Page 13 - Army

Niger's ruler warns against meddling, asks citizens to defend nation

Niger's new military ruler lashed out at neighbouring countries and the international community in a nationally televised speech on Wednesday night and called on the population to be ready to defend the nation. In one of the few addresses to the West African country since seizing power from Niger's democratically-elected president a week ago, General Abdourahmane Tchiani warned against foreign meddling and military intervention against the coup. "We therefore call on the people of Niger as a whole and their unity to defeat all those who want to inflict unspeakable suffering on our hard-working populations and destabilise our country," Tchiani said. Tchiani, who commands Niger's presidential guard, also promised to create the conditions for a peaceful transition to elections following his ouster of President Mohamed Bazoum. His speech comes amid rising regional tensions as the West African regional bloc ECOWAS threatens to use military force if Bazoum is not released from house arre

President Bazoum's government has been removed, say Niger soldiers

Abdramane said Niger's borders are closed, a nationwide curfew declared, and all institutions of the republic are suspended

Niger army on standby to hit back after coup bid, says presidency

Bazoum has been detained by 'coup plotters' who are attempting to seize power by force, the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States said in a separate statement

Indian Army conducts event to mark 24th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas

The Kargil War saw soldiers of the Indian Armed Forces fight in the most challenging terrain under harsh weather conditions leading to the defeat of the enemy in Dras, Kargil and Batalik Sectors

Over 6,000 posts of Captain, Major ranks vacant in Army: MoS Ajay Bhatt

Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt said that in order to mitigate the shortage, a proposal to make short service entry more attractive is under consideration

HC awards Rs 2 cr to army officer in defamation case against news portal

The Delhi High Court has awarded Rs 2 crore to an Indian Army officer for the loss of reputation suffered by him on account of a 2001 "expose" by a news portal alleging his involvement in corruption in defence procurement. Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, while deciding a lawsuit by Major General M S Ahluwalia, on Friday directed that the amount shall be paid by Tehelka.Com, its owner M/s Buffalo Communications, its proprietor Tarun Tejpal and two reporters, Aniruddha Bahal and Mathew Samuel. Stating that there can't be a more blatant case of causing serious harm to the reputation of an honest army officer, the judge observed that an apology after 23 years of publication was "not only inadequate but is meaningless". The court, however, said the plaintiff was not able to prove any act of defamation on the part of Zee Telefilm Ltd and its officials by telecasting the story in question following an arrangement with the news portal. The court observed that the plaintiff not only faced ...

Russia's Wagner group launch joint training with Belarusian military

Mercenaries from Russia's military company Wagner on Thursday launched joint drills with the Belarusian military near the border with Poland following their relocation to Belarus after their short-lived rebellion, a move that prompted Warsaw to redeploy its troops. The Belarusian Defence Ministry said that the weeklong maneuvers will be conducted at a firing range near the border city of Brest and will involve Belarusian special forces. The ministry added that Wagner's combat experience will help modernise the Belarusian military. A video released on Wednesday appeared to show Wagner's chief Yevgeny Prigozhin for the first time since he led last month's rebellion. In the video, Prigozhin was seen telling his troops they will spend some time in Belarus training its military to help make the Belarusian army the second strongest army in the world before deploying to Africa. In addition to their involvement in Ukraine, Wagner mercenaries have been sent to Syria and several African ...

PM Modi's France visit to likely boost economic cooperation, EU-India ties

PM Modi will visit France to attend the Bastille Day Parade as the Guest of Honour at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron

Army patrols along J-K highway to ensure safety of Amarnath pilgrims

The Army is conducting area domination patrols daily along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway with drones, surveillance equipment and sniffer dogs to ensure a secure passage for Amarnath pilgrims, officials said on Saturday. The drills on the highway are an integral part of the multi-security grid responsible for facilitating a smooth and incident-free pilgrimage spanning 62 days from July 1, they said. "The Army undertakes intense area domination patrolling along the entire route of the yatra, from Jammu to Banihal and beyond, providing security to pilgrims," a senior security official told PTI. This proactive approach establishes a protective layer to deter terrorists from approaching the national highway and targeting convoys of pilgrims, he said. Equipped with state-of-the-art gadgets such as drones, metal detectors and surveillance equipment, and sniffer dogs, the soldiers meticulously sanitise the highway and certain hinterland areas as part of their security duties, the ...

