FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, June 20

June 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – Following are security developments in Iraq at 1230 GMT on Sunday.

BAGHDAD – Suicide car bombers attacked the Trade Bank of Iraq, killing at least 26 people and wounded 53 in central Baghdad, an Interior Ministry source said.

BAGHDAD – Police on Saturday found the decomposing bodies of six women and two men in a suspected brothel in eastern Baghdad, Iraqi police sources said on Sunday.

KIRKUK – Police found the body of an off-duty Iraqi soldier inside his car in southern Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

(Compiled by Baghdad newsroom)

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Eight decomposing bodies found in Baghdad brothel

June 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – The decomposing bodies of six women and two men were found in a suspected brothel in eastern Baghdad, Iraqi police sources said Sunday.

World

At the height of Iraq’s sectarian war in 2006/07, militias frequently killed people deemed to be violating Islamic law, often targeting suspected brothels and liquor stores.

The corpses were found in Zayouna district, a mixed Sunni-Shi’ite neighborhood of eastern Baghdad, Saturday.

The bodies of six naked women were found in one room, and two men in another, the source said, adding that police were alerted by neighbors who had complained about the smell coming from the building.

The cause of death was not immediately clear due to the advance stages of decomposition, the sources said.

Islamist militias filled the vacuum created by Iraq’s security chaos in the years following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, imposing their own interpretation of Islamic law in Baghdad, a city known at times under the secular rule of Saddam Hussein for its nightlife and liberal culture.

Such killings have become less frequent as overall security improves and the role of militias, many linked to political parties, has decreased.

(Writing by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Matt Robinson)

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Eight decomposing bodies found in Baghdad brothel

June 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

BAGHDAD, June 20 (Reuters) – The decomposing bodies of six women and two men were found in a suspected brothel in eastern Baghdad, Iraqi police sources said on Sunday.

At the height of Iraq’s sectarian war in 2006/07, militias frequently killed people deemed to be violating Islamic law, often targeting suspected brothels and liquor stores.

The corpses were found in Zayouna district, a mixed Sunni-Shi’ite neighbourhood of eastern Baghdad, on Saturday.

The bodies of six naked women were found in one room, and two men in another, the source said, adding that police were alerted by neighbours who had complained about the smell coming from the building.

The cause of death was not immediately clear due to the advance stages of decomposition, the sources said.

Islamist militias filled the vacuum created by Iraq’s security chaos in the years following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, imposing their own interpretation of Islamic law in Baghdad, a city known at times under the secular rule of Saddam Hussein for its nightlife and liberal culture.

Such killings have become less frequent as overall security improves and the role of militias, many linked to political parties, has decreased. (Writing by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Matt Robinson)

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Arms for US embassy seized in Pakistan: Report

June 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Islamabad, June 6 (IANS) Suspicious luggage containing bulletproof jackets and weapons allegedly belonging to the US embassy was seized by police here, a media report said.

Islamabad police Saturday intercepted at the Zero Point picket here a suspicious vehicle which was found to be carrying cargo comprising M-16 rifles and magazines; 9 mm pistols and magazines, several pistol pouches, compasses, radio sets, maps, knives, and other army articles, The Nation quoted sources as saying.

The two carriers — identified as Noushad and Lal Badshah — were arrested and during questioning disclosed that they were transporting these weapons to the US embassy, the paper said quoting sources close to the investigation.

The accused told the police that they had nothing to do with the weapons. ‘The US embassy has just hired our services to transport this luggage,’ the police quoted them as saying.

The newspaper report also said that a number of officials of the US embassy tried hard to secure the release of the weapons but the police refused to oblige.

According to the report, the consignment was meant for one Gustovo Ritschl of the US army. However, the accused did not have any permission from the US embassy authorities.

Police sources said they also recovered ‘hundreds of pouches’ of different weapons besides body armour, CDs, cell phones and sunglasses.

The spokesman for the US embassy neither confirmed nor denied the incident, the report said.

The police have registered a case. This is the third FIR registered against US embassy personnel, the report said.

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Asian woman stabs anti-knife campaigner UK MP in London

May 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 15 (ANI): In a bizarre attack, prominent anti-knife campaigner MP Stephen Timms was stabbed in the stomach by a young Asian woman. Curiously she was not motivated to commit the act.

The 21- year-old woman, wearing an orange head-scarf nonchalantly plunged the knife twice into Timm�s stomach. Timms was saved by his fearless aide, Andrew Bazeley, who wrestled the woman down and disarmed her.

According to police sources, Timms should thank his lucky stars that the knife missed his vital organs.

