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Showing posts from January 14, 2018

US-led coalition civilian killings tripled in Iraq, Syria in 2017: Monitor

A British monitoring group says up to 6,000 Syrian and Iraqi civilians were killed in US-led coalition airstrikes in 2017 alone. Airwars, a London-based monitor, estimated that the number of civilian deaths in the two countries surged by 200 percent in 2017 compared to the year before. “In 2017 the war against ISIS (Daesh) moved into the most densely-populated urban centers controlled by the group, with dire results for civilians,” Airwars said. "This toll coincided with the start of the Trump presidency, which has declared the conflict against [Daesh ] to be a 'war of annihilation'," it said. According to Airwars, the coalition conducted almost 11,573 artillery and air strikes, which showed an increase of 50 percent in comparison with the previous year. More than 70 percent of the strikes were in Syria, it added. The group also noted that 766 attacks carried out last year wounded some 2,443 civilians in both countries. The revelations contradict the U

US claims four Shabab militants killed in Somalia strike

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The United States Africa Command has claimed that its airstrikes have killed four members of the al-Shabab militant group in southern Somalia. A statement from the command on Friday said the militants of the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group were killed in an area about 50 kilometers (30 miles) northwest of the port city of Kismayo. Declining to provide further details, Africa Command claimed no civilians were killed in the attack, which it said was undertaken "in coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia." There have been many ambiguities surrounding US drone strikes and bombardments in the rural regions of Somalia, a war-torn country still reeling from more than two decades of militancy. The US military has stepped up its airstrikes in the Horn of Africa nation after getting President Donald Trump’s approval for expanded military operations there. A file photo of al-Shabab militants in the town of Elasha Biyaha, southwest of the Somali capital, Mogadish

China Bans Kids In Its Muslim Regions From Attending Quran Classes And Islamic Education

China has banned Muslim children from attending Quran classes and Islamic education during winter break in a region that has large Muslim population. The district education bureau stated in a notice posted online that school kids in Linxia county in Gansu province, home to 1.6 million Muslims, are prohibited from entering religious buildings over their break. Students must also not read scriptures in classes or in religious buildings, the bureau said, adding that all students and teachers should heed the notice and work to strengthen political ideology and propaganda, reported Reuters though the news agency said it was not able to independently verify it. Advertisement opens in new window The crackdown follows worries over growing Muslim influence in China in recent years, sparked in part by violence in Xinjiang. The Chinese-speaking Hui, who are culturally more similar to the Han Chinese majority than to Uighurs, have also come under scrutiny from some intellectuals, who fea

Turkey ‘determined’ to hit YPG despite US call

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Turkey will carry out a military operation in Afrin in northern Syria, Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli vowed in an interview with private broadcaster A Haber on the morning of Jan. 19. “The threat level against Turkey is increasing day by day. This operation will be carried out and we will combat terrorism,” Canikli said, referring to a long-anticipated operation against the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Afrin, seen by Ankara as organically linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). According to the minister, the Afrin operation should be carried out without delay and Ankara and Moscow will continue talks about Turkey’s planned military action. The United States State Department on Jan. 18 urged Turkey not to take any action in northern Syria, calling on Ankara to remain focused on the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). At a news briefing, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the U.S. wanted Turkey to abstain fr

Gunmen abduct two brothers, five others in Niger

The Niger State Commissioner of Police, Dibal Yakadi, on Firday said gunmen kidnapped seven people in Munya Local Government area of the state. Yakadi in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) said two brothers, Alhaji Garba Yakassai and Alhaji Umar Yakassai and five others were kidnapped on two different occasions. He said that Garba and Umar were kidnapped in a Toyota Corolla car with registration number YAB 669 GB, adding that the car was abandoned on a bush path. Yakadi stated that five passengers in a Toyota Sienna commercial bus were equally suspected to have been kidnapped. According to him, the kidnappers came in the morning with sophisticated weapons, shooting indiscriminately and blocked Minna-Sarkin Pawa road before taking the victims into the bush. He said their identities were yet to be ascertained as special squad, mobile policemen and the police in Sarkin Pawa had been drafted to the bush to rescue the victims. Yakadi, however, called on residen

Hurriyat, terrorists created network to attack all symbols of Indian sovereignty: NIA

