A delegation of members of the European Parliament (MEPs) visited India from 18-20 December. The delegation was made up of MEPs from two European Parliament committees: the Delegation for Relations with India (D - IN), headed by Morten Lokkegaard, and the Sub-Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE), headed by Nathalie Loiseau. The delegations called on Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and discussed the India-EU partnership across multiple dimensions. The D-IN delegation met with Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and deliberated on the progress of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement, which is currently underway.
India voted in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution supporting the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. The resolution was supported by 172 countries; 10 abstained while only four voted against it, including Israel, the US, Micronesia, and Nauru.
According to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, since his detention on 30 June, Nikhil Gupta, an Indian national charged by the US Justice Department of plotting a foiled assassination attempt on pro-Khalistan Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, has been granted consular access three times in Prague. Gupta’s family had moved the Indian Supreme Court, urging the central government to get involved in the matter as US authorities sought his extradition. They alleged that Gupta was not granted consular access and was forced to eat meat even though he is a vegetarian.
A mass shooting at Charles University in Prague on Thursday killed at least 15 people and injured 24 others, as reported by the Czech emergency services. According to Czech officials, the attacker, a university student who acted alone, is among the dead. At a press conference, police said the suspect was a 24-year-old from a village outside of Prague, and his father had been found dead earlier in the day.
Canada announced on Thursday temporary immigration programmes for relatives of Canadian citizens and permanent residents affected by the Gaza war. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said, “This ... allows us a greater set of people that may not be permanent residents or Canadians but for all intents and purposes represent the family of people that are close to Canadians.” Still, Miller warned that leaving the besieged enclave would be extremely difficult, adding that Ottawa received no assurances from Israel.