Terrorist Activities in Pakistan
Suicide Bombings/attacks
At least five Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were injured on April 9 when a suicide bomber blew himself up near their vehicle in Belili area of Quetta, reports Dawn. Aslam Tareen, the Director of Civil Defence, confirmed that it was a suicide blast and 8-10 kilogrammes of explosives was used in the attack. The age of the bomber seems to be around 20 to 22 years, Tareen added. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Bomb/IED attacks
At least seven labourers sustained injuries on March 29, after a bomb detonated by militants exploded at school in Aka Khel area in the Tirah Valley of Bara tehsil (revenue unit) in Khyber Agency, reports Daily Times. According to sources, a heavy bomb was planted under the building of Boys Primary School that was under construction. The building was damaged in the explosion and according to a Khyber Agency Education Office, 154 schools have been demolished in Bara, 64 are fully destroyed whereas 90 are partially damaged. 16 destroyed schools had been rebuilt under Governor Special Development Program (GSDP) and 16 partially damaged schools had been reconstructed under United Nation Development Program (UNDP). It is expected that under Chinese Aid, construction of 68 schools would be initiated in Bara.
One soldier lost his life and three others suffered injuries in a roadside improvised explosive device (IED) blast near Miramshah in North Waziristan Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on April 22, reports Dawn. Officials said that a military convoy was on its way to Miramshah from the Datakhel area when an IED went off near one of the vehicles. One soldier died and three others were injured.
Meanwhile, another explosion was reported in the Angher Village of North Waziristan Agency on April 22. However, no casualty was reported.
Targetted Killings
Two persons, including a transgender, were killed on March 28 when unidentified motorcyclists opened fire at them on Ring Road in Peshawar, reports The News. According to the Police, the transgender person Daniyal alias Chutki and an accompanying friend Aizaz were travelling in a rickshaw when the unidentified assailants targeted them at Ring Road on route to Patang Chowk from Iqbal Plaza.
At least three Policemen were killed and four others sustained injuries on March 30 when the convoy of District Police Official (DPO) Zahidullah came under bomb attack on the Hathala Road area of Kolachi tehsil (revenue unit) in Dera Ismail Khan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reports Dawn. Fortunately, DPO Zahidullah survived the incident unscathed.
In a suspected targeted killing incident, one member of the Shia Hazara community was killed and another was injured when unidentified assailants opened fire on their vehicle in Kandahari Bazaar area of Quetta, reports Dawn. The deceased was identified as Nazar Hussain. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.
Four members of a Christian family were shot dead by unidentified assailants on Shah Zaman road in Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, on April 2, reports The Express Tribune. A minor girl was also injured in the attack. The family was travelling in a rickshaw when armed men on a motorcycle intercepted them and opened fire. “It appears to have been a targeted attack,” Provincial Police Official Moazzam Jah Ansari said. “It was an act of terrorism,” he added. The attack comes a day after Pakistan’s Christian community celebrated Easter on April 1.
At least two members of the Christian community were killed and five others injured in a firing incident near a church in Essa Nagri area of Quetta on April 15, reports Dawn. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Quetta Abdur Razzaq Cheema said the incident occurred when worshippers were leaving after attending the Sunday service at the church. Unidentified attackers riding a motorbike opened fire on the members of the Christian community and managed to flee the scene soon after the incident.
A shopkeeper belonging to the Shia Hazara community, identified as Muhammad Asif (50), son of Ghulam Nabi, was killed in a drive-by shooting at an auto parts shop on Abdul Sattar Road in Quetta, reports The Nation. Quetta Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Abdur Razzaq Cheema said Muhammad Asif, who was a resident of Alamdar Road, was from the Hazara community and that it appeared to have been a targeted killing. This was the fourth attack in recent months targeting Hazaras.
Two persons belonging to the Hazara community, identified as Muhammad Ali and Muhammad Zaman, were killed, while a third was injured in an incident of firing in Western Bypass area of Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, on April 22, reports Dawn. Police said the victims were members of Shia Hazara community and that the incident appeared to be a targeted attack.
Miscellaneous
Unidentified assailants on March 28 took away a tribal journalist from his house at gunpoint from his house in Tank District, reports Dawn. The journalist, Shah Zaman Mehsud, belongs to South Waziristan Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), but he is residing in Tank District along with his family. His brother Ismail Mehsud said that unknown persons dressed in plain clothes knocked at the door of their house, five armed men entered the house and started dragging his brother. “All the unidentified persons were carrying guns,” said Ismail Mehsud. Sources said that Shah Zaman was “abducted” about six months ago and remained in the captivity of unknown persons.
A Frontier Corps personal ,Naik Irfan, lost his life and two militants were killed in an encounter triggered by a search operation in the Pinsin Kaur area of Kech district on April 4, reports Dawn.
The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) on April 8 arrested four Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militants over the allegations of terror financing through bank robberies, kidnapping for ransom and extortion from unspecified areas of Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, reports Dawn. The arrested militants were identified as Zakir alias Qari, Affan, Muzamil and Abdul Hafeez alias Haji, according to Additional Inspector General (AIG) of CTD, Dr. Sanaullah Abbasi. CTD Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Junaid Ahmed Shaikh said that during the initial probe, the arrested militants revealed that they had been generating funds for terrorism in Karachi since 2014. SSP Shaikh added that the arrested suspects were affiliated with the Naeem Bukhari-led LeJ group. The suspects had confessed to the generation of around PKR 150 million, which was subsequently handed over to militants for carrying out acts of terrorism.
Security Forces (SFs) on April 13 arrested six terrorists involved in targeting a team of polio workers and the Police force from different areas of Balochistan, reports Daily Times. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the SFs conducted intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in Chaman, Sariab (Quetta) and Pishin areas of Balochistan led to the arrest of terrorists who had targeted polio teams in Yaru Bazaar and the Police force in Dera Murad Jamali. A cache of arms and ammunition including explosives, detonators, rockets, mines and improvised explosive device (IEDs) were recovered.
Security forces on Apr 17 neutralised five suspected militants in Balochistan’s Dera Bugti district, security officials told the media. In an operation conducted in the Bambore area, 10 suspected militants were also arrested and a huge cache of arms and ammunition, including anti-aircraft guns, anti-tank mines and other weapons were recovered. “The dead militants were involved in a series of terrorist activities in Dera Bugti and other parts of Balochistan,” revealed an official who declined to be named since he was not authorised to speak to the media.
Separately, 30 militants, including a key commander, Bojla Bugti, surrendered before the security forces at a ceremony held in the Bhambore area of Dera Bugti the same day. The surrendering militants vowed to lead peaceful lives and work for the development and peace of the country.
PAKISTAN
India upset over Maldives’ ‘secret’ engagement with China and Pakistan, says report
After the Abdulla Yameen led-Government of the Maldives lifted the State of Emergency (SoE), India remains upset with the Maldives’ manner to carry-out not only China policy but also its policy with Pakistan, reports The Times of India on March 29. Unlike previous Maldivian Governments, the present-Maldives regime is too secretive when dealing with China and Pakistan and does not concern to take India into confidence in issues related to mutual interest such as Chinese investment in the Maldives or the Ocean observatory that China wants to build ‘right under India’s nose’, said a top Indian official on the anonymity basis.
IS poses real threat to Pakistan: NACTA Chief
National coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA) Ihsan Ghani said on March 30 that the militant Islamic State (IS) group posed a real threat to Pakistan, reports Dawn. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad in connection with a three-day event titled “Islamabad International Counter Terrorism Forum” commencing from April 3, he said IS had a significant presence in Afghanistan, which threatened a spillover into Pakistan. The NACTA chief observed that the situations in the countries around shaped the regional environment and a bad situation in a country affected its neighbours as well. “We cannot isolate ourselves from the situation in Afghanistan.” He, however, said that fencing of the border with Afghanistan would make a difference.
COAS Qamar J. Bajwa sanctions death sentences for 10 terrorists
The Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on April 2 sanctioned death sentences for 10 terrorists convicted by the military courts, read a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), reports Dawn. The military commander also ratified a variety of punishments including life imprisonment to five other terrorists. The ISPR said the convicts were involved in several terrorism incidents, including an attack on a five-star hotel in Peshawar and the assassination of renowned Qawwal Amjad Sabri in Karachi. In all, the terrorists took the lives of 62 civilians and law enforcement officers, the ISPR added.
