Suicide bombings/attacks
Six civilians, including a woman and a child, were killed and 17 others injured in a suicide attack targeting the Frontier Corps (FC) troops in the Sariab Road area in Quetta District on November 25, reports Daily times. Balochistan Home Minister (HM) Sarfaraz Bugti confirmed that the FC vehicle was the target of blast, adds Dawn. Two FC vehicles, three rickshaws and motorcycles were damaged as result of the explosion.
At least nine persons, including six students, were killed and 37 others were injured when Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants attacked Agricultural Training Institute of Peshawar, the provincial capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), on December 1, reports The Express Tribune. At least four attackers wearing suicide jackets under the burqas (veils) reached the compound in a rickshaw. Their first target was the security guard, after which they headed inside towards the students’ hostel of the Agriculture Training Institute. Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asif Ghafoor and Inspector General (IG) KP Salahuddin Mehsud both stated in separate press conferences that three terrorists had been involved in the attack and had been killed with the IG adding that the identity of a fourth suspected attacker was being confirmed. According to ISPR, the militants had been coordinating with handlers based in Afghanistan. “The terrorists were in contact with their accomplices in Afghanistan and the executors of this attack are still based there,” Director General of ISPR Asif Ghafoor said. Two soldiers were also injured in the rescue operation. A cache of arms and ammunition, including three suicide jackets, 20 hand grenades, AK-47 rifles and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were also recovered after the operation. About 120 out of nearly 400 college residents were present at the time of attack, as most had gone home for a long holiday weekend. TTP claimed the responsibility for the attack.
An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast near a military vehicle in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan Agency on December 5 resulted in the killing of six persons, including three civilians seeking recruitment in the Army while eight others were injured, reports Dawn. “The casualties came from a bomb planted on a motorcycle parked on a roadside in Khadi market of Mir Ali town,” said Kamran Khan Afridi, a Senior Administration Official in the North Waziristan tribal region, adds The Nation.
Bomb/ IED attacks
Two Frontier Corps (FC) Personnel were killed while four others were injured in a landmine explosion in Sangan region of Sibi District on November 29, reports The Nation. The deceased Soldiers have been identified as Aqib Ahmed and Masood Ahmed.
Five Anti-Taliban personnel were killed and two were injured on November 30, in a remotely detonated bomb in Spinkai area near the Afghanistan border, in South Waziristan Agency), reports The News. The group was part of a Volunteers’ Militia helping the Military in operations against Islamist militants. A faction of Taliban militants, known as the Sajna group of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack. Deceased have been identified as Wali Jan, the head of a Peace Committee, Malik Mewa Khan, Ahmed Gul, Zaman Khan and Malik Ayar Dil Khan while Ahmed Jan and Khalid were injured in the attack, adds The Express Tribune.
A child was killed and two others were injured in an explosion at Christian Colony in the Chaman area of Killa Abdullah District in Balochistan on December 1, reports Dawn. Police said that the bomb was planted on the gates of the colony.
Pro-Government tribal elder, Malak Ameer Rehman, was killed on December 2, in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosion in the Olai Shah area of Amber tehsil (Revenue Unit) in Mohmand Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The Administration said that the Khasadar Force arrested 13 people during the clearance operation under the Territorial Collective Responsibility Clause (TCRC) of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR).
At least two men were injured in a landmine explosion in the Bareli area of Mamond Tehsil (Revenue Unit) in Kohlu District of Balochistan on December 11, reports The Express Tribune. The injured were identified as Muhammad Naseem and Zakariya Mari.
Three Security Force (SF) personnel and two civilians were injured when a bomb planted along a road at Bacha Abad area of Kulachi Town in Dera Ismail Khan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) exploded on December 19, reports The Nation. No militant outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack yet. Police sources said the bomb was remotely controlled and exploded when the SFs’ vehicle were travelling towards Loni area from Kolachi, adds Dawn.
Targetted Killings
Two people including one Intelligence Bureau (IB) personnel were killed, while three others were injured, in gunfire outside a Shia Imambargah in Sector I/8 of Islamabad on November 29, reports The News. The deceased IB official has been identified as Hubdar Hussain.
Sub-Inspector (SI) Imdad Shah was killed by two militants riding on motorcycle at the main gate of Government Sardar Begum Teaching Hospital in Sialkot District, reports The Nation, on November 29. Hajipura Police had registered a murder case with the clause 7 of Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).
Militants killed three labourers and injured another one in Naks area of the Harnai District in Balochistan on December 5, reports Dawn. The labourers were affiliated with National Logistics Cell (NLC) and were engaged in repairing the Sibi-Harnai railway track which had previously been blown up by the militants, adds The Nation.
Ali Mohammad, a Peace Committee member, was killed by Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan militants in Daggar village of Chagmalai region in South Waziristan Agency on December 6, reports Daily Times. According to local media, TTP claimed the attack with the spokesman of the militant’s outfit warning that they would continue to target members of the Peace Committee.
Two Pakistan Army personnel were killed when their vehicle was targeted by the militants from atop the mountains in North Waziristan Agency on December 12, reports Daily Times. The deceased were identified as Second Lieutenant Abdul Moeed and Sepoy Basharat.
A Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM)-Pakistan member Ammad Wasim was killed by unidentified assailants when he was on his way to Samnabad Locality from Matric Board Office, within the limits of Nazimabad Police station in Karachi on December 18, reports The Nation. Police termed the incident target killing but declined to verify the political affiliation of the deceased.
Seven people were killed and four others were injured in firing followed by a mine explosion in Toba Nokhani area of Dera Bugti District in Balochistan on December 21, reports Dawn. According to unnamed Levies sources, six people of the same family were killed and four others were injured when unidentified militants stormed a house belonging to a person called Gujjar. Subsequently, a landmine explosion took place when the vehicle was shifting the dead and injured to the hospital, killing one more person on the spot.
A police ASI was shot dead when he along with two other cops went to serve court notice on an accused in Bahawalnagar in the remit of Macleod Ganj Police on Dec 21. According to police, one Mst Bashiran Bibi filed a petition in the court for recovery of her minor children from the custody of husband Maqsood. When ASI Nawaz along with two cops reached the residence of Maqsood they came across gunshots fired by Maqsood and his accomplices. Maqsood was arrested.
Two people belonging to Hazara community were gunned down and two others were injured after gunmen attacked a vehicle they were traveling on Western Bypass in Quetta on Dec 22. The vehicle carrying miners was heading to Machh from Hazara Town when it was targeted by gunmen near Nawa Kali. Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Sanaullah Zehri has condemned the attack and sought report into the incident from the Inspector General Balochistan Police.
Miscellaneous
The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) killed four Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants in an overnight shootout on Sargodha-Faisalabad Road in the jurisdiction of Nishatabad Police Station in Faisalabad District on November 25, reports Daily Times. Three other militants however managed to escape the encounter. Two Kalashnikovs, pistols, three kilogrammes of explosive material, two detonators and two motorcycles were recovered from the slain militants. CTD, Faisalabad, had set up a check-post based on intelligence.
Two militants were killed by Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) while three others managed to escape the raid, in Gujrat District in Punjab on November 30, reports The Nation. The CTD Spokesman informed that explosive material including hand-grenades and arms were recovered from the dead militants.
Three Tehreek-e-Taliban militants were killed while two others managed to escape the encounter with the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on December 3, within the limits of Sandal Bar Police Station in Faisalabad District of Punjab, reports The Nation. Arms, explosives, detonators and motorcycle were recovered from the slain militants. The CTD acted on prior intelligence, and has formed Special Teams to arrest the other two militants.
On December 3, Security Forces (SFs) arrested 11 militants of the Baloch Republican Army (BRA) from Sanni Shoran area in Sibi District in Balochistan under Operation ‘Rad-ul-Fassad (Operation ‘End of Discord)’, reports The Nation.
Separately, the SFs launched Intelligence Based Operations (IBOs) at Ilyasi Nullah in Dera Bugti District and an unspecified area of Dukki District on December 3 and recovered arms and ammunition, reports The Nation.
In another operation, four IEDs were recovered from Killa Saifullah District on December 3, reports The Nation. The bombs were later defused the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS).
In yet another operation on December 3, Levies Force and Intelligence Agencies recovered 181 Rocket Propeller Gun (RPG)-7 rockets, 172 fuses, an MMRR 75 gun and 80 rounds in the Kahan area in Kohlu District reports The Nation.
Two suspected militants were arrested near Jumma Khan Khawar in Nasir Bagh area of Peshawar on December 2, reports The Nation. The arrested militants were wanted in target killings and arms and explosives were recovered from them.
Separately, Police arrested nine suspects from Badhbher, Telaband, and other areas outside Peshawar on December 2, reports The Nation. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the suspects.
Two militants were killed by Security Forces (SFs) in an Intelligence Based Operation (IBO) in the Jahan Abad area of Swat District on December 6, reports Dawn. Two facilitators were also arrested. The deceased militants, identified as Asad alias Anus and Wahab, were wanted for their involvement in militancy in Malakand Division, adds The Express Tribune.
Army and Police conducted a Joint-Search Operation and arrested 19 suspected militants in Gulberg and Riggi areas of Peshawar District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on December 8, reports The Express Tribune. Arms and drugs were recovered from marked houses during the operation. Police reported that in total approximately 80 houses were searched.
Six Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) militants were arrested by Frontier corps (FC) in two separate Intelligence Based Operations (IBOs) under ‘Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad (Operation End of Discord)’ in Rustam Darbar area in Dera Bugti District and Killi Deba area in Killa Abdullah District in Balochistan on December 11, reports The News. Explosives, arms and ammunition, including anti-personal mines, detonators and communications equipment were recovered from the militants.
Punjab Rangers along with Police and Intelligence Agencies arrested 12 facilitators of militants during Intelligence Based Operations (IBOs) conducted in Attock, Rawalpindi and Sargodha Districts in Punjab on December 11, reports The News. Arms and ammunition were recovered from militants.
Six militants belonging to a sub-group of Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) Swat faction, allegedly linked to the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) attack in Peshawar District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on December 1, were arrested during raids in the areas bordering Charsadda District in KP and Mohmand Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), reports Dawn on December 11. Suicide vests and explosive material were recovered from the militants. However the main accused remains absconding despite raids being conducted by Security Forces (SFs) in Bajaur Agency in FATA, where he was reported to have been present.
