(Combined effort of PATHFINDER GROUP Task Force)
Miscellaneous
Two Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were killed and four others, including an officer, injured in an attack by militants in Mand Redeeg area of Kech District in Balochistan on March 27, reports The Express Tribune. According to official sources, unidentified militants opened fire on FC personnel when they were inspecting the work of fence erecting along the Iranian border near Mand Redeeg area. The exchange of fire continued for some time and after that, the militants escaped from the scene.
Security Forces (SFs) killed four terrorists and recovered arms and ammunition during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Idel Khel village in North Waziristan District on April 7, reports The Express Tribune. A statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said, “Four terrorists were killed while trying to escape the cordon. A cache of arms and ammunition were also recovered.” The identity of the slain terrorists is yet to be ascertained.
Meanwhile, three terrorists were killed in another operation on a terrorist hideout in Mohmand District of KP on April 7, reports The Express Tribune. The SFs also recovered Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), night vision sights, extremist literature and Indian origin medicines from the hideout. The identity of the slain terrorists is yet to be established.
Security forces conducted two separate intelligence-based operations (IBOs) on April 7 on confirmed information of terrorist hideouts in North Waziristan and Mohmand districts. As many as seven terrorists were killed during the IBOs, says an ISPR press release.
In North Waziristan, security forces carried out an operation in village Idel Khel on credible intelligence information of presence of terrorists. Four terrorists were killed while trying to escape the cordon. A cache of arms and ammunition recovered.
In an another IBO on a terrorist hideout in Mohmand, three terrorists were killed. IEDs, night vision sights, extremist literature and Indian origin medicines were recovered.
SHO Sharafat Khan was injured after being pelted with stones when police tried to stop a large number of people from offering Friday (April 10) prayers at a mosque in the city. A video doing the rounds on social media features the Peerabad SHO, a woman police officer, who can be seen shouting at a large crowd of men exiting a mosque. “Record their video. They attacked me. They broke my glasses as well,” she can be seen shouting. The incident took place in Peerabad, Orangi Town when police came under attack.
Seven militants and two soldiers were killed an exchange of fire during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in North Waziristan on April 10, reports ARY News. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said 31 year old Sepoy Muhammad Sajid, hailing from Abbottabad, and 23-year old Sepoy Momin Shah, belonging to Dera Ismail Khan, were martyred during the operation, which was conducted on the basis of intelligence information.
Two militants and one Army soldier killed during an exchange of with militants at their hideout in Dargai area of Datta Khel tehsil (revenue unit) in North Waziristan on April 13, reports The Express Tribune. A statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said “As Quick Reaction Force cordoned the area, militants opened fire to flee. During the exchange of fire, two terrorists were killed,” it added. The martyred soldier, identified as Naik Adil Shahzad a resident of Karer village in Mansehra District.
The Counter-terrorism Department (CTD) on April 15 shot dead two militants in an encounter in the suburb of Swat Town, reports ARY News. Taking action on the intelligence reports about the presence of some wanted militants in the area, the CTD conducted a security operation. The Security Forces shot dead the militants when they were trying to enter in Swat from Dir District. A cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from the possession of the dead militants.
Five militants and one soldier killed during clash when militants opened fire at their check post in Miranshah town of North Waziristan on April 20, reports The Nation. Three soldiers also sustained severe injuries.
PAKISTAN
Baloch journalist goes missing in Sweden
The Baloch journalist Sajid Hussain Baloch who has been living in the Upsalla city of Sweden has been gone missing since days, Dawn reported on March 30. Friends and acquaintances of Sajid Hussain Baloch are shocked to learn that he has been missing from Swedish city Upsalla for nearly a month without a trace. The editorial board of an online magazine, Balochistan Times, of which Hussain was the chief editor, publicly shared the news on March 28 that he had been missing from the Swedish city of Uppsala since March 2 and that a formal case had been filed with the Swedish police on March 3. “As of today (March 28), there is no clue about his whereabouts and well being. The police have not shared any progress in the investigations with his family and friends,” read the press statement. His brother Wajid Baloch told Dawn that they had waited out 14 days thinking that Sajid might have been stuck in quarantine somewhere, but they opted to break the silence after so many days had passed.
Hussain had left the country some eight years ago after receiving death threats. His wife Shehnaz told Dawn that he had worked on the issue of enforced disappearances in Balochistan, but his report exposing a top drug lord Imam Bheel in 2012 led to some threats. He also sensed being followed, she said. “Then some people broke into his house in Quetta when he was out investigating a story. They took away his laptop and other papers too. After that he left Pakistan in September 2012 and never came back,” said Shehnaz.
Things to get worse if govt doesn’t ramp up testing: Dr Atta-ur-Rahman
Chairman of Prime Minister’s National Task Force on Science and Technology Prof Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman has said that he foresees the coronavirus situation getting worse in the country and has urged the government to ramp-up testing of suspected patients.
“The government should carry out testing for 30,000-40,000 patients on a daily basis. So far we see merely 2,000-3,000 being tested,” he said, in a conversation with the media. “The data coming in of patients across the country is not indicative of the true picture. The real number of patients is much higher.” Dr. Rahman said that under the supervision of Lahore’s University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Dr. Javed Akram, a series of clinical trials of a few drugs will begin next week.
He said that the form the disease has taken in Pakistan will become evident in the next 10 days. Reiterating the need for testing, Dr. Rahman said that the disease is “rapidly spreading like wildfire” and had brought even nations like the United States “to its knees”.
Speaking of the need for stringent containment measures to defeat the spread of the virus, he said that people who are leaving their homes without a good reason “should be thrown into jails”. “If we don’t take strict action now, things could get out of hand,” he said. While praying that he is proven wrong, Dr. Rahman cautioned that things will get much worse than we can anticipate and once more emphasised on the need for stricter quarantine measures and greater testing capacity to be implemented by the government.
‘Annual remittances likely to shrink by over $1 billion’
The Pakistani economy, which relies heavily on remittances, is in for trouble due to the coronavirus pandemic as a senior government official warns that if the virus continues to spread and impact the global economy, the inflows into the country are likely to drop by over $1-1.5 billion annually.
“Our foreign remittances have halved in the last two months and if the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis persists any longer, they’re expected to decrease by from $1billion to $1.5 billion per year. Currently, our 10,000-11,000 households are estimated to be directly impacted by the situation,” Director General of the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment Kashif Ahmed Noor told an ‘online consultation on migration and border management during COVID-19’ organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute in Islamabad.
The DG said around 60,000 Pakistanis were in the process of going abroad for employment and the bureau was in contact with authorities in the UAE and other relevant countries about them.
JUI-F leader opposes lockdown of mosques
The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) district president, Mufti Kifayatullah, on Wednesday, April 1 said that his party would not accept lockdown of mosques and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government should review its order in this regard.
“We can combat Covid-19 through adopting precautionary measures and worships and if we would lockdown our mosques, we could not seek Allah’s forgiveness,” Kifayatullah told a news conference here.
Flanked by a group of prayer leaders, he said that his party was fully cooperating with government in its efforts to contain spread of Covid-19 in the district and rest of the province.
“But we would never allow this government to keep people away from mosques in such an alarming situation where one should seeks Allah’s mercy and forgiveness to come out of this deadly pandemic,” said Kifayatullah.
He asked the government to take to justice those cabinet ministers, who facilitated the entry of devotees into the country at Taftan border.
Flanked by other office-bearers of Islah-i-Rasoom (Reform the Rituals), Swati said that it was highly encouraging that government was allowing more and more businesses resumption as the situation was being unfolded gradually in the district.
Sindh Government re-arrests four persons acquitted in Daniel Pearl murder case of 2002
The Sindh Government on April 3, invoked the maintenance of public order to keep in jail British-born al Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh after a court overturned his death sentence in the abduction and murder of United States (US) journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi in 2002, reports Dawn of India. Three of his accomplices, who were acquitted on April 2, will also remain in prison. Sheikh was sentenced to death in 2002 for masterminding Pearl’s murder. The other three were sentenced to life. On April 2, a two-judge Sindh High Court bench had found Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison. According to the law, Sheikh was eligible to walk free as he had already served 18 years in prison on the death row. The Sindh Government acted swiftly to invoke the order which allows it to keep the four convicts behind bars for three months. According to a notification issued by the Sindh Home Ministry, the release of Sheikh and his three associates could jeopardise the law and order situation in the province, thus, necessitating their continued detention.
