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IOL News
2 days ago
- General
- IOL News
'Unimaginable': families mourn dead in Air India crash
Firefighters carry a victim's body after the Air India flight 171 crashed in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. The London-bound passenger plane crashed on June 12 in India's western city of Ahmedabad with 242 on board, aviation officials said in what the airline called a "tragic accident" Image: Photo by Sam PANTHAKY / AFP In an echoing hall in India's Ahmedabad, mourning families gave DNA samples on Friday to identify relatives missing after a London-bound passenger jet crashed in a residential area. At least 265 people on board and on the ground were killed when the Air India 787-8 Dreamliner smashed into a residential area soon after takeoff on Thursday. Just one passenger miraculously survived the giant fireball. Ashfaque Nanabawa, 40, said he had come to find his cousin Akeel Nanabawa, who had been onboard with his wife and three-year-old daughter. Amid all the horror of the Air India plane crash, this story of British national Vishwashkumar Ramesh from Leicester, who was in seat 11a, being the sole survivor and walking away with just a few scratches, is truly astonishing. — Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) June 12, 2025 Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading He said they had spoken as his cousin sat in the plane just before takeoff. "He called us and he said: 'I am in the plane and I have boarded safely and everything was okay'. That was his last call." Nanabawa, speaking in the early hours of Friday morning, said he and his family had given DNA samples, but were yet to "identify any of the bodies". I'm still in shock My fingers are trembling my heart is shattered my cousin is no more. He must was in the hostel mess, sharing dreams with friends, when the Air India crash stole him away. He was supposed to come home last week but stayed back. Now he'll never return#planecrash — Dr. Rishi Bose (@Rishii_Bose) June 12, 2025 Heartbreaking Indian police said at least 265 bodies had been recovered from the smouldering crash site - both from the wreckage of the plane and the medical staff accommodation into which the burning jet crashed. The toll may rise further as more bodies are located. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called the crash "heartbreaking beyond words". India's Home Minister Amit Shah, who visited the crash site and those injured in hospital on Thursday evening, said forensic laboratories would "complete the DNA testing in the shortest possible time". Shah said the final official toll would "be declared only after DNA testing is completed". On a raised platform, a dozen exhausted doctors worked to collect samples for the grim task of trying to identify bodies. "We have taken samples of babies and those above 80 years old. I don't have words to explain this," said a doctor, on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media. The full sequence from take-off to crash—final moments of Air India 171 captured on CCTV. Clear catastrophic lack of lift just seconds after liftoff. — Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) June 12, 2025 Air India said there were 169 Indian passengers, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and a Canadian on board the flight bound for London's Gatwick airport, as well as 12 crew members, making 242 onboard. Only one is confirmed to have survived, a British national. At least 24 people also died on the ground when the jet hit residential buildings. "As doctors, you're always prepared for the worst right?" the medic added. "But this is just overwhelming. Families are crying, looking for answers." Above, the sounds of planes echoed, with the hall close to another airport. "One person came to give the sample... his child, wife and mother were on the flight", the doctor added. "What do I even say?" One woman, too grief-stricken to give her name, said her son-in-law had been killed. "My daughter doesn't know that he's no more", she said, wiping away tears. "I can't break the news to her, can someone else do that please?" Unimaginable Friends also arrived in a desperate search for news. Premal Mehta, 39, from Ahmedabad, said he did not want to believe his friend Mahesh Jeerawala had been killed. "I am using everything in my power, political contacts, whatever it is, to find him", he said in desperation, as he supported his friend's brother, who was providing a DNA sample. Others had flown in seeking news, or to identify the dead.