Frontier Corps (FC) Balochistan arrested one illegal arms trader in Sui sub-division of Dera-Bugti District in Balochistan on December 13, reports The News. Explosive, detonators, weapons and ammunition were recovered from him.
Separately, FC Balochistan in an Intelligence Based Operation (IBO) recovered and neutralised six Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted on N-50 national highway near Zhob District in Balochistan on December 13, reports The News.
Security Forces (SFs) comprising Punjab Rangers, Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), Punjab Police and Intelligence Agencies conducted Intelligence Based Operations (IBOs) and arrested 19 militants, including facilitators, across Sargodha, Bhakar, DG Khan, Attock and Lahore Districts in Punjab Province on December 14, reports The Express Tribune. Arms and ammunition were also recovered from the militants. This was done under the ambit of ‘Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad (Operation Elimination of Discord)’
Unidentified militants hurled a grenade targeting the office of National Party (NP) in Kech District in Balochistan on December 15, reports The Nation. No casualties or injuries were reported.
Security Forces (SFs) arrested three suspected illegal arms traders and recovered a cache of ammunition during a raid in Karachi’s Rizvia Society in on December 18, reports Daily Times. According to a statement by an unnamed Rangers spokesperson the recovery included a G3 rifle, four sub-machine guns (SMGs), two 7mm rifles, M4 rifles, one .22 rifle, one .22 pistol, six 9mm pistols, five 12 bore rifles, four 30 bore pistols, a 32 bore pistol, a 38 bore pistol and 2,159 rounds of different weapon and the arrested suspects were identified as Azam Abbas, Amir Abbas and Asif.
Two militants were killed and weapons seized from their possession during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) by Security Forces (SFs) in Tump area of Turbat District, reports Daily Times on December 22.
Meanwhile, one Chinese national, named ‘Liu’, has gone missing on December 21 from Karot Hydropower Project in Kahuta District, reports The Nation. He was associated with Chinese company Sino Hydro Corporation as a supervisor.
Two suspected militants were killed by personnel of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) during a raid in a compound near Jalalpur Pirwala in Multan District in Punjab on December 21, reports The News. One of the slain militant was identified as M Ajmal, the identity of the other killed militant has not been ascertained yet. Three other militants managed to escape.
Station House Officer Rahim Bakhsh Marri was killed in an exchange of fire that broke out between police and armed suspect on Dec 22 in Gandakha area of Jaffarabad in Balochistan when the police party was conducting a raid against the gang. Three police personnel were injured and rushed to nearby hospital for medical treatment. The police also gunned down ringleader Zulfiqar (alias Zulfi) and his associate, they were involved in crimes including kidnapping for ransom, etc.
PAKISTAN
US again offers joint action against extremism to Pakistan
The United States (US) has once again offered Pakistan to act jointly against the extremists’ outfits in Pakistan citing the rise in religious fringe, The Nation reported on November 27. “Pakistani government now has an opportunity to demonstrate its seriousness in confronting all forms of terrorism, without distinction, by arresting and charging Hafiz Saeed for his crimes” said a White House statement. Senior Officials at the Foreign Ministry (FM) said the US had shown concern over Pakistan’s failure to check the extremists’ advances as the Government struggled to contain a sit-in in Islamabad by religious outfits. “They [the US] were furious over [Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief (Jud)] Hafiz Mohammed Saeed’s release. The rise of religious groups like Tehreek-e-Labaik Ya Rasool Allah has infuriated them further. They want us to discourage them before they take over the country,” said one Official citing contacts in Washington.
Saudi Arabia led IMCTC targeting terror, not a country or sect says IMCTC’s MC General (Retd.) Raheel Sharif
At the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) meeting on November 26, the IMCTC’s Military Commander (MC) General (Retd.) Raheel Sharif said that the sole objective of the alliance was to counter terrorism and it is not against any country or any sect, reports The Express Tribune. The final declaration issued after the Ministers meeting in Riyadh suggested that it would be up to the Member States to decide the extent of their participation in the coalition. The Alliance’s Terms of Reference (TORs) were finalised at a meeting of Defence Ministers of the member countries forming the IMCTC. Pakistan’s Defence Minister (DM) Khurrum Dastagir represented Pakistan at the daylong meeting presided over by Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Suleman. The declaration said that “the ministers emphasised the importance of providing necessary military capabilities to ensure that terrorist organisations are weakened, dismantled, eliminated and deprived of the opportunity to reorganise”.
Meanwhile on Nov 29, Iran objected to General Sharif’s appointment calling it a ‘sectarian alliance’ reports The Nation. “They insist it is a Sunni alliance against the Shias. We are struggling to convince them [Iran] that this is an anti-terrorism alliance. They [Iran] are drifting away as we get closer to Saudi Arabia,” said one unnamed Foreign Ministry (FM) Official.
Rangers shoot down Indian spy drone near Head Sulemanki
The Pakistan Rangers shot down an Indian spy drone Quadcopter near the Head Sulemanki border on Monday, Nov 27. As per details acquired, the Rangers 13-Wing shot down the spy drone as soon as it violated the Pakistani airspace. The debris of the Quadcopter fell near the Rangers check-post, which was collected. Further investigation into the matter has been launched. Quadcopters are used for aerial photography. It is not the first incident of this kind. Back in July this year, a similar drone was shot down along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Bhimber Sector of Azad Kashmir.
Mumbai attack was a false flag op, says US author
An American academic, political commentator and scholar, Dr. Kevin Barrett, has opined that former US President Barrack Obama is “either wildly detached from reality or lying through his teeth while talking about Osama bin Laden and terrorism”.
Dr. Kevin Barrett made these remarks in one of his very recent TV interviews, while commenting on a speech made by Obama at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit an annual meeting of business tycoons, world leaders and Nobel laureates in New Delhi.
Barrett said further, “Obviously, every government does take a primary interest in so-called terrorist groups that target it”. And as the term terrorist is very confusing, Obama may have been playing with the lack of clarity in that term”.
The true meaning of terrorism is ‘intentionally targeting civilians,’” Dr. Barrett said. “And Obama, of course, is here with people from India who view the liberation struggle in Kashmir as terrorism, while it is not. The Kashmiri liberation forces are primarily non-violent just like in Palestine, but to the extent that they do target India, they target Indian soldiers in Kashmir, and that is their right under international law,” says the American scholar, adding. “The Indian government, especially the extremist element, has partnered with the elements of the US and Israeli Deep State in trying to smear the Kashmiri liberation struggle by creating false flag terrorism in India in which civilians are slaughtered”.
Dr. Barrett also asserted: “And Obama, of course, was going with the official version of the Mumbai attacks when he said the US was just as interested in prosecuting the attackers of the 2008 Mumbai slaughter as India was. But those attacks have been proven to be a false flag by the elements of the Indian government itself, in partnership with the United States”. Dr. Barret has also recommended a 800-page book written by Elias Davidson whose title is ‘The Betrayal of India: [A Close Look at the 2008 Mumbai Terror Attacks]’. According to the American scholar, “The 800 pages of documentation prove, beyond any doubt, that this was a false flag.”
TTP’s attack on Peshawar’s College guided from Afghanistan, says ISPR
Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor said on December 2 that December 1 attack at a Peshawar college by the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) was guided from Afghanistan, and the militants were in contact with leadership in Afghanistan. “Afghan Director General Military Operations [DGMO] is visiting Pakistan and substantial evidence of TTP sanctuaries [in Afghanistan] has been handed over to him.”
Pak-Saudi counterterrorism exercise in Riyadh underway
Pak-Saudi Special Forces joint counter-terrorism exercise ‘Al-Shehab-2’ is under way at the Prince Naif Security City, Riyadh, says an ISPR press release on Sunday, Dec 3. The two-week-long exercise started on 25th November and will continue till 10th December. The “Al-Shehab-1” was held last year in Pakistan.
The Pakistani contingent comprising 68 officers and soldiers of Special Services Group (SSG) is participating in this exercise. The Pak-Saudi joint exercise will help participating troops from both sides to learn from each other’s experiences in the counter-terrorism field and strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two forces and the countries.
Security forces in FATA unearth tunnels, caves and factory producing IEDs
Security Forces (SFs) on December 7 carried out a search operation under the ongoing ‘Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad (Operation End of Discord)’ and unearthed tunnels, four caves and a factory for production of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in Nangrosa-Lagad area of Barra Bara in Tirah valley of Khyber Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), reports Dawn. Nangrosa had remained a stronghold of banned militant outfit Lashkar-i-Islam (LI) from 2005 to 2012. A cache of arms and ammunition, including hand-grenades and IEDs was also recovered, adds The Express Tribune.
Pakistan has made sacrifices in the war against terror, says Pentagon Chief Spokesperson Dana White
Pentagon Chief Spokesperson Dana White, during a United States (US) State Department press briefing said that no one had lost more troops and lives to terrorism than Pakistan on December 7, reports The Express Tribune. “The Secretary [Jim Mattis] had very fruitful conversations about where they we can find common ground. As he said, you know, no one has lost more troops and lives to terrorism than the Pakistanis. So again, this is about broadening our relationship and looking for opportunities,” stated Dana White.
313 militants and 17 militant ‘commanders’ surrender in Balochistan
Over 313 militants and 17 militant ‘commanders’ of various militant outfits surrendered to the Government and Security personnel on December 9 in Quetta of Balochistan under ‘Peaceful Balochistan Policy’, reports The Nation. The militants handed over arms to Balochistan Chief Minister (CM) Nawab Sanauallah Zehri in a ceremony held at the Balochistan Assembly, where Police and Frontier Corps (FC) Personnel were deployed for securing the perimeter. Southern Command Commander Lieutenant General Asim Saleem Bajwa and Balochistan Home Minister (HM) Sarfaraz Bugti were also present, adds Daily Times.
Peshawar High Court disallows release of TTP’s former ‘spokesperson’ Ehsanullah Ehsan
A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) acting on the petition filed by one Fazal Khan, on December 13 disallowed the Government from releasing the former ‘spokesperson’ of Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), Ehsanullah Ehsan, and directed the authorities to continue with the investigation, reports Times of India. The petition stated that the Government was planning to give clemency to Ehsan who is in the custody of Security Agencies. Ehsanullah Ehsan had later joined Jammat-ul-Ahrar (JuA).
