Posts

Showing posts from August 19, 2012

Four Australian soldiers hurt in bomb blast

The ADF says four Australian soldiers have been wounded, one seriously, in Afghanistan. Australian troops assemble at Forward Operating Base Chuckajuy, Afghanistan. Picture: Craig Greenhill Supplied ONLY the quick reactions of his fellow soldiers has saved the life of one of four Australian Diggers wounded in a bomb blast in Afghanistan. The soldier was seriously injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated during operations alongside the Afghan National Security Force in Uruzgan Province. He was given immediate medical assistance on the ground before being evacuated by air and taken to a Kandahar medical facility for specialist treatment. He was then transferred to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany. Commanding Officer of the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) Task Group, Lieutenant Colonel Trent Scott, said the soldier was lucky to be alive. "The application of immediate medical assistance meant that a soldier's life was

Son of late Chechen warlord reported killed in Syria

MOSCOW | Thu Aug 23, 2012 1:19pm EDT (Reuters) - The son of a late Chechen rebel warlord has been killed in Syria by government forces battling a rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad, Russian media and websites sympathetic to Islamist insurgents in Russia's Caucasus region reported. Rustam Gelayev was killed in the shelling of a mosque in Aleppo by forces loyal to Assad earlier this month, according to the website chechenews.com. The report, which cited unidentified sources in Chechnya, said Gelayev, 24, had joined a unit of ethnic Chechen volunteers fighting alongside Syrian insurgents in a 17-month-old uprising against Assad, who has close ties with Moscow. Another website sympathetic to the insurgents, kavkazcenter.com, said he had been killed when his unit "entered into a battle with superior forces of the Alawite regime ... presumably between August 11 and August 13." Syria's conflict pits largely Sunni Muslim insurgents against Assad's minori

Chechen rebels not flocking to Syria - experts

The death of a legendary Chechen warlord's son in Syria prompted speculation that Russia’s Islamist insurgents may be rushing to join a jihad against President Bashar al-Assad, but the fears are groundless, Russian analysts said. “All Islamic countries and regions provide contributors to the ‘global jihad’, but Chechnya is no standout,” said Alexei Malashenko of the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank. Meanwhile, speculation about Chechen militants in Syria can seriously endanger the Russian diaspora in Syria, the second-biggest in the Middle East after Israel, said Vladimir Akhmedov of the Institute of Oriental Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences. Rustam Gelayev, 24, was reported earlier this week to have died during an airstrike that hit a mosque in Aleppo, Syria’s economic capital and the site of the “mother of all battles” between Assad’s forces and insurgents. Gelayev, the son of the late Ruslan “Black Angel” Gelayev, died fighting the Syrian regime as part of a C

Domestic Terrorism: A Persistent Threat in the United States

A string of incidents over the past month has served as a reminder that despite the intense, decadelong focus on the jihadist threat, domestic terrorism is still an issue in the United States. On Aug. 5, Wade Page opened fire on the congregation of a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wis., killing six and wounding three others. Though Page killed himself and did not leave any evidence explicitly listing his motives for the attack, his long association with the white supremacist movement was clearly a factor in his target choice. On Aug. 15, Floyd Corkins shot and wounded a security guard in the lobby of the Family Research Council's office in Washington after the guard blocked him from entering the office. Corkins reportedly was carrying a bag containing a box of ammunition and a number of Chick-fil-A sandwiches. He apparently targeted the Family Research Council because of its public support for Chick-fil-A in the wake of the controversy over statements made by the fast food chain'

Breivik verdict and the after-effects of terrorism

Normally, Norway only catches the international public eye for a brief moment twice a year: when the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize is announced in October, and in December, for the actual award ceremony for the world's most well-known prize that takes place in Oslo's City Hall. But on July 22, 2011, Anders Behring Breivik saw to it that his home country of Norway would grab the limelight repeatedly throughout the rest of the year and the year to follow - not because of peace, but due to violence. The 33-year-old, who trained himself to become a terrorist, first set off a car bomb near Oslo's government buildungs, killing eight people. He then traveled to the island of Utoeya, where he gunned down 69 people, mostly teenagers, who had gathered at their traditional Labour Party youth camp. An entire nation was in shock. Shootings are extremely rare in Norway. A terrorist act of this dimension had never taken place - and no one, at home or abroad, would have ever fatho

