Page 2 - Cross Border Terrorism

Terrorism, organised crime rampant in Sahel, spilling into West Africa: UN

Terrorism and organised crime by violent extremist groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State are a pervasive threat in Africa's volatile Sahel region and are spilling over to West Africa's coastal countries, the top UN envoy for the area warned on Friday. Leonardo Simao, the UN special representative for the Sahel and West Africa, said the focus on combating terrorism has had limited effect in stopping rampant illegal trafficking in the Sahel and the effort needs more police. It's drugs, it's weapons, it's human beings, it's mineral resources, and even food, Simao said after briefing the UN Security Council. According to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' new report on the Sahel and West Africa, hundreds of people have been killed in the first half of 2024 alone in terrorist attacks, many of them civilians.. The vast majority of deaths occurred in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, whose ruling military juntas in March announced a joint security force to fight terrorism, though t

LG Sinha visits Amarnath yatra base camp in Jammu, reviews arrangements

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday night visited the base camp of Amarnath yatra in Jammu and reviewed the final arrangements for the pilgrimage. Amid multi-security escort, the first batch of Amarnath pilgrims will depart for twin base camps in Kashmir from Jammu on Friday, marking the beginning of this year's pilgrimage from here. Sinha, who was accompanied by Director General of Police (DGP) R R Swain and top civil and security officials, took a round of the base camp at Bhagwati Nagar and chaired a meeting to review the final arrangements. The Lieutenant Governor also met and interacted with the pilgrims. Subsequently, he chaired a meeting with the officials and reviewed the measures taken to facilitate the comfortable stay of the pilgrims, officials said. He was briefed on the extensive arrangements made for the smooth pilgrimage of the devotees. Sinha directed the stakeholder departments to deploy adequate manpower to cater to the heavy rush of the pilgrims. He als

40 terrorists in Poonch-Rajouri sectors: Intel, security grids tightened

The most recent attacks have been in Reasi and Kathua, where they attacked Hindu pilgrims and security forces

Unknown gunmen kill key Pakistani ISI man behind 2018 Sunjwan attack

Retired Pakistan army brigadier Amir Hamza's case is the latest in a series of killings of Pakistanis linked to ISI-controlled terrorist attacks in India

Amit Shah reviews J-K security situation; calls high-level meet on June 16

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of several terror incidents there, including an attack on a bus ferrying pilgrims, sources said. He also called a high-level meeting on June 16, to be attended by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha, top officials of the Army and CRPF, and others. The home minister was briefed about the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the steps taken following the terror incidents, sources said. Terrorists struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts of Jammu and Kashmir over the past four days, killing nine pilgrims and a CRPF jawan and leaving seven security personnel and several others injured. Two suspected Pakistani terrorists were also killed in an encounter with security forces in Kathua district and a large quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered from them.

Terrorists don't play by rules, so country's response can't have rules: EAM

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that India was committed to respond to any act of terrorism perpetrated from across the borders, and asserted that since terrorists do not play by rules, there cannot be any rules in the country's answer to them. Attacking the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) dispensation over its response to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008, he said that after a lot of deliberation at the government level, nothing fruitful came out at that time as it was felt that the cost of attacking Pakistan was more than not attacking it. Interacting with youth on Friday at an event titled 'Why Bharat Matters: Opportunity for youth and participation in global scenario' here, he asked that if a similar attack happens now and one does not react to it, how can the next such attacks be prevented. Jaishankar also said that the country's foreign policy has undergone a change since 2014 and it is the way terrorism is dealt with. When asked about countries with .

India's policy on terrorism has changed since 2014, says Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said there is a change in the foreign policy of the country since 2014 and it is the way terrorism is dealt with. Jaishankar was interacting with youth at an event titled 'Why Bharat Matters: Opportunity for youth and participation in global scenario' here. Asked about which are countries that India finds difficult to maintain relationships with, he said one, Pakistan, was in the neighbourhood and "for that we are only responsible". In 1947, Pakistan sent tribal invaders into Kashmir and the Army countered them and the integration of the state took place, he pointed out. "While the Indian Army was taking its action, we stopped and went to the UN and mentioned the work of tribal invaders instead of terrorism. If we, from the very start, were clear that Pakistan is using terrorism, then would have had a very different policy," the EAM said. Terrorism cannot be acceptable under any circumstances, he asserted. Asked about continuity in

