Kanishka bombing anniversary: Diplomats of Canada, Ireland join victims' families in solidarity

Hindustan Times

5 hours ago

New Delhi, Top diplomats of Ireland and Canada joined families of the victims of Air India 182 Kanishka bombing in a show of solidarity at a solemn ceremony held here on Monday, marking the 40th anniversary of the terrorist attack. Kanishka bombing anniversary: Diplomats of Canada, Ireland join victims' families in solidarity
On June 23, 1985, the Boeing 747 aircraft was blown up by a bomb at an altitude of 9,400 metres and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while in Irish airspace, killing 329 people on board.
The three countries India, Canada and Ireland share the grief of this air tragedy that had left the world stunned 40 years ago. Flight AI 182 was operating on the Montreal-London-Delhi route.
Family members of the passengers and crew of the plane gather every year at various memorials set for the victims.
In Delhi, Canada's charge d'affaires Jennifer Daubeny and Irish ambassador to India, Kevin Kelly joined families of the victims of the tragedy at a commemoration ceremony held at Canada House to mark the 40th anniversary of the terrorist attack, according to a statement issued by the Canadian High Commission here.
Senior officials from the government of India and members of the diplomatic community also attended the ceremony, it said.
A minute of silence was also observed in memory of the victims of the recent air crash in Ahmedabad.
Earlier in the day, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar paid tributes to the victims of Air India 182 'Kanishka' bombing, and said it was "one of the worst acts of terrorism" and stands as a stark reminder of why the world must show zero tolerance towards terrorism and violent extremism.
The Montreal-New Delhi Air India 'Kanishka' Flight 182 exploded 45 minutes before it was supposed to land at London's Heathrow Airport on June 23, 1985, killing all 329 people on board, most of them Canadians of Indian descent.
"On the 40th anniversary of Air India 182 'Kanishka' bombing, we honour the memory of the 329 lives lost in one of the worst acts of terrorism. A stark reminder of why the world must show zero tolerance towards terrorism and violent extremism," Jaishankar said on X.
Besides, two more people were killed in a separate, but related, bombing at the Narita Airport in Japan.
"Relatives of the victims travelled to Ireland in the days following the bombing. The Irish Naval Service led a recovery operation to retrieve the remains of the victims and wreckage of the flight," the Canadian High Commission sad in its statement.
Many of the relatives stayed with the villagers of Ahakista, County Cork, during this time. A permanent memorial was erected by the village in 1986, and a commemoration is held there each year on the morning of June 23.
On Monday, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri attended the memorial event and paid homage to the victims at Ahakista Memorial in Cork, Ireland.
"Paying homage to victims of Air India Kanishka bombing at Ahakista Memorial in Cork, Ireland with the Irish Prime Minister HE @MichealMartinTD, Canadian Minister of Public Safety HE Gary Anandasangaree @gary_srp and members of the Indian delegation," he said on X.
At the Canada House ceremony in Delhi, guests signed a remembrance book on the occasion and planted a tree in memory of the victims.
"Today is the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism in Canada a day that marks the anniversary of the bombing of Flight 182 and the lives lost. As we mark its 40th anniversary, we join with the families of the victims in paying homage to each one of the precious lives lost in this tragedy. This anniversary is a reminder that we need to work together to defeat the forces of terrorism and support the peace and safety of our citizens," Daubeny was quoted as saying in the statement.
A total of 329 people were killed in the Air India bombing, including 268 Canadians, it said.
"Forty years on from the tragedy of Flight 182, we remember with sorrow the 329 innocent lives lost to an evil act of terror. It is with some solace we recall the manner in which the people of Ahakista in County Cork came out to support the families of those who died.
"Today, here in India, in Ireland and Canada, we stand in solidarity with their families. May their memory live on and be a reminder of the fact that innocent civilians need to be safe from terror wherever they are in the world," Ambassador Kelly said.
On Sunday, Puri had posted on X that he was on the way from Heathrow in the UK to Cork, and leading an Indian delegation to the memorial event at the Ahakista Memorial.
"On the way from Heathrow to Cork... The dastardly mid-air bombing of Air India Kanishka Flight 182 in 1985 which claimed 329 innocent lives off the Irish Coast remains one of the most inhuman acts of terror in aviation history," he had said.
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