Ring leader of TTP killers held in Balochistan
Law enforcement agencies have arrested the leader of a gang of hitmen belonging to the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, who were involved in the killing of 16 Police officers over the last three months in the Quetta city, reports Dawn. This was disclosed by Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo at a press conference here on Tuesday after presiding over a meeting on the law and order situation in the province. “Fazal Haq Ghaibzai, the ring leader of the TTP target killers, was arrested during a joint operation by police, the Counter Terrorism Department and the Frontier Corps on Tuesday night (April 3) on the basis of intelligence information,” Mr. Bizenjo said.
Pakistan has done a lot to fight terrorism, it is now for the world to do more, says Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on April 5 said that Pakistan had done a lot to fight terrorism and now it is for the world to do more, reports Dawn. The international community should play its role in addressing the causes leading to terrorism and extremism, added PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Addressing the concluding session of the three-day Islamabad International Counter-Terrorism Forum, PM Abbasi said the Pakistani nation was united and committed against terrorism and extremism. He said no country in the world had committed over 200,000 troops to eradicate the threat and which had conducted numerous civil and military operations across the country to wipe out all terrorist sanctuaries.
New counter terrorism force police station to be established in Islamabad
The capital police have been granted permission to establish a Police Station Counter Terrorism Force (CTF) along the lines of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), Punjab, reports Dawn on April 6. The CTF police station will have the Islamabad Capital Territory area under its jurisdiction. According to police sources, only the appointment of officials including a station house officer, additional SHO and the moharar is required to make the station operational.
All the cases registered under the Anti-Terrorism Act will be registered by this station as will cases of sectarianism and soon all pending terrorism and sectarian cases will be transferred to this station for investigation.
Govt plans permanent ban on JuD, other terror groups – report
The Pakistan Government is working on a draft bill to permanently ban Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) as well as other groups and individuals on the watch list of the Federal Ministry of Interior, Dawn reported on April 9. The bill will replace the presidential ordinance that banned outfits and people already on the watch list of the Interior Ministry. Citing its sources in the Law Ministry, Dawn reported that the proposed draft bill to amend the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997 was likely to be tabled in the upcoming session of the National Assembly scheduled to commence on April 9. The Law Ministry was involved in the process for the purpose of vetting the proposed draft bill, the sources said, adding that the military establishment was also on board. The Government decided to prepare a draft bill to amend the ATA as part of its damage-control campaign after the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) approved a nomination proposal tabled jointly by the US, the UK, France and Germany to place Pakistan on the international watchdog’s money-laundering and terror-financing grey list in February.
Seven prison officials dismissed over involvement in LeJ militants’ escape from Karachi prison
The Sindh Government on April 11 dismissed from service a former Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) of Karachi Central Prison and six other officials after an inquiry committee found evidence of their involvement in the escape of two high-profile Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militants last year, reports Dawn. Sheikh Mumtaz alias Firaun and Mohammad Ahmed alias Munna, two Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LJ) militants, who were arrested by the CTD in 2013 for their alleged involvement in the killing of over 60 people, had escaped from the Central Jail on June 13, 2017. A team of investigators led by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Prisons (retired Captain) Pervez Ahmed Chandio conducted a detailed investigation into their escape and concluded that over a dozen jail officials “abetted and facilitated” the jailbreak. “The accused Senior Superintendent of Prison Ghulam Murtaza Shaikh and his accused subordinates behaved carelessly, negligently and dishonestly throughout their tenure in maintaining discipline and order at the Central Prison Karachi,” according to the findings of DIG Prisons.
Firing at the house of Supreme Court judge in Lahore
Unidentified gunmen opened fire at the residence of Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan of the Supreme Court in Model Town of Lahore, the Provincial capital of Punjab, in two separate incidents on April 14-night and April 15-morning, reports Daily Times. No casualties were, however, reported in the attacks, one of which took place around 10:45pm on Saturday and the other at 9:10am on Sunday. Model Town Police has registered a case against unidentified armed persons under the anti-terrorism act on the charges of firing at the residence of the Supreme Court judge twice in 12 hours. According to Police, spent bullet casing of a 9mm pistol was found near the main gate of the residence of Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan, while casing of another bullet was found near kitchen window of the house. Forensic experts also visited the residence twice and gathered evidence, including CCTV footage of the security cameras.
Following the incident, Punjab government provided additional security to Justice Ijaz-ul- Ahsan. Police and other law enforcement agencies also launched a search operation in the area. However, no arrest with regard to the firing incidents was made till filing of this report. It may be recalled that Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan was part of the five-member bench that delivered the verdict in the high-profile Panama Papers case on July 28, 2017, which led to the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif as prime minister of Pakistan. Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan is also the monitoring judge to supervise and monitor the implementation of the Panama Papers case verdict. He is currently overseeing the ongoing proceedings by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and accountability courts against the former PM, his family and Ishaq Dar. He was also the part of three-member Supreme Court bench which heard 17 petitions against the controversial Elections Act, 2017, which had paved the way for Nawaz Sharif to head the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) after being disqualified by the apex court in Panama Papers case.
Afghanistan returns captured Pakistani soldier, five bodies
Afghanistan officials handed over the bodies of five martyred personnel of the Frontier Corps (FC) as well as an injured soldier to the elders of Kurram Agency in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on April 16 as talks continued between the two sides to deescalate tension along the border, reports Dawn. According to reports, 10 attackers from the Afghan side were also killed in clashes that erupted in the area after the FC men erecting a fence along the border at Laka Tiga post in Lower Kurram Agency came under fire. Member of National Assembly (MNA) Sajid Hussain Turi, who is leading a delegation of local tribes holding talks with the elders of Zazi tribe of Afghanistan, confirmed the death toll and said that 12 more personnel of the FC were wounded in the clashes with Afghan forces. They were taken to a hospital in Thall Garrison.
More Pakistanis died in ‘encounters’ than suicide attacks in 2017, reports HRCP
More Pakistanis died in what were dubbed, by law enforcers, as encounter killings than in gun violence or suicide attacks in 2017, reveals the annual report of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Daily Times reported on April 17. The 29th annual report dedicated to the memory of veteran human rights activist Asma Jahangir was launched at a ceremony in Islamabad on April 16. According to report, 495 people were killed in what were reported by law enforcement agencies as shootouts during 2017, while gun violence and suicide attacks claimed the lives of 399 and 298 Pakistanis, respectively. These were followed by deaths in bomb explosions. The figure stood at 144.
The report covers six broad areas: rule of law, fundamental freedoms, democratic development, rights of disadvantaged, and social and economic rights. The HRCP reported that, of the 868 cases of ‘enforced disappearances’ received in 2017 by the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, 555 were disposed of. The real numbers were likely far higher, it feared. The report noted that crimes again women remained at an all-time high with about 5,660 cases of violence reported in the first 10 months of 2017. Honour-based crimes claimed the lives of 274 women, another 206 were gang-raped, 2,840 raped, and 681 murdered across the country. Province-wise data showed that more than 3,400 crimes against women were reported in Punjab. With 202, the number of such crimes was lowest in KP (between January 1 and June 30, 2017). Sindh witnessed 1,704 crimes in the first 10 months of the year, while Balochistan reported 354 cases during the same period.
UN honours seven martyred Pak peacekeepers
Seven Pakistani peacekeepers who laid down their lives for global peace and security were honoured with the UN medal at the UN annual Memorial Ceremony in New York.
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres was the chief guest at the ceremony, held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, says the ISPR in a press release. Guterres paid tribute to the peacekeepers who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty.
The seven Pakistani peacekeepers honoured include Naik Qaiser Abbas, MINUSCA (Central African Republic); Sepoy Yasir Abbas UNAMID (Darfur); Sepoy Muhammad Ishtiaq Abbasi, MONUSCO (Democratic Republic Of Congo); Havildar Zishan Ahmed, MONUSCO (Democratic Republic Of Congo); Sepoy Hazrat Bilal, MINUSCA (Central African Republic); Naik Abdul Ghafoor, MINUSCA (Central African Republic), and Naik Atta Ur Rehman, MONUSCO (Democratic Republic of Congo).
Pakistan has been one of the largest troop-contributing countries for the United Nations peacekeeping missions across the globe. So far, 156 Pakistani blue helmets have embraced martyrdom while serving under the UN umbrella.
