Page 58 - War Conflict
Guterres appoints Indian Army officer as commander of UN mission in South Sudan
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed a decorated Indian Army officer as the new Force Commander of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. Lieutenant General Shailesh Tinaikar, 57, will succeed Lieutenant General Frank Kamanzi of Rwanda who completes his assignment on May 26. The announcement was made by the UN chief on Friday. The decorated Indian Army officer "has had a long and distinguished career with the Indian Armed Forces spanning over 34 years," a statement by the UN Spokesperson said. Tinaikar graduated from the Indian Military Academy in 1983 and is currently serving as the Commandant of the Infantry School since July 2018. He previously served as the Additional Director General of Military Operations at the Army Headquarters from 2017 to 2018. From 2012 to 2017, he commanded a division, a recruit training centre and a brigade. Tinaikar was awarded the Sena Medal and the Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service. From 1996 to 1997, he served in the ...
Powerful IEDs seized in Chhattisgarh
A major tragedy was averted when security forces recovered five powerful IEDs, planted by Naxals, in Chhattisgarh's Kondagaon district, police said Saturday. The IEDs, weighing 10 kg each and packed in cookers, were unearthed from a dirt track near a well between Uparchandeli and Khalichandeli villages under Keshkal police station when a joint team of security forces was carrying out a de-mining operation on Friday to detect explosives planted by ultras, a senior police official told PTI. Acting on specific inputs, the operation was carried out by District Reserve Guard (DRG), Special Task Force (STF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and local police towards Uparchandeli and Khalichandeli area, located around 250 km away from here, he said. The Improvised Explosive Devices were planted near the well to target security personnel when they look for water resources during patrolling in forests, the official said, adding that the explosives were later destroyed by a ...
Indian to head UN peacekeeping in South Sudan
The commandant of the Indian Army Infantry School, Lieutenant General Shailesh Tinaikar, has been appointed the commander of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), the second biggest peacekeeping operation.
UN lauds gender balance in Indian peacekeeping troops
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has praised India for having the highest proportion of women in its contingents to peacekeeping operations and held up its contributions as an example of contributions to UN values.
Restrictions continue in Kashmir Valley after Musa killing
Restrictions continued on Saturday for the second day in various parts of the Kashmir Valley after security forces killed al-Qaeda-linked Ansar Ghazwat-ul Hind commander, Zakir Musa, in an encounter in Pulwama district.Security forces were on high alert and all educational institutions across the Valley have been closed as a precautionary measure, officials said.Mobile internet services remained suspended for the second consecutive day to prevent inflammatory posts from being uploaded on social media platforms, they said.Musa was killed in an encounter with security forces in Tral in Pulwama district on Thursday. One AK-47 rifle and a rocket launcher were found from the encounter site. The operation was launched following inputs about Musa's presence, police said.Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kashmir Range, SP Pani, had on Friday said that no collateral damage was caused during the operation.
At least 29 inmates killed in clashes at Venezuela jail
At least 29 prisoners were killed and 19 police wounded in clashes at a jail in western Venezuela Friday, authorities said. The incident at the police station jail in the town of Acarigua, in Portuguesa state, occurred when police special forces (FAES) tried to stop a "massive prison break" which resulted in the deaths of 29 inmates, according to Portuguesa public security secretary Oscar Valero. The prisoners received the officers with "a hail of gunfire" while detonating three grenades, which injured 19 police, Valero told reporters. The Una Ventana a la Libertad NGO, which defends prisoner rights, gave a preliminary toll of 25 dead. NGO director Carlos Nieto said the clashes broke out when the FAES attempted to rescue visitors who had been taken hostage Thursday by the "pran" -- the leader of the inmates -- at the jail. "This morning (authorities) sent the FAES and there was a clash. The detainees had weapons, they shot at the police. Apparently they also detonated two grenades," ..
Lanka freezes bank accounts of 41 terror suspects
Bank accounts of 41 terror suspects in Sri Lanka having links with the outlawed Islamist extremist group National Thawheed Jammath (NTJ) that was behind the Easter Sunday bombings in the country have been frozen, according to a media report. Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said that the suspects are under the custody of the Terrorist Investigations Department (TID) and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID). Nine suicide bombers, including a woman, carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and three luxury hotels, killing 258 people and injuring over 500 others. The accounts have a total amount of Rs 134 million (USD 759,335) which was in addition to Rs 14 million (USD 79,333) seized from the possession of the suspects at the time of their arrest, Gunasekara was quoted as saying by the Times Online on Friday. Meanwhile, the CID has also launched an investigation into assets worth Rs 7 billion (USD 30 million) belonging to the suspects, he ...
