Page 272 - War Conflict
India condemns terror attack at Kenya hotel
India Thursday strongly condemned the deadly terror attack at a luxury hotel complex in Kenya's Nairobi, where 21 people were killed. According to reports, at least two blasts and gunfire were heard at the compound which houses the Dusit hotel and some offices. "India strongly condemns the horrific terrorist attack in Dusit D2 Hotel and offices complex in Nairobi on January 15 which caused loss of innocent lives. We stand in solidarity with Kenya at this juncture," the Ministry of External Affairs said. India wished early recovery of the people injured in the attack, the ministry said. "We express our sincere condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the people and Government of Kenya and wish early recovery to the injured," it added.
Sri Lankan President signs 3 loan agreements with ADB
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena signed on Thursday three loan agreements totalling $455 million with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to fund projects in higher education, transport as well as a technical assistance loan in the urban sector.
3 policemen injured in Srinagar grenade explosion
Three policemen were injured in a grenade explosion here on Thursday, authorities said.
Two cops injured after grenade attack at Srinagar's Zero Bridge
At least two traffic personnel were injured Thursday in a grenade attack by militants on a security picket at Zero Bridge in the city, police said. "Militants hurled a grenade at a security forces' picket near Zero Bridge on Rajbagh side. At least two cops were hurt in the attack," a police official said. He said security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a hunt for the attackers. The attack took place less than 100 metres from the National Conference headquarters and the local office of the All India Radio.
British national gets bail in terror funding case
A Punjab court on Thursday granted bail to a British national in a terror funding case.
Mortal remains of BSF asst commandant arrives at Howrah home
The mortal remains of BSF Assistant Commandant Vinay Prasad, who was killed in a sniper shot in Jammu and Kashmir, was brought to his residence in Howrah on Thursday. Amid chants of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" and "Vinay Prasad Amar Rahe", Prasad's friends and relatives paid their last respects to the martyr, whose body arrived in a coffin wrapped in Tricolour. Senior officers of Border Security Force(BSF), South Bengal Frontier, also laid wreaths on the coffin as a mark of tribute to the soldier. On Tuesday, the troops were carrying out border domination along the International Border, when snipers of Pakistan Rangers opened fire at them around 10.50am in Hiranagar-Samba sector of Kathua. Prasad was critically injured in a sniper shot and was evacuated to the Military Hospital at Satwari (Jammu), where he succumbed to injuries.
Miscreants loot passengers of Jammu-Delhi Duranto Express
Passengers onboard in B3 and B7 coaches of Jammu-Delhi Duranto Express were looted by unidentified assailants on the outskirts of the national capital on Thursday.The incident took place in the early morning hours of today. Northern Railway Public Relations Office said that the Railway Protection Force has initial leads in the case and action will be taken against culprits.As per a passenger who was travelling in that train, the incident lasted for 10 to 15 minutes.He said, "Some 7 to 10 unidentified miscreants entered coaches B3 and B7 of the train. They were carrying sharp edged knives with them. They put the knife near to the neck of passengers and asked them to handover whatever expensive items they are carrying with them."According to the passenger, the Delhi police has lodged an FIR in the matter.
Nairobi hotel attack death toll reaches 21
The death toll in Tuesday's attack on a luxury hotel complex in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi has increased to 21, police have confirmed.
Family of Canadian kidnapped at Burkina mine 'hopeful'
A Canadian has been kidnapped by armed militants from a gold mine in eastern Burkina Faso, a region battling a rise in extremist violence and lawlessness, a senior government official said. Geologist Kirk Woodman is the vice president of Canadian company Progress Minerals, mining sources told AFP, which owns the mine in volatile Yagha province near the borders with Niger and Mali. "The agents who were working were attacked by about ten armed men who rounded up the staff. They took the expat with them," the Burkina's security minister Clement Sawadogo said Wednesday, adding that Progress Minerals was exploring at the gold site. The raid happened on Tuesday evening, he added. "We have faith and trust in Canadian authorities to bring our husband and father home safe. We are hopeful for a fast resolution to the situation," Woodman's family said in a statement. Canada currently has 250 soldiers and eight army helicopters deployed in neighbouring Mali as part of a UN peacekeeping ...