REGIONAL
Bangladesh – Internal Dynamics
Four financers of ABT arrested in Dhaka
Four financiers of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) have been arrested from Ashulia area in Dhaka city on March 28, reports Dhaka Tribune. The arrestees are Nafis Iqbal Shakil, (38), Mohammad Shamim Talukdar (29), Mohammad Johir-ul-Islam Nannu (30) and Mohammad Shuvo Islam (20). Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) said that they are all involved with VOIP (voice over internet protocol) business. They used to give a share of their income from the business to the militant group.
Jailed Khaleda Zia in poor health
Bangladesh’s opposition party accused the government on Apr 1 of putting the health of their jailed leader at risk by refusing to let her personal doctors treat her inside prison. Khaleda Zia, the 72-year-old leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party who was jailed in February for corruption, has been suffering complications from arthritis and is struggling to walk, doctors say.
A team of four government doctors from a state-run hospital in Dhaka have been treating Zia, a two-time former prime minister, in prison where she is serving her five-year sentence in isolation. But her supporters want Zia’s personal physicians given access to her cell. The government has yet to respond to the request.
Mohammad Shamsuzzaman, an orthopedic specialist at Dhaka Medical College Hospital who visited Zia as part of the government team, said her condition was not serious but her arthritis had worsened in prison. “She has pain in hands and legs. She couldn’t walk 50 metres without assistance,” he told AFP, adding she had also developed back pain.
Zia’s supporters say the guilty sentence was politically motivated and designed to remove Hasina’s chief opponent before a general election slated for December. Last week a report by German think tank the Bertelsmann Foundation listed Bangladesh as a new autocracy, raising doubts about the credibility of the country’s elections. The ruling Awami League has rejected the assertion.
Planning to classify 577 militants who are still active even after being imprisoned, say Law enforcement officers
Law enforcement officers said the authorities are planning to classify 577 militants who are still active even after being imprisoned, reports Dhaka Tribune on April 4. According to Police sources, militants who are in jail are influencing others inside to follow their lead and there are 577 militants of varying degrees currently in prison, said jail authorities. Currently, over 500 members of Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Neo-JMB, Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), Ansar-al-Islam, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Hizb-ud-Towhid and Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B) are in different prisons around the country.
Social worker receives ABT death threat in Pabna
A social worker received death threat through a letter by Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) in Dhanbila village of Pabna District on April 6, reports The Daily Star. Victim Abu Saleh Mohammad Abdul Mazed, a social worker, runs a school at his village for spreading the light of education and cultural programmes and creating awareness among the children against militancy and early marriage. In name of ABT, the letter stated that he will be hacked if he does not refrain from creating awareness against militancy and early marriage.
Five Hizbut Tahrir cadres arrested in Dhaka
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested five cadres of Hizbut Tahrir in an overnight drive at Dhanmondi and Mirpur areas in Dhaka city on April 12, reports New Age. Of the five cadres, Chittagong-based dentist Mohiuddin Faruk, Muhammadpur Central College student Miraj Abdullah of Patuakhali and engineer Moniruzzaman Palash of Madaripur were arrested from Mirpur, while former banker Mirza Amin-ur-Rahman and his friend architect Maruf Ahmed Shibli of Jamalpur were arrested at Dhanmondi. RAB said “They were ‘propagating’ and ‘recruiting’ their members over the years using incomplete elaboration of Quranic verses. They were working to establish Khelafat in Bangladesh.”
Joining Mangal Shovajatra is ‘forbidden’ for Muslims, says Hefajat-e-Islam
Chittagong-based Islamic platform Hefajat-e-Islam in a statement on April 12 said joining traditional Mangal Shovajatra, a parade on the first day of Bangla New Year, is ‘forbidden’ for the Muslims, reports New Age. Hefajat-e-Islam secretary general and Hathazari-based Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam Madrassah teacher Junayed Babunagari in a statement circulated to different media said that it is not Islamic, but a foreign culture to bring out parades with the idols of different animals on the first day of Baishakh in the name of celebrating Bangla New Year.
Three JMB militants arrested in Narayanganj
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested three Jama’at-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) cadres from Sonakanda area of Narayanganj District in Dhaka Division on April 17, reports The Daily Star. The arrestees are Jannatul Nayeem Mitu (19), Mehedi Hasan Masud (22) and Akbar Hossain Sumon (30).
Three JMB cadres arrested in Rajshahi
Police arrested seven cadres of Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) in the Chhoyghati village of Rajshahi District in Rajshahi Division on April 18, reports Dhaka Tribune. The arrestees are Hasan Ali (43), Shefali Khatun (35), Fariha Khatun Kona (17), Hanifa Khatun (19), Farzana Akhtar Sweety (17), Razia Sultana Tisha (22) and Rozina Sultana Koli (25). They belong to same family. Police said “Members of this family used to regularly plot terrorist attacks and attend secret JMB meetings, also inciting militant sentiments by influencing people to join the evil cause.”
India – Internal Dynamics
ULFA-I militants attack security forces in Arunachal Pradesh
On March 26, militants of United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I) attacked Security Forces (SFs) at Dirak check-post in Namsai District, reports The Sentinel. According to local sources, two bike-borne militants coming from Arunachal side near Sitpani Area under Mahadevpur Police Station, opened fire on Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel.
Meanwhile, Mugdha Jyoti Mahanta, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Tinsukia, said that the act of attempted sabotage must have been carried out by a team of six members of ULFA-I led by Rupam Axom and Tiger Axom camping along the Assam-Arunachal border areas of Tinsukia-Changlang and Namsai Districts. According to SP the six militants entered from Myanmar through Arunachal Pradesh. However, a source in the Bordumsa Kathalguri area said that a group of ULFA-I militants had been moving around in the nearby tea garden belts.
Two workers abducted in Manipur
On March 26, unknown assailants abducted two workers from an area between Lhahvom and Nabil Khuman village in Churachandpur District reports Imphal Free Press. The victims were identified as Nausomilan and Khupginlian .According to Police the abductors have demanded a ransom amount of INR 2 million for the release of two workers.
A militant of Manipur Naga Peoples Front (MNPF) was arrested on March 26 from Mantripukhri in Imphal West, reports Imphal Free Press. The militant have been identified as ‘corporal’ Wungpao Hungyo alias Bobo.
Maoists killed police constable in Chhattisgarh
Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres killed a Police constable, identified as Baman Markam, in Dantewada District on March 27, reports The Times of India. The Police constable was attending a fair at Muskel village in the District when a group of 20-25 Maoists attacked him with rods and axes, and slit his throat. Markam was a surrendered Maoist and was on a suspension since January, said Police. Markam joined the department under the State’s rehabilitation scheme, and was promoted as a constable in District Reserve Guards (DRG) force for his good work, said Police.
Suspected PLFI cadres kill two persons in Jharkhand
Two persons, including an engineer, were shot dead by suspected cadres of the People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI), a splinter group of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), in Ranchi District on March 30, reports The Quint. Police said unidentified suspected PLFI cadres raided the camp office of a contractor involved in railway work at Chete village under Nagari Police Station and fired on those present there. Of the three persons who sustained bullet injuries, two of them died, identified as engineer Vishal Reddy and Munshi Prahalad Singh Rathod. Reddy was a native of Karnataka while Rathod hailed from Madhya Pradesh. The injured person’s identity is yet to be ascertained. Police said it suspected that refusal to pay a ‘levy’ to the outfit could have led to the killings. Police further said it also suspected PLFI outfit since it could be in retaliation to the killing of two PLFI cadres in a gun battle with Security Forces (SFs) in Khuti District on March 29.
CRFP trooper injured in bomb blast in Chhattisgarh
A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan (trooper) was injured in the explosion of a pressure bomb, suspected to be planted by the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres, in Bijapur District on March 30, reports India.com. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, South Bastar, Sunderraj P, said that Lakshman Rao (29), a jawan of the 85th battalion of the CRPF, part of a CRPF team which had set out for Bhopalpatnam from Bijapur for patrolling, was injured after stepping on a pressure bomb near Mahadev Ghat.
65 pistols missing from arms store of Manipur State Rifles
A total of sixty five 9 mm pistols were found missing from the store house of 2nd Manipur Rifles, reports Imphal Free Press on March 30. It has been reported that of the 65 pistols, two were recovered; one from a Police personnel and another from an insurgent.
On March 31 Chief Minister Biren Singh informed that the investigation into the missing pistols along with 59 magazines from Manipur Rifles facility would be handed over to National Investigation Agency (NIA), reports Imphal Free Press on March 31. The missing pistols were reportedly part of consignment of 570 pistols purchased on September 11, 2014, by Manipur government for State Security Forces. The missing of the firearms was discovered after Commandant of 2nd Manipur Rifles P. Manjit examined the current holdings of arms and ammunitions of both the unit and police head quarters (PHQ) Pool. According to Police authorities, two personnel of Manipur Rifles identified as Damodaran NP and Narayan Chetri have been arrested in relation to the incident.
