Islamabad, Dec 20 (PTI) Pakistan forces have killed 28 militants in the restive north-western tribal region, intensifying the campaign against them after the Peshawar school massacre that left 148 people dead, mostly students.
A security official today said that jet fighters targeted militants in Tirah valley of Khyber, which killed 21 militants and destroyed their seven hideouts.
Private TV channels reported that Peshawar attack “mastermind” Umer Naray was also killed in the attack but it was not confirmed.
Separately, the security forces killed five terrorists in Darra Adam Khel near Peshawar in a targeted operation.
Also, the police and paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) attacked a Taliban facilitator Sayyar Khan in Machini area near Peshawar, leading to a gun battle with the militants.
Senior police officer Ijaz Ahmad told media that Khan and another militant were killed while a policemen and an FC soldier embraced martyrdom in the fight.
So far 152 militants have been killed in counter-terror operation since the Peshawar attack on Tuesday.
Army chief General Raheel Sharif last evening visited Khyber and met the troops on the front lines.
He also met with Special Services Group (SSG) soldiers or Commandos who are spearheading the targeted operations.
Army said Gen Sharif told the soldiers that fight against militants would continue till last of the rebel was eliminated.
The security forces have launched hunt for rebels after the Peshawar attack.
Army has vowed to take out Tehreek-e-Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah nicknamed the “Radio Mullah”, who is said to be in contact with the Peshawar school attackers during the assault.
Pakistani security forces yesterday killed at least 67 militants in a countrywide swoop.
Indian-American Richard Rahul Verma has been sworn in as the US Ambassador to India by Secretary of State John Kerry.
46-year-old Verma is the first ever Indian-American to be the top US diplomat in New Delhi.
He is scheduled to arrive in India ahead of Kerry’s visit to Delhi next month. US President Barack Obama will arrive in late January to attend the Republic Day Parade on January 26 as the Chief Guest.
He was confirmed by the US Senate by a voice vote last week. Last week he met Obama at the White House.
Verma, who quietly played an important role in the Congressional passage of civil nuclear deal with India, had advocated for strong Indo-US ties when in the administration and recently started “India 2020” project at Centre for American Progress — a top American-think tank.
He will replace Nancy Powell, who resigned in March after a damaging row over the treatment of diplomat Devyani Khobragade over visa fraud charges.
The US Embassy in New Delhi is currently headed by a charge d’affaires, Kathleen Stephens.
Verma’s association with Obama goes back to 2008 when he worked on presidential debate preparations for the then Illinois senator.
His parents came to the US in the early 1960s.
“It is a day of celebration for Indian Americans,” said Dr Sampat Shivangi, national president of Indian American Forum for Political Education.
“Verma deserves this worthy appointment due to his dedication and well deserved respect he commands from President Obama and entire US Congress and the nation,” said Shivangi, one of the few Indian—Americans invited to attend the swearing in ceremony at the State Department yesterday.
The event was closed for the press.
New Delhi: Several members of a saffron outfit were Friday detained by the police after they staged a protest at the Pakistan High Commissioner’s residence at Tilak Marg here this afternoon demanding that he be sent back to Pakistan.
Several members of Hindu Sena outfit were today detained and taken to the Tilak Marg police station following a protest outside Pakistan High Commissioner’s residence, a senior police official said.
The protestors were released after an hour, police said.
Demanding that the Pakistan High Commissioner should be sent back, the protestors urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take up the matter to the United Nations for the speedy trial of the terror attack.
The demand comes after a Pakistani Court had granted bail to Zakir-ur-Rehman Lakhvi in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
New Delhi: ‘Amplifier’ singer Imran Khan, who has lent his voice for a song in upcoming film ‘Tevar’, says the new-age rappers might have become a rage with the listeners but they have not given quality music to Bollywood.
Imran has made his debut in the Hindi Film industry with the ‘Lets Celebrate’ song and said he does not like the music of many hit hit hip-hop artists and rappers. “Personally I don’t like their music. I feel it is just over-hyped. These Punjabi rappers and artists, who have entered Bollwyood from outside, have destroyed its image. Bollywood music is not about hip-hop but it is more about colours.
