Tag: Terror attack

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PM Modi meet amid spurt in terror attacks in Jammu

A vehicle undergoes a security check after a recent encounter that occurred at Desa Village of Doda. (ANI Photo)

The meeting comes after two soldiers were injured in a gunfight with terrorists in Doda where Army personnel engaged in an encounter to neutralise militants linked to the killing of four soldiers, including a Major…reports Asian Lite News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security over the increasing number of terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also attended the meeting. No more details on Modi’s security meeting have so far been shared.

The security meeting comes after two soldiers were injured in a gunfight between terrorists and security forces in Doda district of J&K where Army men are engaged in an encounter to neutralise some militants linked to the killing of four personnel, including a Major.

The operation entered its fourth day on Thursday and also witnessed a brief exchange of fire at two places in Desa forests on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday.

“All security forces on the ground are engaged in a well-coordinated operation against terrorists with whom we had contact yesterday and today as well. The operation is under progress and we will get success soon,” Deputy Inspector General of Police, Doda-Kishtwar, Ramban range, Shridhar Patil said in Kastigarh.

Earlier in the day, two Army personnel were injured when a group of terrorists fired at a temporary security camp established inside a school building to assist the search operations linked to Doda terror attack. The terrorists, according to the reports, fled into the dense forest after firing at the security personnel.

The gunfight started at Jaddan Bata village in the Kastigarh area at around 2 am and continued for over an hour. One of the critically injured soldiers has been moved to Udhampur-based command hospital.

PRO Defence Jammu said, “Swift action by ALH from Air Force Station, Udhampur saved a critically injured soldier’s life in Doda (J&K). Despite challenging weather, the evacuation was successful, ensuring timely medical care at Command Hospital, Udhampur. Kudos to the team for their dedication & bravery.”

Opposition slams Govt

After another terrorist attack in Jammu’s Doda district, which claimed the lives of four soldiers, the opposition parties on Tuesday slammed the Central government and said that a united national effort is needed against cross-border terrorism.

Four Indian Army soldiers, including an officer, were killed in action during an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district on Tuesday.

Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge has vehemently condemned the cowardly act and criticised the Modi government’s response.

“Deeply distressed by the martyrdom of 4 brave Army soldiers, including an officer, in a terror encounter in Jammu & Kashmir’s Doda. Our heart goes out to the families of our bravehearts, who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of Bharat Mata,” Kharge said, expressing solidarity with the families of the fallen soldiers.

Kharge’s remarks underscored the gravity of the situation, emphasising the need for a recalibrated security strategy amidst the escalating violence in Jammu and Kashmir. ” Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured, and we wish them a speedy and complete recovery. No words of strong and unequivocal condemnation will suffice for these acts of violence being perpetrated by cowardly terrorists,” he asserted, calling for a united national effort against cross-border terrorism.

Congress party criticised the central government by posting a graphic on ‘X’ which claimed that within 38 days of the third term of the Bharatiya Janata Party government, nine terrorist attacks have already taken place.

The post also mentions that during these recent terrorist attacks, 12 soldiers were killed, 13 injured, 10 civilians were killed and 44 were injured.

People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti said that from all over the country, soldiers come to Kashmir for their duty but go back in “coffins.”

“Soldiers from all over the country come to Kashmir for their duty, but go back in coffins. Who is responsible for this if you say militancy has ended in the valley?… In the last 32 months, especially since this DGP has been appointed, the maximum casualties have taken place… You people guard the borders. So whose responsibility is it to stop infiltration? Is it the responsibility of regional parties?” Mufti asked the government.

“There is no accountability. By now, the heads should have rolled. The DGP should have been sacked. Almost 50 soldiers have lost their lives in the last 32 months. No one is being held accountable,” the PDP chief said, addressing a press conference in Srinagar.

AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi said if the Modi-led Centre is following the policy of ‘Ghar mein ghus kar marenge” then what is happening there?

He further attacked the central government, saying that the series of attacks reflects a failure of the government.

“PM Modi used to say, ‘Ghar mein ghus kar marenge’. What is this then? This is a failure of the government. They are unable to control terrorism. Whatever has happened in Doda is very dangerous,” Owaisi said.

Rajasthan Congress President Govind Singh Dotasra criticised the central government over the recent terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda region and said that terrorism is at its peak since NDA assumed power and the central government is not taking any cognizance of the matter.

