
The sound and fury of Indian media post-Kashmir
A deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir shattered a narrative Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has spent years constructing – that Kashmir was safe, open for business, and back to 'normal'.
In response, Indian officials have launched a sweeping crackdown and spurred nationalist rhetoric. Much of the media is echoing the government line.
Too busy demanding revenge to ask the most basic of questions: How did this happen?
Contributors:
Anuradha Bhasin – Managing editor, Kashmir Times
Sreenivasan Jain – Journalist and author
Swasti Rao – Associate professor, Jindal Global University; consulting editor, The Print
Nirupama Subramanian – Journalist
In Pakistan, the media narrative on what happened in Kashmir has been dominated by powerful military and intelligence figures. But on social media, users are pushing back with satire and scepticism. Ryan Kohls reports.
Donald Trump has completed the chaotic first 100 days of his second term, marked by aggressive policies, talk of annexing neighbouring countries, and declarations of war against the mainstream media, universities and law firms.
His administration's online presence, filled with brash language and often cruel memes, reflects and amplifies his confrontational political style. Meenakshi Ravi reports.
Featuring:
Meredith Clark – UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media
Jon Roozenbeek – Professor of psychology and security, King's College London
Jude Russo – Managing editor, The American Conservative
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Qatar Tribune
an hour ago
- Qatar Tribune
India's Modi tells Trump there was no US mediation in Pakistan truce
new DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made it clear to United States President Donald Trump that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after a four-day conflict in May was achieved through talks between the two militaries and not US mediation, a top diplomat in New Delhi said. 'PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-US trade deal or US mediation between India and Pakistan,' Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a press statement on Wednesday. 'Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,' he said. Misri said the two leaders spoke over the phone late on Tuesday on Trump's insistence after the two leaders were unable to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada, which Modi attended as a guest. The call lasted 35 minutes. Trump had said last month that the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours agreed to the ceasefire after talks mediated by the US, and that the hostilities ended after he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war. There was no immediate comment from the White House on the Modi-Trump call. (Agencies)


Al Jazeera
16 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
India's Modi maintains there was no US mediation in Pakistan ceasefire
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made it clear to United States President Donald Trump that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after a four-day conflict in May was achieved through talks between the two militaries and not US mediation, a top diplomat in New Delhi says. 'PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-U.S. trade deal or US mediation between India and Pakistan,' Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a press statement on Wednesday. 'Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,' he said. Misri said the two leaders spoke over the phone late on Tuesday on Trump's insistence after the two leaders were unable to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada, which Modi attended as a guest. The call lasted 35 minutes. Trump had said last month that the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours agreed to the ceasefire after talks mediated by the US, and that the hostilities ended after he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war. There was no immediate comment from the White House on the Modi-Trump call. Pakistan has previously said the ceasefire was agreed after its military returned a call the Indian military had initiated on May 7. In an interview with Al Jazeera in May, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar rejected claims that Washington mediated the truce and insisted Islamabad acted independently. The conflict between India and Pakistan was triggered by an April 22 attack in Pahalgam, in Indian-administered Kashmir, in which 26 civilians, almost all tourists, were killed. India blamed armed groups allegedly backed by Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denied. On May 7, India launched missile strikes at multiple sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Over the next three days, the two countries exchanged artillery and air raids, hitting each other's airbases. Pakistan said at least 51 people, including 11 soldiers and several children, were killed in Indian attacks. India's military said at least five members of the armed forces were killed in Operation Sindoor, under which it launched the cross-border strikes. Misri said Trump expressed his support for India's fight against 'terrorism' and that Modi told him Operation Sindoor was still on.


