India evacuates 168 people from Kabul
New Delhi(PTI): India on Sunday evacuated 168 people including 107 Indians from Kabul in a military transport aircraft of the IAF amid the deteriorating security situation in the Afghan capital city following its takeover by the Taliban a week back.
Another group of 87 Indians and two Nepalese nationals who were flown in an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft to the Tajikistan capital of Dushanbe from Kabul on Saturday, arrived in Delhi on Sunday morning, people familiar with the development said.
They were brought back in a special Air India flight from Dushanbe, they said.
Separately, a group of 135 Indians, who were earlier evacuated from Kabul to Doha in the last few days by the US and NATO aircraft, also returned to India.
It is learnt that the Indians evacuated to Doha from Kabul were employees of a number of foreign companies that were operating in Afghanistan.
"Evacuation continues!IAF special repatriation flight with 168 passengers onboard, including 107 Indian nationals, is on its way to Delhi from Kabul," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted.
It is learnt that a number of prominent Sikh leaders are on board the flight.
"Bringing Indians home from Afghanistan!AI 1956 carrying 87 Indians departs from Tajikistan for New Delhi. Two Nepalese nationals also evacuated.Assisted and supported by our Embassy @IndEmbDushanbe. More evacuation flights to follow," Bagchi tweeted at around 1:20 am.
India evacuated 200 people including the Indian envoy and other staffers of its embassy in Kabul in two C-17 heavy-lift transport aircraft of the IAF after the Taliban seized control of Kabul.
The first evacuation flight brought back over 40 people, mostly staffers at the Indian embassy, on Monday.
The second C-17 aircraft evacuated around 150 people including Indian diplomats, officials, security personnel and some stranded Indians from Kabul on Tuesday.
The Taliban swept across Afghanistan this month, seizing control of almost all key towns and cities including Kabul in the backdrop of the withdrawal of the US forces.
The mission to evacuate close to 200 Indians was accomplished with support from the US
Following the evacuation, the MEA said the focus now would be to ensure the safe return of all Indian nationals from the Afghan capital.
The MEA said the immediate priority for the government is to obtain accurate information about all Indian nationals currently staying in Afghanistan.
It also requested the Indians as well as their employers to urgently share the relevant details with the special Afghanistan cell.
As per a rough estimate earlier, the number of Indians stranded in Afghanistan could be around 400 and India has been looking at ways to evacuate them including by coordinating with the US and other friendly countries.
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Supreme Court of India YouTube channel hacked, promoting cryptocurrency scams
New Delhi: The YouTube channel of the Supreme Court of India appears to have been hacked, with videos promoting XRP, a cryptocurrency developed by US-based Ripple Labs, currently being displayed. The channel, which streams live hearings of Constitution Bench cases and matters of public interest, recently broadcasted the proceedings of the suo motu case concerning the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape and murder.
Hackers have reportedly made earlier videos private, and a live stream titled "Brad Garlinghouse: Ripple Responds To The SEC's $2 Billion Fine! XRP PRICE PREDICTION" is now visible on the channel. Scams involving the hacking of popular video channels are not uncommon, and Ripple had previously sued YouTube for failing to prevent scammers from impersonating its CEO, Brad Garlinghouse.
According to a report by The Verge, scammers have been creating fake accounts for Ripple and Garlinghouse, often by hacking successful YouTube channels. These hacked channels, with their large subscriber bases, are then used to promote fraudulent XRP schemes, misleading viewers into making payments in exchange for promises of rewards.
Supreme Court officials have confirmed that the channel's hacking is under investigation.
