Page 498 - War Conflict
Security forces recover 20 kg IED in J-K's Pulwama
A major tragedy was averted assecurity forces recovered an improvised explosive device (IED) planted by militants in Tral area of Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir today, police said. A 20 kg IED was fitted in a bucket by the roadside at Hundoora in Tral area, a police official said. He said that it was defused by a bomb disposal squad without any harm.
Militants decamp with four rifles in J&K
Militants on Thursday forced entry into the guard post of a former Congress leader in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district and decamped with four rifles, police said.
Syria's Red Crescent, UN deliver French aid
Syrian relief workers and the United Nations began distributing aid provided by France to the battered region of Eastern Ghouta today, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent said. The organisation said on Twitter that "3,840 blankets, 572 kitchen kits and tents from (the) French aid" as well as 30 medical kits were being handed out. Pictures published by the Red Crescent showed a convoy of their trucks and UN vehicles, as well as blankets being distributed. A source from the organisation told AFP a total of seven trucks entered Douma, the main town in Ghouta, and unloaded the aid. Residents of Eastern Ghouta had faced five years of crippling siege during which even the most basic food and medicines were virtually unaffordable, forcing around 400,000 people to rely on UN aid deliveries. The Red Crescent did not specify how many people would benefit from the latest aid delivery. The assistance was part of a humanitarian aid operation coordinated between Moscow and Paris, the first such mission ...
Syria regime raises flag on frontier with Israel-occupied Golan: monitor
Syrian government forces raised the country's two-star flag on the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights today, a monitor said, four years since they were last deployed there. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said regime forces had entered the buffer zone separating Syrian territory from the Israeli-annexed Golan and hoisted the flag there. "Regime forces pulled up the Syrian flag over the Quneitra crossing, the main border point with the occupied Golan, around four years after losing control of the area," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman. He said government fighters and police units entered the destroyed city of Quneitra, which lies in the buffer zone, after hardline fighters quit the area. Al-Watan, a pro-regime newspaper, reported on Thursday that "army troops raised the Syrian flag above the Quneitra crossing, a few dozen metres from enemy Israeli troops." Israel seized 1,200 square kilometers (460 square miles) of the Golan during the Six-Day War of 1967,
Philippine leader says peace law granting Muslim self-rule signed
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte today said he has signed a law which grants expanded autonomy for the mainly Catholic nation's Muslim south, a key step to ending one of Asia's longest and deadliest conflicts. The measure has for years been a crucial missing element to a languishing peace pact with the country's largest Islamic rebel group which, along with other guerrillas, has waged a rebellion in the southern Philippines that has claimed about 150,000 lives since the 1970s. "In every conflict, the victims are the innocents, the children, the women so try to think it over because I already signed the BBL (autonomy law)," Duterte said in a speech. As the country's first president from the southern region of Mindanao, Duterte pressed congress to pass the law - the farthest the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has gone. The law aims to enforce a historic but fragile 2014 peace deal where the MILF vowed to give up its quest for an independent homeland and .
Technology-driven crime new challenge for police: Jaiswal
Mumbai Police Commissioner Subodh Jaiswal today said technology-driven crimes are a new challenge for the police. "We are training our force to respond to this challenge quickly. Mumbai Police are using technology in a much better way compared to ten years ago. We are now well-equipped and have well-trained and knowledgeable police personnel at the cutting edge level. We will fight whatever challenges we face in future," Jaiswal told reporters. Responding to a query on the growing use of the social media for circulation of posts that cause law and order problems, the top cop said police are coping to tackle this. He also praised Mumbai Police's twitter handle during interaction with the reporters. Responding to a query, the senior IPS officer said the Maratha quota protests by and large remained peaceful in Mumbai on the day of bandh yesterday due to measures like effective policing and communication with the people. "Police officials on ground remained engaged with the .
