Page 83 - War Conflict
ISJK militant killed in encounter in J-K's Shopian
A militant belonging to Islamic State Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK) was Friday killed in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district, the Army said. "Targeting terrorist leadership towards #TerrorismFreeKashmir. Sustained efforts successful. Eliminated Ishfaq Sofi of ISJK involved in scores of terrorism related activities," Srinagar-based Chinar Corps said in a tweet on its official handle. A police spokesman said security forces launched a cordon and search operation at Ramnagri in the Herpora area of Shopian following a credible input about the presence of militants there. "During the search operation, the hiding terrorists fired on the search party. The fire was retaliated leading to a brief exchange of fire," he said. The spokesman said in the brief exchange of fire, one militant was killed. He was identified as Ishfaq Ahmad Sofi alias Umar, a resident of Model Town-B in the Sopore area of Baramulla district, the spokesman added. "According to the police records, Ishfaq had .
Militant from 'IS-inspired group' killed in J&K
A militant, linked to an Islamic State-inspired terror outfit, was killed on Friday in a gunfight with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district, police said.
UN slams detention of minority citizens in Myanmar
The UN on Friday criticized the Myanmar government for detaining dozens of people in restive Rakhine over their suspected links with rebels in the western state.
Official: Taliban overrun 2 outposts, 15 soldiers killed
An Afghan official says the Taliban have launched an assault on two security outposts in western Badghis province, killing 15 security personnel in the latest in a series of deadly attacks targeting the country's beleaguered security forces. Another 11 soldiers were hurt in the onslaught early Friday. Ziauddinn Akazai, a lawmaker in the province, said the Taliban overran the two outposts in Bala Murghab district. Defence Ministry spokesman Col. Qais Mangal confirmed the attack but refused to discuss casualties. The Taliban have inflicted staggering casualties on Afghanistan's security forces in relentless attacks over the past year, even as the insurgents are talking peace with the United States. The latest round of talks ended Thursday in Doha, where the Taliban maintain a political office, with 'some progress," Taliban officials said.
Death toll rises to 12 in Lahore Sufi shrine suicide attack
The death toll in the suicide attack targeting one of Pakistan's oldest and most revered Sufi shrines in Lahore rose to 12 on Friday as a police commando succumbed to his injures. Ten people, including five police personnel, were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Data Darbar shrine, the largest Sufi shrine in South Asia on Wednesday morning as the country marks the fasting month of Ramzan. Elite force personnel Saddam Hussain succumbed to his injuries at the Mayo Hospital on Friday. Other three critically injured cops are battling for their lives at the Intensive Care Unit of Mayo Hospital, Lahore police spokesman Syed Mubashir said on Friday. A CCTV footage showed a teenage boy wearing black shalwar kameez and a suicide vest coming closer to the vehicle of elite force beforing blowing himself up. Punjab Inspector General of Police Arif Nawaz said it was a suicide attack as the target was the vehicle of the elite force that was stationed outside the shrine of ...
Assam: One severely injured, others hurt in violence in Halaikandi town
One person sustained bullet injuries while several others were hurt in the clashes which broke out between two groups in Halaikandi town on Friday.Certain groups were trying to incite communal violence, said the district administration. Widespread violence and arson also prompted authorities to impose a curfew for a few hours to bring the situation under control.Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code has been imposed until further order in the town as violent mob hurled stoned, vandalized shops and set several cars and bikes on fire.The police had to resort to firing blanks to disperse the crowd and bring the situation in control. Several fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames.Additional forces were reportedly rushed to the town as the situation remained tense.Assam forest minister Parimal Suklabaidya appealed for peace and harmony and assured action against the violence perpetrators.The two groups reportedly got into a brawl over a week-old issue on the parking .
Clashes erupt in Srinagar, Sopore
Clashes broke out between stone-pelting protesters and security forces on Friday in the old city areas of Srinagar and in Sopore town in Jammu and Kashmir.
