Good morning, After ‘last chance’: US President Donald Trump Friday ordered Israel to stop bombing on the Gaza Strip following Hamas’s acceptance of some elements of his plan to end the nearly two-year war and return all the remaining hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Hamas also said it was ready to hand over the administration of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinian technocrats. Hamas’ statement came just hours after Trump announced his decision to give the militant group time till Sunday to accept the peace proposal, warning “all HELL” would break in Gaza if the escalation continues. With that, let’s move on to the top 5 stories from today’s edition: 🚨 Big Story In its first official statement on the violent protests that swept Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), leaving at least ten dead, the Indian government said that the “brutalities by Pakistani forces on innocent civilians” is a consequence of Pakistan’s “oppressive approach”. The government also underlined that the territories are under “forcible and illegal occupation” of Pakistan. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has set up a committee of senior officials and ministers to resolve the crisis. ⚡ Only in Express Exclusive: As the current president of the Brussels-based International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS), India has proposed a new international governance index, The Indian Express has learnt. The move comes after several global indices portrayed India in a negative light, leading the government to question their methodology. IIAS has released a list of achievements that included advancing a research agenda through initiatives such as the international governance index. Shadows of Leh unrest: A hunger strike called by environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk at Martyr’s Ground in Leh, spun out of control last month when a group of young men broke away from the main gathering and engaged in stone pelting and arson, setting fire to the BJP office in the city, and claiming four lives. The violence left Leh and the larger Union Territory of Ladakh stunned. Civil society groups understand the violence to be a “spontaneous reaction” from youth frustrated with the lack of jobs and growing disillusionment with governance. 💡 Express Explained Following a gap of over five years, direct flights between India and mainland China are set to begin by the end of this month. Airlines — Chinese as well as Indian — had been awaiting the green light, amid rising demand for travel between the two countries, primarily for trade and business. Shortly after the announcement, India’s largest airline IndiGo said it will start daily flights to Guangzhou from Kolkata from October 26, becoming the first carrier to announce flights. The recent signs of a thaw in India-China relations — notably at a time when New Delhi’s relationship with Washington has hit a few roadblocks — had built the hope that normalisation of air connectivity was imminent. We explain. ✍️ Express Opinion In our Opinion section today, P R Kumaraswamy discusses US President Donald Trump’s latest 20-point Gaza peace plan. He writes: “The most critical factor, one that finds no mention in the Gaza plan, is the future of the Palestinians. Coming amid growing Western support for and recognition of the Palestinian state, the Gaza plan remains silent on the two-state solution. Despite his aggressive actions towards Israel, Trump is quietly endorsing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s stance on this issue.” 🎬 Movie Review DDLJ-coded: Wondering what to watch this weekend? Well, we’ve got you covered! Sunny Sankari Ki Tulsi Kumari, yet another Bollywood rom-com starring Varun Dhawan, Jahnvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, and Rohit Saraf, hit the theatres on Friday. The film, Shubhra Gupta writes in her review, “settles creakily back in the sangeet-sagaai-shaadi template awash with star-crossed lovers and their parivarik conflicts.” That’s all for today. Have a lovely weekend! Until next time, Ariba
