Page 729 - War Conflict
49 dead in new flare-up of ethnic unrest in DR Congo
At least 49 people were killed in a fresh outbreak of ethnic violence overnight in the Democratic Republic of Congo's troubled Ituri province, a senior charity official said today. The latests killings were part of a cycle of unrest between the Hema and Lendu communities in the northeastern province, the government told AFP. "We have counted 49 bodies and are still searching for other bodies," said Alfred Ndrabu Buju from international Catholic charity Caritas. "A child was admitted this morning in Drodro general hospital, with an arrow in his head," Buju added. The Interior Minister Henri Mova earlier put the death toll at 33. "The provincial governor is on his way to the site of the killings," Mova said. The violence happened in the village of Maze, some 80 kilometres north of Bunia, Ituri's provincial capital. Witnesses told AFP the attackers were members of the Lendu community. "The attackers went into the village and committed a real massacre," local activist Banza Charite ...
Indian-origin terror suspect found not-guilty in UK
An Indian-origin terror suspect, who allegedly agreed to help another man acquire a gun for an attack in London, was found not guilty of the charge at the end of a trial today. Nadeem Ilyas Patel, 26, from east London was charged with the possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence in May last year. He was remanded in custody along with Umar Ahmed Haque, 25, Muhammed Abid, 27, and Abuthater Mamun, 19, who were all on trial at the Old Bailey court in London. The jury found Patel not guilty of conspiring with Haque to get hold of a gun for a terror plot. He had admitted before the trial to the illegal possession of a blank-firing gun. The other three were convicted of terror charges, with Haque dragged from the dock at the end of the trial shouting support for the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group. The jury was told that Haque had taken limited steps towards fulfilling a plan to attack a target in London and sought to radicalise children in a small mosque in the ...
Dozens dead or injured in attacks on Burkina military HQ, French embassy
Armed men attacked the French embassy in Burkina Faso and the country's military headquarters today before being repelled in a battle that left dozens of dead or injured. Local security sources put a still-incomplete death toll at about 15 while other sources reached by AFP from Paris sketched an even bloodier outcome, with at least 28 people killed in the second assault alone. The coordinated operation underscored the fragility of the Sahel nation, one of a string of African states struggling with a bloody jihadist insurgency. Heavy gunfire broke out mid-morning in the centre of the Burkinabe capital Ouagadougou. Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passersby before heading towards the French embassy. The car was later seen ablaze. At the same time, an explosion occurred near the headquarters of the Burkinabe armed forces and the French cultural centre, which are located about a kilometre (half a mile) from the site of the first attack, other witnesses ...
US determines North Korea used chemical weapons
The United States has determined that North Korea used chemical weapons, an apparent reference to the killing of leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother last year. The State Department did not provide justification for the finding publicised today. But it comes nearly one year after Kim Jong Nam died at an international airport in Malaysia in an attack authorities said used VX nerve agent. The determination, made by the department's international security and nonproliferation bureau, carries restrictions on U.S. foreign aid and financial and military assistance that North Korea's heavily sanctioned government is already subject to. It was posted on the website of the Federal Register and takes effect Monday. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has previously referred to Pyongyang's use of chemical weapons. He told reporters in January, "we know they've been used by the North Koreans." According to the Pentagon, North Korea probably has a long-standing chemical weapons program with the ...
3 UN workers among 11 killed in Boko Haram attack in Nigeria
Three workers for United Nations agencies were among 11 people killed in an attack by armed Boko Haram militants on a military base in northeastern Nigeria, near the border with Cameroon, UN officials said today. The International Organization for Migration said "a large number" of Boko Haram members attacked the base in Rann, in Borno state, a day earlier with automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenades and gun trucks. At a UN briefing in Geneva, IOM spokesman Joel Millman said the two staffers, Ibrahim Lawan and Yawe Emmanuel, were among three humanitarian workers killed along with eight members of police and the military. The UN's humanitarian aid coordinating agency, OCHA, says a third aid worker killed was a medical doctor consulting for UNICEF. IOM Director of Operations and Emergencies Mohammed Abdiker said in a statement that the agency was "outraged and saddened" by the killings. The two IOM staffers were contractors working in a camp for 55,000 internally displaced people ..
