Page 85 - War Conflict
North Korea appears to have fired two missiles: South's military
Weapons fired by North Korea Thursday appeared to be two separate missiles, the South's military said, in what was Pyongyang's second launch in less than a week. The North "fired what appeared to be two short-range missiles" from North Pyongan province, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, adding they flew 270 and 420 kilometres (170 and 260 miles) and the South Korean and US militaries were jointly analysing them.
Putin hails military might on WWII Victory Day
President Vladimir Putin vowed to ensure Russia's military capabilities as the country on Thursday marked World War II Victory Day, a commemoration that has become increasingly important over his two-decade rule. The president's speech to thousands of soldiers and veterans on Red Square came at the start of an annual parade that sees hundred of pieces of military hardware roll through the streets of Moscow. "The lessons of the past war are relevant once again. We have done and will do all that is necessary to guarantee the high capabilities of our armed forces," he said. Those in the modern Russian army remember the "oath" of Soviet soldiers who fought Nazi Germany, he added: "I die but I will not surrender". The two-day public holiday to celebrate the 1945 victory comes this year amid heightened tensions with the West and fears of a new Russia-US arms race. Moscow also recently said it would build up its military presence in the Arctic, seeking to assert its influence in the ...
Pak intruder arrested along IB in Samba
The Border Security Force (BSF) Thursday arrested a Pakistan intruder along the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba district, officials said. Troops of BSF observed some movement along the IB near a forward area and nabbed a person, they said. During preliminary investigation, he was identified as Mohmmad Afzal of Shakergarh district of Pakistan. He has been handed over to police for further interrogation, they said.
Why would Rajiv Gandhi get Sikhs killed, asks Sheila Dikshit
Senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit on Thursday expressed disappointment over BJP's allegation of Rajiv Gandhi's 'involvement' in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots."It's on record of Nanavati Commission that probed the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the biggest genocide of India in which the government killed its own citizens, that instructions to kill came directly from the then PM Rajiv Gandhi's office," the BJP's had tweeted earlier today.On being asked about the BJP's claim, Dikshit told ANI, "Why would Rajiv Gandhi do that? His mother had been killed, why would he instruct? He was deeply hurt. Does the BJP act like this? I am really disappointed."Senior advocate H S Phoolka had also claimed that instructions to "kill" during the anti-Sikh riots that took place in Delhi in 1984 had come directly from the Prime Minister's Office."There is enough evidence on record to show that in 1984 when the Sikhs were being killed, the instructions were coming directly from the Prime Minister's Office and the ..
18-year-old US national pleads guilty to providing support to LeT
An 18-year-old US national Wednesday pleaded guilty to the charges supporting and recruiting fighters for Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which carried out the deadly 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Michael Kyle Sewell, from Fort Worth, Texas, was arrested in February, has admitted to encouraging an individual, identified in court documents only as coconspirator 1, to join the LeT. He now faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to USD 250,000. The sentencing is scheduled for August 12. According to the guilty plea, Sewell provided the coconspirator, who he spoke to on social media, with contact information for an individual he believed could facilitate the coconspirator's travel to Pakistan to join the LeT. Unbeknownst to Sewell and the coconspirator, the facilitator was an undercover FBI agent. Sewell and the co-conspirator discussed what the co-conspirator should say to the undercover agent who posed as the facilitator, in order to gain the ...
Death toll in Lahore suicide blast mounts to 11
The death toll in the suicide blast outside Data Darbar, a Sufi shrine located in Lahore, rose to 11, authorities said on Thursday.A Lahore police officer, identified as Saddam Hussain, breathed his last after succumbing to injuries earlier today, Geo News reported quoting an official from Mayo Hospital in Lahore.Around 26 others who suffered injuries in the blast are still being treated in the hospital, two of whom are in critical condition, the official added.The blast, which targetted a police van stationed outside the entrance of Data Darbar, killed 10 people on Wednesday.According to Shahbaz Gill, spokesperson for the chief minister of Punjab, the suicide bomber was a 15-year-old boy who blew himself up near an Elite Force police van outside the 11th-century shrine in Lahore.
Your slap a blessing, but can you slap extortionists, Modi asks Mamata
Ridiculing West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for saying that she wanted to give "a tight slap of democracy" to him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said her slap will be a blessing to him but asked whether Banerjee had the guts to slap those who looted poor people in the name of chit funds.
