LARGE SCALE ANTI-CHRISTIAN RIOTS IN PAKISTAN – Angry mobs descended on a Christian church In Faisalabad and ransacked and burned it. The mob was angry after word spread that a Christian man had been accused of blasphemy for possibly burning a Quran. The mob then began attacking homes of Christians and several fires have been reported across the city. Several of the main roadways were blocked and both police and the military have responded to the situation. Unconfirmed reports that many people were injured and that ‘lynch mobs’ had been organized to find and persecute Christians are being shared on social media. The government is attempting to contain the riots in Punjab but there are fears they could spread.
TTP LEADER RUMORED TO HAVE BEEN TARGETED ALONG PAK-AFGHAN BORDER – Asad Afridi, a former leader of the TTP was reportedly targeted by a drone in the Gaz Dara region along the border. Afridi reportedly suffered major injuries in the attack and 2 others who were with him were said to have been killed. It is not clear who may have been behind the strike and this information has yet to be verified.
US SECRETARY OF STATE COMMENTS ON AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL – Antony Blinken spoke at a press conference yesterday to mark the two-year anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal. In his remarks, he claimed that the decision to withdraw US forces was a difficult one but was also the right decision.
TALIBAN BAN ON POLITICAL PARTIES NOT UNEXPECTED – The Ministry of Justice announced yesterday that all political parties are banned across the country because they are not based on Sharia law. The formal proclamation will likely add fuel to those opposed to the defacto regime and will make the process of international recognition even more remote.
PASSPORTS FOR AFGHANS LIVING ABROAD NOW MORE EXPENSIVE – The Passport Directorate announced it was raising the cost of a new passport from $120.00 to $220.00. The additional costs have been attributed to inflation and increased procurement costs from a new supplier.
CONFLICT TRACKER: Takhar: NRF forces reportedly ambushed a Taliban security vehicle in Talaqan at approximately 1600hrs local. The NRF tram is said to have killed 4 Taliban and wounded 1 other in the engagement. Kabul: Bomb blasts and gunfire were spotted in Police District 11 in Kabul on Tuesday evening. It is said that AFF units attacked a Taliban security checkpoint in Khair Khana and that 4 Taliban were possibly killed and 6 more were wounded.
NEXT 24 HOURS
POSSIBLE FURTHER ANTI-CHRISTIAN VIOLENCE TODAY – After the violent demonstrations targeting Christians, their homes/businesses, and their places of worship shook Punjab Province yesterday, the government dispatched thousands of police and military personnel to try to disperse rioters and regain control of the security situation. There is a possibility the riots could spread to other cities across the country.
[Garowe] The Somali National Army [SNA] conducted several operations in central Somalia, with the main focus being clearing of roads previously blocked by the al-Shabaab ...... the personification of Somali state failure... bandidosmurderous Moslems besides detonating landmines planted along pathways in frontline regions.
According to the state media, the SNA's 26th Brigade, Ali Binu Dalib, conducted large-scale operations in the villages of Eel Gorof, Eel Borre, and Gedi Koror, located between the borders of the Hiraan and Galgaduud regions on Tuesday with the military now preparing to comb some of the areas where al-Shabaab may have resumed activities.
Col. Ismail Abdi Malik Maallin, the commander of the 26th brigade of Ali Binu Abi Dalib, was in charge of the operations. According to him, the military was successful in opening the road that connects the Mahas and Wabxo districts where the bandidosmurderous Moslems had been flushed out recently.
During the operation, state media noted, the armed forces removed landmines that had been planted by gunnies on some of the roads. The militias who were present at the time expeditiously departed at a goodly pace. This operation is part of an ongoing SNA-led offensive to eradicate gunnies from the country.
SNA with the help of the U.S. military in Africa AFRICOM carried out on Tuesday morning in an area under the Galcad district in the Galgaduud region.
As many as five al-Shabaab ...... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa... fighters were killed in the joint operation, according to a statement from the Somali government. The raid also destroyed a bad boy hideout.
"The operation that took place about 35 km south-east of Galcad city in Galgaduud region, reads the statement in part. al-Shabaab is yet to comment on the reported Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... The air raid coincides with the preparation of the war with President Hassan Sheikh in Dhusamareb, 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... capital for days to mobilize the local clans against al-Shabaab.