Top 5 Al Qaeda-linked militants Pakistan has captured

Amid an official US probe into whether the Pakistani military knew of Osama bin Laden's hiding spot and if they shielded him, it could be easy to overlook Pakistan's notable successes against alleged Al Qaeda militants, thousands of whom have been killed or captured by Pakistani forces over the past decade. Here's a look at five of the highest-profile Al Qaeda captures in Pakistan with the help of the local security services. - Stephen Kurczy, Staff writer 1. Umar Patek Umar Patek was arrested March 29, 2011, in Abottabad, Pakistan. The Indonesian militant is accused of playing a key role in the 2002 Bali bombings and was long seen as a crucial link between Al Qaeda and its Southeast Asian affiliates such as Jemaah Islamiyah. Pakistani authorities arrested Mr. Patek based on a tip-off from the CIA, according to The Jakarta Globe. Indonesian authorities welcomed the news, the Monitor reported at the time of his arrest. The member of Jemaah Islamiyah was being protect

Clouds darken in cyber space

Professor Michael Fraser calls it the ''rubbish web''. That is the internet we will be left with in five to 10 years unless governments and cyber corporations fix the holes that allow criminals to infiltrate the worldwide web and to strip global citizens of their identity, money and dignity, he believes. In his bleak view, those who can afford it will retreat behind private corporatised security walls. ''The public internet will be abandoned by the public for any serious communications or transactions and it will be left for games, gambling, pornography and other such uses,'' Fraser told a parliamentary committee in March, giving evidence as director of the University of Technology, Sydney. As we learnt this month how easily hackers got into the cloud, wiped American journalist Mat Honan's iPhone, iPad and Macbook and hijacked his Twitter and email accounts, Fraser was even more vehement about the need to make the web and all its components sa

Cyberwar timeline

Tracing the history of cyberespionage and cyberwarfare from the invention of the Internet up to the reported Stuxnet attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities. 1973 – Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) initiates research program to investigate technologies for linking computer networks. 1982 – Vinton Cerf, later dubbed the "Father of the Internet," leaves DARPA for an executive post with telecom company MCI as the Internet becomes commercialized. 1984 – William Gibson, science fiction author of "Neuromancer," coins term "cyberspace." 1994 – Prof. James Der Derian coins term "cyber deterrence" in Wired Magazine. 1997 – US holds cyberwar game dubbed "Eligible Receiver," featuring National Security Agency personnel as "North Korean" hackers.Target was the US Pacific Command. Team representing US is reported to fare poorly. February 1998 – Solar Sunrise is an operational name given to a series of incursions

In wake of mass panic, India blames Pakistan-backed cyber attack

India charges that websites in Pakistan engaged in cyber warfare because they promoted rumors that caused thousands of ethnic minorities to flee the southern Indian city of Bangalore. By Taha Siddiqui, Correspondent / August 24, 2012 Indian authorities have accused Pakistan of sponsoring a cyber attack against India, causing the panicked exodus of thousands of ethnic minorities from southern India last week. More than 35,000 people working and studying in southern and western Indian cities jammed train stations for about a week as they tried to flee in response to text-message warnings said to be from Indian Muslims angered at recent ethnic clashes in the northeast. Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters on Sunday that his counterpart in India, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, complained to him about the recent cyber attack, claiming that investigators within India discovered that websites within Pakistan spread false rumors through doctored photos. QUIZ

