GURDASPUR, INDIA // Indian security forces were battling an armed attack on a police station near the Pakistan border Monday in which at least five people have been killed.
Authorities said two police officers and three civilians had been confirmed dead in the ongoing siege in the northern state of Punjab, and at least seven more injured.
An AFP reporter at the scene said fierce firing could be heard around the police station in the town of Gurdaspur, bringing panicked residents out onto the streets.
Abhinav Trikha, the deputy police commissioner, said the attackers appeared to be holed up in the residential quarters of the police station and were “firing continuously”.
“There were three to four attackers. They were dressed in army uniforms and came in a Maruti car,” he said.
The attackers reportedly opened fire on a bus and hijacked a vehicle before storming the police station.
Rajvinder Singh, a police spokesman, said he had witnessed a security officer being hit by a bullet during the standoff.
“I don’t know his condition, but he was immediately rushed to the hospital. The operation is on and this is still a live-operation,” Mt Singh said.
Five live bombs were recovered from a nearby railway line, but Kiren Rijiju, the junior home minister, said reports that the attackers were holding people hostage inside the police station appeared to be false.
“We don’t think there are any hostages. And for now, while the operation is on, it won’t be right to divulge details,” he said.
Rajnath Singh, the home minister, said he had ordered increased security on the border with Pakistan, although it remained unclear who was responsible for the attack.
Such incidents are relatively common in the disputed Kashmir region, which is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed in full by both.
But in neighbouring Punjab, a majority-Sikh state, has largely been spared the violence that has plagued Indian Kashmir for decades.
Some media reports suggested the attackers may have crossed into Punjab from Kashmir before launching their assault.
Last November a suicide bomber killed at least 55 people on the Pakistan side of the Wagah border in Punjab, the main Pakistan-India border crossing.
Monday’s attack comes weeks after Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif spoke for about an hour during a summit in Russia, raising hopes of an improvement in perennially difficult relations.
* Agence France-Presse
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Results
Stage Two:
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 04:20:45
2. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix
3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates
4. Olav Kooij (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
General Classification:
1. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix 09:03:03
2. Dmitry Strakhov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:04
3. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 00:00:06
4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:10
5. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:12
Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