In January 2023, the SNA captured Galcad, about 375 kilometers north of Mogadishu during the government-led offensive against al-Shabaab in central Somalia which is still progressing.
The government has reported killing hundreds of gunnies and seizing dozens of localities in neighboring Hirshabelle state since the military operations were launched in August.
The government has also reported shutting down hundreds of bank and mobile money accounts allegedly linked with al-Shabaab in an effort to curtail the group’s revenue generation activities.
Somali army, local militia launch large scale offensives against Al-Shabaab in central regions https://t.co/KCydW6odq8
Somali National Army and local militias have launched a large-scale offensive against al-Shabaab ...... the personification of Somali state failure... in Galgadud and Mudug regions in central Somalia in what has been billed as one of the largest mobilisation of forces against the terrorist group.
The operation which began on Monday brought together various brigades of the SNA, the US-trained Danab Special Forces and allied clan militia. According to military sources, the allied forces deployed in Elbur, Galhareeri, Wabho, and Diri in Galgadud as well as parts of northern Mudug.
The fiercest fighting is expected to happen in these areas as the allied forces aim to dislodge al-Shabaab which has been in control for over 15 years.
Brigadier Ismail Abdi Malik Maalin, who is the commander of the 26th Brigade of Ali Bin Abi Dalib is leading the operation with the support of Danab, Gorgor and Beilaqdar units. US forces are providing air support to the joint forces.
The army is also planning to launch operations in areas such as Qeyad, Khindere and Aad, Amara and Shabeellow in Mudug while operations are already underway in Harardhere district also in Mudug.
#1
Setting aside the dubious reason we are killing small groups of Somali's based on God-Knows-What Jegal justification, spending $150,000 (Hellfire per unit cost according to Wiki) to whack 4-5 mopes just seems nuts! Surely the guys at Creech have better things to do?
In a dramatic turn of events in Libya’s capital, 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... , intense fighting has been seemingly quelled with the release of a key militia commander. The city witnessed severe festivities between two dominant military factions, the Special Deterrence Force (SDF) and the 444th Brigade, marking some of the fiercest unrest seen this year.
The crux of this conflict revolved around the detention of the 444 Head, Mahmoud Hamza. He was apprehended by the SDF, which oversees operations at Tripoli’s Mitiga airport, as he was in transit. This move stirred heightened tensions, and led to aggressive engagements that echoed across various parts of the city.
However, a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all... in a potentially peace-restoring gesture,Hamza was handed over to a neutral militia faction. Sources from both embattled sides confirmed this pivotal development.
Post news of Hamza’s release, central Tripoli was rocked by a series of blasts, but the intensity diminished as the night progressed.
The aftermath of these festivities remains concerning. While the exact corpse count is yet to be ascertained, a medical unit associated with the Defence Ministry reported the recovery of three bodies from the Furnaj, Ain Zara, and Tarik Shok districts.
Responding to the medical urgency, the Health Ministry has initiated a blood donation drive. Ambulance service Spokesman, Osama Ali stated that 19 individuals were maimed, and 26 families were evacuated from conflict-stricken areas.
The recent events, especially surrounding Hamza’s arrest and release, spotlight the fragile stability of Tripoli and the larger Libyan context. Following the 2011 NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions... -backed uprising, Libya has been on a tumultuous path, with its eastern and western regions frequently at loggerheads. While efforts for a lasting political solution remain a challenge, the current focus undeniably remains on the pivotal role played by militia leaders in shaping the country’s destiny.
In Tripoli, the death toll in clashes between armed groups has risen to 27 people, according to the Center for Emergency Medical Care and Support under the Ministry of Health of the Government of National Unity (GNU) of Libya.
“As a result of armed clashes in Tripoli, 27 people were killed and 106 were injured,” the Center said.
In addition, 134 families were evacuated due to clashes in the Libyan capital.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] A native of the Pankisi Gorge, Tsiskara Tokhosashvili,
...also in our archives as Tsiskar Tokhosashvili and Caesar Tokhosashvili, he is accused of being the Number 2 to ISIS senior military commander and Shura Counsel member Abu Umar al-Shishani back in the Caliphate. His brother, Tsezar Tokhosashvili, known in the Islamic State as Al Bara Shishani, is already serving time in a Georgia prison...
known as Emir Isa, was found guilty of involvement in the Islamic State * and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Hurrah!
