Terrorism Watch

  There is a famous proverb that the enemy of my enemy is my friend and it is, in reality, playing out in Afghanistan right now. As the Afghan Taliban and Beijing get cosy, their opponents -- mainly the isis-k in Afghanistan and terrorists belonging to China's persecuted minority - the Uighurs are joining hands. Source:  https://www.wionews.com/videos/isis-k-terrorists-belonging-to-chinas-persecuted-minority-uighurs-join-hands-419495

Personnel of the Anti-Naxal Squad (ANS) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Friday unearthed at least 10 booby traps allegedly laid by the Maoists in the Mallampeta forest cover on the Andhra Pradesh-Chhattisgarh border in Chintoor Agency. The spot where the traps were found shares a border with Sukma district of Chhattisgarh.  This is said to be the biggest booby trap laid by the Maoists on the tri-State border of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh in recent years.  The ANS was led by Chintoor ASP G. Krishna Kanth and was on a combing operation on the State border.  “The booby trap is believed to be the traditional technique of Gutti Koya tribe of Chhattisgarh. A major tragedy has been averted with their detection,” said East Godavari Superintendent of Police M. Ravindranath Babu.  The Maoists had laid the booby traps by digging trenches, in which they reportedly planted sharp bamboo arrows and covered them with leaves. The security forces found a few hundred sharp bamboo

  Kenya has said it rejected the jurisdiction of the United Nations International Court of Justice (ICJ) ahead of a ruling next week on its long-running maritime border dispute with Somalia. The Horn of Africa neighbours have been feuding for years  over a stretch of the Indian Ocean  claimed by both nations and believed to hold deposits of oil and gas. “In addition to withdrawing its participation from the current case, Kenya … also joined many other members of the United Nations in withdrawing its recognition of the court’s compulsory jurisdiction,” the foreign ministry said on Friday. Kenya announced in March that it would  boycott ICJ hearings  in the case after The Hague-based tribunal refused to allow further delays. The final ruling is due to be delivered on Tuesday. “The delivery of the judgement will be the culmination of a flawed judicial process that Kenya has had reservations with, and withdrawn from,” the foreign ministry said, accusing the court of “obvious and inherent b

  At least 10 people have been reported injured in attacks on an airport in Saudi Arabia’s city of Jazan, near the border with Yemen. The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said the attacks on Friday evening targeted the King Abdullah Airport. Citing a Saudi-led coalition spokesman, SPA said that the first projectile was fired from a drone, shattering the airport’s facade windows and causing injuries. A second explosives-laden drone was intercepted early on Saturday, the coalition added, without giving details on any injuries or damages. Six Saudis, three Bangladeshi nationals and one Sudanese were among those who were injured in the first attack, according to the Reuters news agency. At least five of the victims suffered only minor injuries, while the conditions of the five others were not immediately known. No one has claimed immediate responsibility for the attack, but a number of attacks against Saudi targets recently have been blamed on Yemen’s Houthi forces. The Houthis are fighting a Saud

  Only a few years ago, as Daesh was losing territories of it’s self-proclaimed caliphate, many warned that the fight against Daesh was not over. Indeed, some hotspots of Daesh support remained both in Syria and Iraq. It is currently estimated that more than   10,000   Daesh fighters remain in both countries combined. Furthermore, according to a new United Nations report, Daesh continues to adapt, using new technologies and expanding its presence into some of the world’s most fragile regions. As such, Daesh continues to pose a serious threat to peace and security.   Salvaged books and other items are seen placed around the altar of a church burned and destroyed by  ... [+] Getty Images In August 2021, U.N. counter-terrorism chief Vladimir Voronkov presented the Secretary-General’s  latest report  on the threats posed by Daesh and other terror groups. The report  concludes  that Daesh “continues to exploit the disruption, grievances and development setbacks caused by the pandemic to reg

  The 2021 conference of the   International Initiative for the Promotion of Political Economy (IIPPE)  took place a couple of weeks ago, but only now I have had time to review the many papers presented on a range of subjects relating to political economy.  IIPPE has become the main channel for Marxist and heterodox’ economists to present their theories and studies in presentations.  Historical Materialism conferences also do this, but HM events cover a much wider range of issues for Marxists.  The Union for Radical Political Economy sessions at the annual mainstream American Economics Association conference do concentrate on Marxist and heterodox economics contributions, but IIPPE involves many more radical economists from around the world. That was especially the case this year because the conference was virtual on zoom and not physical (maybe next year?).  But there were still many papers on a range of themes guided by various IIPPE working groups.  Themes included monetary theory,