Page 663 - War Conflict
500 Syrians had chemical attack symptoms: WHO
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday said an estimated 500 people went to health facilities with "signs and symptoms consistent with exposure to toxic chemicals" after the attack on the rebel-held town of Douma in Syria at the weekend.
J-K encounter: Army jawan killed, 4 civilians die in ensuing clashes
Four civilians were killed and 20 injured as protesters clashed with security personnel in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir today while an encounter was on with militants that left one soldier dead and two others wounded, police said. As the news of civilian deaths spread, protests broke out in several areas of north Kashmir including Baramulla, Bandipora and Sopore towns and several security personnel including the station house officer of Baramulla were injured in stone-pelting by protestors, a police official said. Security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in Khudwani area of the district during the night following information about presence of militants there, the official said. Three soldiers were injured in the initial exchange of fire with the militants out of which Sapper Sada Gunakara Rao (24), a resident of Andhra Pradesh, succumbed to injuries at 92 Base hospital of the Army here. A group of people from Khudwani and adjoining areas started pelting ...
40 insurgents killed in Afghan security forces operations
Around 40 armed insurgents were killed during Afghan Security Forces (ANSF) operations conducted in Afghanistan on Tuesday.As per a statement by the Afghan's Ministry of Defense, "During the operations, 35 other insurgents were wounded and nine suspects were arrested", reported the Tolo News.The operations were conducted in Afghan provinces including Nangarhar, Kapisa, Ghazni, Logar, Khost,Uruzgan, Zabul, Farah, Faryab, Kunduz and Helmand the ministry added.Mullah Naeem a Taliban commander in Zabul province was also killed during the operations.In total 16 clearing operations have been conducted in the area.No details were given about possible casualties among the security forces.
Kulgam encounter: Army jawan, 3 civilians killed
An Army jawan and three civilians have succumbed to their injuries that they sustained in an ongoing encounter between terrorists and security forces in Kulgam and Anatanagar districts of south Kashmir.The soldier has been identified as S. Gunakar Roy and the deceased civilians have been identified as Sarjeel Sheikh of Khudwani, Bilal Ah Tantray of Frisal and Faisal Ilahi of Melhoora Shopian.Twelve others, who were injured in the cross-firing, have been admitted to nearby hospitals.The Jammu and Kashmir state police has sought the cooperation of the civilians to maintain peace in the region and not fall prey to any speculations or rumours.On Tuesday night, the Indian Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police launched a cordon and search operation in the Khudwani area, following information about the presence of terrorist there.Six additional coys of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were also moved to the encounter site in Khudwani area of Kulgam.
Four civilians, soldier killed in Kashmir gunfight (Fifth Lead)
Four civilians and a soldier were killed on Wednesday as a gunfight between militants and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district sparked off violent street protests and a call for a two-day shutdown in the Valley.
Defence Minister brushes aside Army's concerns over shortage of funds
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today brushed aside the Army's concerns over severe shortage of funds to procure new equipment and weapons, asserting that there was no reason to worry as adequate financial resources are being made available to the armed forces. The Army had told a Parliamentary Standing Committee that it was reeling under severe fund crunch and struggling to even make emergency procurements when there was a real possibility of a two-front war and both China as well as Pakistan were carrying out modernisation of their defence forces in "full swing". The report of the committee was tabled in Parliament last month. "The parliamentary standing committee has said lot more. I wish you had read the entire report of the committee. The standing committee report has said so many other things as well," Sitharaman said when asked about the report during a press conference at the Defence Expo here. Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Sarath Chand had told the parliamentary panel ..
