SCHOOL STUDENTS FEARED POISONED IN KANDAHAR – Over 20 students reputedly fell ill after eating breakfast food that had been brought to a religious school in the 12th District of Kandahar City. At this point, it is not clear if the poisoning was intentional or simply caused by contamination in the delivered food. Other cases in Afghanistan and Iran have involved deliberate efforts to poison students (primarily girls) but this case does not currently appear to be politically or terrorism-related.
TALIBAN MEETS WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF HUAWEI CORPORATION - WANTS NATIONAL CAMERA SYSTEM IN THE COUNTRY – While the Taliban have installed some camera coverage across some of the cities in Afghanistan, sources in Kabul say the systems are prone to outages and are not particularly effective. The Ministry of the Interior held a meeting with representatives of Huawei Corporation (China) to discuss a project to install a nationwide system of cameras across the country.
CHINA CALLS FOR MORE SUPPORT FOR AFGHANISTAN, BUT ISSUE WARNING TO TALIBAN – A spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry used the anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal to call on the international community to increase support for the country and to work with the Taliban on counter-terrorism matters. However, China also spoke bluntly and warned the Taliban that it must take active steps in areas such as women’s rights. From the start, China has been concerned about possible terror threats from groups like the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement crossing into the volatile Xinjiang Ughyur autonomous region.
PAKISTANI CUSTOMS INVESTIGATORS RAID TORKHAM AGENCIES – At least four customs clearing agencies were forcibly closed after a raid of their offices confirmed the businesses were cheating the government out of import/export duties and pocketing the money. Investigators found stacks of forged documents inside the offices and multiple investigations are currently proceeding to hold the owners accountable. It is estimated the fraud has resulted in a loss of over 9 million rupees to the government.
CONFLICT TRACKER Takhar: An IED detonated along the side of a road in Taliqan killed 4 Taliban and wounded 5 others yesterday evening. 2 non-combatants were also injured in the blast. No group has claimed credit for the attack. Parwan: The ALF announced it had launched an early morning attack against Bagram Airbase and reportedly killed 5 Taliban and wounded 3 more.
[Garowe] A military offensive engineered by the Somali National Army [SNA] left at least five al-Shabaab ...... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda... Lions of Islam dead on Tuesday, just a few days before the activation of the second phase of operations against holy warriors, who have been wreaking havoc in the country.
In a confirmation statement, state media said the Lions of Islam were killed in Galcad District of Galgaduud, just days after President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud launched the combing exercise which is meant to cover areas which were not reached when the military carried out the first phase of operations.
The first phase of operations against al-Shabaab was conducted a few months ago following authorization by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud who had just assumed power. The operation, sources said, left at least 3,000 al-Shabaab Lions of Islam dead besides injuring thousands.
According to the state media, Tuesday's crackdown also saw members of the international community participating, just before they divert their attention to Jubaland and Southwest where the second phase of operations is set to be activated in coming days.
"Five al-Shabaab Lions of Islam were killed in a joint operation by the Somali National Army and US Africom on Tuesday. The Airstrike targeted a hideout in the Galgaduud region, resulting in the deaths of 5 al-Shabaab members. The National Army is conducting ongoing operations to eliminate terrorist groups hiding in the forest," read the Twitter post.
The African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] and the US Africa Command have intensified operations against al-Shabaab in central areas as part of restoring peace and stability in the Horn of Africa nation. The operation comes just amid the ongoing exit of ATMIS troops from the country.
Five Al-shabaab militants killed in a joint operation by the Somali National Army and US Forces that targeted the militants' base in Galgaduud region; the National Army is conducting operations targeting Al-shabaab hideouts across the country. pic.twitter.com/epKcHCModv
[Garowe] Somali National Army [SNA] with their colleagues from the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] foiled a would-be deadly al-Shabaab ...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... attack in central Somalia, it has emerged, with the country set to activate the second phase of operations against the Death Eaters.
According to the military, the government soldiers and their ATMIS counterparts foiled the al-Shabaab kaboom at Dab and Dhagah base near an airport at Bula-burte town in the Hiiraan region. The gunnies have lately been using Improvised Explosive Devices [IEDs] and jacket wallahs to target innocent civilians.
