Page 686 - War Conflict
Bhagalpur clash: Union Minister's son seeks quashing of FIR
Union Minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey's son Arijit Shashwat on Thursday moved the Patna High Court, seeking quashing of the FIR filed against him in connection with communal clashes in Bihar's Bhagalpur district.A case against Shashwat was registered on March 19. He filed an anticipatory bail petition two days after a Bhagalpur court issued a warrant of arrest against him in connection with the communal clashes in Nathnagar on March 17.On March 17, violence broke out during a procession led by Shashwat in Nathnagar that the Bharatiya Navvarsh Jagran Samiti organised to mark the Hindu New Year.Choubey and other local BJP leaders later claimed that the district administration had allowed the rally and had also denied that provocative slogans were shouted.Choubey was elected from the Buxar Lok Sabha seat in 2014. His son Shashwat had contested the 2015 Bihar Assembly elections from Bhagalpur.
Asansol violence: Babul Supriyo booked for assaulting officer
An FIR has been filed against Union Minister Babul Supriyo for allegedly violating Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and assaulting an IPS officer after he was prevented from visiting the violence-hit areas in Asansol, where the situation continued to remain tense over a Ram Navami procession.The minister, who was booked in North Asansol police station, was heading to the city to take stock of the situation when he was barred from entering the area by the security forces.Earlier in the day, Supriyo said that the state administration, including the police and the district magistrate, was acting like the Trinamool Congress cadres and was doing nothing to take stock of the current situation.Supriyo, who also met state Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi during his visit, said that he has informed the Centre that several attempts by the Governor to convince the state to allow paramilitary force in Asansol have failed.The Ram Navami celebrations on March 25 had turned sour after .
Landmines to be cleared from Jesus's baptism site
Thousands of landmines at the site where many believe Jesus was baptised are to be removed during the next year, allowing eight churches to reclaim land sealed off since the 1970s. The project, carried out by the international de-mining charity the Halo Trust along with the Israeli defence ministry, would cost around USD 3 million and reopen thousands of square metres of territory, officials said. The site is only a few hundred metres from where, according to biblical tradition, Jesus was baptised by his cousin John and where thousands of pilgrims come every year to submerge themselves in the water. The majority of the mines were laid by Israeli forces after the Jewish state seized control of the West Bank in 1967 from Jordanian troops. Other unexploded ordinance from both Israel and Jordan remains lodged in the ground, including around the churches -- which were evacuated by Israel in the 1970s. "We are looking to clear one million square metres and we estimate that in the ground we .
Girls school in Haryana renamed after Army officer killed in J-K
A school in Haryana's Rewari was today renamed after an Army officer who was killed while fighting militants in Jammu and Kashmir. Haryana state education department took the initiative of renaming the government senior secondary girls school, Kosli, in Rewari district as 'Shaheed Major Vikas Yadav Senior Secondary School'. The renaming was to pay respect to Major Vikas Yadav of 7 Jat who had laid down his life fighting militants in Jammu and Kashmir, an Army spokesperson said.. The renaming coincides with his birth anniversary. The event also saw unveiling of statue of the valiant officer by Lt Gen SK Saini, Colonel of the Jat Regiment. To mark the occasion, a large number of veterans including course mates of the brave officer were also present at the occasion.
Haley, Sajjan at UNSC's peacekeeping meeting represent diaspora's political rise
At a high-level UN Security Council meeting on peacekeeping operations, the world's superpower - the US -- and Canada were represented by their top cabinet-level officials, both of whom are of Indian-descent and belonging to the Sikh faith, signalling the rise of Indian-origin persons in geo-political leadership positions across the world. US Permanent Representative to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Canada's Minister for National Defence Harjit Singh Sajjan came together to address the Security Council yesterday in an open debate on improving the Organisation's flagship enterprise - UN peacekeeping. Haley, born as Nimrata Randhawa in South Carolina, is the daughter of Indian immigrants from Punjab. Her parents Ajit Singh Randhawa and Raj Kaur Randhawa emigrated from Amritsar in Punjab, India. Haley had served as the Governor of South Carolina. She became the first Indian-American to serve in a presidential administration at a Cabinet level position when she was confirmed to be ...
Mega security plans for Prince Harry, Markle wedding in UK
UK Police are urging the public not to be "alarmed" by the massive scale of security arrangements ahead of the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, described as one of the largest security operations in British history. Prince Harry and Markle would wed at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle on May 19, followed by a carriage procession through Windsor town and a reception in St George's Hall, it was announced last year. Thames Valley Police called on the public not to be "alarmed" by the massive scale of the security arrangements in the lead up to the big day on May 19 in Windsor Castle. "The wedding is expected to attract thousands of people from around the world to Windsor and planning is well under way. Visitors to the town can expect to see our officers, both armed and unarmed, our search dogs and our mounted section out and about in the coming weeks and months," Thames Valley Police said in a statement. "A broad range of visible security measures are already in place, such ..
