Page 464 - War Conflict
Afghanistan waits for Taliban response to truce offer
Afghanistan was waiting today for a Taliban response to President Ashraf Ghani's suggestion of a three-month ceasefire, an offer welcomed by the United States and NATO after 17 years of war. Ghani unveiled the government's latest gambit during an Independence Day address late Sunday, saying security forces would observe the truce beginning this week -- but only if the Taliban reciprocated. The move followed an extraordinarily violent week in Afghanistan that saw that Taliban storm the provincial capital of Ghazni -- just a two hour drive from Kabul -- and press the fight against security forces across the country, resulting in hundreds of deaths. The president said his office had cleared "all obstacles" to peace with the announcement following consultations with religious scholars, political parties and civil society groups. The proposal was warmly greeted by both NATO and the US, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling on the Taliban to participate. The Taliban did not ...
US ready to facilitate, participate in dialogue between Kabul, Taliban
The US declared it is ready to support, facilitate and participate in direct negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban, on the occasion of the Afghan government's announcement on Sunday of a conditional three-month ceasefire with the Taliban.
Rajasthan: Anti-tank missile, guided bombs, successfully test fired
Indigenously designed and developed guided bombs Smart Anti Airfield Weapon (SAAW) and anti-tank guided missile Helina were successfully tested at separate firing ranges in Rajasthan.The SAAW, which was tested on Sunday at Chandan range was integrated with a live warhead and has destroyed the targets with high precision. The telemetry and tracking systems captured all the mission events. This weapon is capable of destroying a variety of ground targets using precision navigation. A total of three tests with different release conditions were conducted during August 16-18 and all the mission objectives have been achieved.The weapon has undergone eight developmental trials till date and performance of the system for different ranges under multiple launch conditions has been demonstrated. Senior officials from DRDO, HAL and Indian Air Force participated and witnessed the flight tests.While Helina missile was successfully flight tested from Army Helicopter in the ranges of Pokhran ...
Yemeni rebels hand 31 child soldiers to ICRC
Yemen's Houthi rebels on Sunday handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) 31 child soldiers whom the Houthis claimed to have been arrested during the battles, the Houthi-controlled state Saba news agency reported.
Indigenous chopper-mounted anti-tank missile successfully tested
The DRDO on Sunday successfully flight tested the indigenously developed HELINA (Helicopter-Launched Anti-Tank Guided Missile) system at Pokhran in Rajasthan, official sources said.
Security forces arrest 3 militants in Manipur
Security forces arrested three militants from different places in Manipur, police said today. Security forces arrested a cadre of proscribed outfit PLA in Thoubal district today, a release issued by the PRO of Manipur Police said. A cadre of PLA and a militant of the People Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) were arrested in Imphal East district yesterday, the release added.
Afghan president announces 3-month ceasefire with Taliban
Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday announced a conditional three-month ceasefire with the Taliban starting on Monday.
Afghanistan announces conditional ceasefire with Taliban
Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday evening announced a conditional ceasefire with the Taliban for a period of three months to mark the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday.The Afghan President made the announcement while addressing a select group of guests at an Independence Day event, reported the Tolo News.He said that the ceasefire would start on August 20 and would end on November 19, adding, the ceasefire would only be implemented if the Taliban respect it."We announce a ceasefire that would take effect from tomorrow, Monday, the day of Arafa, till the day of the birth of the prophet i.e., Milad-un-Nabi, (November 19) provided that the Taliban reciprocate," Ghani said.Earlier on June 7, Ghani had declared a unilateral ceasefire with the Taliban from June 11 to June 19 to mark Eid al-Fitr.Ever since the Islamist group was ousted from power in a U.S.-led military intervention in 2001, Afghanistan and the Taliban have been at the loggerheads.On August 13, Afghanistan confirmed that .
Afghan president offers Taliban new provisional ceasefire
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani declared a provisional three-month ceasefire with the Taliban in a televised broadcast today, but said the truce would hold only if the insurgents reciprocated. The announcement followed a bloody week of fighting across Afghanistan which saw the Taliban launch a massive assault against the provincial capital Ghazni -- just a two-hour drive from Kabul. Anticipation had been mounting ahead of Ghani's speech following mixed signals from the presidential palace over whether the government would offer a fresh ceasefire, following a brief truce earlier this year. "I once again announce a ceasefire from tomorrow until the prophet's birthday provided that the Taliban reciprocate," said Ghani, referring to the Prophet Mohammed's birthday which Afghanistan celebrates on November 21. The president's announcement was immediately welcomed in neighbouring Pakistan, which has long been accused of fostering links with the Taliban's leadership and providing sanctuary to ..
