Tag Archive for: news

Boko Haram Takfiri militants have reportedly killed at least 20 people outside a village in northeast Nigeria.

On Wednesday, a large group of Boko Haram terrorists fleeing a military offensive on their camp in Nganzai district opened fire on four cars just outside Jingalta village, 70 kilometres (45 miles) north of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, killing all 20 passengers inside, stated by local sources.

“We received information of an attack by Boko Haram militants on four cars near Jingalta village where they shot dead all the occupants of the vehicles before setting the cars ablaze,” stated Babakura Kolo, a member of an area vigilante staff aiding the army in preventing the Takfiri group in Maiduguri.

“The Takfiri militants were fleeing a military operation against one of their enclaves in the area around 9:30 am (0830GMT) when they came across the vehicles on the highway and opened fire on them,” Kolo said.

The militants, driving pick-up trucks and motorcycles, then looted and burnt the entire village whose residents had already fled following the attack, he added.

The death toll was approved by Jibir Hassan, a commercial bus driver who arrived at the scene after the militants had escaped and said, “When we arrived at Jingalta village, we found it smoldering, with everything completely burnt and just outside the village we saw bodies sprawled by the roadside, 20 of them in all and near the bodies were charred remains of four cars, still smoldering,”

Boko Haram Takfiri militants regularly kill the travelers they come across and attack villages while fleeing military offensives against their bases in the area, he said.

According to Hassan, Boko Haram killed five travelers and injured another in nearby Mile 40 village on Monday.

Boko Haram’s bloody militancy has reportedly claimed at least 17,000 lives and displaced 1.5 million people since 2009. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who put the struggle against Boko Haram high on the agenda just as he took office in May, has given the armed forces until the end of the year to crush the Takfiri movement.

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Iraqi security forces discover total of 19 graves around reconquered town of Baiji.

Iraqi forces said Wednesday they found 19 different mass graves containing the bodies of 365 fighters from the ISIS group in the reconquered town of Baiji.

An army officer confirmed a large number of ISIS bodies had been discovered in mass graves, but could not say how many and mentioned that some had also been found in another neighborhood.

In a statement, the security forces said that “the total number of graves discovered by the heroes of the Popular Mobilization is 19”.

It said the mass graves were found in the Asri neighborhood of Baiji, 200 kilometers north of Baghdad, and contained a total of “365 bodies of Daesh terrorists”.

Daesh is an Arab acronym for ISIS.

It was not clear how long the bodies had been buried there nor how all of them were identified as fighters.

Baiji and its nearby refinery — once the country’s largest but now extensively destroyed — has been the scene of almost uninterrupted fighting in the past 16 months.

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Secretary General of Pakistan’s top Islamic party Liaqat Baloch said on Thursday that he strongly believes that the US is not a reliable mediator in solving the issues of Muslim world.

Secretary General of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) Liaqat Baloch said that Pakistan should press the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation to help solve the longstanding issue of Kashmir instead of depending on the US.

He said that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz should not expect any good from the US on Kashmir issue by saying that the US is the most relevant party to help resolve the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.

“The United States would be the most relevant third party that could intervene to help resolve outstanding issues including Kashmir,” Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told US senators during his current visit to Washington.

“Yes I agree with the Prime Minister to the extent that intervention of third party is needed to resolve longstanding issue of Kashmir, but the third party can never be the US,” Liaqat Baloch said.

He said: one thing is very clear; the US would not help Muslims in resolving their issues.

The religious leader was of the view that a long-term strategy has to be formed to find a solution to Kashmir issue.

Liaqat Baloch said that Pakistan has to refer to the United Nations or the OIC on the issue of Kashmir.

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During his visit to Britain, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian reiterated that there is no Iranian fighting force in Syria but noted that Iranian advisers are helping the Syrian army in the battle against terrorist groups.

Iran has boosted the number of military advisers it has sent to Syria where it is determined to help defeat terrorism, Amir Abdollahian confirmed, while reiterating that the future of Syria can be decided only by the Syrian people.

