Page 405 - War Conflict
Ex-Sri Lankan Minister arrested for pro-Tamil Tiger comment
A former Sri Lankan Minister was arrested on Monday for calling for the return of the Tamil Tigers, a guerrilla group that waged a long civil war in the island nation.
Taliban vow to attack Afghan security forces during elections
The Taliban on Monday vowed to target government security forces in upcoming parliamentary elections, as US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad met with Afghan leaders to discuss ways to end the 17-year war. Describing the polls as a "malicious American conspiracy", Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the militants would pull no punches to disrupt the long-delayed ballot scheduled for October 20. "People who are trying to help in holding this process successfully by providing security should be targeted and no stone should be left unturned for the prevention and failure" of the election, Mujahid said in a statement published in English. The Taliban -- Afghanistan's largest militant group that was toppled from power in the 2001 US-led invasion -- typically issue inflammatory and hyperbolic statements about the Afghan government and its international backers. But this latest declaration comes just days before the parliamentary election, which is seen as a crucial dry run for next year's .
Indian tourist killed in Bangkok shootout
An Indian tourist was killed and another was seriously injured in a shootout in Bangkok, Thai police said on Monday.
Puri violence: 5 policemen suspended for dereliction of duty
Five policemen have been suspended for dereliction of duty following the violence that rocked Puri on October 3 over protests at Jagannath temple, police said. A havildar and four constables were placed under suspension Sunday for negligence in discharging duties during the bandh when protesters ransacked the house of Revenue Minister and Puri MLA, Maheswar Mohanty, said Puri SP Sarthak Sarangi. The police personnel were deployed at Mohanty's residence at Kumutisahi locality in the pilgrim town. This apart, as many as 18 persons were arrested on Sunday in connection with the violent incidents that took place during the 12-hour shut-down called by socio-cultural outfit Sri Jagannath Sena to protest introduction of queue system for devotees at the Jagannath temple, he said. With this, the total number of people arrested in connection with violence during the bandh increased to 41 so far. Earlier, 23 people had been arrested by the police in connection with the ...
Mobile phones, ganja, cash seized from Bihar jails
Mobile phones, SIM cards, ganja and other banned items were seized during raids conducted at different jails of Bihar, a senior police officer said. The raids were carried out on Sunday in central, divisional and sub-divisional jails in all the districts of the state on the directive of Home Department Principal Secretary Amir Subhani. A total of 32 mobile phones, nine SIM cards, 50.5 gm ganja, 10 knives and Rs 48,690 in cash, besides other banned items, were seized during the operation, IG (Prisons) Mithilesh Mishra said in a release. Among the jails from where these were recovered are divisional jails of Sitamarhi, Munger, Jehanabad, Aurangabad Sasaram and Central Jail, Motihari, the release said. The raids were carried out just before the upcoming festival season in order to check incidents of crime, police said. Disciplinary action will be taken against guilty jail officials for their lapses that led to entry of the items, the release said, adding, FIRs have been ...
US-led International Coalition airlifts ISIS militants in Dier Ezzor
The United States-led International Coalition on Sunday airlifted a number of Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists from Syria's eastern Dier Ezzor province.Sources told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) that an air landing near the town of al-Sha'feh - where ISIS terrorists are positioned in the province - was carried out by the US-led coalition's choppers. The terrorists were transported to a different location.This isn't the first time the US-led military coalition is transporting Daesh (ISIS) militants from war zones. Recently, the international coalition conducted similar drills outside the village of al-Mrashde, from where ISIS terrorists spread in the Dier Ezzor province, to transport ISIS leaders.In April, three Iraqi-origin ISIS commanders, and their families were evacuated from around the village of Tal al-Shayer, 20 kilometres southeast of al-Hasakah province's al-Shadadi.In December 2017, numerous ISIS militants were transported from the Dier Ezzor province to al-Hasakah, which
South Sudan inmates seize control of prison
More than a dozen inmates have disarmed prison guards and seized part of a notorious detention centre in South Sudan's capital Juba, officials said Sunday. A detained officer of the National Security Service (NSS) overpowered a guard at the entrance of the Blue House compound and disarmed him in overnight, the NSS said in a statement. After opening the prison gate by firing shots at the locks, Captain Keribino Wol then "mobilised" 15 detainees and "took over one part of the prison" where he forced several inmates to form a human shield to protect him from NSS officers, according to the statement. The detainees have seized 32 guns and knives, the NSS said, adding that it was seeking "to disarm (Keribino) peacefully for the safety of the other prisoners". The jail is part of the headquarters of the NSS. The prison has repeatedly drawn condemnation from human rights organisation over the alleged illegal detention of prisoners, torture and suspicious deaths. South Sudan, the world's ...