eNCA
3 days ago
- General
- eNCA
Flames and smoke in aftermath of crashed India passenger jet
AHMEDABAD - Thick black plumes of acrid smoke towered high above India's Ahmedabad airport Thursday after a London-bound passenger jet with 242 people aboard crashed shortly after takeoff. Police said there appeared to be no survivors, with the plane smashing into a residential area. Several videos posted on social media, which AFP was not able to immediately verify, showed an aircraft rapidly losing altitude -- with its nose up -- before it hit a building and exploded into an orange ball of fire. Authorities said it went down outside the airport perimeter, in a crowded residential area while an AFP reporter in the city said the plane crashed between a hospital and the city's Ghoda Camp neighbourhood. A medic described how the burning plane had smashed into a residential block that is home to medical students and young doctors. "One half of the plane crashed into the residential building where doctors lived with their families," said Krishna, a doctor who gave only one name, adding he saw "about 15-20 burnt bodies" in the wreckage and debris. It was not clear whether the dead he had seen had been killed on board the plane, or had been in the building the aircraft ploughed into. Bodies burned "The nose and front wheel landed on the canteen building where students were having lunch," he said, adding he and colleagues had "rescued some 15 students from the building and sent them to hospital". "When we reached the spot, there were several bodies lying around and firefighters were dousing the flames," resident Poonam Patni told AFP. "Many of the bodies were burned", she added. AFP | Sam PANTHAKY Another resident, who declined to be named, said: "We saw people from the building jumping from the second and third floor to save themselves. The plane was in flames. "We helped people get out of the building and sent the injured to the hospital." Air India's flight 171 -- a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London's Gatwick Airport, crashed shortly after takeoff around 1:40 pm (0810 GMT), officials said. The passengers included 169 Indian nationals, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and a Canadian. Two pilots and 10 cabin crew were also aboard. Rescue teams supported by the military had recovered 204 bodies, city police commissioner GS Malik told AFP, with people aboard the plane and those on the ground among the dead. Some 41 people were being treated at local hospitals. 'Massive sound' At the crash site, firefighters could be seen trying to control flames on the burning plane debris that also charred trees. AFP | Sam PANTHAKY One video, from social media but posted by the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency, showed what appeared to be a chunk of fuselage -- larger than a car -- that had smashed onto the roof of a multi-storey building. Photographs released by India's Central Industrial Security Force, a paramilitary police force, showed a large chunk of the plane that had smashed through the brick and concrete wall of a building. "I was at home when we heard a massive sound," one Ahmedabad resident told PTI. "When we went out to see what had happened, there was a layer of thick smoke in the air. When we came here, dead bodies and debris from the crashed aircraft were scattered all over."
Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- General
- Toronto Sun
CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Air India crash carnage
The back of Air India flight 171 is pictured at the site after it crashed in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. A London-bound passenger plane crashed in the Indian city of Ahmedabad on Thursday and all 242 people on board were believed killed, with the jet smashing into buildings housing doctors and their families. (Photo by Sam PANTHAKY / AFP) (Photo by SAM PANTHAKY/AFP via Getty Images) WATCH: An Air India passenger plane bound for London with more than 240 people on board crashed and exploded after takeoff Thursday in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad, and there were no known survivors, officials said. What do YOU think? Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below or send us a Letter to the Editor for possible publication to . Letters must be 250 words or less and signed. And don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account World Celebrity World Sunshine Girls Toronto Maple Leafs
IOL News
21-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Indian troops kill at least 25 Maoist rebels: police
India's Home Minister Amit Shah addresses a gathering in Ahmedabad on May 18. Image: Sam PANTHAKY / AFP Indian commandos shot dead at least 25 Maoist rebels in central India on Wednesday, police said, as security forces ramp up efforts to crush the long-running conflict. India is waging an all-out offensive against the last vestiges of the Naxalite rebellion, named after the village in the foothills of the Himalayas where the Maoist-inspired guerrilla movement began nearly six decades ago. More than 12,000 rebels, soldiers and civilians have died since a handful of villagers rose up against their feudal lords there in 1967. At its peak in the mid-2000s, the rebellion controlled nearly a third of the country with an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 fighters. "Over 25 Maoists were killed in an encounter," senior Chhattisgarh state police official Vivekanand Sinha told AFP. The firefight broke out deep inside a forest in Chhattisgarh's Narayanpur district, a remote and densely wooded region that has long served as a Maoist stronghold. Sinha said the gun battle took place after intelligence reports indicated the presence of "top Maoist leaders" in the area. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ But Sinha said it was not clear who exactly had been killed. "The bodies have not yet been identified," Sinha said. India's Home Minister Amit Shah has said the government is committed to "eradicating Naxalism from its roots" by March 31 next year. Earlier this month, police said they had killed 31 Maoist rebels during a three-week operation aimed at capturing a strategic hill range previously under the control of guerrillas. A crackdown by Indian troops has killed more than 400 rebels since last year, according to government data. AFP