Nine civilians killed and 56 others injured as IS militants carried out suicide attack at a church in Balochistan
Nine civilians were killed and 56 injured in a suicide attack by two Islamic State (IS) militants on a church in Quetta in Balochistan on December 17, reports Daily Times. Police Guards stationed at the church entrance and on its roof killed one militant but the second militant detonated his explosives-filled vest outside the prayer hall, confirmed Provincial Home Minister (PHM) Sarfaraz Bugti. At the time of the incident there were nearly 400 worshippers in the church for the pre-Christmas service. IS claimed the attack, through its Amaq News Agency in an online statement, without substantiating its claim. However, Police Official Abd-ur-Razzaq Cheema, said that two other militants had managed to escape. Bethel Memorial Methodist Church was the target of attack, adds Dawn.
Meanwhile, Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on December 17 said that the attack targeting the church in Quetta was an attempt to create religious discord in the country, reports Daily Times. “Effective response by Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) is commendable. We stay united and steadfast to respond against such heinous attempts,” he added.
Pakistan rejects US allegations made during the release of National Security Strategy, says MFA Pakistan
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Pakistan in statement issued on December 19 said that accusations made during the release of National Security Strategy (NSS) do not reflect the facts on the ground and trivialize Pakistan’s counter-terrorism achievements and efforts, reports The News. The Trump administration was also reminded that it was because of Pakistan’s cooperation with the international community, acknowledged and appreciated by the US leadership, that the Al- Qaeda core was decimated from the region.
Pakistan wants sacrifices acknowledged, not money: DG ISPR
Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor on Tuesday, Dec 19 said Pakistan did not fight the war on terror for money and the country only needs acknowledgement of its sacrifices and contributions. He was giving the Pakistan Army’s reaction over US President Donald Trump’s statement. “As far as money is concerned, by giving Pakistan $50 billion or so since 1947, that is not our price. If assistance by America has been given to us in the security domain, that is their national interest and being a superpower, they have defence cooperation with countries across the world. But making some payments over the war on terror and then saying they are making heavy payments; Pakistan is not fighting for money.”
Two TTP militants attempting to target Governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai arrested in Balochistan
Two Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) militants attempting to target Governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai in a suicide attack were arrested by Security Forces (SFs) in a raid from Gulistan Tehsil (revenue unit) of Killa Abdullah District in Balochistan on December 20, reports The Nation. Provincial Home Minister (HM) Mir Sarfaraz Bugti confirmed that SFs had also recovered suicide jackets, anti-tank mines, rockets, mortar shells and other subversive materials during the raid. The militants identified as Hamid Bashir and Munawar, both from Punjab, belonged to a splinter faction of TTP, the Qari Group.
DGMO Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza briefs Senators on Operation Radd-ul-Fassad
Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza on December 19 briefed the Senators on the progress of ‘Operation Radd-ul-Fassad (Operation Elimination of Discord)’, reports Dawn. He confirmed that under the Radd-ul-Fassad, at least 18,001 intelligence-based operations (IBO) were conducted across Pakistan (periods not specified). Giving further details he said that 1,249 IBOs had been conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), including 31 major operations 13,011 operations had been conducted in Punjab, including seven major operations 1,410 operations, including 29 major operations, were undertaken in Balochistan 2015 operations, including seven major operations, were conducted in Sindh. No break up was provided for rest 242 IBOs. There were another 4,983 search-based combing operations across Pakistan. At least 19,993 weapons were also recovered during these operations. Further, briefing on Karachi, he said that since the launch of the Rangers operation in Karachi in 2013, at least 8,780 suspects had been transferred to the Police 12,105 weapons were seized and 1,948 militants were arrested 154 abductees had been freed from captivity and 154 kidnappers were arrested and 24 soldiers had been killed (period for the data not specified).
Six suicide hits killed 45 persons in Balochistan this year
Balochistan has again remained on high spotlight of terrorist’s target as suicide attacks on public and security forces had increased in prevailing year as compared to past year, though the casualties declined.
Briefing media men about police performance report of 2017, the Deputy Inspector General Police (DIG) and Regional Police Officer (RPO) Razzaq Cheema told reporters during a press conference on Dec 22 that six suicide explosions claimed 45 persons lives – 23 civilians, 12 police and 10 Army men and as many as 195–125 civilians, 39 police, 25 Army and 6 Frontier Corps Jawans sustained injuries this year in the province.
49 members of the police and Frontier Corps were targeted this year in 21 target killing episodes, while members of both security forces were gunned down last year in 34 cases.
PRO told media persons that four cases of kidnapping for ransom were reported in 2017 as the figure was five during last year, however, no untoward incident occurred in banks and petrol pumps.
The DIG maintained that the police officials were revisiting security strategy to overcome law and order situation and efforts were also underway to further strengthen coordination between public and police force.
1400 police personnel martyred during war on terror: CM Punjab
Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif says the menace of terrorism is dying down due to unity and sacrifices of people of Pakistan. He was addressing passing-out ceremony of ASI’s at Sihala Police Training College on morning of Dec 25.
The Chief Minister said armed forces of Pakistan decided to launch a counter terrorism operation with the full support of PML (N) Government and backing of the entire nation. He said 1400 police personnel also embraced martyrdom during war on terror and their sacrifices would be remembered.
Shahbaz Sharif said the sacrifices rendered by our security forces demand that we should sink our differences and move ahead together for progress and prosperity of the country. He said Pakistan is bestowed with immense resources of men and material and we only need to exploit them properly to develop the country on modern lines.
Iran says nothing to do with Jhadav
Iranian parliament Speaker Dr. Ali Larijani Monday, Dec 25 said that his country had nothing to do with convicted Indian spy Kulbhushan Jhadav as Tehran was committed not to allow anybody to use its soil against Pakistan. Addressing a news conference here after attending a two-day six-nation Speakers’ Conference, Larijani said Jhadav was working as a businessman in Chahbahar, and Iran did not know that he was spying for India.
“This is an issue between Pakistan and India. Iran has nothing to do with it. Iran remains committed to friendship with Pakistan,” he said.
On Monday, Pakistan had organised a “family reunion” for Kulbhushan Jhadav. The Indian spy was arrested last year in the Balochistan province for spying and stoking terrorism and sectarianism in the country. Islamabad has also handed over dossiers to the UN regarding Jadhav’s confessional statement.
Larijani said Iran had historical ties with Pakistan and desired to take the relationship further for the betterment of both the nations.
To a question, the Iranian speaker said US President Donald Trump was playing with terrorism instead of fighting to defeat the menace.
Larijani said he had discussed Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and was optimistic that the project would be completed soon.
He said Iran was against all kinds of terrorism in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria or other Muslim-majority countries. “The US has created Daesh to target the Muslims. We need to get united to face these challenges,” the Iranian speaker added.
Human smuggling, trafficking on the rise: FIA
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) wants establishment of its immigration liaison offices in Iran and Turkey to check the menace of human smuggling as according to the agency, thousands of Pakistanis are leaving for Europe illegally every year through land routes of Iran, Turkey, and Greece.
The FIA in its report recently submitted to the Supreme Court in a suo motu case of killing of 20 Pakistanis in Turbat District of Balochistan, has pointed out how human smuggling and human trafficking have become a rising phenomenon in Pakistan and what kind of challenges the agency is facing to counter the menace.
The FIA said that those 20 Pakistanis, all belonged to the eastern part of the country, had reached Balochistan, and intended to leave for Europe through the known illegal land route passing Iran, Turkey, and Greece.
The report says that the FIA has already established its Immigration Liaison Office also known as FIA Link Office, in Muscat, Oman for better liaison and coordinating with the counter stakeholders to check human smuggling and it has become a success story. The office has brought considerably great developments in resolving the issues of Pakistani nationals constrained in Oman and the UAE due to their illegal status.
The Director General of the FIA in the report said that the agency had taken up the matter with the government to establish Immigration Liaison Offices (ILOs) in the Pakistani Embassies of Iran and Turkey. Iran and Turkey have already posted their ILOs in their Embassies in Islamabad.
The report states that as per data of Frontex, official European border and coastal guard agency, 6,767 Pakistanis entered Europe, including Germany and Italy, illegally in 2017 only.
The FIA said that the most common route adopted remained land route and this was from Pakistan to Iran to Turkey and then Greece. Iran and Turkey serve as transit countries on these routes.
The FIA pointed out that the agency was facing a number of challenges and indifference of the government to counter the menace. “Human resources, infrastructure and capacity building issue of [the] FIA need to be resolved in accordance with the current workload and complexity of its mandate functions and responsibilities,” the report said.
The report recommended that enhanced cooperation, to decrease the rising cases of smuggling, in Pak-Iran Border Commission in respect of immigration issues especially with regards to agents working in Iran.
The report states that the agents in Turkey, Greece, Italy and Germany were also in contact with the local agents in Quetta and those in Iran for getting innocent intending emigrants to Italy and Germany through land route of Iran, Turkey and Greece.
REGIONAL
Bangladesh – Internal Dynamics
Ansar al Islam militant involved in murder of writer-blogger Avijit Roy arrested in Dhaka city
Arafat Rahman alias Siam alias Sazzad, a militant of Ansar al Islam involved in murder of writer-blogger Avijit Roy in the Dhaka city’s Mohammadpur area on February 26, 2015, was arrested when he was about to meet some of his accomplices in Savar of Dhaka city on November 24, reports The Daily Star. Police claimed that Siam, like several other arrested accused in the case, in his primary interrogation told them that they carried out the attack on Avijit on the instruction of sacked and absconding Army Major Syed Zia-ul-Haque, alleged military chief of Ansar al Islam.
Home Minister blames Mossad for supporting militancy in BD
Home Minister Asad-uz-zaman Khan Kamal while addressing an anti-militancy rally at Shariatpur Police Line on November 26 blamed Israeli intelligence agency Mossad for playing role in the rise of militancy in Bangladesh, reports Dhaka Tribune. “Mossad is putting desperate efforts in Bangladesh. They are supporting militancy to confuse us. But the Bengali Muslim community cannot be befuddled. Under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, the Olama and Mashayekhs [religious scholars] of the country have already proved that there is no room for militancy in the country,” he said.