“He could easily have been killed. The knife missed his vital organs. But an inch or two either way and it would have been curtains,” The Sun quoted police as saying.

Meanwhile, the authorities have failed to pinpoint the motive for the woman�s attack. According to eyewitnesses, she appeared composed and did not have a history of mental illness.

The Asian community has expressed its support for Timms, a devout Christian. Local community worker Rahman Fazlur described Timms as “an excellent MP” and said he had first-rate relations with the Asian community. (ANI)

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Two Hizbul militants killed in Jammu

April 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Jammu, Apr 24 (ANI): Security forces gunned down two Hizbul Mujaheedin (HM) militants in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir”s Doda District on Saturday.

Police sources said the encounter started late on Friday night and ended on Saturday morning.

Doda Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Prabhat Singh said one militant was killed on Friday night while the other on Saturday morning.

The slain militants have been identified as Tanvir Ahmad, an area commander, and Zubair Ahmad, a close associate.

The encounter took place in Gandoh which is over 180 kilometres from Jammu. (ANI)

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Maoists kill Congress leader in Jharkhand

March 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Ranchi (Jharkhand), Mar 31 (ANI): The Maoists shot dead Congress leader Gobardhan Mahali in Jharkhand”s East Singhbhum district to protest against Operation Green Hunt in the state.

Mahali, who was the Congress president of Dalbhumgarh block in East Singhbhum district was killed late on Tuesday night, said police sources.

“Around 25 rebels of Communist Party of India- Maoists (CPI-M) raided Mahali”s house in Maacchbhandhar village and took him towards the jungle area at gunpoint. The Maoists then pumped in three bullets in his head,” said a police official.

The Maoists had earlier warned that it would kill Congress leaders if the operation is not stopped against them.

Earlier on March 24, a group of over 100 Maoists raided a village and gunned down two local leaders of Communist Party of India (Marxist) at Silda in West Medinipur district of West Bengal.

A majority of Maoist rebels have ignored repeated calls from the government to renounce violence and negotiate.

Instead, they have stepped up their attacks in recent months, prompting the government to go after them in a concerted strike.

The Maoist rebels had on February 22 offered a conditional 72-day ceasefire through the media, and said they are willing to talk to the government if it aborts Operation Green Hunt. Many believe the truce offer is a ruse to regroup.

The Maoists contend they are fighting for the rights of the poor, marginal farmers and the landless labourers. (ANI)

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Missing Amity University student”s dead body found in Aligarh

March 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh), Mar 25 (ANI): The body of a missing Amity University student Rohit Kumar, was found in Aligarh this morning.

Rohit Kumar, a B. Tech second year student from Amity had been untraceable since Sunday. A missing person report had been lodged with Noida Police.

Sources said a ransom of Rs one crore had been demanded for Rohit”s release.

Police have taken Rohit”s friend into custody for questioning in connection with the case.

Rohit had returned to Noida from his native place Aligarh on March 20, but had gone missing since then. (ANI)

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Eight Naxalites, one CRPF officer killed in Chhattisgarh encounter

September 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Dantewada, Sept 18 (ANI): Eight naxalites and one Assistant Commandant of the CRPF were killed in an encounter in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewada district.

According to police sources, four jawans were also injured in an encounter.

A team of CRPF and state police force had an encounter with the naxalites in the jungle last night under the Chitagufa police station area of the district. (ANI)

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Maoists blow up rail track in Orissa

September 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Rourkela, Sep 10 (ANI): The Maoists blew up a railway track and at least four government buildings in Orissa’s Sundargarh district today.

According to police sources, the rebels blasted railway tracks at around seven places between Bimlagarh and Patangi.

They also blew up an abandoned police station building at Kalta, another building where a CRPF camp was functioning earlier, a community centre and office building of CITU.

Train services between Rourkela and Barsuan have been completely disrupted due to the blasts. here was no report about any casualty in the attacks.

The Maoists have called for a 24-hour shut-down in the district today to demand release of 30 people, who were arrested on the suspicion that were naxalites. (ANI)

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CM’s chopper has landed, search on for its location: Andhra Finance Minister(1st Lead:AP CM)

September 2, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Hyderabad, Sep.2 (ANI): Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K.Rosiah on Wednesday confirmed that the state government helicopter carrying Chief Minister Y.S. Rajshekhar Reddy has landed in a forest area in Chitoor District, and efforts are on to locate it.

Addressing a news conference in the state capital, Rosiah said: “All state and central forces are on alert. At the moment, we are still tracing the location of the missing chopper, which has landed in the forests in the Chitoor-Nellore area. We are finding a way to reach the place.”

