Page 10 - War Conflict
World Food Programme announces partial suspension of Yemen aid
The World Food Programme (WFP) announced Thursday the "partial suspension" of aid to Yemen's capital Sanaa, controlled by Huthi rebels, citing problems with "diversion of food" from the neediest. The suspension would initially target Sanaa city only, affecting 850,000 people, the UN agency said in a statement. But nutrition programmes will remain in place for malnourished children, pregnant women and nursing mothers. Ultimately, the suspension will affect all areas in Yemen "under the control of the Sanaa-based authorities". The WFP said its decision was taken after negotiations stalled on an agreement "to introduce controls to prevent the diversion of food away from some of the most vulnerable people in Yemen," adding "some individuals seek to profit by preying on the vulnerable." "WFP has been seeking the support of the Sanaa-based authorities to introduce a biometric registration system that would prevent diversion and protect the Yemeni families we serve, ensuring food reaches ...
Georgia: Police fire rubber bullets, water cannon to disperse protesters near Parliament
The police resorted to firing rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters after they attempted to storm the Georgian Parliament over the visit of a Russian lawmaker here on Thursday.Protests broke out after Russian State Duma member Sergey Gavrilov along with a Russian delegation participated in the 26th session of the General Assembly of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO) here, according to TASS.Gavrilov opened the session as the IAO President. The Opposition objected to the Russian lawmaker making his address while sitting in the parliament chairperson's chair and disrupted the session, the Russian news agency added. The Russian delegation left after a decision to finish the session was made.Following this, representatives from Georgia's Opposition joined the protesters in demanding Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia and Parliament Chairperson Irakli Kobakhidze's resignations.Representatives from the ruling 'Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia' ...
Pak COAS arrives in London for official visit
Starting off his official visit, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, arrived in London on Wednesday, as per the media wing of the Pakistan Armed Forces.He is scheduled to meet senior British officials during his trip, the Inter-Services Public Relations added."COAS arrived at London, UK on an official visit. Will interact with senior British Civil-Military leadership to discuss matters of mutual interest including evolving geo-strategic environment, defence and security," Major General Asif Ghafoor, Pakistan Army's Spokesperson, tweeted.
India's female squad to soon assume duties under UN peacekeeping missions in Congo
India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syed Akbaruddin on Thursday said that Indian women who are contingents to the United Nations' peacekeeping operations will soon be assuming their duties in the Democratic Republic of Congo."India's Female Engagement Team deployed in @UNPeacekeeping is on way to assume duties @MONUSCO (Democratic Republic of Congo)," Akbaruddin wrote on Twitter.The envoy captioned the post saying, "Women Peace & Security in action."The United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or MONUSCO is a United Nations peacekeeping force that was established by the United Nations Security Council in accordance to the resolutions 1279 and 1291 to monitor peace in Congo.India has a long tradition of sending women to UN peacekeeping missions, said a recent statement issued by the United Nations named "India: A long and deep tradition of contributing to UN peacekeeping".In 2007, India became the first country .
BSF recovers heroin 5-kg from near IB in Jammu
Stepping up vigil on the International Boundary (IB), the Border Security Force (BSF) on Thursday recovered about 5-kg of heroin.According to BSF, on the basis of specific information, the troops of 36 Battalion of BSF carried out special search operation near the IB in Suchetgarh."The BSF party led by Sanjay Guleria, Second in Command, found a plastic can in a branch of Phalku Nalla. During the search, the can was found to be filled/packed with about 5 kgs of drugs. The place of recovery was approximately 100 meters before the IB along Pakistan."Last year in the month of December, BSF jointly with DRI Jammu had recovered 3 kgs of heroin on specific information."It is suspected that this consignment was to be taken to Punjab through local Indian smugglers working for Pak smuggling group run by notorious Pakistan's smuggler Chaudhary Akram.""The BSF in tandem with other agencies is developing input to identify and nail down the local smugglers and break the network. Smugglers are ...