70-year-old priest found dead in Barmer temple
A 70-year-old priest was found dead today on the premises of Ramdev temple in Rajasthan's Barmer district, said a police official. The police suspect the priest was looted and then killed on Wednesday night. The incident came to light today when devotees came to the shrine in Bamini village for morning prayers. Hari Ram was a priest at the Ramdev temple for the last 20 years. "Gold jewellery and other valuable items were missing, indicating that the priest was looted and then murdered," Additional SP Kailash Dan Ratnu said. The post-mortem report is yet to be released. As of now, the police suspect a head injury led to Ram's death. The body has been kept at a mortuary. A case was registered at Sindhri police station, the ASP said.
Nigerian governor in violence-hit state leaves ruling party
The governor of a Nigerian state badly hit by violence between farmers and herders has quit President Muhammadu Buhari's ruling party, after a wave of defections by lawmakers. Samuel Ortom was elected as governor of Benue in 2015 for the All Progressives Congress (APC) party but has been openly critical of the government's response to the deadly clashes in his state. The International Crisis Group said in a report today that more than 1,300 people had been killed in the violence across central states since January. Ortom announced late on Wednesday that he was moving back to the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after "due consultations with relevant stakeholders". "I have resolved that the way forward is to rejoin (the) PDP," he said. Ortom's move comes after dozens of lawmakers in parliament in Abuja on Tuesday dumped the APC for the PDP in a sign of growing discontent at Buhari's leadership as elections approach. Buhari, 75, is seeking a second, four-year term of ...
Terrorist killed in encounter in J-K
An unidentified terrorist was today killed in an encounter with security forces in Handwara area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, police said. Security forces launched a search operation in Check Sodul village in Handwara area following information about the presence of terrorists in the area, a police official said. He said the operation turned into a gun battle when the hiding terrorists opened fire on the security forces. An army official said one terrorist was killed in the encounter. The person's identity was not immediately known, he added.
No proposal for AAI to take controlling stake in Sri Lanka's Mattala airport: Minister
The Civil Aviation Ministry today said there is no proposal under consideration for the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to buy a controlling stake in Sri Lanka's Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport. The ministry's comments come less than a week after the Sri Lankan government said that it has asked the AAI to submit its business plan for operating the Mattala airport. In the Lok Sabha, BJP member Poonam Mahajan asked whether the AAI is considering purchasing a controlling stake in the Mattala airport, thereby gaining ownership of the airport. "No madam. No such proposal is under consideration at present," Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said in a written reply. To the query on whether the AAI would build a flying school and a maintenance, repair and overhaul unit at the Mattala airport, Sinha replied in the negative. On July 19, Sri Lanka's Civil Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva had told the country's Parliament that the AAI has been asked to submit ...
Dubai police recover rare USD 20 million stolen blue diamond
Dubai police say they've recovered a rare USD 20 million blue diamond that was stolen from a city company's vault and smuggled to Sri Lanka inside a pair of sneakers in a shoebox. Police said today a guard with the money transfer company secreted the diamond out of the vault on May 25 and passed it off to a relative who smuggled it out of the country. After more than 100 interviews and the review of thousands of hours of CCTV footage some showing the theft in progress police say they were able to pinpoint the suspect. Police say he was arrested elsewhere in the country but gave no other details. It was not immediately clear how the diamond was recovered from Sri Lanka.
ULFA(I) hideout busted
A hideout of the proscribed ULFA (Independent) was destroyed by the Army in Lakhipathar area in Tinsukia district today and arms and ammunition recovered, defence sources said. Acting on intelligence inputs, the Rajputana Rifles personnel of the Army launched a search operation in Lakhipathar Forest Division yesterday. During the 24-hour long operation in the thick jungles, the troops dismantled the hideout of ULFA(I) "which is highly active in Upper Assam", the sources said. Items recovered from the hideout include four pistols, one revolver, two rounds of 40 mm Multi Shot Grenade Launcher, 11 rounds of 9 mm revolver, 16 rounds of 2.2 mm, one round of AK-47, a radio set, and Rs 1.49 lakh. The operation was launched as a preemptive measure against the militant group's preparation for subversive activities against security forces in wake of the ULFA's Martyr's Day tomorrow, the sources said.