Three JMB militants blow themselves up during anti-terror operation in Chapainawabganj District
Three Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) militants blew themselves up during an anti-terror operation by Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) at a remote char in Chapainawabganj District on November 28, reports The Daily Star. The RAB could not immediately identify the bodies. They were unrecognizable due to the powerful blasts. The explosion also put the thatched house they were in on fire. It was completely burned down with the bodies inside. Three improvised explosive devices (IEDs), seven detonators, 12 packs of explosives gel and two pistols were recovered from the spot.
NGO official killed in Jessore
Unidentified assailants shot dead the executive director of a Non-Government Organisation (NGO) near his residence on the outskirts of Jessore town on December 2, reports Daily Star. The deceased was identified as Golam Kuddus Bhiku, (50), executive director of Protyasha Samajkalyan Sangstha.
JMB militant arrested in Dhaka city
Police on December 6 arrested Mohamad Nur Azam Siddique alias Yasir (38), a militant of Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from Dhaka city’s Sabujbagh area, reports New Age. Police said the arrestee has long been involved in recruiting new members for the extremist organization and has a plan to carry out large scale attack across the country, especially in the capital city.
Four Neo-JMP militants arrested in Bogra
Police arrested four militants of Neo-Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB) including its ‘military commander’ of the Northern Districts in Mokamtola Bazar area of Bogra District on December 6, reports Dhaka Tribune. The arrestees are ‘military commander’ Babul Akter alias Babul Master (45), Delwar Hossain alias Mistri Mizan (39), Alamgir Hossain alias Arif (26) and Afzal Hossain alias Limon (28). All of them are the members of the Neo-JMB Sura committee (the highest ranking platform of the outfit). Police also recovered a foreign pistol, 15 rounds of bullets, a magazine, four knives and a machete from their possession.
Six Neo-JMB militants arrested in Naogaon
Police arrested six militants of Neo-Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB) from Kashiagari Sluice Gate area of Naogaon District on December 11, reports The Daily Star. Police also seized some books on jihad from their possession.
Neo-JMB founder Abdus Samad recruited over 50 youths into militancy, say CTTC officials
Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) officials said that Abdus Samad alias Arif Mamu (29), founder of Neo-Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (Neo-JMB) arrested from Mohakhali area in Dhaka city on December 13 recruited over 50 youths into militancy, reports Dhaka Tribune on December 15. Abdus Samad is known as “Mamu”, or “uncle”, by everyone in Neo-JMB. At a young age Samad earned the Dawra-e-Hadith degree, the highest degree offered by a Qawmi Madrasa. An expert in Arabic language, Samad has the gift of persuasion and could sway people to his Jihadi cause simply by speaking to them. Samad played an important role in New JMB, personally recruiting over 50 youths into the militant organization. Samad served the Neo-JMB in a variety of ways, most importantly as a policy maker, recruiter, fund raiser and bomb maker. He also trained new recruits in firearm use and explosives.
India – Internal Dynamics
Maoists kill village tribal leader in Telengana
Suspected Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres killed a tribal man, branding him ‘Police informer’, at Peddamidisileru village in Charla mandal (administrative sub-division) in Bhadradri Kothagudem District early on November 26, reports The Hindu. The Police identified the deceased as Sodi Prasad (45), of Peddamidisileru, an interior village close to the State’s border with Chhattisgarh. The Maoist left behind two handwritten letters one in Telugu and the other in Hindi containing stern warnings to ‘Police informers’. In one of the letters, the Maoists claimed to have punished a person belonging to Charla for allegedly acting as a ‘Police informer’. In a statement, Superintendent of Police (SP), Ambar Kishor Jha refuted reports that Sodi Prasad was a ‘Police informer’. The local Police, also, denied having any association with the deceased and attributed the murder to a financial dispute the latter reportedly had with some militia members over “exchange of demonetised currency.”
The incident came just a few days ahead of the CPI-Maoist’s annual People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) week to be observed by the banned organisation from December 2-8.
Maoists kill CRPF cadre in Maharashtra
A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Jawan, identified as Manjunath Shivaligappa was killed and two others were injured during an encounter with the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres in Gadchiroli District on November 26, reports The Hindu. The encounters took place in Padiyalmetta forest under Gyarapatti Police Station limits of Gadchiroli, when the 113th battalion of the CRPF was carrying out a joint anti-Maoist operation along with the Maharashtra Police. Three CRPF Jawan Deepak Sharma, Lokesh Kumar and Manjunath Shivaligappa sustained serious injuries during the encounter and Shivaligappa succumbed to his injuries during efforts to evacuate the three men for treatment.
‘Saffron Terror’ is projected in al Qaeda India unit’s new video, says report
According to the Intelligence sources, Al Qaeda Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) is engaging its members in India to spark the communal tensions and target religious places, reports The Times of India on November 28. In the video titled, ‘Saffron Terror’, AQIS media unit included the morphed images and video clips associated with ‘Hindu extremism’ to communally charge the contents of the video. After the release of the video, the intelligence agencies are keeping an eye on the movements of AQIS affiliated sleeper cell headed by Sanual Haq, an Uttar Pradesh resident.
Islamic State’s threat note found in Mumbai airport
The security level was stepped-up at Mumbai airport after a private security guard at airport’s cargo division found an alleged Islamic States’ note regarding an attack on its cargo facility section, reports The Indian Express on November 29. According to the sources, the note read “attack the cargo on 26 January 2018 or anytime ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and Syria]”, after which the bomb disposable teams of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and local Police were briefed up for security. As the cargo area is not monitored by CISF team, the levels of vigilance and passenger checks has been increased in the main airport terminal area, said senior CISF office.
Ansar Ghawat-ul Hind’s terrorists are gearing up to welcome winters
Zakir Musa chief of al Qaeda’s Kashmir outfit, Ansar Ghazwat-ul Hind (AGuH), and other members of the outfit are getting ready with their supplies for winters, reports The Times of India on November 29. According to a video released on November 28, Zakir Musa and other militants of AGuH were seen stocking up to the eatables, including Ghee, Milk while singing jihadi songs and waving Islamic States’ (IS) flags. Reportedly, in winters, routes in forests get clogged due to heavy snowfall and seasoned rains. It is suspected that the Musa and other members filmed this video from their hideout somewhere located inside the dense forests of the Tral belt in Pulwama District where they have enormous support from local population, said Police sources.
Demand for separate Koch Hajo state comprising parts of Assam raised by Consortium of Koch Royal Families
The Consortium of Koch Royal Families (Conkorf), on November 30 raised the demand for separate “Koch Hajo” state, reports The Telegraph. This development comes after the demand for a separate “Bodoland” state to be carved out of Assam was raised by different Bodo organisations recently. According to the organisation, there is no historical basis of the demand for “Bodoland” as the ancient Bodo Kachari comprised Cachar and a part of Nagaland with Dimapur as the capital and not the areas that they are demanding as “Bodoland”. Conkorf said in the Bodoland Territorial Areas District (BTAD), comprising Kokrajhar, Baksa, Udalguri and Chirang, Bodos comprise only 27 per cent of the total population.
Assam Rifles convoy ambushed in Manipur
A convoy of Assam Rifles (AR) troopers, who were on their way to conduct a free medical camp, were attacked by unidentified militant group by exploding three Improvised Explosive Devices (IED)s at Konkan village in Kamjong district on December 2, reports Epao. No casualty was reported during the ambush.
Suspected Naxals kill BJP leader in Jharkhand
Unidentified armed Naxals [Left Wing Extremists (LWEs)] killed Bhaiya Ram Munda (38), a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and injured three others including the wife, mother and brother at Bagma village under Murhu Police Station area in Khunti District on December 2, reports UNI. Police said a group of 15-20 ultras belonging to an unidentified Communist Party of India-Maoist/ splinter group reached the house of the deceased Munda in the night and opened indiscriminate fire in which he was killed on the spot while his wife, mother and brother sustained injuries. However, Police suspected PLFI [Peoples’ Liberation Front of India] ultras of being responsible for the killing. PLFI is a splinter group of the CPI-Maoist.
One DRG personnel injured in Maoist attack on Police camp in Chhattisgarh
One District Reserve Guard (DRG) personnel was injured when Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres fired at a newly set up Police camp at a forest in Kondagaon District on December 6, reports NDTV. A small action team of the Maoists fired at the Police camp in Hadeli village where some finishing work was underway, following which the Security Force (SF) personnel retaliated and after a brief exchange of fire, the rebels escaped into the dense forest, Police said. Head constable Komal Khalko, belonging to DRG, had sustained bullet injuries. The Police camp was recently set up in Hadeli, located 50 kilometres deep inside forest from Kondagaon town, which is around 200 kilometres away from State capital, Raipur.
Meanwhile, the Maoist cadres set ablaze six vehicles and blown up a pump house of National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) tower in separate incidents at Bastar Division of Chhattisgarh on December 12, during Bharat bandh (All India general shut down) call on December 12, reports Naidunia. In the first incident, the Maoists set ablaze six vehicles used in construction work which include one concrete mixer machine, one JCB, one truck, one road roller and two tractors in Iragaon village of Kondagaon District. In the second incident, a pump house of NMDC Bacheli Deposit-5 project was blown up by the rebels in Akash Nagar of Dantewada District. Moreover, in the third incident, a BSNL tower was blown up by the CPI-Maoist rebels in Kanker District. The water supply in NMDC mines area was stopped due to blowing of water pump house.
Monthly Fatalities
The following casualties, related to ongoing insurgencies and acts of terrorism occurred during the period Nov 26 to Dec 25, 2017:
| Civilian | Indian Security Personnel | Militant | Total | |
| Assam | 04 | 00 | 02 | 06 |
| Arunachal P | 02 | 00 | 01 | 03 |
| Left wing | 32 | 01 | 13 | 46 |
| TOTAL | 38 | 01 | 16 | 55 |
Nepal – Internal Dynamics
Policeman injured in bomb explosion in Jajarkot
One Policeman was injured in a bomb explosion targeting a team of security personnel carrying ballot boxes at Kushe Rural Municipality-1 in Jajarkot District on November 27, reports The Himalayan Times. The injured is identified as Shanta Bahadur Basnet, who was carrying the ballot box. Police suspected Biplav-led Maoist’s involvement in the incident.
