Page 324 - War Conflict
'Kill or be killed' says rebel group behind Papua massacre
Construction workers massacred at a remote jungle work camp in Papua were legitimate military targets, a rebel group said Friday, as authorities hunted for more bodies after the grisly weekend attack which killed at least 16. The National Liberation Army of West Papua (TPNPB) has claimed responsibility for the deadliest bout of violence in years to hit Papua, an Indonesian-controlled region wracked by a low-level independence insurgency. "(We killed them) because they were members of the Indonesian military in disguise. They're our enemy," Sebby Sambom, spokesman for the TPNPB, told AFP. "This is war. It's kill or be killed," he added. The rebel group said this week it had killed two dozen people working for a state-owned contractor, while Indonesia's military has confirmed 16 dead and said at least three more company workers were unaccounted for. An earlier eyewitness account supplied by the military described execution-style shootings and rebels slitting the throats of workers who ..
Farmers are being looted: Pawar on low onion prices
NCP president Sharad Pawar on Friday hit out at Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over low onion prices in Nashik district, accusing him and his government of not being concerned about farmers' "loot". Those talking about adopting Nashik were not concerned about local farmers' woes, he said. Ahead of Nashik Municipal Corporation polls last year, Fadnavis had said he would "adopt" the city if the voters reposed faith in the BJP. Pawar was speaking at an event in Mumbai Friday where former state legislator from Nashik, Apurva Hiray, returned to the NCP fold after quitting the BJP. Referring to a comment made by senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal at the function, Pawar said, "Bhujbal talked about onions being sold at 50 -51 paise per kg. "This is our (farmers') loot. And those who talked about adopting the district (Fadnavis) are not concerned despite this loot," he said. When he read about the chief minister's comment, he was "surprised", Pawar said. "Our ...
Don't want Pakistan to be treated like a 'hired gun': PM Khan on strained ties with US
Pakistan is keen to have a "proper relationship" with the US similar to Islamabad's all-weather ties with China rather than being humiliated and treated like a "hired gun", Prime Minister Imran Khan has said. The ties between Washington and Islamabad strained, especially after President Donald Trump, while announcing his Afghanistan and South Asia policy in August last year, hit out at Pakistan for providing safe havens to "agents of chaos" that kill Americans in Afghanistan. In September, the Trump administration cancelled USD 300 million in military aid to Islamabad for not doing enough against terror groups. Last month, Trump said castigated Pakistan once again, saying it was not doing "a damn thing" for America in curbing terrorism. Prime Minister Khan, in an interview with The Washington Post on Thursday, said: "I would never want to have a relationship where Pakistan is treated like a hired gun given money to fight someone else's war," Khan said, referring to the 1980s war ...
J&K Guv celebrates armed forces flag day
Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik celebrated the Armed Forces Flag Day at a function held at the Raj Bhavan here Friday. On the occasion, the Governor made a contribution towards the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund and lauded the bravery, devotion and dedication of the security forces, both during war and in peace time. Malik observed that the Armed Forces Flag Day was an important occasion for remembering the valiant soldiers who sacrificed their lives for protecting the territorial integrity of the nation. Brig Harcharan Singh, Director, Rajya Sainik Board (RSB) apprised the Governor about the various initiatives for the welfare of war widows and of the families of ex-servicemen and serving armed forces personnel. Besides various fund raising activities, competitions were organised for school going children including painting, quiz, essay writing among others, Singh told the Governor. Malik advised the RSB director to collect funds from government and private institutions ...
3 minors die in wall collapse in UP
Three children died Friday after a wall fell on them in Rehti village in Jalalpur area, police said. Ayush (12), Ashjad (6) and Shivhari (8) died on the spot, said Assistant Superintendent of Police ASP) Rural Sanjay Rai. The bodies were retrieved from the debris by the villagers, police said, adding that the matter was being probed.
Nigerian army repel fresh Boko Haram attacks: sources
Soldiers have fought off attempts by Boko Haram fighters to overrun two army bases in northeast Nigeria, security sources told AFP on Friday, in the latest attacks to hit the region. Jihadists attacked a forward operation base in the town of Bama, some 70 kilometres (45 miles) southeast of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, at about 3:45 am (0245 GMT) Friday. "The terrorists were in many vehicles... and engaged soldiers in a battle which lasted until 7:05 am," said one military source, speaking on condition of anonymity. "The terrorists were repelled and the base was secured. No casualty has so far been recorded." A second military source confirmed the account and said reinforcements were sent from a battalion stationed in Bama itself. The attack came after Boko Haram fighters attacked a military base in the town of Rann, in northern Borno near the border with Cameroon, at about 9:30 pm on Thursday. "The terrorists came in four gun trucks and several motorcycles and attacked the base
Guj: Angadia couriers looted on state transport bus
Unidentified robbers looted parcels of cash, gold and diamonds worth lakhs of rupees on a state transport bus on Mehsana-Ahmedabad highway in Gujarat Thursday night, police said. Deputy Superintendent of Police Manjita Vanzara said Friday that a complaint has been lodged with Langhnaj police station in Mehsana district and further probe was on. "Some Angadia (courier) staff, who were carrying parcels of cash, gold and diamonds, were travelling by Palanpur-Ahmedabad bus. Nine robbers, disguised as passengers, had also boarded it," said a Mehsana police official. "When it reached near a water park after leaving Mehsana, one of the robbers put a gun to the driver's head and asked him to stop. Others snatched four parcels from Angadia couriers. Then the robbers got down and fled in a car," he said. One of the passengers then alerted the Mehsana police control room, he said. "We chased the car late at night. The robbers abandoned it near Kheralu and fled," DSP Vanzara said, ..
