Page 738 - War Conflict

Prohibitory order clamped in Chouparan area

A mob resorted to stone pelting when police personnel went to disperse villagers from squatting on a highway in protest against the missing of a Shiv Ling from a temple in Tazpur today, police said. The police had to resort to mild force when the villagers refused to budge and indulged in brick-batting, the police said. Following the incident, authorities clamped prohibitory order under section 144 CrPC banning an assembly of more than four persons in Chouparan police station limit of Hazaribag district, official sources said. Police patrolling has been intensified and four persons have been arrested in this connection, the police said. A large number of villagers had squatted on NH 2 after they found the Shiv Ling missing from the temple in the morning and demanded immediate arrest of the culprits and restoration of the Shiv Ling, the police said. The miscreants have also damaged other idols in the temple premises, the police said. On being informed of the blockade, the

Budgam attack: Injured policeman dies

A policeman, who was injured in firing by terrorists at Budgam's Charari Sharief, succumbed to his injuries on Sunday.The policeman has been identified as Kutlar Singh."Pained at the loss of a valued colleague SGCt Kultar Singh, JKAP, 13 Bn who attained martyrdom in an attack on J&K Police guard for the protection of Charari Sharief shrine," tweeted Shesh Paul Vaid, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police.Unidentified militants fired upon sentry post guarding the shrine on Sunday morning.

Heavy clashes on edges of Syria's Ghouta: monitor

Syrian regime forces were engaged in heavy fighting with rebels in southern areas of opposition-held Eastern Ghouta on Sunday, a day after a UN call for a ceasefire, a monitor said. The clashes on the edges of Eastern Ghouta killed at least 13 members of pro-regime forces and six fighters from the Jaish al-Islam rebel group, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "Violent clashes are taking place in the Al-Marj area, which is a frontline" of the rebel-held enclave near Damascus, Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said. "They are the most violent clashes to take place since the beginning of the month," he added. Mohamed Alloush, a key figure in the Jaish al-Islam, tweeted that the rebels were "resisting" against bids by regime forces to enter the region. More than 500 civilians have been killed in a bombing campaign launched a week ago by regime forces on Eastern Ghouta. According to the Observatory and a Syrian pro-regime newspaper, the clashes are aimed at paving

France says it foiled two terror attacks this year

France has foiled two terror attacks this year targeting a leading sports team and the armed forces, Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said today. Paris is still on its highest level of alert after a string of Islamist attacks over the last three years. "Since January 1, we have foiled two planned attacks which had not been totally finalised but a number of people were in the process of trying to execute them," Collomb said on Europe 1 radio. One was "in the east" of the country and one "in the west", he said. One of them was planned against a "big sports team" where "young people were targeted", and the other the armed forces. He said police had followed a number of people suspected Islamists and arrested them. "That is how we were able to thwart" these plots, Collomb said, but declined to give further details as to the location of those held or the planned targets. According to official figures, 20 attacks were foiled in France in 2017. In November 2015 Paris was hit by a wave of ...

CISF headless for over a month; govt yet to appoint DG

The country's front line security force against terror threats at civilian airports and strategic nuclear and aerospace installations, the CISF, is working without a regular chief for over a month as the Centre is yet to appoint a Director General (DG). The about 1.80-lakh personnel strong force has been without a regular DG since January 22 after serving chief O P Singh was repatriated to his cadre, on the request of the Uttar Pradesh government, and appointed the state's director general of police (DGP). The process of decision-making and making large policy moves in the force has slowed down owing to the absence of the designated chief, official sources said. "This is not a healthy precedent at all and it is happening again and again in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs). This shows that the government has utter disregard for the importance of such an important paramilitary force," retired IPS officer Prakash Singh told PTI. Singh, who has served as the DGP of the Uttar ...

Afghan forces kill 25 insurgents: MoD

Afghanistan's Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Sunday said that at least 25 insurgents have been killed in ground and airstrike operations carried out by Afghan forces across the country.Tolo News quoted the MoD as saying that the forces conducted 14 clearance operations, 21 special operations, and 44 air support operations.During the operations, 14 others were injured and five were arrested, including one IS terrorist.The MoD further said the operations were conducted in Nangarhar, Laghman, Ghazni, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Zabul, Farah, Faryab, Takhar, Sar-e-Pul, Nimroz and Helmand provinces.