According to Farah Ali Wasage, who is the commander of SNA in the Hiiraan region, he visited the Bardhabaq area near Halgan district where he promised that the Somali National Army would reinforce local forces in the area in the fight against al-shabaab Death Eaters. The gunnies were targeting the military base, he said.
In the last few days, the Somali National Army [SNA] commandos with assistance from ATMIS and the US Africa Command, have been making advances in Ceel-buur and Galhareri town in the Galgudud region under Galmudug ...a semiautonomous region in central Somalia, bordering Puntland on the north. Galmudug is not trying to obtain international recognition as a separate nation, but rather considers itself autonomous within the larger Somali federalism, for what that's worth... State. Residents did confirm to Garowe Online sighting helicopters in central regions.
[Garowe] Civilians should start leaving al-Shabaab ...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... strongholds to avoid possible deaths and injuries ahead of planned operations against the group, the Somali National Army [SNA] has stated, adding that the murderous Moslems will be fought until they cede grounds across the country.
Defense Ministry Spokesman Brigadier General Abdullahi Ali Anod said air and ground operations are set to resume soon, adding that livestock and children should be kept away from battlefronts to avoid unnecessary deaths due to the nature of the attacks.
The Somali National Army has been training to face the murderous Moslems in Black Lion Mission particularly in Jubaland and Southwest states. Already, the military is combing central regions after a successful first phase of operations which left close to 3000 murderous Moslems dead.
[AFRICANEWS] A Niamey court on Monday scrapped a nine-month jail sentence handed to Abdoulaye Seydou, head of a leading activist group which supports the ruling military, his entourage said.
Members of Niger's presidential guard seized power in a coup late last month.
Seydou, head of the M62 group, had been behind bars for seven months in a case involving an army air strike on suspected jihadists in the south of the country.
"The Niamey Court of Appeal has cancelled the decision of the High Court... which had sentenced our comrade Abdoulaye Seydou to nine months in prison", said M62 secretary general Sanoussi Mahaman.
"We have always said that Abdoulaye Seydou's detention is an arbitrary decision... orchestrated from start to finish".
The M62 movement, set up a year ago, is a coalition of around 10 groups and NGOs opposed to the presence of French military forces in Niger.
In recent weeks, it has led calls for rallies to support officers who on July 26 toppled the country's elected president, Mohammed Bazoum.
Seydou was taken into custody in January and sentenced in April.
His group had accused the defence and security forces of massacring civilians in helicopter raids on an illegal gold mine last October, launched on the grounds that the alleged killers of two coppers had holed up there.
The government has acknowledged air strikes were carried out after two police were killed at Tamou, near the border with Burkina Faso ...The country in west Africa that they put where Upper Volta used to be. Its capital is Oogadooga, or something like that. Its president is currently Blaise Compaoré, who took office in 1987 and will leave office feet first, one way or the other... It said seven people were killed and 24 maimed in the raids but the political opposition and civic groups say the corpse count was much higher.
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08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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[AFRICANEWS] Five Tunisian migrants colonists are dead and seven other people are missing after the sinking of a makeshift boat that left the coast of Sfax in central-eastern Tunisia on Monday, AFP learned from judicial sources.
"The wooden boat" on which "35 people, mostly Tunisians" had embarked, including women and kiddies, capsized "shortly after its departure", Faouzi Masmoudi, a porter, told AFP. word of the court of Sfax, specifying that "23 people were rescued".
"A child and two women are among those who died," he added. According to him, "the shipwreck occurred less than an hour after departure, from Sidi Mansour", a locality north of Sfax, known as a starting point for clandestine crossings.
Sfax, Tunisia's second city, has since the beginning of the year become the epicenter of attempts to illegally cross the Mediterranean from the Tunisian coasts, located, at the closest point, less than 130 km from the island. Italian from Lampedusa.
The Sfax court has opened an investigation to determine the causes of the accident. "It is possible that the boat was carrying a small number of nationals from sub-Saharan Africa and that they are among the missing," said the front man, stressing that the search for possible survivors is continuing.
Another shipwreck had already taken place in the night from Friday to Saturday just 120 m from the coast, in Gabès, a port city located about 150 km south of Sfax.