Meanwhile, one of the missing pistols was recovered from a Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA) militant identified as ‘2nd lieutenant’ Ngamboi Haokip alias Raju and Seineo Khongsai on August 13, 2017. Ngamboi Haokip alias Raju was re-arrested on March 31 in connection with the case. Further, two civilians identified as M. Hiranjoy Sharma and Paonam Shanti Kumar have also been arrested in connection with the incident, reports The Telegraph on March 31.
Maoists kill three suspecting them to be police informers
Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres have killed two villagers in Khairgarh Block (administrative division) in Rajnandgaon District on April 1, reports Dainik Bhaskar. Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Pushpendra Nayak told that at least 10 kilometres from Khairgarh Block headquarters in Borla village, the Maoists have killed two villagers identified as Chaitram and Rajkumar. Based on the primary information, it has been found that the Maoists have killed both the villagers suspecting them to be ‘Police informers’.
2724 posts lying vacant in Assam police
State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary on April 2 stated that 2,724 posts in Assam Police were vacant, reports The Sentinel. The Minister stated in the Assembly that ‘Assam has 343 police stations, 289 police outposts, 120 watch posts, 136 patrol posts, 82 border Police outposts and 140 fixed pickets. The total number of sanctioned posts against all these is 12,782. However, we have 10,058 personnel. As many as 2,724 posts have been lying vacant’.
Landmine detected during combing operation in Odisha
A group of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel had a narrow escape as they detected a powerful landmine in Range Fire area of Reserve Police at Barijhola village in Rayagada District on April 5, reports New Indian Express. The Security Forces (SFs) found the explosive suspected to be planted by the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres to target the personnel. The personnel, along with Rayagada Police, defused the landmine and intensified combing operation in the area.
Maoists kill Sarpanch in Chhattisgarh
Suspected Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres killed a Sarpanch (head of the Panchayat, village level local self-Government institution) after branding him as ‘Police informer’ in Sukma District on April 8, reports Kalinga TV. The deceased has been identified as Galumu Hanga, Sarpanch of Badaseti village. Galumu, who happens to be a resident of Malkangiri District of Odisha, was living in Chhattisgarh for past few years due to Maoist threat. At least 20-30 heavily armed Maoists barged into Galumu’s house located in Sukma in the wee hours of night and dragged him out. After initial reprimand for being a ‘Police informer’ they killed him on the village road by slitting the throat. Before leaving the village the Maoists left few posters near the body of the slain Sarpanch. The posters released in the name of Konta Area Committee of the CPI-Maoist group were found with messages warning people against turning ‘Police informers’ to avoid a similar fate.
Punjab police arrests one person with explosives in Chhattisgarh
The Punjab Police arrested Inderjit Singh aka Rinku from Mohali in Chandigarh on April 5, and recovered explosive materials and related accessories from his Ford-make car registered in Haryana, reports Hindustan Times. Reportedly, two years back, Inderjit got in contact with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) over Facebook and confessed to learn to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) with ‘Do-It-Yourself’ (DIY) manuals. The Punjab Police has recovered two light remote controls, multifunctional digital remote control, and different types of chemicals. Inderjit was produced before the Court of law in Mohali and was sent to three-days of Police custody. During interrogation, Inderjit confessed that his ISI-handlers had assigned him to execute blasts in Punjab. Earlier this week, the Punjab Police’s Counterintelligence wing had arrested four youths charged with highlighting the Khalistan propaganda during the cricket matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Mohali, Chandigarh. Inderjit Singh is an MBA graduate and worked with a private company in Faridabad, Haryana.
Security personnel killed in blast in Odisha
A jawan (trooper) of the District Voluntary Force (DVF) identified as Sanjay Majhi(22) was killed in a landmine explosion triggered by Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres near Sakata village under Munikhol Panchayat (village level local-self government institution) within Muniguda Police limits in Rayagada District on April 9, reports The New Indian Express. Majhi was a native of Ambadola village. The incident occurred when a team of DVF was returning to their base camp after combing operation in the Niyamgiri hills.
Ammunition recovered in Meghalaya
On April 11, East Garo Hills police along with villagers during a search recovered ammunition cache of Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA), reports The Shillong Times on April 11. The recovered items included 2,038 rounds of AK bullets, 600 rounds of 9 mm pistol, 1,087 rounds of 7.7 mm rounds, 320 rounds of Heavy Machine Gun (HMG) ammunition, 10 remote circuits for IED bombs, two remote controls, 16 charger clips and four ammunition boxes. The search was concentrate in rests surrounding four villages Dorengkigre, Chachatgre, Bawegre and Nengmandalgre once strongholds of Sohan D Shira, the ‘commander in chief of GNLA who was killed in February 2018.
Maoists attack CRPF camp
Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres attacked empty Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp located in Sukma District on April 14, reports UNI. They then carried out a blast in the empty CRPF camp. There was no loss of life or injuries due to the blast. The place of the explosion is approximately 150 kilometers away from Jungala village in Bijapur District, where Indian Prime Minister’s event is scheduled, said Police.
Maoist leader criticizes politician of Andhra Pradesh
Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) Andhra Odisha Border (AOB) ‘east division secretary’, Ramana has severely criticized Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister (CM), Chandrababu Naidu and other politicians while addressing a largely attended public meeting in the AOB region on April 16, reports The Hans India. Ramana termed Chandrababu an imperialist lackey and said even in the undivided State, he has allowed the capitalist loot of the State. He said the loot has only increased after the bifurcation and strongly criticized the repression let loose on the hapless tribals to look the mineral wealth in the agency area. He also ridiculed Chandrababu’s asking for loans from the people of the State. He also said that the people should hit the turncoat Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) with slippers. He said those who switched the parties for the lure of the lucre will all be defeated at the hustings. He said Giddi Eswari, who was vocal as an Opposition MLA, is now silent on the issue of bauxite loot.
CRPF officer killed in encounter in Chhattisgarh
An officer of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was killed in an encounter with the Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres in a forest area in Sukma District on April 20, reports The Hindu. The encounter took place last night (April 20) in Kistaram Police Station area when a team of CRPF’s 212th battalion was out on a search-cum-area domination operation on intelligence inputs, Deputy Inspector General of Police (South Bastar Range) Sundarraj P said, adding, “Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Anil Kumar Maurya was killed in the incident.” Security Forces have launched a combing operation in the area, located around 500 kilometres away from the State capital Raipur, Sundarraj added.
Maoist posters recovered in Odisha
Communist Party of India-Maoist posters were recovered by Security Forces (SFs) at Dandabadi Panchayat(village level local-self government institution) under Baipariguda Police Station limits in Koraput District on April 21, reports Pragativadi. CPI-Maoist posters awarded death penalty to five civilians identified as Anand Nayak of Ratakhand village, Pulo Nayak, Lokiram Barik and Suri Barik of Dandabadi village and Kobiraj Kara of Majhiguda village in the District. The posters signed by Malkangiri-Koraput-Visakhapatnam Border Divisional Committee (MKVBDC) of the CPI-Maoist also accused Government officers of indulging in corrupt practices in the name of development in the tribal areas.
BSF trooper injured in encounter
A Border Security Force (BSF) constable, identified as Shree Bhagwan Singh was injured in an exchange of fire with Communist Party of India-Maoist cadres near Mahla BSF camp, under Partapur Police Station limits in Kanker District on April 23, reports The Pioneer. CPI-Maoist cadres triggered two Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blasts when personnel from BSF’s 114th battalion were out on an area domination operation and opened fire on Security Forces (SFs). CPI-Maoist cadres fled the encounter spot after coming under heavy fire from the patrolling team, said Superintendent of Police (SP), KL Dhruv.
AQIS calls for jihad against Hindus and Civil Services personnel, says report
Maulana Asim Umar—the Emir of al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) blamed the Indian government of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as anti-Muslim and urged all Indian Muslim youths to wage jihad against India and to target Hindus, officials of Indian Police Services (IPS) and Indian Administrative Services (IAS), reports India Today on April 24. Maulana Umar advised Indian Muslims to follow the modus operandi of Muslims in Europe who conducted lone-wolf attacks. In his audiotape, Umar referred to the ‘Battle of Panipat’ and urged youth to wage jihad against India.
