Page 696 - War Conflict
Two militants killed in encounter in Anantnag
Two militants were killed in an encounter with security forces today in south Kashmir's Anantnag district, police said. Acting on specific information about the presence of militants in Shistragam village in Dooru area of Anantnag, security forces launched a search and cordon operation in the area late last night, a police official said. He said while there was some exchange of fire after the cordon was established, the operation was halted for the night. The encounter resumed this morning and two militants were killed, the official said. He said the identity and group affiliation of the slain militants is being ascertained. The official said the encounter is over and arms and ammunition have been recovered from the site.
J-K: Two terrorists killed in encounter at Anantnag district
At least two terrorists were gunned down in an encounter that broke out between security personnel and terrorists in Anantnag's Dooru area.The encounter began late Friday night, which continued for quite some time."The encounter broke out at Shistargam Dooru area of Anantnag district. Army, Anantnag Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) strongly retaliated to the attack. A huge cache of arms and ammunition have also been recovered following the encounter," Jammu and Kashmir police said."The identity of the terrorists are yet to be ascertained. While no collateral damage has been registered," police added.More details are awaited.
Ghouta's Harasta 'emptied' of rebels: Syrian state media
Syrian state television said a bombed-out town in the one-time rebel stronghold of Eastern Ghouta outside Damascus had been "emptied" of opposition fighters today. Syrian state television announced "the end of the evacuation of fighters and their families from Harasta... Harasta has been emptied of terrorists," it said, referring to the rebels. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said after the evacuations that the regime had retaken control of more than 90 per cent of Eastern Ghouta.
Afghanistan: Car bomb near stadium kills 13, says official
A car bombing outside a sports stadium in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province today killed 13 people and wounded 40 others, an official said. Aminullah Abed, the chief of the province's public health department, said the casualties were received at a hospital in the province's capital, Lashkar Gah, with six of the wounded in critical condition and many others burnt beyond recognition. The explosion occurred after Afghan new year celebrations were winding down and revelers were on their way home, he added. Omar Zwak, spokesman for the provincial governor, said 14 people were killed and 45 others wounded. Provincial chief of police Abdul Ghafar Safi said the blast was carried out by a suicide bomber and that the target was civilians. No high ranking officials were present or harmed at the stadium, he added. The office of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani issued a statement condemning the "brutal terrorist attack." No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Both the ...
Khattar unfurls national flag in 1857 martyrs' village
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar unfurled the national flag on the 87th martyrdom day of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru today in Rohnat village in Bhiwani district. Rohnat is known as the village of martyrs. In 1857, several residents had sacrificed their lives in the First War of Independence. The village was punished by the British Raj which stripped the entire population of their land-holdings besides unleashing the tyranny on men who were crushed under road-rollers. Khattar announced that his government will construct a Shaheed Smarak in the village. Apart from this, the government would produce a film based on the history of the village and constitute the Rohnat Freedom Trust with Rs 1 crore to provide free treatment to persons above 60 years of age in the village. The chief minister said that the Ayushman Bharat scheme would be implemented from October 2. He made several other announcements, including construction of a boundary wall on four ponds in the ...
Afghanistan: 14 killed in car bomb blast at Lashkargah
At least 14 people were killed and more than 40 injured in a car bomb blast at Lashkargah city in Afghanistan on Friday."The explosion happened close a local stadium in Lashkargah City" the Tolo News quoted Helmand governor spokesman Omar Zwak as saying.Reportedly a large number of people were returning after witnessing a wrestling match at the stadium when the attack took place.Till now no terror group has claimed the responsibility for the attack.The investigation regarding the incident is underway. As per the officials, the death toll is expected to rise.Further details are awaited.
Gunfight breaks out in Valley
A gunfight broke out late on Friday between security forces and militants in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district, police said.
Turkey partially permits flights to Iraqi Kurd region
Turkey's prime minister said today his country was partially reopening its airspace to flights to Iraq's Kurdish region, after the central government restored authority at airports in the area. Binali Yildirim said the airspace would be open to commercial and civilian flights to and from the city of Irbil but flights to the city of Suleymaniyah would not be permitted. He cited security concerns stemming from alleged Kurdish rebel activity targeting Turkey from the Suleymaniyah region. "There will be no flight to Suleymaniyah whatsoever," Yildirim told reporters in Ankara. Turkey has shut down its airspace to flights to the Kurdish region following a controversial referendum vote in northern Iraq's self-ruled Kurdish region six months ago that overwhelmingly backed independence from Baghdad. The referendum was vehemently rejected by Baghdad, Turkey and Iraq's other neighbors, ratcheting up tensions in the region. The Turkish prime minister also said that his country would press ahead ..
Thousands run for freedom of movement in Palestine marathon
Thousands of Palestinian and international runners on Friday took part in the sixth edition of the Palestine marathon in Bethlehem, aiming to shed light on the movement restrictions imposed in the Palestinian territories.
IS claims deadly attack in southern France: propaganda arm
The Islamic State jihadist group claimed responsibility for a shooting spree and hostage siege today in southern France, its propaganda agency said. "The person who carried out the attack in Trebes in southern France is a soldier of the Islamic State and he carried out the operation in response to a call to target states" of the anti-IS international coalition, the Amaq agency said in a statement on social messenging app Telegram. At least three people were killed in a shooting spree and hostage siege in southern France, after a gunman carried out three separate attacks in the medieval town of Carcassonne and nearby Trebes.
