Page 134 - War Conflict
14 passengers, including Navy personnel, shot dead after being offloaded from buses in Pak
Unidentified gunmen donning uniforms of paramilitary soldiers Thursday massacred at least 14 passengers, including Pakistan Navy personnel, after forcing them to disembark from buses on a highway in the restive Balochistan province, in the latest targeted killing in the country. Around 15 to 20 gunmen stopped five to six buses travelling between Karachi and Gwadar. They stopped the buses on the Makran Coastal Highway in Balochistan's Ormara area, checked some three dozen passengers' identity cards and offloaded 16 people before shooting them dead, police said. Balochistan Inspector General of Police Mohsin Hassan Butt said around 15 to 20 unidentified gunmen wearing uniforms of paramilitary Frontier Corps were involved in the attack carried out early morning at Buzi Top area. "A total of 16 people were offloaded and 14 killed while 2 managed to escape," the officer said. Balochistan Home Minister Zia Langove told the media that the attackers used their fatigue as a disguise to carry ..
51.6 per cent votes cast in WB in first 4 hours
Around 51.6 per cent votes were cast in the first four hours in the three Lok Sabha constituencies of West Bengal, where polling is on under way in the second phase Thursday marred by incidents of violence in some areas, officials said. An EC official said here that around 47.52 per cent polling was recorded in Darjeeling, 54.73 per cent in Jalpaiguri (SC) and 52.54 per cent in Raiganj seat, which reported the maximum incidents of violence from Chopra and Islampur areas. Special Police Observer Vivek Dubey, however, described the voting as "more or less peaceful" with a few isolated incidents reported from places in the three constituencies. "Small incidents will always occur but there is no big incident," he told reporters. A reporter and a camera person of a local news channel were allegedly manhandled when they went to cover polling at Kataphulbari in the Raiganj constituency. Voters of Chopra under the same constituency reportedly put up a road blockade in protest .
Filipinos start evacuating from Libyan capital; 1 wounded
Philippine diplomats have started evacuating a small group of Filipinos from the Libyan capital after it was hit by a barrage of rocket fire that wounded one Filipino, officials said Thursday. Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Emmanuel Fernandez said in Manila that three hospital workers and four students were evacuated by Philippine Embassy personnel from Tripoli to Tunisia, where they are to take flights back home. Manila's top diplomat in Tripoli, Elmer Cato, said 13 more Filipinos have sought help and are expected to be flown back home in the next few days. But of about 1,000 Filipinos in Tripoli, only 20 have so far asked to be repatriated, including a man who was wounded in the rocket fire late Tuesday in the Libyan capital, he said. About 50 other Filipino workers have been evacuated to safer areas within Libya by their employers, Cato said. There are more than 2,000 Filipinos in Libya, mostly working as nurses, teachers and oil industry workers. "They have to stay here ..
14 passengers shot dead after being offloaded from buses in Pak
Unidentified gunmen donning uniforms of paramilitary personnel Thursday shot dead at least 14 passengers after forcing them to disembark from buses on a highway in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, in the latest targeted killing in the country. Around 15 to 20 gunmen stopped five to six buses travelling between Karachi and Gwadar. They stopped the buses on the Makran Coastal Highway in Balochistan's Ormara area, checked their identity cards and offloaded them before shooting them dead, police said. Balochistan Inspector General of Police Mohsin Hassan Butt said around 15 to 20 unidentified gunmen wearing uniforms of paramilitary Frontier Corps were involved in the attack carried out early morning at Buzi Top area. "A total of 16 people were offloaded and 14 killed while 2 managed to escape," the officer said. Balochistan Home Minister Zia Langove told the media that the attackers used their fatigue as a disguise to carry out a routine check on the passengers. "We have launched .
Amid polling, Naxals trigger IED blast in C'garh; none hurt
Naxals triggered an IED blast on Thursday in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district where polling for Lok Sabha elections is underway, a senior police official said. No casualty was reported in the incident, he said. "The rebels detonated the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) around 10.30 am between Medha and Dabba villages, falling under Manpur-Mohla Assembly segment, when a team of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police team was out on area domination operation in view of polling in the area," he said. No harm was caused to the security personnel as the explosion took place a few metres away from them, he said, adding that a combing operation was underway in the area. Polling in the Manpur-Mohla Assembly segment of Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha constituency is being held from 7 am to 3 pm. In the remaining seven Assembly segments of Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha seat, the polling time is from 7 am to 5 pm. A thick security blanket of around 60,000 personnel, and drones, has been thrown around the three ...