29 die in disturbance at Venezuelan jail
Twenty nine prisoners were killed and 19 police injured in a disturbance at a pre-trial detention facility in the central state of Portuguesa, media reports said.
Trump confirms considering pardons in US war crimes cases
President Donald Trump confirmed Friday he is considering pardons for several military servicemen accused or convicted of war crimes, in what critics say would be an abuse of the powers afforded him under the US Constitution. The New York Times reported, quoting administration officials, that Trump envisaged making the controversial pardons during the Memorial Day weekend, when Americans honour those who died while serving in the military. Reportedly among those being considered is Edward Gallagher, a Navy SEAL accused of shooting unarmed civilians and stabbing a teenage captive to death, who is due to stand trial starting next week. Trump is also said to be eyeing a pardon for Matt Golsteyn, an ex-member of the elite US Army Green Berets, charged with premeditated murder in the shooting death of an alleged Taliban bomb-maker in 2010. Three Marines, arrested after video footage showed them urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters in 2011, are also reportedly under ...
Trump confirms considering pardons in US war crimes cases
President Donald Trump confirmed Friday he is considering pardons for several military servicemen accused or convicted of war crimes, in what critics say would be an abuse of the powers afforded him under the US Constitution. The New York Times reported, quoting administration officials, that Trump envisaged making the controversial pardons during the Memorial Day weekend, when Americans honour those who died while serving in the military. Reportedly among those being considered is Edward Gallagher, a Navy SEAL accused of shooting unarmed civilians and stabbing a teenage captive to death, who is due to stand trial starting next week. Trump is also said to be eyeing a pardon for Matt Golsteyn, an ex-member of the elite US Army Green Berets, charged with premeditated murder in the shooting death of an alleged Taliban bomb-maker in 2010. Three Marines, arrested after video footage showed them urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters in 2011, are also reportedly under ...
Several hurt in package bomb blast in France
A package blast on a pedestrian street in the heart of France's city of Lyon wounded several people Friday, officials said, just two days ahead of the country's hotly contested European Parliament elections. President Emmanuel Macron called the blast an "attack" during a live Facebook interview, adding that no deaths had been reported "for the time being". The area where the explosion occurred, on a narrow strip of land between the Saone and Rhone rivers in the historic centre of the southeast city, was evacuated and cordoned off by police, according to AFP journalists at the scene. A police source told AFP the package contained "screws or bolts" and had been placed in front of a bakery near a busy corner of two popular streets. A man apparently in his early 30s who was spotted near the scene shortly before the attack was being sought by police, a source close to the inquiry said. Police said eight people were wounded but none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening. Macron, .
3 killed, 28 injured as blast rocks mosque in Pakistan
A powerful explosion ripped through a mosque ahead of Friday prayers in Pakistan, killing at least three persons and injuring 28 others in the restive Balochistan province, police said. The blast, trigerred through an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), targeted the Rehmania Mosque in Pashtunabad area of the provincial capital Quetta, they said. No group has claimed responsibility of the attack. "Three people, including the prayer leader, died in the blast while 28 other worshipers were injured," Balochistan Deputy Inspector General of Police Abdul Razzaq Cheema said, adding the blast occurred just before the Friday prayers started. The injured were shifted to Civil Hospital Quetta. President Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the terrorist attack in Quetta. Alvi expressed deep grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives and prayed for the early recuperation of those injured in the incident. Prime Minister Khan directed the authorities concerned to provide best ..
Two NLFT militants surrender in Tripura
Two militants of the banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT), along with their families, have surrendered in Dhalai district, a BSF official said Friday. The two insurgents, identified as self-styled Lance Corporal Paresh Debbarma (47) and self-styled Sepoy Dipenjoy Tripura fled from their hideout at Mandarichera in Chittagong Hill Tract of Bangladesh and surrendered to the in-charge of Border Outpost (BOP) Ganesh in Dhalai district on Thursday, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of BSF, C L Belwa, said. Among them, Paresh Debbarma surrendered with his wife Pomita Debbarma (22), and son 10-month-old Rahel Debbarma, while Dipenjoy surrendered with his wife Karjabala Tripura (20), and 14-month-old son Jugan Tripura, he said. The insurgents told BSF that many other cadres of the outfit are looking for opportunities of surrender since they are finding it difficult to make ends meet. The official also said that insurgency has reached a dying stage and many ...
