HAIFA: The Adani Group on Tuesday acquired the strategic Israeli port of Haifa for USD 1.2 billion and vowed to transform the skyline of this Mediterranean city as part of its decision to invest more in the Jewish nation, including opening an artificial intelligence lab in Tel Aviv.

Gautam Adani, whose business empire was rocked by allegations of fraud by US short-seller Hindenburg Research, appeared alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the signing of the deal to takeover Haifa Port and spoke of investment opportunities.

Prime Minister Netanyahu described the Haifa port deal with the Adani Group as an “enormous milestone”, saying it will significantly improve connectivity between the two countries in many ways.

The Port of Haifa is the second largest port in Israel in terms of shipping containers and the biggest in shipping tourist cruise ships.

“I think this is an enormous milestone. Over 100 years ago, and during World World I, it was the brave Indian soldiers who helped liberate the city of Haifa. And today, it’s very robust Indian investors who are helping to liberate the port of Haifa,” Netanyahu said.

The Prime Minister said that he discussed with his “good friend” Indian counterpart Narendra Modi this vision of “having connectivity between our countries in many ways, transportation lines and air routes and sea routes and it’s happening today.”

He said what is happening today has historic importance because “What we see there is a tremendous boost for peace.”

Netanyahu said the region will become an entry point and an exit point for a vast number of goods that reach the Mediterranean and Europe directly without having to go around the Arabian peninsula without having to go through three choke points.

“This is an unequivocal expression of confidence in the Israeli economy,” he said, adding that privatisation of the ports and the entry of new investors strengthen Israel’s economic strength, lower the cost of living and create new opportunities for import and export and strengthens ties between India and Israel.

On his part, Adani said his group will also develop real estate at the port to transform the Haifa skyline.

The 60-year-old Indian tycoon did not make any mention of the Hindenburg row that has already wiped out over USD 70 billion in value from his group stocks.

“We have initiated several dozen technology relationships wherein we have offered the entire Adani portfolio of companies to be a giant sandbox for us to learn together,” he said in his speech.

“We are also in the process of setting up an Artificial Intelligence lab in Tel Aviv which will work in close collaboration with our new AI labs in India and the US.”

In the last six years, Adani group has struck many critical partnerships with companies such as Elbit Systems, Israel Weapon Systems, and Israel Innovation Authority.

Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd in partnership with local chemicals and logistics group Gadot in July last year won an Israel government’s tender to buy the Haifa Port, a major trade hub on Israel’s Mediterranean coast, for about USD 1.2 billion.

Adani’s company has no holdings in the West, so its entry into Israel is a signal for increased maritime traffic between Asia and Europe, and the major Asian players’ need for a hub in the Mediterranean.

“The acquisition of the Haifa port also comes with a significant amount of real estate. And I promise you that in the years to come we will transform the skyline we see around us,” said Adani, the founder and chairman of the group.

“The Haifa of tomorrow – will look very different from the Haifa that you see today. With your support – we will deliver on this commitment and do our part to transform this city.”

He expressed confidence in transforming the entire port landscape.

“We realize that there will be competition from others, but our confidence comes from our belief in the people of Israel and therefore our belief in the Israel Growth story.”

“Our intention is to make the right set of investments that will not just make the Adani Gadot partnership proud but will make the whole of Israel proud,” he said.

Stating that the Israeli spirit makes all the difference, he said his group also aims to establish collaborative relationships with local colleges like the University of Haifa to be able to capitalise on the deep technology expertise available in this city.

Adani said India-Israel friendship dates back to September 23, 1918, when soldiers from the Indian cities of Mysore, Hyderabad and Jodhpur battled here for the freedom of Haifa.

“And earlier today, I had an opportunity to visit the cemetery where our soldiers were put to rest. It was a moving moment for me to reflect on the fact that the port we now share – is part of the same city – where soldiers from both our countries – fought side by side for the ultimate shared cause that we all call — Freedom,” he said.

He went on to state that Israel has always motivated him.

“You have rewritten the rules of what a country with a population of less than ten million can achieve. You have rewritten the rules by proving what a country with very few natural resources can achieve. And you have rewritten the rules by showcasing what a country with self-belief can achieve.”

The elasticity of Israel makes it the world’s most resilient nation.

“Your pace of innovation across multiple sectors amazes me. Your drive for innovation makes me wonder how we can learn from you. You have focused on sustainable growth far before the world was talking about sustainability,” he said.

NEW DELHI:  Even as unease continues in the state due to the sinking of land in Joshimath, Uttarakhand got a reason to cheer on Monday. The state’s tableau bagged the top spot for the first time at the Republic Day Parade this year. The tableaux of Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh stood second and third, respectively.

The Army’s Punjab Regiment Centre contingent was declared the best marching contingent among the three services, while the Indian Air Force won the first spot in the online public poll conducted by MyGov. From among Central Armed Police Forces(CAPF) and other auxiliary forces, the Central Reserve Police Force was named as the best marching contingent.

The Uttarakhand tableau, titled Manaskhand, depicted the proposed Manaskhand corridor project that will link all major temples of the Kumaon region and develop them along the lines of the Char Dham in the Garhwal region. It showcased the famous Jageshwar Temple, besides other elements like the rich wildlife of the state. Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh had also created their presentations with a religious theme.

Maharashtra presented the three-and-a-half Shaktipeeths of Adishakti the Mahalakshmi Temple of Kolhapur, Sri Kshetra Tuljapur of Tuljabhavani, Renukadevi of Mahur, and Saptshringi Devi of Vani. The tableau of Uttar Pradesh showcased the three-day Deepotsava celebrated in Ayodhya.

