Terrorist Activities in Pakistan
Bomb/IED Blasts
The chief of a local peace committee, Dilawar Jan, was killed in a bomb blast at Suri Pao village in Maidan area of Lower Dir District on August 10, reports Dawn. Dilawar Jan was returning from a mosque after Fajr prayer when the remote-controlled blast occurred, killing him on the spot. Dilawar Jan had been heading the peace committee since 2009 and was active in efforts against militants.
A Police Official was killed and another was injured in a bomb explosion in Gawalmandi Chowk of Quetta on August 11, reports Dawn. No outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack.
An intense explosion has taken place at Punjab Home Minister Colonel (Retd) Shuja Khanzada’s political office, leaving three people dead on August 16, reports The Dawn. The impact of the blast caused a roof collapse of the building and shattered windows in nearby houses. According to initial reports, an estimated 20 to 25 people have been buried under rubble as the entire structure has been destroyed. The Punjab Home Minister’s staff has confirmed that Khanzada was in the office at the time of the blast, and has been injured. The Punjab Home Minister’s son Sohrab Khanzada also told that Khanzada was buried under the rubble.
Two persons, identified as Syed Qabil and Noor Khan, sustained injuries when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off near a shrine in Lakar Baba area of Tirah valley in Khyber Agency on August 16, reports The News.
Further, a bomb blast occurred at the football ground at the Government High School in Landikotal tehsil (revenue unit) of Khyber Agency on August 16, reports The News. However, no casualty was reported. Sources said that the blast took place 20 minutes after a football match of the Independence Sports Festival was stopped and spectators left the ground due to heavy rain. He said the bomb was of high intensity as it smashed window glasses of a few homes nearby.
At least three people including two tribal elders, identified as Malik Dawakhan and Haji Kareem were killed and two others injured in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast in the Arang area of Bajaur Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on August 22, reports Dawn. Initially, three others were injured, however, one of them succumbed to injuries in the hospital.
Targetted Killings
An Imambargah (Shia place of commemoration) trustee, identified as Syed Rais Jafferi was shot dead while he was on his way to Central Prison to attend a court hearing near Martin Quarters in PIB Colony in Karachi on July 25, reports Dawn. “It appeared to be a sectarian killing and police are probing as to whether the same suspects targeted him,” said the senior Police Officer. Jafferi had survived an attempt on his life in 2013 in Rizvia Society.
Unidentified militants killed a Police constable in Surkhab area of Pishin District on July 26, reported Dawn. District Police Officer (DPO) Abdul Hayee Amir said. A search operation had been launched in the area to arrests the militants involved in the attack and some suspects had also been detained. No outfit claimed responsibility for the attack.
Two Policemen and a woman were killed when unidentified militants attacked the convoy of Superintendent of Police (SP) Zahoor Afridi on Sariab Road area in Quetta on July 27, reports Dawn. One militant was also killed in retaliatory fire, said Quetta Police Chief Abdul Razzaq Cheema. No outfit claimed responsibility for the attack.
At least two people, identified as Raz Muhammad and Muhammad Tahir, were killed when unidentified armed assailants opened fire at a vehicle on Sabzal Road in Quetta on July 28, reports Dawn. Police and other law enforcement personnel reached the spot and cordoned off the area Security officials termed the shooting an act of targeted killing.
Two bullet-riddled dead bodies of abducted men, identified as that of Ajmal Khilji and Sohaib Hayat were found dumped in bushes near the Khuda Ki Basti area in Kotri town of Dadu District on July 29, reports Dawn. Khilji’s brother, Mohammad Anwar said that some unknown persons in a double-cabin vehicle had abducted Khilji from outside his oil shop at Kali Mori some seven months ago. Hayat’s uncle Ashraf Samoon told that Hayat had been heading a seminary until he went missing some six months back.
A lawyer, identified as Ashfaq Qaimkhani, while his friend Rifaat Zaidi was injured when unidentified armed assailants opened fire on his car near Mian University Road in Gulshan Town, Karachi on August 3, reported Daily Times.
Separately, a man, identified as Rashid was shot dead by unidentified militants in Sector 5-A 1, New Karachi Town on August 3, reports Daily Times.
Elsewhere, an unidentified dead body of man was found near Landhi Railway Station in Landhi Town on August 3, reported Daily Times.
A man, identified as Muzamil was killed by unidentified armed assailants at Bengali Para locality in Ibrahim Haidery area of Korangi Town in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh on August 5, reports Daily Times.
Separately, one Shehzad was killed and another Bilal (24), was injured when unidentified armed assailants opened fire at them near KMC Quarters in Pak Colony area of Orangi Town on August 5, reported Daily Times.
One Policeman identified as Abdul Qayyum Rajput was killed and another, identified as Abdul Fatah was injured when unidentified militants attacked on Abdul Haque Jamali Police check post in Shaheed Benazirabad District (also known as Nawabshah District) on August 6, reports Dawn. The assailants took possession of government-issued arms and ammunition from them, said Police sources. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pervaiz Umrani said the unknown assailants were hiding in fields near the scene of the crime. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in an email claimed responsibility for the attack on the Nawabshah check post.
A man, identified as Shahid (45), was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in New Karachi Town of provincial capital Karachi on August 6, reports Daily Times.
Separately, a man, identified as Shani (25), was shot dead by unidentified militants near Ghee Factory, 100 Quarters in Koarangi-3 area of Korangi Town on August 6, reported Daily Times.
In another incident, a man, identified as Amir (34), was shot dead in Cantt Bazaar area of Drigh Road in Shah Faisal Town on August 6, reports Daily Times.
At least four Policemen were killed when unidentified militants opened fire on a Police mobile van in Zaman Town locality of Korangi Town in Karachi on August 12, reports Dawn. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Korangi Naeem Ahmed Sheikh said that Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Aqeel and three other cops died on the spot.
Separately, an unidentified man was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants near Taskeen Cafe in Chishti Nagar of Orangi Town on August 12, reported Daily Times.
In another incident, a man, Shah Jahan (32), was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in Saido Lane, Street 7 of Lyari Town on August 12, reports Daily Times.
A tribal elder, Ali Muhammad Hassani, was killed along with his son and two other colleagues when unidentified militants opened fire at his convoy in Jorri Cross area of Surab tehsil (revenue unit) in Kalat District on August 12, reported Dawn. Three persons were also injured in the attack. Hassani was travelling from Kalat to Kharan District.
The Deputy Secretary of the Ahl-e Sunnat Wal Jama’at (ASWJ), Dilshad Moavia (40), was shot dead in a sectarian attack near Noorani restaurant in Orangi Town, Karachi on August 18, reported Dawn.
Elsewhere, the driver of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader and Member National Assembly (MNA) Rashid Godil, identified as Abdul Mateen, was shot dead while Godil sustained injuries injured when unidentified militants opened fire at his car came in Bahadurabad area of Gulshan Town on August 18.
In another incident, an activist of MQM, identified as Rahim, was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in Orangi Town on August 18, reports The Express Tribune.
An Ahmadi, identified as Ikram Ullah was shot dead by four unidentified militants in a sectarian attack in Taunsa town of Dera Ghazi Khan District on August 20, reported Dawn.
At least four dead bodies of abducted labourers working on a project of the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor were found in the Dasht area of Turbat District on August 23, reports The News. They had been abducted along with their vehicle in Dasht area on August 21, 2015.
Separately, at least four Policemen, including an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), were killed when unidentified armed assailants opened fire on a patrolling Police van in Pashtoonabad area of provincial capital Quetta on August 23 Tribune.
In another incident, one Frontier Corps (FC) trooper, identified as Muhammad Rehman, was killed and two others were injured when unidentified militants opened indiscriminate fire on them near a petrol station on Sariab Road of Quetta on August 23.
Elsewhere, an unidentified shopkeeper was shot dead in Hazar Ganji area of Quetta on August 23, reports The News.
An unidentified man, aged about 30, was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in Industrial Area of New Karachi Town in Karachi on August 24, reported Daily Times.
A man, identified as Kajloo, and his son, Ghazi, were killed in a roadside blast in Khalid Brohi village near Tingwani area of Sukkur District on August 25, reported The News.
Separately, a man, identified as Muhammad Saleem (28), was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants near 100 Quarters in Korangi Town, Karachi on August 25, reported Daily Times. In addition, a Policeman, identified as Ibrahim (40), was killed and another, identified as Muhibullah (33), was injured when unidentified armed assailants opened fired on them near Empress Market, reports Daily Times.
Unidentified motorcyclists shot dead a prominent religious scholar, Maulana Sheraman, a resident of North Waziristan Agency, near Abu Samra locality under the limits of Yarak Police Station in Dera Ismail Khan town on August 25, reports The News.
Miscellaneous
A Pakistani man, identified as Iqbal Baig, who was an employee at the United States Embassy in Islamabad was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in G-9/1 area of Islamabad on July 25, reports The News.
A Police Constable and a militant were killed while three other Policemen were injured during an encounter on Jaranwala Road at People’s Colony in Faisalabad District on July 28, reports Dawn. Police said they recovered 10 hand grenades, two Kalashnikovs, four pistols and live bullets from the vehicle which was recovered.
At least 35 suspected persons including an important militant ‘commander’ were arrested in an operation in the Malikabad area of the Swabi District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on July 28, reports The News.
Police killed five Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militants in a shootout during checking in Zia Colony of Orangi Town in Karachi on July 29, reported The News. A Mominabad Police team was patrolling when they saw some suspects in a Hi-roof van. When the Police signalled the van driver to pull over, the suspects opened fire. As the Police retaliated, more companions of the terrorists who were coming behind the van on a motorcycle attacked the Police, wounding Police Constable (PC) Naseem. After the encounter ended, five suspects were arrested in an injured condition but their accomplices escaped under the cover of darkness. A ready-to-use IED weighing about four kilograms was found from the van. Explosive material, a detonating cord, nut bolts, nails, batteries, three TT pistols, a Kalashnikov, hand grenades, ball bombs and some other explosives were recovered.
Sindh Rangers killed at least four terrorists during an operation at Super Highway near Kathore area in Gadap Town of Karachi on July 30, reported The News. Rangers’ spokesman said that the paramilitary force also recovered arms from their possession.
At least four suspected terrorists were killed during an operation carried out by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in Manghopir area of Gadap Town in Karachi on August 2, reported Daily Times. The CTD officials recovered weapons, ammunitions, a hand grenade and a stolen motorcycle, from their possession.
A leader of the ruling National Party (NP) and a Member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA), Haji Islam Baloch, and his family survived a rocket-and-gun attack near Pattak area of Besima tehsil (revenue unit) while he was travelling to Quetta from Panjgur District on August 5, reports Dawn.