18 IS fighters killed in joint operation with US: Niger
Eighteen members of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara were killed in a joint operation by US, French and Niger troops near Niger's border with Mali, the defence ministry said Tuesday. The June 8-18 operation took place "in the northern border region of Tongo Tongo targeting a gang of ISGS terrorists implicated in an ambush on May 14," in which 28 Nigerien soldiers were killed, it said. "The toll on the enemy side is: 18 terrorists neutralised, five terrorists, of whom three are Nigerien, taken prisoner." There were "no human or material losses" during the operation, which was codenamed ACONIT, it said. "Important materiel was recovered including equipment belonging to the Niger armed forces which were taken by the attackers after the ambush," the statement said. In October 2017, the ISGS claimed responsibility for a raid which killed four US soldiers and five Nigerien troops in the same region, a mere 20 kilometres from the Malian border. On June 8, a US army vehicle hit a ...
Sri Lanka to charge police for 'lapses' over Easter attacks
Sri Lankan authorities Thursday ordered the first criminal charges against security personnel for "lapses" before the Easter Sunday suicide bombings that killed 258 people. Nine police officers will face "criminal investigations" for failing to act on warnings ahead of the April 21 bombings on three churches and three hotels carried out by Islamic State-backed jihadists. In a notice ordering the probe, Attorney General Dappula de Livera said an inquiry commission appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena had found the officers liable for criminal negligence. All nine were senior officers in the districts where the attacks were carried out. Authorities have admitted that warnings sent by neighbouring India of an impending attack by a local group, the National Thowheeth Jama'ath (NTJ) were ignored. Forty-five foreign nationals were among the dead and 500 people were injured in the attacks. The tourist hotspot has been under a state of emergency since. Sri Lanka's State Intelligence ...
NIA raids residential premises in Coimbatore's Shanti Nagar area
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday conducted raid at residential premises here in Shanti Nagar and recovered a hard disc and some documents in connection with an ISIS module case.This comes a week after the probing agency arrested six youths from Coimbatore, who were allegedly a part of the ISIS module, propagating Sri Lankan bomber Zahran Hashim's preaching on social media.One of the arrested youth was identified as Mohd Azarudeen, who runs a graphic design shop in Shanti Nagar.On the basis of the information revealed by him, an NIA team conducted a search operation in the house of Sandhu who works along with Azarudeen and recovered a hard disc and some documents.The in-charge of the ISIS module, sources said, was believed to be in touch with Easter Sunday bombings mastermind Zahran Hashim on Facebook.
TN IS module: NIA questions computer technician
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Thursday questioned a computer technician here over some hard disks recovered from the Tamil Nadu IS module mastermind, who was arrested recently. A team of NIA sleuths visited the house of Sinod and questioned him over the hard disks given by Mohammed Azharuddin, police sources said. The NIA had on June 12 arrested Mohammed Azaruddin, the alleged mastermind of ISIS Tamil Nadu module who was a Facebook friend of Sri Lankan suicide bomber Zahran Hashim, after it carried out searches at seven locations in the city. The technician was questioned based on the information provided by Azharuddin, the sources said. The statement of the technician was recorded, they added.
Nine trainee police constables down with viral fever symptoms
Nine trainee police constables have been admitted to the government hospital here with symptoms of viral fever, officials said Thursday. According to the sources, four trainees in the 4-Special Police battalion at Kovaipudur were suffering from fever two days ago following which doctors and staff from the government hospital organised a medical camp there. A check revealed that they were suffering from high viral fever and immediately shifted to the hospital, they said. During examination Wednesday night, the doctors found five more trainees had symptoms of viral fever. They were also admitted to the hospital. All the nine are undergoing treatment in a special ward, the sources said. Health department officials inspected the premises and found the water in the tank was not good for consumption which was cleaned with the help of corporation staff, they added.
