Yemen official says 40 killed in Aden attacks
Aden: A Yemen health official and witnesses say at least 40 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a missile attack and coordinated suicide bombings in the southern port city of Aden.
The official says the missile struck a military parade underway Thursday in Aden, the temporary seat of the UN-recognised Yemeni government. They spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to talk to reporters.
The website of the country's Houthi rebels quoted spokesman Brig. Gen. Yehia Sarea as saying the rebels fired a ballistic missile at forces loyal to the United Arab Emirates, a member of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iran-backed Houthis since 2015.
The parade was taking place in Aden's neighborhood of Breiqa. The official didn't give a breakdown for the casualties at the parade but said several commanders were among the casualties.
Abdel Dayem Ahmed, a senior police official told The Associated Press that 11 were killed earlier in the day when an explosives-laden car, a bus and three motorcycles targeted a police station during a morning lineup.
Yemeni officials and witnesses say a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into a police station in the southern city of Aden, killing at least three policemen.
They say the attack took place on Thursday in the city's Omar al-Mokhtar neighborhood and that at least 20 people were wounded, including three civilians.
The bomber drove into the police station's gates shortly before the morning police lineup at the before the start of the workday.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk to reporters and the witnesses declined to identify themselves for fear of reprisals.
Aden is the seat of Yemen's internationally recognized government, which has been at war with the rebel Houthis who control the capital, Sanaa, and most of the country's north.
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India harbouring big and bold dreams in space sector: Shubhanshu Shukla
Kolkata (PTI): Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian astronaut to go to the International Space Station, on Wednesday said the country is harbouring “big and bold dreams”, foraying into human spaceflight after a hiatus of 41 years.
Shukla was the first Indian to visit the International Space Station as part of the Axiom-4 mission. He returned to India from the US on August 17, 2025, after the 18-day mission.
The space is a “great place to be”, marked by deep peace and an “amazing view” that becomes more captivating with time, he said, interacting with schoolchildren at an event organised by the Indian Centre for Space Physics here.
“The longer you stay, the more you enjoy it,” Shukla said, adding on a lighter note that he “actually kind of did not want to come back”.
Shukla said the hands-on experience in space was very different from what he had learnt during training.
He said the future of India’s space science was “very bright”, with the country harbouring “very big and bold dreams”.
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Shukla described his ISS flight, undertaken with support from the US, as a crucial “stepping stone” towards realising India’s ‘Vision Gaganyaan’.
“The experience gained is a national asset. It is already being used by internal committees and design teams to ensure ongoing missions are on the right track,” he said.
Shukla said the country’s space ambitions include the Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme, the Bharatiya Station (India’s own space station), and eventually a human landing on the Moon.
While the Moon mission is targeted for 2040, he said these projects are already in the pipeline, and the field will evolve at a “very rapid pace” over the next 10-20 years.
He told the students that though these targets are challenging, they are “achievable by people like you”, urging them to take ownership of India’s aspirations.
The sector will generate “a lot of employment opportunities” as India expands its human spaceflight capabilities, he noted.
Echoing the iconic words of India’s first astronaut Rakesh Sharma, Shukla said that from orbit, “India is still the best in the world”.
Shukla also asserted that the achievement was not his alone, but that of the entire country.
“The youth of India are extremely talented. They must stay focused, remain curious and work hard. It is their responsibility to help build a developed India by 2047,” he said.
Highlighting a shift from Sharma’s era, Shukla said India is now developing a full-fledged astronaut ecosystem.
With Gaganyaan and future missions, children in India will be able to not only dream of becoming astronauts, but also achieving it within the country, he said.
“Space missions help a village kid believe he can go to space someday. When you send one person to space, you lift million hopes. That is why such programmes must continue... The sky is not the limit,” Shukla said.
“Scientists must prepare for systems that will last 20-30 years, while ensuring they can integrate technologies that will emerge a decade from now,” he said.
Shukla added that he looked forward to more space missions, and was keen to undertake a space walk, which will require him to "train for another two years".