Five killed in mine attack in Pak's Baluchistan
Two Pakistani soldiers were among five people killed in a attack by suspected militants in the coal mining area of troubled Balochistan province, officials said on Friday. The incident happened in Balochistan's Harnai area on Thursday night when armed men stormed a coal mine and indiscriminately opened fired, killing two miners, Deputy Commissioner Azeem Dummar said. Dummar said after receiving information about the attack, personnel of the Frontier Corps rushed to the area but their vehicle was hit by a landmine explosion, killing two soldiers and the driver. Another soldier was wounded in the explosion, he said. The Baluch Liberation Army (BLA), an outlawed armed separatist group based in the province, has claimed responsibility for the attack. "We want to make it clear to the local spies and death squad groups of Pakistan Army that they will not be forgiven for their crimes," Jeehand Baloch, a BLA spokesperson, said in a email statement. The separatist groups regularly target ...
2 French soldiers killed freeing 4 captives in West Africa
Two French soldiers have been killed in a military operation in the West African nation of Burkina Faso that freed four people from the US, France and South Korea who were kidnapped in neighbouring Benin. In a statement Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed condolences for the two soldiers killed in the overnight operation. He thanked authorities in Burkina Faso and Benin for their cooperation in the mission, and promised them support in fighting terrorism in the Sahel region. Two of the hostages were French tourists, one was an American and the other a South Korean, Macron's office said. It did not identify the hostage-takers. The French tourists failed to return from a visit last week to the Pendjari National Park wildlife reserve. Their African guide was later found dead. Macron's office did not immediately release information on the American or the South Korean. Islamic extremists have become increasingly active in Burkina Faso, raising worries the militants could be .
What if someone links you to Godhra: Amarinder to Modi
Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for targeting the Congress and the Gandhi family over the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday said what if someone linked the PM with the 2002 riots in Gujarat's Godhra. "It is wrong of Modi to connect (former prime minister) Rajiv Gandhi with the anti-Sikh riots of 1984. What if someone starts linking Modi with Godhra," he told reporters here. Singh said it did not behove the prime minister of the country to "stoop" to such levels for winning elections. He asserted that the involvement of some individuals in the 1984 riots did not mean that Modi could implicate Rajiv Gandhi or the Congress party in it. "By the same yardstick, Modi should also have been implicated in the Godhra attack," the chief minister said, while asking the prime minister to refrain from "undermining the prestige of his position with such crude and baseless statements". "Modi should not forget that the names of several BJP and RSS ...
Gunshot fired outside London mosque during Ramadan prayers
Scotland Yard has launched an investigation after a gunshot was fired outside a mosque in east London during Ramadan prayers on Thursday evening. The Metropolitan Police said the firearm discharge at Seven Kings Masjid in Ilford is believed to be related to a previous altercation and is not being treated as an Islamophobic hate crime or terror-related incident. The Met Police's firearms officers attended the scene and confirmed there were no reported injuries or damage to the building. At this early stage, ballistic evidence recovered from the scene suggests that the weapon was a blank firing handgun. Officers from Trident Specialist Crime investigate. There have been no arrests and enquiries continue, a Met Police statement said. It said that the incident may have stemmed from an earlier altercation in the street. Initial enquiries indicated that the incident may have stemmed from an earlier altercation in the street close to the mosque. Officers continue to work closely with ...
4 arrested in connection with Lahore suicide bombing
Four suspects believed to be involved in the Lahore Sufi shrine bombing that killed 12 people have been arrested.
France says forces free 4 hostages in Burkina Faso
French forces have freed two French hostages as well as an American and a South Korean in northern Burkina Faso in a military raid that cost the lives of two soldiers, the French presidency said Friday. The military operation took place overnight in a bid to free the two French tourists, identified as Patrick Picque and Laurent Lassimouillas, who disappeared in the remote Pendjari National Park in Benin on May 1.
Anti-Boko Haram militia frees 900 children in Nigeria: UN
Nearly 900 children held by a pro-government militia force fighting Boko Haram insurgents in northeastern Nigeria were freed on Friday, the UN said. The 894 children, including 106 girls, had been in the ranks of the government-backed Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), a local militia which supports regular soldiers battling the Islamist insurgents. At a ceremony in the northeastern town of Maiduguri, they were released as part of the CJTF's "commitment to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children," the UN children's agency (UNICEF) said. "Children of north-east Nigeria have borne the brunt of this conflict," said UNICEF chief in Nigeria Mohamed Fall. "They have been used by armed groups in combatant and non-combatant roles and witnessed death, killing and violence." The CJTF is a militia formed in 2013 to protect communities from attack, but it has also recruited hundreds of children. In 2017, the militia signed a promise to stop recruiting child soldiers and release the ...