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The Hurriyat Conference and terrorists have a network of people throughout the Kashmir Valley who incite youth to attack all symbols of Indian sovereignty, the National Investigation Agency has said. While naming Hafiz Saeed as the mastermind in the terror funding case, the NIA said that he along with Syed Salahuddin incite the youth to attack all symbols of Indian sovereignty, especially Indian security forces who are deployed there for the maintenance of law and order. Under the overall guidance and instructions from Saeed and Salahuddin, the separatist leaders of Jammu & Kashmir and stone-pelters formed strategies and action-plans to launch violent protests and communicate the same to the masses in the form of 'protest calendars' released through newspapers, social media and religious leaders, creating an atmosphere of terror and fear in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. The NIA which is probing the matter filed a detailed charge sheet running in 12,794 pages. Th

41 Somali pirates deported after completing jail term

Captured by Navy and Coast Guard in 2011, the pirates pleaded guilty in 2016 and were sentenced last year. Seven years after they were arrested by the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard in four different anti-piracy operations in early 2011, 41 Somali nationals were on Friday deported to their home country by a charter flight arranged by the Somalian government. A total of 120 Somali nationals were arrested by the Indian maritime authorities as part of a crackdown on Somali pirates attacking cargo vessels in the Somalia basin and the Gulf of Aden from January to March 2011 when such attacks were on the rise. In January, 2011, the Indian Coast Guard had captured 25 Somali pirates and rescued 22 fisherman from Thailand and Myanmar foiling an attempt on the merchant vessel Verdi near Lakshdweep coast. In Feburary, the Indian coast Guard ship Samar with the help of Indian navy vessel Tir had rescued 24 Thai nationals being held hostage by Somalis on the vessel – Prantalaya-II. Similar

Bangladeshi engineer says he incited people to burn down Hindu homes

government engineer in Bangladesh has confessed to inciting crowds to burning down homes of Hindus. He said that he incited the people to attack Hindu homes in Rangpur after rumours that a youth from minority community has published a blasphemous Facebook status, according to a media report. A mob of around 20,000 protesters, from six to seven neighbouring villages, had gathered and set on fire at least 30 houses of Hindus in Thakurpara in Rangpur district, about 300 km from here, on November 10, the bdnews24.com reported. One person was killed while five others were injured when police fired rubber bullets and lobbed tear gas shells to bring the situation under control. Fazlar Rahman, a resident of village Mominpur adjacent to Thakurpara, is one of the five accused who allegedly incited thousands of Muslims to attack the homes and businesses of Hindus, Gangacharha Police Station Sub-Inspector Mister Ali was quoted as saying in the report. Rahman, who is a sub-assistant eng

Over 32,000 Yemenis displaced in 2 months – UN refugee agency

Intensified hostilities in Yemen have forced more than 32,000 people to flee their homes in the past two months, according to the UN’s refugee agency. They join some two million Yemenis already displaced by the war, AFP reported Friday, citing the UNHCR. The arrival of winter in Yemen has added to the hardship of many, particularly those displaced and living in informal settlements exposed to the elements with little protection against the cold, the agency said. Flare-ups in fighting in the rebel-held capital Sanaa, as well as the provinces of Hodeida on the Red Sea and oil-rich Shabwa in the south, had driven the displacements, UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said. Source:  https://www.rt.com/newsline/416433-yemen-displaced-un-refugee/

Pakistan’s ace in poker match with US: Afghan air routes

It's an action that would hurt the US-backed military fight against the Taliban. As bad as President Donald Trump describes US-Pakistani ties today, they can get far worse. Over 16 years that included hundreds of deadly US drone strikes, Osama bin Laden’s killing on Pakistani soil and accusations Pakistan helps insurgents that kill Americans, the reluctant allies never reached one point of no return: Pakistan closing the air routes to Afghanistan. It’s an action that would hurt the US-backed military fight against the Taliban. It could also be tantamount to Pakistan going to war with the United States. Even if such a step is seen as unlikely, Pakistan’s ability to shape the destiny of America’s longest war is a reminder of how much leverage the country maintains at a time Trump is suspending hundreds of millions of dollars in military assistance. Source:  http://indianexpress.com/article/world/pakistans-ace-in-poker-match-with-us-afghan-air-routes-5031278/

Why are Turkey and US risking their ties over a Syrian town?