Online fraud: 357 foreigners arrested in Philippines

AP Aug 23, 2012, (Philippine police on Thursday…) MANILA: Philippine police on Thursday rounded up 357 foreigners accused of duping Taiwanese and Chinese citizens in an online scam. The mostly Chinese and Taiwanese suspects were arrested in simultaneous raids on 20 houses in metropolitan Manila and nearby Antipolo city, said Philippine National Police investigation group chief Samuel Pagdilao. Those arrested were members of a syndicate that pretended to represent police, prosecutors, courts and insurance companies and told the victims that their bank accounts were being used for money laundering and terrorist financing, he said. He said the victims were pressured to transfer their money to a "safe account" provided by the syndicate. The syndicate raked in at least 20 million pesos ($472,000) each day using the scam, he said. Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission head Paquito Ochoa said the arrests were the largest single-day operation against organised cri

Internet expert Pranesh Prakash criticizes Indian cyber blockades

NEW DELHI: The government's attempts to block social media accounts and websites that it blames for spreading panic have been inept and possibly illegal, a top internet expert said on Friday. Earlier this month, thousands of people from the country's remote northeast began fleeing cities in southern and western India, as rumors swirled that they would be attacked in retaliation for ethnic violence against Muslims in their home state. Last weekend, the government said the rumors were fed by gory images - said to be of murdered Muslims - that were actually manipulated photos of people killed in cyclones and earthquakes. Officials said the images were spread to sow fear of revenge attacks. After that, the government began interfering with hundreds of websites, including some Twitter accounts, blogs and links to certain news stories. The government also ordered telephone companies to sharply restrict mass text messages. It is unclear who has been spreading the inflammatory

Mogadishu Safer, but Still Dangerous

MOGADISHU — Today whoever visits Somalia's capital will tell you how significantly security has improved in the city. Ordinary Somalis don’t have to face the constant street fighting they endured during the last two decades. But those involved in the process of bringing stable institutions and government to the war-torn country still face an element of danger. Targeted killings in the city are on the rise. General security has improved in Mogadishu, but journalists, aid workers, and people working for government institutions still face threats to their lives. Eight journalists and media professionals have been killed in Somalia this year, and suicide bombers tried unsuccessfully to attack the meeting where Somalia's new constitution was passed earlier this month. The U.S. envoy to Somalia, Ambassador James Swan, praised individuals working with the government despite daily threats against them. “Let me just say we are very much impressed at the courageousness, not on

Somalia & Democracy: An Oxymoron?

It takes years of learning, patience and dedication to achieve a full democracy and it is the hope of every Somali to see Somalia holding fully democratic elections in 2016—a hope that can be achieved. On August 20th, Morgan Lorraine Roach of The Heritage Foundation, a conservative Washington based think-tank, wrote an article titled Somalia’s Government Transition Maintains the Status Quo. In her article, she argues that the process of creating the new permanent government that is to replace the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) was flawed and undemocratic. She further argues that due to the flawed and undemocratic process that created the new permanent government, the Obama Administration should not reward poor governance by: withholding bilateral assistance to the new government, continuing to support the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and recognizing Somaliland. This article serves as a response to her arguments. A Flawed and Undemocratic Process

Drug Cartels Take Over Mexican Black Market

El Paso, Texas – When drug trade started to take a dip in 2008, the Mexican cartels continued to expand their operation to other lucrative markets. Now they have taken complete control of counterfeiting goods in Mexico, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “It was never something the cartels wanted to get involved (in),” said Oscar Hagelsieb, an assistant special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in El Paso, Texas. “They saw the money they were making -- illicit funds.." The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has intelligence on all drug cartel organizations participating in the black market; however they have seen the most activity among the Los Zetas and Sinaloa Cartel, according to Hagelsieb. He said when one buys counterfeit items linked to drug cartels; it is directly supporting them and their efforts in the war on drugs. Consumers see an item that is cheaper than it initially would be and they think they are getting a great deal.