India, Kazakhstan assess security challenges, exchange views on terrorism

During the meeting that took place in Astana, both sides exchanged views on the terrorist threats in their respective regions, including State-sponsored, cross-border terrorism in South Asia

ISIS module case accused robbed shop in Satara, used money for bombs: ATS

Three persons arrested in an ISIS module case last year had allegedly robbed the owner of a saree shop in Satara and used the money to buy materials for bomb-making, the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) said on Wednesday. All three were earlier in the custody of the National Investigation Agency which had busted alleged modules of terror organisation Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the country. The ATS took custody of Mohammad Shahnawaz Alam Shafiujma Khan, Mohammad Yunus Mohammad Yakub Saki and Zulfikar Ali Barodawala from the central agency and produced them before a special ATS court here on Wednesday. The court remanded them in ATS custody till March 21. While Yunus and his associate Mohammad Imran Mohammad Yunus Khan were nabbed while attempting a vehicle theft in Kothrud area of Pune on July 18, 2023, Shahnawaz Alam escaped but was later arrested by Delhi Police. Barodawala was arrested by the NIA when it took over the probe. "Our probe revealed that during

Attack 'seriously damaged bilateral ties': Pak foreign minister to Iran

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani has told his Iranian counterpart that the unprecedented attack by Iran seriously damaged the ties between the two nations. Iranian missiles and drones on Tuesday night targeted two bases of the Balochi militant group Jaish al Adl in Pakistan's border town of Panjgur in Balochistan province. Jilani, who is currently leading the Pakistan delegation to the Ministerial Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Kampala, Uganda, on Wednesday in a telephonic conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian stressed that the attack conducted by Iran inside the Pakistani territory on January 16 was not only a serious breach of Islamabad's sovereignty but also an egregious violation of international law and the spirit of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Iran, the Foreign Office said in an overnight statement. Expressing Pakistan's unreserved condemnation of the attack, the foreign minister added that the incident has ...

26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed in Pak custody serving 78-year jail term: UNSC

The 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed is in the custody of Pakistan and serving a 78-year imprisonment sentence, the United Nations said in updated information

Anti-terrorist search operation in J-K's Poonch along LoC enters second day

An anti-terrorist search operation along the Line of Control (LoC) in Mendhar sector of Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district entered the second day on Saturday, officials said. The operation was launched in nearly a dozen forward villages in the forest area of Mankote and Mendhar on Friday following reports of suspicious movement, they said. Intermittent gunfire was reported from Uchhad forest but it was later clarified that security forces had opened fire while clearing a natural cave, the officials said. The search operation was underway when the last reports were received, they said.

55 foreign terrorists among 76 neutralised in Jammu-Kashmir in 2023: DGP

A total of 76 terrorists, including 55 foreigners, were neutralised, 291 terrorist associates arrested and 201 overground workers booked under the Public Safety Act in Jammu and Kashmir this year, Director General of Police R R Swain said on Saturday. Swain further said that only 31 local terrorists an all time low - are left in the Union Territory. He said 14 civilians were also killed by terrorists in 2023, and there was a decline of 63 per cent in terror-related incidents as compared to the last year, while recruitment of terrorists has also gone down with strike calls and stone-pelting on continuous decline. Four police personnel, including a DSP and an inspector, lost their lives in terror attacks, Swain told reporters. The police chief said 89 terrorist modules were busted and 18 terrorist hideouts were unearthed in Jammu and Kashmir while 99 properties worth more than Rs 170 crore, including buildings, land, orchards and commercial establishments, were attached and 68 bank

Six people injured in firing incident in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Six people were injured after unknown assailants fired at a passenger van near Saddar police station in the Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

2 drone-dropped packets with explosives, cash seized near LoC in Jammu

Two drone-dropped packets containing six battery-operated Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), a pistol and some cash were seized in a joint operation by the Army and police near the Line of Control in the Akhnoor sector here Sunday, officials said. The timely recovery of the packets, believed to have been dropped by Pakistani drones, thwarted major strikes by terrorists on Indian soil, they said. The officials said the packets were spotted on an open field in Channi Dewano village in the Khour area at around 7.50 am. The Army and the police launched a joint operation immediately and the packets were opened with the help of a bomb disposal squad, leading to the recovery of the IEDs, a 9-mm Italian pistol, three magazines, 30 rounds, a hand grenade and Rs 35,000 cash, they said. This comes a day after Army troops scuttled an infiltration bid by eliminating a terrorist in the same sector.