Probe against ISIS-inspired group: NIA carries out searches in western UP, Punjab
The NIA Thursday carried out searches at eight places in western Uttar Pradesh and Punjab in connection with its probe against an ISIS-inspired group, which was allegedly planning suicide attacks and serial blasts, targeting politicians and government installations, in Delhi and other parts of north India. The agency has arrested 12 people in this connection since December 26 last year. The fresh raids come five days after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested Muhammad Absar (24) from Hapur on January 12. The NIA said that searches were being conducted based on inputs from interrogation of the people arrested for allegedly being part of 'Harkat ul Harb e Islam' module of global terrorist group ISIS. The agency had earlier said it had seized a locally made rocket launcher, material for suicide vests and 112 alarm clocks to be used as timers besides recovering 25 kg of explosive material -- Potassium Nitrate, Ammonium Nitrate and Sulphur. The group had allegedly purchased ...
India, Pakistan trade fire on LoC
Indian and Pakistani troops traded gunfire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district on Thursday, defence sources said.
Death toll in Nairobi terror attack rises to 21, Kenya President says operation 'over'
The death toll in the attack at a luxurious hotel complex in Kenya's capital Nairobi rose to 21 on Wednesday, as authorities confirmed that an American and a British were among those killed.The attack began on Tuesday by heavily armed terrorists, targetted the DusitD2 compound, an upmarket cluster of shops and hotel facilities in Nairobi.Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta officially confirmed that the security operation at the hotel complex was over and all terrorists were "eliminated". "The security operation at Dusit complex is over, and all the terrorists eliminated," he was quoted by CNN as saying.Kenyatta further said that over 700 people were evacuated safely in the wake of the assault.According to inspector general of Kenya's national police service Joseph Boinnet, six more bodies were found late on Wednesday, taking the death toll from 15 to 21. He said that 16 Kenyans and one American and British national each was killed in the attack.About 28 others have been rushed to a ...
More efforts needed for ending civil war in Yemen, says Germany
Germany on Wednesday called on the international community for stepping up efforts to end the four-year-long civil war in Yemen, thereby ensuring a long-lasting peace in the war-torn country."Yemen will face a humanitarian catastrophe if we do not succeed in ending the war," Anadolu News Agency quoted German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas as saying while speaking at the international conference on Yemen here.The meet, organised by the German Foreign Ministry, saw the participation of senior officials from 17 countries. Also, UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths and Resident Coordinator of the UN in Yemen Lise Grande were present at the conference.On Tuesday, Maas said that the truce reached between the Houthi rebels and the Yemen government during the talks at Stockholm in last December offered a "real window of opportunity" to make further progress in attaining peace in Yemen.On December 13, the Houthis and the Yemen government reached the ceasefire agreement in vacating the ...
Kenya police scour rubble as hotel attack toll jumps to 21
- Kenyan police scoured the rubble of a Nairobi hotel complex for more victims Wednesday as the death toll from a jihadist attack jumped to 21 and mourners began to bury the dead. President Uhuru Kenyatta had earlier announced the end of a 20-hour operation at the DusitD2 complex which saw hundreds of people rescued and all five jihadists "eliminated". The bloody assault was claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Somali militant group Al-Shabaab, which said it was acting to avenge the decision by US President Donald Trump to declare Jerusalem as Israel's capital, according to the SITE monitoring group. Chilling CCTV footage broadcast on local media showed four black-clad, heavily armed men calmly entering the luxury complex on Tuesday afternoon. A suicide bomb blast signalled the start of the attack. Police chief Joseph Boinnet revised the death toll to 21 from 14, saying the victims included 16 Kenyans, one American, one Briton and three of African descent. "Six other bodies were found at ...
