Saturday, May 25, 2013
At least seven Filipino marines and four Abu Sayyaf bandits were killed in a clash Saturday as the military launched an offensive against al-Qaeda-linked gunmen who have been blamed for recent kidnappings and of trying to sabotage a road project in the island province of Sulu, military officials said Saturday.
Nine other marines and about 10 Abu Sayyaf fighters were wounded in the gunbattle that broke around 6:40 a.m. Saturday and raged for an hour in the village of Tugas, Patikul municipality, military spokesman Brigade General Domingo Tutaan said.
[Read more…]
Friday, May 24, 2013
Sudan’s government launched a large-scale military campaign in areas controlled by the Darfur armed movements and rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) in the Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states. This comes amid reports that the authorities are anticipating surprises from the rebels in the northern and central parts of Sudan.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said that his country “strongly and firmly continues its actions until the armed forces — which will get all the support and backup to liberate every inch that is contaminated by the rebels — achieve victory.”
[Read more…]
At least two Afghan police officers and two assailants were killed and two Afghan police officials, an Italian woman and other foreign nationals were injured after Taliban insurgents launched a massive attack involving bomb explosions and gunfire in the midst of one of Kabul’s diplomatic quarters on Friday.
The attackers, before holding up in a building in the Shahr-i-Naw locality, set off a bomb followed by numerous smaller explosions and gunfire and were still engaged in a gun-battle with security forces.
[Read more…]
Thursday, May 23, 2013
A Malian group known as Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) has claimed responsibility for twin car bombings that killed more than two dozen people in northwest Niger.
MUJAO spokesman Abu Walid Sahraoui said his group carried out Thursday’s retaliatory attacks to punish Niger’s military cooperation with France in the ongoing war in Mali.
“We attacked France and Niger because of its co-operation with France, in the war against Sharia,” Sahraoui added.
[Read more…]
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
A senior US official, citing “multiple” rebel commanders, said Iranians were fighting alongside Hezbollah and Syrian government troops in the continuing battle for the border town of Qusair.
In a briefing to reporters the official said: “It is the most visible effort we have seen of Hezbollah to engage directly in the fighting in Syria as a foreign force. We understand there are also Iranians up there. That is what the Free Syrian Army commanders are telling us. I think this is an important thing to note, the direct implication of foreigners fighting on Syrian soil now for the regime.”
[Read more…]