Rosiah said the state government has alerted the Union Home Ministry about the missing chopper. He said search choppers, including two Indian Air Force Chetak helicopters have been roped in for the search operations. He said that after 9.35 a.m., contact had been lost with the chopper carrying the chief minister.

Rosiah said that the Prime Minister’s office as well as the offices of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Home Minister P. Chidambaram and Defence Minister A.K. Antony are being kept posted about the latest developments.

He also issued an appeal to the public to contribute to the search effort.

Rosiah’s briefing came as Andhra Pradesh Police continues their search for the missing chopper of the chief minister.

According to police sources, a civilian copter, air force helicopters and the army has been pushed in to the search operation.

Panic was created around Wednesday noon as Reddy was reported untraceable for nearly four hours.

Reddy was on his way to Chitoor, by chopper which initial reports said had made an emergency landing near Kurnool due to inclement weather.

The chopper took off at 8.45 a.m. for Chitoor and was scheduled to arrive here at 10.45 a.m, sources said.

The chopper was said to have landed in the middle a of thick forest, said to be affected by Maoist activities.

The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) confirmed receiving a message of the emergency landing of the chopper, but nothing thereafter.

Till now, no one has confirmed the movements of Reddy.

The Union Home Ministry is monitoring the search operations, as Kurnool is a Naxal affected area.

Air Traffic Control (ATC) sources said the chopper went off the radar due to heavy rains.

The CMO maintains there is no need to worry as the area has no mobile connectivity. (ANI)

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Missing CM’s chopper: Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister to address media(Lead:AP CM)

September 2, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Hyderabad, Sep.2 (ANI): Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K. Rosaiah will address a press conference at 4 p.m. here, during which he will provide an update on the whereabouts of Chief Minister Y.S. Rajshekhar Reddy.

Rosiah’s briefing comes in the wake of Andhra Pradesh Police continuing their search for the missing chopper of the chief minister.

According to police sources, a civilian copter, air force helicopters and the army has been pushed in to the search operation.

Panic was created around Wednesday noon as Reddy was reported untraceable for nearly four hours.

Reddy was on his way to Chitoor, by chopper which initial reports said had made an emergency landing near Kurnool due to inclement weather.

The chopper took off at 8.45 a.m. for Chitoor and was scheduled to arrive here at 10.45 a.m, sources said.

The chopper was said to have landed in the middle a of thick forest, said to be affected by Maoist activities.

The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) confirmed receiving a message of the emergency landing of the chopper, but nothing thereafter.

Till now, no one has confirmed the movements of Reddy.

The Union Home Ministry is monitoring the search operations, as Kurnool is a Naxal affected area.

Air Traffic Control (ATC) sources said the chopper went off the radar due to heavy rains.

The CMO maintains there is no need to worry as the area has no mobile connectivity. (ANI)

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Search for Andhra CM’s missing chopper continues

September 2, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Hyderabad, Sep 2 (ANI): Andhra Pradesh Police is continuing a search for the missing chopper of Chief Minister Y.S. Rajshekhar Reddy.

According to police sources, a civilian copter has been pushed in to the search operation. nconfirmed reports said the Army has also joined the search operation.

Panic was created around Wednesday noon as Reddy was reported untraceable for nearly four hours.

Reddy was on his way to Chittor, by the chopper which initial reports said had made an emergency landing near Kurnool due to inclement weather.

The chopper took off at 8.45 a.m. for Chittor and was scheduled to arrive here at 10.45 a.m, sources said.

The chopper was said to have landed in the middle of thick forest, said to be affected by the Maoist activities.

The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) confirmed the receiving a message of the emergency landing of the chopper, but nothing thereafter.

Till now, no one has confirmed the movements of Reddy.

The Union Home Ministry is monitoring the search operations, as Kurnool is a Naxal affected area.

Air Traffic Control (ATC) sources said the chopper went off the radar due to heavy rains.

The CMO maintains there is no need to worry, as the area has no mobile connectivity. (ANI)

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Jharkhand police rescues abducted official from Maoist clutches

September 2, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Ranchi, sep 2 (ANI): The Jharkhand Police on Wednesday rescued a State Government official, who was abducted by the Maoists in Palamau District.

According to police sources, a 20 member armed gang of the Jharkhand Liberation Tiger (JLT) had abducted Alok Kumar, a Circle Officer (CO) of Paki block in Palamau district, on Monday.

The incident tookplace in Kekargarh village of Palamau, about 190 km from the state capital Ranchi.

Kumar was rescued from the forest near Manatu block in the district on the early hours, sources added.umar was visiting the villages to select the workers for the Anganwadi when he was abducted.

The Maoists demanded a ransom of Rs 20 lakh for the release of Kumar.