Eleven militants, including a commander, were killed and several others sustained injuries during a clash with the Security Forces (SFs) in the Isparkat area of Dogar subdivision in Kurram Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on August 6, reports The News.
Unidentified militants opened fire at a Karachi bound passenger coach coming from Mand town of Kech District (known as Turbat District) on August 9, reported The News.
Separately, Security Forces (SFs) arrested seven Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militants during a search operation in Dalbandin city of Chagai District on August 9, reports Dawn. An official confirmed the arrests.
Three ‘terrorists’ suspected of affiliation with the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) were killed, while one other was injured in an exchange of fire with Rangers personnel during an operation near the Ismael Shah Mazar area on August 15, reports The Dawn. Those killed were identified as Zahid, Nasir and Habib, alias Fauji. Their accomplice, Allahi Buksh, alias Guddu, was injured, said a Rangers press release. The statement said the paramilitary force was conducting ‘surgical action’ on suspected hideouts of ‘BLA terrorists’.
More than 40 militants were killed and many others injured in ground and aerial offensives launched by Security Forces (SFs) in Shawal Valley area of North Waziristan Agency on August 16, reports Daily Times. According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a large number of militants fleeing the military operation in other parts of NWA are believed to have taken refuge in Shawal Valley.
The Security Forces (SFs) claimed to have killed 65 militants in air strikes in the North Waziristan Agency (NWA) and the Khyber Agency on August 17, reports The News. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that as many as 50 militants were killed in precise air strikes in the Shawal and Gharlamai areas of NWA.
At least 25 militants were killed in military air strikes in Shawal area of North Waziristan Agency on August 19, reported The News, quoting two intelligence officials. “Jet air bombing destroyed five militant hideouts and killed 25 militants,” said one of the two officials who confirmed the death toll. However, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan ‘spokesman’ Ehsanullah Ehsan said the air strikes had not killed any militants.
The Police averted a terror attack on August 21 when it arrested a wanted terrorist from Haji Camp area of Peshawar and recovered 11 kilogrammes of explosives from his possession, reports Dawn. According to the details provided by Special Police Force, the wanted terrorist Waheedullah was arrested after intelligence agencies shared information regarding his whereabouts. Police also claimed to have recovered an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), which was fitted inside a water cooler, from the possession of the arrested terrorist. The Police sources further claimed that Waheedullah has confessed to his involvement in six terror attacks in Bara, Khyber Agency, which had resulted in the deaths of 42 security personnel.
Six militants and two security personnel, one of them an officer, Lieutenant Colonel Faisal Malik, were killed during a clash with the militants in Shawal Valley of North Waziristan Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) on August 24, reports The News.
The ‘chief’ of Jundullah, an anti-Shia splinter group of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Qari Ghulam Hazrat alias Abu Huzaifa, was killed along with his three ‘commanders’ in an air strike on August 24 in Chardara District of Kunduz Province, reports The News. The National Directorate of Security (NDS) confirmed the killing of Huzaifa and three of his accomplices. The NDS said that the group was also involved in violence in Afghanistan.
PAKISTAN
LEJ Chief and sons killed
Malik Ishaq, ‘chief’ of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), his two sons Usman and Haq Nawaz, and 11 others were killed in an alleged exchange of fire with Police in Shahwala area of Muzaffargarh District on July 28 reported Dawn. At least six Policemen were injured in the encounter. According to details, Ishaq and his sons were arrested by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) a week ago. Following their arrest, the Police had interrogated them and had subsequently taken them to Shahwala in Muzaffargarh District to aid the Police in identifying suspected militants, sources in the CTD said. The encounter appears to have taken place as militants attacked Security Forces and tried to free Ishaq who was killed in the ensuing exchange of fire.
Banned outfits collecting funds for terrorism booked, Punjab Government tells Supreme Court
In a bid to curb terror financing, the Punjab Government booked a number of banned organisations for illegally collecting funds from the public in different Districts of the Province, reported Dawn on July 30 (today). The cases have been registered against Al-Rasheed Trust (Maymar Trust) and Al-Rehmat Trust in Multan, Ansarul Ummah, Sipa-i-Sahaba and Tehreek-e-Ghulbai-e-Islam in Bahawalpur and Jaish-e-Muhammad in Gujranwala.
The accused involved in illegal collection of funds have been arrested and investigations are in progress. The two-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja had taken up a case relating to activities of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). The matter cropped up during the June 23, 2015, hearing of a bail application of Haroonur Rashid who had been booked for alleged fraud in a business transaction. During the case, it emerged that the parties involved had invested in a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-based NGO ‘Baraan’ which was registered in Peshawar but had spread its activities to Tank, Bannu and D.I. Khan.
Law, order not purely home-grown problem, says Balochistan IGP Mohammad Amlish Khan
The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammad Amlish Khan, said that law and order situation in the Province is not purely a home-grown problem because criminal elements from Iran, Afghanistan and Sindh often penetrate into Balochistan, reports Dawn. He said that Police with the help of other law-enforcement agencies (LEAs) had recently made a breakthrough by eliminating the provincial leadership of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ). The development has had a positive effect on the law and order situation in the Province.
Talking to journalists, he said: “Balochistan Police have been confronting the challenge of terrorism for years. The Province has borders with Iran, Afghanistan and Sindh from where terrorists, militants and criminals enter Balochistan. Because of limited financial sources, Police cannot monitor the entry of all such people into Balochistan.” He said top leaders of LeJ in the Province, including Osman Saifullah, had been killed and their accomplices arrested in the recent intelligence-driven joint operations of Police and other LEAs.
Further, he said that militant organisations such as Jaish-e-Islam had stepped up their activities in the Province after the signing of an agreement to build China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which would pass through the province. “Several militant organisations have formed a joint network to carry out terrorist activities in the province,” he added.
NAP led to killing of over 20,000 terrorists, reveals official documents
More than 20,000 terrorists were killed up to July 13, 2015, as a result of implementation of National Action Plan (NAP), revealed official documents, The News reported on July 31. The documents obtained by The News pertain to the implementation of NAP in which it has been claimed that 3,148 terrorists were apprehended from across Pakistan while 1,799 individuals were held over charges of hate speech. As many as 3,446 persons were identified for having links with banned outfits. More than 100 Madrassah (seminaries) have been shut down so far, the documents also disclosed.
Insurgency dying in Balochistan , says Commander Southern Command Lieutenant General Muhammad Nasir Khan Janjua
The Commander Southern Command Lieutenant General Muhammad Nasir Khan Janjua on July 31 said that the insurgency in Balochistan was going to end and now people would fully enjoy peace in their region, reports The News. The people engaged in the insurgency have now realised they had adopted a wrong path, while the Frontier Corps and intelligence agencies are united in their actions against terrorists and anti-peace elements, he said. He was speaking during a high-level meeting that decided to form a new force, comprising 1,100 personnel for Gwadar Safe City Project and to allocate PKR two billion for it besides taking more measures for the security of Chinese engineers working in Balochistan.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police have sacrificed 1,133 Policemen since 2006
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Police have sacrificed the most number of cops during the last almost 10 years and they include officers up to the rank of Additional Inspector General (Add IG) down to constables, says Assistant Inspector General (AIG) Establishment Fida Hassan Shah on July 31, reports The News. “As many as 1,133 Policemen have been killed in the attacks all over the province since January 2006,” Fida Hassan Shah said. A total of 1,508 Policemen were killed in various kinds of attacks in the province since 1971.The increase in violence in KP in recent years could be gauged from the fact that the Police casualties remained 375 in 35 years from 1971 to 2005, but the figure shot up to 1,133 in less than a decade.
All those Police killed during the period were hit by suicide attackers, their cars and police stations were bombed and fell victim to target killing and rocket attacks as the violence increased in the province in 2006. The worst year was 2009 when 207 cops were killed, followed by 176 in 2008, 148 in 2011, 127 in 2013, 109 in 2010, 108 in 2007 and 101 in 2014. As many as 31 Policemen have been killed in attacks in 2015 so far.
TTP militants involved in twin Lahore Church attacks arrested in Punjab
Punjab Home Minister Shuja Khanzada on August 4 said that the Police arrested five Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militants for their involvement in the twin suicide attacks that targeted two Churches in Youhanabad area of Lahore District on March, 14, 2015, reports Dawn. “Police have arrested five suspects who were involved in Youhanabad attacks, a bomb attack in Model Town area and another attack in Qila Gujjar Singh area of Lahore,” Shuja Khanzada, Home Minister of Punjab said. “They belonged to the splinter group of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Shehryar Mehsud group and had been coordinating attacks inside Pakistan from Afghanistan,” Khanzada said, adding, “They planned these attacks in Afghanistan and then came to Lahore. They were provided suicide vests and other materials here in Lahore for the attack.”
HUI-S chief Samiul Haq announces support to Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour
Jama’at Ulema-e-Islam-Sami (JUI-S) chief and administrator of the Dar-ul-Uloom Haqqania, Maulana Samiul Haq along with other teachers of the seminary on August 5 announced support to the new leader of the Afghan Taliban Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, reports The News. The announcement was made in a ceremony at the start of the new academic year at the Darul Uloom Haqqania on Wednesday. Hundreds of Ulema and clerics from Afghanistan also attended the event.
Maulana Samiul Haq urged the Afghan Taliban to set aside their differences and extend cooperation to Mulla Akhtar Mansour for the cause of Taliban and Islam. He said that unity among the ranks of Mujahideen (holy warriors) was needed at this critical juncture when foreign forces were still present in Afghanistan. He said that differences among the Taliban leaders would encourage the enemies of Islam to hatch conspiracies against the Muslim world.
20 suspects arrested during search operations in seminaries in Punjab
The Counter-Terrorism Department, Police and intelligence officials carried out joint search operations in seminaries of Multan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Bahawalpur Districts on August 6 and arrested 20 suspects, reports Dawn.
Multan City Police Officer Azhar Ikram led the search operation in the city and Chungi No 9. The spate of raids on seminaries is to bust militants, if any, from seminaries. The Police Officer said that entire area was sealed before starting the operation while pickets were raised at several intersections and along roads for random searches. The seminaries of banned organisations, those on the fourth schedule and the workers of banned organisations were also searched, he said. A house-to-house search was conducted to seize illegal weapons and explosives and people living in these localities illegally were detained. He said 20 people were arrested and 20 Kalashnikovs seized from seminaries and houses.