A 20-year-old Tunisian died in this tragedy as well as an infant whose parents are among the 13 people rescued, all of Tunisian nationality. Five other Tunisians are still missing.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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[AFRICANEWS] Clashes between rival militias in the Libyan capital have left residents trapped in their homes unable to escape the violence, the country's health ministry said Tuesday (Aug. 15), in what appears to be the most intense fighting to rock Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... this year.
Fighting broke out between the 444 brigade and the Special Deterrence Force late Monday evening, according to local media. Tensions flared after the head of the 444 brigade was allegedly detained by the other force at an airport in Tripoli earlier Monday, media reported.
The Health Ministry urged the warring sides to allow ambulance and emergency teams to enter the affected areas, primarily in the south of the city, and for blood to be sent to nearby hospitals.
Libya’s Red Islamic Thingy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A hospital source, speaking to the AFP said 2 people had been killed and over 30 injured.
OPSGroup, an organization for the aviation industry, said late Monday (Aug. 14) that a large number of aircraft departed the capital due to the festivities. Inbound flights were diverting to the nearby city of Misrata, it said.
The 444 Brigrade depends on the ministry of Defense. The group controls Tripoli's southern suburs and cities such as Tarhouna and Bani Walid located east of Tripoli. The fighters secure the roads linking the capital to the south of the country.
The al-Radaa Force, or Special Deterrence Force, is a powerful militia that has assumed the prerogatives of the police in Tripoli. The group presents itself as a security division independent from the ministries of Interior and Defense. It controls Tripoli's east as well as the air base of Mitiga, the civilian airport and a prison.
[AFRICANEWS] DRC president Felix Tshisekedi called upon rebel groups in the Ituri and Northern Kivu provinces to put down their weapons and join what he has dubbed the disarmament and reinsertion operation on Monday.
Congolese president Félix- Tshisekedi launched an appeal to all those who are disrupting peace in the Ituri and Northern Kivu provinces, on Monday, stating "The government of the Republic has committed itself, in good faith, to offering a last chance for a peaceful solution to the rebel groups still present."
Insecurity in Eastern DRC has been a menace to the very existence of current political institutions, added President Tshisekedi during the panel discussion evaluating the state of siege, introduced in 2021, in the conflict-ridden provinces.
The Round Table, attended by multiple government dignitaries, should rule on Wednesday on the strengths, weaknesses, and other contours of the state of siege, with a view to informing and guiding the President’s decision on whether to maintain it, reclassify it or lift it altogether.
With less than six months to go before elections, many political players are expecting to see this measure lifted so that they can resume their political activities.
NGO’s and Nobel Peace Prize Dr Denis Mukwege have called to lift this measure, which they say has only aggravated insecurity in the region.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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[AFRICANEWS] Hundreds of migrants colonists have arrived on the small Italian island of Lampedusa within a few hours on Tuesday.
Most of them are from Sfax, Tunisia according to the Italian news agency ANSA.
Many of them were rescued by the Italian Coast Guard, with others rescued by non-profit rescue ships and other small boats arriving independently.
SKY Italia showed a group of migrants colonists filing off a Coast Guard ship and onto the pier in Lampedusa.
Among them were young women and kiddies walking barefoot along the dock towards buses that were waiting.
For the entire summer, authorities have shuttled migrants colonists in and out of the temporary facility on the island which is designed to house 400 people but frequently struggles to accommodate thousands.
After a short period of time on the island, most migrants colonists are transferred by ferry boats to other parts of Italia.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, whose right-wing government includes an anti-migrant party, had enlisted the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... ’s help to forge an accord with Tunisia in a bid to stop the migrant boats in exchange for economic and other aid.
Her efforts have not slowed the arrivals.
The number of migrants colonists arriving by sea in Italia this year was expected to surpass 100,000 on Tuesday.
It is more than double the number in the same period in 2023.
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08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] An under-construction railway line, linking Harnai with Sibi, was blown up by unknown murderous Moslems on Tuesday, according to officials.
Last week, Pakistain Railway restarted passenger and goods trains after 17 years between Sibi and Harnai after laying down a new track and constructing railway bridges.
All railway tracks and bridges were destroyed by the murderous Moslems due to which train services remained suspended for years.
While confirming the attack, Levies officials said the track in the Sondi area of the Sibi-Harnai section was being constructed to expand railway services in the area.