Lankan court orders DNA test to verify death of Easter bombings mastermind
A Sri Lankan court has ordered a DNA test before May 15 to verify the death of Mohamed Cassim Zahran, the ring leader of the local Islamist extremist group NTJ which the government blamed carried out the devastating Easter Sunday bombings killing over 250 people. Zahran, the mastermind behind the Easter blasts, led the attack on the Shangri-La hotel and was accompanied by a second bomber identified as Ilham Ahmed Ibrahim. He was killed inside the hotel where he blew himself up. The Colombo Fort Magistrate also ordered the Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) verification of Ibrahim, the second bomber. Nine suicide bombers carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and as many luxury hotels on April 21, killing more than 250 people and injuring 500 others. The ISIS terror group claimed the attacks, but the government blamed the local Islamist extremist group National Thawheed Jammath (NTJ) for the bombings. The victims included over 40 foreigners, 10 of whom ...
Harkatul Mujahideen militant killed in encounter in J&K
A militant belonging to the Harkatul Mujahideen (HuM) was killed Friday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district, police said. Acting on a credible input about the presence of militants, security forces had launched a cordon and search operation at Ramnagri in Herpora area of the district, a police spokesman said. "During the operation, the hiding terrorists fired on the search party. It was retaliated leading to a brief exchange of fire," the spokesman said. He said one militant was killed who was identified as Ishfaq Ahmad Sofi alias Umar, a resident of Model Town-B in Sopore area of Baramulla district. "According to police records, Ishfaq had a long history of terror crime records and was initially affiliated with proscribed terror outfit HuM. He and other terrorist associates were involved in a series of terror crimes, including grenade attacks on CRPF bunker at Safa Kadal, Soura and Police Station Khanyar," the spokesman said. Ishfaq, who was ..
IS claims responsibility for Iraq blast that killed 8
The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a Baghdad market the previous day that killed 8 people. The extremist group released a statement early on Friday saying the bomber detonated his explosives vest at the Jamila marketplace in Baghdad's sprawling Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City on Thursday evening. Fifteen people were wounded. Iraq's security agencies have invested heavily in securing Baghdad, the country's capital, even as insurgents continue to stage attacks in the countryside. Iraqis are out late during the holy month of Ramadan, when observant Muslims fast from dawn till sundown. Hakim al-Zamily with the Sadrist political movement, which enjoys wide support in Sadr City, said lax security was to blame and that IS cells are taking advantage of slackened security measures in Baghdad.
WHO warns Ebola could spread elsewhere if attacks don't stop
The World Health Organisation is warning it may not be possible to contain Ebola to the two affected provinces in eastern Congo if violent attacks on health teams continue. In an update Friday, WHO warned that Ebola response activities had been halted for five consecutive days because of the insecurity. In one incident, WHO said that a burial team was violently attacked after they interred an Ebola victim. The area has been destabilised by the presence of Mai-Mai militia fighters, making it impossible for health workers to travel to some areas. That has hampered isolation of sick patients and allowed them to remain in their communities where they have spread the disease to other people. WHO said there now have been 1,069 deaths since the outbreak began in August.
Communal clash in Sawai Madhopur, 8 injured, 3 arrested
Members of two communities clashed on Thursday when a religious procession was passing by a mosque in Chhan town of Rajasthan's Sawai Madhopur district, leaving eight persons injured, following which three suspects have been arrested, police said. A group of people objected to loud music being played by those taking out the procession as it neared the mosque which resulted in a brawl on Thursday, they said. People from both the sides pelted stones at each other in which eight people, including a sub-inspector, sustained injuries, Superintendent of Police, Swai Madhopur Sameer Kumar Singh, said Friday. Police used cane charge and fired two rubber bullets to disperse the mob, he said. The officer said that additional police force has been deployed in the town and the situation is completely under control. A case has been registered against five people from both sides and three were arrested, he added. Sawai Madhopur is about 150 km from Rajasthan capital Jaipur.
Gun fired outside UK mosque during prayers
Armed police were scrambled to an east London mosque after a "masked" gunman entered the building during Ramzan prayers before shooting a firearm outside.