30 suspected seminaries closed: Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan
Federal Minister of Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on August 9 said in an official report on the implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) against terrorism and extremism that Law-Enforcement Agencies have so far placed 30 religious seminaries in the “suspect” category which have been closed, reports Dawn. Two of the suspect seminaries were from Punjab, 15 from Sindh and 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. No seminary in Balochistan has been placed in this category since the launch of the NAP in December 2014.
Although the report does not explain in so many words what is meant by suspected madaris, a senior official involved in the implementation of the NAP said that suspect seminaries are the ones that have some direct or indirect connections with militants or their activities. According to the report, Sindh is the only Province which has taken concrete action and has so far closed 72 unregistered seminaries. No such action has been reported from the other three Provinces.
There is close connection between PPP and Uzair Baloch
Shahzeb Khanzada in his television program on Geo Television on August 11 revealed the close relation between Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Lyari Gang War ‘chief’ Uzair Jan Baloch, who is the leader of People’s Amn Committee (PAC), reports The News. He revealed that symbol of terror in Karachi the leader of the Lyari Gang War, Uzair Baloch had finalised the names of the candidates of PPP for contesting the 2013 elections from many constituencies of Karachi. All of these candidates took the oath of allegiance with Uzair Baloch and not the party.
A number of special videos depicting strong and close connections of PPP and Uzair Baloch in the program, which had never been seen earlier, were shown. One of these videos showed Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and other important leaders of the PPP attending a reception Uzair Baloch had hosted immediately after the oath-taking ceremony. There had been report of such links between the PPP and PAC, but PPP always refuted the reports.
Terrorists operating 3,000 websites to propagate nefarious agenda in Pakistan, says Federal Government
The Government on August 13 revealed that terrorist organisations are operating around 3,000 websites to promote their nefarious agenda in the country, reports Dawn. This was disclosed by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmaker Tahir Iqbal during the meeting of the sub-committee of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication. The committee met to re-examine the proposals received on the ‘Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill, 2015’ at the Parliament House.
Iqbal said that the Government wants to finalise the ‘Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill, 2015’ as soon as possible, since it was demanded by Law Enforcement Agencies to implement the National Action Plan (NAP) in accordance. The participants discussed the offences and punishments included in the ‘Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill, 2015’ including glorification of an offence and hate speech, unauthorised use of identity information, unauthorised interception, offences against dignity of natural person, cyber stalking, spamming, spoofing, retention of traffic data, power to manage intelligence and issue directions for removal or blocking access to any intelligence through any information system.
Punjab Home Minister killed in suicide attack
Two suicide attackers on August 16 killed Punjab Home Minister Colonel (retd) Shuja Khanzada and at least 20 other people, after detonating a bomb at a meeting the Minister was attending in the village of Shadi Khan in Attock District of Punjab, reports The News. Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Hazara Circle Shaukat Shah was also killed in the incident. 23 others persons were also injured. Khanzada (71) had been holding a meeting with local people who had come to express their condolences on the death of his cousin. “There were two suicide bombers. One stood outside the boundary wall and the second one went inside and stood in front of the minister,” Mushtaq Sukhera, Provincial Police Chief said. “The blast by the bomber standing outside destroyed the wall which caused the roof to fall on the minister and the people gathered there,” he added. Khanzada used to visit his home every week to listen to the problems of the people of his constituency. Khanzada had been a member of the Punjab Assembly since 2002 and an active member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
Meanwhile, a Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan-affiliated militant group, Lashkar-e-Islam, (LI) claimed responsibility for the attack and said it was retaliation for military operations against them in Khyber Agency. However it was unclear if LI had actually carried out the attack or was just taking credit for it.
Separately, Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif pledged on August 16 that the terrorists would be chased to their last hideout and eliminated with national resolve and unity, reports Daily Times. While eulogising Punjab Home Minister Shuja Khanzada, the PM said that the sacrifices of the brave nation and valiant heroes like Shuja Khanzada would decimate the designs of coward terrorists. He said that the courage and valour of Khanzada was a message to the terrorists that they were bound to be defeated. Nawaz expressed his deep grief and sorrow over the killing of Khanzada, said a press release issued by the PM’s House.
28 militants surrender in Balochistan
Four leaders of Baloch Republican Army (BRA) surrendered and handed over their arms to the authorities in the presence of Provincial Home Minister Mir Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti and Home Secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani at the Quetta Press Club in Quetta on August 18, reported Dawn. They were identified as Abdul Sattar Masoori Bugti, Iftikhar Bugti, Najeebullah Bugti and Idrees Rind. The Minister described the surrender as a big achievement of the Government because the men were said to be the “right hand of Barhamdagh Bugti”. He said they had abandoned the armed struggle against the state and decided to join the mainstream. Now they would work for the development and prosperity of the country, especially Balochistan, he added. Sattar Masoori said he went to Afghanistan in 2006 and spent most of his time in Nimruz province. He said the BRA had set up 20 to 30 camps in Sobatpur, Panjgur, Khuzdar, Dera Bugti and other areas. He claimed that the Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) and Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) were behind funding and training of the BRA militants. The RAW and NDS personnel trained BRA militants in its camps, he said, adding that providing arms and ammunition and transport were also their responsibility.
Separately, 24 BRA and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants, including one militant leader, identified as Hamal, handed over their arms to the Frontier Corps (FC) officials in the presence of Health Minister Rehmat Saleh Baloch in Panjgur District on August 18, reports Dawn. Official sources said the surrendered militants announced that they were abandoning the armed struggle against the state and would join the mainstream.
REGIONAL
Bangladesh – Internal Dynamics
PBCP ‘regional’ leader shot dead in Kushtia
Palash Malitha, a ‘regional leader’ of Purbo Banglar Communist Party was killed during a gunfight with Police in Khamarpur village of Kushtia District on July 25, reports The Daily Star. Police recovered a firearm, three bullets and three sharp weapons from there.
8 JMP militants arrested in Dhaka city
Eight militants of Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh were arrested by Police in Dhaka city’s Uttara area when they were in a meeting over organizational activities on July 27, reports The Daily Star. The arrestees are Abu Talha Mohammad Fahim Pakhi, acting ameer (chief) of JMB, Shafiqul Islam, Ruhul Amin, Imdadul Haque, Rafique Ahmed Royel, Mohammad Mostafa, Shakhawat Ullah and Ali Ashraf Rajib. Police said that the suspects had planned to snatch Maulana Saidur Rahman, former ameer of JMB, and Mufti Jasimuddin Rahmani, chief of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT).
Secular blogger Niladri Chattopadhyay Niloy hacked to death in Dhaka city
On August 7, 2015, Niladri Chattopadhyay Niloy alias Niloy Neel, a secular blogger and a Gonojagoron Mancha (People’s Resurgence Platform) activist was hacked to death at his Goran house in Khilgaon area of Dhaka city in broad daylight, reports The Daily Star. Later in the evening, a group identifying itself as Ansar Al Islam, Bangladesh chapter of Al-Qaeda in the Indian Sub-continent (AQIS), claimed the responsibility for the murder in an email sent out to almost all media outlets. In the email, the group said: “Alhamdulillah! Mujahidin of Ansar-Al-Islam (AQIS, Bangladesh Branch) carried out an operation to slaughter an enemy of Allah and His Messenger (peace & blessings be upon him), whose name is Niloy Chowdhury Neel.”
Meanwhile, Police on August 7 arrested Hefajat-e-Islam (HeI) Nayeb-e-Ameer (Deputy Chief) Mufti Izharul Islam Chowdhury in Chittagong city of Chittagong District in connection with a blast on October 8, 2013, reports The Daily Star.
On October 7, 2013, a powerful explosion took place in a room of a student dormitory of his Al Jamiatul Ulum Al Islamia Madrasa, killing three people. After the incident, Police recovered four homemade grenades and a large amount of bomb-making materials from the Madrasa. The next day, a case was lodged under the Explosive Substances Act with Khulshi Police Station. Izhar and his son Harun Bin Izhar were made the prime accused. Two other cases, including one for murder, were also filed in connection with the blast incident.
HuT Chittagong city unit organizer arrested in Chittagong District
Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT) leader was arrested from Dev Pahar area of Chittagong city in Chittagong District on August 9, reports New Age. The arrestee was identified as Sohan Yasir Iqbal, an MBA student of Chittagong University and an organizer of Chittagong city unit HuT. Police recovered a laptop, a printer and other valuables from his procession. The arrestee confessed to Police that at least 200 HuT leaders and activists were active in Chittagong University and Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology.
Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen issues death threats to 19 distinguished people
Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen, a sub-organization of Taliban that was never before heard of, in a letter sent to online news outlet bdnews24.com on August 12 issued death threats to 19 distinguished people of the country, reports Daily Observer. The letter first mentioned Niladri Chattopadhyay Niloy alias Niloy Neel who was brutally killed at his flat by four alleged militants on August 7. The name was struck through with a red pen. It said that the listed persons would have to die “for the sake of Almighty … and for insulting the Prophet.” They include Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid Social Welfare Minister Syed Mohsin Ali Awami League Member of Parliament Suranjit Sen Gupta War Heroines Ferdousi Priyabhashini and Abdur Rahman Professor of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology Dr Jafor Iqbal Jahangirnagar University teacher Arafat Rahman Member of Udichi Shilpi Gosthi Makbul Hossain bloggers Arif Jebtik, Sushanta Das Gupta, Arifur Rahman, Omi Rahman Pial, Ananya Azad, Mahmudul Haque Munshi, Maruf Rasul, Nirjhar Mazumder, Dr. Atik, Ashfak Anupa and Nur Nabi Dulal.
In the beginning of the letter, the listed personalities were labeled as enemies of Islam and madrasa education, atheists, anti-Sylhet activists and Sylhet’s shame, satanic bloggers, Hindustani brokers and munafiqs (someone who outwardly practices Islam concealing his disbelief). After the names, the letter contains the threat in the form of a poem: “Death will come one day friend, today or tomorrow. For the sake of Almighty we will take the life of His enemies. What is your identity if you do not cry for insult of the Prophet? Death will come one day friend, take the life of the enemy.”
Over the years JMB has changed its strategy and started collaborating with new groups, says Tangail SP Mahfuzur Rahman
Tangail Superintendent of Police (SP) Mahfuzur Rahman said that over the years Jama’at-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) has changed its strategy and started collaborating with new groups, reports The Daily Star. He said that since the August 17 countrywide synchronised bombings by JMB in 2005 a new generation of terrorists have spawned but there has been no change in Government tactics to deal with them. He further said “The JMB doesn’t have the organisational strength like that in 2005 following the arrest and execution of its top leaders. But it doesn’t mean the organisation has become very weak. The outfit is still active in different areas under different names.”