“Hip-hop should be left to others. And if one attempts that, it should be done in a proper way but the current fusion of hip-hop and Bollywood, in my opinion, is not good. I will bring a change in this scene now. ” Imaran told PTI in an interview. The popular Punjabi singer said before ‘Tevar’ he had turned down many offers by Bollywood filmmakers but Boney Kapoor (producer of ‘Tevar’) made him feel at home and he felt an instant connection with him.
“Several producers and actors had approached me earlier but I rejected the offers as I felt that they just wanted to use me. I did not feel right about it. I am not a greedy person so I knew if I would make Bollywood debut I will make with a good project. When Boney
Kapoor came to me, I felt like I met my lost family in India. He, Arjun (Kapoor) and everyone made me feel comfortable. I liked the film’s story. I am glad to have made my Bollywood debut with this film,” he said.
‘Tevar’, starring Arjun Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha in lead, is hitting theatres on January 9, 2015.
CAIRNS (Australia): Australian police said on Saturday they had arrested the mother of most of eight children reportedly stabbed to death in the northern city of Cairns, as vigils were held to mourn the tragedy.
Officers have not revealed the cause of death of the children, aged between 18 months and 14 years, but said knives were found at the house where the bodies were discovered on Friday morning.
READ ALSO: Eight children found dead in Australia home
Flowers and teddy bears were laid near the crime scene and church services were held overnight in Cairns for the killings, which have shocked the community.
“The 37-year-old mother of several of the children involved in this incident has been arrested for murder overnight and is currently under police guard at the Cairns Base Hospital,” detective inspector Bruno Asnicar told reporters.
The woman, believed to be the mother of seven of the children and the aunt of the eighth, has not been charged, but Queensland Police said she was assisting them with their inquiries.
Flowers and stuffed toys are laid opposite the scene where eight children ranging from babies to teenagers were found dead in a house in the northern Australian city of Cairns early on December 20, 2014. (AFP Photo)
“She’s stable and being looked after,” Asnicar said, adding that the woman, who has stab wounds to her upper body, was “awake … lucid and speaking”. He could not say whether her wounds were self-inflicted.
“At this stage we’re not looking for anybody else. We’re comfortable that the community at large is safe,” he added.
The murders have rocked Australia, which is still reeling from a dramatic siege in a central Sydney cafe this week that left two hostages and a gunman dead and prompted a huge outpouring of emotion.
The dead children were reportedly discovered by the mother’s 20-year-old son when he arrived at the house in the Cairns suburb of Manoora on Friday morning.
The deaths have come as a shock to police, who said the house was not known as a “problem house”.
“This is just an ordinary neighbourhood,” Asnicar said. “A lot of good people, a lot of kids in the area and this is just something that has caught everybody by surprise. It’s absolutely tragic.”
Candlelit vigils and church services took place in Cairns overnight, and police said they are working closely with the indigenous Torres Strait Islander community to which the family belonged.
Torres Shire Council Mayor Pedro Stephen told Australian Associated Press that the entire region was grieving.
“It’s like a bomb has gone off,” he said. “Everyone is in shock.” Acting Assistant Police Commissioner Paul Taylor said the impact of the deaths would be felt across Australia.
“There will be people who have never, ever been to Cairns who will be touched by this tragedy,” he said.
Reports said a woman was heard screaming in the house on Thursday night, with Brisbane’s Courier-Mail saying she was heard to shout: “Don’t let them take away from us. God bless us. Forgive me for what I’ll do.”
One neighbour told the paper the woman was having “a bad night” on Thursday.
“I heard her fighting with someone this morning about 4:00 am” on Friday (1800 GMT Thursday), she said. “I last saw her about 6:00 am, then it was quiet.
“I saw her moving stuff out of the house yesterday. She was putting furniture and stuff out the front on the street, giving stuff away to family and friends.