Four CRPF personnel hurt in grenade attack by terrorists in Anantnag: police
Four CRPF personnel were injured in a grenade attack by militants in the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir today, a police official said. Militants hurled a grenade towards security forces at Bijbehara in Anantnag district, resulting in injuries to four personnel, the official said. The area was cordoned off and search operations launched to nab the militants, he added.
N Korea to return US war remains soon: report
North Korea will soon return the remains of some of the US soldiers killed in the Korean War, the South's Yonhap news agency reported today, starting a process agreed by leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump. Repatriating the remains of US soldiers who perished during the 1950-53 Korean War was part of an agreement signed by Kim and Trump during their landmark summit in Singapore last month. The first transfer will be made on Friday to mark the 65th anniversary of the signing of the armistice that ended the war, Yonhap reported, citing diplomatic sources. The remains will be airlifted from the North's Kalma Airport on the eastern coast to Osan Air Base, south of Seoul, beore being transferred to a forensic lab in Hawaii, it said. A US military spokesman declined to comment on the report. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last week the repatriations would begin shortly, but did not confirm media reports that the first transfers of some 50-55 sets of remains would take ..
6 killed in attack on Afghan intelligence convoy
A suicide attack on an Afghan intelligence convoy travelling towards the Afghan capital on Thursday killed at least six people and injured six others, officials said.
NRC: No cause for worry; affected people can file claims, says Rajnath
Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said affected people will get adequate opportunities to register their claims and objections after the release of the draft NRC in Assam next week and there was "no cause for worry". The part draft of the NRC was published on the intervening night of December 31 and January 1, wherein the names of 1.9 crore of the 3.29 crore applicants were incorporated. On July 30, the fate of all 3.29 crore applicants will be decided. "No one should be worried about it (the release of the draft NRC). People will get adequate time to register claims and objections and if someone is not satisfied, they can also approach the foreign tribunal. "I can say that there is no reason for worry," Singh said on the sidelines of an event here. The Home Ministry had yesterday asked the Assam government not to take any action against those whose names do not figure in the list of the state's citizens. It had also rushed over 22,000 central paramilitary troops in order to beef up ..
Encounter underway between terrorists, security forces in J-K
An encounter broke out today between terrorists and security forces in Handwara area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, police said. Security forces launched a search operation in Check Sodul village in Handwara area following information about the presence of terrorists in the area, a police official said. He said the search operation turned into a gun battle when the hiding militants opened fire on the security forces. No casualties had been reported in the exchange of fire between the two sides so far, the official added.
Nearly 250 dead in IS attacks on south Syria: New toll
The death toll in coordinated Islamic State group suicide bombings and shootings in southern Syria rose to nearly 250 overnight, more than half of them civilians, a monitor said today. Yesterday's attacks hit Sweida, a Druze-majority province mostly held by the government which had remained relatively insulated from the country's seven-year civil war. The death toll climbed steadily throughout the day and into the night, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group, said. "The toll is now 246 people dead, including 135 civilians," said Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman. The others killed were pro-government fighters or residents who had taken up arms to defend their villages. "The toll keeps rising as civilians who were wounded are dying and people who were unaccounted for are found dead," Abdel Rahman told AFP. The onslaught began with a triple suicide bombing in the city of Sweida, which was followed by attacks with guns and explosives on villages to ..
Kovind, Modi pay tribute to Kargil heroes
President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday paid homage to the martyrs of Kargil on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas.
Suicide attack on Afghan intelligence convoy kills five: police
A suicide bomber blew himself up near an Afghan intelligence convoy today, killing at least five people and wounding six, police said, in the latest deadly attack in the city. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on the National Directorate of Security (NDS), which police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai said happened at 5:00 am (local time). Most of the victims were NDS officers, Stanikzai said. Four members of the NDS and a civilian were killed, while five NDS personnel and a civilian were wounded. The attacker was "most likely" driving a vehicle carrying explosives, Stanikzai added. The assault comes two days after five rockets were fired on a residential area of Kabul, wounding at least three people. There was no claim of responsibility. And on Sunday, a suicide bomber blew himself up near Kabul international airport, killing at least 23 people, including AFP driver Mohammad Akhtar. A further 107 people were wounded. That attack was claimed by the Islamic State group (IS),