FATF extends deadline to Pakistan
In the aftermath of the spread of deadly COVID-19 virus in different parts of the world, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has extended its deadline for complying conditions for Pakistan for three months up to September from earlier June 2020.
One top official of the Finance Division confirmed to The News on Tuesday, April 7 that the FATF’s regional body, the Asia Pacific Group, conveyed its decision to the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) for postponement of the Joint Working Group meeting for all countries, including Pakistan, scheduled to be held in Beijing in May 2020 due to the outbreak of COVID-19 virus. “Instead May/June, now the face-to-face meeting and plenary meeting is expected to take place in August/ September 2020,” said the official and added this meeting was postponed for all other countries also, so it was going to benefit Pakistan in terms of extending the period by three months.
The FATF had placed Pakistan on the grey list in June 2018 and placed 27 conditions for review for complying in one year, till Sept 2019. Pakistan was so far given two times extension of three months, every time to comply with 27-point action plans. Out of the 27-point action plan, FATF had so far declared Pakistan fully compliant on 14 points and now there was the deadline of June 2020 for complying on the remaining 13 points in a bid to ensure exit from the grey list of the watchdog. Now this deadline has further been extended up to September 2020. Pakistan was bound to submit its progress report to the joint working group (JWG) of FATF till April 15, 2020 but now Islamabad would have to make progress report for submission till July 2020.
China firmly stands with Pakistan in fight against COVID-19
Pakistan and China’s friendship examples are given all over the globe and it is the fact that Pakistan is not fighting alone against the novel coronavirus; China is firmly standing with its “all-weather friend”.
This was stated in a report carried by Gwadar Pro App on Friday, April 10. Pakistan and China have proven that they would not abandon each other in these testing times and perhaps that is why President of Pakistan Dr. Arif Alvi visited China last month conveying strong support and solidarity of Pakistan towards the government and the people of China in their battle against Covid-19.
When China was hard-hit by the coronavirus, it was Pakistan from President to Prime Minister Imran Khan to the common people which provided a large amount of support of solidarity and unity to China. Delighted by the support, the Chinese Ambassador in Pakistan Yao Jing not only appreciated the gesture but also offered to reciprocate it with even more in ‘Chinese style’. “A drop of water received will be reciprocated with a well of spring. China stands with Pakistan on fighting COVID-19,” Ambassador Yao Jing said in a video message while assuring Pakistani people that “Chinese people, as always, will stand here, stay here and work with you. We have a firm belief and firm confidence that the Pakistani government and people will finally win this battle against the coronavirus.”
These were not mere words to impress people and nations across the world as China immediately increased the supplies of medical personnel and equipment to help one of the most populous nations in the world Pakistan to fight the spread of the coronavirus. Even before Yao Jing’s statement, China had helped Pakistan in every possible way ranging from taking care of Pakistani students in Wuhan to providing tones of medical goods.
Four AQIS militants arrested in Karachi
Four militants belonging to Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) were arrested in a joint operation by Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Special Investigation Unit Police in Gulistan-e-Johar area of Karachi on April 19, reports The Express Tribune. The militants were identified as Muhammad Umar, Muhammad Bilal alias Fida, Muhammad Waseem and Muhammad Amir. Detonators, remote controls, improvised explosive device receivers, hand grenades, Kalashnikovs and other weapons were recovered based on their revelations. According to law enforcement agencies, the militants had recently arrived in Karachi after receiving training in Afghanistan. They had reportedly also carried out reconnaissance of the city court, police training centre, intelligence agency offices and the Pakistan Stock Exchange. The militants revealed during initial interrogation that they were led by Muhammad Hanif alias Zarrar alias Ayub, who is currently in Afghanistan. They reportedly claimed that their other accomplices were also hiding in Karachi and they had facilitated them with money, conveyance and shelter.
Afghanistan – Internal Dynamics
UNAMA calls for reduced violence in Afghanistan
United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) citing surge in civilian fatalities since the signing of February 2020 peace deal issued a statement urging all parties to further reduce levels of violence, protect civilians, and work towards a ceasefire, reports Tolo news. It stated that despite some de-escalation in hostilities following the end of February announcement for a reduction in violence, UNAMA continues to record conflict-related civilian casualties with more than 100 killed and many more injured in the March1- 25 time frame. Moreover, UNAMA also stated that “A reduction in violence leading to a ceasefire would save lives, provide parties with a more conducive environment to commence intra-Afghan peace negotiations and would enable better preparations to combat the looming health crisis posed by COVID-19.”
Suicide bomber killed in a premature explosion in Baghlan Province
On March 28, a suicide bomber was killed when the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) exploded prematurely while the bomber was trying to enter from north of Baghlan Markazi District to center of the city in Baghlan Province of Afghanistan, reports Bhaktar News. Two civilians including a child have been injured in the incident.
Taliban insists on the release of its 15 key ‘commanders’, says IDLG head Matin Bek
The head of the Independent Directorate of Local Governance (IDLG), Matin Bek, on April 6 said that the delay in the release of Taliban prisoners is due to the insistence of the group for the release of their 15 senior commanders who are involved in “big attacks”, reports Tolo News. Bek is also a member of the negotiation team appointed by the President Ashraf Ghani. “We are ready to release 400 (prisoners) in the first phase. It is the Taliban who do not want this. They are asking for the release of the 15 (commanders). If we release the 15 individuals, their hands are stained with people’s blood,” Bek. The release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners is part of deal signed by the US and the Taliban in Doha on Feb. 29.Bek said demands reveal the Taliban’s “stubbornness” and it is “not acceptable” as it will lead to the fall of provinces and the continuation of violence in the country.
Taliban ‘military in-charge’ killed in Ghazni Province
Mohammad Abdullah, Taliban ‘military in-charge’ was killed by Afghan Security Forces (ASFs) in Aab Band District in Ghazni province of Afghanistan, reports Bakhtar News on April 18. Ahmad Khan Sirat, spokesman for Police chief of Ghazni, said, the ASFs succeeded to discover and neutralize four rounds of different type of mines in crowded areas in the Province.
US ‘violates’ deal, claims Taliban’s Political office
The Taliban has shared a list of 50 attacks conducted by the United States (US) and Afghan forces following the US-Taliban peace deal in late February, accusing the US of violating terms of the deal and thus adding another layer of complication to the already hindered peace process, reports Tolo News on April 20. The Taliban political office in Doha, in a three-page document, claims 33 drone attacks and airstrikes were carried out against Taliban targets in 19 provinces from March 9 to April 10, nine attacks involving rockets and mortar shelling, and eight night-raids. The Taliban says in the document they have lost 35 of their fighters in 17 of the incidents, and they blame foreign forces for killing 65 civilians in 33 incidents. According to the Taliban paper, 12 attacks have occurred in Zabul, five in Maidan Wardak, four in Kunduz, four in Kandahar, three in Helmand, three in Kapisa, three in Laghman, three in Badakhshan, two in Uruzgan and two in Farah. The provinces of Paktika, Paktia, Ghazni, Logar, Badghis, Jawzjan, Baghlan, Takhar and Nangarhar have witnessed one attack each, according to the document.
Nine Security Force personnel killed in Balkh Province
The Taliban militants attacked a check post and killed nine Security Force (SF) personnel in Sholgara District in Balkh Province, reports Tolo News on April 20.
19 SF personnel killed in Logar Province
Taliban militants, in an attack, killed 19 Policemen at the Mes Aynak Copper mine in Logar Province on April 21, reports Tolo News.
11 SF personnel killed in Sar-e-Pul Province
Taliban attacked security checkpoints killing 11 Afghan Security Forces in Sozma Qala and Sancharak Districts in Sar-e-Pul Province, reports Tolo News.