Army pays tribute to jawan martyred in Kulgam encounter
Army paid tributes to the soldier who was killed in a gunbattle with militants in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir today. "Army paid befitting tributes to Sapper Sada Gunakara Rao, who attained martyrdom during counter terrorist operations in Kulgam district," an army spokesman said in a statement. Rao sustained bullet injuries during the fierce operation at Khudwani early today. He was provided immediate first aid and evacuated to 92 Base Hospital but he succumbed to injuries, the spokesman said. General Officer Commanding of Chinar Corps, Lt Gen A K Bhatt, led all ranks in paying homage to the soldier on behalf of the nation. "In a show of solidarity, representatives from other security agencies also joined in paying their last respects to the martyr," he said. Rao (24) had joined the Army in 2012 and belonged to Atisurikaviti village of Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh. He is survived by his parents. " The mortal remains of the martyr were flown for last rites to his ...
Eight militants killed in Afghanistan
At least eight militants have been killed in Afghanistan's northern Jawzjan province.The terrorists were killed in Darab district of Jawzjan during a clearance operation, reported Khaama Press.Not much detail has been put out with respect to the killed militants apart from the fact that out of the eight militants, one of them included French national apparently fighting in Islamic State (IS) ranks.This comes as the Afghan Intelligence, National Directorate of Security (NDS), noted in late March, that at least five IS suspects including a French woman have been arrested during a Special Forces operation in the North.According to the reports, the French woman was arrested during a joint operation of the Afghan Special Forces and the foreign forces based in Afghanistan.In November, "a number" of Algerian and French nationals have reportedly entered the IS-controlled district of Darzab in northern Jowzjan province.
Yasin Malik detained ahead of protest march
Police detained JKLF chairman Yasin Malik today as he tried to take out a protest march against the killings of civilians in clashes with security forces during an encounter in Kulgam district. Separatist leaders have called for a strike on the issue tomorrow. Mailk was detained as he tried to take out the protest march from the head office of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) in Abi Guzar towards Lal Chowk city centre here, a police official said. He said several other activists of the JKLF and other separatist outfits were also detained by the police. The protest was organised by the separatists under the banner of Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) against the killings of civilians in Kulgam and in support of the demand for hanging of those involved in the rape-and-murder of an eight-year-old nomad girl in Kathua. Addressing a press conference before taking out the march, Malik said the JRL -- comprising Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Malik -- had resolved to
High-ranking Chinese diplomat to visit North Korea
A high-ranking Chinese diplomat plans to travel to Pyongyang later this week amid a flurry of diplomacy following North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's surprise visit to Beijing. The official Xinhua News Agency said today that Song Tao, who heads the ruling Communist Party's International Department, will lead an art troupe to Pyongyang on Friday to attend an arts festival. Kim made an unannounced trip to Beijing last month ahead of potentially breakthrough meetings with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and President Donald Trump. The trip, during which he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, was considered an attempt to repair ties that have deteriorated over Kim's development of ballistic missile and nuclear weapons technology and China's enforcement of United Nations sanctions. China is the North's most important trading partner.
17 killed in troubled district of C African capital
Seventeen people were killed in a flashpoint district of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic, an AFP reporter saw today. Residents of the PK5 district laid out the bodies of 17 men in front of the headquarters of the United Nations mission in Bangui, saying they had been killed in clashes yesterday between local armed groups and UN peacekeepers.
Ganja worth Rs 2 crore seized in TN; four held
A total of 136 kg of ganja, worth Rs two crore in the international market was seized from three cars here today and four persons were arrested in this connection, police said. The cars used to smuggle the ganja were also seized, they said. The narcotic, packed in bundles, was to be taken in a boat to Sri Lanka, police said.
Cyient and Bluebird Aero Systems form JV to manufacture UAV systems
For supply to Indian defence, paramilitary, security, and police forces
J-K encounter: Army jawan killed, 3 civilians die in ensuing clashes
An Army jawan was killed during a gunbattle with militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district and three civilians, including two teenagers, died in clashes between locals and security forces that followed, officials said. Local residents started pelting security personnel with stones, leading to clashes in which around 20 civilians were also injured, they said. Security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in the district's Khudwani area last night, following information about presence of militants there,the officials said. They said a gunbattle broke out between the militants and the security forces in the early hours. Three security force personnel were injured in the initial exchange of firing. Later one of the them, an Army jawan, succumbed to injuries, the officials said. Sarjeel Ahmad (25), Faisal Ilahi (14) and Bilal Ahamad Tantray (16) succumbed to injuries at a hospital, they said.
