India guru rape: Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh jailed for 20 years

Police say they have been given "shoot on sight" orders in case of trouble

A controversial Indian guru convicted of rape on Friday has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Indian media reported that Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's followers set a vehicle alight just ahead of sentencing.

Violence after Friday's verdict in Panchkula in northern Haryana state had killed some 38 people.

The self-styled holy man was found guilty of sexually assaulting two female followers and jailed for 10 years for each, to run consecutively.

There were initial reports of a 10-year sentence but his lawyers confirmed the sentencing was of consecutive, not concurrent, terms.

Prosecutors had called for a life sentence.

A lawyer for the victims said 50 women had come forward with allegations of rape and they would be seeking further investigation in the case.

"We believe there are at least 48 more victims who were sexually abused and who may have been killed or are too scared to come out and testify against Ram Rahim," lawyer Utsav Singh Bains told AFP.

Ram Rahim Singh denies charges of murder in two cases due to be heard next month.

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Following the sentencing, the chief minister of Haryana state, where Singh's ashram is located, called an emergency meeting.

A curfew has already been imposed in several areas of Haryana and Punjab states, while the capital Delhi is on alert.

Media captionInside Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh's huge temple complex

The army has been put on standby and police say they have been given "shoot on sight" orders in case of trouble.

Singh, 50, was not taken to court to hear his sentence. Instead, the judge who convicted him was flown to the prison in the town of Rohtak where Singh is being held.

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Who is Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh?

• Controversial leader of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, which claims to have 60 million followers around the world
• Took over the sect - which describes itself as "a non-profit social welfare and spiritual organisation" - when he was 23
• Performs at rock concerts, acts in films and even has his own line of food products
• Known as "rockstar baba" and "guru of bling" because of his shiny, colourful clothes
• Has been accused of mocking Sikh and Hindu figures
• Has been investigated for murder and rape, charges he denies
• Has been accused of forcing followers to undergo castration to "get closer to god"

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The prison has been transformed into a fortress, with journalists banned within a 1.5km (one mile) radius.

Rohtak, in Haryana state, is also under police and military lockdown, the roads lined with barbed-wire barricades.

There is also heavy security outside Singh's 1,000-acre compound in Sirsa, Haryana.

Thousands of his supporters are still believed to be inside the Dera Sacha Sauda sect headquarters, despite many opting to leave following a tense stand-off with soldiers.

Media captionViolent clashes took place on Friday in Panchkula (footage by Sudeep Sachdeva)

The Dera's Sirsa headquarters is a huge township that houses schools, a hospital and a cinema.

In his monthly radio address on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it was "natural to be worried" after days of violence which had briefly reached Delhi.

"Violence is not acceptable in the nation, in any form," Mr Modi said.

"Those who take the law into their hands or take to violence will not be spared, whoever they are."

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North Korea fires missile over Japan in 'unprecedented threat'

North Korea has fired a missile over northern Japan in a move Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called an "unprecedented" threat to his country.

The missile, launched early on Tuesday Korean time, flew over Hokkaido island before crashing into the sea.

The UN Security Council is expected to hold an emergency meeting in response.

North Korea has conducted a flurry of missile tests in recent months but firing projectiles over Japan is rare and sharply escalates tensions.

On the two previous occasions North Korea fired rockets over Japan - in 1998 and 2009 - the North claimed they were for satellite launches, not weapons.

Residents told to seek shelter

The South Korean military said the missile was fired eastward from near the North's capital, Pyongyang. Early analysis of the launch suggest the missile:

• flew a distance of more than 2,700km (1,678 miles)
• reached a maximum altitude of about 550km (342 miles), lower than most previous North Korean missiles
• fell into the North Pacific Ocean 1,180km off the Japanese coast

No effort was made by the Japanese to shoot down the missile but it issued a safety warning telling citizens in Hokkaido to take shelter in "a sturdy building or basement".

US and Japanese forces are currently taking part in training drills in Hokkaido.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered a show of "overwhelming" force in response to the launch. Four South Korean jets staged a live bombing drill on Tuesday.

Mr Abe said he had spoken to US President Donald Trump and that both agreed to increase pressure on North Korea.

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Mr Abe called the launch an "outrageous act" and an "unprecedented, serious and grave threat [that] greatly damages regional peace and security".

