A suicide bombing in Peshawar
A violent suicide attack destroyed a mosque in a highly secured part of Peshawar yesterday. It was Pakistan’s worst attack in months: The death toll stands at 59 people but may rise. At least 157 people were injured. Here is a short video the aftermath.
The blast broke a period of relative calm in Peshawar, a northern provincial capital. No group immediately claimed responsibility for yesterday’s attack, but violence is mounting near the Afghan border as Pakistan’s Taliban grow more assertive. (The group yesterday denied playing any role in the attack.)
Recent attacks in the northwest have focused on police and military targets. The bombing took place in the heavily guarded “Police Lines” area, which houses important government and military buildings. Many officers visited the mosque.
Story: 2014 Taliban fighters attacked a school in Peshawaralmost kill 150 teachers and students. The massacre – the country’s most shocking event – sent Shockwaves across the country and turned many against the militants.
Context: About 11 months have passed since the last terrorist attack in Peshawar. That suicide bombings killed more than 60 people in a mosque. Islamic State’s regional affiliate, Islamic State of Khorasan, or ISIS-Ktook responsibility.
Israel attacks an Iranian facility
In the latest chapter of the shadow war between Israel and Iran, the The Mossad used drones to attack an Iranian military facility in Isfahan on Saturday, senior intelligence officials told the Times.
Isfahan is an important center of Iran’s missile production, research and development. And the attack on a facility in the center of a city could aim to shake the Iranian leadership. It shows the reach of Israeli intelligence on key locations, even those hidden in the middle of cities.
The purpose of the facility was unclear, as was the amount of damage the strike caused. But many of Iran’s Shahab medium-range missiles that can reach Israel are made in Isfahan. US officials said they believed this attack was prompted by Israel’s concerns about its own security, not the possibility of Iranian missile exports to Russia.
Diplomacy: Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, arrived in Jerusalem yesterday. He is trying to quell the current Israeli-Palestinian violence and manage relations with Israel’s new right-wing government. He’s going to Ramallah today.
Crackdown: Some relatives of Palestinian attackers spoke out a mixture of pride and fear after the deadly attack on the synagogue on Friday. Israel is preparing to demolish the attackers’ homes, a practice the UN says amounts to collective punishment for individual acts prohibited under international humanitarian law.
Adani group in the hot seat
The Adani Group, a powerful Indian conglomerate run by Asia’s richest man, goes on the offensive against allegations of fraud. The criticism has already stripped about $70 billion of market value from the listed companies. It has also drained the net worth of Gautam Adani, its founder.
The fight is hurting investor confidence in India. Indian and US Investors already knew about the allegations, at least as rumors. Some have been suspicious of the shares of Adani Group companies, some of which are trading at extraordinarily high valuations relative to their earnings.
And the allegations underscore Adani’s ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both men arrived in Gujarat. Adani helped Modi reshape his image after the Hindu-Muslim riots of 2002, and his empire has recently won a number of government concessions. But Modi and his government have stayed out of the fight.
Background: Hindenburg Research, a short seller made famous by acquiring SPACs and crypto firms, had said that Adani Group committed “the biggest scam in the company’s history.”
Reaction: For now, investors appear to be siding with Hindenburg. The claims could hurt Adani Group’s goal of raising $2.5 billion through a share offering that ends today.
Refutation: Adani Group said the claims amounted to a “calculated attack on India.” Hindenburg stood by his account, saying, “Fraud cannot be cloaked in nationalism.”
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The Metaverse is a frontier of entertainment. According to McKinsey, more than $120 billion was spent worldwide developing Metaverse technology in the first five months of 2022.
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