's Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile, Scalp cruise missile and MICA weapons system will be the mainstay of the weapons package of the Rafale jets.
The 4th batch of three IAF #Rafales landed on Indian soil after a direct ferry from#IstresAirBase France. pic.twitter.com/Ch36dgptNF
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) March 31, 2021
Rafales were refueled in-flight by UAE Air Force tankers. This marks yet another milestone in the strong relationship between the two Air Forces.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) March 31, 2021
Thank You UAE AF.@IndembAbuDhabi @Indian_Embassy pic.twitter.com/6gFwh0AnjR
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Osman Hadi murder: Prime accused denies role, claims he was in Dubai
Dubai: The murder case of Bangladeshi student leader Sharif Osman Hadi has taken a new turn after the prime accused, Faisal Karim Masud, publicly denied any involvement in the killing, asserting that he was in Dubai at the time, contradicting earlier claims by Bangladesh police that he had fled to India.
In a video message that has gone viral on social media, the authenticity of which has not been independently verified, Masud rejected the allegations against him and described the case as a fabricated conspiracy. He claimed that a radical political group was responsible for the attack on Hadi and said he had been falsely implicated.
“I am Faisal Karim Masud. I want to state clearly that I am not involved in the murder of Hadi in any way. This case is completely false and based on a fabricated conspiracy,” Masud said in the video. He added that he was forced to leave Bangladesh and travel to Dubai due to the allegations, despite holding a valid five-year multiple-entry visa for the UAE.
Masud acknowledged that he had visited Hadi’s office shortly before the shooting but maintained that their relationship was purely professional. Describing himself as a businessman who owns an IT firm and a former employee of the Ministry of Finance, Masud said he had approached Hadi regarding a job opportunity. According to him, Hadi sought an advance payment of 500,000 taka for arranging the job and also requested donations for various programmes, which he said he provided.
The accused further alleged that his family members were being harassed and falsely implicated in the case. “They have no involvement whatsoever. This kind of inhumane treatment of my family is unjust and unacceptable, and I strongly protest against it,” he said.
Masud also accused Jamaat-linked elements of orchestrating Hadi’s killing, claiming the student leader was targeted by “Jamaati elements” and that he and his younger brother were deliberately framed. A photograph purportedly showing Masud’s UAE visa has also circulated widely online.
Earlier, Bangladesh police had stated that Masud and another accused, Alamgir Sheikh, fled the country after the killing and entered India through the Meghalaya border. Media reports in Bangladesh claimed the two crossed over via the Haluaghat border in Mymensingh district and were currently in India. India, however, has firmly denied any connection between the accused and its territory, calling the allegations a false narrative being pushed by extremist elements.
Sharif Osman Hadi, a key figure in Bangladesh’s student uprising last year, was shot in the head by masked gunmen in Dhaka on December 12 and succumbed to his injuries six days later at a hospital in Singapore. He had emerged as a prominent leader during the student-led protests that culminated in the end of Sheikh Hasina’s rule.