Eastern Ladakh: Indian Army tanks carry out drills, attack enemy positions

Indian Army is one of the very few armies in the world that operates tanks at high altitudes up to 16,000 feet, and in large numbers

6 Agniveer recruitment drives to be held in UP from July 20 till next Jan

Six Agniveer recruitment rallies of the Indian Army will be held in Uttar Pradesh from July 20 till January 16 next year, state Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra said here on Friday. Chairing a meeting with district officials, Mishra said the recruitment rallies will be held in Fatehgarh, Baraut, Lucknow, Agra, Amethi and Gorakhpur, an official statement issued here said. The first rally will be held at Fatehgarh on July 20, the statement said. Mishra asked officials to ensure that the recruitment venues have all necessary arrangements for the candidates, such as accommodation, food, shelter, electricity, drinking water and clean toilets, the statement added.

Condition of Bhim Army chief stable, attackers' vehicle recovered: Police

The vehicle used by the attackers of Dalit leader and Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad was recovered from a village in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, police said on Thursday. Meanwhile, police in Amethi district registered a case under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) after it came to light that a Facebook page had issued a death threat to Aazad days before the attack. Activists of the Bhim Army and Azad Samaj Party held a demonstration at Parivartan Chowk here and demanded proper security for Aazad. They were later taken into custody by police. A bullet grazed the 36-year-old Bhim Army chief's abdomen when unidentified assailants opened fire at his car in Saharanpur's Deoband, where he had gone to attend a ritual at a supporter's home, on Wednesday evening. The vehicle used by Aazad's attackers was seized from Miragpur village late on Wednesday night. The number plate of the car showed it was registered in Haryana, the police ...

Russia drops charges against Prigozhin, others who took part in rebellion

Russian authorities said Tuesday they have closed a criminal investigation into the armed rebellion led by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, with no charges against him or any of the other participants. The Federal Security Service, or FSB, said its investigation found that those involved in the mutiny ceased activities directed at committing the crime. Over the weekend, the Kremlin pledged not to prosecute Prigozhin and his fighters after he stopped the revolt on Saturday, even though President Vladimir Putin had branded them as traitors. The charge of mounting an armed mutiny carries a punishment of up to 20 years in prison. Prigozhin escaping prosecution poses a stark contrast to how the Kremlin has been treating those staging anti-government protests. Many opposition figures in Russia have received length prison terms and are serving time in penal colonies notorious for harsh conditions. The whereabouts of Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday, The Kremlin has said Prigozhin w

Whereabouts, fate of Russian mercenary leader remain mystery after revolt

The whereabouts of mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin once again blasted organisers of a weekend rebellion as traitors who played into the hands of Ukraine's government and its allies. The Kremlin has said Prigozhin would be exiled to neighbouring Belarus, but neither he nor the Belarusian authorities have confirmed that. An independent Belarusian military monitoring project Belaruski Hajun said a business jet that Prigozhin reportedly uses landed near Minsk on Tuesday morning. The media team for Prigozhin, the 62-year-old head of the Wagner private military contractor, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prigozhin's short-lived insurrection over the weekend the biggest challenge to Putin's rule in more than two decades in power has rattled Russia's leadership. Putin on Monday night sought to project stability and control in a short, nationally televised address, in which he criticised the uprisi

Army rescue team saves 9 civilians stranded at inundated bridge in Raj

Officials of the Indian Army Rescue Column rescued nine civilians who were stuck in vehicles stranded on an inundated bridge in Rajasthan's Jalore district, officials said on Monday