Al Jazeera
6 days ago
- Al Jazeera
‘Catastrophic' Air India plane crash near Ahmedabad: What we know
An Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane has crashed close to an airport on the edge of India's western city of Ahmedabad with at least 242 people on board. According to Reuters, rescue workers said between 30 and 35 bodies had been recovered from the crash site in a densely populated area of the city. So far, no survivors have been reported. Flight AI171 was headed to London Gatwick Airport on Thursday where it was due to land at 6:25pm local time (17:25 GMT). 'Of these [on board], 169 are Indian nationals, 53 are British nationals, 1 Canadian national and 7 Portuguese nationals,' Air India said in a statement. The airline described the incident as 'a tragic accident'. 'Many people' have died in the crash, the country's health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda wrote in a post on X. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X: 'The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us. It is heartbreaking beyond words. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it. 'Have been in touch with ministers and authorities who are working to assist those affected.' This incident is the latest in a series of serious and fatal events in the civil aviation industry this year, including a midair collision in Washington in January between a military helicopter and an plane crashed in a residential area called Meghani Nagar, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, head of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, told The Associated Press. The city of 7-8 million people is in President Modi's home state of Gujarat. Modi has directed the Ministry of Civil Aviation to take 'all possible action' to assist at the crash site. There is a large Gujarat population in Great Britain, and the Ahmedabad-London route is a popular one. According to flight tracking website Flightradar24, the plane's final signal was received just seconds after takeoff at 1:38pm local time (08:08 GMT). It had reached an altitude of 625 feet (190 metres) before crashing back to the ground outside the airport, close to densely populated residential areas on the outskirts of the city. The plane issued a mayday alert to air traffic control before all communications from the aircraft ceased. Ahmedabad airport has been closed and all flight operations have been suspended until further notice. Footage shared on social media of the crash site showed debris on fire, with huge plumes of thick, black smoke rising into the sky near the airport. They also showed people being moved in stretchers and being taken away in ambulances. India's CNN News-18 TV channels said the plane crashed on top of the dining area of state-run B.J. Medical College hostel, killing many medical students as well. It showed a visual of a portion of the aircraft perched atop the building. 'The building on which it has crashed is a doctors' hostel…We have cleared almost 70 percent to 80 percent of the area and will clear the rest soon,' a senior police officer also told reporters. Local journalist Sunil Vaidya told Al Jazeera: 'The crash site is very close to a civil hospital where there is a medical college,' he said. 'It is quite possible that students studying there are staying in a hostel nearby.' This could be a very serious crash, experts say. Alex Macheras, an independent aviation analyst, told Al Jazeera that the Boeing 787 is a long-haul craft, which means it has capacity for a large number of passengers. 'This is probably going to be one of the worst aviation incidents for Indian aviation history in recent decades,' Macheras said. However, he added that the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, of which there are 1,100 in operation around the world, has a very good track record for safety. 'There has never been a fatal crash involving a 787 Dreamliner before this,' Macheras said. He said the incident would raise serious questions about what could have gone wrong with this flight and why the aircraft was 'struggling to gain altitude' after takeoff. 'The 787 has been in service for 15 years – this is a mid to long-haul passenger aircraft, one of the latest from Boeing in terms of the development and the introduction of carbon-fibre aircraft,' Macheras told Al Jazeera. 'It provides airlines with immense efficiency but also with the promise of stellar safety record that the 787 has. In fact, in its 15 years of commercial service globally, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has never been involved in a crash or a whole loss or a fatal accident,' Macheras said. 'So combined, it's an aircraft that the industry knows is of the highest standards in terms of meeting safety regulations globally, across different markets but also one that is trusted and essentially a workhorse of the skies when it comes to long-haul travel'. Macheras added that he is hearing from executives within the aviation industry who are 'utterly shocked' at the footage. They 'can't quite believe that an aircraft with an impeccable safety record was involved in something that looks like is going to be so catastrophic', he said. ANI news agency reported that at least 90 emergency response workers are currently deployed at the site of the crash. India's Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said he was 'shocked and devastated' by the plane crash. 'I am personally monitoring the situation and have directed all aviation and emergency response agencies to take swift and coordinated action. Rescue teams have been mobilised, and all efforts are being made to ensure medical aid and relief support are being rushed to the site.' 'My thoughts and prayers are with all those on board and their families,' he added. Elsewhere, Air India's chairman, Natarajan Chandrasekaran said that 'further updates will be shared as we receive more verified information. An emergency centre has been activated and support team have been set up for families seeking information.' However, local people said little information was reaching those worried about loved ones on the flight or on the ground where it crashed. Vaidya told Al Jazeera: 'It is chaos. They have cordoned off the accident site and ambulances are rushing to hospitals. But the general public and relatives – they are not getting any information.' Yes, but not for some time. Air India's safety record is comparable with international carriers such as Turkish Airlines, American Airlines or Lufthansa. However, it is not as safe as 'top-tier' carriers like Singapore Airlines or Emirates (which have had zero, or near-zero, fatal crashes in recent decades). Previous instances of fatal Air India crashes include: The unprofitable carrier was acquired by the Tata Group from the Indian government in 2021. Air India is currently in the middle of a strategic turnaround, including making a large aircraft order as it seeks to tap growing demand from India's expanding middle class. Yes. Boeing, which leads the global aircraft market alongside Europe's Airbus, has come under intense scrutiny over its safety record since two fatal crashes involving the Boeing 737 Max in 2018 and 2019. The 737 Max jets were grounded worldwide for almost two years after a crash killed 189 people in Indonesia in October 2018 and another killed 157 people in Ethiopia five months later. It was found that the crashes had occurred due to defects in the automated flight control software, which activated erroneously. The software was improved and the Boeing 737s were revamped and cleared to fly again. Then, in January 2024, the door plug of a Boeing 737 Max 9 flew off midair during an Alaska Airlines flight. The Alaska Airlines incident was found to have been caused by a defect in the manufacturing process, with loose hardware on the aircraft. In March 2024, John Barnett, 62, who reported safety problems at Boeing, died from an apparent 'self-inflicted' injury during the time he was giving evidence in a whistleblower lawsuit against the company. Barnett worked as a quality manager for the US aircraft giant for more than three decades until he retired in 2017. In 2019, Barnett alleged the aircraft maker, based just outside Washington, DC, had deliberately fitted planes with faulty parts and passengers on its 787 Dreamliner could be left without oxygen in the event of a sudden decompression. Boeing has denied these allegations.