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on December 8, 2022, the security forces reported on the detention in Tbilisi of Tsiskara Tokhosashvili, a native of the Pankisi Gorge, known as Emir Isa. The investigation considers him the head of one of the units of the IG.
On August 15, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Tsiskara Tokhosashvili to 12 years in prison, finding him guilty of involvement in the Islamic State.
According to the court, Tokhosashvili participated in the armed actions of the Islamic State under the pseudonym Emir Isa. The hearing in the classified case lasted eight months. Tokhosashvili denies almost all the accusations, but confirms that he has been to Syria.
The Tokhosashvili brothers are from the village of Omalo in the Pankisi Gorge of Georgia, where ethnic Chechens-Kists live, Rustavi-2 writes.
Earlier, the "Caucasian Knot" also wrote that Tokhosashvili's brother Caesar was detained by the Security Service of Ukraine in Kiev in 2019 . According to the State Security Service of Georgia, Caesar Tokhosashvili, under the pseudonym Al Bara Shishani, fought in Syria on the side of the IS, was the deputy of the IS Emir Umar ash-Shishani and was wanted by Interpol.
The prefix "ash-Shishani" in the names of immigrants from Pankisi fighting in Syria indicates their origin (Chechens-Kists), in Arabic it means "Chechen", according to the material of the "Caucasian Knot" "Natives of the Caucasus in the ranks of ISIS (ISIS )". The "Personalities" section of the "Caucasian Knot" also contains a biographical information about Tarkhan Batirashvili (Abu Umar ash-Shishani), and the "Reference" section contains an article about the Kists.
The controversy erupted after torn pages of the Koran, the holy book for Moslems, were discovered near the Christian colony with alleged blasphemous content written on them.
The pages were taken to a local religious leader, who reportedly urged Moslems to protest and demand that the culprits be arrested.
Over 100 held after several churches, homes vandalised in Jaranwala [GEO.TV] More than 100 people have been arrested for their involvement in riots over alleged blasphemy ...the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence to a deity, or sacred objects, or toward something considered sacred or inviolable. Some religions consider it to be a crime. In Pakistain you can commit blasphemy by looking cross-eyed at a Koran... in Faisalabad ...formerly known as Lyallpur, the third largest metropolis in Pakistain, the second largest in Punjab after Lahore. It is named after some Arab because the Paks didn't have anybody notable of their own to name it after... ’s Jaranwala during which members of the Christian community were targeted, the Punjab 1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots.... interim government’s spokesperson confirmed.
In a statement, Punjab government spokesperson said that the provincial government has also ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident.
Earlier, interim Punjab Information Minister Amir Mir had said that "dozens of people who disturbed peace" in the area were detained.
In a statement, the minister said that the violence in Jaranwala was done under a "well-thought-out conspiracy".
"There was a plan to disturb the peace by inciting public sentiments. After the desecration of the Holy Koran, the angry protesters reacted strongly," Mir said, adding that the situation in Faisalabad is fully under control now.
The provincial info minister also said that the investigation into the tragic incident of the desecration of the holy book is underway at a fast pace, adding that anyone who tries to take the law into his hands would be arrested immediately.
The security of churches, he said, has been tightened and a large number of law enforcers have been deployed. More than 6,000 coppers and Rangers personnel are present in the affected areas, he added.
The minister also shared that in today's incidents, no one was injured nor was there any loss of life.
Mir went on to say that the Punjab chief secretary and Inspector General of Punjab Police have reached Jaranwala on the instructions of caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
INTERIM PM GUTTED BY JARANWALA INCIDENT
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Wednesday directed law enforcement agencies to apprehend culprits behind the vandalisation of churches in Jaranwala, Faisalabad over blasphemy allegations.
"I am gutted by the visuals coming out of Jaranwala, Faisalabad. Stern action would be taken against those who violate law and target minorities," said Kakar in a post on X, the microblogging website formerly known as Twitter.
An enraged mob vandalised multiple churches in the Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad on Wednesday over blasphemy allegations, officials said. A Christian leader, Akmal Bhatti, said the crowd had torched at least five churches and looted valuables from houses that had been abandoned by their owners after holy mans made announcements in mosques inciting the mob. Images on social media showed smoke rising from the church buildings and people setting fire to furniture that had been dragged from them.