No loss of life was reported as a result of the attack.
"It was a small blast which damaged a portion of the railway track," officials said, adding a landmine was used in the earth-shattering kaboom.
The labourers and railway staff working at the track stopped working after the blast.
The outlawed outfit BLA grabbed credit for the attack.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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[GEO.TV] Two bad boyz were potted during an exchange of fire with security forces in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in tribal area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the military’s media wing said on Tuesday.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement that on the night of 14-15 August, security forces conducted the IBO on reported presence of gunnies in North Wazoo’s Razmak area.
"During the conduct of operation, security forces surrounded the terrorists’ location and after intense fire exchange, two gunnies were sent to hell," it added.
The military’s media wing said weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the killed terrorists, who remained actively involved in terrorist activities against security forces as well as extortion and murder of innocent citizens.
The ISPR said sanitization of the area is being carried out to eliminate any other gunnies found in the area.
"Locals of the area appreciated the operation and expressed their full support to eliminate the menace of terrorism," the statement added.
The operation comes days after army chief General Asim Munir said the recent surge in terrorism was a "futile effort" by gunnies to resume talks and warned them to submit to the "writ of state of Pakistain before they are decimated".
According to the ISPR, the army chief issued the warning when he met the tribal elders and notables from the newly merged districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. The "interactive session" was held during the chief of army staff’s (COAS) visit to Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistain's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire... "The surge in terrorism in recent past is a futile effort on the part of gunnies to get the talks re-initiated, however, there is no option for these gunnies except to submit to the writ of state of Pakistain before they are decimated, if they persist on their wrong path," Gen Munir was quoted by the military’s media wing.
[Shafaq News] Iraqi security forces have conducted a successful Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... targeting ISIS elements near Kirkuk.
According to the Iraqi security media cell, the operation, overseen by the Military Intelligence Directorate and supervised by the Joint Operations Command, marks a significant advancement in the ongoing efforts to counter hard boy activities.
Utilizing the firepower of F16 aircraft, the air forces executed the operation with precision within the Kirkuk Operations Sector, specifically in the Wadi al-Shay region.
The operation resulted in the destruction of a terrorist hideout and the elimination of multiple hard boy operatives, as reported by the Iraqi Security Media Cell.
Comprehensive details regarding the strategic maneuver will be unveiled in forthcoming official statements.
[Rudaw] Sulaimani’s internal security forces (Asayish) on Monday announced they had arrested three "wanted" Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... s (ISIS) suspects through two separate operations since the start of the month.
The Asayish forces were able to arrest the suspects "after receiving intelligence from the security agencies of the [Iraqi] federal government regarding the presence of three wanted individuals according to Article 4 of the anti-terror law," read a statement from the forces.
Article 4 of the 2005 Iraqi anti-terrorism law stipulates that anyone who participates in committing a "terrorist act," as defined by the law, shall be given the death sentence ...the barbaric practice of sentencing a murderer to be punished for as long as his/her/its victim is dead... , with life imprisonment sentences being handed out to those found guilty of intentionally concealing a "terrorist act" or harboring a perpetrator of the act.
Two of the detainees were arrested in a security operation carried out on August 2, while the other suspect was arrested in an operation on Sunday. The latter has been accused of "taking, transporting, and distributing" the properties and assets of Yazidis from Shingal (Sinjar).
ISIS seized control of swathes of Iraqi land in 2014. The group was declared territorially defeated in 2017 but it continues to carry out bombings, hit-and-run attacks, and abductions across several provinces.
Thousands of people have been detained across Iraq since 2014 for suspected links to terrorist groups, including ISIS, while hundreds have been executed.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that at least two ISIS operatives were killed and an additional 24 detained in partnered operations with their allies in Iraq during the month of July.
[IsraelTimes] The Hamas, the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood, terror group says it has seized an Israeli reconnaissance drone that crashed in the Gazoo ...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with an iron fist by Hamaswith about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip yesterday.
The terror group publishes a video showing the captured aircraft, an Orbiter 1K model.
Yesterday, Paleostinian media reported that the drone crashed in the Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
The drone had been operated by the Shin Bet security agency, rather than the Israel Defense Forces.
