Page 457 - War Conflict

'Make substantive changes in curriculum from school level'

Bemoaning the trend of fewer candidates from Tamil Nadu getting into civil services and premier institutes like IITs and IIMs,defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman today urged the state to make substantive changes in the curriculum from school level to revive the numbers. Sitharaman, who was taking part in the 150th anniversary celebrations of Lady Sivaswami Girls Higher Secondary School here, also urged the girls to get into the armed forces. "There used to be at least three out of 10 candidates in IAS and foreign services from Tamil Nadu... Today all those numbers have reduced. I still don't understand why... Our presence in governance, research and development and in institutions like IITs, IIMs and IISs has seen a reduction," she added. She suggested to education minister K A Sengottaiyan,who was also present, that the curriculum be made more dynamic and challeinging. "If substantive changes are brought into the curriculum, we will be able to revive the numbers and make

Asean lawmakers seek ICC trial of crimes against Rohingyas

A group of parliamentarians from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Friday urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to try those responsible for alleged crimes against the ethnic Rohingya community in Myanmar.

142 militants killed in anti-terror ops in 2018: DG CRPF

As many as 142 militants have been eliminated in anti-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir this year, the Director General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), R R Bhatnagar, said today. There are approximately 200-250 militant still operating in Kashmir Valley, he told reporters here. The DG asserted that the law and order situation is "better" in Kashmir compared to 2016-17 and the number of injured personnel has decreased. As part of efforts to discourage youths from joining militants, he said a helpline called Madadgar was started by the force which received 2.5 lakh calls during last one year . He sad the militants were targeting unarmed security personnel and their families as they were frustrated. "Our force is better protected and there is a better security situation on the law and order front (in Kashmir). In days to come, forces will perform even better." Bhatnagar said, "In this year alone till now, 142 terrorists have been neutralized and last year also there were ...

Repco Home Finance sets up satellite centre at Sri City

: City-based Repco Home Finance has inaugurated a satellite centre at neighbouring Sri City Special Economic Zone under its expansion drive. Repco Home Finance Ltd, Chairman and former Chief Election Commissioner T S Krishna Murthy unveiled a plaque at Sri City, about 100 km from here, recently. "I would like to thank (Sri City Founder) Ravindra Sannareddy for responding positively to our proposal of setting up a satellite centre. We hope employees of Sri City units and public will make use of our services", Murthy said in a statement today. Sannareddy said the entry of Repco Home Finance Ltd has come at a time when Sri City was focusing on developing social infrastructure. "Their presence in Sri City will certainly be an added advantage to people who aspire to own a house", he said. Repco Home Finance has 141 branches and 23 satellite centres across the country. The company clocked a profit for the quarter ending June 30, 2018 to Rs 60.9 crore.

Ebola spreads to DR Congo city surrounded by rebels: WHO

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has spread to a city surrounded by rebels, creating challenges responders were "dreading," the World Health Organization said today. One probable case and one suspected case have emerged in the city of Oicha in DRC's North Kivu province, WHO's emergency response chief, Peter Salama, told reporters. While Oicha itself is not under rebel control, Salama said the city is entirely surrounded by territory held by a feared Ugandan insurgent group known as the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). "For the first time we have a confirmed case...in an area with high insecurity," Salama said. "It really was the problem we were anticipating and the problem at the same time we were dreading." Large numbers of civilians have been killed by unrest around Oicha, while aid workers, priests and government employers are currently being held hostage there by insurgents, according to Salama. The outbreak, the 10th to hit DRC since 1976, began on August 1 ..

Militants thrash temple guards in J-K

A group of militants on Friday forced their way into a temple's guard post in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam district and beat up the guards there.

NIA recovers 14 stolen service hand guns in Manipur

Sleuths of National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday night recovered nine 9mm pistols from the residence of P. Haokip, the 'commander-in-chief' of the United Kuki Liberation Front, a signatory to the peace pact with the Centre.

China aims to build houses, roads in Sri Lanka north to extend sway

COLOMBO (Reuters) - China wants to build houses and roads in Sri Lanka's north, much of which is in a state of disrepair nearly a decade after the end of civil war, Chinese and Sri Lankan officials said, in a bid to expand it influence beyond the island's south.

Pakistani militant killed in encounter

A Pakistani militant belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit was killed in an encounter with security forces in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir today, police said. A police spokesman said a search operation was launched by security forces in Vailoo area of Kokernag in the south Kashmir district in the early today. During the search operation, the search party came in contact with the militants leading to an encounter and in the ensuing encounter, one militant was killed, he said. He said huge quantity of ammunition and incriminating material was seized from the site of the encounter. "From the incriminating material seized, it is learnt that the killed terrorist is a Pakistani affiliated with proscribed terror outfit JeM and was involved in several attacks on security forces and civilians in the area, the spokesman said. The identity of the slain ultra is being ascertained. He said police have registered a case under relevant sections of law and investigation has been ...

IS remains matter of significant concern: UN official

The Islamic State (IS) remains a cause of a serious and significant concern despite the great losses the terrorist group has suffered, Vladimir Voronkov, undersecretary-general for UN Counter-Terrorism Office, has said.

Militants kill forest guard in J&K

Militants have killed a forest guard in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district, police said on Friday.

Pak backstabbed US in Afghanistan: veteran army colonel

Pakistan has been playing a dubious role in Afghanistan while dealing with the Taliban and other terror outfits, alleged a veteran United States army colonel, Lawrence Sellin.Sellin, who has served in Afghanistan, northern Iraq and a humanitarian mission of West Africa, wrote in The Daily Caller that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) provided arms and ammunition to Taliban fighters in October 2001, just after U.S. bombing of Afghanistan began.The then Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf held a meeting with ISI director Lt. Gen. Mahmod Ahmed and other top brass of the army, who argued that Pakistan should not help the United States at all in its war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda."Pakistan's duplicity has continued for seventeen years. While accepting billions of dollars in military and economic aid, Pakistan has been slowly bleeding the U.S. to death in Afghanistan through its support of the Taliban, Haqqani Network and other terrorist groups", said colonel ...