Computer Baba, Digvijaya Singh's 3-day camp under scanner
District Collector Bhopal has ordered an inquiry to investigate if permission was granted for the three-day camp being held by Namdas Tyagi, also known as Computer Baba, along with other saints.Besides this, the official has sought a probe on the cost of the event as well as the role of Congress leader Digvijaya Singh.Digvijaya had on Tuesday performed a 'havan' in the presence of Tyagi and other sadhus at a 'maha yagna' organised in Bhopal.Tyagi said that the yagna was a form of 'Hat Yoga' to ensure Digvijaya's win in the Lok Sabha elections. He had also accused the BJP of "fooling" the community of seers by using the Ram Mandir issue as a political tool.'Computer Baba' was appointed as a Minister of State (MoS) under the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government. However, he had openly rebelled against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after being denied a ticket to contest elections held in Madhya Pradesh.Bhopal will go to polls in the sixth phase of parliamentary elections on May 12, and ...
Lahore suicide blast toll rises to 11
The death toll from the suicide blast outside Pakistan's oldest Sufi shrine in Lahore rose to 11 as one police official succumbed to his injuries on Thursday.
Death toll rises to 11 in Lahore suicide attack outside Sufi shrine
The death toll rose to 11 on Thursday in the powerful suicide blast outside one of Pakistan's oldest and most revered Sufi shrines in Lahore as another policeman succumbed to his injuries, officials said. The attack, which occurred during the Muslim holy month of Ramazan, was carried out by a teenage Taliban suicide bomber who blew himself up outside the densely-populated 11th century shrine on Wednesday. So far, 11 people, including six police commandos, have lost their lives, Geo News reported, adding that as many as 26 others have been injured. The powerful blast took place outside the Data Darbar shrine, the largest Sufi shrine in South Asia, where the elite police personnel were deployed for security. A CCTV footage showed that a teenage boy wearing black 'shalwar kameez' and a suicide vest came closer to the vehicle of elite force and blew himself up. "The suicide bomber is about 15 years old and made no suspected movement before blowing himself up," Lahore police spokesperson ..
Fears of new jihadist 'academies' as Iraqi jails fill up
As Iraq tries thousands of locals and foreigners accused of joining the Islamic State group, experts warn its jails could once again become "academies" for jihadists. Prison was a pivotal moment for many prominent jihadists -- not least of them Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, IS's Iraqi supremo who remains at large despite the collapse of his "caliphate" in March. Baghdadi was held in Camp Bucca, a sprawling US-run complex in the southern Iraqi desert, where he is thought to have essentially "come of age" as a jihadist leader. "For many members of such groups, prison was one of multiple 'stages' of jihad," said Hisham al-Hashemi, an expert in Iraqi jihadist movements. They ran their own religious studies courses and even planned attacks on civilians or ordered assassinations of security forces from within the prison walls. "The cells become the equivalent of academies -- even if there's just one prisoner with extremist thoughts, he can recruit the rest," Hashemi told AFP. Iraq has already ...
More than 1000 guns seized from LA home
Authorities on Wednesday seized more than 1,000 guns from a home located in a posh locality in Los Angeles.Officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) along with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) executed a search warrant in an investigation of a person suspected of manufacturing and selling illegal firearms on the border of the Bel Air and Holmby Hills, LAPD Officer Jeff Lee told CNN.In addition, ATF spokeswoman Ginger Colbrun, in a written statement, said authorities were anonymously tipped off that someone was "conducting illegal firearms transaction outside the scope of the federal firearm license that the individual possesses."Along with the weapons, firearm manufacturing equipment and tools were also found at the location.Televised footage showed hundreds of rifles and handguns laid out on a driveway as officials from both the agencies continued investigating the matter.In 2015, the LAPD seized around 1,200 guns, seven tons of ammunition ..
More than 1,000 guns seized from Los Angeles house
More than 1,000 guns were seized from a house located in an upscale Los Angeles neighbourhood, police said.