Dozens of people also blocked a nearby highway.
Jaranwala pastor Imran Bhatti told Dawn.com that the ransacked churches included the Salvation Army Church, United Presbyterian Church, Allied Foundation Church and Shehroonwala Church situated in the Isa Nagri area. He added that the mob also demolished the house of a Christian cleaner, accused of blasphemy.
Meanwhile, ...back at the shouting match, the spittle had reached unprecedented levels... the police registered a first information report against the accused under sections 295B (defiling, etc., of the Holy Koran) and 295C (use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet) of the Pakistain Penal Code.
The attacks in Jaranwala, in the district of Faisalabad in Punjab province, erupted after some Moslems living in the area claimed they had seen a local Christian, Raja Amir, and his friend tearing out pages from a Koran, throwing them on the ground and writing insulting remarks on other pages.
Police chief Rizwan Khan said this had angered the local Moslems. A mob gathered and began attacking multiple churches and several Christian homes,
Police eventually intervened, firing into the air and wielding batons before dispersing the attackers with the help of Moslemholy mans and elders.
Police chief Bilal Mehmood told news hounds they were also looking for Amir, who went into hiding to escape the mob, and would detain him to determine whether he had desecrated the Koran.
Several coppers are seen in the videos watching the situation without intervening to stop the vandalism.
Khalid Mukhtar, a local priest, said there are 17 churches in Jaranwala and he believes most of them were attacked. The authorities did not immediately confirm that figure.
Father Gulshan Barkat, who teaches church history at the National Catholic Institute of Theology in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... , described the blasphemy allegations as a "false accusation" and said the local mosques were also to blame because loudspeakers erected on minarets had earlier in the day called on Moslems to gather and "attack the churches and Christian community."
"The emotion of our Moslem brethren flares up very quickly, even at hearsay," he said.
None of the holy mans at Jaranwala mosques could be reached to confirm the allegation about the loudspeakers.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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#1
"Always after me... Arabic charms!"
A Mohammedan leprechaun warms
And loosens his collar
And hollers, "Begallah,
They've harmed a Koran! Five alarms!"
[disappears down firepole]
#3
"Uh, 451 returning to mosque."
"What, done already?"
"Alas, 'twas but a wee misunderstanding. Sure and there's not so much as an errant flyspeck here, let alone a hole."
[Dawn] Two bad boyz were potted by security forces in an intelligence-based operation in the Ramzak area of North Wazoo district, the military’s media wing said on Wednesday.
According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the operation was conducted on the reported presence of Lions of Islam on the night of August 14/15.
While carrying out the operation, security forces surrounded the terrorists’ location and after an intense exchange of fire, "two Lions of Islam were sent to hell", the ISPR said.
Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the slain terrorists, the statement said, adding that they "remained actively involved in terrorist activities against security forces as well as extortion and murder of innocent citizens".
Sanitisation of the area was being carried out to eliminate any other Lions of Islam found in the area, it said.
"Locals of the area appreciated the operation and expressed their full support to eliminate the menace of terrorism," said the army’s media affairs wing.
The security operation comes as Pakistain faces an uptick in terror activities, especially in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... , after the outlawed TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November last year.
On August 12, two people were killed in what police described were assassinations in North Waziristan. On August 8, two coppers were among four people killed in separate attacks in North Waziristan and 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... Last month, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa police said 665 bully boy attacks, including 15 suicide kabooms, were reported in the province between June 18, 2022, and June 18, 2023.
A report released in July by think tank Pakistain Institute for Conflict and Security Studies said the first half of the current year witnessed a steady and alarming rise in terror and suicide kabooms, claiming the lives of 389 people across the country.
In a presser in June, Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Maj Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that the security forces conducted 13,619 intelligence operations this year in which 1,172 bad boyz were potted or arrested.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Pak Taliban (TTP)
[Rudaw] An alleged 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.... (ISIS) hideout in Kirkuk province was destroyed on Wednesday after it was targeted by the Iraqi air force, the country’s Security Media Cell reported.
Iraqi F-16 jets "destroyed a hideout of ISIS gangs in the Zghitun valley" in western Kirkuk in coordination with the Kirkuk Operations Command, according to the cell, who did not disclose information about casualties inflicted in the air raid.