In 2005, JMB blasted bombs in 63 Districts, killing two persons and injuring more than 400, to draw people’s attention to its organisational strength and mission to establish Sharia law in Bangladesh.
Three ABT militants arrested in Dhaka
Three militants of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) including a British citizen, the mastermind of Avijit Roy and Ananta Bijoy killings were arrested from Dhaka city on August 17, reports The Daily Star. The arrestees were identified as Touhidur Rahman (58), the mastermind and a financier of ABT and its active members Sadek Ali and Aminul Mollik.
Three SC lawyers arrested in Dhaka city for financing SHB
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested Supreme Court (SC) lawyers’ barrister Shakila Farzana and Mohamad Hasanuzzaman Liton and Dhaka Judge’s Court lawyer Mahfuz Chowdhury Bapon from Dhanmondi area of Dhaka city on August 18 in connection with financing Shaheed Hamja Brigade (SHB), a Chittagong-based militant outfit, reports Dhaka Tribune. They allegedly provided BDT 10.8 million to SHB. Shakila deposited BDT 2.5 million and BDT 2.7 million for the outfit in two phases while Liton deposited BDT 3.1 million and Bapon BDT 2.5 million.
Formed in 2013, SHB aimed at launching an armed revolution in greater Chittagong including the hill tracts to protest against the oppression of Muslims in Myanmar and across the world.
ABT operative stabs AOL President Allama Ilias Hossain Bin Helali in Dhaka city
Awami Olama League (AOL) President Allama Ilias Hossain Bin Helali was stabbed at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka city on August 21, reports Dhaka Tribune. Witnesses caught the attacker Mujahidul Islam and handed him over to Police. In preliminary questioning, Police said that the attacker was previously involved with Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) and is currently an Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) operative.
Meanwhile, ABT in a statement uploaded on a website called Jihadology published by the Global Islamic Media Front, the mouthpiece of ABT, on August 19 claimed that Ansar-Al-Islam, Bangladesh chapter of Al-Qaeda in the Indian Sub-continent (AQIS), which claimed responsibility for the murder of secular blogger Niladri Chattopadhyay Niloy alias Niloy Neel and ABT are independent outfits operating in the country, reports The Daily Star.
Detective Branch arrests two HuT militants in Dhaka
A team of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP)’s Detective Branch (DB) arrested two Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuTT) militants, identified as Altamas Ahammed Babu and Sayeed Jane Alam Rubel, from Dakkhin khan area of Dhaka City on August 23, reports Dhaka Tribune. The duos were distributing leaflets in front of the Inusbagh Shahi Mosque, urging people to join their September 4 online conference, said DB Deputy Commissioner Sheikh Nazmul Alam. DB also seized a huge stash of Jihadi books, leaflets and a laptop-carrying bag from their possession. One of the militant managed to flee the scene sensing the presence of the detectives who raided the area on a tip off. In an innovative move, tech-savvy banned Islamist militant outfit HuT is planning to hold an online conference early next month, detectives said.
Govt has planned to flush out to flush out directors, officers and employees with links to JeI from IBBL, say officials
Officials of Foreign and Finance Ministries said that the Government has planned to flush out directors, officers and employees with links to Jamaat-e Islami (JeI) from the Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL), reports New Age on August 26. The officials said that the plan gained momentum after the Government obtained a ‘green signal’ from Yousif Abdullah Al-Rajhi, vice chairman and a foreign director of IBBL.
Meanwhile, JeI’s leadership said that JeI is content to bide its time, claiming that the party continues to run a robust operation in the shadows, reports Dhaka Tribune on August 26. Since 2011, the party has not carried out any public programme of its own but has participated in programmes under the banner of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led 20-party alliance platform. Aminul Islam Khoshru, acting Nayeb-e-Ameer (Deputy Chief) of the Barisal city unit JeI said “On August 1, we held a meeting to analyse our current political situation and sent reports to the centre. Usually, we get directives from the centre and just carry them out.” Similarly, Harun-ur-Rashid, Assistant Secretary of Rangamati municipality unit JeI, said: “A membership drive is on. The fact is that people are interested in Jamaat. Many young people are joining us. The rate of membership shows a rising trend. The more the Government represses Jamaat, the more sympathy Jamaat will get. We were successful in sending out the message that Jamaat has a strong political ideology. There is no corruption here and we are democratic.”
India – Internal Dynamics
Maoist urban network busted in Chattisgarh
The Chhattisgarh Police on July 26 busted an alleged Communist Party of India-Maoist urban support network, with the arrest of five people including a Raipur-based scrap businessman, from separate places, reports The Hindu. Dantewada Superintendent of Police (SP) Kamlochan Kashyap said that based on intelligence inputs, businessman Arun Agrawal and his accountant Balaram were arrested from Raipur airport on July 25 night when they were trying to flee, while three Maoist cadres were apprehended from Bhansi Police Station limits in Dantewada District. “Agarwal is said to be in close contact with a prominent Maoist of the Western Bastar Division Committee called Commander Sanjay alias Mohan Kadti. He often supplied detonators, explosives, generators, welding machines and other materials to the Maoists,” the Police officer said. After receiving information six months ago, the State Intelligence Bureau and Dantewada police kept an eye on Arun, Sanjay and others associated with them, he said.
10 persons including Superintendent of Police killed in terror attack in Punjab
On July 27, a total of 10 persons, including three civilians, three home guards, Gurdaspur Superintendent of Police (SP, detective) Baljit Singh and three militants were killed in a coordinated terror attack in Gurdaspur District of Punjab, reports The Times of India. Reportedly the militants took s bus to Taragarh Morh, and then walked towards Dinanagar in Gurdaspur District. After reaching the place they first killed one civilian, a dhaba owner, then snatched a car and headed towards the Police Station of Dinanagar. While travelling towards the Police Station, they killed one vegetable vendor and sprayed bullets on a passing bus. After reaching the Police Station, they injured SHO Mukhtiar Singh before holing up. Soon, an exchange of fire began between Security Force personnel and the militants. Three home guards and SP Baljit Singh were killed during the operation. The attack ended with SFs killing all the three attackers involved in the twin attack. No terror group has taken responsibility for the attack.
Maoists erect memorials
A day before the commencement of Martyrs’ Week being observed by the Communist Party of India-Maoist, memorials were given finishing touches in a part of Visakha Agency on July 27, even as some posters and banners were put up in Chintoor and its adjoining mandals (administrative unit) in East Godavari Agency area, reports The Hindu. In spite of intensive combing operations by Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the Visakha Agency, the Maoists erected four permanent memorials (stupams) between G.K. Veedhi and Koyyuru. The memorial near Kumkumpudi was reportedly very tall. All the four memorials were ready by July 27, apart from the final coat of paint.
KLO collaborating with NE groups and JMB, says news report
The Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO) acts as a catalytic agent to help the Northeast (NE) based groups to get a foothold in Jaigaon town in the newly-formed Alipurduar District of West Bengal, reports The New Indian Express on July 26.The KLO has organised several meetings here between NE groups and Maoists from Nepal, Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh and even the ISI. The ISI is very much active just across the border in Phuentsholling, a sleepy town in Bhutan. The entire operation of liasoning with insurgent groups is supervised by KLO leader Nityananda alias Jamai. The new equation between terrorist organisations from Nepal and Bangladesh with those in the northeast and West Bengal has come to the attention of Indian intelligence agencies. The JMB, in exchange for safe passage, is providing arms and ammunition to the KLO. After infiltrating through Assam, the JMB militants would move to other Districts of West Bengal. A cold war between the Police Forces of Assam and West Bengal also help them. Neither of the two police forces informs and alerts each other, leading to lack of coordination. “As such, we are finding it difficult to trace their movements. There is a clear cut instruction from the Ministry of Home Affairs to exchange information about any person entering from Bangladesh. The JMB terrorists infiltrate to Kokrajhar and Dhubri in Assam and then seek shelter in Alipurduar, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar in West Bengal. Through their network, they reach other districts of Bengal and sometimes through Birbhum flee to Jharkhand. Their fluency in Bengali and similar culture help them melt within the local population,” said a Police official.
Huge cache of explosives recovered in Bihar
A huge cache of explosives, suspected to be belonging to Communist Party of India-Maoist was recovered by the Special Task Force (STF) of Bihar Police from the forested area near Chhatarpur village under Imamganj Police Station limits in Gaya District on July 31, reports echoofindia.com. The seized items included 1,000 high-power gelatine sticks, three big cylinder bombs, explosive cords, detonators and other things. “The place where the items were hidden seemed to have been used by Maoists as an explosives dump. Investigations are being conducted to trace the trail of the gelatine sticks and the cylinder bombs. Nobody has been arrested in this connection so far,” Inspector General of Police (Operations) Sushil M Khopde said.
HNLC claim to have joined with other militant groups in North East Region
Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council on August 2, claimed that it has joined hands with other “stronger organisations” of the Northeast, and would soon “co-ordinate” to prove that they “still exist”, reports The Telegraph. In a statement issued to the media, HNLC “publicity secretary” Sainkupar Nongtraw stated that “We have joined hands with other stronger organisations of the Northeast to share our logistics and support our military tactics, and we shall soon co-ordinate in order to prove that we still exist and we can make an impact thereby showing our military offensive against the state police.”
One Manipur Rifles trooper killed by suspected militants in Manipur
A trooper of 8th Manipur State Rifles was shot dead by suspected militants on August 3, at Khangshang village in Chandel District, reports The Sangai Express. The trooper has been identified as Hopson Maring.
Maoists making inroads into urban areas of the State, admits Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis
While replying to a query by Jaywantrao Jadhav of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in the monsoon session of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Chief Minister (CM) Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio, admitted that the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres are trying to create base in Mumbai-Nashik-Pune belt, reports dnaindia.com on August 5. “It has come to light that in the urban and industrial belts in these areas, the Maoists are trying to clandestinely propagate their ideology and are creating an impression that they are raising their voice on Dalit issues and attracting Dalit youth to the Maoist movement,” noted CM Fadnavis. He further said the ‘Naxal-promoted’ Kabir Kala Manch was being used to attract youth towards Maoist thought through art troupes and street-plays. Cases have been lodged against Naxal activists at Harsul, Mumbai, Pune and Talegaon Dabhade.
Maoists blow up two mobile towers in Jharkand
During their 24-hour long bandh (general shut down) on August 6, the Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres blew up two mobile phone towers near Tisia village of Kisko block in Lohardaga District, reports The Pioneer. The first tower was providing services for Aircel and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) whereas the second one belonged to Reliance Communications. On getting the information, Lohardaga Superintendent of Police (SP) Manoj Ratan Chothe reached the incident site with Police force and diffused some other bombs those were not blasted with the help of bomb diffusing squads. Due to the bandh scare life in the rural areas of the state remained disturbed as shops and other business establishments remained closed throughout the day. Long distance transport was also affected in the state as inter-state buses remained off the road and trucks remained stranded on the roads.