Night-vision devices, snipers in place for Amarnath Yatra preparations

Multi-tiered arrangements, including night domination through night-vision devices, snipers, drone systems and dog squads, will be put in place to ensure foolproof security during the upcoming Amarnath Yatra, officials said on Monday. According to the Army officials, the road stretches on the twin routes of the pilgrimage to the 3,888-metre-high cave shrine are almost clear. This was revealed during the inspection-cum-review of the yatra arrangements by Northern Army commander Lieutenant Upendra Dwivedi, the officials said. The 62-day pilgrimage to the cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas is scheduled to start on July 1 and continue till August 31. The Amarnath Yatra takes place annually via two routes -- the southern route through Baltal in Ganderbal and the northern route through Pahalgam in Anantnag district. "Army commanders reviewed the ongoing preparations for the Amarnath Yatra that will commence on July 1 for two months," PRO, Defence, Udhampur, Lieutenant Colonel ...

Army soldier sustained gunshot wounds in unprovoked firing in Manipur

An Army soldier sustained gunshot wounds in his left leg after miscreants resorted to unprovoked firing in Manipur's Imphal West district around 11.45pm on Sunday. According to sources, the soldier was evacuated to the military hospital at Leimakhong and is said to be stable. Sources said the incident took place at Kanto Sabal village adjoining Leimakhong (Chingmang). Soon after the incident, Army Columns resorted to controlled retaliatory fire keeping in view presence of villagers in the area. During the incident, miscreants also set three houses on fire in Chinmang village. The fire was later doused by the Army. After a couple of hours of calm, unprovoked firing started again from Meitei Village of Kanto Sabal around 2.35am and continued till 3am, sources added.

Indian Army chief General Pande visits Bangladesh Military Academy

Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande on Tuesday visited the Bangladesh Military Academy in Chattogram where he reviewed the grand Passing Out Parade of the officer cadets of the 84th 'Long Course' and interacted with them. Gen Pande, who arrived here on Monday on a two-day visit to Bangladesh - his second trip to the country as Army chief, also felicitated the award winners of the passing out course for their exemplary performance. "General Manoj Pande #COAS reviewed the Passing Out Parade at Bangladesh Military Academy #BMA, #Bangladesh as Chief Guest. #COAS commended the passing out cadets for an impeccable turnout & parade display, the Additional Directorate General of Public Information said in a tweet. The Indian Army chief interacted with the cadets and presented the 'Bangladesh India Friendship Trophy' instituted for the best foreign cadet from friendly foreign countries of the passing out course from the BMA. The first trophy this year is being awarded to officer cadet ...

CBI books freelance journalist of US-based portal for spying on Army

The CBI has registered an FIR against a freelance journalist for allegedly collecting sensitive information related to the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Army, and sharing them with intelligence agencies of foreign countries, officials said on Tuesday. Following the FIR, the agency conducted searches on premises linked to Vivek Raghuvanshi, listed as India correspondent of a US-based portal on defence and strategic affairs on its web site, and people close to him at 12 locations in Jaipur and the National Capital Region (NCR), they said. The agency has booked Raghuvanshi under Section 3 (spying) of Official Secrets Act read with Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. A number of sensitive documents was recovered during the searches and sent for legal scrutiny, the officials said. Sources said the agency has launched an exhaustive probe to find Raghuvanshi's accomplices in India and abroad. He was allegedly collecting sensitive ...

Personnel fired on in Imphal East; curfew relaxed in 11 districts

Firing by unknown militants in Manipur's Imphal East district left one Assam Rifles personnel injured on Wednesday, while life in the violence-hit northeastern state continued to limp back to normal elsewhere with curfew being relaxed in 11 districts. People sheltered in temporary camps also started returning home, a defence official said. At least 60 people were killed and over 30,000 rendered homeless in rioting which engulfed the northeastern state late week. Of those who had to leave their homes, 26,000 have been evacuated outside their districts while 4,000 remained in relief camps close to their homes, Information and Public Relations Minister Sapam Ranjan Singh said. Soldiers on area domination were fired on by unknown people at 11 am at Dolaithabi area of Imphal East district, Spear Corps of the Army said. After firing a few rounds, miscreants ran away. One Assam Rifles personnel sustained gunshot wounds. He is currently under treatment, it said in a tweet. A total of 128