Mexico's Zetas Allegedly Splinter as New Cartels Proliferate Under Calderon

Since outgoing Mexican President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006 the country's death toll as sky rocketed -- and so has the number of drug cartels operating in the country. According to Mexican news website Sin Embargo, there are 25 drug trafficking organizations operating in the country, up from seven when Calderon assumed the presidency. "Early in the administration of Felipe Calderon, seven criminal groups involved in drug trafficking operated in Mexico: Sinaloa, Juarez, Tijuana, Gulf, Colima, and Oaxaca Millennium, Sin Embargo reported. "Currently, the capture of some leaders, infighting and struggle for territory has created new branches that have spread throughout the country." Despite this growth, Mexico's drug trade is still mostly controlled by two main players: Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's Sinaloa cartel and the ultra-violent Los Zetas. The Zetas, originally the armed, paramilitary wing of the Gulf Cartel, broke away from their

Bomb kills one and injures four in troubled Cauca department

FRIDAY, 24 AUGUST 2012 JOEY O'GORMAN A bomb in Colombia's troubled southwest Cauca department has left one dead and four injured, reported local media on Friday. According to W Radio, locals gave varying accounts of the event. Some reported that the inhabitants of a house were handling the explosives that detonated, while others maintained the bomb went off outside of the house. Violence has plagued the region which has been a hub of FARC guerrilla activity in recent months. The fighting in the north of Cauca is due to the FARC's attempt to maintain control of important drug trafficking routes through the region and to recover territory in neighboring deparments that they lost in 2010 and 2011 when the army launched a major offensive that eventually led to the killing of the FARC's supreme leader, "Alfonso Cano." Cauca's indigenous Nasa people are tired of their ancestral lands being taken over by fighting and they began to take action to regain th

Thousands Occupy Tajik Square Over Violated Truce

Friday, 24 August 2012 KHORUG, Tajikistan -- Several thousand people continued to occupy a central square in Tajikistan's eastern city of Khorug early on August 23, demanding that the government withdraw forces from the area and dismiss the region's top official. The protest started one day earlier after a rebel field commander, who fought against the government in the Tajik civil war of the 1990s, was reported killed by unidentified assailants. Demonstrators have alleged that the killing violated a truce between armed groups and the government that was reached last month after fighting in the Gorno-Badakhshan region left around 70 people dead. Protesters say the continued presence of additional military forces in the area is contributing to tensions. The demonstrators are also demanding the sacking of the top government official in Badakhshan, Kodir Kosim. With additional reporting by Interfax and Source http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/140787/thousands-occupy-t

18 Policemen Injured During Student Protests in Chile

Friday, 24 August 2012 18 police officers were injured, while 140 people were arrested during the recent protests by students in Santiago, Chile. The students demanded better education standards. According to the Chilean law enforcement agencies, 8,000 college and school students took part in simultaneous unauthorized protests in the city’s various districts. To break up the protests, police used tear gas and water cannons, while protesters responded by throwing rocks. Three police officers are said to have been gravely injured. Source http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/140812/-18-policemen-injured-during-student-protests-in-chile.html

Kenya Clashes Death Toll Reaches 52

23 August 2012 At least 52 people were killed in tribal clashes in south-eastern Kenya, police report. Among the casualties are 31 women and 11 children, some of whom were burnt alive. The conflict is said to have arisen over disputed pastures. The clashes in Tana River district which occurred on Tuesday have been the worst incident since the start of violence which has killed over 1,200 people and made some 600,000 flee after disputed 2007 elections. Source http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/140771/-kenya-clashes-death-toll-reaches-52.html

Yemen police arrest 6 Qaeda suspects: official

Yemeni security forces have arrested six suspected members of Al-Qaeda, including a mosque's imam, in the southern city of Aden, a security official said Friday. Police raided a house in the Kraitar neighbourhood of Aden at dawn on Friday and arrested three suspects, the official said, adding that the imam of a mosque in Mansura area was also arrested from his house late on Thursday. Two others were arrested on Thursday following a raid on a house in the neighbourhood of Dar Saad, the official added, requesting anonymity.Security forces have been on heightened alert in Aden following an attack by suspected Al-Qaeda militants Saturday on intelligence headquarters that killed 19 soldiers. Police have set up at least six new checkpoints in the city, an AFP correspondent reported.Al-Qaeda's branch in Yemen exploited the decline in central government control last year that accompanied Arab Spring-inspired protests that eventually forced president Ali Abdullah Saleh to cede pow