Daesh and affiliated terror groups on rise in Badakhshan Province, say Afghan local officials
Local officials in the Badakhshan Province on April 21 said that Daesh and affiliate terror groups are moving to establish a stronger military presence in the province so they can continue the war against the Afghan security forces, reports Tolo News. According to the local officials, there are around 400 fighters linked with various ‘terrorist groups’ such as Daesh, the Tajikistan-based Ansarullah militant group, the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, the Harkat-i-Islami Uzbekistan and the Uighur jihadists, and these fighters are operating in various parts of the province, but especially in the Khastak valley of Juram District. Badakhshan province has borders with China, Pakistan and Tajikistan. But Khastak valley of Juram, which is adjacent to Pakistan, is an important point from a military perspective.
Taliban rejects President Ashraf Ghani’s demand for ceasefire during Holy month of Ramadan
The Taliban group in Afghanistan rejected President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani’s demand for ceasefire during the Holy month of Ramadan, calling it as ‘illogical’, reports The Khaama Press on April 24. “The Islamic Emirate accepted a comprehensive framework (of peace) by signing the Agreement with US [United States] which was also confirmed by the Security Council and the International Community. If it is implemented (fully), it will take us to a lasting peace and ceasefire,” Suhail Shaheen, a spokesperson for the political office of Taliban said in a Twitter post. Shaheen further added “In a time that the lives of thousands of prisoners are being put into danger due to the coronavirus and hurdle are created in the way of the peace process and complete implementation of the Agreement, despite that, asking for ceasefire is not rational and convincing.”
Earlier, President Ghani had issued a statement on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan, urging the Taliban group to declare a ceasefire, reports The Khaama Press. Previously, Presidents Ghani’s call for a ceasefire on April 16 due to novel coronavirus was also rejected by Taliban adds Arab News.
Bangladesh – Internal Dynamics
BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia released from jail
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia was released from jail on March 25, reports New Nation. She was released after 25 months after landing in jail on February 8, 2018, in a graft case. The Government on March 24 announced that it has taken decision to release BNP Chairperson from jail on humanitarian grounds suspending her sentence for six months. The BNP chief was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment in the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case. Later, the High Court raised her punishment to 10 years after dismissing her appeal.
Ansar-al-Islam’s online financier arrested in Dhaka city
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on March 30 arrested an online financier of the banned militant outfit Ansar-al-Islam from Rajuk Uttara Housing area of Dhaka city in Dhaka District of Dhaka Division, reports Dhaka Tribune. He is identified as Muhib Mushfiq Khan (19). He was the online financier of the organization. A huge number of extremist books and electronic devices were recovered from his possession.
Three Ansar al-Islam militants arrested in Rajshahi District
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested three militants of Ansar al-Islam from Rajshahi City Hat area in Rajshahi District of the Rajshahi Division for holding a clandestine meeting to conduct subversive activities on April 1, reports The Daily Star. The arrestees are Yousuf Ali Sourav (21), Souvik Hasan Sourav (20) and Shakil Khan (20). RAB recovered some “jihadi” books and training materials from their possession.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman killer arrested in Dhaka city
A team of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) on April 7 arrested Captain Abdul Majed, convicted killer of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib ur Rahman, near Gabtoli Bus Terminal in Dhaka city of Dhaka District in Dhaka Division, reports The Daily Star. Hours after his arrest, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Court sent Captain Abdul Majed to Dhaka Central Jail. Hemayet Uddin Khan, Assistant Public Prosecutor of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka, told, “Majed returned to the country on March 15 or 16 from Kolkata. He claimed that he had been hiding there for about 23 years.” A CTTC high official, requesting anonymity, said during primary interrogation, Majed, the self-declared killer of Bangabandhu, told them that after returning home, he stayed in different houses, but had communications with his family. Majed was present at Dhanmondi Road-32 on August 15, 1975, when Bangabandhu and most of his family members were assassinated. After the killing of Bangabandhu, Majed performed his duties at the Bangabhaban and some other places as per the instructions of late Zia ur Rahman. The late President Zia ur Rahman’s Government awarded the killers in many ways. Majed went into hiding after the Awami League Government came to power in 1997.
Bangabandhu’s killer Abdul Majed hanged
Captain (Retd) Abdul Majed, one of the convicts in the killing of Bangladesh’s founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib ur Rahman, was executed at the Dhaka Central Jail in Dhaka District of Dhaka Division on April 12, reports Dhaka Tribune. In 1998, a Dhaka sessions judge’s court found 15 people guilty and awarded the death penalty for the killing in 1975. In 2001, the High Court acquitted three but upheld the death sentences of 12. In 2010, the Appellate Division upheld the verdict. The same year, five of the convicts Syed Farooq Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Bazl ul Huda, AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Mohiuddin Ahmed were hanged. Another convict Aziz Pasha died as a fugitive in Zimbabwe. Majed was one of the six absconding convicts along with Abd ur Rashid, Sharif ul Haque Dalim, Rashed Chowdhury, SHMB Noor Chowdhury and Risaldar Moslemuddin. After being on the run for over 20 years, Majed was arrested on April 7 in Dhaka city.
India – Internal Dynamics
SFs may halt anti-Naxal operations in Naxal belt of India amid coronavirus pandemic
In view of the humanitarian crisis that has erupted due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, Security Forces (SFs) are mulling over the option of halting all the anti-Naxal [Left Wing Extremism, LWE]operations against Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) in the Naxal belt of India, reports Free Press Journal on March 27. As per the report, the security agencies in Chhattisgarh are exploring the possibility of a “humanitarian ceasefire” as the Covid-19 contagion is spreading in India. However, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) P. Sundar Raj said that SFs do not have the authority or mandate to take such decisions. “I am just a Police Officer. Bastar Police and SFs here have a mandate to ensure safety to life and property of the people. At present, the entire world is fighting against Covid-19. Bastar Police is also committed to fighting this virus,” the IGP said adding that “There is no social distancing in a commune and the villagers are worried about it now. They are putting not only their lives at risk but endangering the lives of thousands of tribal living in the nearby areas. There is a lot of social pressure over the Maoists to shun violence during this global crisis.”
Maoist movement has increased amid coronavirus lockdown in Odisha from neighbouring border States
The nationwide lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic has come as an advantage for the Communist Party of India-Maoist as a slowing down of security focus has given them a passage in the remote parts of Swabhiman Anchal in Odisha bordering Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, reports The New Indian Express on March 29. According to the report, the Maoists have increased their movement in inaccessible bordering areas including the Tulsi forest under Mathili Police limits in Malkangiri District of Odisha. As per the sources, the Maoists from three neighbouring States of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana are moving freely in the rural areas thereby adding to the security challenges. A voluntary organisation ‘Sachetan Nagarika Mancha’ on March 28 put up hundreds of posters at Kudumulugumma, Spillway in Chitrakonda, Janbai in Swabhiman Anchal and Mahupadar in Malkangiri District, urging Maoists to stop being the carriers of coronavirus and surrender before the District administration to protect themselves. The posters also appealed to villagers not to come in contact with the Maoists. They should not attend meetings called by the Naxals [Left Wing Extremists, LWEs] and provide food materials and other items to them, the posters read, adding, that some Maoists are roaming in villages after getting infected with coronavirus and may cause an outbreak in the region.
IS messages urge Indian Muslim to act, amidst coronavirus outbreak, says report
Islamic State’s (IS) chat groups are abuzz with messages on how the coronavirus outbreak has provided an opportunity to carry out attacks as countries have become “easy target”, and the messages also urge Indian Muslims “to act”, The Print reports on March 30. The primary missive that is being circulated on the chat groups that IS runs on various social media platforms is a clipping of a note published in the terror network’s magazine called Sawt al-Hind (Voice of Hind). “Allah has made this disease a source of chaos amongst the nations of disbelief and their militaries and police have been deployed in their streets and alleys, thus making them an easy target,” said the note published in one of the terror network’s branches in the Khorasan province.
This note being circulated through chat groups is a tactic to recruit people, said a source in the Indian intelligence, who highlighted the possibility of the IS planning an attack. “It is always a possibility that they are planning something, considering what happened in Kabul, and these signs cannot be taken lightly. But, this seems more like a tactic to recruit more youngsters,” the source said.
