**Air India Flight Makes Sudden Arctic Landing After False Bomb Threat Amid Escalating Canada-India Tensions**

An Air India flight en route to Chicago made an unexpected emergency landing in the remote Arctic city of Iqaluit due to a false bomb threat. The aircraft, carrying 211 passengers and crew, landed early Tuesday morning, just hours after Canada and India had expelled senior diplomats as part of an intensifying dispute between the two nations.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) confirmed in a news release that passengers disembarked safely at Iqaluit airport, located approximately 300 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle. Local media reported that the bomb threat was communicated to the flight captain from a source in India. Air India, in a statement posted on social media platform X, explained that both the aircraft and the passengers were being re-screened according to established security protocols. The airline has activated support agencies at the airport to assist passengers until their journey can continue.

The incident occurs amid heightened tensions between Canada and India, following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations against Delhi for the assassination of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia last year. Recently, Air India, along with other airlines, has faced multiple bomb threats, including a false alarm on a flight from Mumbai to New York, which was diverted to Delhi on Monday. Additionally, IndiGo, a low-cost Indian airline, reported threats against two of its flights destined for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and Muscat, Oman.

This incident also brings to mind earlier threats faced by Air India. Nearly a year ago, Canadian officials and the RCMP investigated threats against the airline after separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun urged Sikhs to boycott Air India. Canada's transport minister then emphasized the government's serious stance on aviation threats and ongoing investigations into recent online threats.

The renewed threats could evoke memories of the tragic 1985 Air India bombing, in which Sikh extremists were responsible for the explosion of Air India flight 182, killing 329 people, including 280 Canadians and 86 children. The attack remains the deadliest mass murder in Canadian history and was followed by another bomb detonation at Tokyo's Narita airport, killing two baggage handlers before it could be loaded onto another Air India flight.

Details about the recent threat are expected to be further clarified by the RCMP later on Tuesday.