Three civilians, soldier killed in Kashmir (Third Lead)
An Indian soldier and three civilians were killed on Wednesday as a gunfight between security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir triggered violent street protests.
Palestinians practise parkour on Gaza-Israel border
Palestinian parkour experts have performed a special show on the Israeli-Gaza border, close to a site where mass protests and deadly clashes have occurred since late March. Dozens of Gazans last evening watched four members of a parkour team flip and twist their way around the site of the camp of what Palestinians have dubbed the Great March of Return. Israeli soldiers in military observation towers or behind sand barriers surveyed the scene, with the performance several hundred metres from the border fence in Rafah in southern Gaza. "We came here in the camp of return in Rafah to show our parkour," said 27-year-old Naji Muammar. "This is our message to the world that we will return to our country and practise our sport there." Mohammed abu Jihad, another of the performers, said "we don't have anything to resist with except parkour." Gazans have set up tents in five main areas along the Gaza border for the Great March of Return, which is calling for Palestinian refugees to be able to .
Soldier, two civilians killed in J&K gunfight
An Indian Army soldier and two civilians were killed on Wednesday during a gunfight between the security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir that started late last night.
J-K encounter: Army jawan killed, 2 civilians die in ensuing clashes
An Army jawan was killed during a gunbattle with militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district and two civilians, including a teenager, died in clashes between locals and security forces that followed, officials said. Local residents started pelting security personnel with stones, leading to clashes in which around 20 civilians were also injured, they said. Security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in the district's Khudwani area last night, following information about presence of militants there,the officials said. They said a gunbattle broke out between the militants and the security forces in the early hours. Three security force personnel were injured in the initial exchange of firing. Later one of the them, an Army jawan, succumbed to injuries, the officials said. Sarjeel Ahmad (25) and Bilal Ahamad Tantray (16) succumbed to injuries at a hospital, they said.
New Zealand to probe deadly SAS raid in Afghanistan
New Zealand ordered a top-level inquiry today into allegations its special forces killed six civilians, including a three-year-old child, during a botched 2010 raid on an Afghan village. The New Zealand military vehemently denies the accusations, which were first made in a book "Hit and Run" published last year. The book alleged an elite SAS squad staged the raid as a "revenge attack" after a New Zealand soldier was killed, but faulty intelligence meant it targeted villagers rather than insurgents. It also claimed the military covered up the raid's failure, falsely saying nine insurgents had died when it knew otherwise. The centre-left Labour Party called for an independent inquiry while in opposition and Attorney-General David Parker reviewed the case following last year's election win. Parker today appointed former prime minister Geoffrey Palmer and Supreme Court judge Terence Arnold to head the probe. "Bearing in mind the need for the public to have confidence in the NZDF, I have ..
Myanmar court refuses to drop case against Reuters journalists
A Myanmar court today rejected a motion to drop a case against two Reuters journalists arrested months ago while reporting on the Rohingya crisis, pushing ahead with hearings that have sparked global outrage and fears of shrinking press freedoms. "The court decided that the proposal from the defendants' lawyer to release the defendants...has been rejected," judge Ye Lwin told a courtroom in the commercial capital Yangon packed with supporters, family and media. Reuters reporters Wa Lone, 32 and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27 were arrested in December and accused of violating the country's Official Secrets Act for possessing material relating to security operations in conflict-hit Rakhine state. Myanmar has faced global condemnation and accusations of extrajudicial killings, ethnic cleansing and genocide as some 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled Rakhine to Bangladesh following a military crackdown on insurgents. The government rejects the allegations and says it was defending itself against attacks .