Monthly Fatalities
The following casualties, related to ongoing insurgencies and acts of terrorism occurred during the period Mar 26 to April 25, 2018:
| Civilian | Indian Security Personnel | Militant | Total | |
| Assam | 02 | 00 | 01 | 03 |
| Manipur | 02 | 00 | 00 | 02 |
| Left wing | 26 | 08 | 18 | 52 |
| Total | 30 | 08 | 19 | 57 |
Nepal – Internal Dynamics
No blanket amnesty for cases of serious violation of human rights and humanitarian laws, says Prime Minister KP Oli
Prime Minister KP Oli during a luncheon meeting with foreign diplomats at his official residence at Baluwatar on March 27 said that there will be no blanket amnesty for cases of serious violation of human rights and humanitarian laws, reports Republica. The Prime Minister made the remarks to allay the concerns of the international community that Nepal may leave those committing serious crimes during Maoist insurgency unpunished. “To fully address the issue of transitional justice, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons are currently engaged in the country,” he said.
Lackluster attitude and unwillingness to amend constitution could sprout conflict and protest, says FSF-N Chairman Upendra Yadav
Upendra Yadav, Chairman of Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal (FSF-N) on April 1 said the lackluster attitude and unwillingness to amend necessary section of the constitution could sprout conflict and protest, reports Republica. He argued that the current Government was aware that an amendment was required. However, what was concerning is that “they are not willing to do so by signing an agreement,” Yadav said, adding that “such lackluster attitude and unwillingness to amend necessary section of the constitution could sprout conflict and protest.” In turn, he urged the Government to act responsibly and redress concerns and reservations of the Madeshi based parties. “Unless our demands are met, we will not join the government and are in no hurry whatsoever.”
Woman injured in bomb blast in Dhanusha district
A woman was injured in a bomb explosion in Dhanushadham Municipality-9 of Dhanusha District on April 5, reports The Himalayan Times. The injured has been identified as local Tirtha Maya Tamang (60). According to Police, Tamang was injured when a bomb exploded while she was fetching fodders from a jungle. It has been learnt that the bomb was placed some 500 meters away from the East-West highway into the jungle.
Hindu religious leader injured in shooting in Morang district
An unidentified group shot and injured a Hindu religious leader in Biratnagar City of Morang District on April 8, reports Kathmandu Post. Acharya Shree Niwas sustained bullet injuries in the chest, said Police. Police recovered a pamphlet with the name of Mangol Army from the incident site. Rajan Kumar Yadav and Binod Das were arrested in connection with the incident.
Meanwhile, Minister for Home Affairs Ram Bahadur Thapa speaking at a joint press meet organized by Press Chautari and Press Centre in Chitwan District on April 7 said the Government would act tough against any kind of extremism, reports The Himalayan Times. Thapa referring to recent activities of Netra Bikram Chand-led Nepal Communist Party said the Government was ready to address political issues but would not tolerate any kind of extremism.
Unidentified group attacked Ward chair
An unidentified group carried out a broad daylight attack on Bharatpur Metropolitan City-10 Ward Chair Arun Pandit Bhandari at busy street in Narayangadh of Chitwan District on April 10, reports The Himalayan Times. Bhandari, who had gone to the market to repair his mobile around 4:30 pm, was suddenly attacked by an unidentified group from behind. He sustained injuries in his hand and head. The locals have suspected that Netra Bikram Chand-led Nepal Communist Party cadres might have carried out the attack on local representative.
Pressure cooker bomb explodes at Assembly Hall of Chulachuli Rural Municipality Office in Ilam District
An unidentified group exploded a pressure cooker bomb at the Assembly Hall of the Chulachuli Rural Municipality Office in Ilam District on April 14, reports The Himalayan Times. The explosion caused damages to the upper floor of the under construction hall.
Earlier, Netra Bikram Chand-led Nepal Communist Party vandalised Blue Shine Stone Crusher Industry and set a crusher machine, four tippers and two excavators on fire at Namobuddha Municipality in Kavre District on April 13, reports The Himalayan Times. Police said a group of eight to 10 men had sprinkled kerosene and set the equipments on fire. The crusher industry is owned by Nepali Congress (NC) District leader Kunsang Lama. The group had left the site chanting slogans against Lama afterwards.
Bomb damages wall of Indian Consulate in Moran district
A bomb went off at Indian consulate office in Biratnagar city of Moran District damaging the wall on the premises on April 16, reports Kathmandu Post. Investigating officers suspected cadres of Netra Bikram Chand’s Communist Party of Nepal to have caused the blast. The party had called a general strike in Biratnagar on April 16.
Sri Lanka – Internal Dynamics 97 rehabilitated LTTE cadres given appointments in private sector in Vavuniya District
97 rehabilitated and reintegrated former Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres were given appointments in private sector at a ceremony held on March 27 at the Poonthoddam Rehabilitation Center in Vavuniya District under the patronage of the center’s Director General Duminda Pasqual, reports Colombo Page. Employment opportunities in the private sector were provided to the rehabilitate cadres based on the training courses conducted by the Vocational Training Authority of Sri Lanka during the rehabilitation period.
Army offers assistance to Northern Province to address vital issues
Army on March 29 offered its assistance to the Northern Province to resolve vital issues pertaining to the development in the region and the livelihood of the community, reports Colombo Page. Extending civil military cooperation, a meeting between Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran and the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army, Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake took place at the Chief Minister’s Office in Nallur, Jaffna District. During the meeting, the Army Commander pointed out to the Chief Minister that Army is capable of providing leadership for school cadetting programs if the provincial department of education seeks such assistance. The Army chief also offered his assistance to resolve issues pertaining to fishing community in a more practical and friendly manner if such issues are referred to the required military formations. The Commander also citing examples highlighted that the Army’s potential is available all the time for the civil military cooperation. Possibilities for release of more and more lands of civilians would also explode in due course to be in line with the Central Government’s policy, the Commander told the Chief Minister during the cordial meeting.
Former Army chief arrested in connection with abduction and assault of senior journalist in 2008
Former Army Chief of Staff Major General (retired) Amal Karunasekara was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at the Army hospital on April 5 in connection with the abduction and assault of senior journalist Keith Noyahr in 2008, reports Daily News. At the time of his abduction on May 22, 2008, Keith Noyahr functioned as the Associate Editor of the Nation Sunday Newspaper. The CID arrested seven suspected soldiers including Major Prabath Bulathwatte in February 2017 in connection with this abduction and assault. The charge against Major General Karunasekara is that he allegedly assisted the party headed by Major Bulathwatte in the abduction.
Meanwhile, Colombo Page on April 5 reported that the suspects were all members of a secret military intelligence platoon operated during the previous regime and were also suspected to be involved in many other acts of violence between 2006 and 2010.
LTTE supporters stage protest in London against President Maithripala Sirisena
A group of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) supporters staged a protest outside the Commonwealth Summit premises in London on April 19 against President Maithripala Sirisena, reports Daily Mirror. Carrying placards and LTTE flags, the protesters demanded President Sirisena to go back to Sri Lanka. Some of the slogans read, “Go back Maithri!” and “We don’t want a Constitution, final solution is Tamil Eelam,”
Meanwhile, Minister Sarath Amunugama on April 19 said a fresh agreement based on the recommendations of the five member cabinet committee will be signed between the UNP and the SLFP after President Maithripala Sirisena returned on April 24, reports Daily Mirror. He told that President Sirisena would discuss the recommendation of the SLFP committee with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe before signing the agreement by the General Secretaries of the UNP and SLFP. “This is basically a strategic arrangement on how the unity government should run in the tenure running for about 18 months up to 2020. We have focused our attention to fulfill the pledges given to the people at the Presidential and general elections in 2015 and made amends to the weaknesses and failures of the ‘Yahapalana Government’ in the last three years,” the Minister stressed.
Separately, former State Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana stated that the 10 SLFP Deputy Ministers and State Ministers who voted in favour of the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against the Prime Minister will sit as an independent group of the SLFP when Parliament convenes after May 8, reports Daily News on April 20. “We do not have an issue with the SLFP or the UPFA. Therefore, there is no need to quit the party and pick sides,” Abeywardana stated when inquired about the possibility of switching sides to the Joint Opposition. The 10 SLFPers who resigned are Dilan Perera, Sumedha G.Jayasena, Sudarshani Fernandopulle, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, Lakshman Wasantha Perera, Thilanga Sumathipala, Chandima Weerakodi,Susantha Punchinilame, Anuradha Jayaratne and Tharanath Basnayake.
