An Indian Navy sailor, 31-year-old Pradeep Mukherjee, was arrested on October 3 by the Andhra Pradesh Police Counter Intelligence (CI) cell at INS Agrani in Coimbatore for allegedly transmitting classified maritime intelligence to a Pakistani intelligence operative. Mukherjee, a West Bengal native who joined the Navy in 2014, was posted with the Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam. Officials said a female Pakistani operative allegedly contacted him through social media and developed an online relationship to obtain sensitive information about naval assets, fleet movements and the operational framework of the Visakhapatnam naval base. Investigators detected suspicious digital activity before placing him under surveillance. 

Flydubai captain Smit Machchhar has recalled the moment his co-pilot attacked him in the cockpit of flight FZ1073. Speaking to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the 39-year-old said the Omani co-pilot stood up to pray, and he looked ahead out of respect. "Suddenly, after about four or five minutes, there was a big blow to the back of my head," he said. He first feared the aircraft was damaged, then realised the blows came from inside the cockpit. Though injured, he reached the door's twist knob and opened it, letting crew and passengers intervene and save all 174 on board. (PC: X)

A pharmaceutical plant run by India's Kusum group in Ukraine's Sumy region has been mostly destroyed in Russian drone attacks, killing one person and injuring several others. Officials said the casualty figures could change. Visuals showed a large plume of smoke over the site. The group, led by Indian national Rajeev Gupta, began in 1994 as an exporter of Indian medicines and opened the Sumy plant in 2009. The facility had kept working through the war. The loss is estimated at least Rs 400 crore. The group calls itself a Ukrainian company with Indian roots, making over 50 mostly generic medicines for nine-plus countries. (PC: NDTV)

India has said there is no fixed timeline for former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s return, as Dhaka’s extradition request remains under legal review. Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi said India had a duty to provide shelter to Hasina when she arrived in August 2024, as she was still Bangladesh’s prime minister at the time. He clarified that she was not brought to India by the Indian Air Force or Army but travelled on a Bangladeshi military aircraft. Hasina’s presence in India remains a major issue in bilateral relations, although New Delhi says the extradition process will follow established legal procedures. (PC: AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to Indian flydubai Captain Smit Machchhar after a mid-air attack on September 30. Netanyahu called Machchhar a “hero for Israel, India and the entire world.” He invited the pilot and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Israel’s Independence Day ceremony. Machchhar was also invited to light a torch, an honour usually given to Israeli citizens. During the call, Machchhar described how the Omani co-pilot allegedly attacked him with an axe inside the cockpit. Despite his injuries, he managed to open the cockpit door. Passengers then helped control the attacker. Netanyahu praised Machchhar’s courage and judgment.

India on Saturday summoned Pakistan’s Chargé d’Affaires over alleged cross-border infiltration along the India-Pakistan border. The move came a day after BSF troops shot dead two suspected Pakistani intruders in Punjab’s Tarn Taran district. Police said three people entered Indian territory, but one later returned to Pakistan. The other two continued moving towards the border fence despite repeated warnings, officials said. India said the incident showed a pattern of cross-border movement linked to armed drug networks. Pakistan claimed the two men were unarmed civilians who crossed the border by mistake. India rejected the claim as “baseless and motivated” and urged Pakistan to prevent such incidents.

India strongly criticised Pakistan at the United Nations over its remarks on Jammu and Kashmir. India said Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are “integral and inalienable” parts of India. Indian diplomat Bhavika Mangalanandan said Pakistan’s “so-called civilian governments” are “at the mercy” of the Army and rarely complete their terms. India also accused Pakistan of supporting cross-border terrorism and using the Kashmir issue to divert attention from unrest at home. It referred to protests and a crackdown in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. India said J&K held peaceful elections in 2024, followed by a transfer of power.

UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum visited Indian flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar at a hospital on Saturday and praised his courage. Machchhar was injured after his co-pilot allegedly attacked him during a Dubai-Tel Aviv flight on September 30. Despite his injuries, he managed to unlock the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to restrain the attacker. Other pilots on board then took control of the aircraft, which landed safely in Saudi Arabia. Al Maktoum said Machchhar showed courage, responsibility and care for human life, adding that UAE leadership was proud of him and appreciated his actions. (PC: HT)

Five Indian nationals were safely rescued and brought ashore after the Kuwait-flagged tanker MT Kazimah III was struck by a projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the Indian Embassy in Oman said. The embassy coordinated the rescue operation and confirmed that all five Indians were safely shifted ashore. It also thanked Omani authorities for their assistance during the operation. The incident occurred amid heightened maritime security concerns in and around the strategic waterway. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) separately reported that a tanker was hit by an unidentified projectile near Oman, with no casualties or environmental impact reported. 

Pakistan presented a man it claimed was Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Mohammad Asif, a day after India said it had killed him in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’s Budgam district. India had identified Asif, alias Hashim Musa, as a former Special Service Group (SSG) commando and claimed he was killed on Wednesday. Pakistan’s presentation of the man was intended to challenge India’s account, according to the report. However, the claimed identification quickly came under scrutiny, with independent OSINT accounts pointing to alleged mismatches in the man’s facial and anatomical features. The report said this led to accusations on social media that Pakistan had presented a lookalike to dispute India’s version of events.