‘We stand with survivors, families and communities who carry this loss’: Canadian PM Carney on Kanishka bombing anniversary

OTTAWA: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday (local time) paid solemn tribute to the victims of the Air India Flight 182 ‘Kanishka’ bombing on its 41st anniversary, saying Canada stands with the survivors, families and communities who continue to carry the loss of one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the country’s history.

In a message issued on the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism, Carney honoured the victims of the 1985 bombing and reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to combating violent extremism in all its forms. “Forty-one years ago today, the bombing of Air India Flight 182 claimed 329 innocent lives, including 268 Canadians. It remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canada’s history,” Carney said in his message.

“On this National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism, we honour the victims of Flight 182 and all those who have lost their lives to acts of terrorism and violent extremism. We stand with the survivors, families, and communities who carry this loss,” he added.

Forty-one years ago today, the bombing of Air India Flight 182 claimed 329 innocent lives, including 268 Canadians. It remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canada’s history.

My statement on the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism:https://t.co/VCZnejMUk1

— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) June 23, 2026

The Canadian PM said how the legacy of Air India Flight 182 demands remembrance and vigilance, stressing the need for continued efforts to counter terrorism and extremist ideologies.

“Canada’s government is confronting and condemning violent extremism in all its forms, with new legislation to defend the safety and security of Canadians, strengthen our national security institutions, and disrupt terrorist financing and support networks,” Carney said.

Carney, in his message, said that the government is working to support frontline community-based intervention programmes and provide the security agencies with stronger tools to better detect, prevent, and disrupt terrorist activity. “The first job of the government is to protect Canadians, and that will always be our mission and our focus,” he said in his message.

Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday also paid tribute to the victims of the Kanishka bombing on its 41st anniversary and reiterated India’s unwavering commitment to fighting terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. In a post on X, the EAM emphasised that New Delhi remains resolute in its fight against terrorism.

The mid-air bombing, which occurred on June 23, 1985, remains one of the deadliest acts of aviation terrorism in global history, comparable in scale to the September 11 attacks in 2001. The Boeing 747 aircraft, operating on the Montreal-London-Delhi route, was blown up at an altitude of 9,400 metres by the Canada-based Khalistani terrorist group Babbar Khalsa, claiming the lives of all 329 passengers and crew members on board.

The catastrophic blast occurred while the aircraft was above the Atlantic Ocean, navigating Irish airspace. Marking the largest mass killing in Canadian history, it claimed the lives of 329 individuals, including 268 Canadian citizens and 24 Indian nationals.

To honour their memory, the High Commission of India in Ottawa, alongside the Consulates General of India in Toronto and Vancouver, joins the families of the deceased and representatives of the Indian diaspora annually on June 23 to pay solemn tribute to the victims of this heinous act of terrorism across synchronised ceremonies in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver.

More than four decades later, India, Canada, and Ireland continue to share the profound grief of an air tragedy that left the international community deeply shocked and altered global aviation security standards. (ANI)