INTERNATIONAL
Israeli ex-spymasters: warn country is ‘critically ill’ under Netanyahu
Six former Israeli spymasters accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, Mar 27 of jeopardising the country’s future as it prepares to celebrate the 70th anniversary of its founding next month.
The surviving ex-Mossad intelligence agency chiefs voiced their opinion of the fourth-term, right-wing leader in a joint interview excerpted on the front page of Yedioth Ahronoth, Israel’s best-selling newspaper and a regular Netanyahu critic.
Netanyahu had no immediate response, but a senior member of his governing coalition brushed off the censure.
Danny Yatom, who headed the Mossad during Netanyahu’s first stint in office in the late 1990s, called for his ouster, accusing him and his aides of “putting their interests ahead of national interests” as corruption investigations deepen.
Police questioned Netanyahu on Monday over his alleged dealings with the country’s largest telecommunication company, one of three cases weighing on his political future. Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing and opinion polls show his popularity is still high.
Yatom also voiced concern about “the inertia in the diplomatic sphere, which is leading us toward a bi-national state (with the Palestinians), which would spell the end of (Israel as) a Jewish and democratic state”.
Negotiations over a “two-state solution” to Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians have been frozen since 2014. Some argue that if Israel fails to quit occupied territory, it could one day face a choice between remaining a democracy or securing a Jewish majority by denying the Palestinians voting rights.
Yemen newspaper staff abducted by gunmen: watchdog
Gunmen in Yemen’s second city Aden have abducted at least seven staff of a newspaper group that was already hit by an arson attack earlier this month, a media watchdog said.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said the Friday (Mar 23) kidnappings from the group’s headquarters in the southern city, which is the seat of the troubled Saudi-backed government, showed there was nowhere in Yemen where journalists could feel safe.
Unidentified armed men stormed the offices of the Al-Shomou Foundation, which publishes a daily and a weekly newspaper, and kidnapped the staff, the CPJ said. The foundation is considered close to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Sources at the group’s daily, Akhbar al-Youm, said they believed the attack was “politically motivated”. Much of Aden has been in the hands of southern separatists supported by the United Arab Emirates since a deadly split in loyalist ranks in January. The Brotherhood-dominated Al-Islah party, which has a military wing, has also been fighting alongside government loyalists elsewhere in Yemen against Shiite rebels who control the capital.
Driver tries to ram soldiers as France mourns terror victims
A man driving a car with fake licence plates tried to ram a group of soldiers out jogging in southeast France on Thursday, Mar 29 security sources told AFP, sparking fears of a new attempted attack as the country mourns the victims of an Islamist shooting spree last week.
Speaking French and Arabic, the man first threatened a group of soldiers at around 8 am (0600 GMT) in Varces-Allieres-et-Risset, near Grenoble, and then tried to run down another group returning to their barracks from a jog, the sources added. “The soldiers managed to get up onto the pavement without being hit,” army spokesman Colonel Benoit Brulon told AFP.
The driver of the small Peugeot 208 hatchback, who was accompanied by a woman, sped off without causing any injuries. Prosecutors in Grenoble, a town in the foothills of the French Alps, said the incident was not being treated as a terrorist attack for the moment and the motive remained unclear. One security source initially told AFP that the driver was among two people arrested around lunchtime in Grenoble, but others later contradicted this as the investigation continued. The incident comes with France on edge after a jihadist rampage in the towns of Carcassonne and Trebes last week where a 25 year old gunman killed four people, including a policeman who took the place of a hostage in a supermarket siege.
The people of Trebes paid an emotional farewell to three local victims at a ceremony in the square of the sleepy town on Thursday, held a day after a national tribute to officer Arnaud Beltrame in Paris led by President Emmanuel Macron.
‘Iran supplying arms to Huthis’
France on Thursday, Mar 20 accused Iran of supplying weapons to Huthi rebels fighting a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
“There is a problem in Yemen, it is that the political process has not begun, that Saudi Arabia feels regularly attacked by the Huthis, who are themselves supplied with arms by Iran,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told RTL radio. Iran has repeatedly denied arming the Huthis in Yemen, despite claims by the United States and Saudi Arabia that the evidence of an arms connection is irrefutable.
The Saudi-led coalition on Monday threatened retaliation against arch-foe Iran, accusing it of being behind a barrage of Yemeni rebel missile attacks on the kingdom. The UN Security Council on Wednesday condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the missile attacks launched by the Huthis on Saudi Arabia, saying they posed a threat to regional security. Saudi forces on Sunday intercepted seven missiles fired by the Huthi rebels toward cities in Saudi Arabia, including the capital Riyadh, killing one person.
Over 1,100 arrested under Ethiopia state of emergency
More than 1,100 people have been arrested in Ethiopia since the nation declared a state of emergency following the prime minister’s resignation last month, state media reported on Saturday, Mar 31.
Hailemariam Desalegn’s surprise resignation came after more than two years of anti-government protests and increasing divisions in the ruling party.
The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has for the first time picked an ethnic Oromo, Abiy Ahmed, to be its new leader.
He is set to be sworn in as prime minister early next week.
The state-affiliated Fana Broadcast Corporate said 1,107 people have been detained for violating the emergency decree, which suspends the constitution and allows police to hold people without trial.
“They were detained for killing peaceful civilians and security forces, setting houses and financial institutions ablaze, illicit movement of firearms, destroying government and public institutions and blocking roads,” Fana reported, citing Tadesse Hordofa, chairman of a board overseeing the decree.
Ethiopia spiralled into crisis in late 2015 when the country’s largest ethnicity the Oromo began protesting a plan to expand the borders of the capital Addis Ababa into the surrounding Oromia region.
Venezuela president lands on Panama’s ‘high risk’ money laundering list
Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro along with more than 50 Venezuelan nationals are considered “high risk” for laundering money and financing terrorism, according to an advisory issued by Panama’s economy and finance ministry.
Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab and electoral board president Tibisay Lucena were also named in the advisory along with Socialist Party No 2 Diosdado Cabello, the elder brother of late president Hugo Chavez, and 16 firms in Venezuela.
The economy and finance ministry’s National Commission Against Money Laundering released the list late on Thursday, following its initial announcement on Tuesday.
Maduro’s socialist government has repeatedly vowed to combat corruption that has plagued Venezuela and its oil industry for decades, contributing to its devastating economic collapse. But critics say the administration, despite making graft-related arrests, is still crippled by financial malfeasance.
Millions of Venezuelans suffer from food and medicine shortages, and the currency has fallen 99.99 percent against the US dollar on the black market since Maduro came to power in 2013. Panama’s advisory calls on financial and non-financial entities in the country to redouble efforts to prevent risk in any transaction involving the listed people and companies.
In Caracas, Maduro’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The United States has slammed Caracas with a wave of sanctions and other measures to pressure Maduro for change, and is considering adding broad oil sanctions that would target the linchpin of Venezuela’s economy.
UN peacekeepers attacked by C Africa armed group
UN peacekeepers on patrol in the Central African Republic exchanged fire with members of an armed group in a Muslim enclave of the capital Bangui, the United Nations said Sunday, Apr 1. The peacekeepers were fired at in the Muslim rebel bastion called PK5, home to several armed groups and they responded, said Herve Verhoosel, spokesman for the UN peacekeeping mission known by its initials MINUSCA. The attack occurred Saturday evening and “clearly the target was the peacekeeping troops,” he added.
The armed groups operating in the PK5 area have taken advantage of the weakness of the state since the end of a sectarian conflict pitting mainly Muslim rebels against nominally Christian militias.
Saturday’s attack was the first on UN peacekeepers in the area since violence resumed in PK5 in 2017.
On Wednesday, Nimery Matar Jamous, head of the main “self-defence” group in PK5, threatened MINUSCA, telling AFP that “if the UN blue helmets want a war, they only have to tell residents to leave the area and we will defeat them”.
The UN recently threatened to dismantle all the armed groups’ bases in the area unless they hand over their weapons, according to sources.
Moscow warns against travel to UK: Expelled Russians arrive home
Russian diplomats expelled from the United States arrived in Moscow on Sunday, Apr 1 with post-Cold War tensions soaring in the wake of a nerve agent attack on a former spy in Britain. A deepening crisis in ties between Russia and the West over the past weeks has seen the biggest wave of tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions in recent memory. Another salvo in the spat was fired on Saturday, when Russia warned its nationals to think twice before travelling to Britain, where it said they could be singled out for harassment.