Lanka PM appeals to global community to lift travel advisories
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Friday appealed to the international community to lift travel warnings issued after the Easter bombings, assuring that the security situation has improved in the country after the crackdown on Islamist groups and their networks. During a meeting with the diplomatic community, the Prime Minister observed that the lives of the people were returning to normalcy while security arrangements were being implemented to its fullest extent. Representatives of the country's security apparatus had told the foreign envoys that the law would be enforced to its fullest extent on those who stir up incidents of extremism in the country, the Prime Minister's office said in a statement. Earlier this month, President Maithripala Sirisena also appealed to the international community to lift travel warnings. Several countries, including India, US, UK and Australia, advised their citizens against non essential travel to Sri Lanka after the terror attacks on .
Centre extends ban on JMB, its arms for five years
The Centre has extended for five years the ban on terrorist organisation Jamaat-ul-Mijahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and its manifestations for role in various terror activities in India, according to a Home Ministry notification issued here on Thursday.
Operation to kill Zakir Musa handled well, no collateral damage to security forces: SP Pani
The operation, in which one of the most wanted terrorist Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Musa was killed by security forces is now over without any collateral damage to security forces, police said.Inspector General (IG) of Police, SP Pani on Friday said that the operation was handled well."The encounter in which a terrorist was killed is over. He has been identified as Zakir Rashid Bhat alias Zakir Musa. The operation was handled well, there was no collateral damage and the forces have returned now. They have also recovered arms and ammunition from the site of the encounter," Pani told reporters here.He lauded the precautions taken by the armed forces post the encounter and said that restrictions had been imposed in some parts of the valley but the situation was well under control."Post-operation the security arrangements have been managed well, there is no law and order situation reported so far. Restrictions have been imposed in some areas. Police have registered a case and the .
Will Riyaz Naikoo fill void created by Zakir Musa's killing?
Riyaz Naikoo, 33, who carries a reward of Rs 12 lakh on his head, now replaces Zakir Musa as the most wanted militant commander in the Kashmir Valley after Musa was killed by security forces on Thursday.
Five suspects linked to Easter bombing mastermind arrested
Sri Lankan police on Friday arrested five suspects, allegedly having links with local Islamist group National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ) and its leader Zahran Cassim, the mastermind behind the Easter Sunday bombings. The five suspects were arrested in Horowpathana area on the day when the Parliament passed the state of emergency with 22 lawmakers voting for it and eight Tamil National Alliance members voting against it, the Daily Mirror reported. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena Wednesday extended by a month the state of emergency imposed in the wake of the deadly Easter Sunday bombings that killed nearly 260 people. The emergency law gives police and the military extensive powers to arrest, detain and interrogate suspects without court orders. The five arrested on Friday include a development officer attached to the Horowpathana Divisional Secretariat, a teacher of a government school in Horowpathana, two teachers of an Arab school in Kiwulekada and a resident of Kebithigollewa,
Situation in Kashmir remains largely peaceful in Kashmir
Barring some clashes between groups of youths and security forces, the situation in Kashmir remained largely peaceful on Friday as prayers were held for Zakir Musa, the chief of an Al-Qaeda affiliate in the valley, who was killed in an encounter, officials said. There were some protests and clashes after Friday prayers at a few places, the officials said, adding that the security forces exercised restraint. "The situation remained largely normal and under control," they said. The students of Kashmir University offered prayers for the militant commander who was killed in an encounter with security forces in Tral area of South Kashmir's Pulwama district. The officials said the authorities have decided to close all schools and colleges in the valley on Saturday as a precautionary measure. These institutions remained shut on Friday. Divisional Commissioner (Kashmir) Baseer Ahmed Khan said admit cards and roll number slips would be treated as travel passes for candidates who have to appear
4 drug peddlers arrested in J-K
Four suspected drug peddlers were arrested in three separate incidents in Jammu and Kashmir, an officer said on Friday. Acting on a tip-off, the police intercepted Mohd Sharif near Banihal railway station on Thursday and recovered 250 grams of heroin from him, he said. During interrogation, the accused revealed that he bought the heroin from Kashmir's Sangam area and was to sell it to a man in Punjab, police said. In a separate incident, two men-- Parvez and Bilal Ahmed-- were held from Manwal area of Jammu and 740 intoxicant bottles of codeine phosphate (opiate) was recovered from them, the officer said. In the third incident, a police team apprehended Tariq Ahmed at JP Chowk in Jammu city and recovered 50 grams of heroin from him, he said. Three separate cases were registered and investigation is underway, the police officer said.