Communism will destroy democracy: PM
Prime Minister and Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba at an election campaign organized at Kathauna Bazaar of Shambhunath Municipality in Saptari District on November 30 said communism will destroy democracy, reports The Himalayan Times. Deuba said “If communist forces rule the country, democracy will vanish. People’s right to property also will be curtailed. The country will not witness another election if the communists win. Hence, the democratic forces need to win as communists forces are against the democratic system.”
Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Ayodhi Prasad Yadav addressing an orientation programme of micro-monitors at the EC central office in Kathmandu on November 30 asked the Government and security agencies to boost security so that every voter could cast vote fearlessly, reports The Himalayan Times. Yadav stressed the need of adequate security for every voter, candidate, EC staffer and electoral material.
Eight policemen injured in explosion
Eight Policemen were injured in an explosion near the venue of a Nepali Congress (NC) election rally in Dang District on November 28, reports The Himalayan Times. The incident occurred about 500 metres south of Araniko stadium in Tulsipur, where NC President and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba was addressing a rally.
Meanwhile, an explosion took place in Morang District, targeting the election campaign of the left alliance’s parliamentary candidate from Morang-6 Lalbabu Pandit on November 28, reports The Himalayan Times. A bomb went off while Pandit, along with provincial poll candidate Jivan Acharya, was canvassing in Bhudhiganga Rural Municipality.
Separately, an explosion also occurred in the house of NC’s provincial candidate Himal Karki in Udayapur District on November 28, reports The Himalayan Times. The blast occurred when Karki returned home in Chuhade, Triyuga Municipality, after campaigning at around 2:30pm. His house suffered minor damage but cattle were hurt in the explosion.
Earlier, in Jhapa District, a sutali bomb went off at NC’s parliamentary candidate Krishna Prasad Sitaula’s home in Bhadrapur Municipality on November 27, reports The Himalayan Times. Police arrested Rajesh Karki, 40, of Barhadashi, while he was trying to flee after carrying out the explosion.
Elsewhere, a bomb exploded at the residence of NC election candidate Himal Karki of Udayapur District Provincial Constituency No. 1 (Kha) on November 27, reports The Himalayan Times. No casualty has been reported.
Meanwhile, a group of unidentified persons detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) on the premises of a school in Lagankhel, Lalitpur Dsitrict where CPN-UML Chair KP Sharma Oli was attending the party’s election rally on November 28, reports The Himalayan Times.
Separately, a powerful remote controlled IED was recovered near the border security office of the Armed Police Force at Ranjitpur along the Rajbiraj-Kunauli road section in Saptari District on November 28, reports The Himalayan Times. Later, Nepal Army’s bomb disposal squad defused the IED.
IED goes off near UN park
An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) went off near United Nations (UN) Park in Kupondole of Lalitpur District on December 1, reports Kathmandu Post. No human casualty has been reported. Police said an unidentified group detonated the bomb to terrorize the people in the run up to the second phase of parliamentary and provincial elections slated for December 6.
Separately, Transparency International (TI) in a statement on November 30 said that it is worried by the incidences of poll code violation by the political parties and candidates during the election campaigns for the upcoming second phase of federal parliament and provincial assembly elections slated for December 7, reports Kathmandu Post. “The security situation is constantly becoming difficult on one hand while on the other the tendency of the candidates to ensure victory by doing anything might lead to the formation of a governing body that might not be a true representative of people. Therefore, everyone needs to be wary of the situation right from now,” read the statement.
Deputy PM’s vehicle attacked
An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was hurled at the vehicle of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education Gopalman Shrestha in Bhirkot Municipality-9 in Syangja District on December 4, reports Kathmandu Post. Minister Shrestha was returning from an election rally when an unidentified person threw the IED at the Scorpio (Ba 13 Cha 2027) he was riding on, said Police. There were no casualties. Shrestha is the Nepali Congress (NC) candidate for the federal parliament from Syangja-2 in the upcoming elections slated for December 7. (PR)
Earlier, a bomb went off targeting the mass meeting addressed by Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre (CPN-Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal at Pakadi of Mayadevi Rural Municipality in Kapilvastu District on December 2, reports The Himalayan Times. The blast occurred immediately after the Dahal completed his address to the mass meeting. Police said that no human casualty has been reported in the incident.
Meanwhile, an IED was exploded targeting the election candidates of left alliance at Angdim in Chathar Rural Municipality-1 of Tehrathum District on December 2, reports Kathmandu Post. The explosion caused damages to the vehicle in which party members were travelling. Leaders and cadres escaped the explosion unhurt.
11 people including former Health Minister injured in explosion in Kathmandu
11 persons including Nepali Congress (NC) former Health Minister Gagan Thapa were injured in an explosion targeting his election rally at Chapali in Kathmandu on December 4, reports The Himalayan Times. Thapa is contesting from Kathamandu 4, from where he was elected to the second Constituent Assembly (CA) in 2013.
Meanwhile, an improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated on December 4 targeting a vehicle belonging to Narendra Sah, an independent candidate for the federal parliament from Sarlahi-3, in Sarlahi District, reports Kathmandu Post. Sah was heading towards Karmaiya from Hajariya on a jeep (Na 2 Cha 2019) when the IED went off near a stream, three kilometres from the East-West Highway. There were no casualties.
Also an IED was detonated near the house of Keshav Poudel, a Naya Shakti Party Nepal candidate, at Basagadhi Municipality-5 in Bardiya District on December 4, reports Kathmandu Post. There were no casualties.
Earlier, an unidentified group hurled IEDs targeting NC candidate for the federal parliament Surendra Raj Acharya at Buddhabhumi Municipality in Kapilvastu District on December 3, reports Kathmandu Post. There were no casualties.
Three IED explosions reported
A bomb went off near the house of Nepali Congress (NC) Kanchanpur Constituency No. 3 parliamentary polls candidate Ramesh Lekhak in Bhimdatta Municipality in Kanchanpur District late on December 4, reports The Himalayan Times. An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) placed near the house belonging to NC candidate Lekhak at Bhansi, exploded on December 4 night, said Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Gyan Bahadur Setti. However, no human casualties or property loss were reported.
Separately, an IED was hurled at a vehicle carrying a left alliance candidate Khagraj Bhatta in Kanchanpur District late on December 4, reports The Himalayan Times. No human casualties were reported however, said the Police, adding that the vehicle suffered a minor damage. Bhatta was returning after addressing an election campaign when the bomb was thrown at his vehicle.
In another incident, a bomb exploded near the house belonging to Kailali Constituency No. 4 left alliance common candidate Lekhraj Bhatta in Kailali District early on December 5, reports The Himalayan Times. An IED placed in a ditch by an unidentified group at the distance of 300 metres from Bhatta’s house, exploded at around 4:00 pm on December 5, according to the Area Police Office Attariya. However, no human casualty and damages have been reported.
Daily wagers being paid to trigger blasts: Police
Anti-poll activists were luring daily wagers to carry out terrorist activities, stated Chitwan Superintendent of Police (SP), Deepak Thapa, reports The Himalayan Times. According to SP, Thapa, Sanjay Gurung, who was arrested, on November 28, for carrying a gas cylinder in Ratnanagar Urban Municipality of Chitwan to trigger an explosion, told Police that he was merely carrying out anti-poll elements’ order for a sum. Gurung told Police that he was offered INR 1,000 for exploding a cylinder and he accepted the offer, since as a daily wager he used to earn only INR 200 to 300 per day. However, according to Police, it is not clear who told Gurung to explode a cylinder and who paid him INR 1,000 for carrying out the blast. Also, another daily wager had also exploded a cylinder at Lanku Bridge in Narayanghat in Chitwan District early morning of November 28. The daily wager after his arrest told the Police that he exploded the cylinder, as he was promised INR 1,000 by some unidentified person. In another such incident, Ganju Singh Gurung was arrested on November 29 from Ratnanagar Urban Municipality when he hurled a Molotov cocktail on a vehicle being used for campaigning. Ganju Singh also told Police that Netra Bikram Chand-led Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist), which had suspended him for joining CPN-Maoist, had told him to carry out an explosion to show his commitment to Chand-led CPN-Maoist.
Following these incidents, Police have beefed up security by carrying out cordon search and sweep operation across the district. They have increased vigilance in Mugling, Lother Bridge, Narayani Bridge and in areas where landless people are settled. Police have so far arrested 25 anti-poll activists and 19 gangsters with explosives, weapons and ammunition. Twenty-five anti-poll activists who have been arrested are suspected to be associated with Chand-led CPN-Maoist but the Government bodies have not confirmed their political association. “We’ll not let people stand in a group of five or more on the road,” said SP Thapa. “Joint security forces will also carry out cordon search and sweep operation across the district,” he added.
Sri Lanka – Internal Dynamics
Huge cache of weapons including firearms and explosives recovered in Jaffna District
Jaffna Police on November 26 recovered huge cache of weapons including firearms and explosives packed in a fertilizer bag and dumped by the roadside on the Jaffna- Vaddukoddai Road, reports Colombo Page. Among the weapons recovered were 10 T-56 weapons, five magazines for those firearms, 300 live rounds of ammunition, 60 mm mortar, two smoke bombs and two hand grenades. The discovery comes on the eve of the birth anniversary commemorations of slain Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader Velupillai Prabhkaran which falls on November 26 and 27.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe has ordered an inquiry in to the reports that Kilinochchi Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian S. Sritharan has allocated SLR 4 million of his decentralized budget to rebuild the cemeteries for dead LTTE fighters, reports Colombo Page on November 27. State Minister of National Policies and Economic Affairs Niroshan Perera reportedly said that an investigation into the matter has been ordered. The Prime Minister has instructed the state minister to order the Kilinochchi Pradeshiya Sabha to stop the work immediately if reconstruction has started. The Minister has said that if the funds from the decentralized budget have been used for the renovation work of the LTTE mausoleum in Kilinochchi then the work will be stopped immediately since certain guidelines have to be followed for using funds from the decentralized budget.