By expelling 60 Russian diplomats, the US joined a score of Britain’s allies in responding to the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in the English city of Salisbury on March 4.
Britain has said it is “highly likely” that Russia was responsible for the attack using the Soviet-designed Novichok nerve agent, while Moscow calls the allegations unsubstantiated anti-Russian propaganda.
Two planes arrived at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport on Sunday, bringing home a total of 171 people the 60 diplomats and their families from Washington and New York.
The US alleged the 60 diplomats were “spies” and sent them home from posts around the country and at the Russian mission to the United Nations, as well as closing Russia’s consulate in Seattle.
Moscow responded by sending home 60 US diplomats and closing Washington’s consulate in Saint Petersburg on Saturday.
Malaysia outlaws ‘fake news’
Malaysia on Monday, Apr 2 approved a law against “fake news” that would allow for prison of up to six years for offenders, shrugging off critics who say it was aimed at curbing dissent and free speech ahead of a general election.
Prime Minister Najib Razak’s government secured a simple majority in parliament to pass the Anti-Fake News 2018 bill, which sets out fines of up to 500,000 ringgit ($123,000) and a maximum six years in jail.
The first draft of the bill had proposed jail of up to 10 years. The government said the law would not impinge on freedom of speech and cases under it would be handled through an independent court process.
“This law aims to protect the public from the spread of fake news, while allowing freedom of speech as provided for under the constitution,” Law Minister Azalina Othman Said told parliament.
The law defines fake news as news, information, data and reports which is or are wholly or partly false and includes features, visuals and audio recordings. It covers digital publications and social media and will apply to offenders who maliciously spread “fake news” inside and outside Malaysia, including foreigners, if Malaysia or a Malaysian citizen were affected.
Iran hit by global cyber attack that left US flag on screens
Hackers have attacked networks in a number of countries including data centres in Iran where they left the image of a US flag on screens along with a warning “Don’t mess with our elections”, the Iranian IT ministry said on Saturday, Apr 7.
“The attack apparently affected 200,000 router switches across the world in a widespread attack, including 3,500 switches in our country,” the Communication and Information Technology Ministry said in a statement carried by Iran’s official news agency IRNA.
The statement said the attack, which hit internet service providers and cut off web access for subscribers, was made possible by a vulnerability in routers from Cisco which had earlier issued a warning and provided a patch that some firms had failed to install over the Iranian new year holiday.
Cisco did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A blog published on Thursday by Nick Biasini, a threat researcher at Cisco’s Talos Security Intelligence and Research Group, said: “Several incidents in multiple countries, including some specifically targeting critical infrastructure, have involved the misuse of the Smart Install protocol.
Iran’s IT Minister Mohammad Javad Azari-Jahromi posted a picture of a computer screen on Twitter with the image of the US flag and the hackers’ message. He said it was not yet clear who had carried out the attack.
France is abetting terrorists: Erdogan
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, Apr 7 accused France of abetting terrorists by “hosting them” at the Elysee Palace, amid a diplomatic row between the Nato allies over Paris’s support for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
“France is abetting terrorists by hosting them at the presidential palace. as long as you nurture these terrorists, the West will drown,” Erdogan told his supporters in the southwestern province of Denizli.
Last month, Turkey said a French pledge to help stabilise a region of northern Syria controlled by Kurdish-dominated forces amounted to support for terrorism and could make France a “target of Turkey”.-Reuters
Meanwhile, a deal with the United States to reduce tensions over the Kurdish-held city of Manbij in Syria is “doable” but requires Washington to clear up confusion in its policy, a top Turkish official said on Saturday.
Rebels kill dozens of Sudanese troops in Yemen
A rebel ambush in Yemen killed dozens of Sudanese soldiers belonging to a Saudi-led coalition fighting on the side of the government, military sources and the insurgents said on Saturday, Apr 7.
The Iran-backed Huthi rebels hit the Sudanese military convoy in the northern province of Hajjah before dawn on Friday, according to military sources. The losses were reported to be the heaviest suffered by Sudanese troops in Yemen since they were deployed in the war-torn country in 2015.
The Huthis reported the attack on their Al-Masirah website, saying dozens of Sudanese soldiers had been killed and armoured vehicles destroyed. There was no immediate comment from Sudan, which has deployed hundreds of soldiers as part of the coalition that Khartoum joined in 2015 after breaking decades-old ties with Tehran.
On Thursday Yemeni military officials said hundreds of soldiers from Saudi Arabia and Sudan had arrived in the north to reinforce troops deployed around rebel stronghold Saada. President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi’s government was driven from Yemen’s capital after the Huthis overran the city in 2014, sweeping southwards from their northern bastion.
The coalition led by mainly Sunni Saudi Arabia has since struggled to close in on rebel strongholds. Nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the coalition joined the Yemen war in 2015, triggering what the United Nations has called the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.
The Huthis have launched a string of ballistic missile attacks on neighbouring Saudi Arabia from northern Yemen. The rebels say the missile attacks are retaliation for Saudi-led air raids. Both the coalition and the United States a key ally of Saudi Arabia have accused Iran of arming the Huthi rebels.
Suicide attack claims four in Iraq
A suicide attack targeting a political party headquarters in western Iraq has killed four people and injured seven others, including a candidate in polls set for May, officials said on Sunday, Apr 8.
On Saturday evening “two suicide bombers disguised as soldiers entered the Al-Hal Party headquarters”, one of most prominent parties in the province of Al-Anbar, a local security official told AFP on the condition of anonymity. One of the attackers “detonated his explosive belt while political leaders held a meeting” at the campaign headquarters in the city of Hit, about 200 kilometres west of Baghdad, General Qassam al-Mohammadi, head of army operations in the area, told AFP.
Tehran accuses Israel of strike that killed four Iranians in Syria
Tehran accused Israel on Monday, Apr 9 of “flagrant” aggression in Syria after an air strike hit a regime base killing four Iranian “military advisers”, Iranian media said. The Islamic Republic condemned “strongly the aggression and the air strike by the Zionist regime” against the T-4 airbase in Homs, Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement. The ministry called on “all free states. to not be indifferent to this flagrant Zionist aggression”, adding that the air strike further complicated the situation in the war-torn country.
Iran’s Fars news agency said “four Iranian military advisers” were killed in Monday’s attack on the military airport. The news agency, which is close to the country’s elite Revolutionary Guards, had earlier reported that three Iranians had “fallen as martyrs”.
The ministry’s press release made no mention of the alleged victims. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the country’s conflict, said 14 fighters were killed, including Syrian army officers and Iranian forces.
Tehran, along with Moscow, is one Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s main allies and has played an important role in his recent victories. The Syrian regime and Moscow also blamed Israel for carrying out Monday’s strike.
The Israeli army has refused to comment. Israel is believed to have carried out numerous raids inside Syria since 2013, targeting the regime and its Lebanese arch-foe Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran.
Missiles, drones from Yemen ‘intercepted’ over S Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s air defences on Wednesday, Apr 11 “intercepted” a ballistic missile fired from rebel-held Yemen at Riyadh, a military spokesman said, adding two others were shot down in southern Saudi Arabia.
The announcement came after an AFP journalist witnessed explosions and heard three blasts over the capital, which has previously been targeted by Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen. “An Iranian ballistic missile launched from Sadaa towards Riyadh was successfully intercepted by Saudi Air Defence earlier today,” Colonel Turki al-Malki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Huthis, said.
He said Saudi forces also intercepted two missiles in the southern Jizan and Najran provinces close to the border with Yemen. The attacks were claimed by the rebels via their news outlet Al-Masirah. “The missile force carried out a large-scale ballistic missile attack on various parts of Saudi Arabia,” Al-Masirah said.
16 killed in Iraq
At least 16 people died in a bomb attack on Thursday, Apr 12 during funerals in a northern village for Iraqi fighters killed by the Islamic State group, the mayor said. Salaheddin Shaalan told AFP that a bomb targeted a funeral procession in Asdira, near the town of Sharqat, for fighters killed the previous day. Most of the 14 people wounded in the blast were in “critical condition”, he said.
Saudi king slams Iran’s ‘interference’ as Arab leaders meet
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Sunday, Apr 15 slammed Iran’s “blatant interference” in regional affairs as Arab leaders met in the kingdom for an annual gathering.
