Page 21 - War Conflict
Huge security operation as Indonesia court hears poll rigging claims
Tens of thousands of security personnel fanned out across Jakarta Friday as a court heard a defeated presidential challenger's claim that Indonesia's 2019 election was rigged -- allegations that spawned deadly rioting last month. Ex-general Prabowo Subianto lodged an appeal that claimed his loss to incumbent leader Joko Widodo on April 17 was the result of massive electoral fraud and irregularities in the vote counting. Indonesia's election commission has said Widodo won 55.5 percent of votes in the world's largest Muslim-majority country against Subianto's 44.5 percent. Election officials and analysts have discounted Subianto's rampant cheating claims, and he lost a similar court battle in 2014 when Widodo defeated him. But peaceful protests against the official result erupted into two nights of street battles between police and rioters in Jakarta last month, leaving eight people dead and hundreds injured in the capital's worst violence in years. On Friday, the constitutional court .
Gunfight in J&K's Pulwama
A gunfight started on Friday between the security forces and holed up militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, police said.
Hong Kong quiet now, but prospect of new protest looms large
Hong Kong's downtown was calm Friday after days of protests by students and human rights activists opposed to a bill that would allow suspects to be tried in mainland Chinese courts, although the prospect of further protests over the weekend loomed large. Demonstrators have said they remain committed to preventing the administration of Beijing-appointed Chief Executive Carrie Lam from pushing through the legal amendments they see as eroding Hong Kong's cherished legal autonomy which it retained after its handover from British to Chinese rule in 1997. Traffic flowed on major thoroughfares that had been closed after a protest by hundreds of thousands of people on Sunday, posing the biggest political challenge yet to Lam's two-year-old government. Protesters had kept up a presence through Thursday night, singing hymns and holding up signs criticizing the police for their handling of the demonstrations. Police said they have arrested 11 people on charges such as assaulting police officers
Saudi intercepts five Yemen rebel drones in new airport attack: coalition
Saudi forces on Friday intercepted five Yemeni rebel drones in the second aerial attack on an airport in the kingdom's southwest in two days, a Riyadh-led military coalition fighting the rebels said. The drones targeted Abha airport, where a rebel missile on Wednesday left 26 civilians wounded, and the nearby city of Khamis Mushait, which houses a major airbase, the coalition said in a statement released by Saudi state media. "The royal Saudi air defence force and air force successfully intercepted and destroyed five unmanned drone aircraft launched by Huthi militia towards Abha international airport and Khamis Mushait," the statement said. The airport was operating normally with no fights disrupted, the statement added. Huthi-run Al-Masirah TV reported earlier that the Iran-aligned rebels had carried out drone attacks on Abha Airport. The rebels, who have faced persistent coalition bombing since March 2015 that has exacted a heavy civilian death toll, have stepped up missile and ...
UN counter-terror czar visits China's Xinjiang
The UN's counter-terrorism czar is on a visit this week to China's Xinjiang region, where Beijing insists one million Uighurs and other Muslims are detained because of a terrorism threat, UN sources and rights activists said Thursday. Vladimir Voronkov, the under-secretary general for counter-terrorism, is the highest level UN official to visit Xinjiang, which activists have described as an open air prison, deprived of religious freedom. UN spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed that Voronkov, a Russian diplomat, was on an official visit to China, but did not provide details of his itinerary. Haq stressed that the UN counter-terrorism office works to ensure that measures used to fight terror respect human rights. Beijing argues that internment camps in Xinjiang are "vocational training centers" to steer people away from extremism and reintegrate them, in a region plagued by violence blamed on Uighur separatists or Islamists. Voronkov's visit to Xinjiang, first reported by Foreign Policy ...
WB: 151 bottles of Phensedyl seized, three arrested
Border Security Forces (BSF) on Thursday arrested three drug smugglers and seized 151 bottles of Phensedyl in Behar district of West Bengal.Two operations were conducted by the BSF personnel of Guwahati frontier on the intervening night of June 12 and 13 from bordering areas of Satbhandari and Choudharihat.In the first operation, BSF troops apprehended two Indian national identified as Bharat Barman and Prabha Barman who were trying to smuggle 50 bottles of Phensedyl to Bangladesh.Whereas in the second operation, acting on a tip-off, the troops apprehended another Indian drug smuggler Saidul Hoque with 101 bottles of Phensedyl.A case has been registered and further investigation is underway.