14 passengers shot dead after being offloaded from bus in Pakistan
Unidentified gunmen shot dead at least 14 passengers after forcing them to disembark from a bus on a highway in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province, a media report said Thursday. According to Levies sources, around 15 to 20 unidentified gunmen in camouflage uniform reportedly stopped five or six buses travelling between Karachi and Gwadar. They stopped a bus on the Makran Coastal Highway in Balochistan's Ormara area, checked the identity cards of passengers and offloaded about 16 of them. At least 14 were shot dead, while two passengers managed to escape the massacre and made it to the nearest Levies check post. They were shifted to a hospital for treatment, the Dawn newspaper reported. Levies and other law enforcement personnel reached the spot and launched an investigation into the incident. The bodies of the victims were recovered from Noor Baksh Hotel, the report said. The motive behind the killings and the identity of the victims are yet to be ascertained. Balochistan, which .
Brisk voting recorded in Manipur LS polls
Brisk voting was recorded in the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha seat in Manipur on Thursday, an official said here.
2 Naxals involved in BJP MLA's killing gunned down in C'garh
Two Naxals, allegedly involved in the killing of a BJP MLA and four security personnel, were gunned down in a fierce encounter with police on Thursday in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district, officials said. Another rebel was injured in the skirmish that took place around 5.30 am at a forest in Daulikarka village when a team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was out on an anti-Naxal operation, Deputy Inspector General (anti-Naxal operations) Sundarraj P told PTI. When the patrolling team was advancing through Daulikarka, located around 450 km from the state capital Raipur, an exchange of fire broke out between the two sides, he said. "After the guns fell silent, bodies of two ultras and a .315 bore gun were recovered from the spot," he said. A militia member of Maoists was also found injured at the spot and was shifted to a local hospital, he said. The killed cadres, identified as Vargese and Linga, were allegedly involved in the ambush in which Mandavi and his four security personnel
Two Naxals killed in encounter with police in C'garh
Two Naxals, who were allegedly involved in the killing of BJP MLA Bhima Mandvi earlier this month, were killed in an encounter with security forces in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district on Thursday, police said. The skirmish took place in the morning at a forest in Daulikarka village when a team of the District Reserve Guard (DRG) was out on an anti-Naxal operation, Deputy Inspector General (anti-Naxal operations) Sundarraj P told PTI. When the patrolling team was advancing through Daulikarka, located around 450 km from here, an exchange of fire broke out between the two sides, he said. "After the guns fell silent, bodies of two ultras and a 315 bore gun were recovered from the spot," he said. Besides, a militia member of Maoist was found injured at the spot and later shifted to a local hospital, he added. The killed cadres, identified as Vargese and Linga, were allegedly involved in the ambush in which Mandavi and his four security personnel were killed on April 9, Superintendent of ..
Over 50 Boko Haram fighters killed in Nigeria attack: military
More than fifty Boko Haram fighters have been killed in an attack on a multi-national force in northeastern Nigeria, a military spokesperson said Wednesday. Two Chadian soldiers belonging to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MMF), an anti-Boko Haram force combining soldiers from Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria, died in the assault at Cross Kauwa on Tuesday, Colonel Azem Bermandoa said. Eleven other soldiers were injured. "Fifty-two members of Boko Haram have been killed. Chadian forces have recovered a vehicle equipped with a heavy weapon and several small arms," Bermandoa said. Boko Haram's nearly 10-year insurgency has its epicentre in northeast Nigeria, but has spilled over into Chad, Niger and Cameroon. It has left more than 27,000 people dead and about 1.8 million others homeless. In late February, more than 500 Chadian soldiers entered Nigeria to aid the Nigerian army in the fight against the jihadist group. On Sunday night, seven Chadian soldiers were also killed in a Boko
US halts recent practice of disclosing nuclear weapon total
The Trump administration has halted, without explanation, the recent US government practice of disclosing the current size of the nuclear weapons stockpile. The decision was revealed in a recent Department of Energy letter to the Federation of American Scientists, a private group that studies nuclear weapons issues and advocates for government openness on national security issues. The Obama administration, in May 2010, had declassified for the first time the full history of the US nuclear weapons stockpile from its beginning in 1945. It revealed that the warhead total stood at 5,113 as of September 30, 2009, approximately the number that private experts had estimated and about 84 per cent below the official peak number of 31,255 warheads in 1967. As recently as last year, the Trump administration had disclosed that the stockpile consisted of 3,822 nuclear warheads as of September 30, 2017, down 196 warheads from the year before. The 2017 figure was made public in response to a request
Why note ban 'scams' not probed, asks Congress
The Congress on Wednesday described demonetisation as the "biggest scam" of the country and alleged that it "may have helped criminals to monetise by looting the treasury and the poor".