Delhi Police personnel on Islamic State target, says report
Delhi Police personnel stationed at Police barricades and pickets to maintain the law and order during the lockdown in the national capital have come under the Islamic State (IS) threat, India Today reports on April 1. The terrorist organisation is planning to launch a lone-wolf attack on the security officers in Delhi during the novel coronavirus outbreak. According to an advisory issued by the authorities, the Delhi Policemen have been asked to stay alert for a possible attack by the IS. The attack could be in the form of a stabbing, firing, or running over the police picket using a big vehicle.
“As per assessment made at MAC platform by going through literature and magazines published by ISIS [Islamic State], it has been suspected that police personnel deployed upon duty at various pickets/barricades in Delhi in connection with maintaining of law and order in Delhi regarding outbreak of the novel coronavirus may be targeted by suspected ISIS [IS] operatives. Said attacks may be in form of Lone Woolf attack, stabbing, firing or hitting by vehicles etc. Field staff may please be briefed accordingly,” the advisory said.
Maoists call for a ceasefire in Andhra Pradesh amid coronavirus outbreak
The Communist Party of India-Maoist has called for a unilateral ceasefire and announced that they would not attack Security Forces (SFs) in Andhra Pradesh amid the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak across the country, reports Hindustan Times on April 6. As per the report, the Malkangiri Koraput Visakha Border (MKVB) division’s committee secretary of CPI-Maoist named Kailasam released a hand-written statement in Telugu to the Andhra Pradesh media that stated the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes Covid-19, was creating havoc across the world. “Our party, People’s Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA), an armed wing of the CPI-Maoist, and various frontal organisations of the party have decided against carrying out any kind of attack on the Security Forces during this period,” the statement said. Kailasam, however, warned that the party would be compelled to retaliate if SFs resort to any kind of action. “We demand that the government responds to our statement within five days,” Kailasam added.
Separately, the senior Maoist leader Jallandhar Reddy alias Krishna, the ‘State Zonal Committee Member’ in Andhra Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee (AOBSZC), has made a plea through a video for peace in the LWE [Left Wing Extremism]-affected areas in Andhra Pradesh-Odisha Border region, amid the COVID-19 threat, reports The Hindu on April 6. As per the report, the leader released a video that said there would be no offensive from the Maoist side, as long as the people and the government fight against the virus. He, however, said that the Maoists would not hesitate to retaliate any offensive from the Security Forces (SFs), as a self-protection measure. The Maoist leader also asked the SFs not to indulge in combing operation but instead focus on saving people from the pandemic.
SFJ using recorded calls to instigate people in Punjab
The Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyers are receiving recorded calls from the New York-based Pro-Khalistan group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which was banned by India last year, seeking their opinion about its movement to “free” Punjab from India, reports The Times of India on April 8. As per the report, in the recorded calls, SFJ is instigating listeners against the Central Government and the Punjab administration using the novel coronavirus pandemic as an excuse. Referring to the tough action taken by Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi against those violating lockdown norms, the pro-Khalistan group has also accused them of “torturing” youngsters. Reportedly, the calls are made from only one US-based number +18336101020. Sources in the intelligence agencies confirmed that similar calls are being made on behalf of SFJ for the past one week in other parts of Punjab. The intelligence agencies had already issued an alert that SFJ is launching new propaganda against India.
Maoist panel wants INR 5 trillion package for poor to fight coronavirus pandemic
The Communist Party of India-Maoist central committee spokesperson Abhay released a statement on April 14, which said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had failed to take measures to help the poor before announcing lockdown and it had forced migrant workers in cities to walk back to their natives as public transportation was shut, reports Telangana Today. As per the report, Abhay said, the Union government needed to spend at least 10 percent of the GDP towards food and health of the poor. The Central and State governments have to come out with measures to help the unorganised sector with a financial package of INR 5 trillion. Also, the Maoists’ Spokesperson, demanded the immediate release of activists like Varavara Rao, Prof. Saibaba, and other political prisoners lodged in jails across the country.
Two persons including a Policeman killed in separate incidents in Chhattisgarh
A Communist Party of India-Maoist cadre was killed in an exchange of fire with Security Forces (SFs) in a forested area under Mirtur Police Station limits in Bijapur District of Chhattisgarh on April 16, reports The Pioneer. According to the Police, on receiving a tip-off about the presence of the Maoists in the border area of Dantewada and Bijapur Districts, a joint team of Dantewada District Reserve Guard (DRG) and Special Task Force (STF) had launched a search operation.
Separately, in another incident, a Policeman identified as, Ramesh Kursam was hacked to death by Maoists at Farsegarh village in Bijapur District of Chhattisgarh on April 16, reports The New Indian Express. According to a senior Police Officer, “Ramesh was missing since April 14th. The local villagers spotted the body in the outskirt of the said village. The body carried stabbed injuries apparently inflicted with sharp-edged weapons.” A leaflet purportedly written by the Maoists was also recovered from the spot claiming the responsibility for the killing, the Officer added.
Meanwhile, the security sources have revealed that the Maoists have been using the nationwide lockdown amid coronavirus (COVID-19) spread to regain their strength as a large group of the rebels have entered south Bastar region of Chhattisgarh from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, and Nepal, reports Outlook on April 16.
Monthly Fatalities
The following casualties, related to ongoing insurgencies and acts of terrorism occurred during the period March 26, 2020 to April 25, 2020:
| Civilian | Indian Security Personnel | Militant | Total | |
| Assam | 04 | 00 | 01 | 05 |
| Left Wing | 12 | 01 | 07 | 20 |
| Total | 16 | 01 | 08 | 25 |
Nepal – Internal Dynamics
Three CPN-Maoist-Chand cadres arrested in Kathmandu city
Police on March 19 arrested three cadres of Netra Bikram Chand-led Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist-Chand) from Kathmandu city of Kathmandu District in Province No. 3 for their alleged involvement in an explosion that rocked the house of former Minister Gokul Prasad Baskota on March 11, reports Kathmandu Post. The arrested are: Laxman Sethi (31), Amrit Bahadur Kumar Kshetri (31) and Tek BK (27).
Sri Lanka-Internal Dynamics
President’s pardon of a soldier convicted of massacring eight civilians shows administration’s disregard for justice for worst abuses, says HRW
Human Rights Watch (HRW) issuing a statement on March 27 said that Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s pardon of a soldier convicted of massacring eight civilians, including children, shows the administration’s disregard for justice for the worst abuses, reports Colombo Page. “The conviction of former Sgt. Sunil Ratnayake had been one of the very few cases of security force personnel being criminally punished for civil war-era atrocities, despite the huge number of credible and extremely serious allegations,” the HRW said. Ratnayake, who was pardoned on March 26 was found guilty in 2015 of killing eight civilians, including a 5-year-old, at Mirusuvil, in northern Sri Lanka, in 2000. The bodies of the victims showed signs of torture. The conviction had been upheld by Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on March 27 said that it was ‘troubled’ by the reports of the release of former staff sergeant R.M. Sunil Ratnayake on a special Presidential pardon, reports Daily Mirror. “We are troubled by the reports that the convicted ‘perpetrator of the Mirusuvil massacre, in Sri Lanka, has received a Presidential Pardon and was released from jail this week,” Spokesperson for the OHCHR, Rupert Colville said. He further said former Army Sergeant Sunil Ratnayake was sentenced in 2015 for the murder in 2000 of eight civilians, including a five-year-old child, after more than a decade long trial. Five defendants were brought to trial but only Sgt Ratnayake was convicted. The conviction was confirmed by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in May 2019.
Zion Church bombing mastermind arrested in Batticaloa District
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested the main suspect who led the suicide bomb attack on the Batticaloa Zion Church on Easter Sunday from Batticaloa District of Eastern Province, reports Colombo Page on March 29. Investigations revealed that the suspect planned the attack and transported the suicide bomber to the Zion Church in Batticaloa. The same suspect also manipulated the bomber who carried out the attack on the Kochchikade Church in Colombo on Easter Sunday.