Monthly Fatalities
The following deaths related to ongoing insurgencies and acts of terrorism occurred during the period July 26, 2015 to August 25, 2015:
| Civilian | Indian Security Personnel | Militant | Total | |
| Assam | 03 | 00 | 01 | 04 |
| Manipur | 05 | 01 | 01 | 07 |
| Maharashtra | 02 | 00 | 00 | 02 |
| Meghalaya | 02 | 00 | 02 | 04 |
| Nagaland | 02 | 00 | 01 | 03 |
| Left wing | 11 | 03 | 06 | 20 |
| Total | 25 | 04 | 11 | 40 |
110 landmines covering three villages recovered in Jharkhand
110 landmines planted by suspected Naxalites across three villages in a row in Palamau District were recovered on August 8 by Security Forces (SF) personnel, reports Times of India. “The 110 landmines were connected in a series covering Talghati, Matoli and Icchak villages along Panki and Balumath road,” Deputy Inspector General of Police (Palamau Range) Saket Kumar Singh said. The distance between each explosive was five to ten feet and five of the landmines weighed about 50 kg. The landmines were spotted after the sighting of a wire in a bush he said adding they were planted to distract police from the intensive anti-Naxal drive in Gumla, Lohardaga and Simdega Districts of the state.
CRPF trooper killed in Maoist ambush in Chhattisgarh
One Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper was killed and three others were grievously injured when the Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres ambushed a team of the CRPF near Guttam village under Basaguda Police Station limits in Bijapur District on August 18, reports The Hindu. Confirming the incident, D.P. Upadhyay, the CRPF Deputy Inspector-General of Dantewada range said that the troops belonged to 168th battalion of the CRPF based in Timmapur base camp of Bijapur District. The incident occurred near Guttum village when the CRPF team was returning to the camp after a routine search operation. “We were returning from a search operation when they (Maoists) attacked us around two km from Guttam. They [Maoists] were ready with the ambush but we retaliated successfully,” Rakesh, an injured trooper said.
Senior STF official killed in Chhattisgarh
A Special Task Force (STF) official, Assistant Platoon Commandant (APC) Krishna Pal Singh was killed and a trooper, Constable Santosh Yadav, injured when Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres ambushed a team of Security Forces (SFs) in Bastar District on August 22, reports The Indian Express. The attack occurred at 2 am when a contingent of STF was out for an operational task on NH-30 in Darbha region. Following inputs that Maoists had blocked National Highway-30, which connects Jagdalpur to Sukma, by felling trees and digging roads near Totapara village, the STF squad was dispatched towards the spot from Darbha. When the team reached near the village covering a distance of 3 km, a large group of Maoists opened indiscriminate firing at them, following which the security personnel launched retaliatory attack. The encounter lasted for around two hours.
Bangladeshi terror group JMB used accounts in West Bengal banks to fund terror module
At least six accounts in four nationalised banks, spread over districts of Bardhaman, Birbhum, Murshibad and Kolkata in West Bengal, were used by the Jama’at-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), to fund its module in the state, revealed an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Economic Times reports on August 24. The accounts used by the jihadists were created in nationalised banks violating KYC (Know Your Customer) rules. The banks, where the accounts were opened, include State Bank of India, Corporation Bank, Bank of Baroda and Oriental Bank of Commerce. The accounts were closed, or became inactive, immediately after National Investigating Agency (NIA) arrested the handlers of JMB.
The investigators have examined the bank officials and discrepancies were found in the KYC documents submitted by the JMB men. “We have also examined a local person who used to forge pan cards for these operators. Significantly, some of these operators are Bangladeshi nationals, but they could open their accounts in banks,” said a person familiar with the matter.
Three BSF troopers killed and several others injured in landmine blast in Odisha
At least three Border Security Force (BSF) troopers were killed and six others including an Assistant Commandant severely injured in a landmine blast in Malkangiri District on August 26, reports odishasuntimes.com. The incident occurred when the BSF troopers, in charge of security at the construction site of Gurupriya bridge, were returning to their base camp at Chitrakonda after a combing operation in Raleguda when they accidentally stumbled upon the landmine planted near Janbai ghat. While several troopers were injured, six of them including Assistant Commandant Ashok Kumar sustained severe injuries.
Nepal – Internal Dynamics
Two protestors killed and 50 others injured as protests against proposed provincial demarcations turn violent in Surkhet District
Two persons, identified as Tikaram Gautam and Yam Bahadur BC, were killed and 50 others were injured as protests against the proposed provincial demarcations turned violent in Surkhet District on August 10, reports Republica. The local administration clamped a curfew from 1pm till evening. However, Tikaram of Birendranagar-4 was shot dead by Police within 10 minutes after the curfew was enforced. Yam Bahadur was shot dead by Police during curfew hours at 5 pm. Locals in the District staged protests demanding that the mid-western region be kept intact while demarcating the country into provinces. They also demanded that Surkhet District be developed as the capital of the new province. Locals turned irate as some Districts of the region were included in federal province number 6 comprising most of the far-western Districts while other mid-western Districts were included in another province comprising the Lumbini region. Also, the demonstrators stormed the office of the drinking water and sewerage corporation at Jhupra in the District and set it on fire. Further, angry protestors also set the house of Nepali Congress (NC) leader and lawmaker Purna Bahadur Khadka on fire. “Police were compelled to fire into the air as the protestors resorted to vandalism and other violent activities,” said Chief District Officer of Surkhet, Baldev Gautam. “We have yet to assess the losses and damage incurred during the clash.”
Protestors set fire to several offices, including the District Development Committee Office, Birendranagar Municipality office and the party offices of the NC, Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) and Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist. They also set fire to the vehicle of District Police chief Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajesh Kumar Lal Karna.
Nine dead in Nepal clashes
At least nine people were killed in Nepal on Monday, Aug 24 when demonstrators attacked police with spears, knives, axes and scythes during a protest against proposals for administrative reform in the Himalayan country.
One police officer died when protesters surrounded him and set him ablaze, Home Minister Bam Dev Gautam told parliament.
A district official gave the death toll as nine, but media reports said as many as 20 people – most of them police – may have died.
State television reported that the army was mobilised to quell the protests in the low-lying far west of the country close to the border with India.
Thousands of people were protesting in the town of Tikapur against a government-backed plan to include their area in a hilly province, part of a regional overhaul envisaged in a new federal constitution expected to be finalised this month.
Sri Lanka – Internal Dynamics
Sri Lankan intelligence lays net over ISIS sympathizers, says report
A senior intelligence official said that several more Sri Lankan nationals are known to be fighting for the Islamic State (IS/ISIS) in Iraq and Syria while the group also had some sympathizers inside the country, reports The Nation on July 25. The official was responding to a query regarding activities of the intelligence community following reports that a Sri Lankan ISIS fighter had been killed in an airstrike in Syria on July 12. The unnamed official said intelligence services were currently tracking the movements of the individuals both here and abroad. “As for local sympathizers, their level of involvement (with ISIS) and in what capacity is something the government will have to look into,” the source stressed.
Meanwhile, at least one other Sri Lankan, going by the ISIS nom de guerre Abu Dhujaana Seylani, is also thought to be with ISIS in Syria, adds The Nation. The intelligence official however, noted that ISIS sympathizers within the country at present was a ‘very small element’, but cautioned that if the group was allowed to develop, it could pose a serious national security threat. The source also confirmed that ISIS had mainly been using social media to lure young recruits from Sri Lanka to its cause. Some of these people are thought to have made their way to Syria afterwards, where ISIS has established its so-called ‘Caliphate’, which also includes parts of Iraq. “While we are currently trying to track these individuals both here and abroad, there needs to be a long-term strategy and coordination at international level to counter the threat,” the official said.
Govt will not comment on alleged UN document: Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mahishini Colonne
Sri Lankan Government on July 30 refused to comment on a document a British television station claims could undermine international investigations into the war, reports Colombo Gazette. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mahishini Colonne said the Government was aware of the British Channel 4News report on the document but will not comment on such media reports.
Channel 4 News reported this week that it has been supplied with the leaked United Nations (UN) document which it claim could pre-empt and undermine September’s Human Rights Council discussion on a UN’s long-awaited investigation into crimes committed at the end of Sri Lanka’s 26-year civil war. According to the UN tens of thousands of Tamil civilians died in the closing stages of the Sri Lankan military’s war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The UN says most of those civilians died in government shelling as they were crammed into ever-diminishing “No Fire Zones” – though the LTTE cadres are also alleged to have committed grave abuses including suicide bombings and the use of human shields.
Channel 4 News said the document appears to be have been created by the UN in conjunction with the Sri Lankan Government, and outlines plans to set up a purely domestic inquiry into human rights violations – with technical support from the UN. However, the Northern Provincial Council (NPC) chief minister, CV Wigneswaran, told Channel 4 News that the UN had not even consulted them in this regard.
One person killed and 12 others injured as gunmen open fire at election rally in Colombo
One person was killed and 12 others were injured when unidentified gunmen opened fire at a United National Front election rally in Colombo on July 31, reports Colombo Page. The rally was held in support of the Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake in Kotahena area of Colombo and the people killed and injured were believed to be supporters of the Minister. Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said “The gunmen travelled in two vehicles and escaped in the same vehicles after the shooting spree. A woman was killed and 12 wounded persons have been admitted to the Colombo National Hospital.” This incident marks the first major violence ahead of the August 17 parliamentary elections.
LTTE supporter attempts suicide in Tiruchi prison in Tamil Nadu
A Sri Lankan Tamil housed in the special camp in the Tiruchi prison campus in Tiruchirappalli District of Tamil Nadu (India) reportedly attempted to end his life by consuming sleeping tablets on August 3, reports Colombo Page. His wife, who had come to meet him at the camp, also consumed sleeping pills. According to reports, Maheswaran (35), said to be a supporter of the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was booked in a Explosives Act case by the Q Branch CID, of Chennai City in 2012. The case is pending trial. Police sources said Maheswaran’s wife Prashanthi came to meet him at the camp as a visitor on August 3. The sources said the couple reportedly consumed sleeping pills and both of them fell unconscious. They were immediately shifted to the hospital for treatment.