He said his government was doing its utmost to protect people's lives.

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North Korea's conventional and nuclear weapons programmes are a breach of international sanctions, so the test is being seen as a major provocation and an escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Earlier this month, North Korea threatened to fire missiles towards the US Pacific territory of Guam, while US President Donald Trump warned Pyongyang would face "fire and fury" if it continued to threaten the US.

There have also been some reports in recent months that North Korea is preparing to carry out its sixth nuclear test.

But last week, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the fact that North Korea had not carried out any missile launches since the UN imposed a fresh round of sanctions was an indication of restraint by Pyongyang.

Image copyrightREUTERS

Image captionJapanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe strongly denounced the attack

In other reaction:

• A meeting of South Korea's National Security Council (NSC) was convened to discuss the issue, Yonhap reported.
• British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson expressed "outrage" at North Korea's "reckless provocation".
• Australia has condemned the launch as a "provocative, dangerous, destabilising and threatening act".
• The Pentagon said that Tuesday's test did not represent a threat to the US and the military was now working to gather more intelligence about it.

India and China troops clash along Himalayan border

Image copyrightAFP

Image captionTension escalates again between India and China along disputed border

A confrontation occurred between Indian and Chinese soldiers along a disputed border in the western Himalayas, Indian officials said on Tuesday.

The PTI news agency said soldiers threw stones, causing minor injuries to both sides, as Chinese troops tried to enter Indian territory near the Pangong lake.

Beijing maintains that their soldiers were inside Chinese territory.

The two countries are also locked in an impasse in the Doklam area, which borders China, India and Bhutan.

PTI quoted army officials as saying that in the latest confrontation, soldiers had to form a human chain to prevent an incursion by Chinese forces into territories claimed by India and located near the country's Ladakh region. China claims the territories as its own.

An Indian official told the BBC that he could neither confirm nor deny media reports, but said "such incidents do happen," adding that "this isn't the first time that something like this has happened."

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China's foreign ministry said in an official statement that "the Indian side must immediately and unconditionally withdraw all personnel and equipment from the Chinese soil", while reiterating that its troops had been inside Chinese territory when the confrontation took place.

An official statement from India's foreign ministry said that "there is no commonly delineated Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the border areas between India and China."

It added that differences in perception of the LAC have caused situations on the ground that could have been avoided if there was a consensus on the border lines.

The latest skirmish occurred even as the two armies continued a two-month stand-off further east, near a plateau known as Doklam in India and Donglang in China.

Since the confrontation began in June, each side has reinforced its troops and called on the other to retreat.

The two nations fought a war over the border in 1962 and disputes remain unresolved in several areas, which causes tensions to escalate from time to time.

Daniel Craig confirms he'll play James Bond again

Daniel Craig says he is coming back as James Bond.

The actor was asked whether he will play the secret agent again during his appearance on US chat show The Late Show.

"Yes," Daniel Craig told host Stephen Colbert, before standing up to shake his hand.

The actor, who has played 007 in the past four Bond films, has until now refused to say whether he will do it again.

But on the show he revealed he's known for a "couple of months".

"We've been discussing it, we've just been trying to figure things out," he said. "I always wanted to, I needed a break."

The next Bond film, the 25th in the series, is due out in November 2019.

He said it will be his last outing as the spy.

""I think this is it. I just want to go out on a high note, and I can't wait."

The 49-year-old was still refusing to confirm speculation about it as late as Tuesday.

"No decision has been made," he told Boston radio station Magic 106.7.

"I know they're desperate to get going and I would in theory love to do it, but there is no decision just yet."

In 2015 he caused controversy for saying he'd "rather slash [his] wrists" than make a fifth Bond film, a statement for which he later apologised.

Daniel Craig is the seventh actor to play James Bond on film.

Image captionPierce Brosnan played Bond four times before the role went to Daniel Craig in 2006

Scottish star Sean Connery first took on the role in 1962 and played him seven times, ending with Never Say Never Again in 1983.

Roger Moore matched that total, between 1973 and 1985.

David Niven and George Lazenby each played him once during the 1960s, while two films were released with Timothy Dalton in the lead role, The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to Kill (1989).

Daniel succeeded Pierce Brosnan as Bond and made his debut in Casino Royale in 2006.

He has since played the spy in Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015).

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