“She said she was changing her life. She wasn’t well but she loved those kids.”
A 13-year-old girl who is friends with one of the children that lived in the house said she had walked her friend home on Thursday night after shopping and had met the mother, who had given her money for a taxi ride home.
“She was saying stuff about God and other stuff,” she told Australian Associated Press. “She said: ‘Papa God gave me the power to do anything’.”
Baltimore (USA): Olympic swimming great Michael Phelps looked to the future, including the Rio Olympics in 2016, after he dodged a stint in prison for drunk driving.
Nagapattinam: An engineer was missing after a barge carrying 60 tonnes of essential commodities and diesel to a ship engaged in exploration activities off Nagapattinam coast sank in the sea, Coast Guard officials said.
The CG managed to rescue seven workers on board but the Engineer Ranjith Singh, who was in command of the barge, was missing.
They had set sail from Karaikal port on Thursday to ferry the items to the ship owned by a Mumbai-based firm, officials said.
Last evening, the barge developed a problem when it was off Nagapattinam coast with workers spotting an oil leak. When the engineer was trying to set things right, a glass pane of the barge broke and sea water started getting in following which it started sinking.
The seven workers managed to jump into the sea.
On information, Indian Coast Guard, Karaikal Station Commander Uddhal Singh deputed a vessel to the spot which rescued the workers struggling in the water and brought them to shore. They were given first aid and admitted to Karaikal Government Hospital last night.
However, the team could not trace the engineer, a native of Mumbai, Singh said, adding, search operations were still on.
A listless India capitulated to a four-wicket defeat in the second cricket Test against Australia with an inept batting display by the top-order to give the hosts an invincible 2-0 lead in the four-match series here today.
Resuming at the overnight score of 71 for one, the visitors lost four wickets in quick succession with an addition of only 16 runs and were eventually bowled out for 224 in 64.3 overs.
Chasing a paltry victory target of 128, Australians lost as many as six wickets but were always in control as they knocked off the required runs with more than a day to spare in what turned out to be a miserable fourth day for the Indians at the Gabba.
Nothing seemed to go right for the visitors when play started this morning with regular opener and overnight unbeaten batsman Shikhar Dhawan (81) not coming out to bat.
Dhawan, apparently suffered an injury to his right wrist during the morning practice session which led to Virat Kohli (1) coming out with Cheteshwar Pujara (43).
Kohlis early departure virtually triggered off the collapse as Mitchell Johnson ripped through the top-order and finished with figures of four for 61 while Josh Hazlewood (2/74), Mitchell Starc (2/27) and Nathan Lyon (2/33) also chipped in.
Had it not been for 60-run eighth wicket partnership between Dhawan and Umesh Yadav (30), India wouldnt have been able to set a three-figure target.
Australian run-chase was marked by two early jolts with David Warner (6) and Shane Watson (0) and though they continued to lose wickets, the target was never beyond reach.
Mitchell Marshs cover drive brought about the victory triggering off scenes of celebrations in the Australian camp as the players hugged each other.
The defeat also brought to the fore Indias dismal record outside the sub-continent with their 15th defeat in the last three and half years.
Mahendra Singh Dhonis poor track record as Test captain in overseas conditions continued as he lost his 14th Test match outside the sub-continent. Dhoni has now lost seven Tests in England, four in Australia, one in New Zealand, one in South Africa since 2011.
The two teams will now travel to Melbourne for the Boxing Day Test with Australia needing a win or atleast a draw to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Even though there couldnt be excuse for abject surrender, India did suffer due to a few umpiring howlers with Rohit Sharma (0) and Ravichandran Ashwin (19) being adjudged out when the TV replays showed that there was no nick.
However one cant deny that Indian batsmen were done in by the extra bounce.
When Australia chased, Chris Rogers (55 runs, 57 balls, 10 fours) and Steve Smith (28 runs, 39 balls, 4 fours) added 63 runs for the third wicket to lay the platform which ensured that Australia reached home safely despite the fall of a few wickets.