Former LTTE members seek self-rule for Tamils
The Crusaders for Democracy, a group of former members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on August 4 urged the Sri Lankan Government to “honour its commitments” made in the past at the international level on the Tamil question, reports The Hindu. The group in its election manifesto, released in Jaffna on August 4, said that according to the 1987 India-Sri Lanka Accord and the Oslo Communique of December 2002, the Sri Lankan Government had agreed to the concepts of federalism and internal self-determination, besides recognizing the Northern and Eastern Provinces as areas of historical habitation of Tamil speaking people. The manifesto wanted the creation of a mechanism that would facilitate self-rule of Tamils. N. Vithyatharan, coordinator of the group said that there was nothing new in the demands of the group. Everything was based on what the Sri Lankan Government had accepted. “We want them only to fulfil what they had promised at the international fora,” he said. While adhering itself to an undivided Sri Lanka, the group of former militants resolved that it would strive to achieve its goals through “peaceful and non-violent means”, Mr. Vithyatharan added.
Former president Mahinda Rajapaksa denies giving money to the LTTE in 2005
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa on August 9 denied allegations that he had given the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam money in 2005 in order to win the then Presidential election, reports Colombo Gazette. In 2005 the LTTE had prevented the people from taking part in the elections, which allowed Rajapaksa to win with the support of the Sinhala votes in the South. Rajapaksa said that if he had given money to the LTTE he would not have taken much effort to try to defeat them. He said that if LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was alive today he would ask him if the story was really true. The former President also said that it was no secret who gave arms to the LTTE to defeat the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) and who really funded the LTTE. Rajapaksa also said that the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) is confident of winning the August 17 Parliamentary election and he is confident of being made the next Prime Minister.
Meanwhile, Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) member and United National Front for Good Governance Parliamentary candidate Champika Ranawaka on August 9 said he is ready to expose former President Mahinda Rajapaksa on some deals he had allegedly made with the LTTE through South Africa, reports Colombo Gazette. Ranawaka also challenged Rajapaksa to face him in an open debate on claims Rajapaksa never gave funds to the LTTE. Ranawaka said that Rajapaksa is already under investigation over funds diverted to the LTTE through the Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA). “We will be taking legal action against Rajapaksa in future in relation to this incident,” he said. Ranawaka also insisted that there is no chance of the LTTE regrouping in Sri Lanka and that the security forces will ensure the security of the country.
Police arrest army officer and LTTE cadres over their suspected role in a journalist’s disappearance case
Sri Lanka Police on August 9 arrested an Army Sergeant Major suspected to have played a role in the abduction of Lanka e News journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda at Kurunegala in North Western Province, reports Colombo Page. Sergeant Major’s arrest was a result of an urgent inquiry conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Police following information received from two other suspects taken into custody earlier by the CID. Following the investigations initiated by the CID in to the disappearance of the Prageeth Eknaligoda, who was abducted at Rajagiriya (Sri Jayawardenapura) on January 24, 2010 two former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam cadres were arrested from Vavuniya by the CID several days ago. The suspects, identified as Kanapathipillai Suresh alias Satya Master and Sumathipalan Suresh alias Nagulan, have provided the information leading to the arrest of the army Sergeant Major according to the Police.
Lanka e News reported that the two suspects were Tamil intelligence officers and they have revealed that they abducted Prageeth Eknaligoda and handed him over to the Girithale Army Camp. According to the report, the suspects have revealed that the journalist has been killed and drowned in the eastern sea. Based on those revelations, several others including a group of army officers have been identified in connection with the disappearance and they are to be arrested shortly, Police Headquarters said on August 9.
Sri Lankan Government insists no room for the LTTE
Sri Lankan Government on August 13 insisted that there is no room for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to regroup in Sri Lanka and that the unity of the country will be maintained, reports Colombo Gazette. Power and Energy Minister and Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) General Secretary Champika Ranawaka said that the current Government does not have double standards on the LTTE like the previous regime. He said that the former Government had maintained ties with the LTTE both during and after the war but the current Government has no ties with the rebels. “We will not leave room for democracy to be threatened. We are actually going through a new stage of democracy in the country and we will not allow that process to be harmed. We give a firm assurance on National Security,” he said.
Five suspected LTTE members arrested in Kolkata
The Special Task Force (STF) of the Kolkata Police on August 14 arrested five Sri Lankan nationals, allegedly former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam members, and two Indians from a hotel in Chadni Chowk in Kolkata (West Bengal, India), reports The Hindu. The seven were picked up from Hotel Chandni International, located in the central part of the city, by the STF late on August 14 night in a joint operation with personnel of the Bowbazar Police Station, a senior officer of the Kolkata Police’s STF section said. “They have failed to show proper papers about their identities and their travelling papers to India. They have entered the country on forged documents. We suspect that they probably have used waterways to enter Chennai,” the officer said. The two Indians, residents of Tamil Nadu, had helped the five Sri Lankans in travelling to Kolkata and probably with the false documents, he said.
Colombo Page adds that according to the Police, two of them – Guna Sekharan and Bala Singham are senior leaders of the LTTE. Police are checking if they came for any operations or for any reconnaissance. The Police are interrogating them to find if they had links with Maoists, as there are reports that the Maoists are gradually regrouping in Bengal and have plans to start guerilla warfare in Jungalmahal area of Bengal. Moreover, the Police are also probing if LTTE was supplying arms to the Maoists.
Police arrest four Army personnel over journalist’s disappearance case
Police on August 24 arrested four Army personnel for alleged involvement in the abduction and murder of Lanka e News journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda, reports Colombo Page. Police Media Spokesman Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ruwan Gunasekara said two Army officers and two other ranks who were being questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in connection with the disappearance of Eknaligoda were arrested today (August 24). Military spokesman Brigadier Jayanath Jayaweera confirming the arrest said at the request of the CID, the Army has released two officers and two other ranks to undergo investigation. He did not say what the other two ranks were. Earlier, the CID investigation has also led to the arrest of two former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam cadres who had given the information on the Army’s involvement in the disappearance.
Prageeth Eknaligoda was abducted at Rajagiriya on 24th January 2010 just two days before 2010 Presidential election.
INTERNATIONAL
Shebab gunmen kill Somali lawmaker, guards
Somalia’s Shebab insurgents assassinated a lawmaker and his guards, the president said late on Saturday, July 25 hours after US President Barack Obama said the al-Qaeda affiliated militants had been “weakened”.
Gunmen sprayed the car of MP Abdulahi Hussein Mohamud with gunfire as he travelled through a southern district of the capital Mogadishu earlier on Saturday, killing him, his two guards and the driver.
President Hassan Sheik Mohamud said he was “devastated” at the attack, the latest in a string of murders of Somalia’s lawmakers. “The lawmaker was martyred while serving the nation, but such killings will not deter us from going forward,” Mohamud told reporters.
The Shebab said in a statement that their “mujahedeen fighters targeted and killed a member of the parliament and his guards”, adding that they “will continue targeting” lawmakers.
The Shebab have carried out repeated attacks including a campaign of suicide attacks and assassinations targeting government figures.
UN envoy to Somalia Nicholas Kay called the murders a “despicable act”.
Witnesses said the militants fled after the attack.
The Shebab is fighting to overthrow Somalia’s Western-backed government which is propped up and protected by the 22,000-strong African Union force (AMISOM).
The attack came as Obama, on a visit to neighbouring Kenya, praised AMISOM’s efforts, but said while the insurgents had been “weakened”, the overall security threat posed by the group remained.
‘Child suicide bomber’ kills 20 in Cameroon bar blast
A suspected 12-year-old girl suicide bomber killed 20 people in an attack on a bar in Maroua in the far north of Cameroon, state television said on Sunday, July 26 just days after 13 died in twin bombings in the city blamed on Boko Haram.
The bomber blew herself up among Saturday night revellers in the popular bar, injuring at least 79 others, state TV reported. An earlier toll put the number of dead at 14.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but the north of the country has been repeatedly targeted by Nigeria-based Boko Haram extremists.
“A girl of around 12 blew herself up between two takeaway sales points. Security forces have sealed off the area and have made several arrests,” the state TV channel said.
US, Turkey to create ‘IS-free zone’ in Syria
The US and Turkey have agreed to work together to drive Islamic State Jihadists from northern Syria, a senior US official said on Monday, July 27 as Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said its military could “change the balance” in the region.
The potentially game-changing accord was revealed as Turkey fuelled the growing anger of its Kurdish minority by shelling a Kurdish-held village in northern Syria as its warplanes continued to pound separatist targets in northern Iraq. “The goal is to establish an ISIL-free zone and ensure greater security and stability along Turkey’s border with Syria,” the US official, who asked not to be named, told AFP using another acronym for the Jihadist group. Details of the zone “remain to be worked out”, the official said during a visit by US President Barack Obama to Ethiopia.
But the official added that “any joint military efforts will not include the imposition of a no-fly zone” — a long standing Turkish demand. It would however entail Turkey, Nato’s only mainly Muslim member, supporting US “partners on the ground” already fighting IS extremists.
But many question whether Turkey is more interested in limiting Kurdish capabilities in Syria and Iraq than tackling IS. Turkey has called an extraordinary Nato meeting for Tuesday over its two-pronged cross-border “anti-terror” offensive against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and IS Jihadists.
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg backed Turkey’s right to defend itself but told the BBC Sunday “of course self-defence has to be proportionate”. And he cautioned Ankara about burning bridges with the Kurds. “For years there has been progress to try to find a peaceful political solution,” he told Norwegian state broadcaster NRK. “It is important not to renounce that… because force will never solve the conflict in the long term.”
The Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) — which routed IS from the Syrian flashpoint of Kobane early this year with the help of Western air strikes — said Turkish tanks hit its positions and those of allied Arab rebels overnight in Zur Maghar village in Aleppo province. The “heavy tank fire” wounded four rebels and several villagers, the YPG — which Turkey accuses of being allied to the PKK — said in a statement.
But Turkish officials denied the military was deliberately targeting Syrian Kurds and said it was responding to fire from the Syrian side of the border.
Turkey has given the United States the green light to use its Incirlik air base to attack IS after months of tough negotiations. Davutoglu said Ankara’s demands for a no-fly zone were addressed “to a certain extent”, according to the Hurriyet daily.
Boko Haram fighters behead three in Cameroon raid
Three villagers were beheaded during a weekend raid in Cameroon by Boko Haram Jihadist fighters from neighbouring Nigeria, security forces said on Monday, July 27.
The attacks took place on Sunday in the neighbouring villages of Tchebe-Tchebe and Dzaba, about 10 kilometres from the Nigerian border, said a security agent based in the region.
The raiders also set fire to land owned by villagers and a Catholic church, the source added.
Sunday’s violence followed a series of Boko Haram suicide bombings in the far north of Cameroon, which is taking part in a regional military campaign against the extremists. The report was confirmed by another local security source, who said that access to the villages was difficult for troops because of the mountainous terrain.