Guided bombs, anti-tank missile successfully test fired in Rajasthan
Indigenously-developed guided bombs -- Smart Anti-Airfield Weapons -- and anti-tank guided missile Helina were successfully flight tested at separate firing ranges in Rajasthan, the defence ministry said today. It said the Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW) was successfully flight tested from an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft at Chandan range, while the Helina was test fired at Pokhran. The ministry said SAAW was integrated with live warhead and it successfully hit the targets with high precision. "The SAAW is capable of destroying a variety of ground targets using precision navigation. The tests were conducted between August 16 and 18," it said in a statement. The indigenously-developed helicopter-launched Helina missile has been successfully flight tested from an army chopper in Pokhran firing ranges today. "The weapon system has been tested for its full range. The Helina weapon system released smoothly from the launch platform has tracked the target all through its course and hit ..
5 arrested in UP priests' killing
Five people have been arrested in connection with the killing of two sadhus in Uttar Pradesh's Auraiya district last week, police said. The incident had happened inside a temple in Kudarkot area -- around 180 km west of Lucknow -- on the intervening night of last Tuesday and Wednesday. It had triggered violence, with a mob setting some shops ablaze and pelting stones, forcing the police to fire in the air. The situation was brought under control after heavy deployment of security personnel. Five people -- Salman, Nadeem, Shahzad, Majnu and Jabbar -- were arrested late last night, while eight others are still absconding, said a statement issued by the office of the UP director general of police. During interrogation, it was revealed that the men had allegedly killed the priests as the latter had, in the past, passed off information that resulted in the arrest of the accused's family members and relatives for suspected cow slaughter, the statement said. They had also broken the lock of .
Afghan president declares new provisional ceasefire
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani declared a provisional ceasefire with the Taliban in a televised broadcast today following a recent surge in conflict, but said the truce would hold only if the insurgents reciprocated. "I once again announce a ceasefire from tomorrow until the prophet's birthday provided that the Taliban reciprocate," said Ghani, referring to the Prophet Mohammed's birthday which is celebrated on November 21 in Afghanistan.
SC restores honour of Army veteran who led Operation Blue Star
The Supreme Court has restored the honour of an Army veteran who was among the officers who led the Operation Blue Star in 1984 and upheld a decision to exonerate him of charges of alleged misconduct and award him a rank of Lieutenant Colonel post-retirement. The top court upheld the decision of Armed Forces Tribunal setting aside the "punishment of reprimand" awarded to Major (now retd) Kunwar Ambreshwar Singh on charge of retaining certain electronic items recovered during the operation to flush out Sikh extremists from the Golden Temple Complex. A bench of Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bushan dismissed the appeal of the Centre against the AFT order but reduced the cost imposed on the government from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 lakh. "We see no merit in this appeal and the same is, accordingly, dismissed. However, we find that the costs of Rs 10 lakhs imposed upon the appellant is quite excessive. We reduce the said costs to Rs 1 lakh," the bench said. The AFT, Lucknow, in its verdict on ...
Vajpayee helped Sri Lanka in war against LTTE: Wickremesinghe
Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a "true friend" of Sri Lanka and had assisted the country in the civil war against the LTTE, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said here today. Wickremesinghe made these comments after visiting the Indian High Commission here to sign a condolence book for Vajpayee, who passed away on Thursday at the age of 93. "He was one of the great prime ministers. He was a true friend of Sri Lanka, he stood for Sri Lanka at all times," Wickremesinghe said. "When I was the prime minister of Sri Lanka previously, the LTTE was in a very strong position. Our economy was weak. Mr Vajpayee helped us develop the economy and extended military training. We were able to stop the sea Tigers (LTTE's sea wing) because of him," he said. Wickremesinghe said he met Vajpayee for the first time in 1975. When Vajpayee later became India's foreign minister in 1977, Wickremesinghe as Sri Lanka's deputy foreign minister carried on the friendship, he said. "He gave me his
2 JeM overground workers arrested in J-K
The security forces on Sunday arrested two overground workers (OGW) of Jaish-e-Mohammed, in Handwara town of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district.The OGWs, Irshad Ahmad and Feroz Ahmad were arrested in a joint operation, conducted by the Handwara Police and 30 Rashtriya Rifles. The security forces also recovered arms and ammunition from their possession.Earlier today, the security personnel foiled an infiltration bid and gunned down a terrorist in Baramulla district of the state.On Saturday, three terrorists were killed after the security forces successfully foiled an infiltration bid along the Line of Control (LoC) in Tangdhar sector of Kupwara district.
