Sep 15, 2024, at 05:40 pm
Two Frontier Constabulary (FCB) soldiers were injured in cross-border firing in the Kurram Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan, from the Khost Province of Afghanistan on May 12, 2017. The attack took place as FCB personnel were undertaking construction of a wall along the border on the Pakistani side.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:10 pm
Media reports and confirmations to SAIR from family members of Islamic State (IS or Daesh) and al Qaeda recruits from the southern Indian State of Kerala, indicate that two Daesh volunteers and an al Qaeda volunteer were killed in three separate US drone attacks in Afghanistan and Syria in the month of April. Bestin Vincent akaYahya, who belonged to the Palakkad District was killed in US strikes in the Nangarhar Province in Afghanistan on April 29, 2017. Murshid Muhammed from Kasaragod District, who had also joined Daesh was killed in the second week of April 2017 (date not specified), again, in Nangarhar. Abu Thahir from Palakkad District had joined al Qaeda, and was killed in Syria on April 4, 2017.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:10 pm
The US continues with its policy incoherent on tackling terrorism in Pakistan, and purportedly promoting regional stability in the AfPak and wider South Asian region. On March, 2017, "the Pakistan State Sponsor of Terrorism Act of 2017" (HR1449), was introduced in the House of Representatives proposing that Pakistan be declared a state-sponsor of terrorism. Ted Poe, who heads the House Sub-committee on Terrorism and Non-proliferation, observed, while introducing the Bill, "Not only is Pakistan an untrustworthy ally, Islamabad has also aided and abetted enemies of the United States for years."
Chhattisgarh: Blood in the Last Bastion
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:10 pm
In the worst attack targeting the Security Forces (SFs), in terms of fatalities, across India, since the June 29, 2010, Jhadha Ghati attack, cadres of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) killed at least 25 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel and injured another six in an ambush at Kalapattar in the Burkapal area of the Sukma District of Chhattisgarh on April 24, 2017. According to details available, an estimated 200-300 Maoists attacked the CRPF personnel who were out to provide protection for road construction work in the area. Though the CRPF claimed that "a considerable number of Maoists are believed to have been eliminated (in retaliatory action by CRPF men) as the tell-tale sign indicate from the ground," only one body of a Maoist fighter was recovered, in the night of April 27, "just 500 metres away from the spot where the gun battle had taken place". The body was recovered during search operations in the area. The Maoists had also looted at least 21 weapons, ammunition and 22 bullet proof jackets from the possession of the slain CRPF personnel.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:10 pm
The practice of condemning an individual or a particular group for following 'certain religious practices' in the name of blasphemy has intensified acts of violence in Pakistan. In the latest blasphemy case, Mashal Khan, a student, was brutally lynched by his own hostel mates at Abdul Wali Khan University (AWKU) in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in broad daylight on April 13, 2017, after being accused of blasphemy. The deceased was a resident of Swabi and a student at AWKU's Journalism and Mass Communications department. A friend of the deceased student said that a mob attacked and beat him, before shooting him in the head and chest. The mob then continued to beat his body with sticks.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:11 pm
In their "eviction notice" sent on January 2, 2017, to media, the Biswamohan Debbarma faction of the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT-BM), along with Kamatapur Liberation Organisation (KLO) and the People's Democratic Council of Karbi-Longri (PDCK), set March 31, 2017, as their deadline for Bengalis and Hindi speakers to quit Tripura, parts of Assam and West Bengal. The notice declared, "We strongly oppose heinous killings by Indian Army and rehabilitation programme for Bangladeshi Bengalis.. We hereby would like to notify Indian citizens (Bengali and Hindi speaking people) to quit Kamatapur (consisting parts of Assam and West Bengal), Karbi-Longri (Karbi Anglong Hill District in Assam), and Tripura." The notice was signed by KLO 'chairman' Jiban Singh Koch, NLFT-BM 'organising secretary' Sengphul Borok and PDCK 'chairman' J.K. Lijang. The trio is reported to be associated with the United Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFWESEA), a consortium of Northeast militant groups mentored by the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) and the United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (ULFA-I).