Sudan charges ousted leader Bashir with corruption: state media
Sudan's public prosecutor has charged ousted president Omar al-Bashir of corruption, the official SUNA news agency said on Thursday. The announcement came more than two month after the military ousted Bashir on April 11 following months of nationwide protests against his 30-year ironfisted rule. "The public prosecutor announces the completion of all investigations in the case brought against the deposed president Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir by anti-corruption prosecutors," SUNA said. An unnamed official was quoted by the agency as saying that Bashir is facing charges including "possessing foreign funds, acquiring suspected and illegal wealth and ordering (the state of) emergency". In April, Sudan's army ruler General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said that more than 113 million dollars worth of cash in three currencies had been seized from Bashir's residence. He said a team of police, army and security agents found seven million euros (USD 7.8 million), USD 350,000 and five billion Sudanese .
Suicide bomber kills 11 in eastern Afghanistan
A suicide bomber targeted a police checkpoint Thursday in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, killing at least 11 people and wounding 13 others, an official said. The Afghan arm of the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack, which was committed by an assailant on foot, said Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province. There was at least one child among the fatalities, while three others were wounded. The area around Jalalabad is home to fighters from both the Taliban and the IS group's Afghan affiliate. Last month, three blasts in rapid succession in the center of Jalalabad left three people dead and 20 wounded. Until then, this city near the border with Pakistan had largely been spared from attacks and fighting, mainly with IS, in far-flung parts of the surrounding province. However, in March, at least 16 civilians were killed in a suicide bombing followed by gunfire targeting a construction company near the city's airport. The Taliban .
Rocket fired from Gaza hits building in Israel: municipality
A rocket fired from Gaza on Thursday hit a building in the Israeli border town of Sderot, its municipality said without reporting any casualties. The Israeli army, which said air raid sirens had been triggered in the south of the country, said a "projectile was fired from the Gaza Strip towards the town of Sderot", without giving further details.
Jaishankar has directed Indian Embassy to rescue 7 youths stranded in Iraq: Harsimrat
Union Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Thursday said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has directed the Indian Embassy in Iraq to ensure the safe return of seven youths from Punjab stranded in the war-ravaged country.The youths have been stranded in Iraq's Erbil city for the last seven months and hail from Punjab's Jalandhar and Kapurthala districts."Met the External Affairs minister @DrSJaishankar ji along with family members of 7 Punjabi youths stranded in Irbil city for past 7 months after being duped by a travel agent. I express my gratitude to Jaishankar ji for directing Indian Embassy in Iraq to ensure their quick return," she tweeted after meeting Jaishankar along with the family members of the seven youths.Harsimrat, who is also an MP from Bathinda, said that Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) would bear the travel expenses of the seven youths."As the Indian Consulate would complete the legal formalities needed to ensure the return of these youths to ...
MP CM announces Rs 1 cr aid for family of martyred CRPF jawan
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath Thursday announced a financial assistance of Rs one crore and a government job for the kin of CRPF jawan Sandeep Yadav who was killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. Yadav, who hailed from Dewas district in Madhya Pradesh, was among five Central Reserved Police Force personnel killed in the attack in south Kashmir Wednesday. Expressing grief over his death, Nath said in a statement here that his supreme sacrifice has made the state proud. Yadav, who hailed from Kulala village in Dewas, was attached to the 116thbattalion of the CRPF. Two motorcycle-borne terrorists, believed to be from the Jaish-e-Mohammed group, fired at a CRPF patrol party on the Khanabal-Pahalgham road in Anantnag district, killing five personnel from the paramilitary force and injuring three others Wednesday.
Haryana CM expresses grief over CRPF trooper's killing
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday expressed condolences over the killing of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper Ramesh Kumar in the suicide attack in Anantnag town in Jammu and Kashmir.
Pb govt to give jobs to relatives of 7 armed forces personnel killed in line of duty
The Punjab government has decided to give jobs to the dependents of seven armed forces personnel killed in the line of duty, a spokesperson said Thursday. A high-powered committee, headed by the Punjab chief secretary, recommended their names to Chief Minister Amarinder Singh for his final clearance. Prabhpreet Kaur, wife of Wing Commander M S Dhillon has been recommended for the post of Assistant Registrar Cooperative Societies, the spokesperson said. Wing Commander M S Dhillon had made the supreme sacrifice in an air crash while evacuating civilians from flood-hit areas in Arunachal Pradesh in 2017. Gurpreet Kaur, wife of Lance Naik Sandeep Singh and Rajwinder Kaur, wife of Sepoy Mandeep Singh of Gurdaspur have been recommended for the post of Social Education and Panchayat Officer in the Rural Development Department. Pallavi Saini, wife of Gunner Sukhdyal in Pathankot, has been recommended for the post of Inspector in Cooperative Societies. Shamsher Singh, brother of Sepoy Mandeep .