“It was the police operation that forced the rebels to release Kumar,” said a police officer involved in the rescue operation.

Jharkhand has turned into a major Maoist hub in the country. The red ultras have the dominance in 18 of the 24 districts of the state. (ANI)

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Railway gangman killed by train robbers in Bihar

August 30, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Patna, Aug 30 (ANI): A railway employee was killed and 10 others were injured when an armed gang looted cash and valuables from passengers of Jhajha-Patna local train in Bihar’s Jamui district on early Sunday.

The incident took place in the East Central Railway zone.

According to police sources, armed robbers boarded the train at Jamui and went on a looting spree.

The robbers snatched cellular phones, cash and other valuables worth around Rs 1 lakh from the passengers, police sources added.

The railway gangman, Mukesh Mandal, was shot at when he tried to resist looters near Mahesh Leta station.

Mandal, who sustained serious wounds, died on the way to a hospital at Jamui, sources said.

At least 10 passengers were wounded in a stampede, which was created due to the fire by the robbers.

The robbers managed to escape after pulling the chain of the train near Mahesh Leta station.

The Railway Police and the Bihar state Police are conducting search operation in the area for the robbers. (ANI)

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UK cops to probe injured footie Davenport on alleged race row

August 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Aug. 26 (ANI): West Ham soccer star Calum Davenport will be quizzed by cops over an alleged race row before he was stabbed in both legs.

The Sun quoted police sources as saying the inquiry initially focused on the stabbing of the 26-year-old West Ham defender, but now they are working backwards after it turned out that Davenport’s sister Cara’s boyfriend was of mixed race.

Worrell Whitehurst, the mixed race lover of Cara, has appeared in court charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Davenport went to 28-year-old Cara’s Bedford home early on Saturday after a night out.

Magistrates heard he allegedly told her he disapproved of her having a baby fathered by Whitehurst, 25.

Cops were called after Whitehurst arrived but both men left.

Hours later Davenport was found bleeding from a leg artery outside his mum Kim Stupple’s house in nearby Kempston. She was also wounded.

Cops will wait until Davenport is discharged from a hospital’s intensive care unit before talking to him about the race row.

He had an emergency op after losing 50 per cent of his blood. His career is in the balance and he may have a leg amputated. (ANI)

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Peshawar blast: Case registered against Lashkar-e-Islam

August 25, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Peshawar, Aug 24 (ANI): The Peshawar Police has registered a case against an outlawed outfit of the Khyber Agency, Lashkar-e-Islam, for killing three persons and injuring 15 in Momin Town in a suicide bomb attack.

Four persons, including the suicide bomber, were killed in Peshawar. It was triggered by an apparent feud between rival militant groups, police said.

The attacker blew himself up outside the home of a brother of Mubeen Afridi, a spokesman for Taliban-linked extremist group Ansar-ul-Islam, who was killed in a remote-controlled blast on Saturday night.

According to police sources, a case has been registered in the Momin Town suicide blast against outlawed organization Lashkar-e-Islam.

Last year, the government launched a major operation against militant groups in Khyber after the rebels threatened to take over Peshawar, and the offensive sent their leaders running into the mountains bordering Afghanistan. (ANI)

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Territorial Army personnel seized with fake currency worth Rs.1.70 lakh

August 25, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Poonch (Jammu), Aug.24 (ANI): Two Territorial Army personnel were seized with fake currency worth Rs.1.70 lakh on Monday.

According to police sources, Mohammad Ashraf and Arif Hussain were nabbed in Poonch, Jammu. Further details are awaited. (ANI)

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Mumbai placed on alert after IB terror strike warning

July 15, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Mumbai, July 15 (ANI): Security has been beefed up in Mumbai and neighboring districts following an Intelligence Bureau (IB) terror alert.

According to Maharashtra’s Minister of State for Home, Naseem Khan, vigil has been increased at railway stations and major financial institutions, based on the IB input. IB gives such inputs regularly to the state governments.

It is believed that the IB warned that at least seven places in Maharashtra, including a reputed bank in Mumbai and an important railway junction in Navi Mumbai could be targeted.

It described the threat as specific and the most serious in last two years, sources added.

According to police, the security cover has been increased at Church Gate, Dadar, Andheri and a few railway stations on the Central Railway’s Harbor line in Navi Mumbai.

The alert was forwarded on July 8 after security forces recovered photographs of targets in Maharashtra from a terror suspect who was detained in Jammu and Kashmir.

The information gathered from the interrogation was shared with Maharashtra police, sources said.

Sources said the IB alert did not specify the number of terrorists planning to carry out the attack. (ANI)

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