Policeman dies in militant attack in Kashmir

A policeman was killed in a militant attack on Sunday near Charar-e-Sharief shrine in Badgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Afghan official: Drive-by attack kills lawmaker, bodyguard

An Afghan official says that a former lawmaker and one of his bodyguards were killed after gunmen opened fire on their vehicle in the capital, Kabul. Basir Mujahid, spokesman for the Kabul police chief, says the ex-lawmaker, Rafi Gul Afghan, and his bodyguard were gunned down on Saturday night in the northern neighborhood of Khair Khana in the Afghan capital. Mujahid says the attackers managed to escape. The motive for the attack was not immediately clear. A police investigation is underway. Gul Afghan had served as deputy speaker for the upper house of Afghanistan's parliament and most recently was an adviser to the country's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Militants gun down cop near Chrar-e-Sharif shrine in J&K's Budgam

A group of militants today attacked a police post near the revered Chrar-e-Shareef shrine in central Kashmir's Budgam district killing a policeman, an official said. The militants fired upon a police post near the shrine of Sufi saint Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Noorani in the Chrar-e-Shareef area this afternoon, the official said. A policeman, Kultar Singh, sustained injuries in the firing and was shifted to a hospital where he succumbed to injuries, the official added.

CRPF starts bike ambulance for remote villages of Naxal-hit Bastar region

The CRPF, in the thick of anti-Naxal operations in Chhattisgarh, has launched a unique bike ambulance initiative for providing basic healthcare facilities to those living in remote jungle areas of Bastar region. Medical teams, accompanied by well-armed security personnel ride their motorcycles to help the sick and injured in about 70 villages of Bijapur district that shares its border with Dantewada -- the worst Maoist violence-hit district of the state -- and also adjoining Telangana and Maharashtra. "We got these motorbikes a few years back for anti-Naxal patrols and operations as four-wheelers were easy for the ultras to target. Then we thought, why not use these two-wheelers to help the locals who are ill?," Commandant of the 85th CRPF battalion Sudhir Kumar told PTI. The battalion is based in Bijapur. A field surgical team, comprising a doctor, a paramedic and an assistant, are part of the bike ambulance team. They go to villages either as part of a patrol or are called in by the

Nine Taliban militants killed in Afghanistan

At least nine Taliban militants have been killed during the operations of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces in Afghanistan's northern Baghlan province.The militants were killed during Alburz-24 operations, reported Khaama Press, citing the Afghan military, as saying.The operations, which were conducted in Turmosh valley in Tala Barfak district, destroyed a check post established by the militants.The check post was being used to collect money from the vehicles carrying coal, the report said.No comments have been received by the anti-government armed militant groups including the Taliban militants with respect to the report, so far.

Militants attack J&K guard post

Militants on Sunday attacked a security guard post outside the Charar-e-Sharief shrine in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam district and escaped with the weapon of an injured policeman, officials said.

Two security personnel injured in Naxal IED blast in C'garh

Two Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) personnel, including an assistant platoon commander, were today injuredin blasts carried out by Naxals in Chhattisgarhs Bijapur district, police said. The incident took place in the forests near Tarlaguda and Tarud villages, around 450 kilometres from here, when a team of the CAF's 12th battalion was out on an area domination operation, a police official told PTI. The two have been identified as assistant platoon commander Puran Singh and constable Bhuvaneshwar Yadav. While passing through a dirt track, Singh and Yadav stepped on an improvised explosive device that used a pressure mechanism, triggering a blast that left the two injured, officials informed. They have been evacuated from the site and reinforcements had been rushed in, the official added.

Regime strikes in Syria enclave despite ceasefire call: monitor

Syria's regime carried out new air strikes today on the rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta, a monitor said, despite a UN Security Council demand for a ceasefire "without delay". The strikes today included two on the outskirts of Douma, the main town in Eastern Ghouta, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Regime air strikes and artillery have been pounding the enclave near Damascus since February 18, with at least 519 dead since the bombing campaign was launched, according to the Observatory. The Security Council on Saturday unanimously demanded a 30-day ceasefire to allow for humanitarian aid deliveries and medical evacuations. The measure did not specify when the truce would go into force beyond saying it should be "without delay". Rocket and artillery fire also hit at least three parts of Eastern Ghouta, including Douma, Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said. There were no immediate details on casualties. Abdel Rahman said there were also clashes in ...