The agency declines to comment on the incident.
Small, off-the-shelf drones used by the military for simple reconnaissance missions crash with relative frequency in enemy territory.
[IsraelTimes] Israeli forces discover projectile that failed to launch, following claims by al-Ayyash Battalion
Paleostinians in the northern West Bank attempted to launch a homemade rocket at a nearby Israeli settlement on Tuesday morning, the latest in a series of mostly unsuccessful attempts.
A group calling itself the al-Ayyash Battalion — apparently named for a notorious Hamas, a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth", bombmaker killed by Israel — said it had launched the rocket from the Jenin area at the West Bank settlement of Shaked.
A video published by the group on the Telegram messaging service showed a projectile mounted on a launcher. The clip did not show the launch.
Israeli forces reached the scene and discovered the projectile still on the launcher, apparently after it went kaboom! and failed to launch. The rocket was seen heavily damaged, and the ground underneath it was charred.
In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces said sappers were inspecting the remains of the rocket, which would be later handed over to the Shin Bet security agency for further investigation.
"IDF soldiers are pursuing suspects," the military added.
Al-Ayyash Battalion has claimed to have launched several rockets at settlements and towns in northern Israel in recent months, publishing footage of the attempts.
The group’s rocket launching attempts have largely failed, with the rockets containing no explosives and flying mostly distances of less than 100 meters (328 feet), according to the IDF. Though on July 9, security forces found the remains of a rocket in the Israeli town of Ram-On, close to the West Bank security barrier, indicating that bandidosLions of Islam in the Jenin area possess the capability to launch rockets for further distances than initially assessed.
Military sources have said there was a known suspect behind the attempts, not linked to any known terror group despite the apparent affiliation with Hamas.
During a major IDF raid in the West Bank city of Jenin in July, the military said troops located and seized a makeshift rocket, among other weapons.
In May, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar said security forces had foiled attempts by Paleostinians in the northern West Bank to manufacture rockets to be launched at Israel. Bar said the efforts were led by a senior Paleostinian Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... leader who was killed by Israel in the Gazoo ...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with an iron fist by Hamaswith about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip during a five-day flareup in violence that month.
[IsraelTimes] Border Police say forces entered Aqabat Jabr refugee camp to arrest wanted man; Paleostinian button men also target IDF post near Yabed for 3rd time in days
Two Paleostinian button men were killed early Tuesday during an exchange of fire with Israeli forces amid a raid in the Aqabat Jabr refugee camp, close to the West Bank city of Jericho, Israeli defense officials and Paleostinian health officials said.
A Border Police front man said undercover officers entered Aqabat Jabr to detain a wanted Paleostinian man and to search for weapons at his home.
During the raid, Paleostinian button menshot up the forces, the front man said, adding that the undercover officers returned fire, killing two.
The Paleostinian Authority health ministry said 16-year-old Qusay Omar Suleiman ... Now former Vice president of Egypt. From 1993 until his appointment to that office in 2011 he was Minister without Portfolio and Director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate (EGID)... al-Walaji and 25-year-old Muhammed Ribihi Nujoom were both fatally shot in the chest.
Police later published a video showing the officers exchanging fire with Paleostinians in the refugee camp.
The IDF, meanwhile, said that troops detained eight wanted Paleostinians during sweeps across the West Bank early Tuesday, with violence in some areas.
Late Monday night, Paleostinian button men opened fire from the northern West Bank town of Yabed at a nearby IDF post, for the third time in four days. The military said the troops at the post, who were unharmed, returned fire at the source of the shooting.
Paleostinians targeted the same IDF post on Sunday and Friday, without causing any injuries.
[BenarNews] The Philippine military on Monday accused members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a former guerrilla group, of killing a soldier and a policeman during an attack in the south that left seven government troops maimed.
In Sunday’s incident in Ungkaya Pukan, a remote town in the island province of Basilan ...Basilan is a rugged, jungle-covered island in the southern Philippines. It is a known stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf, bandidos, and maybe even orcs. Most people with any sense travel with armed escorts... , officials said that 10 button men ambushed a security convoy guarding a Joint Peace and Security Team. The team is tasked with overseeing the decommissioning and disarming of former MILF combatants as agreed in a 2014 peace agreement with Manila.