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-Top News Asia News Crime

60 Killed, Over 100 Injured in Moscow Terror Attack

The mall, which falls in the Moscow region just outside the city’s boundary, was attacked around 8 p.m. (local time) just as a concert of famous rock band Piknik was about to begin at its music venue, causing chaos

More than 60 people were killed in Friday’s terrorist attack in Moscow’s Crocus City Hall, according to the Investigative Committee of Russia (ICR) as quoted by media reports.

“It has been initially confirmed that more than 60 people died as a result of the terrorist attack. Unfortunately, the number of victims may increase,” said the ICR on Saturday, RT reported.

Earlier, according to initial reports, it was reported that atleast 40 people were shot dead and over 100 injured as three to five unidentified gunmen, clad in body armour and armed with assault rifles, began shooting indiscriminately in a Moscow mall on Friday and set a concert hall there afire.

The toll in the Krokus City Mall massacre was a preliminary assessment by the domestic security agency, the FSB.

The mall, which falls in the Moscow region just outside the city’s boundary, was attacked around 8 p.m. (local time) just as a concert of famous rock band Piknik was about to begin at its music venue, causing chaos, RT reported.

The assailants targeted fleeing concertgoers and videos of the scene showed bodies lying strewn about. They also reportedly lobbed hand grenades and used incendiaries to set the building on fire.

The tally is expected to grow given the scale of the attack and the massive fire, which has caused the roof of the building to reportedly collapse, as per local media.

Authorities launched a massive emergency response, with numerous ambulances as well as heavily armed police special operation units deployed at the location. A helicopter was also deployed to help in dousing the raging fire.

As per the latest information, the attackers, who had not attempted to take hostages or make any statements but shot people indiscriminately, have barricaded themselves inside the burning building.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: “The Russian Foreign Ministry is receiving phone calls with condolences from ordinary citizens from all around the globe following the horrible tragedy at the Krokus City Hall venue in Moscow. They are expressing the strongest condemnation of this bloody terrorist attack, transpiring right before the eyes of the entire world.”

“As the Russian authorities have already stated, all efforts at the current moment are devoted to saving the people (at the site).”

“The international community is obliged to condemn this horrendous crime!” the spokeswoman said.

The US has condemned the attack, describing it as a “terrible incident”.

“The images are just horrible and just hard to watch,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

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-Top News London News

London adds steel to stem terror attacks

Sadiq also asked Lord Harris to consider any implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for London’s immediate and long-term preparedness for a major terrorist incident…reports Asian Lite News

New counter-terrorism review by Lord Toby Harris finds significant improvements in communication and coordination between the capital’s emergency services and partner agencies following Mayor Sadiq Khan’s intervention to ensure London is best prepared to respond to an attack.

London is significantly better prepared for a terrorist attack than it was five years ago, a new independent counter-terrorism review has found. The new review by Lord Toby Harris has found that substantial progress has been made by London’s emergency services and key agencies since 2016 as a result of action initiated by the Mayor.

In July, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, commissioned Lord Harris to undertake a new wide-ranging review of London’s preparedness for a terrorist attack, against a backdrop of the changing nature of the threat of terrorism facing the capital. This included a rise in online extremism, an increase in referrals to Prevent for concerns regarding extreme right-wing radicalisation, more individuals self-radicalising and learning techniques online and the increasing possibility of hostile state-sponsored acts against the capital.

Sadiq also asked Lord Harris to consider any implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for London’s immediate and long-term preparedness for a major terrorist incident. This included identifying areas of vulnerability based on the ways in which the pandemic has changed how people live and work, and the impact of lockdowns on wider security awareness and expertise.

With the current terror threat level at ‘substantial’, the findings from this review suggest there is no room for complacency. London bears the highest risk of terrorism in the UK and the pandemic and recent overseas conflicts, including the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban and the war in Ukraine – pose new and continuing challenges to London’s security and preparedness.

Lord Toby Harris said: “I was pleased to see the huge amount of work that has been done in the last five years, not only by the police and the emergency services, but also by local councils and many other agencies, to improve our readiness to deal with terrorism. But we must not be complacent, the terrorist threat remains a real and present danger and we can never make London entirely safe.

 “Working together we can all help through common endeavour to ensure that we are better prepared for whatever may happen.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said: “Nothing is more important to me than keeping Londoners safe and I am determined to keep reviewing potential threats to our city in order to adapt and strengthen our ability to prepare for and respond to the evolving threat of terrorism.

“I asked Lord Harris to carry out this second review in order to reinforce London’s preparedness even further. While I am proud of the progress made, I want to ensure that no stone is left unturned in equipping our city for whatever challenges it may face in the future.

 “That is why I am calling on the Government to support City Hall in taking action now to mitigate the new risks identified in Lord Harris’s review. Ministers must provide increased funding not just for our police but for all those services that play an essential role in preventing and responding to the threat of terrorism in London and nationwide.”

