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Showing posts from September 13, 2015

Turkish jets hit Kurdish militant camps in Iraq, at least 55 killed: sources

At least 55 Kurdish militants were killed when Turkish warplanes pounded camps belonging to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq overnight, security sources said on Saturday. The jets took off from a base in Diyarbakir, in Turkey's southeast, and later returned without damage, the sources said. Source:  http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/turkish-jets-hit-kurdish-militant-camps-in-iraq-at-least-55-killed-sources/article7668434.ece

Pakistan, like world, now moves against terror financiers

LAHORE: The recent arrest of Sheeba Ahmed, an alleged financier of al-Qaeda in the Indian sub-continent, bears ample testimony to the fact that Pakistan has finally realised that money happens to be the lifeblood of terrorism and has started to focus practically on the funding sources of those involved in subversive activities. The action by the Pakistani authorities is certainly belated, but more initiatives of the sort could help the National Action Plan meet its desired targets. Previously, terrorists were getting killed or arrested, but not much was heard with reference to their sponsors and financiers. The world, of course, is far ahead of Pakistan when it comes to tracking and disrupting the funding sources of terrorists. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent and nonpartisan American think tank/publisher, more than $140 million in terrorists’ assets had been frozen in some 1,400 bank accounts worldwide by 2006. The Council on Foreign Rela

Seven reasons for the Syrian refugee crisis in Europe

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Reuters "Europe may be quailing at the numbers trying to get in, but it is as nothing compared to the numbers that Syria’s neighbours have been dealing with." The Syrian war has been going on for four years, but only in 2015 has Europe woken up to the flow of refugees. So why now? It is hard to find definitive reasons, but conversations with Syrians across the migration trail and a survey of recently available data suggest a mixture of reasons. First, the war is not getting any better. That has the dual effect of prompting more Syrians to leave their country and causing Syrians in exile in Turkey to give up hope of returning home. Second, Turkey is not a country for people to stay in the long-term. It has been more receptive than most, taking in about 2 million Syrian refugees. But Syrians don’t have the right to work there legally, so it is not a place to settle. Also, the recent electoral setbacks for the AKP party, perceived as being most in favour of hel

Boko Haram spreading its tentacles of terror

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AP Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau. All you need to know about the Jihadist group that has driven over 2.1 million people from their homes. The jihadist group’s six-year insurgency to create an Islamic state in northeast Nigeria has left 20,000 dead. Its armed fighters have now brought their violence to Nigeria’s neighbours. What is Boko Haram? Boko Haram (which means Western education is forbidden in the Hausa language) is an armed group that opposes secular authority. Founded in 2002, it has been fighting the Nigerian state since 2009. How big is their force? With an estimated 15,000-strong force, the group has launched a fresh wave of violence that has dealt a blow to an operation launched in February by Nigerian troops with the help of Chad, Niger and Cameroon. The four-country offensive had chalked up a number of victories against the jihadists. Who is their leader? Abubakar Shekau, who heads the council of elders called Shura, took power after former

Migrant crossings of Mediterranean to Europe rise to 473,887 in 2015: IOM

A record 473,887 refugees and migrants have crossed the Mediterranean to Europe so far in 2015, the International Organization for Migration said on Friday, including at least 182,000 Syrians - almost 40 per cent of the total. The total represents an increase of almost 9,000 from the total the Geneva-based agency gave on Tuesday. But the rate of increase has slowed. On Tuesday, the IOM said the number of crossings had jumped by more than 32,000 since the previous Friday. Source:  http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/migrant-crossings-of-mediterranean-to-europe-rise-to-473887-in-2015-iom/article7664748.ece?ref=sliderNews

12 Somali soldiers killed in Shebab attack: officials

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MOGADISHU:  Twelve Somali government soldiers have been killed in an attack by Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab militants, officials and witnesses said Saturday. The attack occurred early Friday at a military base in the Yaq-Bariweyne area about 100 kilometres (65 miles) south of the capital Mogadishu. "Several of the militants were also killed during the fighting," said Mohamed Adan, a Somali military official. Witnesses said the militants overran the camp, looted military supplies and then left. "The Shebab fighters took control of the camp and looted everything. The commanders addressed residents of the village, they said the rule of Sharia law will be back soon," said Abdirahman Somow, a local eyewitness. "The Mujahedeen fighters carried out a dawn raid on the Yaq-Bariweyne military camp, nearly fifteen apostate soldiers were killed and a huge amount of military supplies have been taken," the Shebab also said in a brief statement posted on jihadist websites.

Terror victims: Polish right joins eastern EU's anti-migrant camp

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WARSAW:  Poland's conservative party chief who appears poised to win the October general election has ruled out taking in refugees, bolstering the hardline of other eastern EU countries on the migrant crisis. "Do you want us to stop calling the shots in our own country? Poles don't want this," Law and Justice (PiS) party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said this week during a special Polish parliamentary session on the crisis. "We're definitely in favour of helping, but in a safe way. In other words, financially," the right-wing eurosceptic added, insisting Poland should not take in any refugees. The European Union is struggling to cope with the arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants fleeing conflicts in Africa, Asia and the Middle East -- especially Syria. The influx -- the greatest migratory flow in Europe since the end of World War II -- has created a deep rift between western and poorer eastern EU members, with Hungarian Prime Minister V

