A security review is under way at the Indian High Commission in the UK following “unacceptable acts of violence” towards the mission's staff.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary James Cleverly announced the move, as he condemned acts of barbarity towards employees of the office in central London.
“We will always take the security of the High Commission, and all foreign missions in the UK, extremely seriously,” he said.
Mr Cleverly said the Metropolitan Police is investigating violent incidents that occurred outside the building, and said authorities are prepared to make any changes necessary to ensure the safety of the Indian mission’s staff.
His statement came after Narendra Modi’s government summoned Britain’s most senior diplomat in New Delhi to express concern over violence at the country's mission in London.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Mr Cleverly said Rishi Sunak’s administration takes security matters seriously and would “robustly” respond to attacks on diplomatic staff in the UK.
“Acts of violence towards staff at the Indian High Commission in London are unacceptable and I have made our position clear to the High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami,” Mr Cleverly said.
He pointed to an increase in security measures around the building in Aldwych on Wednesday in anticipation of a planned demonstration. This included barricades erected on pavements, several police officers standing outside the building and mounted patrols and helicopter surveillance in the area.
Media reports said protesters carrying “Khalistan” banners turned up outside the building and ripped an Indian flag from the first-floor balcony. This was to protest against Indian police actions in the Punjab state.
The “Khalistan” movement has a separatist motive as it seeks to create a homeland for Sikhs by establishing a sovereign state in the Punjab region.
Footage posted on social media showed demonstrators wearing turbans being blocked by police from entering the building. The group could be heard chanting “Indian government, shame, shame”.
Up to 2,000 protesters had descended on the site by Wednesday evening, Indian network NDTV reported, and said “the mood got ugly” when some people “targeted the police with water bottles, ink and powdered colours”.
An earlier protest took place in the same spot on Sunday and resulted in windows being smashed, the BBC reported. India responded by demanding an explanation for the “complete absence of the British security” around the premises.
Mr Sunak’s official spokesman was questioned on Wednesday about reports suggesting India had withdrawn some security protection from the UK High Commission in New Delhi.
He said he was not aware of any change in security arrangements for British diplomats in India. But he confirmed “the Met have upped local protection” of the Indian High Commission in London.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the UK's minister for South Asia, met with Mr Doraiswami on Thursday in a bid to calm tensions.
He said it had been a “positive meeting” and reassured the Indian High Commissioner that the government takes the safety of diplomats in the UK “extremely seriously”.
Lord Ahmad said the UK-Indian relationship is “thriving” and said “we are looking ahead to deeper ties”.
Mr Sunak is the UK's first Prime Minister of Indian origin and his entry into No 10 last October renewed hopes of a post-Brexit trade deal with India.
Trade minister Greg Hands last year said “the majority” of an agreement had been agreed.
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- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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%3Cp%3EWhile%20the%20Lebanese%20government%20has%20deported%20a%20number%20of%20refugees%20back%20to%20Syria%20since%202011%2C%20the%20latest%20round%20is%20the%20first%20en-mass%20campaign%20of%20its%20kind%2C%20say%20the%20Access%20Center%20for%20Human%20Rights%2C%20a%20non-governmental%20organization%20which%20monitors%20the%20conditions%20of%20Syrian%20refugees%20in%20Lebanon.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%9CIn%20the%20past%2C%20the%20Lebanese%20General%20Security%20was%20responsible%20for%20the%20forced%20deportation%20operations%20of%20refugees%2C%20after%20forcing%20them%20to%20sign%20papers%20stating%20that%20they%20wished%20to%20return%20to%20Syria%20of%20their%20own%20free%20will.%20Now%2C%20the%20Lebanese%20army%2C%20specifically%20military%20intelligence%2C%20is%20responsible%20for%20the%20security%20operation%2C%E2%80%9D%20said%20Mohammad%20Hasan%2C%20head%20of%20ACHR.%3Cbr%3EIn%20just%20the%20first%20four%20months%20of%202023%20the%20number%20of%20forced%20deportations%20is%20nearly%20double%20that%20of%20the%20entirety%20of%202022.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ESince%20the%20beginning%20of%202023%2C%20ACHR%20has%20reported%20407%20forced%20deportations%20%E2%80%93%20200%20of%20which%20occurred%20in%20April%20alone.%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%20comparison%2C%20just%20154%20people%20were%20forcfully%20deported%20in%202022.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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