The team members were riding in two vehicles after inspecting the area — a former MILF stronghold — when they were attacked, said Maj. Andrew Linao, a regional military front man.
"Our troops fought back, resulting in a firefight which lasted for five minutes," Linao said.
He said the soldier went titzup, while the policeman died later while being treated for his injuries. The seven other maimed soldiers were recuperating at a military hospital in Zamboanga City.
"This act is a clear manifestation of the perpetrators’ disrespect to their local government officials, the military, and their fellow Basileños, hence, we will not stop until these heartless individuals are identified and neutralized," Linao said.
BenarNews contacted local MILF authorities but did not immediately hear back.
Brig. Gen. Alvin Luzon, commander of 101st Brigade and Joint Task Force Basilan (JTFB), said the MILF leadership "appears to have no control over its members," although he added that they had denied their members were involved in the ambush.
"Right now, the pressure is on the MILF side to show their sincerity," Luzon told news hounds.
The former separatist group’s leadership said they had no control over people not identified as their members, according to Luzon.
"But the MILF leadership promised to look and identify those perpetrators," Luzon said.
He said pursuit operations were continuing on Monday against the suspects.
The 12,000-strong MILF was once the country’s largest murderous Moslem force until it dropped its bid for independence and settled for expanded autonomy under the 2014 peace deal.
Demobilization started in 2019, and was to be taken in three stages. At each stage, those demobbed were to get U.S. $2,400 per weapon, including funds for education. Stage 1 covered 145 gunnies and 75 weapons, stage 2 covered 12,000 gunnies and 2,000 weapons. Stage 3, which started this month, is to cover 12,699 gunnies and 2,450 weapons. It’s odd that the Philippine defense department estimated 40,000 firearm in MILF hands.
The separatists then became caretakers of a Moslem region although they agreed to turn over their weapons, while some of the ex-guerrillas were absorbed into the local police force.
As long as the Philippine government surrendered the territory to the Ummah, that’s all that should matter. Except to those who refuse to give up the pleasures of the hard jihad of the sword even after they’ve won.
In November, around 100 suspected MILF members attacked a military outpost in the same village as the weekend ambush, according to the military. Officials did not immediately say if the two incidents were related.
[NPASyria] Ottoman Turkish border guards arrested on Monday five individuals and maimed two others while attempting to cross the Syrian-Ottoman Turkish border in Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria.
An exclusive source told North Press that "Ottoman Turkish border guards arrested five people in the town of Mabrouka in the west of the city of Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain), northern Hasakah, when they tried to cross the border to The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor... , whereas two others were maimed while attempting to return to Syria to avoid being detained in Turkey."
The city of Sere Kaniye has been under the Ottoman Turkish occupation since 2019 following a military operation dubbed "Peace Spring" that was launched by the Ottoman Turkish forces and their affiliated armed opposition factions, known as the Syrian National Army (SNA).
The five detainees were beaten before being transferred to a detention center. As for the maimed, they were taken to Sere Kaniye Public Hospital, one being in a critical condition, the source added.
Ottoman Turkish authorities commit many violations against Syrian refugees and asylum-seekers who try to flee the deteriorating economic conditions in Syria by shooting, torturing, and detaining them.
During the first half of 2023, the number of affected Syrian asylum-seekers has reached 452 individuals, including 20 children and 26 women. Tragically, 25 people were killed and 121 others were maimed during direct targeting by live bullets while attempting to cross the Syrian-Ottoman Turkish border.
In addition, the Ottoman Turkish border guards have assaulted and beat 306 individuals and have used excessive force to prevent them from crossing the border.
The Ottoman Turkish border guards have also arrested 242 individuals and detained them for several days. Those individuals were then sent back to Syria, where they were once again arrested, assaulted, and extorted.
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08/16/2023 01:00 ||
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[NPASyria] Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, formerly al-Nusra, before that it was called something else ...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State... (HTS, formerly al-Nusra ...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ... Front) shelled on Monday posts of the Syrian government forces in the countryside of Idlib, northwestern Syria, killing two soldiers and wounding two others.
Military sources within the Syrian armed opposition factions told North Press that HTS’ attacks killed two soldiers of the government forces and injured two other in the village of al-Malaja in Zawiya Mountain in the south of Idlib.