In a Wednesday interview with the Guardian, Amir Abdollahian said there was “no (Iranian) fighting force, as such,” on the ground. But he said advisers were helping the Syrian army.

Amir Abdollahian also lashed out at Saudi Arabia, the leading supporter of terrorist and extremist groups in Syria, saying that its “radical policies” had encouraged the growth of terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and ISIL.

“The fight against terrorism in Syria has intensified and Russia has taken effective steps to fight Daesh (ISIL),” said Amir Abdollahian. “We have decided to increase the number of our military advisers in Syria to help the fight against terrorists. The number of officers and advisers is not important. What is important is an unwavering will to fight against terrorism.”

He said numbers were “commensurate with our capabilities and the requests made by the Syrian government. If need be, we will provide the same advisory services to our Russian friends.”

Amir Abdollahian also dismissed a scenario, related by diplomats, that Iran had urged Russia to intervene directly because it feared Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was in danger of falling after admitting losing territory and men. “We believe that armed groups even in the most demanding times were not able and will not be able to topple the Syrian government,” he said.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Amir Abdollahian dismissed a statement this week by the Saudi foreign minister, Adel al-Jubeir, that Syria was “occupied Iranian territory”, retorting that the Saudis were occupying Yemen, where Riyadh has been launching deadly air strikes against the Houthi Ansarullah movement in an attempt to restore power to the fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, one of its close allies.

“Considering the fact that for seven months Saudi Arabia has been attempting to occupy Yemen using force, when it comes to Syria they are not in a position to make such comments,” he said. “I recommend that (Jubeir) instead of passing the buck considers cooperation and constructive behavior in the region.”

He also referred to a recent deadly crush in Mina, Saudi Arabia, saying Saudi “mismanagement” was responsible for the deaths of large numbers of pilgrims, including at least 465 Iranians, in the Hajj disaster last month.

Amir Abdollahian further said he had held constructive talks in Brussels with Federica Mogherini, the EU foreign policy chief, on proposals to advance a political solution in Syria.

Amir Abdollahian is the most senior Iranian official to have visited Britain in a decade, weeks after embassies in both capitals were reopened following a four-year closure.

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Revolution’s Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in a letter to President Hassan Rouhani outlined important orders for the implementation of the JCPOA.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei in a letter to President Rouhani issued on Wednesday, expressed his appreciation with the negotiating team for its tremendous efforts as well as the Iranian officials who were critical about certain negative points of the nuclear agreement.

The Iranian Leader warned against the US stance toward Iran’s nuclear program as nothing but animosity, saying the cause of this perpetual animosity is the nature and identity of the Islamic Republic of Iran and as long as the Islamic Republic continues to disappoint and resist the US hegemony, the animosity would remain.

Ayat. Khamenei stressed the need for strong and adequate guarantees, such as a written announcement from US president and the EU on the lift of sanctions, to prevent the other side from violating its commitments.

The Leader maintained that through out the 8-year term, the imposition of sanctions at any level and under any pretext from any of the negotiating countries would mean the violation of the JCPOA and the Iranian government is obliged to cease its own commitments under the accord.

Ayat. Khamenei further stressed that the two following measures would come into effect only when the IAEA closes the case over Iran’s past and present nuclear activities.

The Leader asserted that Arak reactor modernization while maintaining its heavy water function will start only after signing a reliable contract for an alternative design.

On the issue of enriched uranium transaction, the Leader also stressed on a reliable contract followed by adequate guarantees.

He also maintained that measures in line with developing the country’s nuclear energy industry to be started from now until the next 15 years and to reach the 190,000 SWU will be reviewed carefully in the Supreme National Security Council.

Ayat. Khamenei further issued an order to the AEOI to organize nuclear research and development so that by the end of the 8-year term, there will be no lack of necessary technology for the accepted level of enrichment in the JCPOA.

He also stressed that the point of reference is the text of the negotiations itself and not the interpretations of the other side.

The Leader also ordered for a strong and knowledgeable team to be formed in order to observe and monitor the progress and the execution of commitments by the other side.

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