TISL calls for public disclosure of documents on Presidential pardon
Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) in a statement called upon the Government to publicly disclose all relevant documents in the case of the Presidential pardon afforded to the convict in the case of the Mirusuvil Massacre of December 2000, reports Colombo Page on April 2. The TISL said the Presidential Secretariat must make the Report of the Trial Judge, Advice of the Attorney General and the recommendation of the Justice Minister public. TISL said it is concerned that failure to do so could result in irreparable damage to the separation of powers between the executive and judiciary especially given that the conviction and sentencing in this case was upheld by a five member bench of the Supreme Court comprised of Justices Buvaneka Aluvihare, Nalin Perera, Sisira de Abrew, Priyantha Jayawardena and Murdhu Fernando in April 2019.
Two more arrested over Easter Sunday attacks, says Police Spokesman SP Jaliya Senaratne
Police Spokesman SP Jaliya Senaratne on April 2 said that two more suspects were arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks, reports Daily Mirror. He said the suspects were arrested following the questioning of the main suspect arrested over the suicide bomb attack on Zion Church in Batticaloa. The spokesman said according to the investigations, one of the suspects, a resident of Gothatuwa, had involved of the attack on Cinnamon Grand hotel in Colombo and transported the suicide bomber to the hotel. The second suspect, resident of Mattakkuliya allegedly involved in the bomb attack of St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade.
SL makes cremations compulsory for virus deaths, angering Muslims
Sri Lanka made cremations compulsory for coronavirus victims on Sunday, April 12 ignoring protests from the country’s minority Muslims who say it goes against Islamic tradition.
Of the seven deaths from the infectious disease so far in the island nation, three were Muslims. The bodies were cremated by authorities despite protests from relatives. “The corpse of a person who has died or is suspected to have died, of COVID-19 shall be cremated,” Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi said on Sunday.
The World Health Organisation has said victims “can be buried or cremated”. More than 200 people have tested positive for coronavirus so far in Sri Lanka, where an indefinite, nationwide curfew has been imposed.
The cremations have been criticised by rights groups. “At this difficult time, the authorities should be bringing communities together and not deepening divisions between them,” Amnesty’s South Asia Director Biraj Patnaik said earlier this month.
The country’s main political party that represents Muslims, which make up 10 percent of the 21 million-strong national population, has accused the government of “callous disregard” for religious rituals and the families’ wishes.
Tensions between Muslims and the majority Sinhalese population came to a head last Easter after local jihadists were accused of suicide bombings at three hotels and three churches that killed 279 people. Weeks later, Sinhalese mobs attacked Muslims, killing one and wounded dozens more.
Six persons arrested in Puttalam District in connection with Easter Sunday suicide attacks
Criminal Investigations Department (CID) on April 14 arrested six persons in Puttalam District of North Western Province in connection with the Easter Sunday suicide attacks on churches and hotels on April 21, 2019, reports Colombo Page. Among the arrestees were Riyad Bathiudeen, brother of former Minister and leader of All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) Rishad Bathiudeen and Attorney-at-Law Hejaaz Hisbullah.
Easter Sunday suspects planned for another series of attacks, says Police Media Spokesperson SP Jaliya Senaratne
Police Media Spokesperson SP Jaliya Senaratne on April 19 said that investigations have uncovered that the suspects in the series of suicide bombing attacks on Easter Sunday last year were planning another similar series of attacks in the country, reports Colombo Page. SP Senaratne said the investigations by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) have revealed that the plans for the second attack had failed and the CID has uncovered information on suspects who aided and abetted the plan. According to the Police Media Spokesman, the suspects had also planned to launch an attack in a South Asian country and smuggle the attackers into Sri Lanka to protect them. The Police Spokesman said 197 suspects have been arrested so far in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks.
‘I will not leave any room for any form of extremism or violence from any extremists,’ vows President Gotabaya Rajapaksa
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa marking the first anniversary of Easter Sunday attacks on April 21 vowed, “I will not leave any room for any form of extremism, or violence from any extremists to be unleashed on my people again,” reports Colombo Page. The President said he will ensure the safety of all communities in the country and assured to identify the true perpetrators responsible for the Easter Sunday massacres and bring them before the law.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Major General (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne referring to the on-going investigations into Easter Sunday attacks on April 21 said “We will bring all those who involved in those bomb blasts, irrespective of their social status, political affiliations, ethnicity or religion to book. We will not let our people to die and suffer in such unfortunate incidents. We have taken all precautionary measures to identify such acts of terrorism or extremism at early stages and taken all necessary actions to bring them before the law,” reports Colombo
ICJ raises concerns about arbitrary arrest and detention of lawyer Hejaaz Hizbullah
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) raised concerns about the arbitrary arrest and detention of lawyer Hejaaz Hizbullah in the conduct of their investigation of the Easter Sunday bombings, reports Colombo Page on April 23. Lawyer Hejaaz Hizbullah was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on April 14, pursuant to the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and has since been kept in detention. No reasons were provided at the time of the arrest. “No one questions the government’s need and obligation to investigate the horrendous Easter Sunday attacks, but these investigations must be conducted in a way that is consistent with international law and the Sri Lankan Constitution. Not serving Hizbullah a remand order as required by law, and denying him full and confidential access to legal counsel is unacceptable and in violation of international standards on the right to liberty,” said Frederick Rawski, ICJ Asia-Pacific Director.
HRW expresses concerns over due process in arrests of Muslims
Human Rights Watch (HRW), expressing concerns over Sri Lanka’s due process in recent arrests of Muslims said Sri Lankan authorities should uphold due process rights and ensure that recently detained Muslim figures have proper access to lawyers, reports Colombo Page. “Sri Lankan authorities have a responsibility to prosecute those responsible for the horrific Easter Sunday attacks last year, but the arrests should be lawful, and not used to vilify an entire community. The recent arrests of well-known Muslims, combined with biased government actions and rising anti-Muslim hate speech, raise concerns for the broader safety of the Muslim community,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director. On April 14 the authorities arrested Hejaaz Hizbullah, a prominent lawyer, apparently under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). He was one of six people, including the brother of a former Minister and a customs official, whom Police recently detained for their alleged involvement in the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. Ramzy Razeek, a retired Government official who has a following on Facebook, was arrested on April 9 after decrying religious discrimination in a social media post.
INTERNATIONAL
Libya fighting intensifies as rival forces defy UN call for global ceasefire
Libyan armed factions have defied a UN call for a “global ceasefire” by escalating fighting across the country, with forces loyal to eastern warlord Gen Khalifa Haftar claiming to have gained control of a string of towns in the north-west.
A spokesman for Haftar said on Friday, March 27 his forces, the Libyan National Army (LNA), had also repulsed an offensive by the UN-backed government of national accord designed to capture its key airbase the failure of which will increase the fragility of the Tripoli government and its dependence on its Turkish backers.
The two sides in a conflict that has raged since 2014 briefly agreed last weekend to a humanitarian truce, but within 24 hours fighting resumed at an even more intense pace. Both sides seem to believe that with international actors distracted by the coronavirus pandemic now is the right moment to try to take decisive steps in the civil war.
Tripoli, the capital, has seen some of the worst bombardments since Haftar launched a renewed offensive in April last year, prompting the government there to launch a rare counter-offensive operation to try to seize Haftar’s al-Wutiya airbase. The bombardment of Tripoli continued on Thursday night.
Turkey has started to use drones deeper into LNA-controlled territory in an effort to disrupt the Haftar offensive. The LNA’s spokesperson, Maj Gen Ahmad Al-Mismari, claimed it had captured several areas in north-western Libya, including the towns of Jumail, Regdalein, and Zultun, so surrounding Zuwara 62 miles (100km) west of Tripoli from three sides. He also claimed more than 100 Syrian fighters brought to Libya by Turkey had been killed in the last 72 hours.
The upsurge in fighting, probably the worst since the current phase of the civil war began, came as the first coronavirus case was revealed in the country and led to yet another UN security council call for both sides to end the fighting. But the UN’s credibility in Libya is at rock bottom with weapons embargoes openly breached and the UN special envoy, Ghassan Salamé, quitting in disgust at competition in the country by the big powers.
Saudi Arabia intercepts Huthi’s missiles
Saudi air defence intercepted Yemeni rebel missiles over Riyadh and a city on the Yemen border, leaving two civilians wounded in the curfew-locked capital amid efforts to combat coronavirus, state media said Sunday, March 29.