Eight militants killed, 2 hideouts destroyed in Orakzai agency

August 24, 2012 At least eight militants were killed and two of their hideouts destroyed in security forces shelling in different areas of lower Orakzai Agency on Friday. According to details, security forces conducted search operation and targeted the hideouts of suspected miscreants in Gawak area of Lower Orakzai Agency with heavy artillery fire. Eight militants were killed in the action while two hideouts were destroyed in the shelling. Local sources said that death toll may rise as several militants were believed to be buried under the rubble of destroyed hideouts. The security forces are continuing search operation in the area but no arrest has been made. Source http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/24-Aug-2012/eight-militants-killed-2-hideouts-destroyed-in-orakzai-agency

Twenty-One Dead in Clashes With Kurdish Rebels

24 August 2012 Friday Five more suspected Kurdish rebels have been reported killed in clashes with Turkish forces in southeast Turkey. Turkish security officials say rebels with the Kurdistan Workers Party attacked a police station and government offices in Semdinli district in the mountainous province of Hakkari, which borders Iraq and Iran. Earlier on August 23, PKK rebels targeted two military posts in Semdinli. The attacks came only hours after government officials said Turkish troops had killed 16 PKK fighters in an offensive targeting militants who killed five soldiers and wounded seven on August 22 in a bomb attack on their convoy in Semdinli. Source http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/140783/twenty-one-dead-in-clashes-with-kurdish-rebels.html

Turkey troops kill 16 Kurdish militants

By: Reuters | August 24, 2012 DIYARBAKIR, Turkey - Turkish troops have killed 16 Kurdish guerrillas in an operation in southeastern Turkey targeting militants who launched a bomb attack on a military convoy that killed five soldiers, the local governor’s office said on Thursday. The clashes are part of a growing cycle of violence in the remote, mountainous province of Hakkari bordering Iraq and Iran - a development which Turkish officials and analysts are linking to the deepening conflict in Syria. The army sent in troop reinforcements and helicopter gunships after Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels detonated remote-controlled bombs in the attack on the army convoy in Hakkari’s Semdinli district on Wednesday. Source http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/international/24-Aug-2012/turkey-troops-kill-16-kurdish-militants

Turkey suspects Syrian regime links as PKK ramps up attacks

Turkey suspects Syrian regime links as PKK ramps up attacks The PKK works hand in hand with Syria's intelligence organization Al-Mukhabarat, Turkey's AKP deputy chairman claims AFP , Friday 24 Aug 2012 A recent increase in Kurdish rebel attacks close to the Turkish-Syrian border is ringing alarm bells in Ankara, as Turkish experts and media say it might point to a spillover from the crisis in Syria. Although the Turkish southeast is a frequent scene of Kurdish rebel attacks, Wednesday's bombing that killed nine people in previously unaffected Gaziantep city has sparked national fury, as well as suspicions of a Damascus hand behind the incident. "It's known that the PKK works hand in hand with Syria's intelligence organisation Al-Mukhabarat," claimed ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy chairman Huseyin Celik following the blast, referring to the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "is inclined to

Syrian army kills dozens of insurgents in Damascus suburb

Fri Aug 24, 2012 The Syrian army has killed dozens of foreign-backed insurgents fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad in a Damascus suburb. Syrian troops also killed a number of insurgents in the flashpoint city of Aleppo on Friday. There are also reports of clashes between government forces and armed groups in Hama and Talkalakh, near the Lebanon's border. Source http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/08/24/257912/dozens-of-insurgents-killed-near-damascus/

None injured in Yala roadside explosion

South Crisis The Nation August 24, 2012 Insurgents continued their attacks on the deep south province of Yala on Friday but the latest incident fortunately caused no injuries. A unit of 12 army personnel was alerted by villagers about a suspicious box on a road in Tanoh Buyoh village in Raman district and rushed to the site in an armoured personnel carrier, said First Lt Kowit Chansuk, the unit's chief. A bomb exploded as the carrier neared the scene, damaging the vehicle's headlights but causing no injuries. The blast blew a pit three metres wide and one metre deep in the road. Kowit said that it was believed that the insurgents used the familiar tactic of placing a suspicious box on the road to lure the soldiers before triggering the explosive. This time, fortunately, the bomb went off before the vehicle arrived at the spot, he said. Source http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/None-injured-in-Yala-roadside-explosion-30189006.html

