Page 111 - War Conflict
Sri Lanka keeps visa-on-arrival programme on hold
Sri Lanka's Tourism Ministry said on Thursday that it has kept its new visa-on-arrival programme on hold until further notice due to the security situation in the island nation following the Easter Sunday bombings.
Climate protesters block London Stock Exchange
Environmental activist group Extinction Rebellion blocked the entrance to the London Stock Exchange on Thursday as climate change protests continued in the British capital.
Israel tells citizens to leave Sri Lanka over 'concrete threat'
Israel on Thursday urged its citizens travelling in Sri Lanka to leave the country, citing an "elevated concrete threat" following deadly Easter bombings there. The recommendation from Israel's counter-terrorism bureau said the travel warning was issued after consultations with security and foreign ministry officials. It said it was issuing the warning "in view of the deterioration in the security situation and the fear that the events have not yet ended or that there is a chance of their recurrence in the near future". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered aid to Sri Lankan authorities in the wake of the attacks which saw suicide bombers blow themselves up in luxury hotels and churches packed with Easter Sunday worshippers, killing nearly 360 people Thousands of Sri Lankan troops have joined the hunt for suspects. Dozens of foreigners were among the victims of the blasts, including three children of a Danish billionaire, eight Britons, 10 Indians and four ...
Spice tycoon suspected of helping sons in suicide attacks
Police are holding the father of two Sri Lankan suicide bombers on suspicion of aiding and abetting his sons to carry out Easter Sunday attacks that have left at least 359 people dead.
China and Russia to hold joint navy drills next week
China said Thursday that it will hold joint naval drills with Russia next week, in another sign that the countries' militaries are growing closer. The drills will be held off the northern port city of Qingdao, Defense Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said at a monthly briefing. Taking place from Monday to Saturday, they will feature ships and submarines along with fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and marine units. Bonded by a common rivalry with the U.S., Moscow and Beijing have forged what they describe as a "strategic partnership," expressing their shared opposition to the "unipolar" world a term they use to describe perceived US global dominance. Last September, about 3,200 Chinese troops joined Russia's largest-ever war games in Siberia, in which nearly 300,000 Russian troops conducted drills. China's People's Liberation Army Navy marked its 70th anniversary this week with a fleet review attended by President Xi Jinping, who is also head of the armed forces and has expanded the ...
Two killed, one injured as two motorcycles collide in UP
Two persons were killed and one other injured when the motorcycles they were riding collided near Naudad village here Thursday, police said. The deceased were identified as 7-year-old Aham of Uttargaon village and Shamim Khan (28), a resident of Gaderi, they said. The injured, Satyam, who is Aham's uncle, was referred to another hospital in Lucknow, police added.
Income Tax officer abducted in Pak
A senior Income Tax officer and three others were allegedly abducted by masked gunmen dressed in security forces' uniform in northwest Pakistan. Income Tax Assistant Commissioner Riaz Khan, who had come to his village Miani in Tank District bordering South Waziristan to attend the last rituals of his mother, was abducted from his home along with his uncle, a cousin and another guest on Wednesday night, police said. Police have cordoned off the area and started search operation.
Some terrorists were under surveillance: Sri Lanka PM
Some of the suspected attackers responsible for the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka were being monitored by the countrys intelligence services, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told CNN in an interview on Thursday.
Sri Lankan warship docks in Manila for goodwill visit
A Sri Lankan warship docked in Manila on Thursday for a four-day goodwill visit, the first since the two countries established diplomatic relations nearly 60 years ago.
Radicals target South Asia (Column: Spy's Eye)
The coordinated terror attacks on three major churches and three prime hotels in and around Colombo on the morning of Easter Mass - with two more such incidents occurring in the afternoon - all resulting in huge casualties of over 350 dead including a score of Western foreigners and some 500 injured, is a covert offensive of global significance that is going to set the security agenda for the democratic world in general and for South Asia in particular.
Israel warns of 'high concrete threat' in Sri Lanka
Israel's Counter-Terrorism Bureau on Thursday issued a travel warning for Sri Lanka, raising the threat level to indicate a "high concrete threat", advising travellers to leave the country and avoid visiting the country in the near future.
Drones banned within Sri Lankan airspace
The use of all drones and unmanned aircraft within the Sri Lankan airspace has been suspended with effect from Thursday until further notice, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said.
Lanka Catholic churches suspend public mass until situation improves
Sri Lanka's Catholic churches on Thursday suspended all public services until the security situation improves as the head of the church urged politicians to leave aside differences to rebuild the country struck by the Easter Sunday bombings that killed nearly 360 people. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, the head of the local Catholic church, said that Easter Sunday's attacks were coordinated by an organised group with powerful nations behind them and also noted that these attackers had no religion. All Catholic churches were asked to stop public mass until the security situation improves, Cardinal Ranjith's office quoted him as saying. "There will be no public mass said until further notice," an official said. He urged the government to leave aside all political differences and work together at this time to rebuild the country again. Sri Lankan media and some ministers have criticised the rift between President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe after it emerged ...