1 Indian killed, 2 injured in Yemeni attack in Saudi Arabia

One Indian was killed and two others were injured in mortar attacks from Yemen around Samtah General Hospital in Jizan region of Saudi Arabia.  The dead has been identified as Farooq, a mechanic from Kerala while the two injured are Mohd Sadiq from Bihra and Sunny Thomas from Kerala, official sources said on Saturday.  The spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs confirmed the incident on Twitter. The Indian was among four killed when Yemeni Houthi rebels attacked the Samtah hospital early Friday morning, said the officials, adding the injured Indians were not in serious condition. According to reports, the attack was part of Yemen's retaliatory measures against Saudi Arabia over Riyadh's unabated military campaign in the impoverished Arab country. Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition's airstrikes against Yemen's Shiite rebels and their allies have killed 29 people, including civilians, in the capital Sanaa, security and medical officials there said on Saturday. T

Japan’s Parliament votes to allow military to fight overseas for first time since end of Second World War

The parliament in Japan has voted to allow the nation’s military to fight overseas for the first time since the end of Second World War 70 years ago. The president of the Upper House of the Japanese Parliament, Masaaki Yamazaki, said the bills were passed by a 148-90 vote. A vote on the new law was delayed for several hours as the opposition tried to stop the measure coming into force. The Japanese Government has said that changes in the nation’s defence policy are vital to meet new military challenges. The governing coalition has a majority in both chambers of the Japanese Diet, meaning that ultimately the opposition camp was powerless to stop the measure becoming law. Source http://www.financialexpress.com/article/miscellaneous/companies/japans-parliament-votes-to-allow-military-to-fight-overseas-for-first-time-since-end-of-second-world-war/138150/

Qaeda in Syria executes 56 regime troops: monitor

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September 19, 2015 - 1:52:32 pm  Members of Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate and its allies sit on a Syrian army MiG-21 fighter jet after they seized the Abu Duhur military airport on September 9, 2015. BEIRUT: Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate and its Islamist allies have executed at least 56 regime troops at a military airport they recently seized in the northwest, a monitoring group said Saturday. Al-Nusra Front and the Islamists shot dead the regime fighters, who were being held as prisoners, "execution-style" inside the Abu Duhur airport, said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He said the killings in Idlib province had occurred earlier this week but his monitoring group -- which gathers news from sources on the ground -- confirmed them on Saturday. Al-Nusra is a leading member of an alliance of jihadist and Islamist forces called the "Army of Conquest" that overran the Abu Duhur military airport on September 9. When it overran

Israel Ramps Up Security in Jerusalem's Old City after fresh clashes

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Jerusalem:  Israel deployed hundreds of extra police in Jerusalem where clashes broke out after Palestinian leaders called for a 'day of rage' on Friday to protest at new Israeli security measures. Around 800 extra police were posted in the heart of the city and adjacent Arab neighbourhoods, where tensions have been high for the past week, following violent clashes at al-Aqsa Mosque and stone-throwing attacks by Palestinians against Israeli cars. The focus of tension is the compound housing al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock, one of the holiest places in Islam. Jews refer to the area as Temple Mount, where an ancient Jewish temple once stood. It is the most sacred place in Judaism. "The Israeli police have heightened security in and around Jerusalem and the Old City in order to prevent and respond to any incidents that could take place," said spokesman Micky Rosenfeld, adding that undercover units had been deployed. The security and foreign affairs committee of Israel&#

Mastermind of 2013 Maoist massacre of Congress leaders killed

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Congress leader VC Shukla, shot dead by Maoists in 2013  The mastermind of the Maoists' massacre of nearly 30 senior  Congress  leaders, including former Union Minister  VC Shukla  in 2013, was killed in an encounter in Odisha's Malkangiri district on Saturday. Sonadhar, who was the brain-behind the killing of Shukla,  Mahendra Karma  and several other top leaders of Congress in Chhattisgarh on May 25, 2013, was killed along with two of his body guards in Malkangiri district. On a tip-off, a team of Special Operation Group (SOG) and District Voluntary Force (DVF) launched an operation in Bhejaguda forest of Mathili area where they came face to face with a group of ultras, sparking a gunbattle, Malkangiri Superintendent of Police Mitrabhanu Mohapatra said. Three Maoist rebels--Sonadhar, the Darbha (Chhattisgarh) Maoist division area committee Secretary, and his two body guards--were killed in the encounter while several others fled, he said. In the 2013 incident in Chhattisgarh&

Russia sends fighter jets to Syria, raises possibility of confrontation with US amid talks

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Russian troops   Getty Images Russia has sent fighter jets to Syria, US officials said, raising the stakes in a military buildup that has put Washington on edge and led Friday to the first talks between US and Russian defense chiefs in over a year. US Defense Secretary Ash Carter, eyeing the possibility of rival US and Russian air operations in Syria's limited airspace, agreed in a call with his Russian counterpart to explore ways to avoid accidental military interactions. The coordination necessary to avoid such encounters is known in military parlance as "deconfliction." "They agreed to further discuss mechanisms for deconfliction in  Syria  and the counter-ISIL campaign," Pentagon spokesman  Peter Cook  said after the call, referring to the campaign by the US and its allies against Islamic State militants. The former  Cold War  foes have a common adversary in Islamic State militants in Syria, even as Washington opposes Moscow's support for Syrian Presiden