Two NATO allies, the U.S. and Turkey, which fought together during the Cold War against the Soviet Union, are now seemingly on a collision course, with heavy Russian involvement, because of a Syrian town held by a group that Ankara deems a terrorist organization. The name of the town is Afrin. It is so close to Turkish border that it is within firing range of Turkish border artillery units both from its north and west. The group holding it since shortly after the civil war broke out in Syria in 2011 is the Kurdish secessionist Democratic Unity Party (PYD), the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has been in a fight with Turkey for more than three decades and is also designated as a terrorist group by the U.S. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has been using the PYD’s military wing, the People’s Protection Units (YPG) as its ground force since 2014 against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in eastern Syria, despite strong objections from the Tu

Kerala ISIL recruit dies in Syria: 5th Indian to be killed in Mideast terror war

The Kerala Police on Friday, January 19, received reports that one Abdul Manaf had died in Syria. One more ISIL recruit from Kerala, who went to fight for the Mideast terror outfit in Syria, has died in combat there, making this the fifth such death from the South Indian state. The Kerala Police on Friday, January 19, received reports that one Abdul Manaf had died in Syria. Speaking to  International Business Times, India  Kannur Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) Sadanandan said: "We received the details of Manaf's death from a message that was sent to the Popular Front of India (PFI) from Syria. A Korean friend of Manaf who has been identified as Khayum had sent the message after his death in battle." The police, however, have not been able to verify the authenticity of the message. "Abdul Manaf was a resident of Valapattanam in Kerala and had joined ISIL," said Sadanandan when  IBTimes India  asked about Manaf's place of origin in Kerala.

India joins chemical weapons parts export control bloc Australia Group

Australia Group, an informal bloc of countries that keeps a tight control over exports of substances used in making of chemical weapons, admits India as its 43rd member India, with its admission into the Australia Group, is now part of three of the four key export control groups in the world. Photo: Hindustan Times India was on Friday admitted as the 43rd member of the Australia Group, an informal bloc of countries that keeps a tight control over exports of substances used in the making of chemical weapons.  The move followed the completion of internal procedures of the grouping, Indian foreign ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar told reporters, adding that “the Australia Group decided to admit India as its 43rd member through a consensus decision”. In a separate briefing, Indian foreign ministry officials said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is travelling to Davos next week for the World Economic Forum, will not meet his Pakistani counterpart, Shaid Khaqan Abbasi, on the s

Sexual abuse rife at UN offices, staffers claim

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A file photo of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN Headquarters in New York, on September 23, 2017 (by AFP) Sexual harassment is widespread and there is a culture of impunity for the perpetrators at United Nations offices around the world, staffers at the world body have reportedly claimed. The  Guardian  on Friday reported the results of an investigation that it carried out by interviewing dozens of current and former employees of the UN. Employees working in more than 10 countries spoke to the media outlet on condition of anonymity. Fifteen of those questioned said they had experienced or reported sexual harassment or assault within the past five years. The alleged offences ranged from verbal harassment to rape. Only seven of the women had formally reported what happened. Four current or recent UN employees, including some who did not pursue formal complaints, said they had not been given adequate medical care or counseling.  Three women who reported sexual hara

Ex-Catalan leader says can govern from Belgium

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Catalonia's ousted regional president Carles Puigdemont (C) walks as he holds his first post-election meeting for members of his parliamentary group in Brussels, Belgium, January 12, 2018. (Photo by AFP) Catalonia's former leader Carles Puigdemont, who was sacked by Madrid over his attempt to break from Spain, said Friday he can govern the region from Belgium where he is in self-exile as he eyes a comeback after scoring big in elections. "There are only two options: in prison I would not be able to address people, write, meet people," Puigdemont, who risks arrest on charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds if he returns to Spain, told Catalunya Radio. "The only way is to continue doing it freely and safely." "Nowadays big business, academic and research projects are essentially managed using new technology," he added. His comments came as Catalonia's new parliamentary speaker, Roger Torrent from the pro-independence