ISIS seized control of swathes of land in Iraq 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.
The bandidosgunnies are active in a security vacuum in parts of northern Iraq that are disputed by Erbil and Baghdad, stretching across the provinces of Kirkuk, ... a thick stew of Arabs, Turkmen, Kurds, and probably Antarcticans, all of them mutually hostile most of the time... Salahaddin, and Diyala.
Iraq’s air force regularly pursues and targets ISIS hideouts across the country, particularly in the disputed areas.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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[Shafaq News] The Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) announced on Wednesday the apprehension of three narcos affiliated with ISIS in Diyala governorate.
This operation was carried out per directives from the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and under the supervision of Lieutenant General Abdul Wahhab al-Saadi, the head of the CTS.
The operation was executed based on precise intelligence, in coordination with the Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS) and the Falcons Cell, as stated in a blurb.
The statement further elaborated that a force from the CTS engaged in a confrontation with a group of narcos associated with ISIS in the Qaratebe sub-district within the Khanqin district.
The operation resulted in the capture of three individuals wanted by authorities and the seizure of a cache of criminal weapons.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
[Shafaq News] Ottoman Turkish intelligence announced the killing of "Jalal Birdal," also known as "Cidar Serhat," one of the officials responsible for press and archives in the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in an operation carried out in the Karah area within Duhok province of the Kurdistan Region.
Ottoman Turkish news agency "Anadolu" quoted security sources as saying, "Birdal joined the Kurdistan Workers' Party during his university years."
The sources clarified that this party official participated in several operations against Ottoman Turkish forces in northern Kurdistan Region and also sent some members into Ottoman Turkish territory to carry out armed operations.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/17/2023 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
[AlAhram] Jordan's army said it shot down a drone Wednesday loaded with TNT explosives trying to enter its airspace from Syria, in the latest incident of trafficking of arms or drugs.
"Border guards... detected a drone trying to cross the border illegally" from Syria, it said in a statement, adding that the aircraft was "shot down over Jordanian territory".
The army said the drone was carrying "TNT-type kaboom".
Jordan often announces operations targeting the smuggling of arms and drugs from Syria, especially captagon, an amphetamine-like stimulant plaguing the Middle East.
It says smuggling has become "more organised", and that gangs are now using drones.
On Sunday, the army said it shot down a drone flying from Syria that was loaded with crystal meth, the second such case in less than three weeks.
Several other interceptions of drones carrying arms and drugs from Syria were reported in February and June.
The vast majority of the region's captagon is produced in Syria and 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... and smuggled to its main consumer market in the Gulf.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Horror of Homs... at a meeting in Damascus last month held talks on cooperation against drug trafficking.
Regional engagement with Assad's government has grown since its readmission to the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... in May, ending more than a decade of isolation after Syria's civil war erupted in 2011.
[IsraelTimes] Troops manage to detain one assailant who shot up army post in northern West Bank; 15 primed bombs found in Balata refugee camp
Israeli soldiers clashed with Paleostinian button men near the northern West Bank city of Nablus early Wednesday morning, and in a separate operation, demolished a lab used to manufacture bombs in a nearby refugee camp, the military said.
According to the Israel Defense Forces, a number of Paleostinians opened fire from a passing vehicle at a military post close to Nablus. Troops of the 636th Combat Intelligence Collection Battalion conducting "proactive activity" in the area returned fire at the vehicle, managing to stop it and detain one of the maimedbutton men, the IDF said.
The soldiers seized the gunman’s assault rifle, and found a grenade, military equipment, and more than a dozen magazines inside the vehicle, the IDF said.
His exact condition was not immediately known.
The IDF said it launched a manhunt for the other button men who expeditiously departed at a goodly pace.
Meanwhile, ...back at the precinct house, Don Calamari's lawyer was getting even redder in the face... Israeli soldiers and Border Police officers, led by the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit, entered the Balata refugee camp on the outskirts of Nablus to destroy an explosives lab and a storage site.
The IDF said soldiers found at least 15 primed makeshift bombs at the lab and the cache. The two sites were blown up by the Yahalom soldiers.
Troops also neutralized a number of explosives planted on the entrance road to Balata, the IDF said.
Also amid the operation, the IDF said Paleostinian rioters hurled stones at troops, and button men opened fire and hurled bombs. The soldiers returned fire at the button men, the IDF said.