Military Literature Festival begins with tribute to WWI soldiers
Punjab Governor V. P. Singh Badnore on Friday dedicated the Military Literature Festival (MLF) 2018 to the valour of over 74,000 Indians who had laid down their lives in World War I.
Eiffel Tower to be closed as Paris braces for more protests
The Eiffel Tower in Paris will be closed on Saturday as French authorities tighten security to prevent another outbreak of violence following three weeks of anti-government protests. In addition to the 8,000 police forces that will be deployed in the French capital, the Paris police prefect has identified 14 high-risk sectors that will be cleared out. Fearing protesters could target street furniture or construction sites, Paris police will remove all the glass containers, railings and building machines set up in the identified sectors which include the world-renowned and glitzy Champs-Elysees avenue. Across the country some 89,000 police will be mobilized, up from 65,000 last weekend when more than 130 people were injured and over 400 were arrested in the worst street violence seen in the country in decades. And authorities have also cancelled six French league soccer matches this weekend around the country. Since the unrest began on Nov. 17 in reaction to a sharp increase in diesel ..
17 civilians killed in suspected militant attacks in DRC: Local mayor
Seventeen people have been killed during two attacks by the ADF armed group in the troubled Benin region in eastern DR Congo, a local mayor said Friday. Twelve civilians died in Mangolikene on the outskirts of Beni city on Thursday while another five were killed overnight in the Paida area, mayor Nyonyi Masumbuko Bwanakana told AFP.
We're not your 'hired gun' anymore, Imran Khan tells US
Prime Minister Imran Khan has accused the US of "pushing Pakistan away" and said he would never want to have a relation with Washington where his country is treated like a "hired gun".
Nobel Peace Prize to honour champions of struggle against sexual violence
Champions of the fight against sexual violence, Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege and Yazidi activist Nadia Murad, a former captive of jihadists, will on Monday receive the Nobel Peace Prize, which this year highlights rape as a weapon of war. Murad, 25, and Mukwege, 63, will be jointly presented with the prize in Oslo, after they were announced as winners by the Norwegian Nobel Committee in October for "for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict". Mukwege, called "Doctor Miracle" for his surgical skills, has spent twenty years treating the horrendous wounds and intense emotional trauma inflicted on women in DR Congo's war-torn east. He has been scathing about the world's lacklustre response to sexual violence in conflict. "We have been able to draw a red line against chemical weapons, biological weapons and nuclear arms," he told AFP in 2016. "Today we must also draw a red line against rape as a weapon of war." Fellow laureate Murad has ...
Afghan official: Taliban kill 14 troops in western province
An Afghan official says the Taliban have killed 14 Afghan soldiers and taken another 21 captive in an overnight attack in the country's western Herat province. Herat provincial council member Najibullah Mohebi says attackers besieged two army outposts late on Thursday in Herat's Shindand district. He says the fighting lasted for six hours before reinforcements arrived and repulsed the insurgents early on Friday but not before they captured 21 troops. However, the Defence Ministry's spokesman, Ghafor Ahmad Jaweed, put the number of army dead and wounded at 10. The different accounts couldn't immediately be reconciled. No group has taken responsibility for the assault, but authorities blame the Taliban, who are active in the area and have been targeting Afghan security forces throughout the country in deadly attacks every day.
Nation indebted to armed forces for their service: Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday hailed the armed forces and said the nation is indebted to them for their service. Banerjee, in a Twitter post on Armed Forces Flag Day, extended her best wishes to personnel of the three armed forces. "Today is Armed Forces Flag Day. My best wishes to all those who are serving in the Indian Armed Forces. The nation is indebted to them for their service. We must continue to work for the welfare of Indian Armed Forces personnel," the CM tweeted. The Armed Forces Flag Day or the Flag Day of India is observed since December 7, 1949.