Moreover, military sources within al-Fateh al-Mubin Operations Room told North Press that festivities renewed between the HTS and the government forces in Kafr Amma in the western countryside of Aleppo, where late at night, heavy festivities occurred between the two parties.
On Monday afternoon, the HTS attacked posts of the government forces in the village of Nahshabba in the northern countryside of Latakia with artillery and missiles, whereas the latter attacked the villages and towns of Fatterah, Kafr Oweid, Sfuhen, Maarat Naasan in the eastern countryside of Idlib, and Kafr Taal and al-Wasata in the western countryside of Aleppo.
[NPASyria] The Ottoman Turkish-backed Military Police faction arrested on Tuesday 12 people, including two children, in the town of Hamam al-Turkman in the countryside of the city of Tel Abyad, northern Syria.
The faction raided the town and arrested the people on charges of dealing with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an exclusive source told North Press.
The city of Tel Abyad in the north of Raqqa has been under the occupation of the Ottoman Turkish forces and has been controlled by the SNA factions since 2019 following the so-called "Peace Spring" military operation that aimed to push away the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) under the pretext of protecting the Ottoman Turkish national security.
The children, Odayy al-Muhammad and his brother Marwan, were transferred to the Counter-Terrorism center in the city of Tel Abyad for investigation, the source said.
[NPASyria] A Ottoman Turkish drone targeted a civilian vehicle on Tuesday close to the village of Shwesh in the town of Tel Tamer, northern Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria.
"A Ottoman Turkish drone hit a civilian vehicle close to the village of Shwish in Tel Tamer, resulting in injuries," a military source told North Press.
On Monday, a Ottoman Turkish drone also targeted Tel Tamer and Tel al-Laban, northern Hasakah. This is the second targeting to the same village this week.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/16/2023 01:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
[NPASyria] On Tuesday, unidentified button men opened fire on a civilian, killing him immediately, in the western countryside of Daraa, southern Syria.
A local source told North Press that Nasser al-Mutawi was rubbed out by unidentified button men on a cycle of violence in the village of Tafas, western countryside of Daraa.
The source noted that al-Mutawi was not affiliated with any military party.
On the same day, a child lost his life as a result of a landmine explosion in the northern countryside of Daraa.
Kassim Mafalani, 4, lost his life as a result of landmine explosion in a village in northern Daraa, according to a local source.
The source also stated that the child was with two of his relatives during the earth-shattering kaboom, however, no one got injured.
A blast hit a munitions depot northeast of the Syrian capital Tuesday causing casualties, a war monitor said, two days after a similar explosion hit warehouses belonging to pro-Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... groups.
The morning blast struck a depot containing "missiles and ammunition" in an area northeast of Damascus that is "dominated by Leb ...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... 's Hezbollah", the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The Britannia-based monitor, which has a wide network of sources inside Syria, reported an unspecified number of casualties in the blast near the town of al-Ruhaiba.
The cause of the earth-shattering kaboom was not immediately clear.
Syrian state media did not immediately report the blast, which came just two days after the Observatory reported explosions at missile warehouses held by pro-Iran groups in a mountainous area west of the capital.
"We don't know if it was from an air strike or ground operation," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman had told AFP on Sunday.
During more than a decade of war in Syria, neighboring Israel has launched hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, primarily targeting Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters, as well as Syrian army positions.
Israel rarely comments on strikes it carries out on targets in Syria, but it has repeatedly said it will not allow its arch foe Iran to expand its presence.
With Iranian as well as Russian support, the government of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor. If he'd stuck with it he'd have had a good practice by now... has clawed back much of the territory it lost to rebels early in the conflict, which broke out in 2011 and has pulled in foreign powers and global jihadists.
The war has killed more than 500,000 people, displaced millions and battered the country's infrastructure and industry.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] On August 14, two F-35 fighters of the Washington-led coalition dangerously approached two Su-35s of the Russian Aerospace Forces, which were making a planned flight along the southern border of Syria. Rear Admiral Vadim Kulit told reporters about this .
The accident happened from 12:35 to 12:50 in the Al-Tanf area at an altitude of about 9100 meters.
According to the rear admiral, the coalition violated the deconfliction protocol nine times per day, related to UAV flights that were not coordinated with the Russian side.
