TWO TAIWANESE TOURISTS have been shot by gunmen on motorbikes outside the main mosque in New Delhi. The city is only two weeks away from the start of the Commonwealth Games which it is due to host.

The Jama Masjid mosque is in the heart of the city is a popular tourist attraction.

“The two men were wearing helmets and raincoats. They fired indiscriminately at a tourist bus before escaping,” Karnail Singh, a senior police officer in Delhi, told Reuters.

India’s security arrangements had already been under scrutiny, with concerns raised over whether India can provide protection for the thousnads of spectators and athletes who will arrive as part of the Commonwealth Games in a fortnight’s time.

BBC’s Hindi news service said that it received an email shortly after the incident from the Indian Mujahadeen threatening to attack the games.  We know preparations for the games are at their peak. Beware, we too are preparing in full swing for a great surprise,” the email said.

MS Gill, the Indian sports minister, said last week that security would be “not just 100 per cent but 120 per cent foolproof,” with at least 100,000 security personal deployed to safeguard the event. New Delhi has already stepped up its police presence across New Delhi, with advance teams for the games already arriving, reports the Financial Times.