Twelve NATO supply trucks torched in west Afghanistan

A convoy of trucks carrying supplies to US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan has come under a fiery attack in the country’s western province of Farah. Militants ambushed the convoy on Thursday and set fire to at least 12 vehicles. Three Afghan security guards, who were escorting the trucks, were killed in the attack. Afghan authorities blamed on the Taliban and claimed that the attackers also suffered casualties. The Taliban have yet to comment on the incident. Western Afghanistan is considered more stable than other parts of the country, yet it is rocked by sporadic outbursts of violence. The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan in 2001 as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but years into the invasion, insecurity continues to rise across the country despite the presence of thousands of foreign troops in the war-weary nation. Source http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/08/24/257917/12-nato-trucks-burned-in-af

Over 200,000 Rohingyas flee to Pakistan to avoid repression

Over 200,000 displaced Rohingya Muslims are living in slums in the suburbs of the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi,Press TV reports. The displaced Muslims have been forced to flee Myanmar amid growing concerns over a state-sponsored ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims in the country. The Buddhist-majority government of Myanmar refuses to recognize Rohingyas and classifies them as illegal migrants, although the Rohingyas are said to be Muslim descendants of Persian, Turkish, Bengali, and Pathan origin, who migrated to Myanmar as early as the 8th century. The UN human rights authorities point the finger of blame at Myanmarese security forces that are believed to have been targeting the Muslims rather than bringing the violence to an end. According to reports, thousands of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims are living in dire conditions in refugee camps after government forces and Buddhist extremists started burning down their villages on August 10. The United Nations says decad

Roadside bomb kills 6 civilians in southern Afghanistan

Six people, including three children and two women, have been killed in a roadside bomb explosion in southern Afghanistan, Press TV reports. The victims were killed on Thursday after their car hit the bomb near the city of Spin Buldak of Kandahar Province, bordering Pakistan, a police official said. Roadside bombs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are by far the most lethal weapon Taliban militants use against Afghan forces and foreign troops. Insecurity continues to rise across Afghanistan despite the presence of about 130,000 US-led forces in the country. The US-led war in Afghanistan, which has caused record-high civilian and military casualties, has become the longest military conflict in the American history. Source http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/08/24/257894/bomb-blast-kills-6-afghan-civilians/

Indian congress Government faces Twitter backlash over Internet clampdown

New Delhi: The government faced an angry backlash from Twitter users on Thursday after ordering Internet service providers to block about 20 accounts that officials said had spread scare-mongering material that threatened national security. The backlash came as New Delhi turned up the heat on Twitter, threatening "appropriate and suitable action" if it failed to remove the accounts as soon as possible. Several Indian newspapers said this could mean a total ban on access to Twitter in India but government officials would not confirm to Reuters that such a drastic step was being considered. Twitter, which does not have an office in India, declined to comment. There are about 16 million Twitter users in the South Asian country. The government has found itself on the defensive this week over what critics see as a clumsy clampdown on social media websites - including Google, YouTube and Facebook - that has raised questions about freedom of information in the world's la

Kerala: Pipe bomb in rail track planted for experimental blast

Kottayam: Those who planted the pipe bomb near Railway track at Velloor near Kottayam were trying to conduct an experimental blast and subsequently trigger panic among people, sources close to police told Express. Police suspect that the primary motive of the perpetrators was to spread panic rather than conducting blasts. The pipe bomb was unearthed adjacent to Railway track at Velloor near Kottayam on Thursday. “The bomb was found one and half meter away from the railway track. If the perpetrators wanted to make a blast, they would have put it on the track itself. Besides, they did not set the connections properly. Moreover, the explosives discovered could not have made much damage to trains” said C Rajagopal, superintendent of police. Police do not rule out the possibility of a connection between the incident to the explosion occurred at Ernakulam district collectorate in July 2009, as both the incidents have several palpable similarities. However, only detailed chemical