In addition, in the same area where international air routes pass, 20 violations were recorded per day by three pairs of F-35s, three pairs of F-16s, two pairs of Rafale fighters, one pair of Typhoon fighters and two multi-purpose UAVs MQ- 1C coalition.
As IA Regnum reported , the Su-34 and Su-35 in Syria recorded the impact on them from the guidance systems, Vadim Kulit said on August 11.
The same aircraft were subjected to radar exposure from two F-35s.
On August 7, Vadim Kulit stated that MQ-9 and LEAP unmanned aerial vehicles of the coalition of the United States of America twice dangerously approached Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft in Syria. He also added that a dangerous approach of the MQ-9 of the coalition with the Russian Su-35 was recorded over the Mediterranean Sea.
[Shafaq News] The ISIS group still commands between 5,000 and 7,000 members across its former stronghold in Syria and Iraq and its fighters pose the most serious terrorist threat in Afghanistan today, UN experts said in a report circulated Monday.
The experts monitoring sanctions against the murderous Moslem group, also known by its Arab acronym ISIS, said that during the first half of 2023 the threat posed by ISIS remained "mostly high in conflict zones and low in non-conflict areas."
But the panel said in a report to the UN Security Council that "the overall situation is dynamic," and despite significant losses in the group's leadership and reduced activity in Syria and Iraq, the risk of its resurgence remains, reported The News Agency that Dare Not be Named.
"The group has adapted its strategy, embedding itself with local populations, and has exercised caution in choosing battles that are likely to result in limited losses, while rebuilding and recruiting from camps in the northeast of the Syrian Arab Republic and from vulnerable communities, including in neighboring countries," the experts said.
ISIS declared a self-styled caliphate in a large swath of territory in Syria and Iraq that it seized in 2014. It was declared defeated in Iraq in 2017 following a three-year battle that left tens of thousands of people dead and cities in ruins, but its sleeper cells remain in both countries.
Despite sustained counter-terrorism operations, ISIS continues to command between 5,000 and 7,000 members across Iraq and Syria, "most of whom are fighters," though it has reduced its attacks deliberately "to facilitate recruiting and reorganization," the experts said.
In northeast Syria, approximately 11,000 suspected ISIS fighters are being held in facilities of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which have played a prominent role in the fight against ISIS, the panel said. The fighters include more than 3,500 Iraqis and approximately 2,000 from almost 70 nationalities, it said.
Northeast Syria is also the site of two closed camps — al-Hol and Roj — where the experts said some 55,000 people with alleged links or family ties to ISIS are living in "dire" conditions and "significant humanitarian hardship."
Approximately two-thirds of the population are children including over 11,800 Iraqis, nearly 16,000 Syrians and over 6,700 youngsters from more than 60 other countries, the experts said.
The panel quoted one unnamed country as saying ISIS has maintained its "Cubs of the Caliphate" program, recruiting children in the overcrowded al-Hol camp. In addition, more than 850 boys, some as young as 10, were in detention and rehabilitation centers in the northeast, the experts said.
In Afghanistan, the panel said UN members assess the ISIS group poses the most serious terrorist threat to the country and the wider region. ISIS has reportedly increased its operational capabilities and now has an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 fighters and family members in Afghanistan, it said.
In Africa, on a positive note, the experts said the deployment of regional forces in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province disrupted the ISIS affiliate, and regional countries estimate it now has 180-220 male fighters with battlefield experience, down from 280 previously.
In the east, the experts said several countries expressed concern that terrorist groups like ISIS could exploit political violence and instability in conflict-wracked Sudan.
And some countries assess that the ISIS affiliate in Africa's Sahel "has become increasingly autonomous and had played a significant role in the escalation of violence in the region, alongside other terrorist groups," they said, pointing to increased ISIS attacks on several fronts in Mali and to a lesser extent in Burkina Faso ...The country in west Africa that they put where Upper Volta used to be. Its capital is Oogadooga, or something like that. Its president is currently Blaise Compaoré, who took office in 1987 and will leave office feet first, one way or the other... and Niger.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/16/2023 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
...... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda...
...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord...
...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord...
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistain's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire...
...
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling 
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...
...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