UN launches new framework to strengthen fight against terrorism
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has launched a new framework to combat the scourge of international terrorism and coordinate efforts across the peace and security, humanitarian, human rights and sustainable development sectors. Termed the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Coordination Compact, the framework is an agreement between the UN chief, 36 organizational entities, the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) and the World Customs Organisation, to better serve the needs of Member States when it comes to tackling the scourge of international terrorism. Speaking at the first meeting of the Compact's Coordination Committee here Thursday, Guterres highlighted the need to ensure full respect for international human rights standards and rule of law in countering terrorism. "Policies that limit human rights only end up alienating the very communities they aim to protect and which normally have every interest in fighting extremism," he said, adding that as a result "such ..
UN-backed Yemen peace talks begin in Sweden
Peace talks backed by the United Nations aimed at ending the four years of civil war in Yemen kicked off here on Thursday.The crucial meet, which is between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels, was also attended by Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom and UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths at Johannesburg Castle in the city, Anadolu News Agency reported.During the meeting, Wallstrom urged both parties to bury their differences and reconcile to end the conflict, which has claimed over 10,000 lives, including women and children.Griffiths, on the other hand, underscored that the two sides agreed to exchange prisoners as part of a confidence-building step.The deliberations would continue for the next 10 days.According to a statement released by the UN, Griffiths extended his appreciation to the Swedish government for hosting the "direct consultations" between the Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels and Saudi-led coalition backing the Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi government in ...
Former Pak diplomat urges Trump Admin not to rush deal with Afghan Taliban
Taliban's current negotiations with the US might be a ruse to get the Americans out of Afghanistan, which may lead the country to become a safe haven for international terrorists once again, a former top Pakistani diplomat warned the Trump Administration on Thursday. "If the Americans are seen to abandon Afghanistan in a hurry, jihadists worldwide will tell future recruits how the combination of their religious zeal with terrorism overcame the military prowess of two superpowers," the first having been the Soviet Union, wrote Husain Haqqani, former Pak Ambassador to the US, in an article in the prestigious Foreign Policy magazine "The United States does not lose wars; it only loses interest," he wrote, implying that some Americans seemed to be in a hurry to end their longest war without regard to the consequences. The piece comes days after US President Donald Trump sent a letter to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, seeking help in bringing about peace in Afghanistan. "From ...
Fiery protests in Greece in memory of teenager killed by police
Petrol bombs and fireworks exploded in Athens at demonstrations marking the 10th anniversary of the fatal shooting by police of a 15-year-old boy, which had triggered weeks of youth protests. More than 4,000 people, mostly young people, joined protests in Athens as well as the northern city of Thessaloniki on Thursday, according to police. Demonstrations are held each year in memory of Alexis Grigoropoulos, who was killed by a police bullet on December 6, 2008, in a skirmish during street protests staged by Greek youths over conditions in the country on the verge of a economic crisis. While the rallies in Athens throughout Thursday were generally peaceful, there were some disturbances as a group of hooded youths set up and ignited barricades and others threw stones at police who responded with tear gas. More than 20 people were arrested, a police source said. Greek police had already been on alert for the remembrance day, mobilising thousands of officers. Epaminondas Korkoneas, the ...
Eiffel Tower, shops, to close as fears of French protest violence mount
Paris' Eiffel Tower will close on Saturday over fears of fresh violence during nationwide protests against President Emmanuel Macron, as police urged shops and restaurants on the Champs-Elysees to shut their doors too. Around a dozen museums across the capital have also said they will remain closed on Saturday after vandalism and clashes between protesters and police last week rocked France. The announcements came as around 200 high schools across the country remained blocked or disrupted by students protesting a raft of education overhauls, on a fourth day of action called to coincide with the anti-government demonstrations. An interior ministry official told AFP earlier that authorities were bracing for "significant violence" on Saturday, based on indications that protesters on both the far right and far left are planning to converge on the capital. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told senators Thursday that "exceptional measures" would be taken to avoid the daylong street battles ..
Yemen war rivals double down as UN talks open
Yemen's government and rebels, locked in a devastating war for years, traded mutual accusations Thursday as they sat down for hard-won talks the United Nations described as "difficult" but "critical". The talks in Sweden are the first in two years in a conflict which has pushed impoverished Yemen to the brink of mass starvation. While the days leading up to the talks looked promising, with the government and rebels agreeing on a prisoner swap deal and the evacuation of wounded insurgents for medical treatment in Oman, the atmosphere between the two sides was tense as the talks opened. Yemeni Foreign Minister Khaled al-Yamani, who heads the Saudi-backed government's delegation to the UN-sponsored talks, told AFP his team would follow through with a planned prisoner swap with the Huthi rebels. But he refused to compromise on the flashpoint city of Hodeida, home to Yemen's most valuable port. "The Huthi militias must withdraw from the city of Hodeida and its port and hand it over to the .