Two US service members killed in ISIS-claimed attack in Syria
Two US service members were among those killed in a fiery explosion at a market in the northern Syria town of Manjib, the US military officials said. Prior to Wednesday's attack, only two US service members had been killed in action in Syria since the start of the campaign in 2014. Two US service members -- one Department of Defense (DoD) civilian and one contractor supporting the DoD were killed -- and three service members injured while conducting a local engagement in Manjib, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Initial reports indicate an explosion caused the casualties, and the incident is under investigation, it said. In accordance with DoD's policy, the names of the service members are being withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin is complete, CENTCOM said. "US service members were killed during an explosion while conducting a routine patrol in Syria today. We are still gathering information and will share additional details at a later time," according to a .
Kenya hotel attack death toll rises to 21: police chief
The death toll from a bomb and gun attack by Islamist militants on an upmarket hotel complex in Nairobi has risen to 21, Kenya's police chief said Wednesday. "We wish to inform that, as of this evening... six other bodies were found at the scene and one police officer succumbed very suddenly to his injuries," Joseph Boinnet told reporters. He said the death included 16 Kenyans, one Briton, one American and three people of "African descent who are yet to be identified". Another 28 people who were injured in the attack had been admitted to hospital without giving details on their condition. Kenyan security forces ended the attack early Wednesday after a 20-hour operation that rescued hundreds of people and left all five assailants dead, Boinnet had announced earlier.
Kenya says Nairobi attack over, all five gunmen killed
Kenya said its forces Wednesday ended a terror attack on a luxury hotel complex that claimed 14 lives, after a 20-hour operation that rescued hundreds of people and left all five assailants dead. The attack was claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked Somali group Al-Shabaab, which has targeted Kenya since it sent its army into Somalia in October 2011 to fight the jihadist group. At least one suicide bomber blew himself up and others traded gunfire with security forces as the assault on DusitD2, a complex which includes a 101-room hotel, spa, restaurant and offices, unfolded on Tuesday. "There were five terrorists and all of them are no more," Kenyan police chief Joseph Boinnet told AFP. "It is a clearing exercise now going on there." For many Kenyans, news of the attack revived traumatic memories of a 2013 Shabaab raid on Nairobi's Westgate shopping mall that left 67 dead -- a siege played out over four days that led to sharp criticism of the authorities' response. But this time, local media ..
Gunmen attack villages in central Mali, kill 20 people
The spokesman for a Tuareg group in Mali says gunmen have attacked two villages in the country's central Menaka region near the border with Niger, killing at least 20 people. Mohamed Ag Albachar of the Azawad self-defense group, said Wednesday that armed men attacked two villages on Tuesday, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Menaka. The attackers killed 20 civilians, including elderly people, and some security personnel also died in the attack. The attack has not been claimed but it bears the marks of jihadists who stage attacks in the region in retaliation against Tuaregs who are fighting against the Islamic State. Attacks against civilians have increased in Mali's Menaka area since 2018, when the UN's mission in Mali documented 100 cases of human rights violations there.
Sri Lanka considers big China loan to repay foreign debts
Sri Lanka is considering a USD 300 million loan offer from the Bank of China as it prepares to repay foreign debts this year, a finance ministry official said Wednesday. The government has appointed a three-member committee to negotiate the deal, according to Finance Ministry Spokesman M R Hasan. The loan is repayable in three years, he said. Sri Lanka must repay USD 5.9 billion in foreign loans this year of which 40 per cent needs to be serviced during the first three months. It paid back USD 1 billion this week. A large chunk of Sri Lanka's foreign debit is from China, which considers the island nation to be part of its "One Belt One Road" initiative. China has heavily invested in Sri Lanka infrastructure such as a seaport, airport and highways. It has invested USD 1.5 billion in a port city being built on reclaimed land off the island's west coast. President Maithripala Sirisena's government had criticized the previous administration for leading the country into a Chinese debt trap
Sitharaman approves proposal of legal aid & to support veterans and war widows
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has approved a proposal to provide legal advice and support to veterans and war widows, sources said Wednesday. The meeting was attended by top officials of the Ministry of Defence and the chairman of the Armed Forces Tribunal. This is expected to greatly help these two sections of the armed forces. "The existing framework of the Kendriya Sainik Board and Zila Sainik Boards will assist in this endeavour of the Ministry of Defence," the sources added.