Army jawan cremated with full military honours in HP
The body Havildar Jorawar Singh, who was killed in an encounter with militants in Jammu and Kashimiris Kupwara district, was today cremated with full military honours at his native village here in Himachal Pradesh. Singh was among the five security personnel killed in the March 21 encounter with militants in Kupawra. Himachal Pradesh Urban Development minister Sarveen Choudhary paid tributes to the departed soul. Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Sandeep Kumar said that the Havildar's father Rai Singh is an ex-serviceman. Jorawar Singh is survived by his wife and three children, he said.
Gunman shot dead after killing 2 in French supermarket (Third Lead)
A gunman was shot dead after killing at least two people in a hostage situation at a supermarket in a southern French town on Friday in what officials treated as "an act of terror".
Grenade hurled at CRPF camp in Srinagar
Militants hurled a grenade at a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp here on Friday but it did not explode.
Three dead in France in suspected jihadist shooting spree
At least three people were killed today in a shooting spree and hostage siege in southern France by a man claiming allegiance to the Islamic State group, security sources told AFP. Security forces killed the gunman -- believed to be a Moroccan who was on a watchlist of suspected Islamic extremists -- after he carried out three separate attacks in the medieval town of Carcassonne and nearby Trebes. The man first hijacked a car in Carcassonne, killing a passenger and injuring the driver, before shooting a policeman who was out jogging with his colleagues nearby. He then drove to a Super U supermarket in the sleepy town of Trebes and holed up there for more than three hours with hostages, killing at least two people, according to sources. A witness reported that the assailant was armed with knives, a gun and grenades and shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest) before going into the supermarket. "A man shouted and started firing several times," one shopper at the supermarket told ...
Suspicious vehicle at London shopping centre safe: Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard said today that a suspicious vehicle in the car park of a shopping centre in west London no longer posed a threat and cordons are being lifted. Specialist Metropolitan Police officers had been sent to the scene of Westfield London Shopping Centre in White City area of London to assess the vehicle and the situation was "stood down" a few hours later. "The incident at Westfield London Shopping Centre in White City has been stood down. Cordons are being lifted," a Met Police statement said. The police had been called in to the shopping centre at 10.30 am local time. "Westfield has been working closely with the police and emergency services in the investigation of a suspicious vehicle. The centre's retailers continue to trade as normal and all car parks are expected to be reopened shortly," a Westfield London spokesperson said. The news had caused alarm as it emerged alongside reports of a hostage-taking at a French supermarket. At least two people are feared killed as a ...
2 killed in France supermarket hostage situation
Two people were killed and some others were taken hostage by an armed gunman at a supermarket in a southern French town on Friday, in what officials are treating as an act of terror.
French female IS fighter caught in Afghanistan: officials
A French woman fighting for the Islamic State group in Afghanistan has been detained, Afghan officials said today, amid fears that IS militants fleeing Syria and Iraq are finding their way to the country. The woman was captured during a military operation in the northern province of Jowzjan -- an IS stronghold -- last night, several officials said. AFP recently reported that French and Algerian fighters, some arriving from Syria, had joined the group's Afghan franchise in the restive province. "In a joint operation between NDS and Afghan special forces, five Afghan men and a French woman fighting for IS were arrested in Darzab district of Jowzjan," the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Afghanistan's spy agency, said in a statement. The Defence Ministry confirmed that a "French insurgent woman was among those detained". Six IS fighters were also killed, it said. Afghan officials did not clarify how they identified the woman's nationality. One official described her to AFP as ...
Bangladeshis in UK demand apology from Pak for 1971 genocide
Bangladeshi nationals on Friday staged a protest outside the Pakistan High Commission in London demanding an official apology from Islamabad for committing 1971 genocide.The demonstration was organised by Bangabandu Parishad and the protesters were seen carrying posters with the slogan, "You have blood in your hands, apologise now", written on them.On March 26, 1971, Pakistan army began a military crackdown on the Eastern wing of the nation to suppress Bengali calls for self-determination rights.Bangladeshis maintain that during the nine-month-long Bangladesh war for independence, the Pakistani military and supporting Islamist militias from Jamaat-e-Islami killed and raped millions of people during their independence struggle.Last year, famous poet Ahmad Salim said Pakistan must try the perpetrators of the 1971 genocide carried out in the eastern part of the country as it existed then, understand the gravity of the war-related crimes committed then and apologise to Bangladesh ...
UN troops find 8 bodies after bloodshed in eastern DR Congo
UN peacekeepers have found eight decomposing bodies in a village in the volatile Ituri province of northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the agency told AFP today. A local official said the eight had been killed during a March 12-13 attack on Djugu area in which at least 30 people were killed by assailants using guns, machetes and arrows. "MONUSCU peacekeepers found eight lifeless, decomposing bodies in a village in the Djugu area yesterday," said Guy Karema, a spokesman for the UN mission who is based in Bunia, capital of the Ituri region which has been blighted by ethnic strife. The discovery was made after the peacekeepers were tipped off by a group of people who said they themselves had been in hiding "for more than a week," he said. Local chief Pilo Molindro said the eight were "victims of the latest attacks" in Djugu, which took place after a visit to the area by Interior Minister Henri Mova. "Seven people who escaped (the violence) and who spent nine days hiding in the ...
GSL hands over patrol vessel to Sri Lanka
The state-run Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) has delivered an advanced offshore patrol vessel to the Sri Lankan Navy. The defence ministry here said the vessel will be the largest and the most advanced ship in the Sri Lankan Navy fleet. "This state-ofthe-art and largest ship in the Sri Lanka Naval fleet will help meet the increasing requirement of the Sri Lanka Navy for undertaking policing and patrolling of its vast Exclusive Economic Zone," said Rear Admiral (Rtd) Shekhar Mital, Chairman and Managing Director of GSL. The ship was handed over yesterday at a ceremony at Vaddem in Vasco da Gama.