Attacks target French embassy, military HQ in Burkina capital
An armed group today attacked the French embassy in Burkina Faso and the country's military headquarters, the government said, adding that four assailants had been killed. The coordinated operation underscored the fragility of the Sahel nation, one of a string of African states struggling with a bloody jihadist insurgency. Heavy gunfire broke out mid-morning in the centre of the capital Ouagadougou, an AFP reporter heard. Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passersby before heading towards the French embassy. The car was later seen ablaze. At the same time, an explosion occurred near the headquarters of the Burkinabe armed forces and the French cultural centre, which are located about a kilometre (half a mile) from the site of the first attack, other witnesses said. In a statement, the government said the attack was "aimed at the French embassy in Burkina Faso and the armed forces headquarters." "Four attackers were neutralised in the attack on the French
Attacks hit French embassy, military HQ in Burkina capital
The capital of Burkina Faso came under multiple attacks today, targeting the French embassy, the French cultural centre and the country's military headquarters, an AFP reporter and witnesses said. Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passersby before heading towards the embassy, in the centre of the city. An AFP reporter heard heavy exchanges of gunfire and saw a blazing vehicle, which witnesses said was the car used by the assailants. Police and army units were deployed in the area. Other witnesses said there was an explosion near the headquarters of the Burkinabe armed forces and the French cultural centre, which are located about a km from the site of the first attack. The French embassy confirmed that French interests were under attack. "Attack under way at th French embassy and French Institute. Stay indoors," it said in a terse message posted on Facebook. Burkina Faso is one of a string of fragile countries on the southern rim of the Sahara that are .
Explosion hits Army HQ in Burkina Faso
An explosion reportedly hit the Army headquarters, near French Embassy in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou on Friday."Terrorist attack this morning in Ougadougou, Burkina Faso: solidarity with colleagues and Burkinabe friends," France's ambassador to West Africa's Sahel region, Jean-Marc Châtaigner wrote on Twitter.The cause of the explosion is yet to be ascertained.As per media reports, the witnesses heard gunfire before the blast and saw gunmen attacking the building.Burkina Faso, like other countries in West Africa, has been continually targeted by extremist groups operating across the region.Last year in August, suspected extremists killed at least 18 people during a raid on a restaurant in the country's capital.
Suicide bomb in Afghan capital kills young girl, wounds 15
A suicide car bombing in the eastern part of the Afghan capital today morning killed at least one person, a young girl, and wounded 15, Afghan officials said. Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief, said the blast occurred in the eastern neighborhood of Qabil Bay, in an area that is home to a police station, the government's customs offices and some guest houses. Mohammad Musa Zahir, a doctor at the area's Wazir Akbar Khan hospital, said 15 people were also wounded in the blast, including five children and two women. Najib Danish, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, said the suicide bomber targeted a "convoy of foreigners" but did not offer further details or clarify whether it was foreign forces who were targeted or contractors. No non-Afghan casualties were reported in the bombing and NATO forces in Kabul, which said they were aware of the reports, had no immediate comment. No militant group claimed responsibility for the attack. At the blast site in the Qabil Bay ...
Gunfire near French embassy in Burkina Faso capital
Heavy gunfire was heard on Friday near the French embassy in Ouagadougou, the capital of the Sahel state of Burkina Faso. Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passersby before heading towards the embassy, according to an AFP reporter said Others said there was an explosion near the Burkinabe military headquarters and the French cultural centre, also in the city centre.
10 Maoists, elite force personnel killed in gun-battle in Chhattisgarh
At least 10 Maoists, including six women, were killed today when Telangana Police's Greyhounds swooped on a Naxal camp in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district in an early morning operation in which a personnel of the elite force also lost his life, officials said. Police suspect that there could be senior cadre members among the ultra killed. Acting on an intelligence report, the personnel of Greyhounds went 35-km into neighbouring Chhattisgarh area and launched an operation on the Maoist camp, they said. "Ten Maoists were killed in the encounter. Screening of the bodies is going on to identify the deceased," Ambar Kishor Jha, Superintendent of Police of Telangana's Bhadradri Kothagudem district, told PTI. "Susheel Kumar, a junior commando of the Greyhounds, lost his life," he said. Six women were among the ultras killed in the operation which took place at around 6.30 AM, while a junior commando of the Greyhounds also lost his life in the exchange of fire, officials said. The Greyhounds, .
1 killed, four injured in bee attack in TN
A devotee was killed and seven others were injured when they were stung by a swarm of bees at a temple in the district, police said. They said the incident occurred yesterday, after some devotees out for a walk around their tents reportedly damaged a big hive in a tree near the Adhi Karuvanrayar temple at Thengumarahatta. The 41-year-old man who was attacked and seriously injured, died at the sathyamangalam government hospital, while the others are still undergoing treatment, police said. This is the second such incident in Erode district On February 4 two devotees were killed and four seriously injured when they were attacked by bees at a temple in Jambai village in the district, where some rituals were being performed.
Four aid workers killed in Boko Haram attack in Nigeria: UN
Four aid workers were killed in a Boko Haram attack in Rann, in northeast Nigeria, the UN said today, in the latest violence to hit the remote town. The attack happened "after dark" outside a camp housing some 55,000 people displaced by the conflict and appeared to target the military, said UN spokeswoman Samantha Newport. A civilian militia source in Rann, which is some 175 kms from the Borno state capital of Maiduguri, and a senior military source gave an identical death toll. They also said eight soldiers were killed in the attack but there was no immediate official confirmation. Newport said: "Four aid workers were killed, one aid worker was injured and one aid worker is missing, feared abducted. "Of the aid workers that were killed, two worked for the IOM (International Organisation for Migration) in camp management; and one was a medical doctor working as a third party consultant for UNICEF," the UN children's agency, she said. No details were immediately available for the ...