Pak hands over terrorist activities dossier to Afghanistan
Pakistan on Thursday handed over a dossier to Afghanistan, containing of evidence of terrorist activities being carried out from Afghan soil.The Pakistan Foreign Office, in a statement, said that the report carried evidence of the involvement of Afghan Taliban in a Swat suicide attack on the military forces last month, The Express Tribune reported."The dossier also contains details on the presence of terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan. These include hideouts of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jamaat-ul Ahrar and other militant groups," the statement said."Afghanistan had been asked to take action on militant sanctuaries that had become a hotbed of anti-Pakistan activities. These included financing, planning and mounting cross-border attacks on Pakistani military installations, cities and towns," it added.On Wednesday, Pakistan Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, who led the delegation at the Tashkent Conference on Afghanistan in Uzbekistan, pressed for 'collective pressure' on the .
Strike cripples normal life in Manipur
A 48-hour general strike called by a tribal students organisation in Manipur's Tengnoupal district crippled normal life on Thursday in the border areas and hit NH-2, the state's lifeline.
50 held in Bihar in police crackdown in communal violence-hit areas
Nearly 50 people, including two local BJP workers, were today held in Samastipur and Nalanda districts of Bihar in connection with communal clashes that erupted there in the last couple of days. Eleven persons have been taken into custody in Samastipur district where trouble had erupted on Tuesday when some miscreants hurled footwear at a procession carrying the idol of Goddess Durga for immersion upon the conclusion of Chaiti Navaratra festivities in Rohtas town, Superintendent of Police Deepak Ranjan said. Two local BJP leaders were also among those detained for interrogation, the SP said while declining to divulge their names. During the violence, heavy stone-pelting was witnessed from two sides close to a mosque and three motorcycles were also set afire. Additional Superintendent of Police, Dalsinghsarai, Santosh Kumar, and Inspector in-charge of Samastipur town Chaturvedi Sudhir Kumar sustained injuries while trying to disperse the rioters, Ranjan said. The situation was ...
India voices serious concern over growing IED attacks on UN peacekeepers
India voiced serious concern over the growing IED attacks against UN peacekeepers, calling for concerted efforts to upgrade the security infrastructure and resources to help missions counter such threats. In the last four years, of the 176 fatal casualties due to acts of violence against UN peacekeeping missions, 43 were due to Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) attacks, India's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Tanmaya Lal said during an open debate in the Security Council on the collective action to improve UN peacekeeping operations. Voicing "very serious concern" over the increasing loss of lives of UN peacekeepers due to attacks on the peacekeeping missions, Lal yesterday said that missions facing IED threats should have dedicated resources for countering such threats. He stressed the need for concerted efforts to upgrade the security infrastructure of the camps as well as providing capabilities to ensure timely and reliable medical evacuation and casualty evacuation. The
Pak hands over dossier to Afghanistan
Pakistan today handed over a dossier to Afghanistan containing evidence of Afghan-based militant groups' involvement in attacks on its soil. Foreign Office said in a statement that Pakistan handed over the dossier to the embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad. "The dossier contains evidence of the involvement of Afghanistan based TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan) in the suicide bombing at a Pakistan Army unit in Swat and the presence of TTP, JuA (Jamaatul Ahrar) and other terrorist groups' hideouts in Afghan territory," the Foreign Office said. Pakistan also asked Afghanistan to take effective action against terrorist hideouts from where "they have been financing, planning and undertaking cross border terrorist attacks on Pakistani military posts, cities and towns." At least 11 security personnel were killed when a suicide bomber targeted them in Kabal area of Swat in early February. Army said that the bomber came from Afghanistan.
Naxal IED,landmine attacks condemned
The use of IEDs and landmines is being condemned globally, but Naxals in India are using these devices frequently against security forces.On March 13, a powerful landmine blast in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district killed nine Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel.In another attack on March 24, five District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel were injured in an IED explosion carried out by Naxals.Experts have condemned the use of IEDs and Landmine blasts in the state.Journalist Rajendra Vajpayee said, "This is a repetition of the recent ambush by the Maoists in Burkapal and Kistaram, but it is because of the intelligence of the army and the alert received that the attack did not get much hype. Had their been huge casualties, the situation would have been different. Naxalites are making constant efforts to slay jawans just as they did in the Burkapal attack. They have not been very successful."The Naxals are continuously killing innocent people.Social activist Sampat Jha said, "The ...
Red Cross says staffer dies after car bombing in Somalia
The International Committee of the Red Cross says one of its staff members is dead after a car bombing in Somalia's capital. A statement says Abdulhafid Yusuf Ibrahim, a Somali national, died Wednesday night of his injuries after the attack in Mogadishu. Somali police said two others were wounded after the bomb attached to their vehicle exploded near the ICRC office. The Somalia-based extremist group al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaida, claimed responsibility. The group often targets high-profile areas of the capital. The ICRC said it was "shocked and deeply troubled" by the attack and that another staffer was recovering with minor injuries.