No soldiers were reported hurt in the overnight incidents.
[NPASyria] Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) brought, on Tuesday, military reinforcements to fortify its posts and headquarters in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, eastern Syria, and the eastern countryside of Homs Governorate, central the country, coming from Iraq.
A military source from the IRGC in the town of Abu Kamal in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor said that the latter and the Lebanese Hezbollah brought military reinforcements to their posts in Deir ez-Zor and the eastern countryside of Homs.
"The reinforcements included advanced medium weapons, shoulder-fired missiles, surveillance equipment, and drones. They were distributed to most of the IRGC and Hezbollah posts in Deir ez-Zor and the eastern countryside of Homs" the source told North Press.
"The weapons entered Syria from Iraq a few days ago, and were distributed to the posts after a meeting was held between leaders from Hezbollah and the IRGC in Tamo neighborhood in the southern part of al-Mayadin town, 40 km east of Deir ez-Zor.
"The IRGC brought experts to supervise the weapons distribution and train Death Eaters on using them," according to the source.
The Syrian Desert covers nearly half of the area of Syria, and is distributed over the governorates of Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, Aleppo, Homs, Hama, Rif Dimashq, Suwayda and Palmyra.
Iranian-backed militias and the government forces control large areas of the Syrian Desert and the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, which constitutes a source of concern as it witnesses intensive operations by the ISIS sleeper cells.
[NPASyria] On Wednesday, 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) arrested a prominent leader within its ranks, Deputy Head of the General Security Apparatus of the HTS. He was charged with collaborating with international intelligence agencies in Idlib Governorate, northwest Syria.
An exclusive source informed North Press, on the condition of anonymity, that "General Security Apparatus raided the house of Abu al-Walid al-Iraqi, the deputy of Abu Maria al-Qahtani, head of the General Security Apparatus, and arrested him on charges of transferring sensitive files and information to international intelligence."
The source added that the arrests also targeted employees of the Ministry of Interior in the Salvation Government of the HTS on the same charges.
The source further indicated that the recent wave of arrests carried out by the HTS has started to target individuals and prominent officials close to the leadership.
Since June 18, areas under the control of the HTS in northwest Syria, have been witnessing the greatest security campaign since July 2017 when the group seized the region.
[NPASyria] Two individuals were maimed on Wednesday as a result of artillery and missile shelling by government forces targeting areas in the countryside of Idlib and Aleppo in northern and northwestern Syria.
Military sources informed North Press that Syrian government forces targeted positions in the town of Maarat al-Numan, south of Idlib, with heavy artillery shells and rockets, resulting in the injury of two individuals.
The sources added that the shelling also targeted posts of opposition factions and 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) in the villages and towns of al-Fatterah, Kafr Oweid, Sfuhen, and Kafr Nabl in southern Idlib, as well as the surroundings of the villages of al-Sirmaniyah and Duwayr al-Akrad in al-Ghab Plain in western Hama Governorate, central west Syria.
Meanwhile, ...back at the comedy club, Boogie sadly admitted that he was a better peeping Tom than he was a comedian... other military sources told North Press that al-Fateh al-Mubin Operations Room targeted posts of the government forces in Regiment 46 and Basratun west of Aleppo with heavy artillery shells.
In recent days, areas in northwest Syria have witnessed an escalation of military festivities and intense mutual shelling between the opposition factions and the HTS on one side, and the government forces and Russia on the other side.
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.
...... the personification of Somali state failure...
...
...... the personification of Somali state failure...
The crux of this conflict revolved around the detention of the 444 Head, Mahmoud Hamza. He was apprehended by the SDF, which oversees operations at Tripoli’s Mitiga airport, as he was in transit. This move stirred heightened tensions, and led to aggressive engagements that echoed across various parts of the city.
[GEO.TV] More than 100 people have been arrested for their involvement in riots over alleged 
An enraged mob vandalised multiple churches in the Jaranwala tehsil of Faisalabad on Wednesday over blasphemy allegations, officials said. A Christian leader, Akmal Bhatti, said the crowd had torched at least five churches and looted valuables from houses that had been abandoned by their owners after 
allegations as a "false accusation" and said the local mosques were also to blame because loudspeakers erected on minarets had earlier in the day called on 
...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 
...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...
...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...
...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...
