India Condemns UAE Nuclear Plant Drone Strike, Rebukes Dutch Criticism

India on Monday condemned a drone strike targeting the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the UAE, deeming the attack as a "dangerous escalation."

The foreign ministry called on all sides to exercise restraint and return to dialogue and diplomacy, news agency ANI reported.

"India is deeply concerned at the attack targeting the Barakah nuclear facility in the UAE. Such actions are unacceptable and represent a dangerous escalation. We urgently call for restraint and a return to dialogue and diplomacy," ANI cited the ministry statement as saying.

On Sunday a fire broke out after a drone strike hit an electrical generator outside the inner perimeter of the Barakah nuclear power plant in the Al Dhafra region. The facility is the sole nuclear power plant on the Arabian Peninsula.

New Delhi has issued a strong rebuttal to criticism in The Netherlands over press freedom and minority rights in India, saying that the concerns arise from a "lack of understanding" of the country's history and diversity.

The response came during a press briefing in The Hague on Sunday, where senior Indian officials were questioned by journalists ahead of a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Dutch counterpart Rob Jetten at the Catshuis, the official residence of the Dutch prime minister.

Indian media reports, citing Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant, said Jetten had expressed concerns about declining press freedom in India and the rights of minorities in the country being under "severe pressure." However, it was not immediately clear whether the Dutch leader had publicly made those remarks.

Responding to queries from journalists over the issue, India's Ministry of External Affairs secretary (West), Sibi George, said that questions stem from "a lack of understanding" of India's history and social tapestry.

"India is a country of 1.4 billion people, the largest populated country in the world. A country of civilization of more than 5000 years old. It's a diverse country… diversity in terms of culture, diversity in terms of languages, diversity in terms of food, diversity in terms of religion," he said.

"Every religion. Whenever any part of the world there was persecution in the past, they all came to India and thrived in India. This is the beauty of India. This question comes because of the lack of understanding of this," the senior diplomat continued to say.

On the concerns over press freedom, George said that India is a very "noisy democracy" because "everyone has the freedom of expression, freedom of press in the country."

This is Dharvi Vaid Dhulia from DW's studio in New Delhi, bringing you our daily capsule of all the biggest headlines creating a buzz in India.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in the middle of a four-nation Europe tour to shore up energy and technology ties in the midst of a global disruption caused by the Iran war and the wider Middle East conflict.

After visiting the Netherlands and Sweden, Modi has now jetted off for a maiden trip to Norway.

Meanwhile, India's foreign ministry rebuked Dutch concerns over minority rights and press freedom in the South Asian country.

In other news, India has condemned a drone attack on a nuclear facility in the UAE.

Stay tuned as we unpack these developments and more.