Indian Consulate in San Francisco attacked again, US condemns
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Washington: Indian consulate in San Francisco was attacked by Khalistani supporters, marking the second attack in the last five months.
Two men dressed in dark clothing walked up to the gate of the consulate, poured an inflammable liquid on it from a container, and set it on fire in a stunning breach of security.
The fire department put out the fire before it could spread.
No one was injured as none of the staff was at hand at the time of the incident and it was too early for public dealings.
Indian officials took up the incident locally with San Francisco authorities, the California government, and, eventually, President Joe Biden's administration.
“The US strongly condemns the reported vandalism and attempted arson against the Indian Consulate in San Francisco on Saturday,” State Department spokesman Mathew Miller said in a tweet early Tuesday.
"Vandalism or violence against diplomatic facilities or foreign diplomats in the US is a criminal offense,” he added.
The Consulate was earlier attacked in March by Khalistani separatists, and the US government responded swiftly by condemning it.
The latest incident is being seen thus as part of a chain of serious attacks on Indian facilities in the US and there are worries that diplomats could be targeted next.
The attackers are understood to have taken credit for the attack in a social media post, which was taken down subsequently because of fears of being noticed by law enforcement authorities.
No one had been arrested in connection to the incident till the filing of this report.
With inputs from IANS