Russian activist on hunger strike hospitalised
Hunger-striking Russian activist Sergei Udaltsov was hospitalised Sunday as he serves a one-month term over organising protests, according to observers and his social media channels. The far-left Kremlin critic was taken to a Moscow hospital suffering from dehydration after doctors were called to his detention centre to take blood tests, five days into a hunger strike, his Facebook page said. "He was hospitalised on doctors orders," an official from Moscow's public monitoring commission told the TASS news agency. "In our presence he was evacuated by paramedics," Ivan Melnikov said. Udaltsov was active in a wave of demonstrations at the end of July against deeply unpopular plans to raise the Russian retirement age. He was arrested and last week sentenced to 30 days behind bars after burning images of members of the Russian government at one of the rallies. Last year Udaltsov finished a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence for organising anti-Kremlin protests. Udaltsov and co-defendant
Aid arrives in Afghan city after Taliban onslaught
Aid trickled into Ghazni today, residents and relief workers said, days after security forces pushed Taliban militants from the eastern Afghan city following nearly a week of heavy fighting. Residents suffered food and water shortages along with rising prices for basic provisions after insurgents overran the city, torching buildings and destroying infrastructure in a battle that killed hundreds of people. "We need this aid to survive," said Gul Badshah, one of many in Ghazni who made their way to distribution centres today, who said his home had been destroyed by two rockets during the onslaught. Siraj Ahmad, another resident, said he was collecting aid for a neighbour whose husband -- a police officer -- and young son were killed by the Taliban during the fighting. "They had no one else left in their family so I decided to come here for them and get any donations to take for them," he said. Rice, oil, beans and tea were handed out after the first humanitarian convoy arrived in the ...
India, Thailand complete two-week-long 'Exercise Maitree'
The Indian Army and the Royal Thai Army today completed a two-week-long platoon level annual joint military exercise aimed at strengthening partnership and cooperation between them, the Army said here. 'Exercise Maitree' commenced on August 6 in Thailand. The exercise last year was held in Himachal Pradesh. This year, the exercise began with a cross-training period involving familiarisation training between the two armies to evolve drills and procedures involved in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorist operations in urban, rural and jungle terrain under the United Nations mandate. The initial days of field training focused on familiarising with each other's modus operandi, basic maneuvers and evolving joint drills. The second phase included practising various drills and tactical scenarios in counter-insurgency environment, execution of tactical and search and destroy operations, house intervention and survival techniques. The exercise culminated with a 72-hour joint exercise on ...
World War II US shipwreck discovered
Scientists discovered the missing 75-foot stern section of a ship that sank during a largely overlooked early campaign of World War II, after being torn off by an explosion while conducting an anti-submarine patrol. Seventy-one US Navy Sailors were lost in the aftermath of the blast. For almost 75 years, the stern of the destroyer USS Abner Read lay somewhere below the dark surface of the Bering Sea off the Aleutian island of Kiska, one of only two US territories to be occupied by foreign forces in the last 200 years. Heroic action by the crew saved the ship, but for the families of the doomed Sailors, the final resting place of loved ones lost in the predawn hours of August 18, 1943 remained unknown. "This is a significant discovery that will shed light on this little-known episode in our history," said retired Navy Rear Admiral Tim Gallaudet, Acting Administrator of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). "It's important to honour these US Navy Sailors who ...
India, Thailand conclude 'Maitree' military exercise
The Indian and Thai armed forces on Sunday concluded a two-week long platoon level military exercise called 'Exercise Maitree 2018' in Jammu & Kashmir's Srinagar. The exercise was an annual event designed to strengthen the partnership between armies of the two countries.The exercise began on August 6 and comprised of cross-training period, which included familiarization between the two armies to evolve drills and procedures that help in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in varied terrains under the United Nations (UN) mandate. The first phase of the training also focused on familiarising both armies with each other's modus operandi, basic maneuvers, and evolving joint drills in the first phase.The second phase consisted of training related to various drills and tactical scenarios in a counter-insurgency environment, execution of tactical operations like search and destroy operation, house intervention, and survival techniques.The exercise concluded with a 72-hour