Afghan civilian casualties from suicide attacks soar: UN
The number of Afghans killed or wounded in suicide attacks soared 46 percent in the first nine months of 2018, the United Nations said Sunday, as militants increasingly target civilians. Suicide bombs caused 2,343 civilian casualties, more than any other tactic, including ground fighting, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said in a special report on the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Afghan conflict. Civilian casualties from all types of IEDs, including suicide bombs and pressure-plate mines, rose 21 percent from a year earlier to 3,634. UNAMA warned the increasing number of "deliberate and indiscriminate attacks" against civilians constituted "serious violations of international humanitarian law" that could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. "The unpredictable nature of these types of attacks, often away from the fighting and in civilian populated areas, has caused ordinary Afghans to live in fear of the next explosion, severely curtailing ...
Puri violence: 5 policemen suspended, 18 more arrested
Five policemen were suspended for dereliction of duty and 18 people arrested for unruly behaviour on Sunday following the violence that rocked Puri on October 3 over protests at Jagannath temple, police said. A havildar and four constables were placed under suspension for negligence in discharging duties during the bandh when protesters ransacked the house of Revenue Minister Maheswar Mohanty, said Puri SP Sarthak Sarangi. The police personnel were deployed at Mohanty's residence in Kumutisahi locality in the pilgrim town. This apart, as many as 18 persons were arrested on Sunday in connection with the violent incidents that took place during the 12-hour shut-down called by socio-cultural outfit Sri Jagannath Sena to protest introduction of queue system for devotees at the Jagannath temple, he said. With this, the total number of people arrested in connection with violence during the bandh increased to 41 so far. Earlier, 23 people had been arrested by the police in ...
14 Police, 25 rebels killed in Taliban attack in Afghanistan
At least 14 police, including a high-ranked officer, and 25 insurgents were killed in a large-scale attack launched by Taliban in the eastern Afghan province of Maidan Wardak, an official source told EFE on Sunday.
14 civilians die in DR Congo machete attack: Official
Machete-wielding attackers killed at least 14 civilians in the Democratic Republic of Congo's restive North Kivu province, a local official said Sunday, in a wave of violence plaguing the mineral-rich region. A further nine people were injured in the assault near the village of Rubaya some 60 kilometres (35 miles) north of the province's capital Goma, regional governor Cosmas Kangakolo told AFP. He said a battalion of the Congolese army and police officers had been dispatched to Rubaya. "The attackers arrived in my neighbourhood. I hid but two neighbours were killed by machetes," local resident Pascal said. An armed Hutu militia known as the Mai-Mai Nyatura has been operating in the Masisi territory, where Rubaya is located. The region is a hub for mining coltan, a key component in cell phones and other electronic equipment. For more than 20 years, North and South Kivu provinces have been in the grip of inter-ethnic bloodshed between militia groups, which often extort money from ...
Syria rebels say to remove heavy weapons from buffer zone within days
Turkish-backed rebels said Sunday they expected to finish withdrawing heavy weapons from a planned buffer zone in northwestern Syria within days under a deal to stave off a regime attack. The National Liberation Front (NLF) announced Saturday that it has begun withdrawing heavy arms from the zone as part of an agreement between Syrian regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey. The accord, reached on September 17, aims to stave off a massive regime assault on Idlib province, the last major rebel bastion in Syria, by creating a 15 to 20-kilometre (9-12 mile) buffer zone ringing the area. Under the deal, all rebels in the demilitarised zone, which surrounds Idlib and also parts of the adjacent provinces of Aleppo and Hama, must withdraw heavy arms by Wednesday, and radical groups must leave by October 15. "We began to withdraw our heavy weapons from the demilitarised zone to rear positions," NLF spokesman Naji Mustafa told AFP. "The operation will last several days," he said, adding ...