President appeals religious leaders to preach reconciliation and religious co-existence in congregations
President Maithripala Sirisena addressing the Religious Coexistence Convention held at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo on December 12 appealed religious leaders to use their sermons and influence to preach reconciliation and religious co-existence in their respective congregations, reports Daily Mirror. “Today, we are gathered here because deep down we know that we have a problem in this country. The ethnic and religious conflicts in this country resulted in a 30-year war. The war was ended through a military solution. Our Forces were able to defeat a separatist terrorist organization but we have not managed to defeat the beliefs that led to it. We all know that ideas and beliefs cannot be defeated with arms. It can only be replaced with a better, more positive belief. I strongly believe that our local temples and religious institutions do not preach conflict. The religious leaders always try to direct the people in the right direction. All philosophies, be it Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism and Christianity, strive try to correct society,” said President Maithripala Sirisena.
UN experts call for end to arbitrary detention in Sri Lanka
The three-member United Nations (UN) Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on December 15 urged the Government to introduce urgent reforms to the ‘outdated’ legal framework to end arbitrary detention in the country, reports Daily Mirror. The delegation comprised of Working Group Members José Antonio Guevara Bermúdez, Leigh Toomey and Elina Steinerte visited Sri Lanka from December 4 to 15 to assess the country’ situation regarding the deprivation of liberty, has identified significant challenges to the enjoyment of the right to personal liberty in Sri Lanka, resulting in arbitrary detention across the country.
INTERNATIONAL
Saudi Crown prince vows to wipe out terror from earth
Saudi Arabia’s powerful crown prince vowed to “pursue terrorists until they are wiped from the face of the earth” as officials from 40 Muslim countries gathered in Riyadh on Sunday, Nov 26 in the first meeting of Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC).
Prince Mohammed bin Salman opened the first high-level meeting of the coalition under the theme of ‘Allied against Terrorism’. “In past years, terrorism has been functioning in all of our countries with no coordination” among national authorities, Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), who is also the Saudi defence minister, said in his keynote speech.
“This ends today, with this alliance.” He said that Sunday’s meeting sends “a strong signal that we are going to work together and coordinate together to support each other.” “The biggest danger of this terrorism and extremism is the tarnishing of our beloved religion’s reputation. We will not allow this to happen,” said the royal who has been the driving force behind this coalition.
“Today, we start the pursuit of terrorism and we see its defeat in many facets around the world, especially in Muslim countries. We will continue to fight it until we see its defeat.” The crown prince also offered his condolences to Egypt, which suffered an attack on Friday by Islamic militants on a mosque in northern Sinai that killed 305 people. “This is indeed a painful event and it is a recurrent and strong reminder the dangers of this terrorism,” he said. The alliance meeting in Riyadh brings together Muslim or Muslim-majority nations including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Afghanistan, Uganda, Somalia, Mauritania, Lebanon, Libya, Yemen and Turkey.
Blast rocks Chinese port city
An explosion so powerful it was heard several kilometres away killed two people and injured over 30 in China´s port city of Ningbo on Sunday, Nov 26 while toppling several disused buildings, authorities and residents said, but there was no word as to the cause.
An AFP reporter near the scene of the blast saw heaps of glass from shattered windows in adjacent residential towers, and corrugated-iron storefront security doors bent by the impact. Local authorities said two people died and two were seriously injured, while state media said more than 30 people were treated in hospitals in Ningbo, just south of Shanghai and one of China´s largest ports.
3 soldiers killed in Nigeria
At least three soldiers were killed and another six others were wounded in a Boko Haram raid in northeast Nigeria, the military said on Sunday, Nov 26 in the latest attack in the restive region. The attack happened on Saturday evening when a large number of jihadists stormed Magumeri, some 50 kilometres north of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. The town and surrounding area have been attacked before by fighters from the Islamic State-group supported factional leader of Boko Haram, Abu Mus´ab al-Barnawi.
In July, at least 69 people most of them soldiers and civilian militia members were killed in an ambush on a heavily armed convoy escorting an oil exploration team. Colonel Timothy Antigha, a spokesman for 8 Task Force Division Nigerian Army, said the Islamist militants first attacked a forward operating base in Magumeri but were repelled.
Ethiopian clashes kill more than 20
A renewed bout of clashes between two of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic groups killed more than 20 people last week, the state-controlled broadcaster reported on Monday, Nov 27. Fighting again broke out between the Oromo and Somali peoples along the border of their ethnically-demarcated federal regions but the cause of the violence was unknown, according to the Fana Broadcast Corporate.
Hundreds of people were killed and tens of thousands displaced in a string of clashes between the ethnic groups in September until the military intervened to quell the bloodshed. “Conflicts claimed the lives of more than 20 people from both regional states,” the broadcaster said, citing government spokesman Negeri Lencho.
It added that while the security situation has improved since September’s bloodshed “it is impossible to say that the conflict is totally ended”. The reports of the new clashes came after the government said 103 people had been arrested on suspicion of stoking the September fighting, though it was unclear if the arrests and the violence were connected.
18 killed in Syrian bombing
Renewed Syrian army bombardment of rebel-held Eastern Ghouta outside Damascus on Monday, Nov 27 killed 18 people, including two children, despite a ceasefire deal for the region, a monitor said.
Eastern Ghouta, one of the last remaining opposition strongholds in Syria, is among four so-called “de-escalation zones” set up earlier this year under a deal agreed by regime allies Russia and Iran, and rebel supporter Turkey.
But despite the deal, violence has spiralled in the area in recent days. On Monday, air strikes and artillery fire on several parts of Eastern Ghouta killed at least 18 civilians, the Britain-based monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. It said at least 45 others had been wounded, and the death toll could rise because a number of the injured were in a serious condition.
At a field clinic in the city of Douma, which has regularly come under government attack, medics worked with the limited supplies available to them to treat waves of arriving injured. The wails of a distraught mother could be heard along with the low moans of a wounded man who rocked back and forth in pain on a white hospital bed.
A young boy waited to be treated, the leg of one trouser pulled up to reveal a bloodied wound on his left shin.
Oxford strips Suu Kyi of city’s freedom
Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been stripped of the honorific freedom of Oxford, the British city where she studied and raised her children, over her “inaction” in the Rohingya crisis. “When Aung San Suu Kyi was given the Freedom of the City in 1997 it was because she reflected Oxford’s values of tolerance and internationalism,” the city council said in a statement issued late on Monday, Nov 27.
“Today we have taken the unprecedented step of stripping her of the city’s highest honour because of her inaction in the face of the oppression of the minority Rohingya population,” added the release, which was published after a unanimous vote. “Our reputation is tarnished by honouring those who turn a blind eye to violence.” Oxford’s world-renowned university removed portraits of Suu Kyi, a former student, from its walls in September.
Suu Kyi’s late husband Michael Aris was a lecturer in Asian history at the university, and the couple lived and raised their two sons in the city. The Nobel Peace Prize winner has come under fire for failing to speak up in defence of the minority Muslim community.
Egypt police kill 11 suspected terrorists
Egyptian security forces killed 11 suspected “terrorist elements” during a raid on a hideout for militants providing support for Jihadists in the northern Sinai, the interior ministry said on Tuesday, Nov 28.
A ministry statement said police were still identifying the suspected militants killed in the raid in Ismailiya province after they opened fire on security forces approaching the hideout. Militants carried out a bomb and gun assault on a mosque in Rawda village in North Sinai province last Friday, killing 305 people the deadliest in Egypt’s recent history in an attack thought to have been carried out by the Islamic State group. It is widely believed in Egypt that the massacre took place at the mosque because Sufi Muslims worshipped there.
The raid on the hideout was part of a security campaign in the province of Ismailiya around the Suez Canal separating the Sinai Peninsula from the rest of the country, and in the Nile Delta province of Sharqiya. Police were pursuing leaders of “terrorist groups in North Sinai that aimed to carry out a series of hostile operations targeting important and vital buildings and Christian churches,” the statement said.
Security forces were able to identify “a group of these elements and the hideouts they were using to hide, train, and store means of logistic support ahead of smuggling them to terrorist groups in North Sinai”. The statement said police also arrested six suspected militants and three people thought to have smuggled communications equipment to them.
Two guards killed in IS-claimed car bombing in Yemen
A dawn car bombing claimed by the Islamic State group hit the finance ministry of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government on Wednesday, Nov 29 killing two guards and wounding four, a security source said.
In a statement on its Amaq propaganda arm, IS claimed the “detonation of a parked explosive-laden vehicle” outside the ministry building in Yemen’s second city Aden, the SITE Intelligence monitoring group reported.
Aden serves as the headquarters of the Yemeni government. Despite a Saudi-led military intervention launched in March 2015, the capital Sanaa and much of north of the country remain in the hands of rebels.
The power vacuum has allowed both al-Qaeda and its jihadist rival IS to bolster their presence in Yemen, particularly in the government-held south. Aden has been hit by a spate of bombings that have killed hundreds of people, some claimed by al-Qaeda and some by IS.
With US-backing, the Saudi-led coalition has expanded its campaign in Yemen to battle the jihadists in the south, but they retain control of parts of the mountainous and desert interior. Al-Qaeda’s Yemen-based arm is regarded by Washington as the jihadist network’s most dangerous but IS has claimed a growing number of attacks in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country over the past two years.
Trump re-tweets anti-Muslim videos
President Donald Trump on Wednesday, Nov 29 re-tweeted three anti-Muslim videos posted by the deputy head of a British far-right group who has been convicted of a hate crime.
One of them purports to show a Muslim beating up a Dutch boy on crutches. Another is described as showing an Islamist mob pushing a teenager of a rooftop. The third allegedly depicts a Muslim throwing down and smashing a statue.
The video of the statue being wrecked has been on YouTube at least since 2013. It is labelled as showing a jihadist in Syria destroying the statue. The footage was posted by Jayda Fransen, deputy leader of the far-right group Britain First. The group, which was formed in 2011 and is known for picketing outside mosques, has ran and lost in several British and European parliament elections. Fransen was found guilty last year of a hate crime after hurling abuse at a Muslim woman wearing a Hijab. There was widespread outrage in Britain at Trump’s retweets. Brendan Cox, widower of MP Jo Cox who was murdered by a right-wing extremist last year, said: “Trump has legitimised the far right in his own country, now he’s trying to do it in ours.” Spreading hatred has consequences and the President should be ashamed of himself, he said.
Yemen rebel alliance unravels as strongman turns to Saudis
The rebel alliance controlling Yemen’s capital appeared to crumble on Saturday, Dec 2 as a strongman opposed to the internationally recognised government reached out to the Saudi-led coalition fighting the insurgents.