Nagaland: Encouraging but Fragile
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:11 pm
In his address to the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) cadres at Camp Hebron on March 21, 2017, the group's 'headquarters', on the outfit's 38th 'Republic Day', 'general secretary' Thuingaleng Muivah declared, "NSCN had consultative meetings with the people on talks consecutively for eight times. The historic Framework Agreement recognizes the unique history, identity, sovereignty and territories of the Nagas. It also recognizes the legitimate right of the Nagas to integration of all Naga territories." The Framework Agreement was signed on August 3, 2015.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:12 pm
On January 15, 2017, Security Forces (SFs) in Kerala warned that the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) was planning a coordinated movement of its urban and rural forces to strengthen its activities in India's southern States, mainly in Kerala. SFs made this claim on the basis of the review report of the CPI-Maoist's 'South Zonal Committee' (SZC), retrieved by the Police from the site of the November 24, 2016, Nilambur encounter. The report asserted that the Maoists had been able to defeat 'enemy' plans and successfully organize their meeting in the forests of the 'tri-junction area' - connecting Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu - under the protection of People's Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) Forces, and with the 'support' and 'participation' of people.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:14 pm
On February 8, 2017, six employees of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) were shot dead by terrorists of the Islamic State (IS, formerly, Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham, also Daesh) in the Qoshtapa District of Jawzjan Province. After the killing, ICRC suspended its operations in Afghanistan on February 9, 2017.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:14 pm
Baba Ladla alias Noor Muhammad, the notorious Lyari gangster who carried a reward of PKR three million, was killed on February 1, 2017, during a shootout with Rangers personnel in the Lyari Town area of Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh. Two of Baba Ladla's close associates, Sikandar aka Sikko and Mohammad Yaseen aka Mama, were also killed in the encounter. During the operation, Head Constable Fayyaz and Constable Tufail were also killed. One Kalashnikov, two 9mm pistols and a hand grenade were also recovered from their possession. The "most wanted" suspects had been involved in numerous terrorist incidents, according to a Press Release issued by the Rangers: "Baba Ladla was wanted in more than 74 crimes by Police."
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:14 pm
On January 12, 2017, two civilians, Ramesh Atala (27) and Manohar Atala (55), were killed by Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres in Gadchiroli District. A Gadchiroli Police statement disclosed that the Maoists shot the victims claiming they were 'police informers'.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:14 pm
Registering the first violent incident of the year in the region, 25 people were killed and more than 87 were injured in a bomb blast at the Sabzi Mandi (vegetable market) area of Parachinar in the Kurram Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in the morning of January 21, 2017. A statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the improvised explosive device (IED) blast took place at 08:50am PST. Government official Shahid Khan stated that the explosion took place when the market was crowded with retailers buying fruits and vegetables. In a text message sent to journalists, the al-Alami (International) faction of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi (LeJ) claimed that it, along with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) splinter Shehryar Mehsud group, carried out the attack. The Shehryar Mehsud group did not independently claim the bombing.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:15 pm
Articulating new hopes of prosperity, coexistence and reconciliation, President Maithripala Sirisena, in his New Year message on January 1, 2017, declared, "The year 2017 dawns with new hopes of prosperity, coexistence and reconciliation in our hearts. It is imperative that we overcome the challenges ahead of us. The progress of the human race was pioneered by people who faced challenges with confidence, utmost courage and determination amidst obstacles. Our goals could be achieved if we manage our work efficiently and productively, and do the right thing at the right time with unwavering commitment to serve the greater good." Similarly, the Leader of the Opposition and of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) R. Sampanthan, in his message of greetings for the New Year, noted, "2017 will be a crucial year in the history of our country. Our expectation is that we should find a permanent and lasting solution to the national question. The new Constitution in the New Year should bring about this achievement."
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:15 pm
Though the insurgency has ended in Nepal, political violence continued through 2016. However, not a single insurgency-related fatality was recorded in 2016, and this has been the case since 2013, with not a single insurgency-related fatality on record. At the peak of insurgency, Nepal had seen 4,896 fatalities in 2002 alone, including 3,992 Maoists, 666 Security Force (SF) personnel and 238 civilians.