3 suspected ISIS supporters held in Coimbatore; TN module
Three suspected ISIS supporters were detained here Thursday by police for interrogation over alleged conspiracy to carry out attacks in the city, a day after the NIA arrested the terror outfit's Tamil Nadu module mastermind following searches. Police said they carried out searches at the houses of Mohamed Hussain, Shahjahan and Sheik Safiullah and seized "incriminating" documents and digital devices. "The three persons are being interrogated regarding the "incriminating materials seized during the search," a police release here said. The seized devices included cellphones, SIM cards, computer hard disks, bank account documents, pen drives, memory cards. It said the searches against the three were carried out following information that they were "staunch supporters" of ISIS and have been propagating the terrorist organisation's ideology in social media. They were also supporters of Zahran Hashim, mastermind of Sri Lanka Easter Sunday suicide bombings, and had praised his
Suicide bomber kills 9 in eastern Afghanistan
A suicide bomber walked up to an Afghan police vehicle in Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, and detonated an explosive device that killed three police and six civilians on Thursday, said provincial health department official Shoaib Sahak. He said another 13 people were wounded, some of the seriously. Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor, said security forces were the target of the attack. Several of the injured were police, he said. No one took immediate responsibility for the attack, but both the Islamic State affiliate known as Islamic State Khorasan Province and the Taliban operate in Nangarhar province, considered an IS stronghold. Afghanistan's security forces come under near-daily attacks by both Taliban and IS-affiliated fighters. Afghan forces have suffered staggering casualties in recent years, even as the Taliban hold peace talks with the US Peace Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad. He is currently in the Afghan capital, Kabul, trying to restart
Surveillance-savvy Hong Kong protesters go digitally dark
Hong Kong's tech-savvy protesters are going digitally dark as they try to avoid surveillance and potential future prosecutions, disabling location tracking on their phones, buying train tickets with cash and purging their social media conversations. Police used rubber bullets and tear gas to break up crowds opposed to a China extradition law on Wednesday, in the worst unrest the city has witnessed in decades. Many of those on the streets are predominantly young and have grown up in a digital world, but they are all too aware of the dangers of surveillance and leaving online footprints. Ben, a masked office worker at the protests, said he feared the extradition law would have a devastating impact on freedoms. "Even if we're not doing anything drastic -- as simple as saying something online about China -- because of such surveillance they might catch us," the 25-year-old said. This week groups of demonstrators donned masks, goggles, helmets and caps -- both to protect themselves against
Fighting kills at least 50 eastern DR Congo: Governor
At least 50 people have been killed in violence in Ituri, a volatile province of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), governor Jean Bamanisa Saidi said Thursday. "As of the day before yesterday, we had a figure of some 50 (dead), but it's true, we are aware that there are other cases," he told AFP. Other sources said the toll could be 60 or more than 70. The fighting began last Friday and escalated on Monday, affecting the territory of Djugu north of the provincial capital of Bunia, and causing many people to flee their homes, the sources said. The cause of the flareup was not immediately clear, but it occurred in a region where tens of thousands died in clashes between the Hema and Lendu ethnic groups between 1999 and 2003. The deputy head of the UN peacekeeping force in the DRC, General Bernard Commins, told a press conference on Wednesday that the two communities had suffered fresh violence. A Hema leader, Pilo Molondro, told AFP that 49 deaths had been recorded since the ...
SGPC to probe missing artefacts relating to Operation Bluestar
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on Thursday ordered a probe into the whereabouts of artefacts relating to the Sikh religion and history after they were allegedly taken over by the Indian Army during Operation Bluestar to flush out militants from the Golden Temple complex 35 years ago.
10 killed, 9 injured in Afghanistan suicide attack
As many as 10 people, including five civilians, were killed and nine others injured in a suicide attack on a police vehicle at Jalalabad in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan on Thursday, officials said.
Suicide bomber kills nine in eastern Afghanistan
At least nine people were killed and 12 others injured by a suicide bomber Thursday in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, an official said. The bomber, who was on foot, detonated a device near a local police checkpoint, according to a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province. "Four security personnel and five civilians have been killed and 12 more, including three security personnel, wounded," said Attaullah Khogyani. There was at least one child among the fatalities, while three others were among those wounded. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the area around Jalalabad is home to fighters from both the Taliban and the Islamic State group's Afghan affiliate. A wave of violence across Afghanistan in recent weeks has claimed the lives of dozens of civilians and security forces. After 18 years of conflict, the Taliban are in negotiations with US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad for some sort of peace settlement. A resolution still seems far off, with .