Delhi Police busts interstate gun racket, 3 arrested
Delhi Police on Thursday busted an interstate gun smuggling racket and arrested three people, including the manufacturer and supplier of the illegal weapons."A team of Special Cell led by Inspectors Vivekanand Pathak and Kuldeep Singh, under the supervision of ACP Manoj Dixit also recovered 30 semi-automatic pistols from their possession," read a police statement.The police had received a tip-off that a huge consignment of illegal arms would exchange hands near Jheel Wala Park, Sector-3 in Rohini.Pawan Singh and Chandar Singh, two of the three arrested from Rohini's Jheel area are residents of Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district. Upon interrogation, they revealed that they have been involved in the business for over 10 years.Accused Pawan disclosed that he had been sending consignments of illegal arms to criminal gangs operating out of Delhi, UP, Haryana, MP etc. through his various courier chains."In view of recent criminal activities involving the use of firearms, the Special Cell of ...
Thousands of CISF personnel to conduct demonstrations on yoga day
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has been designated as the Nodal Force to coordinate with the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to conduct yoga demonstration at Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad on the occasion of 5th International Yoga Day on June 21."345 units and 74 Formations of CISF, which includes eight training institutions, 12 reserve battalions, zonal, sector and force headquarters across the length and breadth of the country are ready to celebrate the 5th International Day of Yoga on 21st June, 2019 with great fervor," CISF Public Relations Officer (PRO) said in a statement.Over 1000 CISF and CAPF personnel will participate in the Yoga Day demonstrations in Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad."In presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a mass yoga demonstration will be held at Prabhat Tara Ground, Ranchi (Jharkhand). Large numbers of CISF personnel of Ranchi based units and 2nd Reserve Battalion with other fellow CAPF personnel will participate in the demonstration," the ..
Hong Kong protesters call for new demo after demands are snubbed
Hong Kong opposition groups called for another major demonstration on Thursday after the pro-Beijing government did not respond to demands of protesters who have shaken the city with massive rallies. Millions have marched this month to oppose a proposed law that would have allowed extraditions to the Chinese mainland, but the huge protest movement has morphed into a larger rebuke of Hong Kong's administration. Under-fire chief executive Carrie Lam has apologised and suspended the controversial bill, but that has failed to quell the opposition, with protesters demanding she step down and completely withdraw the legislation. A number of protest groups, including student unions, called for supporters to mobilise on Friday, asking people to gather at the city's main government complex to "hold picnics" outside the legislature starting 7:00 am on Friday (2300 GMT Thursday). They also recommended a go-slow protest on roads and public transport, and urged people to gather in other parts of ..
Budget not designed with eye on polls, says Mungantiwar
Maharashtra Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar Thursday trashed the opposition's charge that the state budget for 2019-20 was a populist one and presented keeping an eye on the upcoming Assembly polls. Mungantiwar said the BJP-led state government took decisions in the interest of the people throughout the last five years of its rule. "They (the opposition) feel deterred when we do justice with all sections of the society (through the budget). They keep saying that the announcements were made in view of elections," he said. "Was there any election in 2015? But we abolished LBT (local body tax) then. We exempted light motor vehicles from toll. We provided Maratha reservation," the minister said. To a question, Mungantiwar said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had agreed to relocate a refinery project in Ratnagiri when the BJP forged an alliance with the Shiv Sena for the Lok Sabha polls as that was the condition set by the Uddhav Thackeray-led party for stitching the ...
Two arrested for running interstate gun smuggling racket
Two people have been arrested for allegedly running an interstate gun smuggling racket, police said Thursday. The accused -- Pawan Singh and Chandar Singh, both residents of Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh were nabbed on June 18 from from Rohini Sector-3 where they had come to deliver a huge consignment. Around 30 illegal pistols were recovered from them, police said. The seized weapons were manufactured by Pawan Singh. Police said trading illegal firearms has been a hereditary occupation for Pawan. The accused, who learnt the skill of manufacturing firearms, have been involved in the business for over 10 years. "His (Pawan) family members manufacture illegal arms at a cottage industry in a forest near his native village. "Pawan has been supplying consignments of illegal arms to criminal gangs operating out of Delhi, UP, Haryana, MP through his various courier chains," said Manishi Chandra, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell). During interrogation, Pawan disclosed the entire .
