Dear Comrades,
Not taking any chances after the discovery of two parcel bombs on US-bound cargo flights in Dubai and central England, the government of India has advised its Customs and postal departments to security-screen all parcels coming in from Yemen and Somalia. The advisory seeking additional checks on cargo emanating from Yemen and Somalia comes days ahead of US President Barack Obama’s visit to Delhi and Mumbai.
The advisory, based on a request from the American agencies as well as its own threat assessment coinciding with the Obama visit, took effect from Tuesday night. It’s not time-bound and all parcels from Yemen and Somalia — including airmail and cargo landing at the country’s seaports and airports — will continue to undergo rigorous checks until further orders.
Incidentally, India is only one of the several countries that have tightened checks on Yemeni cargo and airliners following the interception of parcel bombs addressed to synagogues in Chicago at airports in Dubai and East Midlands in central England. While Germany has banned all flights from Yemen, Britain has threatened to ban all unaccompanied cargo from Yemen. Other European countries as well as Australia have ordered a rigorous security screening of all Yemeni cargo at airports across Europe as well as Australia.
The Economic Times