Multiple explosions shook Riyadh late Saturday in the first major assault on Saudi Arabia since the Huthi rebels offered last September to halt attacks on the kingdom after devastating twin strikes on Saudi oil installations.
The insurgents claimed responsibility around 15 hours after the attacks, with a rebel spokesman calling it “the largest operation of its kind” as the Riyadh-led military intervention in Yemen enters its sixth year.
“Two ballistic missiles were launched towards the cities of Riyadh and Jizan,” the official Saudi Press Agency reported, citing the Saudi-led coalition that is fighting the rebels in Yemen. Their interception sent shrapnel raining on residential neighbourhoods in the cities, leaving two civilians injured in Riyadh, a civil defence spokesman said in a separate statement released by SPA.
At least three blasts rocked the capital, which is under a 15-hour per day coronavirus curfew, just before midnight, said reporters. Jizan, like many other Saudi cities, faces a shorter dusk to dawn curfew.
The Huthi spokesman said the rebels struck “sensitive targets” in Riyadh with long-range Zolfaghar missiles and Sammad-3 drones. The rebels also claimed to have hit “economic and military targets” in the border regions of Jizan, Najran and Assir.
The assault comes despite a show of support on Thursday by all of Yemen´s warring parties for a United Nations call for a ceasefire to protect civilians from the coronavirus pandemic.
Yemen´s broken healthcare system has so far recorded no case of the COVID-19 illness, but aid groups have warned that when it does hit, the impact will be catastrophic. The country is already gripped by what the UN calls the world´s worst humanitarian crisis.
Pope appeals for global ceasefire
Pope Francis on Sunday, March 29 joined UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s appeal for an “immediate global ceasefire”, on the fifth anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen’s civil war.
“I join all those who have accepted this appeal and invite everyone to follow it by ceasing all forms of hostility, promoting the creation of humanitarian aid corridors, being open to diplomacy, and paying attention to the most vulnerable,” the pope said in a message delivered after holding prayers.
Several explosions shook the Saudi capital Riyadh late on Saturday, which the Saudi-led military coalition blamed on Yemen’s Iran-aligned Huthi rebels, who have repeatedly targeted Saudi cities with missiles, rockets and drones.
The attack came with the Saudi capital under curfew imposed to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Pope Francis pointed out that Guterres’s call on Monday came during “the current COVID-19 emergency, which knows no borders”. “The joint commitment against the pandemic can lead everyone to recognise our need to strengthen our fraternal ties as members of one human family,” the pontiff said.
Five killed in Nigeria ambush
Five people were killed when Jihadists attacked their vehicles outside Nigeria’s northeastern city of Maiduguri, militia leaders said on Sunday, March 29 adding more were feared dead.
Gunmen from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) stopped the vehicles around 1730 GMT on Saturday near Auno village, 20 kilometres from Maiduguri, and attacked drivers and passengers with machetes as they fled into the bush. “We have so far recovered five dead bodies and 14 people with severe injuries all from machete cuts,” militia leader Babakura Kolo told AFP.
He said the death toll might rise since more bodies could still be in the bush. “The terrorists killed several people in a machete-hacking spree, following them into the bush where bodies are still scattered,” he said.
A team of police, militiamen and local hunters combed through the area on Sunday, evacuating the dead and the injured. The rescue operation was hampered, however, by the team’s refusal to go deeper into the bush for fear of attack from the Jihadists.
ISWAP, which split from Boko Haram in 2016, used to focus on attacking the military but has increasingly been targeting civilians. Auno lies on the 120-kilometre highway linking Maiduguri in Borno state and Damaturu in neighbouring Yobe state.
NZ man killed in rebel attack
A New Zealander was shot dead and two Indonesians were seriously wounded in an attack by separatist rebels in Indonesia’s restive Papua province, police said on Monday, March 30.
The shooting took place at an office of US-based mining company Freeport, which operates the Grasberg complex, the world’s biggest gold mine and a frequent flashpoint in Papua’s long-running insurgency.
The conflict has simmered since Jakarta took control of the mineral rich region in the 1960s following a vote widely viewed as rigged to stay within the Indonesian archipelago. On Monday, rebels gunned down New Zealander Graeme Thomas Weal, 57, in an ambush that also seriously wounded two Indonesian colleagues at a Freeport office in Mimika regency, police said.
Trump’s team ‘denied warnings’ of pandemic
Former US president Barack Obama took a veiled swipe on Tuesday, March 31 at his successor Donald Trump, chastising those who have “denied warnings” of a deadly coronavirus pandemic and cautioning against ignoring the consequences of climate change.
The popular two-term Democrat took to social media as the Trump administration finalized a controversial rollback of Obama-era vehicle fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions standards that were aimed at slowing global warming.
“We’ve seen all too terribly the consequences of those who denied warnings of a pandemic,” Obama posted on Twitter. “We can’t afford any more consequences of climate denial. All of us, especially young people, have to demand better of our government at every level and vote this fall.”
The Republican leader’s government has faced stark criticism for failing to heed early global alarms about the virus outbreak, after death tolls began to spike in places like China and Italy. The United States now has more than 165,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, the most worldwide, and the US death toll has surged past 3,400 exceeding China’s official toll. Obama’s tweet included a link to a story about the Trump administration’s new rules.
In a statement, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation were rolling back “costly, increasingly unachievable fuel economy and vehicle CO2 emissions standards.”
Mexican journalist shot dead in ambush
A journalist was ambushed and shot dead in Mexico’s eastern Veracruz state, local officials said on Monday, March 30 the latest murder of a media worker in a country notoriously dangerous for reporters.
Maria Elena Ferral, a correspondent for the Diario de Xalapa daily newspaper, was getting into her car in Papantla when two men on motorbikes opened fire and mortally wounded her before fleeing the scene, a police source told AFP.
“Despite the efforts of doctors to save her life, we are terribly sorry to learn that a few minutes ago the journalist Maria Elena Ferral died,” Veracruz governor Cuitlahuac Garcia wrote on Twitter.
Mexico is one of the world’s most dangerous countries for reporters, with more than 100 murdered since 2000. “The authorities should immediately investigate these events and provide protection to her family and colleagues,” Balbina Flores of media rights group Reporters Without Borders told AFP.
In Africa, six nations seem so far to be spared coronavirus
Six of Africa’s 54 nations are among the last in the world yet to report cases of the new coronavirus.
The global pandemic has been confirmed in almost every country, but for a handful of far-flung tiny island states, war-torn Yemen and isolated North Korea. In Africa authorities claim they are spared by god, or simply saved by low air traffic to their countries, however some fear it is lack of testing that is hiding the true impact.
The east African nation is barely emerging from six years of civil war and with high levels of hunger, illness and little infrastructure, observers fear the virus could wreak havoc. Doctor Angok Gordon Kuol, one of those charged with overseeing the fight against the virus, said the country had only carried out 12 tests, none of which were positive.
He said the reason the virus has yet to reach South Sudan could be explained by the low volume of air traffic and travel to the country. “Very few airlines come to South Sudan and most of the countries affected today they are affected by people coming from abroad.”
He said the main concern was foreigners working for the large NGO and humanitarian community, or people crossing land borders from neighbouring countries. South Sudan has shut schools, banned gatherings such as weddings, funerals and sporting events and blocked flights from worst-affected countries. Non-essential businesses have been shuttered and movement restricted.
The country can currently test around 500 people and has one isolation centre with 24 beds. In Burundi, which is gearing up for general elections in May, authorities thank divine intervention for the lack of cases.
“The government thanks all-powerful God who has protected Burundi,” government spokesman Prosper Ntahorwamiye said on national television last week. At the same time he criticised those “spreading rumours” that Burundi is not capable of testing for the virus, or that it is spreading unnoticed.
“There are zero cases in Burundi because there have been zero tests,” a Burundian doctor said on condition of anonymity. Sao Tome and Principe a tiny nation of small islands covered in lush rainforest has reported zero cases because it is unable to test, according to World Health Organisation representative Anne Ancia.
S Arabia imposes 24-hour virus curfew in holy cities
Saudi Arabia on Thursday, April 2 extended curfew restrictions on Islam’s two holiest cities to 24 hours to stem the spreading of coronavirus as the number of deaths from the disease rose to 21.
