India says deadly car blast was ‘terror’ attack by ‘antinational forces’

India has said a car explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort that killed several people this week was a terrorist attack, formally designating the nature of the incident for the first time.

“The country has witnessed a heinous terror incident, perpetrated by antinational forces,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet on Wednesday, adding that an investigation had been launched so “perpetrators, their collaborators, and their sponsors are identified and brought to justice without delay”.

The cabinet did not release any new evidence, but authorities had previously said that police were investigating under a stringent “anti-terrorism” law, giving them broader powers to arrest people in connection with Monday’s blast, which killed at least 13 people.

Kashmir police carried out raids at hundreds of locations in the Himalayan region, detaining about 500 people, a Kashmir police source told the news agency Reuters. Most were released after questioning, the source said.