EU envoys meet Libyan Foreign Minister as Tripoli battle rages
Tripoli, April 17 (IANS/AKI) Italy's Envoy to Libya Giuseppe Buccino and his other European Union counterparts held talks on Wednesday with the internationally recognised unity government's Foreign Minister Mohamed Taher Siala on the military escalation in the capital.
Two army men hurt in militant firing
Two army personnel were injured on Wednesday in militant firing in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district.
Pulwama: Grenade hurled at CRPF camp, one injured
A Under-barrel Grenade launcher (UBGL) grenade was lobbed at a CRPF camp at Tral, Pulwama by unknown terrorists on Wednesday.The grenade exploded inside the camp injuring a CRPF head constable in his fingers, said the CRPF officials.First aid is being provided to the injured constable, the official added.Further details of the incident are awaited.On February 14, 40 CRPF jawans had lost their lives in a terrorist attack in Pulwama. The responsibility of the attack was taken by Pakistan based terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).
Maoists strike on poll-eve: kill poll official, torch vehicles
The Maoists struck on the eve of second phase election in Odisha, gunning down a woman poll official and setting ablaze two poll vehicles and a motorbike on way to booths on Wednesday, police said. Both the incidents occurred at separate places of Maoist affected Kandhamal district where the red rebels have asked the people to boycott the elections. Following the incidents, the police have set up a Command Centre here for smooth conduct of voting on Thursday. The ultras gunned down the officer when she was taking a team of poll personnel to a booth, police said. Sector Officer Sanjukta Digal was shot dead when she got down from the vehicle to check a suspicious object lying on the road while passing through a jungle near Balandapada village under Gochhapada police station limits, DGP B K Sharma told PTI. Other four polling personnel were in the vehicle and they were unhurt. There were also reports of an explosion at the spot but the police are yet to confirm it. The ...
Talks in trouble as Taliban slam Afghan guest list
An upcoming conference between Afghan representatives and the Taliban appeared to be in trouble Wednesday even before it begins, with the militants deriding Kabul's plan to send 250 delegates -- several of whom have already dropped out. President Ashraf Ghani's administration had announced Tuesday a list of people from all walks of Afghan life, including some from the government, that it wants to send to the so-called intra-Afghan dialogue in Doha this weekend. But the Taliban poured scorn on the lengthy list, saying it was not "normal" and that they had "no plans" to meet with so many people. "The creators of (the) Kabul list must realise that this is an orderly and prearranged conference in a far-away Khaleeji (Gulf) country and not an invitation to some wedding or other party at a hotel in Kabul," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement. The Taliban -- who see Ghani as a US stooge and his government as a puppet regime -- also continue to insist they will not be ...
Security beefed up in East Tripura constituency
The Tripura election department stepped up security measures in East Tripura parliamentary constituency to create conducive atmosphere for polling Wednesday, a day after the Election Commission deferred the election there citing deterioration in law and order. Chief Electoral Officer, Sriram Taranikanti said additional security measures are being taken to ensure peace before polling in the constituency, where it was deferred from April 18 to April 23. The CEO said that he has requested the EC for dispatch of additional central security forces for deployment in the constituency. "We are intensifying patrolling of security forces. We are also keeping a close vigil of suspicious persons and will strengthen security whenever necessary. We have asked the police to take action against the persons who are likely to create trouble," he said. We are trying to get some more Central Armed Police Force," he said adding that their number would be decided by the EC and the ministry ..
CRPF trooper injured in J&K grenade attack
A Central Reserve Police force (CRPF) trooper was injured in a militant grenade attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Tral town on Wednesday evening, police said.
Militants fire grenade at CRPF camp in Pulwama; jawan injured
Terrorists fired a grenade at a CRPF camp in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama on Wednesday injuring a personnel of the force, officials said. They said an under-barrel grenade launcher was fired at the Tral-based camp of the 180th battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force. The grenade exploded inside the camp of the 'bravo company' causing minor injuries to a CRPF head constable, they added. The injured jawan is being provided medical assistance, they said. A UBGL is a weapon accessory and is fitted below the barrel of a gun. It fires a grenade at a trajectory and causes splinter and blast casualties. Security forces have launched a search in the area for the terrorists who carried out the attack, they said. In a deadly terror attack on a CRPF convoy in this area on February 14, forty troops on board a bus plying on the Jammu-Srinagar highway were killed.