Australia says Sri Lanka bomber studied there
Australia's prime minister said one of the suicide bombers in the Sri Lanka Easter attacks had been in Australia years earlier. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the person had been in Australia on a student and a graduate skilled visa with a spouse and child visa as well. The individual left in early 2013. Morrison told reporters Thursday the person's Australian link was part of an ongoing investigation and wouldn't comment further. Separately, a British security official has confirmed one of the bombers was believed to have studied in the U.K. between 2006 and 2007. The security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the investigation, said British intelligence was not watching Abdul Lathief Jameel Mohamed during his stay in the country. His name was first reported by Sky News.
Afghan official says Taliban ambush police convoy, kill 9
An Afghan official says the Taliban ambushed a security convoy, killing nine policemen in western Farah province. Abdul Samad Salehi, a provincial councilman, says the convoy was heading to defuse a roadside bomb on Wednesday afternoon when the ambush happened in Anardara district. Saleh says that shortly after the attack on the convoy, other Taliban insurgents targeted and briefly overran the district police headquarters. After a few hours of clashes, reinforcements arrived and wrested back control of the headquarters. The insurgents did not immediately comment on the Farah attacks. The Taliban have been active in the area and have launched large-scale attacks against Afghan security forces in Farah. The Taliban stage-near daily attacks even as they hold talks with a U.S. envoy tasked on a peaceful resolution to the war.
UK's Prince William given Maori greeting in NZ
Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, on Thursday received a traditional Maori greeting from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as he began his two-day tour of the country.
Anzac day observed in Kolkata; martyrs remembered
Australia's High Commissioner to India, Harinder Sidhu, and Australia's Consul-General in Kolkata, Mr Andrew Ford, today paid homage to those who lost their lives in service to their country, during an Anzac Day ceremony in Kolkata's Bhawanipore Commonwealth War graves.Anzac Day, commemorated on 25 April, marks the anniversary of the first major military action by the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) in 1915 during the First World War. Approximately 16,000 Indian troops fought alongside the ANZACs in Gallipoli and around 1,600 lost their lives. Over 8,700 troops from Australia and 2,779 from New Zealand died in that conflict, marking both nations' greatest loss of life in the battle.ANZAC Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations.
Lanka intensifies crackdown on terror suspects; 16 more held
The Sri Lankan authorities Thursday intensified their raids with the help of the army and arrested 16 more suspects in connection with the country's worst terror attack on Easter Sunday that killed nearly 360 people and left over 500 injured. The arrested people were being interrogated at length by the investigation sleuths in connection with the bombings. Nine suicide bombers, believed to be the members of a local Islamist extremist group National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ), carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and three luxury hotels. As many as 359 people have been killed in the attacks while 500 others injured, according to authorities. Officials said that with the arrest of 16 more people on Wednesday, the total number of suspects under police custody has risen to 76. Many of the arrested people have suspected links to the NTJ, the group blamed for the bombings. However, the NTJ has not claimed responsibility for the attacks. The Islamic State ...
11 Indians die in Lanka blasts: Lankan foreign ministry
The number of Indians killed in the massive Easter Sunday bombings rose to 11 on Thursday, as one more person succumbed to injuries, taking the total number of foreigners who died in the attack to 36, according to the Lankan Sri foreign ministry. Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry, in a statement, said that as of Wednesday April 24, the number of foreign nationals who have been killed in the attack rose to 36. "It includes, one from Bangladesh, two from China, eleven from India, three from Denmark, one from Japan, one from the Netherlands, one from Portugal, two from Saudi Arabia, one from Spain, two from Turkey, six from the UK, one from USA, two holding US and UK nationalities, and two holding Australian and Sri Lankan nationalities," the statement said. The ministry further added that14 foreign nationals are unaccounted for at present, and could be among the unidentified victims at the Colombo Judicial Medical Officer's mortuary. The mortal remains of 13 foreign nationals have been ...
Sri Lanka bans drones, unmanned aircraft after bombings
Sri Lanka has banned the use of drones and unmanned aircraft following the massive Easter Sunday bombings that killed over 350 people and injured more than 500 in the country's worst terror attack. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said that the ban will be in effect until further notice. The use of drones and unmanned aircraft has been temporarily banned within the Sri Lankan airspace, Colombo Gazette reported. The CAA said that it was taking the measure "in view of the existing security situation in the country." Meanwhile, authorities continued their search operations with the help of army and arrested many suspects overnight. So far, over 75 people have been arrested in connection with the country's deadliest attack. Nine suicide bombers, believed to be the members of a local Islamist extremist group National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ), carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and three luxury hotels. As many as 359 people have been killed in the ...