Yemeni retaliatory attacks leave eight Saudi soldiers dead

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This file photo shows a Yemeni Houthi Ansarullah fighter dressed in camouflage, and aiming at a position of Saudi troops in southwestern Saudi Arabia. (Photo by the media bureau of Yemen’s Joint Operations Command Center) At least eight Saudi soldiers have been killed when Yemeni army soldiers and fighters from allied Popular Committees launched separate attacks in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern border regions of Jizan, Najran and Asir as they continue their retaliatory raids against Riyadh regime’s aerial bombardment campaign. A Yemeni military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arabic-language al-Masirah television network that Yemeni forces and their allies fatally shot five soldiers just outside Hamezah village of Jizan, located 967 kilometers southwest of the capital Riyadh, and al-Shabakah military camp on Friday afternoon. Later in the day, Yemeni army forces shot and killed two other Saudi soldiers in Raqabat al-Zour military base of Najran region, located 844

Terror outfit Hezbollah among most effective forces fighting terror in Mideast claims Nasrallah

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Secretary General of the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, delivers a televised speech from the Lebanese capital city of Beirut on January 19, 2018. The secretary general of the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement has described his group as one of the most effective forces in the fight against terrorism across the Middle East region. Speaking at a ceremony marking the martyrdom anniversary of Hezbollah fighters in Syria’s southwestern Quneitra region on Friday afternoon, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah stated that the sacrifices made by Hezbollah martyrs were behind all victories over US-Israeli plots in the region. He noted that the United States has long sought to designate Hezbollah as a terrorist outfit, and has even leveled unsubstantiated allegations of involvement in drug trafficking against the resistance movement. Nasrallah then advised US statesmen to launch a full-scale investigation into the drug-related activities of their own intelligenc

Afrin operation should start with no delay: Turkish defense chief

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Turkish Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli says no troops have gone into Syria's Kurdish-controlled Afrin region but the operation has started "de facto" with cross-border shelling. Canikli said in an interview with broadcaster AHaber Friday that Turkey was developing weapons systems against anti-tank missiles used by US-backed YPG militants.  He said the planned military operations in the northwestern Syrian region should be carried out with no delay to purge the territories of what he called terrorist elements. Amid its rising tensions with the US, Turkey said Thursday it would seek Russia’s approval for the operation as the country's Chief of Staff Hulusi Akar traveled to Moscow for negotiations. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Akar’s trip was part of boarder efforts by Ankara to coordinate the campaign with Russia. He said the presence of Russian observers in Afrin was an issue that has to be discussed ahead of the operation. “When we carry out

Rohingya Refugee Leaders Draw up Demands Ahead of Repatriation

The petition demanded the Myanmar government publicly announce it is giving Rohingya long-denied citizenship and inclusion on a list of the country's recognised ethnic groups. It asks that land once occupied by the refugees be returned to them and their homes, mosques and schools rebuilt. Cox's Bazar:  Rohingya leaders in a Bangladesh refugee camp have drawn up a list of demands they want Myanmar to meet before authorities begin sending back hundreds of thousands in a repatriation process expected to begin next week and last for two years. The petition is the latest indication of the challenges ahead for Bangladesh and Myanmar as they try to engineer the return of refugees who fear continued military operations in Rakhine State and are dismayed about the prospect of a prolonged stay in "temporary camps" in Myanmar when they go back. A half-dozen Rohingya elders, saying they represented 40 villages from Rakhine, showed the list of demands to a Reuters reporter

Hafiz Saeed is Mastermind of 26/11 Attacks, Should be Prosecuted to Fullest Extent of Law: US

Abbasi, during an interview to Geo TV on Tuesday, referred to Saeed as 'sahib' or 'sir'. "There is no case against Hafiz Saeed sahib in Pakistan. Only when there is a case can there be action," Abbasi said when asked why there was no action against Saeed. Reacting strongly to the comments, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said the US believes that Saeed should be prosecuted and they have told Pakistan as much. "We believe that he should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. He is listed by the UNSC 1267, the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee for targeted sanctions due to his affiliation with Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is a designated foreign terror organisation," Nauert told reporters at her daily news conference yesterday. "We have made our points and concerns to the Pakistani government very clear. We believe that this individual should be prosecuted," Nauert said. Responding to a question, Nauert said the US has "