Hyderabad: BJP MLA Raja Singh alleges injury in lathicharge; police say not true
BJP MLA Raja Singh inflicted injuries on himself and threatened the police after members of BJP attempted to erect the statue of Rani Avantibai Lodhi here in the early hours of Thursday, police said today.The MLA, however, has blamed police for lathi charging him and his followers after they questioned him when he was replacing an old Rani Avantibai Lodhi statue in Jumeerat Bazar with a new one.The statue of Rani Avantibai Lodhi statue who fought in the 1857 war of independence was established at Jummerath bazar in 2009 and was replaced twice before because of some damages.In a video clip of the incident that has gone viral on the Internet, the BJP MLA is seen picking up a stone and hit himself on his head and then threatening policemen that he would kill himself if they attempted to stop him.Singh's followers, however, claimed that the Hyderabad city police had launched a lathicharge on them due to which BJP MLA got injured.AR Srinivas, DCP West Zone, Hyderabad, speaking to ANI said,
China acknowledges hosting Taliban's chief peace negotiator for talks
China on Thursday for the first time acknowledged that it recently hosted Afghan Taliban's chief peace negotiator Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar for talks as part of its stepped-up efforts to enlarge its strategic role in Afghanistan and efforts to restore peace in the war-torn country. Mullah Baradar, one of the four top commanders who formed the Taliban in 1994, was released from jail last year by the Pakistan government. He is believed to be the highest ranking Afghan Taliban prisoner freed so far. After his release from the jail, Mullah Bardar has been holding talks with US Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad. China, a close ally of Pakistan, has been trying to iron out differences between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of providing safe haven to the Afghan Taliban, Haqqani network and other militant groups, which carry out attacks in the war-torn country. The "head of Taliban political office in Doha, Bardar, visited China", Chinese .
Govt working towards modernisation of armed forces: President Ram Nath Kovind
President Ram Nath Kovind said Centre is taking all requisite steps towards modernization of armed forces and announced that the delivery of first Rafale fighter aircraft and Apache helicopters in the offing in the "near future"."My Government is rapidly taking forward the work of modernisation of the army and the armed forces. India is going to receive the delivery of first 'Rafale' fighter aircraft and 'Apache' helicopters in the near future," he said in his address to the joint sitting of Parliament.The President also stated that a special emphasis is being accorded by the Central Government to manufacture of modern armaments under 'Make in India'"The policy of indigenously manufacturing weapons such as modern rifles and cannons, tanks and combat aircraft is being carried forward successfully. Defence Corridors coming up in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will further strengthen this mission. While fulfilling our security requirements, the export of defense equipment is also being ...
Operations in J-K being conducted in professional, dedicated manner: Army
The Army on Thursday said its operations in Jammu and Kashmir are conducted in a professional and dedicated manner and the force has a code of conduct which values human dignity. "We have a very strong code of conduct which values human dignity and the values of the society. So I wish to assure you that all the operations by the Army in Jammu and Kashmir are being carried out in a professional and dedicated manner," Army's northern command chief Lt Gen Ranbir Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a function at Wuzur in south Kashmir's Anantnag district. In response to a question, the Army commander said, "Wherever there are actions to be taken, those are taken at appropriate levels." Lt Gen Singh was at Army Goodwill School, Wuzur, which has been renamed after Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani, who was awarded Ashok Chakra posthumously in January this year. Wani was killed in an anti-insurgency operation at Batagund in Kulgam district on November 25, 2018. Six militants were killed, ...
World stands with India on issue of terror: President Kovind
The entire global community stands with India on the issue of terrorism and designation of Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist is a testimony to this fact, President Ram Nath Kovind said Thursday. In his address to the joint sitting of both houses of Parliament, Kovind said the world community supports India's position on various issues such as climate change, economic and cyber-crime, action against corruption and black money and energy security. "Today, the whole world stands with India on the issue of terrorism. Designation of Masood Azhar, responsible for dastardly terrorist attacks on our soil, as a global terrorist by the United Nations, is a major testimony to this fact," he said in his customary address after the formation of the 17th Lok Sabha. Last month, the United Nations had designated Pakistan- based Azhar as a "global terrorist" after China lifted its hold on a proposal to blacklist him. A UNSC designation will subject Azhar to an ...