Lord Harris’s second review follows his earlier assessment commissioned by the Mayor in 2016, which resulted in more than 100 recommendations to better prepare the capital for a terrorist attack – the vast majority of which have since been implemented.

Over the last six months, Lord Harris has worked with London’s emergency services, the transport sector, local government, and officials from several central government departments to review processes, understand new threats and challenges and identify areas where further progress could be made. He also spoke with representatives from across the faith, voluntary and community and business sectors to discuss the role of London’s diverse communities in both preparedness and during the aftermath of a terror attack.

Lord Harris found notable improvements in communication and coordination by the emergency services and partner agencies, with substantial learning having taken place following the tragic terror attacks perpetrated in the capital and elsewhere over this period. His report also notes the exceptional levels of cooperation that now exist across the Met Police, British Transport Police and City of London Police forces, which are so crucial to protecting Londoners in the event of an attack.

In the report Lord Harris has made 294 new recommendations that focus on several key areas including ensuring emergency services are properly funded and fully equipped, providing and refreshing specialist training for relevant teams to deal with specific types of attacks, and improving information sharing across those with a role to play in keeping London safe – many of these represent simple adjustments to existing processes.

These recommendations come as Lord Harris warns of the rising threat of extreme right-wing terrorism and emergence of other threats which lack clear ideological roots – with the number of referrals to the Prevent programme for both of these categories outnumbering those prompted by Islamist related concerns for the first time.[2] Lord Harris also warns that the UK must be prepared to consider the possibility of terrorist deployment of Chemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear (CBRN) weapons, and ensure emergency services are equipped and trained to respond appropriately

The review is also critical of Government cuts to policing numbers over the last decade and cuts in other key services, which in Lord Harris’s view “potentially hampers London’s capacity to react to terrorist incidents” and are “short-sighted”.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist from the Metropolitan Police said: “The Metropolitan Police welcomes Lord Harris’s report and we are particularly pleased that Lord Harris recognises there has been significant progress made since 2016 and that the emergency services and other agencies in London continually seek to learn and to improve our response to any terrorist attacks.

“These improvements are in no small part due to the incredible dedication and determination of officers and staff here in the Met – as well as our many colleagues from other agencies – to do the very best we can to keep Londoners safe.

 “However, we also know and recognise that there is no room for complacency. There are a number of recommendations contained within the report and we will work closely with our key partners over the coming weeks and months to look at these and consider how we can best implement them.

 “But in the meantime, Londoners should be in no doubt that we, along with our emergency service partners and other agencies, remain absolutely ready to respond should the worst happen.”

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-Top News India News

India remembers bravehearts of 26/11 attack

He recalled the services of the police and security forces and the people of Mumbai for warding off the assault on the country’s commercial capital and recovering from its effects…reports Asian Lite News.

Mumbai on Friday remembered the Bravehearts and victims felled by bullets and others who saved lives on the 13th anniversary of the dastardly terror strikes by ten Pakistani terrorists who paralysed the city on November 26-29 2008.

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari led the state by solemnly laying wreaths at the Martyrs’ Memorial erected inside the Mumbai Police Commissionerate premises near Crawford Market in south Mumbai.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, currently convalescing, saluted those who lost their lives during the terror strikes and expressed his gratitude to those who fought the terrorists, terming the attack “a cowardly act”.

He recalled the services of the police and security forces and the people of Mumbai for warding off the assault on the country’s commercial capital and recovering from its effects.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUkMWrkaKq4

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil, Tourism Minister, Director-General of Police Sanjay Pandey, Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale and other dignitaries also paid their respects at the martyrs’ memorial.

A large number of police personnel turned up to pay homage to their colleagues who lost their lives while fighting the terrorists who struck at key locations in south Mumbai, with special memories for Tukaram G. Omble who sacrificed his life while pinning down Ajmal Amir Kasab, the sole terrorist nabbed alive in the early hours of November 27, 2008.

The still-grieving family members, relatives of the martyrs and several Bravehearts, as also ordinary people paid homage to the departed souls with folded hands, bowed heads, lighting candles, offering flowers or wreaths, at the Martyrs’ Memorial and other locations in the city.

They included the widows, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers or sisters, who stepped up to the memorial and offered their own personal tributes with flowers or tears for their departed near and beloved ones.

Similar memorials were held at some of the worst-hit targets like the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Hotel Taj Mahal Palace, Hotel Oberoi, the Chabad House, the Cama Hospital, and the Leopold Cafe, which bore the brunt of attackers leaving around 175 dead and over 300 injured.