The announcement comes amid uncertainty over the Holy Haj which is due to take place at the end of July, after authorities this week urged Muslims to temporarily defer preparations for the annual pilgrimage.
“Full 24-hour curfew in Holy Makkah and Holy Madina starting from Thursday until further notice,” the official Saudi Press Agency reported, citing an interior ministry source. The cities were earlier under a 15-hour daily curfew.
Authorities have already sealed off Holy Makkah and Holy Madina along with Riyadh and Jeddah, barring people from entering and exiting the cities as well as prohibiting movement between all provinces.
Saudi Arabia, which has reported the highest number of infections in the Gulf, is scrambling to limit the spread of the disease at home. On Thursday the health ministry said the deaths from the illness had risen to 21 while 1,885 infections were reported.
Last month, Saudi Arabia suspended the year-round “umrah” pilgrimage over fears of the coronavirus pandemic spreading to Islam’s holiest cities. Authorities are yet to announce whether they will proceed with this year’s hajj.
Fauci gets security threats
The senior US scientist battling the coronavirus pandemic has been given extra security as he received threats after contradicting President Donald Trump’s dubious interpretations and forecasts over the crisis.
The US Marshals service confirmed Thursday, April 2 that Anthony Fauci, the widely-respected expert who is the public face of the government’s response to the virus, was granted special security protection.
Fauci, a long-serving government official, stands at Trump’s side at the daily televised White House briefings on the COVID-19 outbreak. He has won a reputation for giving unvarnished and fact-based information about the pandemic, which has already killed 5,100 Americans.
The 79-year old doctor, the country’s foremost expert on infectious disease, has been attacked by conservatives after pushing back against Trump’s assertions about the virus.
Iran warns of months of crisis as virus deaths reach 3,160
Iran on Thursday, April 2 reported 124 new deaths from the coronavirus, raising its total to 3,160, as President Rouhani warned that the country may still battle the pandemic for another year.
Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour announced the latest toll in a news conference and confirmed 3,111 new infections over the past 24 hours, bringing Iran’s total to 50,468.
He said 16,711 of those hospitalised had so far recovered. Iran has been scrambling to contain the COVID-19 outbreak since it reported its first cases on February 19.
After weeks of refraining from imposing a lockdown or quarantine measures, Tehran decided last week to ban all intercity travel until at least April 8. There is no official lockdown within Iran’s cities, although the government has repeatedly urged Iranians to stay at home to contain the spread of the virus.
Rouhani warned at a cabinet meeting on Thursday that there was no quick fix. “Coronavirus is not something for which we can point to a certain date and say it will be completely eradicated by then,” he said.
Rouhani said the virus “may be with us in upcoming months, or until the end” of the current Iranian year, in March 2021. The country, one of the world’s worst hit by the pandemic which originated in China, must remain vigilant and more limitations may be implemented, he said.
Iran has closed schools and universities until early April and also four key pilgrimage sites, including the Fatima Masumeh shrine in Qom. It has discouraged travel, cancelled the main weekly Friday prayers and temporarily closed parliament.
North Korea insists it is free of coronavirus
North Korea remains totally free of the coronavirus, a senior health official in Pyongyang has insisted, despite mounting scepticism overseas as confirmed global infections near one million.
The already isolated, nuclear-armed North quickly shut down its borders after the virus was first detected in neighbouring China in January, and imposed strict containment measures. Pak Myong Su, director of the anti-epidemic department of the North’s Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters, insisted that the efforts had been completely successful.
“Not one single person has been infected with the novel coronavirus in our country so far,” Pak told AFP. “We have carried out preemptive and scientific measures such as inspections and quarantine for all personnel entering our country and thoroughly disinfecting all goods, as well as closing borders and blocking sea and air lanes.”
Nearly every other country has reported coronavirus cases, with the World Health Organization saying on Wednesday that there were nearly one million confirmed infections globally
‘Virus to plunge 8m into poverty in Arab world’
The coronavirus pandemic will plunge 8.3 million people in the Arab region into poverty, the United Nation’s Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia said on Wednesday, April 1.
ESCWA also warned that two million people could become undernourished as a result. “With today’s estimates, a total of 101.4 million people in the region would be classified as poor, and 52 million as undernourished,” the UN agency said.
Women and young adults working in the informal sector and who have no access to social welfare are among the most vulnerable, said ESCWA executive secretary Rola Dashti. “Arab Governments must ensure a swift emergency response to protect their people from falling into poverty and food insecurity owing to the impact of COVID-19,” Dashti added. ESCWA last month warned that the coronavirus pandemic could wipe out more than 1.7 million jobs across the Arab world this year.
Syrian war records lowest monthly death toll
The war in Syria killed 103 civilians in March, marking the lowest monthly non-combatant death toll since the start of the conflict in 2011, a war monitor said on Wednesday, April 1.
Of the total deaths, some 51 people were killed in shelling and air strikes by the Syrian regime, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The bulk of the remaining casualties were caused either by explosive remnants or mysterious “assassinations”, the Observatory added.
The civilian death toll was more than double that of March in February, when a regime offensive on Syria’s last major rebel bastion was still in full swing. According to the Observatory, the number of deaths that month stood at 275.
The war in Syria has left more than 380,000 people dead since it started nine years ago. The highest civilian death toll recorded in a month since the start of the conflict was 1,590 in July 2016, when battles between rebels and the regime raged in the northern province of Aleppo.
Damascus in early March paused a military offensive on rebels and Jihadists in Syria’s northwest, after a ceasefire brokered by regime ally Russia came into effect. The Moscow-backed campaign had displaced nearly a million people in the region since December, piling pressure on informal settlements already brimming with families forced to flee previous bouts of violence.
Zimbabwe police accused of media assault amid lockdown
An African media watchdog charged Monday, April 6 that Zimbabwean police had assaulted a journalist and forced him to delete pictures of them enforcing a COVID-19 lockdown.
Freelance journalist Panashe Makufa “was beaten up by members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police” in Harare’s Kuwadzana township “while undertaking his professional duties,” the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Zimbabwe office said.
Makufa told the media rights watchdog he was taking pictures on Sunday of police as they dispersed people to enforce a stay-at-home order. “Four police officers ordered Makufa to get into their truck where he was assaulted by two officers and forced to delete his pictures before he was dropped off,” MISA said in a statement.
Makufa’s assault came after the arrest last week of two other journalists in separate incidents. Police briefly detained freelance reporter Kudzanai Musengi in the central city of Gweru accusing him of working with an expired accreditation card, according to MISA.
In another case, the police arrested Voice of America (VOA) correspondent Nunurai Jena and charged him with disorderly conduct after he took pictures of police at a roadblock, the media watchdog said.
Hospital attacks in Syria: UN refrains from blaming Russia
A UN board of inquiry formed last summer to investigate attacks on civilian establishments in Syria, including hospitals, has refrained from directly holding Russia responsible, according to a summary of its report obtained on Monday, April 6 by AFP.
The coordinates of the sites had been communicated to the belligerents by the United Nations precisely to protect them from air strikes. The summary noted that UN investigators were unable to visit the sites of the attacks because the Syrian government “did not respond to repeated requests for the issuance of visas to the members of the board.”
But, without mentioning Russia, the investigation concluded that in several cases studied by the board “the government of Syria and/or its allies had carried out the airstrike.” In 2019, The New York Times published an exhaustive investigation, notably including recordings of Russian pilots, that directly incriminated Russia in attacks on hospitals in Syria.
Moscow, the Damascus regime’s main political and military supporter, has denied that its aircraft targeted civilian sites. The summary was prepared by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the basis of a 185-page confidential internal report, with 200 annexes.
The roughly 20-page summary was submitted to the UN Security Council’s 15 members. The UN investigation focused on seven air strikes, including one that was dropped from the report’s conclusions because the UN had not relayed the coordinates of that site to the belligerents, Guterres said in a letter accompanying the summary.
The UN chief attributed the small number of incidents examined to the absence of UN personnel on the ground, which made it difficult to determine what had happened. At the end of July 2019, 10 Security Council members issued a rare demarche a formal diplomatic petition demanding that Guterres open an investigation into air strikes on medical installations, infuriating Russia.