The rift within rebel ranks erupted into violence in Sanaa this week, raising fears of a new front in a three-year war that has claimed thousands of lives and triggered a major humanitarian crisis in Yemen.
Former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who joined forces with the Iran-backed Huthi rebels in 2014 to seize the capital, said Saturday he was ready to talk to the Saudi-led coalition if it lifts a crippling blockade on Yemen. His sudden about-face sparked warnings of retribution by the Huthis, whose supporters have clashed with Saleh loyalists this week in Sanaa, leaving dozens dead or wounded.
The armed groups fought for control over key positions in the city on Saturday, including ministries and the international airport, according to security sources and witnesses. Streets across Sanaa were empty on Saturday night as Yemenis stayed home fearing a new round of clashes, with one resident describing the city as a “ghost town”.
Saleh’s open overture to Saudi Arabia came a day after talks aimed at ending the rebel infighting failed to broker a truce. “I call on our brothers in neighbouring countries to stop their aggression and lift the blockade… and we will turn the page,” Saleh said in a televised speech.
Ex-Trump aide Flynn pleads guilty to lying about Russia links
Donald Trump’s former top adviser Michael Flynn pleaded guilty on Saturday, Dec 2 to lying to the FBI over his contacts with Russia, in a dramatic escalation of the probe into possible collusion between the president’s campaign team and Moscow.
The 58-year-old retired three-star Army general is the most senior figure indicted in special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s sprawling investigation into Russian interference in last year’s election. Flynn’s admission that he had secret discussions in December 2016 with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak with direction from top Trump officials set Washington abuzz with speculation over who in the Republican leader’s inner circle might next be in Mueller’s sights.
Citing unnamed sources, The Washington Post reported that one of the “very senior” presidential transition team officials advising Flynn to contact the Russian envoy was Trump’s son-in-law and senior aide Jared Kushner.
Flynn’s guilty plea, on a federal charge of making false statements to investigators, came with a pledge to cooperate with Mueller, whose focus goes beyond possible collusion with Russia to shady business dealings and whether Trump himself tried to thwart the investigation.
The White House rejected the idea that Flynn could implicate “anyone” else, as ABC News reported that Flynn would testify that Trump ordered him to reach out to Moscow during the campaign news that sent Wall Street shares tumbling.
ABC later issued a clarification, saying its source said Flynn would testify that Trump ordered him to reach out to Moscow after the November 2016 election.
Tensions rise ahead of US-S Korea joint mly drill
Tensions were on the rise on Sunday, Dec 3 ahead of the largest ever US-South Korea air exercise, with Pyongyang calling it an “all-out provocation” that could lead to nuclear conflict as a US lawmaker warned of a growing likelihood of “preemptive war” on the divided peninsula. The five-day Vigilant Ace drill involving some 230 aircraft including F-22 Raptor stealth jet fighters began on Monday, Dec 4 five days after the North test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile believed to be capable of hitting the US mainland in a new challenge to President Donald Trump.
The North’s ruling party Rodong newspaper slammed the upcoming drill. “It is an open, all-out provocation against the DPRK, which may lead to a nuclear war any moment,” it said in an editorial on Sunday, using the North’s official name. “The US and South Korean puppet warmongers would be well advised to bear in mind that their DPRK-targeted military drill will be as foolish as an act precipitating their self-destruction,” it said. The commentary was published a day after Pyongyang’s foreign ministry accused the Trump administration of “begging for nuclear war” by staging what it called the reckless air drills.
In Washington, meanwhile, an influential Republican lawmaker joined National Security Advisor HR McMaster in warning that time is running out on diplomatic efforts to rein in North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes.
North Korea has boasted and Western experts agree that the Hwasong-15 missile is capable of reaching the United States, raising the prospect of a direct nuclear threat to Washington.
‘Recognising al-Quds as capital would cause catastrophe’
A formal US recognition of al-Quds as the capital of Israel would cause catastrophe and lead to new conflict in the Middle East, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Monday, Dec 4. Speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, Bozdag, who is also the government spokesman, said al-Quds status had been determined by international agreements and that preserving it was important for the peace of the region.
Israel captured Arab East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. It later annexed it, declaring the whole of the city as its capital a move not recognised internationally.
Palestinians want Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. On Sunday, US President Donald Trump’s adviser and son-in-law said Trump had not yet made a decision on whether to formally recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, a move that would break with decades of US policy.
Russia declares nine US media outlets ‘foreign agents’
Russia’s justice ministry on Tuesday, Dec 5 named nine US media outlets including Voice of America as “foreign agents” after President Vladimir Putin signed a law allowing international media to be slapped with the controversial label. The ministry said that US-funded Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and seven of their media affiliates had been recognised as “carrying out the functions of a foreign agent”, in a statement posted on its website.
Putin last month signed into law hastily issued legislation allowing the measure to target media. Russia said this was a retaliatory move after Kremlin-funded RT television registered as a “foreign agent” in the United States under official pressure.
Rights groups fear the law could have a chilling effect on the ability of outlets to carry out independent reporting. Voice of America and Radio Free Europe began broadcasting to the Soviet Union in the 1950s, playing a key role in providing its citizens with uncensored news.
Both broadcasters had already been formally warned by the justice ministry that they risked recognition as “foreign agents”. The justice ministry has now formalised the move, naming them and their affiliates, including Radio Free Europe’s news outlets dedicated to Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine, and the Caucasus. They also include a television channel run jointly by Radio Free Europe and Voice of America called Current Time TV. Speaking on Current Time TV in Russian, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s president Thomas Kent said that “as a result, the activities of our organisation can face even greater restrictions”.
Iraqi PM declares end of war against ISIS
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Saturday, Dec 9 declared victory in a three-year war by Iraqi forces to expel the Islamic State jihadist group that at its height endangered Iraq’s very existence. “Our forces are in complete control of the Iraqi-Syrian border and I therefore announce the end of the war against Daesh (IS),” Abadi told a conference in Baghdad. “Our enemy wanted to kill our civilisation, but we have won through our unity and our determination. We have triumphed in little time,” he said, hailing Iraq’s “heroic armed forces”. IS seized vast areas north and west of Baghdad in a lightning offensive in 2014. With Iraq’s army and police retreating in disarray at the time, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, spiritual leader of the country’s majority, called for a general mobilisation, leading to the formation of Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary units.
Iraq’s fight back was also launched with the backing of an air campaign waged by a US-led coalition, recapturing town after town from the clutches of the jihadists in fierce urban warfare.
However, Hisham al-Hashemi, an expert on jihadist groups, warned that the IS still posed a threat by retaining arms caches in uninhabited desert zones. Iraq’s close ally Iran already declared victory over IS last month, as the jihadists clung to just a few remaining scraps of territory.
Explosion rocks New York commuter hub
A Bangladeshi man with a homemade bomb strapped to his body set off an explosion at a New York commuter hub during rush hour on Monday, Dec 11 wounding himself and three others in what New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called an attempted terrorist attack.
The suspect in the incident at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, a block from Times Square, was identified as Akayed Ullah, the New York Police Department commissioner said. The suspect had burns and lacerations while three other people, including a police officer, sustained minor injuries. He is from the Bangladeshi city of Chittagong and is a US resident, said the country’s police chief. He had no criminal record there and last visited Bangladesh on Sept 8, the chief said.
He had a black cab/limousine driver’s license from 2012 to 2015, after which it expired, the New York Taxi and Limousine Commission said. The weapon was based on a pipe bomb and fixed to the suspect with zip ties and velcro, police said.
New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, speaking at a news conference near the site, described the device as “amateur-level”. De Blasio told the same news conference that the incident, which happened at the start of the city’s rush hour, was “an attempted terrorist attack”.
Indonesia arrests more than a dozen in pre-Christmas sweep
More than a dozen people have been arrested by Indonesian anti-terrorism police, authorities said on Monday, Dec 11 as they beefed up security in the world’s biggest Muslim-majority country ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays.
Police said they detained 13 suspected militants in separate, pre-emptive raids over the weekend across the Southeast Asian nation, which has long struggled with Islamic militancy. “As usual, we are conducting pre-emptive strikes. We move before they do and we arrest the groups we believe will potentially commit an act of terror,” national police chief Tito Karnavian said.
The arrests took place in South Sumatra, East Java and West Kalimantan over the weekend. One of the men arrested in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-biggest city, was known to have gone to Syria in 2013 and has links to Abu Jandal, an influential Indonesian militant who fought with the Islamic State group in the Middle Eastern country, authorities said.
Another suspect was involved in a February terror attack in the Indonesian city of Bandung, where a pressure cooker bomb exploded in a park before a gun battle erupted nearby, leaving one militant dead.
Two Reuters reporters arrested in Myanmar
Two Reuters journalists have been arrested in Myanmar for the possession of “important security documents”, the government said on Wednesday, Dec 13. Myanmar reporters Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27, had been missing since Tuesday evening, the news agency had earlier said.
The pair were arrested under the Official Secrets Act, for allegedly intending “to send important security documents regarding security forces in Rakhine State to foreign agencies abroad,” the statement released by the information ministry said.
Rakhine has been in the international spotlight after a brutal, military-led crackdown forced more than 620,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee the state and cross the border to Bangladesh since August. A photo showed the handcuffed reporters with documents displayed before them.
Reuters global communications chief Abbe Serphos said: “We are urgently seeking more information about the circumstances of their arrest and their current situation.” Before joining the agency, Wa Lone, 31, worked at the English language newspaper The Myanmar Times. Kyaw Soe Oo has worked for the company since September, the agency said.
Somalia’s Shabaab kill 18 cops in academy bombing
A suicide bomber from Somalia’s Shabaab insurgents killed 18 police officers and wounded 15 others on Thursday, Dec 14 when he blew himself up inside the country’s main police academy, the force’s chief said. Witnesses said the police were gathered in a square ahead of their early morning parade when the bomber attacked in the capital Mogadishu.
The assault is the latest in a decade-old battle by the Jihadists to overthrow Somalia’s internationally-backed government. “Eighteen members from the police were killed, and 15 others were wounded, after a suicide bomber blew himself inside the academy,” acting police chief General Muktar Hussein Afrah told reporters.