The cross-border region is frequently attacked by Boko Haram, which launched its armed insurgency in northeastern Nigeria in 2009, at an estimated cost of more than 15,000 lives.
On Saturday night, a 12-year-old girl blew herself up in the town of Maroua, killing at least 20 people and wounding 79 others in the fifth suicide bombing inside Cameroon in two weeks.
One minor a day reported for radicalisation in Britain
More than 800 minors — 84 of them under the age of 12 — were referred to a British government programme to counter radicalisation over a two year period, official data released on Monday (July 27) showed. Between April 2012 and June 2014, 834 minors under the age of 18 were reported to the Channel programme, which is aimed at helping young people seen as vulnerable to Islamic extremist ideologies.
The figures were released by the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) following a freedom of information request by Britain’s domestic Press Association news agency. They showed the number of referrals increasing.
In a 12-month period between 2012-2013 a total of 290 youths and children were reported to Channel. That number rose to 423 the following year.
Between April 2012 and June 2014, some 2,335 people in total were referred to Channel.
Security Minister John Hayes said the total number since 2012 was “over 4,000 referrals”, indicating a sharp increase over the past year.
“Referrals to Channel have increased since 2014 but we have dedicated sufficient resources to the programme to cope with demand,” Hayes said.
Blast kills two cops in Bahrain
A bomb blast killed two Bahrain policemen and wounded six others on Tuesday, July 28 in an area often shaken by clashes between security forces and protesters, the interior ministry said.
Bahrain has seen frequent unrest since the minority rulers of the small Gulf kingdom crushed a uprising four years ago. The blast in Sitra Island outside the capital Manama comes days after the Bahraini authorities announced they had foiled an attempt to smuggle weapons from Iran. Bahrain’s main opposition Al-Wefaq condemned the bombing, insisting that it “categorically rejected” violence.
Police blocked routes leading to the island following the explosion — latest in a series of blasts targeting police in villages, witnesses said.
The interior ministry described the blast as a “terror” attack. Footage of the aftermath of the explosion showed a shrapnel-riddled police bus with shattered windows.
Since the Arab Spring-inspired 2011 uprising, protesters demanding political reforms have clashed frequently with security forces in villages outside Manama.
Qadhafi’s son sentenced to death
A Libyan court on Tuesday, July 28 sentenced a son and eight aides of slain dictator Moamer Qadhafi to death for crimes during the 2011 uprising, in a verdict denounced by rights campaigners.
The United Nations also said it was “deeply disturbed” by the outcome and criticised the trial for failing to meet international standards.
Seif al-Islam, the strongman’s one-time heir apparent who is also wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), was tried in his absence because he is held by militia opposed to the Tripoli authorities.
Former intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi and Qadhafi’s last prime minister Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmudi were also sentenced to death, although they can appeal to the supreme court.
Strong evidence of Israeli war crimes on ‘Black Friday’: Amnesty
An analysis of an Israeli assault in the Gaza Strip following the capture of one of its soldiers during last year’s war in the Palestinian territory shows “strong evidence” of war crimes, Amnesty International said on Wednesday, July 29. The London-based rights group called for those responsible for the alleged offences to be prosecuted as it published a detailed analysis of the Israeli military operation using eyewitness accounts, satellite imagery, photos and videos.
“There is strong evidence that Israeli forces committed war crimes in their relentless and massive bombardment of residential areas of Rafah in order to foil the capture of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, displaying a shocking disregard for civilian lives,” Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International, said in a statement. “They carried out a series of disproportionate or otherwise indiscriminate attacks, which they have completely failed to investigate independently.”
Israel strongly denied the accusations, calling Amnesty’s report “fundamentally flawed in its methodologies, in its facts, in its legal analysis and in its conclusions”.
The incidents addressed in the report centred on August 1, 2014, which has become known as “Black Friday,” when Goldin was captured shortly after a ceasefire was announced. He was later declared dead. In response, the military was said to have implemented the so-called Hannibal Directive — a controversial procedure which allows for an intensive military response to secure the rescue of a captured soldier.
Israel bombed the city of Rafah and the surrounding area in the southern Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt. According to Amnesty, at least 135 civilians were killed in the air and ground assault.
Civilians had begun to return home due to the ceasefire announcement, Amnesty said.
“Massive and prolonged bombardment began without warning while masses of people were on the streets, and many of them, especially those in vehicles, became targets,” Amnesty said. “Eyewitness accounts described horrifying scenes of chaos and panic as an inferno of fire from F-16 jets, drones, helicopters and artillery rained down on the streets, striking civilians on foot or in cars, as well as ambulances and other vehicles evacuating the wounded.”
A UN report in June said both Israel and Palestinian militants may have committed war crimes during the Gaza war, while decrying “unprecedented” devastation and human suffering.
UAE to try 41 on charges of seeking ‘caliphate’
The United Arab Emirates is to try 41 people for allegedly seeking to overthrow the government to set up an Islamic State group-style caliphate in the Gulf state, prosecutors said on Sunday, Aug 2. Such mass trials on terrorism charges are rare in the UAE which has largely been spared the Islamic militancy that has hit other Arab states.
The suspects, who include Emiratis as well as foreigners, are accused of setting up a group “with a terrorist, takfiri (Muslim extremist) ideology,” in a bid to “seize power and establish a caliphate,” the prosecutor general said. They are accused of setting up cells to train members in handling weapons and the manufacture of explosives in preparation for attacks on UAE soil.
Prosecutors charge that they were “in contact with foreign terrorist organisations… to help them achieve their goals.”
The UAE is part of the US-led coalition that has been carrying out air strikes against IS in Syria since September last year and has upped security measures since the wave of Arab Spring protests that swept the region four years ago. In July, following the murder of an American teacher in an Abu Dhabi mall, authorities enacted tougher anti-terror legislation, including harsher jail terms and even introducing the death penalty for crimes linked to religious hatred and “takfiri groups”.
Takfiris regard Muslims who do not follow their extreme interpretation of Islam as apostates punishable by death. It is the ideology of al-Qaeda as well as IS.
Two Turkish troops killed in ‘PKK suicide attack’
Two Turkish soldiers were killed and dozens wounded early on Sunday, Aug 2 in a suicide attack blamed on Kurdish militants, as Ankara kept up its air campaign against the rebels’ bases in northern Iraq. The attack in the Dogubayazit district of the eastern Agri province is the first time Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants have been accused of staging a suicide attack in the current crisis, amid an escalating cycle of violence that appears to have no end in sight.
Ankara has launched a two-pronged “anti-terror” offensive against Islamic State (IS) Jihadists in Syria and PKK militants based in northern Iraq after a wave of attacks inside Turkey. But so far the bombardments have focused far more on the Kurdish rebels — with Turkish official media claiming that 260 suspected PKK members have been killed — and the militants have retaliated inside Turkey.
The suspected PKK suicide bomber drove a tractor laden with two tons of explosives up to the military station in the Dogubayazit district, the official Anatolia news agency reported, quoting the local governor’s office. Two soldiers were killed and 31 were wounded, four of them seriously, the army said. The soldiers were deployed with the local Jandarma (Gendarmerie), a branch of the army that looks after internal security in Turkey.
Such was the power of the blast that houses in a village several hundred metres away were hit by debris and several villagers slightly injured, the Dogan news agency said.
In a separate incident also blamed on the PKK, one Turkish soldier was killed and seven were wounded when a mine exploded as their convoy was travelling on a road in the Midyat district of the Mardin province in southeastern Turkey, the army said.
Before her execution, human rights watchdog Amnesty International had reported last year that a dozen people had been put to death in the UAE since 1997.
Bomb attack on mosque for Saudi forces kills 15
A blast probably triggered by a suicide bomber killed 15 people on Thursday, Aug 6 at a mosque inside a special forces headquarters in Saudi Arabia near the border with Yemen.
An interior ministry spokesman said the “terrorist” attack took place during noon prayers in the city of Abha, in the southern province of Asir. Twelve of those killed were members of a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, while the other three were workers at the compound, officials said. Seven people were also wounded. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Thursday’s bombing was the deadliest in a series in recent weeks against Saudi security forces, who have been targeted in attacks blamed on the Islamic State group. El-Ikhbariya state television later said that two policemen wounded in the “heinous” attack had died, bringing the death toll to 15.
The interior ministry spokesman said the attack was likely carried out by a suicide bomber, saying that “body parts found at the scene” indicated the use of explosive vests. The governor of Asir province, Prince Faisal bin Khaled bin Abdel Aziz, visited the site of the attack and the wounded in hospital, condemning the bombing.
On July 16 a car bomb exploded at a security checkpoint near a prison in the capital Riyadh. It killed the driver and wounded two policemen. Officials identified the driver as a 19-year-old Saudi man and said he had killed his uncle, a colonel, before blowing himself up on a road near Al-Hair prison, a high security facility. IS claimed responsibility for that attack, saying it was a message to Jihadists held at Al-Hair that they had not been forgotten.
Jihadists suspected in deadly Mali hotel siege
A Jihadist group is strongly suspected of carrying out the hotel siege in Mali that ended with the deaths of at least 12 people including five UN workers, a security source said on Sunday, Aug 9. No one has claimed responsibility for the assault in the central town of Sevare, which coincided with a surge in Jihadist attacks spreading through the region in recent months.
“At this stage there is no formal proof that it was the Macina Liberation Front (FLM), but strong suspicions point to this group that has been seeking notoriety at all costs,” the source said. Since it first appeared earlier this year the FLM has claimed responsibility for several attacks, including some targeting security forces in central Mali. FLM is considered to be linked to Ansar Dine — Arabic for Defenders of Faith — which is one of the groups that took control of Mali’s vast semi-arid north in April 2012. The United States placed Ansar Dine on its terror blacklist in 2013, accusing it of close links with al-Qaeda and of torturing and killing opponents in the north.
The private Mauritanian news agency Al-Akhbar, which regularly publishes Jihadist statements, also said on Sunday that the FLM “could be behind the attack in Sevare.”
The deadly siege began early on Friday when gunmen burst into the Hotel Byblos, frequented by expatriates. The Malian army — along with foreign Special Forces, according to a Malian military source — stormed the building, bringing the siege to an end nearly 24 hours later.
The UN mission in Mali (MINUSMA) said two Ukrainians, a Nepalese and a South African were killed during the siege and subsequent military operation, as well as a Malian driver working for a company contracted by the mission.
400 Kurds killed in airstrikes
Nearly 400 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) have been killed and hundreds injured in two weeks of Turkish airstrikes on positions in northern Iraq, the official Anatolia news agency reported on Sundayk, Aug 9.