Congratulating the people of the state, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami tweeted, “This achievement is a proud moment for all of us. Garhwal has been described as Kedarkhand and Kumaon as ‘Manaskhand’ in the Skanda Purana.

Jageshwar Temple too has a lot of religious belief.” Gujarat won the first spot in an online public poll conducted by MyGov, for its tableau on green energy. The second spot went to Uttar Pradesh, followed by Maharashtra. “Three panels of judges were appointed for assessing the performance of marching contingents from three Services, marching contingents from Central Armed Police Forces and other auxiliary forces and tableaux” said the ministry of defence.

Online poll was conducted for citizens to vote from January 25 to 28 on MyGov webpage. The ministry of tribal affairs tableau on ‘Eklavya model residential schools’ bagged the top position in the panel of judges section among ministries and departments. The home ministry’s presentation on CAPFs clinched the top spot in the popular choice category. A special prize went to Central Public Works Department on biodiversity conservation.

Online poll was conducted for citizens to vote
Online poll was conducted for citizens to vote from January 25 to 28 on MyGov webpage. The ministry of tribal affairs tableau on ‘Eklavya model residential schools’ bagged the top position in the panel of judges section among ministries and departments. The home ministry’s presentation on CAPFs clinched the top spot in the popular choice category. A special prize went to Central Public Works Department on biodiversity conservation.  

PESHAWAR: The death toll from a suicide bombing at a mosque in northwestern Pakistan rose to 88 on Tuesday, officials said. The assault, on a Sunni mosque inside a major police facility, was one of the deadliest attacks on Pakistani security forces in recent years.

More than 300 worshippers were praying in the mosque in the city of Peshawar, with more approaching, when the bomber set off his explosives vest on Monday morning. The blast ripped through the mosque, killing and injuring scores and also blew off a part of the roof.

What was left of the roof then caved in, injuring many more, according to Zafar Khan, a police officer. Rescuers had to remove mounds of debris to reach worshippers still trapped under the rubble.

More bodies were retrieved overnight and early Tuesday, according to Mohammad Asim, a government hospital spokesman in Peshawar, and several of those critically injured died. “Most of them were policemen,” Asim said of the victims.

Bilal Faizi, the chief rescue official, said rescue teams were still working Tuesday at the site as more people are believed trapped inside. Mourners were burying the victims at different graveyards in the city and elsewhere. The bombing also wounded more than 150 people.

It was not clear how the bomber was able to slip into the walled compound in a high-security zone with other government buildings and get to the mosque — an indication of a major security lapse.

The investigation will show “how the terrorist entered the mosque,” said Ghulam Ali, the provincial governor in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where Peshawar is the capital.

“Yes, it was a security lapse,” he added.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif visited a hospital in Peshawar after the bombing and vowed “stern action” against those behind the attack.

“The sheer scale of the human tragedy is unimaginable. This is no less than an attack on Pakistan,” he tweeted. He expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, saying their pain ”cannot be described in words.”

Authorities have not determined who was behind the bombing. Shortly after the explosion, Sarbakaf Mohmand, a commander for the Pakistani Taliban — also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP — claimed responsibility for the attack in a post on Twitter.

But hours later, TTP spokesperson Mohammad Khurasani distanced the group from the bombing, saying it was not its policy to target mosques, seminaries and religious places, adding that those taking part in such acts could face punitive action under TTP’s policy. His statement did not address why a TTP commander had claimed responsibility for the bombing.

Pakistan, which is mostly Sunni Muslim, has seen a surge in militant attacks since November, when the Pakistani Taliban ended their cease-fire with government forces.

Earlier this month, the Pakistani Taliban claimed one of its members shot and killed two intelligence officers, including the director of the counterterrorism wing of the country’s military-based spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence. Security officials said Monday the gunman was traced and killed in a shootout in the northwest, near the Afghan border.

The TTP is separate from but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban. It has waged an insurgency in Pakistan in the past 15 years, seeking stricter enforcement of Islamic laws, the release of its members in government custody and a reduction in Pakistani military presence in areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province it has long used as its base.

The Pakistani Taliban are the dominant militant group in the province, and Peshawar has been the scene of frequent attacks. In 2014, a Pakistani Taliban faction attacked an army-run school in Peshawar and killed 154, mostly schoolchildren.

The regional affiliate of the Islamic State group has also been behind deadly attacks in Pakistan in recent years. Overall, violence increased since the Afghan Taliban seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021, as U.S. and NATO troops pulled out of the country after 20 years of war.

The Pakistani government’s truce with the TTP ended as the country was still contending with unprecedented flooding last summer that killed 1,739 people, destroyed more than 2 million homes, and at one point submerged as much as a third of the country.

The Taliban-run Afghan Foreign Ministry said it was “saddened to learn that numerous people lost their lives” in Peshawar and condemned attacks on worshippers as contrary to the teachings of Islam.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is on a visit to the Middle East, tweeted his condolences, saying the bombing in Peshawar was a “horrific attack.”

“Terrorism for any reason at any place is indefensible,” he said.

Condemnations also came from the Saudi Embassy in Islamabad, as well as the U.S. Embassy, which said that the “United States stands with Pakistan in condemning all forms of terrorism.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the bombing “particularly abhorrent” for targeting a place of worship, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Cash-strapped Pakistan faces a severe economic crisis and is seeking a crucial installment of $1.1 billion from the International Monetary Fund — part of its $6 billion bailout package — to avoid default. Talks with the IMF on reviving the bailout have stalled in the past months.

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan also expressed his condolences, calling the bombing a “terrorist suicide attack.”

Sharif’s government came to power in April after Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament. Khan has since campaigned for early elections, claiming his ouster was illegal and part of a plot backed by the U.S. Washington and Sharif dismiss Khan’s claims.