Sep 15, 2024, at 08:16 pm
On December 22, 2016, Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres shot dead one person, identified as G. Appa Rao, at Munuguluwalsa village under the Pottangi Police limits in the Koraput District of Odisha. Appa Rao was the husband of the Naib Sarpanch (deputy head of the Panchayat, the village level local-self government institution) of Talagoluru. The Maoists also set ablaze two tractors and one van belonging to Apparao before leaving the spot.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:27 pm
On November 23, 2016, six Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres were killed in an encounter with Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Jharkhand Police, at a remote location inside the Karmadih-Naurnagu Forests under the Chhipadohar Police Station of Latehar District. CRPF, Director General (DG), K. Durga Prasad disclosed, "Two out of the six slain rebels have been identified as 'sub-zonal commander' Deepak Kharwar alias Shailesh Kharwar, who carried a cash reward of Rs, Five Lakh [INR 500,000] on his head, and 'area commander' Nagendra Yadav," and added, further, that the duo was mainly active in Latehar and Lohardaga and used to operate under the directives of Maoist 'zonal commander' Nakul Yadav. The identities of the remaining four Maoists are yet to be ascertained. Giving details on items recovered, Superintendent of Police (SP) Anup Birtharey stated that the Forces recovered one INSAS (Indian Small Arms System) rifle, two Self-Loading Rifles (SLRs), three .303 rifles, 600 bullets of various calibres and one dozen explosive devices. One carbine was also recovered from the riverbed. He further disclosed that four out of the seven recovered weapons had been looted from the Police on earlier occasions.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:28 pm
Three Army personnel were killed and another four were injured when militants ambushed an Army convoy at Pengaree near Digboi in Tinsukia District on November 19, 2016. According to Defence Public Relations Officer (PRO) Lieutenant Colonel Suneet Newton, "They (the militants) had planted an improvised explosive device (IED) on the road. When the IED exploded, the convoy stopped. Then the militants fired indiscriminately." On November 20, the Independent faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA-I) claimed that this was a "joint operation" carried out by the outfit and four members of the Manipur-based Coordination Committee (CorCom) - Revolutionary People's Front (RPF, the political wing of the People's Liberation Army, PLA), United National Liberation Front (UNLF), People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK), and progressive faction of PREPAK (PREPAK-Pro). The other two members of the CorCom, a conglomerate of six Manipur Valley-based militant outfits are the Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP) and the Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL).
Jharkhand: Lingering Maoist Shadow
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:28 pm
On October 31, 2016, Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres killed a farmer at Punjo Sona Toli under the Ghaghra Police Station area in Gumla District. Police recovered a pamphlet near the body, which was found half a kilometre away from the farmer's residence. The pamphlet alleged he was an informer of the Jharkhand Jan Mukti Parishad (JJMP), a CPI-Maoist splinter group.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:28 pm
At least 52 persons were killed and more than hundred were injured when a teenage suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest in the midst of devotees at the shrine of Sufi saint Shah Noorani in the Khuzdar District of Balochistan in the evening of November 12, 2016. The explosion took place at the spot where the dhamaal (Sufi ritual of devotional dance) was being performed, within the premises of the shrine. "The bomber appeared to be 14 to 16 years old," said Muhammad Hashim Ghalzai, the Commissioner of Kalat Division, of which Khuzdar is a District. Nawaz Ali, the shrine's custodian, added, "Every day, around sunset, there is a dhamaal here, and there are large numbers of people who come for this." According to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jafar Khan, at the time of the blast, around 1,000 devotees were present in the shrine to view the performance. The Daesh (Islamic State, IS, previously Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack via Amaq, its affiliated news agency.
Maoists: Shock in a 'Safe Haven'
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:29 pm
In the most successful operation ever conducted by the Security Forces (SFs) against the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist), since the formation of the outfit in September 2004, SFs killed at least 24 CPI-Maoist cadres in two successive encounters in the Bejingi forest area, between Ramgarh and Panasput, in the Malkangiri District of Odisha on October 24, 2016. One Greyhound [the elite anti-Maoist force of the Andhra Pradesh (AP) Police] commando, Mohammed Abu Bakar, was also killed during the operation, while another commando was injured. A large quantity of arms and ammunition, including four AK-47 rifles, 10.303 rifles, three Self-Loading Rifles (SLRs), two INSAS (Indian Small Arms System) rifles, and four SBBL (Smooth Bore Breech Loading) guns were recovered from the encounter site. Police also recovered about 50 kit bags, one laptop, INR 216,000 in cash and a large quantity of Maoist literature. Another four Maoists were killed during the subsequent combing operation in the same area on October 25. Two Maoists were also killed in the same area on October 27, yielding a total of 30 Maoists killed in a quick succession of SF operations in the region.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:29 pm
On October 5, 2016, cadres of the Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) shot dead a villager and severely injured another at an unspecified location in the Malkangiri District. The duo was abducted by the Maoists on October 3 from Jantri village under the Andrapalli panchayat (village level local self-government institution) of the District.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:30 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal aka Prachanda in his first foreign trip since resuming office on August 3, 2016 (he was Prime Minister between August 18, 2008, and May 23, 2009), visited India from September 15-18, 2016, leading a 125-member delegation. He held wide-ranging talks and sealed three significant deals with India. Significantly, Dahal stated, on September 17, 2016, "We will not allow any activity that is against our neighbouring countries from our soil." Dahal now seems to be a changed man and has recognized the need for cordial relations with India as a priority. During his previous innings as Prime Minister, Dahal chose to put relations with China on fast track. Within a week of oath as Prime Minister then, Dahal had gone to China in August 2008, to become the first elected premier to visit China in the history of Nepal.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:30 pm
Editor, SAIR; Executive Director, ICM & SATP War, in our epoch, is not an isolated, capricious phenomenon which flouts the "normal" peaceful process of history... the countenance of peace has been as blurred as that of war."