Fire at Bengal's fireworks factory leaves 13 injured
At least 13 persons were injured on Sunday in a fire at a fireworks factory in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, police said.
Maoists will be crushed in 2-3 years: Rajnath
The long drawn Maoist insurgency in the country will be "completely erased" in two to three years, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh declared here on Sunday.
Palestinian kills two Israelis in West Bank shooting: army
A Palestinian shot dead two Israelis and wounded another at a West Bank settlement's industrial zone on Sunday as security forces hunted the suspected assailant who also worked at the site, the Israeli army said. Since the attack was allegedly carried out by a Palestinian employed at the Barkan industrial zone in the occupied West Bank, questions were raised over whether he knew the victims and over the motivation behind the shooting. Army spokesman Jonathan Conricus called it a "terrorist attack" but added that other unspecified factors were involved. The 23-year-old Palestinian used a homemade gun, known locally as a "Carlo", according to Conricus, in the apparent "lone-wolf attack". Security forces were searching for the suspected perpetrator, Conricus said. Surveillance footage spread online that appeared to show the Palestinian fleeing the site with a gun. Magen David Adom emergency medical services said their medics had entered a building at Barkan where they found a man and ...
Afghanistan: Taliban attacks Sayed Abad district
The Taliban launched a major attack in Sayed Abad district of central Wardak province in Afghanistan late on Saturday. Heavy clashes between local security officials and the terror group are underway.Residents said that the assault began when the Taliban militants stormed the center of the district and claimed to have captured the area, TOLOnews reported.Owing to the clashes, Kabul-Kandahar highway has been closed for traffic and electricity supply has been affected in Sayed Abad district, according to the country's power company Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS). Power has been snapped in Ghazni, Logar and Paktia provinces. The DABS authorities said that power will be restored as soon as the situation stabilises.The attack comes shortly after Afghanistan's Defence Ministry said 57 armed terrorists were killed in airstrike operations conducted by the Afghan security forces in the last 24 hours across different parts of the country.
Manipur tribal insurgent killed by suspected rival group
A tribal insurgent was shot dead by people suspected to be of a rival group, police sources said on Sunday.
Security tightened in Tripura for Durga Puja
Security has been beefed up across Tripura to ensure no untoward incident takes place during Durga Puja, a senior police officer said Sunday. Huge contingents of police personnel and paramilitary forces have been deployed across the state, where more than 2000 Durga Puja pandals have been set up for the five-day-long festival, Assistant Inspector General Smriti Ranjan Das said. "We are in the process of setting up CCTV cameras in different parts of the state, including Agartala. We have kept paramilitary force in readiness to deal with emergency situations," he told reporters. A three-tier security cordon has been laid at all major public spots, including the VIP areas, in Agartala and other parts of West Tripura, Superintendent of police Ajit Pratap Singh said. "There will be policemen in plain clothes on the outer ring, CCTV cameras and mobile surveillance in the middle ring and armed security personnel in the inner ring," the SP said. Asked if digital surveillance ...
6 Afghan policemen killed in Taliban attack
At least six policemen were killed after Taliban militants launched a massive attack in Wardak province, an official said on Sunday.
Taliban destroy highway bridges, cut off 3 Afghan provinces
The Taliban have destroyed highway bridges southwest of Kabul during a wide-ranging assault on security forces, cutting off road traffic between the capital and three provinces, officials said Sunday. Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said Afghan security forces repelled the attack but that gunbattles are still underway. He said at least six Afghan police, including a district police chief, were killed in the fighting. A provincial official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief reporters, said at least 10 police were killed. The official said the Taliban attacked a number of remote checkpoints, and that the toll could be much higher. Abdul Rahman Mangel, the provincial governor's spokesman, said the attack began late Saturday and appeared to be aimed at seizing the Sayed Abad district headquarters, in the Maidan Wardak province. The Taliban said they overran the district headquarters, but local officials denied the claim. Danish said ...