Rogers brought up his seventh Test half-century off exactly 50 balls, playing the aggressor as the Australian batsmen scored at a good pace. Their 50-mark came up in the 13th over and only two overs later they celebrated their 50-run stand.
India suffered a blow to any hopes they had of winning the match when Smith, on nine, was dropped in the 14th over off Varun Aaron (0-38) by Virat Kohli at second slip. Then came the hiccups with Rogers the first to go, caught at third slip off Ishant Sharma (3-38).
Shaun Marsh (17) then added a quick-fire 29 runs for the 4th wicket with Smith, before being dismissed off Umesh Yadav (2-46) in the 21st over, caught behind as he tried to clip one to the leg-side.
Smith was run-out in the very next over, and when Brad Haddin (1) was caught at fine leg in the 23rd over, there was still some cricket left to play as Australia struggled to 122/6. But Mitchell Marsh (6 not out) and Mitchell Johnson (2 not out) had none of it, taking their side home without any more fuss.
Just before tea, Ishant took two quick wickets to send back David Warner (6) and Shane Watson (0), reducing the hosts to 25/2 at the break and raising visions of a tough fight-back from the touri
DUBAI: A bomb blast in a Shiite village in Bahrain, the scene of simmering unrest since anti-government protests were crushed in 2011, has left three policemen slightly wounded, officials said.
The three were on patrol in the village of Bani Jamra when the blast occurred, the Gulf kingdom’s Interior Ministry said in a statement on Twitter posted late Friday.
It said that the three sustained minor injuries, describing the explosion as a “terrorist” blast and adding that “necessary steps are being taken,” without elaborating.
Witnesses said that the blast occurred late Friday and that security forces swiftly sealed off the village, which lies not far from the capital Manama.
They added that a young protester was also injured in clashes with police in another Shiite village, Sanabes, late Friday.
Attacks against security forces have intensified this year.
Two people, including a Jordanian policeman, were killed in the area last week.
It was the first deadly attack on security forces since parliamentary polls in November boycotted by the main Shiite opposition group, which is calling for democratic reforms in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.
The election was the first in the Gulf state since authorities quelled the 2011 protests.
Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, remains deeply divided three years after the month-long demonstrations.
Protests still frequently break out in Bahrain’s Shiite villages, sometimes sparking clashes with police.
Attacks on the security forces have increased this year, with three policemen – including an Emirati – killed in a bombing in a Shiite area on March 3.
Another policeman was killed in a bomb blast in a Shiite village in February during protests marking the third anniversary of the failed uprising.
With an aim of preserving and revitalising the soul of old cities, government will launch the Rs 500 crore heritage city development project early next year.
National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) will be launched for 12 selected cities early next year, Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu said at a workshop organised here for the project.
The cities selected for the HRIDAY project are Amritsar, Varanasi, Gaya, Puri, Ajmer, Velankanni, Mathura, Kanchipuram, Dwarka, Badami, Warangal and Amravati.
The cities selected under the scheme are symbolic of the broad diversity in the heritage prevalent in our country, in form of their cultural, regional and religious identities, he said, adding, “More cities will be identified in due course based on joint consultations between Centre and states.”
As per the plan of action, steps will be taken to tap the unlimited potential underlying in tourism and heritage sector unleashing the power of skillful artisans and traditional economy.
“Our aim is to preserve the rich heritage and showcase them to the next generation as the contribution or achievements of our ancestors,” he said.
The project with a time-frame of three to five years and an outlay of Rs 500 crores in Phase 1 is expected to be launched next year.
Naidu said the entire funding will be from the Centre and the cities will have to submit the detailed project report for this.
HRIDAY will have four themes – physical infrastructure, institutional infrastructure, economic infrastructure and social infrastructure for reviving and revitalising the soul of heritage city.
He said the project is also open to private participation. “If any organisation wants to join it then it is OK because citizens’ engagement shall be pivotal”.
“A liitle effort on our side can create transformational changes, which will make the past, the present and the future generations of the country and the world proud of India,” he said.
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