Driver tries to ram soldiers as France mourns terror victims
A man driving a car with fake licence plates tried to ram a group of soldiers out jogging in southeast France today, security sources told AFP, sparking fears of a new attempted attack as the country mourns the victims of an Islamist shooting spree last week. Speaking French and Arabic, the man first threatened a group of soldiers at around 8 am in Varces-Allieres-et-Risset, near Grenoble, and then tried to run down another group returning to their barracks from a jog, the sources added. "The soldiers managed to get up onto the pavement without being hit," army spokesman Colonel Benoit Brulon told AFP. The driver of the small Peugeot 208 hatchback, who was accompanied by a woman, sped off before being arrested around lunchtime in Grenoble, police and military sources said. Prosecutors in Grenoble, a town in the foothills of the French Alps, said the incident was not being treated as a terrorist attack for the moment and the motive remained unclear. The incident comes with France on ...
Two Indian-origin officials from Americas at UNSC ministerial signal diaspora's influence
In a sign of the Indian diaspora's growing influence, two cabinet-level officials of Indian-descent represented the biggest superpower, the US, and its neighbour, Canada, at the UN Security Council's ministerial-level meeting on peacekeeping on Wednesday.
Maoists set fire to equipment of construction company
Armed Maoists set ablaze several equipment and vehicles kept in the site of a construction company and assaulted its manager in Kandhamal district, police said today. A group of red rebels, including women, stormed the site at Malimaha village under Balliguda police station area late last night, Kandhamal SP Prateek Kumar Singh said. During the hour-long strike, the Maoists torched three tractors, a mixture machine, an earth-mover and some other equipment of the construction company, he said. They also assaulted the manager of the company whose condition was stated to be serious and threatened the labourers who were sleeping at the site. The attack came two days after the police destroyed a Maoist camp inside the Kakulajhar reserve forest in Khajuripada area. It is suspected that the armed rebels belong to Kalahandi-Kandhamal-Boudh-Nayagarh group of Maoists, the SP said.
Lanka negotiating FTAs with India, China: Wickremesinghe
Sri Lanka is negotiating free trade agreements with two Asian economic powerhouses, India and China, with an aim to become a financial hub of the continent, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has said. Addressing a function at the opening of the Bank of China branch here, he said that several projects, funded by China, were underway in the country while agreements on several others have been reached. China is investing in various infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka which has signed the Beijing's ambitious "One Belt, One Road" (OBOR) initiatives. Sri Lanka, in December last year, formally handed over the strategic southern port of Hambantota to China on a 99-year lease, in a deal dubbed by the opposition and trade unions as "a sell-out" after . Under the lease agreement, two Chinese firms Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) and Hambantota International Port Services (HIPS) managed by the China Merchants Port Holdings Company (CMPort) and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority will ...
Gunmen kill 15 herders in northern Nigeria
Gunmen believed to be cattle thieves killed 15 herders in the latest bout of violence in northern Nigeria's herding communities, police and a local official said today. "Armed bandits attacked Bawon-Daji village yesterday and killed 15 people," the police spokesman for Zamfara state, Muhammad Shehu, told AFP. His account was corroborated by a senior local government official, Gado Anka. Anka told AFP motorcycle-riding gunmen stormed the remote village in Anka district around 1:00 pm, shooting dead 12 residents before fleeing to a hideout in the bush. "They returned two hours later and attacked mourners during the funeral of the victims in the cemetery, killing three more and injuring several others," he said. Rural communuties in the agrarian state are under siege from gangs who kill, loot and torching homes. This has prompted villages to form vigilante groups -- which in turn are often accused of extra-judicial killings of suspected cattle thieves, prompting deadly reprisals by the ..
Belgian court to give verdict on Paris suspect Abdeslam on April 23
A Belgian court said today it will give its verdict on April 23 in the trial of Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam over a shootout in Brussels that led to his capture. The court made the announcement after hearing an application from terror victims to be named as civil parties in the case against Abdeslam over the March 2016 gun battle. "The verdict will be handed down on April 23," presiding judge Marie-France Keutgen told the court. Islamist gunman Radouane Lakdim, who shot dead four people last week in southern France, including a heroic policeman killed after taking the place of a hostage, said during the siege he was acting on behalf of the Islamic State group and demanded the release of Abdeslam. Prosecutors have recommended a maximum of 20 years in prison for Abdeslam, 28, and Soufiane Ayari, his 24-year-old co-defendant in the gun battle nearly two years ago that led to their capture in the Belgian capital. Seven days later, suicide bombers from a cell linked to the Paris ...
Car tries to plough into French soldiers
A man on Thursday attempted to plough his car into a group of soldiers who were out jogging near their barracks in southeast France.