Opening the 29th Arab League summit, the king also criticised the US decision to transfer its embassy in Israel to Occupied al-Quds and described “terrorism” as the biggest challenge facing Arab leaders.
Seventeen leaders from across the Arab world minus Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gathered in the eastern Saudi city of Dhahran for the summit, which this year comes as world powers face off over Syria and tensions rise between Riyadh and Tehran.
The meeting opened only 24 hours after a barrage of strikes launched by the United States, Britain and France hit targets they said were linked to chemical weapons development in Syria, which was suspended from the league seven years ago.
But King Salman avoided any mention of Syria in his address, as a seat marked “Syrian Arab Republic” sat empty in the hall. Instead the king focused on rivalries with long-time foe Iran only 160 kilometres across the Gulf from Dharan.
“We renew our strong condemnation of Iran’s terrorist acts in the Arab region and reject its blatant interference in the affairs of Arab countries,” the king said. And despite being a stalwart ally of the United States, the ruler also criticised US President Donald Trump controversial decision to transfer America’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Occupied al-Quds.
“We reiterate our rejection of the US decision on Occupied al-Quds,” Salman said. “East Occupied al-Qudsis an integral part of the Palestinian territories.” Arab ministers at a preliminary meeting in Riyadh on Thursday focused heavily on blocking the move, unanimously condemning Trump’s decision.
King Salman on Sunday announced a $150 million donation for the maintenance of Islamic heritage in East Jerusalem. Saudi Arabia is pushing for a tough, unified stance against its regional arch-rival Iran at the annual gathering of the 22-member Arab League.
Iraq executes 11
Iraq has executed 13 people including 11 convicted on charges relating to “terrorism”, the justice ministry said on Monday, Apr 16. They included individuals responsible for car bombings, “killings of security forces personnel” and kidnappings, it said in a statement, without specifying dates, locations or other details of the attacks. The executions are the first since the beginning of the year in Iraq, which according to rights group Amnesty International put to death at least 111 people in 2017.
Iraq sentences French woman
Iraq on Tuesday, Apr 17 sentenced a French woman to life in prison for belonging to the Islamic State group, raising to more than 180 the number of such convictions of foreign women since the country’s defeat of IS. Djamila Boutoutaou, a 29 year-old of Algerian origin, told a Baghdad court that she left France with her husband, a rapper. She said she thought they were going on holiday but “when I arrived in Turkey I discovered that my husband was a Jihadist”.
She said she was forced by her husband to join IS and live in the “caliphate” that the Jihadists proclaimed in 2014 straddling Syria and Iraq. Boutoutaou, who appeared in court wearing a brown headscarf, said she and her two children had been forced to live in a “cave”.
Her husband was killed near the former Jihadist stronghold of Mosul, northern Iraq, and her son died in bombardment, Boutoutaou said, before she and the wife of a neighbour fled and surrendered to Kurdish peshmerga fighters.
Two women from Russia, both holding children in their arms, were also sentenced to life in prison at the same hearing, while five from Azerbaijan were condemned to death along with a woman from Trinidad.
Iran bans state bodies from using Telegram app
Iran banned government bodies on Wednesday, Apr 18 from using the popular Telegram instant messaging app as Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s office said his account would shut down to protect national security, Iranian media reported. ISNA news agency did not give a reason for the government ban on the service which lets people send encrypted messages and has an estimated 40 million users in the Islamic Republic.
The order came days after Russia Iran’s ally in the Syrian war started blocking the app in its territory following the company’s repeated refusal to give Russian state security services access to users’ secret messages.
Iran’s government banned “all state bodies from using the foreign messaging app,” according to ISNA. Khamenei stopped using Telegram on Wednesday “in line with safeguarding national interests and removing the monopoly of the Telegram messaging app,” state media reported.
The Supreme Leader has a strong presence on social media, even on Twitter and Facebook that are blocked in Iran. His office updates the accounts with photos and his latest speeches. Telegram, set up by a Russian entrepreneur and ranked the world’s ninth most popular mobile messaging app, has been widely used by Iranian state media, politicians and companies.
Bahrain sentences 24 to jail
A Bahrain court sentenced 24 citizens to prison and stripped them of their nationality after finding them guilty of forming a “terrorist group”, a Bahraini judicial source said on Thursday. Apr 19.
Other charges included travelling to Iraq and Iran for “weapons and explosives training” and attempted murder of police officers. The High Criminal Court on Wednesday sentenced 10 of the defendants to life in prison, 10 to a decade behind bars and the other four to jail terms ranging from three to five years.
The kingdom has stripped hundreds of its citizens of their nationality and jailed dozens of high-profile activists and religious clerics since protests demanding an elected government erupted in early 2011. The Bahraini government has accused Iran of backing the protests and attempting to overthrow the government. Tehran denies involvement.
15 militants killed in anti-Jihadist operation in Mali
Fifteen militants have been killed in an anti-Jihadist operation in central Mali, the Malian army said on Saturday, Apr 21 adding that one soldier died and two others were injured.
The “terrorists” were “neutralised, their weapons recovered and their motorbikes destroyed” during Friday’s mission in the Tina forest in the Mopti region, the army said in a statement. The army “suffered one death and two injuries”.
Mali has seen a resurgence of violence in recent weeks. Last Sunday a UN base in the historic city of Timbuktu was attacked by rocket fire and car bombs, killing one UN peacekeeper and wounding seven others.
Minusma, which has 12,000 peacekeepers in Mali, said it had recorded at least 85 major violent incidents and armed confrontations that resulted in at least 180 civilian victims since the beginning of the year.
The unrest in the former French colony stems from a 2012 Tuareg separatist uprising against the state, which was exploited by jihadists in order to take over key cities in the north. Although French forces succeeded in removing al-Qaeda-linked groups from places such as Timbuktu, the groups have morphed into more nimble formations operating in rural areas, sometimes winning over local populations by providing basic services and protection from bandits.
US anti-Muslim hate crimes rose 15 percent in 2017
Hate crimes targeting US Muslims rose 15 percent in 2017, the second year of increases, according to a study released on Monday, Apr 23 by advocacy group the Council on American-Islamic Relations. The group recorded 300 US hate crimes targeting Muslims last year, ranging from the June beating of a Muslim man in the Bronx borough of New York City by attackers who called him a terrorist to a November incident when a Muslim family’s Kansas restaurant was burned down. That was up from 260 in 2016. CAIR attributed the increase in part to the policies of US President Donald Trump, particularly restrictions on immigration from Muslim-majority countries.
“There has been nothing like this ever, for the Muslim community to be regularly the punching bag of the president of the United States,” said Gadeir Abbas, an attorney with CAIR. Responding by email to a request for comment, White House spokeswoman Kelly Love said, “The Trump Administration stands for the rule of law and abhors all forms of lawlessness including hate crimes. President Trump has repeatedly condemned violence, racism and hate groups. “As a candidate, Trump promised “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.” Soon after taking office he signed an executive order banning most travelers from several Muslim-majority countries.
The 300 hate crimes were a slice of the 2,599 incidents CAIR logged as representing anti-Muslim bias in 2017, a figure that was up 17 percent from 2016. The larger total included harassment, employment discrimination and times when Muslims were subjected to what CAIR recorded as biased treatment by government agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Customs and Border Protection.
18 pro-regime fighters killed in Syria
At least 18 pro-Syrian regime combatants have been killed in 24 hours of fighting in southern Damascus against the Islamic State group, a monitor said on Apr 24.
That brought to at least 52 the number of pro-government fighters killed in nearly a week of military operations against Yarmuk and adjacent IS-held neighbourhoods, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. No confirmation of the casualties was available from Syrian officials, who do not usually disclose losses within army ranks.
The Britain-based Observatory said at least 35 jihadist fighters were also killed over the same period. There are an estimated 1,000 IS fighters left inside the enclave in the capital’s southern neighbourhoods, which includes Yarmuk and the adjacent districts of Hajar al-Aswad and Qadam.
From their perch in Yarmuk which has a view of the presidential palace in Damascus Jihadists have fired rockets on the capital’s centre. According to state news agency Sana, five civilians were killed on Tuesday when a mortar shell crashed into a market area.
The Observatory said the fighting on the ground was fierce, as IS attempted a desperate defence of one of its very last bastions in the country. The Syrian army’s focus on Yarmuk, once the country’s largest Palestinian refugee camp, comes as part of its campaign to secure the capital.
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.