Chhattisgarh encounter: Commando succumbs to injury
A constable of commando force Greyhounds of Telangana Police succumbed to injuries after an encounter with the Naxals in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district.The security forces also recovered arms and ammunition, including one AK-47, one SLR and five INSAS rifles.Earlier, the security force in a joint operation with Telangana and Chhattisgarh Police gunned down 10 Naxals in the encounterin Pujari Kanker area of the district.DM Awasthi, Special DG also confirmed the same.On February 26, four Naxals including two women were killed in an encounter between security forces and Naxals in Jharkhand's Palamu district.
Kabul blast: 1 killed, 14 injured
At least one person was killed and 14 others injured in a car bomb explosion in Afghanistan's capital city, Kabul on Friday morning.Tolo News quoted Afghan Ministry of Interior's (MoI) spokesman Najib Danish as saying, "the explosion targeted a foreign forces convoy which was passing through the Qabel Bai area in Kabul's PD9."The MoI confirmed that four people got injured. However, eyewitnesses said one civilian was killed in the blast.Due to the high-intensity blast, some houses also got damaged.No insurgent group has claimed the responsibility for the attack, so far.
1 killed as Kabul car bomb targets foreign forces
A suicide car bomb targeting a foreign forces convoy rocked eastern Kabul today, killing at least one civilian and injuring nine just days after Afghanistan unveiled plans for Taliban peace talks, the interior ministry said. Extensive damage to the facades of nearby houses could be seen with debris scattered on pavements as witnesses reported a strong explosion. Security forces rushed to the scene as passers-by helped move the wounded, with witnesses complaining to AFP that ambulances took around half an hour to arrive. A horse was also badly injured in the blast and could be seen stumbling at the scene -- its head, belly and legs burnt -- before it was finally taken pity on and killed on the spot with a knife, an AFP reporter at the scene said. "Unfortunately around 9:00 am, a car bombing took place in (the) Qabil Bay area of Kabul. The target of the attack was a foreign forces convoy," ministry spokesman Najib Danish told AFP, adding that police are investigating. NATO's Resolute ...
Five police killed in suspected Islamist attack in Kenya
Five Kenyan policemen were killed today in an attack by suspected jihadists near the Somali border, authorities said. The five died when the suspected Shabaab militants raided neighbouring police camps in Lafey town in Mandera County in northeastern Kenya. "We had an attack this morning and we have lost four officers," said regional commissioner Mohamud Saleh, adding a reservist had also been killed. "A security operation is ongoing in the area," he added. The area's communication mast was also destroyed before the attackers escaped towards the nearby border with Somalia. "We suspect Al-Shabaab involvement," said Saleh. Mandera suffered a spate of Shabaab bombings and attacks last year. The Shabaab is aligned with Al-Qaeda and fighting to overthrow Somalia's internationally-backed government in Mogadishu. It began launching terror attacks in Kenya shortly after Nairobi sent its army into Somalia in 2011.
Blast injures 4 in Kabul
At least four civilians got injured when an explosion rocked Afghanistan's capital city, Kabul on Friday morning.Tolo News quoted Afghan Ministry of Interior's (MoI) deputy spokesman Nusrat Rahimi as saying that the explosion targeted a foreign forces convoy which was passing through the Qabel Bai area in Kabul's PD9.The MoI confirmed that four people got injured. However, eyewitnesses said one civilian was killed in the blast.Due to the high-intensity blast, some houses also got damaged.No insurgent group has claimed the responsibility for the attack, so far.
Guterres, UNSC condemn killing of 4 Bangladeshi peacekeepers in Mali
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council have condemned the killing of four Bangladeshi peacekeepers by a roadside bomb in Mali.
10 Maoists killed in encounter with police in Chhattisgarh
Telangana Police's elite Greyhounds force today swooped on a Naxal camp deep inside Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, killing at least 10 Maoists which may include some senior cadre members, officials said. Based on an intelligence report, the personnel of Greyhounds went 35-km into neighbouring Chhattisgarh area and launched an operation on the Maoist camp, they said. The Greyhounds, Telangana's anti-Naxal force, attacked the camp as part of a joint operation with the Chhattisgarh Police. A jawan of the Greyhounds was injured in the gunfight, a senior police official said, adding those killed were yet to be identified, but senior Maoist leaders could be among them. An AK-47 has been been recovered from the encounter site. It is a normal practice with Maoists that hi-tech assault rifles are given to senior cadre members, officials said. The exchange of fire took place between a team of Greyhounds and rebels in a forest near Pujari Kanker under Pamed police station area, about 500 km ...