The investigation into the Delhi blast has identified two foreign handlers who were in touch with the terrorist who blew up his car near Red Fort on Monday, as well as his associates, who were arrested for alleged links to the Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad, reported NDTV.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has described the deadly car explosion near Delhi's Red Fort as clearly a terrorist attack, praising India for its measured and professional handling of the investigation even as the toll and tensions draw international concern.

The Union Cabinet, in a meeting chaired by PM Modi, adopted a resolution condemning the Delhi blast as a “senseless act of violence”.

Crucial evidence supporting this theory has come from the interrogation of the two arrested suspects -- Dr Muzafar Rather and Dr Muzammil Shakeel. Their travel and communication records show that they were in Istanbul in 2022.

Following a clash with Pakistan earlier this year, India's prime minister vowed to treat any future attacks on civilians as an 'act of war.”

The Union Cabinet has declared the Red Fort car blast a terrorist attack, observing a two-minute silence for the 12 victims. The government vows zero tolerance to terrorism and orders a swift investigation to bring perpetrators to justice.

Muslim intellectuals denounce the Red Fort blast as a heinous attack on India's shared heritage and call for unity against terrorism.

The Red Fort, or Lal Qila, is a 17th-century Mughal fortress and Unesco World Heritage Site where the Indian prime minister delivers the annual Independence Day address every 15 August. The fort is located near Chandni Chowk, one of Delhi’s busiest markets, and the Jama Masjid mosque.