Yemen rebels: Coalition strikes kill dozens, UAE denies it

Saudi-led coalition air strikes have killed nearly 30 people in Yemen, including four women and 22 children, Shiite rebel media reported. But the state media of United Arab Emirates, a key coalition member, disputed the claim and said the rebels launched the attack, killing one child and injuring dozens. Mohammed Abdul-Salam, spokesman for the Houthi rebels, said on Twitter the coalition attack took place in the ad-Durayhimi district yesterday, 20 kilometres from the port city Hodeida in the country's west. Other Houthi officials provided lower initial figures saying at least nine were killed. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media. The UAE's official news agency WAM, however, reported that the Houthis launched a ballistic missile in the area killing one child and injuring dozens. Neither side's claims could be independently verified. Earlier this month, a Saudi-led coalition air strike in the country's north killed dozens of people. ..

Policeman wounded in Moscow attack, attacker dead

A man from Russia's volatile North Caucasus region shot and wounded a police officer in Moscow and was fatally wounded by retaliatory fire, officials said. Russia's Investigative Committee, the nation's top state investigative agency, said the assailant fired at two policemen near the main Foreign Ministry building in downtown Moscow yesterday. Police shot back and wounded the attacker. Police identified the attacker as Renat Kunashev, 30-year-old resident of the Russian province of Kabardino-Balkariya in the North Caucasus, the Interfax news agency reported. It said the weapon he used to attack police fired non-lethal ammunition, but did not give further information. Tass and Interfax later quoted police as saying that the attacker died of a head wound. The assailant's motives weren't immediately clear, but police said they don't believe that he had any links to Islamist militants active in some of North Caucasus provinces. Militants, some of whom have sworn allegiance to the Islamic

Group reports new video from al-Qaida leader al-Zawahri

The SITE Intelligence Group says the leader of al-Qaida is urging unity among Muslims in a new 5-minute video speech. Ayman al-Zawahri calls on Muslims everywhere including fighters and preachers to unite in Islamic jihad, or holy war, in the video released today, according to SITE. The group tracks online activity of jihadist organizations. In April last year, al-Zawahri released an audio recording urging followers and other militants in Syria to unite ranks against the government and other enemies. The release of the video Thursday comes a day after the Islamic State group released a new audio message purportedly of its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the first such recording to emerge in almost a year. Al-Qaida has vowed to fight on in Idlib province, Syria's last major rebel stronghold, in the face of a possible regime offensive there.

J-K: Terrorists kill forest dept official

Terrorists on Thursday shot dead a forest department official after barging into his residence in Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir.The official, identified as 38-year-old Tariq Ahmad Malik, later succumbed to his injuries, a statement from the police confirmed.The police have registered a case in this regard under relevant sections of law. The initial investigation into the matter establishes the involvement of Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Yousuf Dar alias Kantroo, who is a resident of Kawoosa in Budgam district.On Wednesday, Police Inspector Mohammad Ashraf Dar was shot dead by terrorists in Pulwama's Larve village. Ashraf succumbed to critical bullet injuries in the attack, an official release noted.Police said that as per initial investigation, the complicity of terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen was established."We condemn these acts of cowardice by terrorists involving attacks on police officials," the police said.

Forest dept official shot dead in J-K's Baramulla

Suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba militants shot dead a Forest Department official tonight in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla, police said. "Terrorists this evening barged inside Tariq Ahmad Malik's house in Zandpal area in Tangmarg and fired upon him," a police spokesman said. Malik sustained critical injuries and later succumbed, he said. Police have registered a case and initial investigation establishes the involvement of LeT militant Yousuf Dar alias Kantroo, the spokesman said.

Stones hurled on kanwariyas, 15 injured

Stones were hurled and a vehicle set on fire today in a clash between kanwariyas and local people in Rajasthan's Tonk district, injuring 15 pilgrims, police said. The kanwariyas were passing through a Muslim-dominated area in Malpura when some miscreants hurled stones on them, Additional Superintendent of Police Goverdhan Sekaria said. Fifteen pilgrims were injured, he said. An SUV was then torched, Station House Officer at Malpura Navnit said. He said section 144 of CrPC, which prohibits gathering of crowds, was imposed in the area. He said the situation in the town is tense but under control. Additional police force has been deployed in the area to maintain law and order, he added.

Aamir to join Maharashtra's 'Mission Shakti' for 2024 Paris Olympiad

Bollywood mega-star Aamir Khan will be part of Maharashtra Government's Mission Shakti' initiative to groom sportspersons with medal-winning potential for the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympiad, a top official said here on Thursday.

Attack on police party: 10 accused sent to jail

Altogether 35 persons were taken into custody in connection with brickbatting on cops, who had gone to prevent illegal cow slaughter on Eid ul-Adha yesterday in Jharkhand's Pakur district, police said. But after interrogation, 25 of them were released on personal bonds and the rest 10 are being forwarded to jail, Pakur Superintendent of Police Shailendra Prasad Burnwal said here today. The SP said the situation was under control and adequate force have been deployed to maintain law and order. Altogether five FIRs including three from the district administration have been registered against 10 named persons and 200 unknown following the incident, police sources said. Apart from Burnwal, the senior officials of the district including DIG (Santal Paragana) Raj Kumar Lakra, Deputy Commissioner D K Jha were camping in the village to keep a close watch over the situation. Earlier, the district police and RAF personnel led by Burnwal have launched a massive search operation to nab the