Sectarian violence broke out Thursday in a north Indian city when a group of Shia Muslims praying for peace in war-torn Iraq was attacked by a Sunni group.
The Shia group held the prayer ceremony following a call from a cleric in the Sahadatganj area of Lucknow, in Uttar Pradesh.
The gathering on a rooftop in a residential area of Sahadatganj was then pelted with stones by Sunnis, sparking clashes.
“A complaint has been registered against four people. No arrests have been made yet,” Shashikant Yadav, station house officer of Sahadatganj police station, told ucanews.com.
The police official said that nobody was injured in the incident. “The situation is totally peaceful now,” he said, adding that over 100 police officers were deployed in the area to prevent further violence.
Meanwhile, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said the location of 40 Indians abducted in Iraq’s war-torn city of Mosul has been traced, but that no contact had been established with any of the abductors.
The 40 men hail from northern India, and were working in construction and sanitation, and as drivers for the Baghdad-based Tariq Noor Al-Huda construction company.
Violence has been escalating in Iraq as Sunni militants belonging to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group continue to hold several cities in their bid to establish an Islamic state.
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We must stand by our Shiite community in the wake of threats by Sunni extremists.
India should side with Shiites in Shia-Sunni war in Iraq: Subramanian Swamy
New Delhi: As New Delhi continues to work hard to secure the release of 40 Indians kidnapped by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Thursday opined that the India should take side with the Shiite community in the ongoing Shia-Sunni war in Iraq.
Speaking to ANI, Swamy termed the ongoing crisis in Iraq as 'a global Shia-Sunni war' and said that India should side with the Shiites as they have been friendly towards the Hindus.
Giving a piece of advice, Swamy said that the Indian government needs to convey to the ISIS that if it wants India to be neutral then the radical organisation should free all abducted Indians.
As the tensions soar in Iraq, Swamy further said that New Delhi should help Iraq, but should not change its friendly policy towards Israel.
The government on Wednesday said that 40 Indian nationals working for a Turkish construction company have been abducted in violence-hit Iraq's Mosul area, which has been taken over by Sunni militants.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today sought to assure the families of the kidnapped Indian nationals, saying the government was making all possible efforts to resolve the crisis.
The MEA has also set up a round-the-clock control room to provide information on Iraq. The same can be reached at 011-23014104 (telephone), 011-23018158 (fax) or through email at
controlroom@mea.gov.in.
ISIS has taken control of several Iraqi cities from the state forces and is also posing a threat to the capital Baghdad. The Iraqi government has requested the US to launch air strikes against ISIS militants.
.I would seriously love to see our Paras kick ISIS a$$es in Iraq
.Heck the same thing now has happened in India as well,although let me assure you that we Indians won't take these kinds of attacks on our Shia compatriots lightly.The perps will be brought to justice and the state will do whatever it can to stop these types of sectarian clashes in India
