North Korea stages massive parade to mark 70th anniversary
Pyongyang, Sep 9 : North Korea on Sunday held a massive military parade on Sunday to mark the 70th anniversary of its founding, an intelligence source said. "The North held the military parade in the morning, and it has been completed," the source told Seoul's Yonhap News Agency.
It is not yet clear whether North Korean leader Kim Jong-un joined the event and if intercontinental ballistic missiles were put on display.
The North's media has stayed silent on the event, which is the first since Kim held a historic summit with US President Donald Trump in June.
Meanwhile, international journalists have been invited to watch the military parade, a torch-lit rally and the Arirang Mass Games, a highly choreographed event expected to involved hundreds of thousands of people, CNN reported.
The Grand Mass Gymnastics and Artistic Performance Arirang - or Arirang Games - last took place in 2013. This year's games, which tells a symbolic story of North Korea's history, are titled "The Glorious Country", according to the BBC.
Analysis of satellite images from the past two weeks suggest this year's games, which will continue throughout September, are going to be very big.
With tickets for foreigners costing more than $930, the country could rake in foreign currency at a time it is still under sanctions from many Western nations.
National carrier Air Koryo has scheduled additional flights from Beijing to bring in more tourists to watch the performances. Sunday's parade will be North Korea's second such event of the year.
The first came in February a day before South Korea held the Opening Ceremony for the Winter Olympics. Those games helped kick start the current stage of rapprochement between the Koreas.
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West Asia crisis: MEA establishes control room to assist Indians
New Delhi (PTI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has set up a control room to assist those affected by the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The MEA has said almost one crore Indian citizens live in West Asia and their safety and well-being is of "utmost priority" for New Delhi.
As the Iran-US conflict widened, the Indian embassy in Iran moved hundreds of Indian students from the Iranian capital of Tehran to safer locations.
"A Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region," the MEA said on Wednesday.
"The Control Room can be contacted from 9 am to 9 pm at: 1800118797 (Toll Free) +91 11 2301 2113, +91 11 2301 4104, +91 11 2301 7905," it added.
The US launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israel and American military bases in several Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The MEA on Tuesday noted that almost one crore Indian citizens live and work in the Gulf region, and their "safety and well-being is of utmost priority."
"We cannot be impervious to any development that negatively affects them," it said.
The MEA said New Delhi will continue to closely monitor the evolving situation and take relevant decisions in the national interest, adding it is in touch with the governments in the region as well as other key partners.
A Special Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region. Details are as below ⬇️
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) March 4, 2026
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