US national pleads guilty to providing support to LeT
A US national Wednesday pleaded guilty to the charges of helping and supporting Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Michael Kyle Sewell, 18, who was arrested in February, admitted to encouraging an individual, identified in court documents only as coconspirator 1, to join Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He now faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to USD 250,000. The sentencing is scheduled for August 12. According to the guilty plea, Sewell provided the coconspirator, who he spoke to on social media, with contact information for an individual he believed could facilitate the coconspirator's travel to Pakistan to join the LeT. Unbeknownst to Sewell and the coconspirator, the facilitator was an undercover FBI agent. Sewell and the coconspirator discussed what the coconspirator should say to the undercover agent who posed as the facilitator, in order to gain the facilitator's trust and be permitted to join the LeT. He also .
Taliban attack aid group office in Afghan capital, kills 5
Taliban militants attacked the offices of a US-based aid organisation in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, setting off a huge explosion and battling security forces in an assault that lasted more than six hours and killed at least five people, the Interior Ministry said. Dozens of civilian vehicles and shops were either destroyed or damaged, and several buildings were also damaged. A large plume of smoke rose from the area and the sound of sporadic gunfire could be heard. The ministry's statement said four civilians and a police officer were killed and 24 others were wounded in the assault. It was not immediately clear if any foreigners were killed or wounded. The ministry's statement said the attack ended after all five insurgents were killed by Afghan forces. "Around 200 people were rescued from both buildings within the compound," it said. The attack targeted US-based aid organisation Counterpart International, which has offices near those of the Afghan attorney general, said ...
Police recover body in Sopore
Police on Wednesday recovered a partially decomposed body in Jammu and Kashmir's Sopore area.
Kabul: Siege on US NGO's building ends after 6 hours
At least two of the attackers were killed by the Afghan forces as the assault on Counterpart International's building here ended nearly after six hours on Wednesday, according to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior.Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Both the attackers were killed in a clearance operation, as per Nasrat Rahimi, a spokesman for Ministry of Interior Affairs quoted by TOLOnews.Afghan President Ashraf Ghani labelled the attack as an "unforgivable crime.""Taliban should respond to the Afghan people's demand for peace; otherwise, they will be suppressed by the brave Defense and Security Forces of Afghanistan," Ghani said in a statement.At least 170 civilians were rescued from the office during the operation."Civilians are not a target. UNAMA condemns Taliban deliberate targeting of civilian aid organization, Counterpart International, in civilian area of Kabul. Today's attack particularly deplorable, hitting civilians helping Afghans and taking place ...
Bangladesh arrests suspected IS militant back from Syria
Bangladesh's counter-terrorism police have arrested a suspected Islamic State member who returned to the country after fighting for the militant group in Syria, police said Wednesday. Dhaka launched a major crackdown against homegrown extremist outfits following an attack by a local outfit on a cafe in the capital in 2016 that killed 22 people, including 18 foreigners. Police said Motaj Abdul Majid Kafiluddin Bepari, 33, joined IS in Syria after he travelled to the war-torn country from Saudi Arabia, where he was born to a Bangladeshi parent. He returned to Bangladesh in February and made contact with a new faction of local IS-inspired Islamist extremist outfit Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), blamed for a series of attacks, including the 2016 cafe attack, counter-terrorism official Wahiduzzaman Noor told AFP. Officers arrested Bepari near a mosque in Dhaka's Uttara neighbourhood on May 5, and he has been charged under anti-terrorism laws for alleged plans to establish a ...
Lanka police under probe over bail to nine Easter attack suspect
Sri Lankan authorities have launched an investigation into any lapses on part of the police which led to bail being granted to nine workers of a copper factory owned by a suicide bomber of the Easter terror attacks. The nine employees, arrested from the factory at Wellampitiya in Colombo suburb on April 22 over the attacks, were granted bail this week by the Colombo Magistrate's Court due to lack of documents and it was alleged that police may have erred by not filing the case under the anti-terrorism law. While granting bail, the court said the Wellampitiya Police had failed to mention the offences the suspects were alleged to have committed. The copper factory where the nine suspects were working was owned by Mohamed Ibrahim Insaf Ahmed, the suicide bomber at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, one of the three hotels that was attacked. While the factory owner blew himself up at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel his brother was one of the two bombers at the Shangri La Hotel. Another suicide bomb ...
Seven 'suicide bombers' arrested in Sri Lanka
Seven trained suicide bombers identified as followers of the National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ) Islamist group have been arrested in Sri Lanka, the police said.