Constable shot dead during raid to nab history-sheeter in MP

A constable of the Madhya Pradesh police was shot dead during a raid to nab a criminal at Khiston village, about 60 kilometers from here, police said. Constable Rajbahadur Yadav (50) took a bullet in the chest during police action yesterday night to catch Ravindra Rajak, a history-sheeter accused in several cases of loot and theft, Superintendent of Police Kumar Pratik said. The incident happened around 9pm. Pratik said that a five-member police team, during the raid, had managed to catch Rajak's accomplice Neelu Dhimar. "In an attempt to get Dhimar released, Rajak opened fire from his country made revolver, hitting constable Rajbahadur Yadav in the chest," he said. Yadav was rushed to the Community Health Centre in Prithvipur town nearby where doctors declared him dead on arrival, he informed. He said, "Rajak is a history-sheeter with 19 cases of loot, theft and other crimes registered against him in different police stations in Tikamgarh." The police officer said that .

Philippines arrests widow of slain militants

The widow of two slain militant leaders has been arrested for allegedly supporting extremist groups and possessing firearms and explosives, Philippine police said today. Juromee Dongon was married to a senior leader of the notorious Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom group, Khadaffy Janjalani. After his death in 2006 she married Malaysian bombmaker Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, who was killed in 2015 in the Philippines, police said. Authorities arrested Dongon along with her relatives in her home in Lanao del Norte province in the restive southern region of Mindanao where they found firearms, ammunition and bomb-making components, a police statement said. "She assists, associates, networks and supports terrorist groups," regional police spokesman Superintendent Lemuel Gonda told AFP. "Juromee is linked with Abu Sayyaf during the time of Janjalani and then later Jemaah Islamiyah," he added, referring to a Southeast Asian militant group. Marwan was a leading member of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) .

UN backs Syria ceasefire as death toll in rebel enclave tops 500

The UN Security Council has unanimously demanded a 30-day ceasefire in Syria, as new air strikes on the rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta took the civilian death toll from seven days of bombing to more than 500. With support from Russia, the Security Council adopted a resolution on the ceasefire to allow for humanitarian aid deliveries and medical evacuations, but the measure did not specify when the truce would go into force beyond saying it should be "without delay." After the council vote yesterday, Syrian warplanes backed by Russian air power launched new raids on a town in Eastern Ghouta, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. At least 127 children are among the 519 dead in the bombing campaign that the regime launched last Sunday on the rebel enclave, just outside Damascus, the British-based monitor said. At least 41 civilians were killed in yesterday's strikes, including eight children. Russia has denied taking part in the assault. Quickly following up on the vote, French .

Three IS militants killed in Afghanistan

At least three militants affiliated with the terror outfit Islamic State (IS) terrorist group have been killed in the US drone strikes in Afghanistan's eastern Kunar province."The latest drone strikes were carried out in the vicinity of Manogi district," reported Afghan's Khaama Press, citing the Afghan military, as saying."The hideouts of the terror group were targeted in the air raids and as a result, three militants were killed," it added.A local leader of the group who has been identified as Mohib was also among those killed.No comments have been received from the anti-government armed militant and terrorist groups including the IS in connection with the report, by far.Kunar is among the relatively volatile provinces in East of Afghanistan which borders the tribal regions of Pakistan and is home to Taliban, ISIS, and other terrorist groups, the report said.

UNSC unanimously votes resolution ordering ceasefire in Syria

The ten elected permanent members (E10) of the UN Security Council pushed the five permanent members (P5) to reach a compromise and got an unanimous vote on a resolution ordering a ceasefire "without delay" in Syria to allow humanitarian aid to reach areas under siege.

Toll in Mogadishu blasts rises to 32

The death toll in Friday's twin bomb attacks in Somali capital Mogadishu has gone up to 32, officials said.