In a first for the city, Pune was struck by a terrorist attack that killed nine and injured 45 peoplelast night. A few foreigners are among those killed. An explosive left behind in a backpack at the German Bakery in Pune’s Koregaon Park area exploded at around 7.15 pm. The Home Minister P Chidambaram said in a press conference that the city was known to be on the radar of terrorists groups and the city police had been sensitized about it in advance. David Headley, prime accused in plotting the Mumbai attacks in November 2008, had visited the Koregaon Park area known as being a hotspot for foreign tourists to the city. The Lashkar e-Taiba’s involvement is therefore being suspected in the first attack after 26/11. It also casts a shadow on the secretary level talks between India and Pakistan scheduled for Feb 25.
Having born and brought up in Pune, the terror attack was truly a case of terror striking home for me. Incidentally it is only last morning that I returned back to Pune from the US. I have visited and known places and people in the Koregaon Park area. I have enjoyed many delicacies at the German Bakery. Pune – my home, the place I always felt the safest in, the city that thousands throng to for its opportunities and sense of security. To know that terrorists struck here makes things more real than even the attacks in Mumbai did!
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