The report, which could not be independently verified, said at least four PKK leaders and 30 female rebel fighters were among the dead.
Anatolia generally bases its information on security and Turkish intelligence sources.
Turkey last month launched a two-pronged “anti-terror” offensive against Islamic State (IS) Jihadists in Syria and PKK militants after a wave of attacks inside the country. But so far the Kurdish rebels have borne the brunt of dozens of airstrikes, while just three have been officially recognised as targeting IS.
“So far 390 terrorists have been rendered incapable of causing harm and another 400 have been injured, with 150 suffering serious injuries,” Anatolia said.
‘Strategy rethink needed’ as Boko Haram shifts to suicide attacks
A West African regional force set up to fight Boko Haram will need “local intelligence” to root out Islamic insurgents forced on the run by national army offensives, security experts say.
“With Boko Haram reverting to acts of terrorism and hit-and-run armed raids… Nigeria and her allies will need to secure a reliable and extensive local intelligence network,” said Ryan Cummings of security firm Red24.
Nigeria’s neighbours Chad, Cameroon and Niger, which have all suffered attacks by Boko Haram, launched a regional force earlier this year to end a conflict that has claimed more than 15,000 lives since 2009. But the Joint Multinational Intervention Force (MNJTF), which also includes Benin and is expected to number some 8,700 troops and police, has yet to go into action.
Meanwhile, national armies have succeeded in scattering Boko Haram militants to remote, inaccessible areas. Many of the insurgents are hiding out in Lake Chad, a shallow, marshy water body dotted with hundreds of islets, and in Nigeria’s Sambisa Forest near the border with Cameroon.
The Islamists once controlled large swathes of territory and key towns such as Gwoza and Baga in northeastern Nigeria where they proclaimed an Islamic caliphate before pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group. Now in disarray, they have begun conducting suicide missions into cities and towns, often using very young girls who detonate themselves in crowded areas.
Citizens of all the countries involved are encouraged to help the fight by reporting any suspicious activity. But experts warn that the Nigerian army has lost the trust of local people in Boko Haram strongholds in the northeast because of actions committed by soldiers deployed against the Jihadists. The Islamists have infiltrated this poor, Muslim-majority region where many people belong to the same ethnic group as the insurgents.
In Chad, which is playing a key role in the fight against Boko Haram, two suicide attacks have claimed around 50 lives in less than a month.
The keenly-awaited MNJTF has yet to begin operations since its supposed launch on July 30, hampered somewhat by discord between English-speaking Nigeria and its French-speaking neighbours. The joint force was agreed in May 2014 in the wake of the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls that shocked the world.
Drone kills five Qaeda suspects in Yemen
A suspected US drone strike has killed five presumed members of al-Qaeda in the Jihadist network´s southeastern Yemeni stronghold, a local official said on Wednesday, Aug 12.
“An unmanned aircraft fired a missile against an al-Qaeda vehicle in Mukalla,” capital of the vast desert Hadramawt province, killing five suspected militants, the official told AFP.
He was unable to provide further details or identify the suspects. The United States is the only country known to operate armed drones over Yemen, and attacks by the unmanned aircraft have continued during months of clashes between pro- and anti-government forces and air strikes from a Saudi-led coalition. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has taken advantage of the chaos gripping Yemen to make territorial gains, seizing Mukalla in April.
Witnesses in the port city of more than 200,000 have recently reported an increased deployment of AQAP militants, who have set up security checkpoints across Mukalla. AQAP, considered by Washington to be the extremist network´s most dangerous franchise, announced the death in June of its commander in Yemen, Nasir al-Wuhayshi, in a US drone strike.
75 die in Baghdad blast
A truck bombing claimed by the Islamic State group killed at least 75 people in Baghdad on Thursday, Aug 13 the deadliest single attack in the city in months. The blast, which was likely aimed at undermining confidence in the government and stoking sectarian tensions, came after the outgoing US army chief warned that reconciliation in Iraq is becoming increasingly difficult and that the country may ultimately have to be partitioned.
The bomb went off in a wholesale vegetable market in the Sadr City area of north Baghdad at around 6:00 am (0300 GMT), peak time for shops buying vegetables for the day.
Interior ministry spokesman Brigadier General Saad Maan said the bombing killed 54 people and wounded 100. Medics collected human remains at the scene of the blast, an AFP photographer said.
The bombing devastated the market, ripping through buildings, killing horses used to transport vegetables, burning vehicles and leaving large amounts of produce scattered on the ground.
IS claimed responsibility for what it termed the “blessed operation” in a statement posted online. Bombings such as the Sadr City attack are a significant source of tension in Iraq and have worsened the country´s sectarian divide.
Landmines left by Al Houthis kill 100 in S Yemen
Health and security officials in Southern Yemen have said that dozens of people have been killed in a month by landmines planted by the retreating Al Houthis.
Al Khedher Laswer, the director of Aden’s office of ministry of health, told reporters that at least 100 people have been killed since Mid-July when they either walked or drove over landmines in Aden and neighbouring districts.
A security official from Aden, who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media, told reporters on Thursday that the defeated Al Houthis randomly planted landmines on main roads and farms to deter resistance advances. “Demining teams are facing a hard task as we don’t have maps for the mines,” the official said.
The official said security services in Aden defused 1,200 landmines from Aden airport in July and removed hundreds from places near electricity towers, main roads and water pipelines. “These are anti-personnel and anti-tank landmines and made in Russia and the West.”
19 killed in Sao Paulo shootings
Nineteen people were killed and seven injured overnight in a wave of shootings in Brazil’s biggest city Sao Paulo, a security official said on Friday, Aug 14 after reports of a massacre in the suburbs. Those numbers are still considered preliminary, Alexandre de Moraes, head of the Sao Paulo state security body, told reporters.
Earlier, a spokesman for the security forces had described the wave of killings late on Thursday as “unusual.”
Media reports said the shootings occurred in 10 places in the Osasco area, with two more attacks in Barueri, all in a period of about two and a half hours.
Globo News television broadcast security camera footage showing a group of masked assailants entering a bar, ordering clients to raise their hands in the air, then shooting them.
The mayor of Osasco, Jorge Lapas, said video footage supports a theory that the killings could have been reprisals for the earlier death of a police officer.
“We want to take measures so that the situation does not worsen over the coming days,” he said.
IS ‘beheads’ 12 in battle for Libya’s Sirte
Islamic State group Jihadists have beheaded 12 people and hung them on crosses during a battle for the coastal city of Sirte, the national news agency LANA reported on Saturday, Aug 15.
The fighting for control of Sirte, hometown of slain dictator Moamer Qadhafi, has been raging since Tuesday, with one top Libyan diplomat warning of a “massacre” in the city.
LANA said the 12 people beheaded were local gunmen who had been battling IS in the eastern Sirte district known as “neighbourhood three”.
The agency also reported that IS militants executed 22 other Sirte residents who had taken up arms against the Jihadist group as they lay wounded in a city hospital. It said the Jihadists also set the hospital on fire.
A Sirte city council official told AFP that clashes continued to rage on Saturday. “There is continuous fighting, especially in neighbourhood three, and the casualty toll is rising,” said the unnamed official. Libya’s ambassador to France, Chibani Abuhamoud, told AFP on Friday that fighting in Sirte had left between 150 and 200 dead.
Libya risks becoming ‘another Somalia’
Italy warned on Monday, Aug 17 that Libya risked turning into “another Somalia” as it signed a joint statement with the US and several European allies condemning “barbaric” acts carried out by the Islamic State group there. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said if peace talks did not succeed in ending the country’s civil war within a few weeks, “we will find ourselves with another Somalia two steps from our coasts”.
IS militants seized control of the coastal city in June with militants beheading 12 local militiamen who had been battling them before hanging their bodies on crosses, according to the Libyan news agency LANA.
Italy has been badly hit by the chaos in the North African country, with hundreds of thousands of migrants attempting to reach its shores from Libya on often unseaworthy vessels — 102,000 this year alone.
But the rise of a Jihadist IS offshoot in the centre of the country is now causing alarm on the other side of the Mediterranean. The governments want all sides in Libya “to join efforts to combat the threat posed by transnational terrorist groups exploiting Libya for their own agenda”, according to the statement released by the US State Department on Sunday.
The situation in Sirte underscores the “urgent need for parties in Libya to reach agreement on forming a government of national accord that, in partnership with the international community, can provide security against violent extremist groups seeking to destabilise the country,” the statement added.
Libya descended into chaos after Qadhafi was driven from power by a 2011 uprising backed by Western air strikes, with two rival governments and several militias now battling for control of the oil-rich country.
Suicide bomber kills 16 in Syria
A suicide bomber killed at least 16 people on Wednesday, Aug 19 in an attack on Kurdish security forces in northeastern Syria claimed by the Islamic State Jihadist group, a monitor said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the blast in the city of Qamishli killed 10 members of the Kurdish forces, called the Asayish, and six civilians.
IS claimed the attack in an online statement, saying a suicide bomber had used a “water tanker rigged with explosives to infiltrate an Asayish command base”.
Syrian Kurdish militia have been some of the most successful forces fighting IS in northern parts of the country.
The Jihadist group has targeted Qamishli and other Kurdish bastions with suicide operations in the past.
Syria’s state news agency SANA said 15 people were killed but did not specify whether they included civilians. It said 50 people were wounded.
Current Threat Levels:
City/Region Threat Level
Islamabad Level 2 **
Karachi Level 2 **
Lahore Level 2 **
Punjab Level 2 **
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Level 3 **
Peshawar Level 2 **
Quetta Level 2 ***
Upper Balochistan Level 3 ***
Lower Balochistan Level 2 **
Upper/ Rural Sindh Level 2 **
Gilgit and Northern areas Level 3 **
Tribal areas, close
to Afghan border Level 3 ***
Index to Threat Level References
Threat Level 1 *
Indicates there is no threat to foreigners although there may be isolated incidents involving petty crime. No security precautions are required.
Threat Level 2 **
Indicates there is no specific threat to foreigners, however because of the overall general law & order situation, some security precautions are advised, especially if traveling.
Threat Level 3 ***
Indicates that law and order situation is cause for concern and travel should be avoided unless absolutely necessary. Foreigners should rehearse plans for evacuation.
Threat Level 4 ****
Indicates complete breakdown of civil administration and law and order leading to possible anarchy. All foreigners to remain indoors and confined to their own city. Families and staff not required to be evacuated retaining only a skeleton staff.
Threat Level 5 *****
Indicates complete breakdown of law and order, enemy action/hostilities, invasion/ occupation by enemy.