Coronavirus defeated: China lifts 76-day lockdown on Wuhan city
China has ended its lockdown of Wuhan, the original epicentre of the coronavirus crisis, as the city re-emerges from a deadly outbreak that is now raging across the globe. But even as Wuhan reopens its borders after 76 days, some restrictions within the city will remain in place, and officials warn that the threat of further infections remains far from over.
The metropolis of 11 million, where the coronavirus was first detected in December, had been sealed off from the outside world since January 23 in an unprecedented effort to contain the outbreak.
On Wednesday, April 8 healthy residents and visitors were finally allowed to leave Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, with trains and flights resumed and highway entrances reopened.
The easing of travel restrictions on Wuhan is the latest milestone in China’s fight against COVID-19. The country reported nearly zero new local infections in recent weeks, leading to similar restrictive measures being lifted for other parts of Hubei province late last month.
“The reopening of Wuhan does not mean the all-clear, neither does it mean a relaxing of epidemic prevention and control measures (within the city),” he said.
As the outbreak swept the city, much of Wuhan was brought to a halt by strict epidemic control measures some of which would later be introduced throughout the world as the virus spread to more than 200 countries and territories, infecting more than 1.4 million people worldwide.
For more than two months, public transport in Wuhan was suspended, businesses were shut and millions of residents were confined to their homes and residential communities not even allowed to go outside for grocery shopping.
The draconian measures apparently worked. By mid-March, the number of new infections had slowed to a trickle from thousands per day at its worst in February. In a major show of confidence, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Wuhan on March 10, praising the city and its people for being heroic. Over the past two weeks, life in Wuhan has gradually gained some semblance of normality.
‘One hundred Italian doctors have died of virus’
One hundred Italian doctors have died of the novel coronavirus since the pandemic reached the Mediterranean country in February, Italy’s FNOMCeO health association said on Thursday, April 9.
“The number of doctors who have died because of COVID-19 is 100 — perhaps even 101 at the moment, unfortunately,” a FNOMCeO spokesman told AFP. The toll includes retired doctors the government began calling in a month ago to help fight a coronavirus that has officially claimed a world-topping 17,669 lives in Italy.
Italian media reports estimate that 30 nurses and nursing assistance have also died of COVID-19. “We can longer allow our doctors, our health workers, to be sent to fight without any protection against the virus,” FNOMCeO president Filippo Anelli said on the association’s website.
“It is an unfair fight.” Rome’s ISS public health institute estimates that 10 percent of those infected with the novel coronavirus in Italy work in health care.
18 regime forces killed in Syria
Islamic State group Jihadists on Thursday, April 9 killed at least 18 regime fighters in an attack in central Syria, a war monitor said.
Pro-government fighters backed by Russian air strikes were battling off the jihadists on the outskirts of the desert town of Al-Sukhna in Homs province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The air raids and clashes killed 11 IS fighters, the Britain-based monitor said.
“The Russian aviation intervened to stop the jihadists from advancing and retaking the town,” Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said. Syrian regime forces recaptured Al-Sukhna from IS in 2017.
Thursday’s attack was the deadliest in the area since December, when IS fighters attacked an army garrison in a gas facility east of Homs city, killing four civilians and 13 troops or militiamen, Abdel Rahman said. IS proclaimed a “caliphate” in parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq in 2014.
Turkish minister quits over pandemic panic
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu resigned Sunday, April 12 after an abrupt lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus, announced with two hours´ notice, sparked panic buying across the country. “May my country, which I never wished to hurt, and our president, to whom I will be faithful all my life, forgive me,” Soylu said in the statement announcing his resignation.
Israeli drone hits Hizbullah car in Syria
An Israeli drone targeted a car of the Lebanese Hizbullah movement just inside Syria near the border with Lebanon on Wednesday, April 22 without casualties, a source from the armed group said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said “the Israeli aircraft targeted a vehicle near the Jdaidit Yabous crossing” with Lebanon that is closed due to the coronavirus epidemic.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported material damage to a “civilian car” in the same area, without mentioning what party had hit it. There was no comment from the Israeli authorities.
Iran-backed Hizbullah has been officially fighting in Syria to support the Damascus regime since 2013, helping the regime regain key parts of the country.
Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes in Syria since the start of the war in 2011, targeting government troops as well as allied Iranian forces and Hizbullah fighters.
It is rare for Israel to claim responsibility for such strikes directly. The Jewish state says Iran’s presence in neighbouring Syria poses a threat and vowed to continue its strikes and prevent arms deliveries to its Hizbullah foes.
Nigerian security forces kill 18 over virus lockdown
Nigerian security forces have killed 18 people in their enforcement of measures to curb coronavirus, a figure higher than the documented toll inflicted by the disease, the country’s human rights body said.
Africa’s most populous nation has imposed a total lockdown in megacity Lagos and the capital Abuja and set restrictions in other regions in a bid to contain the virus. According to official figures, coronavirus has so far infected 407 people in Nigeria, 12 of them fatally.
Security forces, including police and army, have been deployed to enforce the restrictions, sparking deadly confrontations in some states. In a report released late on Wednesday, April 22 the National Human Rights Commission said it had received and documented “105 complaints of incidents of human rights violations perpetuated by security forces” in 24 of Nigeria’s 36 states and Abuja.
Of these complaints, “there were 8 documented incidents of extrajudicial killings leading to 18 deaths”, it said. The commission noted that the tally of killings was higher than the recorded toll from the disease itself. “Whereas Covid-19 led to the death of 11 victims, law enforcement agents extra judicially executed 18 persons in the cause of the enforcement regulations,” it said, referring to the official virus toll at the time of the report. It accused the security agents of “excessive or disproportionate use of force, abuse of power, corruption and non-adherence to national and international laws, best practices and rules of engagement.” National police spokesman Frank Mba said the commission was “too general in its allegations,” saying it ought to have been specific in the number of people killed by the police.
Reports have also emerged from other African countries of abuses by security forces as the authorities apply restrictive measures to try to halt the pandemic. South African police have opened several probes into the deaths of citizens allegedly killed by security patrols for defying a lockdown.
Militants kill 11 Philippine troops
Islamic State-linked militants killed 11 Philippine soldiers and wounded 14 others on Friday, April 17 in the group’s deadliest attack in over a year, the military said.
The extremists belong to Abu Sayyaf a group based in the southern Philippines that has engaged in bombings as well as kidnappings of Western tourists and missionaries for ransom since the early 1990s.
They also have ties to Islamic State militants seeking to set up a caliphate in Southeast Asia. The attack occurred on a remote island in the country’s south.
Regional military commander Lieutenant-General Cirilito Sobejana told reporters Abu Sayyaf carried out the attack, adding the soldiers were ambushed and had been pursuing security operations against the militants in Sulu province.
Most of the Philippines is under quarantine to stem the spread of coronavirus that has infected nearly 6,000 people and killed more than 380 nationwide. Friday’s attack is the deadliest involving Abu Sayyaf militants since two suicide bombers blew themselves up at the Catholic cathedral in Sulu province in January last year, killing 21 people.
The military have since mounted operations to free hostages held by Abu Sayyaf, including crew members of foreign cargo vessels abducted in Sulu waters. An Abu Sayyaf faction took part in the May 2017 seizure by IS-linked gunmen of the southern Philippine city of Marawi. Philippine troops recaptured the bombed out city after a five-month campaign that claimed more than a thousand lives.
Flogging ended as punishment in Saudi Arabia
Flogging as a form of punishment is to be ended in Saudi Arabia, the General Commission for the Supreme Court has decided, foreign media reported on Saturday, April 25.
According to a document from the Kingdom’s top court, seen by a British wire service, it made the decision sometime this month, and said the punishment will be replaced by prison sentences or fines, or a mixture of both.
The document said the decision was “an extension of the human rights reforms introduced under the direction of King Salman and the direct supervision of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.”
Awwad Alwwad, president of the Kingdom’s Human Rights Commission, told Reuters: “This reform is a momentous step forward in Saudi Arabia’s human rights agenda, and merely one of the many recent reforms in the Kingdom.”
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.
