Heartbreaking loss of civilian lives: India on Israeli airstrike in Rafah
New Delhi, May 30: India on Thursday described as "heartbreaking" the loss of civilian lives in an Israeli strike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah and called for respecting international humanitarian law in the ongoing conflict.
Local officials in Gaza said 45 people were killed in the May 26 air strike, most of them sheltering in tents. The strike triggered massive global outrage including criticism from some of Israel's closest allies.
"The heartbreaking loss of civilian lives in the displacement camp in Rafah is a matter of deep concern for us," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
"We have consistently called for protection of the civilian population and respect for international humanitarian law in the ongoing conflict," he said.
Jaiswal was responding to a question on the situation in Gaza at his weekly media briefing.
"We also note that the Israeli side has already accepted responsibility for it as a tragic incident and announced an investigation into the incident," he said.
On Spain, Ireland and Norway recognising Palestine in the midst of the conflict, Jaiswal said India had done that way back in the 1980s.
"India recognised Palestine way back in the 1980s. It has been our long-standing position that we support a two state solution which entails the establishment of a sovereign, viable, and independent state of Palestine within recognised and mutually agreed borders, living side by side with Israel in peace," he said.
Israel has been continuing its military offensive in Gaza as part of its retaliation to the unprecedented attack on Israeli cities by Hamas on October 7.
Hamas killed around 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped more than 220 others some of whom were released during a brief ceasefire.
Over 35,000 people have been killed in Gaza in the Israeli offensive, according to the Hamas-run authorities in Gaza.
India has been calling for de-escalation of the situation and creating conditions for an early resumption of direct peace negotiations towards a two-state solution to the Palestine issue.
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Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