The traditional and social media featured several remembrance ads, glowing and touching tributes and messages of the 60-hours that shook the world before the security forces won over the terrorists – eliminating 9 and taking one (Kasab) alive – to face the Indian law in an unprecedented ‘open trial’.

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Afghanistan Arab News World

Iran helps the families affected by terrorist attacks in Afghan

Iran helps the families affected by terrorist attacks in Afghan

Scores of families affected by the latest terrorist attacks in two Afghan provinces have received humanitarian aid provided by Iran…reports Asian Lite News

At least 93 worshippers were killed and more than 230 people wounded in suicide bomb attacks against two Shiite Muslim mosques during Friday prayers in northern Kunduz and southern Kandahar provinces earlier this month, Xinhua New Agency reported.

In northern Kunduz province, 240 families of victims were provided food and non-food items on Monday morning, Matiullah Rohani, director of provincial information and culture directorate, told Xinhua.

Iran helps the families affected by terrorist attacks in Afghan

The assistance was dispatched to Kunduz airport a couple of days ago by planes, the official said.

Earlier on Monday, two planes transported 35 tons of relief goods consignment, including 10 tons of medicines, from Iran to Kandahar International Airport, according to Hafiz Abdul Hai, head of provincial health directorate.

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A total of 30 patients, who sustained serious wounds, will be shifted to Iran from a regional hospital in Kandahar city, capital of Kandahar, the official noted.

The affiliates of Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the deadly explosions that occurred on October 15 and October 8 in Afghanistan

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-Top News Canada India News

Canada remembers Kanishka bombing victims on 36th anniversary

HC Ajay Bisaria paid homage to the victims of the terrorist bombing of Air India flight AI-182 ‘Kanishka’ at the Kanishka Memorial, Ottawa(@HCI_Ottawa)

The terror attack that took place on June 23, 1985 claimed 329 lives including 268 Canadian citizens, 27 British citizens and 24 Indian citizens…reports Asian Lite News

Kin of the victims of the 1985 mid-air bombing of Air India flight 182, named Kanishka, marked the 36th anniversary of the worst terror attack in Canada’s history with visits to memorials and through online events on Wednesday.

On June 23, 1985, Air India’s Boeing aircraft was heading from Montreal to London when it exploded at around 31,000 feet off the Irish coast as a bomb planted inside the plane by Khalistani terrorists went off. The terror attack claimed 329 lives including 268 Canadian citizens, 27 British citizens and 24 Indian citizens

The terror attack is recognised in Canada as a National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the “despicable act of terror remains the deadliest terrorist attack in Canada’s history. Sadly, it was not the last time Canada had to confront the malice of terrorism”.

HC Ajay Bisaria paid homage to the victims of the terrorist bombing of Air India flight AI-182 ‘Kanishka’ at the Kanishka Memorial, Ottawa(@HCI_Ottawa)

Indian High Commissioner to Canada, Ajay Bisaria pays homage to the victims of the terrorist bombing of Air India flight AI-182 ‘Kanishka’ at the Kanishka Memorial, Ottawa. (Source: Twitter)

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Meanwhile, Indian High Commissioner to Canada, Ajay Bisaria said, “This terrible incident revealed to the world the heavy cost that Khalistani terrorism could inflict on humanity. Today, I join the families of the victims and share their deep sorrow and pain as we pay homage to their memory. The terrorist bombing of the Air India flight remains the worst terrorist attack on Canada and the worst aviation disaster after 9/11. The majority of the victims were Canadians and the bombing was a result of a conspiracy conceived, planned and executed in Canada. This was principally a Canadian tragedy. But it was also a British tragedy an American tragedy and Indian tragedy… A global tragedy. No religion, faith or cause can justify such violence. Our most enduring tribute to the victims will be rededicating ourselves in fighting and eliminating terrorism and militancy with strong determination and joint action.”

Air India 182 memorial, Toronto(wikipedia)

Indian officials laid wreathes at memorials, with India’s high commissioner to Canada Ajay Bisaria doing so in Ottawa; consul generals in Toronto and Vancouver, Apoorva Srivastava and Manish, in their respective cities; and the representative of India to the International Civil Aviation Organisation, Shefali Juneja, visiting the site in Montreal.

Earlier in the day, Hardeep Singh Puri, India’s Civil Aviation Minister tweeted, “This dastardly bombing on 23 June, 1985 remains one of the most reprehensible acts of aviation terror committed against India. Actions anchored in such extremism have no place in a sane and civilised world.”

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