Poonch attack: Army pays tributes to fallen soldiers, search op continues

A wreath laying ceremony was on Sunday held in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri for the four soldiers who lost their lives after being ambushed by terrorists in nearby Poonch district, officials said. A search operation to track down the fleeing terrorists continues near the scene of the ambush, while mobile internet services remained suspended in the twin districts for the second day on Sunday, they said. General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi led the wreath-laying ceremony of Naik Birendder Singh, Naik Karan Kumar, rifleman Gautam Kumar and rifleman Chandan Kumar at a military camp where their mortal remains were shifted. General Officer Commanding of Jammu-based White Knight Corps Lt Gen Sandeep Jain, Deputy Commissioner Rajouri Vikas Kundal, Senior Superintendent of Police, Rajouri Amritpal Singh and other officers and ranks of the Army also paid floral tributes. The soldiers lost their lives when their two vehicles were ambushed by terrorists

India suffered immensely due to cross-border terrorism, says Amb Kamboj

India has suffered immensely from cross-border terrorism by terrorist groups who use illicit weapons smuggled from across its borders, including through the use of drones, New Delhi's envoy to the UN has told the Security Council, in a veiled reference to Pakistan. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador, Ruchira Kamboj, made the remarks on Friday at the Security Council open debate on Small Arms. "Having fought the scourge of terrorism for several decades, India is aware of the perils of the diversion and illicit transfer of small arms and ammunition to armed non-state actors and terrorists," Kamboj said. "We have suffered immensely due to cross-border terrorism and violence carried out by terrorist groups using these illicit weapons smuggled across our borders, including now through the use of drones," she said, in an apparent reference to Pakistan. Kamboj added that the increase in volume and quality of the arsenal acquired by these terrorist organisations "reminds

Denmark & Germany arrest terror suspects including suspected Hamas members

Denmark and Germany announced on Thursday arrests of several terror suspects, including alleged Hamas members suspected of plotting attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions in Europe over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The announcements were issued separately and it was unclear how the arrests were connected and if they were the result of coordinated actions, or even possibly one operation spanning the continent. Danish police said three people were arrested across Denmark while a fourth person was detained in the Netherlands on suspicion of plotting to carry out an act of terror. Officials in Copenhagen did not provide any details beyond saying the arrests had threads abroad and were related to criminal gangs, singling out the banned, predominantly immigrant gang Loyal to Familia that had long been behind feuds, violence, robberies, extortion and drug sales in the Danish capital. However, Flemming Drejer, the operative head of Denmark's Security and Intelligence Service, cryptically

Rajouri encounter: LeT terrorist, trained on Pak and Afghan fronts, killed

A Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorist was on Thursday killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, a defence spokesman said. Four Army personnel, including two captains of special forces, were killed and two others injured in the encounter on Wednesday. Fresh firing resumed this morning in Bajimaal area of Dharmsal belt after an overnight halt. The area was cordoned off overnight with induction of additional security forces to ensure terrorists engaged in the encounter do not escape from the highly forested area, they said. In the firing, one Pakistani terrorist has been killed, the spokesman said. He has been identified as Quari, a hardcore terrorist, he said. "He has been trained on Pakistan and Afghan front. He is a highly ranked terrorist leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba", he said . The Pakistani terrorist has been active in Rajouri-Poonch along with his group from the past one year, he said, adding he is also believed to be the mastermind of the

No support for terrorism, terror activities in India: LS Speaker Om Birla

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Sunday said he has conveyed to his counterparts from G20 nations that India does not support terrorism or terror activities in any form. Birla was responding to questions on the bilateral meetings he had with Speakers of G20 nations during the Parliament 20 Summit that concluded here on Saturday. "The position of the government is very clear in this regard. The prime minister has also said it in his statement. The government has made it clear that terrorism and terror activities have no place in India," the Lok Sabha speaker said while briefing reporters on the P20 Summit. He was responding to a question on whether any Speaker from the G20 countries had raised the issue of presence of people in India who were pursuing separatist activities abroad. "It is a clear government policy terrorism, be it of caste or religion terrorism is terrorism, and no form of terror will find any support in India. This is the clear government policy," Birla said. On the