Brus: Still Delayed Homecoming
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:30 pm
On September 20, 2016, Lalbiakzama, Additional Secretary, Mizoram Home Department, disclosed that the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA), had approved 'Road Map-V' for Bru repatriation, proposed to commence from the first week of November 2016, and would soon release funds for expenses for the process. Though the expenditure for this phase was not projected, Lalbiakzama stated that the total proposed expenses for the repatriation was earlier estimated at INR 680 million in the 'Roadmap-IV' of which over INR 97 million was released by the Centre in 2015. "We have spent around Rs. One lakh [100,000] during the proposed repatriation in 2015," he said, adding, the State Government would ask more fund in case of further requirement. The effort to repatriate Bru families during June to September in 2015 had failed as not a single Bru came forward in their respective relief camps before the Mizoram officials, to be identified as bona fide residents of Mizoram.
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:30 pm
On September 3, 2016, Bangladesh executed the 'chief financer' of Jammat-e-Islami (JeI), Mir Quasem Ali, found guilty of War Crimes during the 1971 Liberation War by the International Crimes Tribunal-2 (ICT-2). His execution took place at Gazipur District's Kashimpur jail. Ali had been accused of involvement in a "reign of terror" in the city of Chittagong and was found guilty in eight of the 14 charges, including the abduction and killing of teenage freedom fighter Jashim Uddin Ahmed at the Dalim Hotel, one of Al-Badr's torture cells in Chittagong city. Apart from the hotel, Quasem and his aides ran torture camps in Dowsta Mohammad Panjabee Building and Salma Manzil in Chittagong city.
Keeping the spark alive: Mohammed Alauddin – A teacher, and so much more
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:31 pm
When you think you can’t, a teacher will pull you up and make you believe that you can, however difficult it is and whatever it takes. And the moment you start believing that you can, the cycle of change sets rolling. So, in the truest sense of the term, a teacher is a change-maker, investing time, energy and faith in building a rock solid future. And when a teacher takes a stand, the world listens, and listens very carefully. That, in a nutshell, is the story of Mohammad Alauddin.
Reconciliation and Waywardness
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:31 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management On August 28, 2016, Foreign Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera, while addressing a gathering in Point Pedro in the Northern Province, observed,
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:31 pm
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management At least 13 persons were killed and another 41 were injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up near the entrance of District and sessions court of Mardan District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on September 2, 2016. Four lawyers and three Policemen were among the dead. District Police Officer (DPO), Mardan, Faisal Shahzad said the attacker detonated a hand grenade before exploding his suicide vest. The bomb contained eight kilograms of explosive material, the DPO said, adding that security arrangements at the site of the attack helped mitigate the damage. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) splinter, Jama'at-ul-Ahrar (JuA), claimed responsibility for the attack.
Naga Peace Accord: Persistent Ambiguity
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:31 pm
Though over a year has passed since the signing of the 'historic Naga peace accord' or the 'framework agreement' (as it was later termed) between the Government of India (GoI) and the Isak-Muivah faction of National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM), the 'framework' has not been finalised yet, by either party. The 'framework agreement' was signed on August 3, 2015, by the GoI interlocutor for Naga talks R.N. Ravi and 'general secretary' of the NSCN-IM Thuingaleng Muivah in the presence of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others in New Delhi, after nearly 18 years and over 80 rounds of negotiations under ceasefire. Though most of the actual contents of the 'agreement' was not made public, GoI had affirmed that the 'framework agreement' was not a final settlement, and details would be disclosed in the succeeding six months. Regrettably, this remains a distant dream.
Andhra Pradesh: Maoist: Creeping Revival
Sep 15, 2024, at 09:32 pm
On July 30, 2016, Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres abducted and killed Vooraka Maraiah (45), a pastor, branding him as a 'Police informer', at Lakshmipuram village under the Nellipaka mandal (administrative unit) of the East Godavari District. Maraiah's body was found with hands tied at the back, bearing stab and bullet wounds, along with a letter in which the Maoists charged him with not heeding to their warning to mend his ways. He "accumulated wealth disproportionately. As Maraiah started exploiting the poor tribal people and the needy, we punished him in the people's court," the letter alleged. The Maoists also warned a host of other village leaders allegedly involved in "unlawful" activities and asked them to cut off their ties with the Police.