The attacker disguised himself in a police uniform to access the camp, Afrah said. “Some of the police were already in lines, and others were gathering, when the man in police uniform entered and blew himself up,” said bystander Hussein Ali, describing the carnage.
Medics and ambulance teams rushed to take the wounded to hospital and collect the corpses. Officers said the toll could have been far worse had the attacker detonated his bomb in the centre of the crowd.
The Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shabaab claimed responsibility and put the toll at 27 dead. “It was martyrdom operation, in which the mujahedeen targeted the police academy camp,” a statement posted on a pro-Shabaab website read.
The Shabaab lost its foothold in Mogadishu in 2011 but has continued its fight, launching regular attacks on military, government and civilian targets in the capital and elsewhere. In October, a huge truck bombing blamed on the Shabaab killed as many as 512 people, levelling buildings in the capital’s busy Kilometre 5 neighbourhood.
6,700 Rohingya Muslims killed in first month of Myanmar violence: MSF
At least 6,700 Rohingya Muslims were killed in the first month of a Myanmar army crackdown on rebels in Rakhine state that began in late August, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said on Thursday, Dec 14.
The figure is the highest estimated death toll yet of violence that erupted on August 25 and triggered a massive refugee crisis, sending some 655,000 Rohingya fleeing across the border to Bangladesh.
The UN and US have described the military operation as “ethnic cleansing” of the Muslim minority, but have not released specific death tolls. “At least 6,700 Rohingya, in the most conservative estimations, are estimated to have been killed, including at least 730 children below the age of five,” MSF said on Thursday.
The group’s findings come from six surveys of more than 11,000 people in Rohingya refugee camps and cover the first month after the crisis erupted.
Rohingya refugees have shocked the globe with consistent accounts of security forces and ethnic Rakhine Buddhist mobs driving them out of their homes with bullets, rape and arson that reduced hundreds of villages to ash.
Rights groups say the crackdown was the culmination of years of persecution and discrimination against the Muslim group in mainly Buddhist Myanmar, where they are effectively stateless and denigrated as outsiders.
Earlier this month the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said the military-led crackdown appeared to include “elements of genocide”. The MSF surveys put a number to the horrors. Gunshot wounds were the cause of death in 69 percent of the cases, according to the aid organisation.
The Rohingya are not recognised as an ethnic group in Myanmar and have been systematically stripped of their legal rights. Before the latest crisis, Bangladesh was already hosting hundreds of thousands of Rohingya who fled previous waves of persecution. “I think the MSF figure is an underestimate,” Mohammed Zubair, a Rohingya teacher and community leader who has been a refugee in Bangladesh for 25 years, told AFP.
28 Yemeni rebels killed
Saudi-led air strikes have killed 28 Huthi rebels south of the port of Hodeida on Yemen’s west coast, medics and security sources close to the insurgents said on Friday, Dec 15. The reports came as the UN refugee agency UNHCR warned of a new displacement of civilians in the area.
The security sources said the air strikes on Thursday and Friday hit five towns controlled by the Huthis around 70 kilometres south of Hodeida. Medical sources said 28 Huthis were killed and 17 others wounded in the strikes.
There has been no let-up in the air campaign against the rebels that a Saudi-led coalition has been waging since March 2015. The air strikes have intensified since the December 4 killing of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh at the hands of the Huthis after his alliance with the rebels collapsed.
Misrata mayor abducted, killed
The mayor of Libya’s third-largest city Misrata has been killed by unidentified assailants who abducted him as he returned from an official trip overseas, a security source said on Monday, Dec 18.
Mohamed Eshtewi’s body was found dumped in the street after he was kidnapped after leaving the airport in the western coastal city late on Sunday, the source said. The city hospital said it had received the mayor’s body bearing gunshot wounds.
His brother was with him in the car and was wounded in the attack, the security source said. Eshtewi was returning from an official visit to Turkey with other members of the city council, who were all elected in 2014 for four years. UN envoy for Libya Ghassan Salame on Twitter denounced the killing and expressed his “profound sadness” at the news.
The Tripoli-based Government of National Accord deplored a “cowardly” and “terrorist act” that killed a “symbol of moderation and tolerance”, vowing that those responsible would be brought to justice. France’s foreign ministry said the killing confirmed “the urgency for a political solution” to the political and security problems plaguing the North African country.
136 killed in Saudi-led strikes on Yemen in just 10 days: UN
At least 136 civilians have been killed over 10 days of Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen this month, the United Nations said on Tuesday, Dec 19 with the organisation’s human rights chief decrying an “inferno” on the ground.
The UN human rights office said it had tallied 136 civilians killed and another 87 injured in the strikes on Sanaa, Saada, Al Hudaydah, Marib and Taez governorates between December 6 and 16.
“We are deeply concerned by the recent surge in civilian casualties in Yemen as a result of intensified air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition,” spokesman Rupert Colville told reporters in Geneva.
A Saudi-led coalition has been waging an air campaign against Huthi rebels since March 2015 in an attempt to shore up the internationally recognised government of Abedrabbo Mansur Hadi.
More than 8,750 people have been killed in the conflict since the intervention in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country, where more than 2,000 people have also died of cholera this year.
In an interview with AFP on Monday, UN rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein lamented “the total impunity that seems to exist in attacks from all sides”, although he said “the majority of casualties is still coming from the coalition air strikes.”
He said a combination of the violence and a blockade the coalition imposed on rebel-held ports last month, blocking desperately-needed aid, had created “a horrifying situation in Yemen. literally an inferno for many Yemenis.” Last week, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, warned: “8.4 million Yemenis are a step away from famine.”
65 journalists, media workers killed globally in 2017: RSF
Sixty-five journalists and media workers were killed worldwide in 2017, according to annual figures published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Tuesday, Dec 19.
Among them were 50 professional reporters, the lowest toll in 14 years. However, the downward trend is due at least in part to journalists giving up working in the world’s deadliest spots.
War-torn Syria remains the most dangerous country in the world for journalists, RSF said, with 12 reporters killed, followed by Mexico where 11 were assassinated. They included Javier Valdez, one of the most prominent chroniclers of Mexico’s deadly drug war, whose murder in May sparked a public outcry. The 50-year-old AFP contributor was shot dead in broad daylight in the street in the violent northwestern state of Sinaloa.
His last book, “Narco-journalism”, recounted the tribulations of Mexican reporters who try to cover the country’s extremely violent “narcos” drug cartels.
RSF said Mexico was the deadliest country not at war, saying those who “cover political corruption or organised crime are often systemically targeted, threatened and gunned down.”
The Philippines has become Asia’s most dangerous country for reporters, with at least five journalists being shot in the last year, four of whom died of their injuries.
The rise comes after what RSF called an “alarming comment” by President Rodrigo Duterte who said in May that “just because you’re a journalist you are not exempted from assassination if you’re a son of a bitch.”
No journalists were killed in the country the previous year.
The overall number of professional reporters slain worldwide, however, fell to its lowest number in 14 years, RSF said.
Of the 65 killed, the report said 39 were murdered, while the rest died in the line of duty collateral victims of deadly circumstances likes air strikes or suicide bombings.
Turkey is the world’s biggest prison for professional journalists, the figures show, with 42 reporters and one media worker behind bars. With 52 languishing in jail, China, however, continues to lead the table when bloggers are taken into account.
Turkish PM calls Rohingya killings ‘genocide’
Turkey’s prime minister on Dec 23 dubbed the killing of minority Muslim Rohingyas in Myanmar by its security forces “genocide” and urged the international community to ensure their safety back home. Binali Yildirim met several Rohingyas in two refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar in neighbouring Bangladesh. Almost 870,000 Rohingya fled there, about 660,000 of whom arrived after Aug 25, when Rohingya militants attacked security posts and the Myanmar army launched a counter-offensive.
Italy PM plans to shift military forces from Iraq to Niger
Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Sunday, Dec 24 he would propose to parliament transferring some of the country’s troops stationed in Iraq to Niger to fight people smuggling and terrorism.
Gentiloni said Italy’s 1,400-strong military presence in Iraq could now be reduced after victories against Islamic militants and instead deployed in the Sahel region of West Africa. “We have to continue to work, concentrating our attention and energies on the threat of people trafficking and terrorism in the Sahel,” he said aboard the Italian ship Etna used in the European Union’s “Sophia” operation to counter people smuggling in the Mediterranean.
Newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano wrote on Sunday that the contingent would be “at least 470” as part of a commitment made to French President Emmanuel Macron. Macron has thrown his weight behind a French-backed West African force known as the G5 Sahel, which includes the armies of Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad, which was set up in October to tackle Islamist militants.
To give the force a boost, Macron held a Paris summit on Dec 13 attended by the leaders of the five participating countries, Germany and Italy as well as Saudi and Emirati ministers. The Italian parliament is expected to be formally dissolved by the end of this year ahead of March elections. But it will continue to meet for “ordinary administration” and could approve Gentiloni’s request for the transfer of military personnel.
Army will use ‘absolute force’ to end terrorism in Sinai: Sisi
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said on Dec 24 the army will employ “absolute force” in a bid to eliminate terrorism in the Sinai Peninsula.
“We have to put an end to terrorism in Sinai. Sinai is our land, and the Armed Forces will employ absolute force to put an end to violence there. We would rather die than have anyone [harm] our land,” said the Egyptian president at a ceremony to inaugurate a number of development projects in the Suez Canal city of Ismailia on Saturday. Sisi also stressed that the Egyptian people should not fear any external threat as long as they were united enough to challenge the whole world, saying, “We are neither wicked conspirators nor are we after anyone’s money or land.
The Sinai Peninsula has been under a state of emergency since October 2014, after a deadly terrorist attack left 33 Egyptian soldiers dead. Over the past few years, terrorists have been carrying out anti-government activities and fatal attacks, taking advantage of the turmoil in Egypt that erupted after the country’s first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Mursi, was ousted in a military coup in July 2013.
The Velayat Sinai group, which is affiliated with the Daesh Takfiri terrorists, has claimed responsibility for most of the assaults. The group later expanded its attacks to target members of Egypt’s Coptic Christian community as well as foreigners visiting the country, prompting Cairo to widen a controversial crackdown, which critics say has mostly targeted dissidents.
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 *
No threat to foreigners although there may be isolated incidents involving petty crime. No security precautions are required.
Threat Level 2 **
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.
