Canada said on Thursday its military is set to deploy up to 60 medical staff to Iraq to run a field hospital for the international coalition fighting the Islamic State group. 
 
&quot;As part of our ongoing commitment, Canada will soon deploy up to 60 medical personnel who will be leading a medical facility alongside coalition partners in northern Iraq,&quot; defence minister Harjit Sajjan said in a statement following a meeting in Washington with other coalition members. 
 
Foreign affairs minister Stephane Dion added: &quot;Canada is proud to be contributing to all military and civilian lines of effort of the coalition. This type of integrated approach is essential to help secure long-term stability in the region.&quot; 
 
The medical personnel will join Canadian special forces and trainers already deployed to Iraq as part of the fight against IS. 
 
Canada withdrew from the coalition&#39;s bombing campaign in March following the election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but Ottawa still provides CP-140 Aurora surveillance and CC-150T Polaris refueling aircraft to the effort. 
 
(AFP)

The medical personnel will join Canadian special forces and trainers already deployed to Iraq as part of the fight against IS

Canada said on Thursday its military is set to deploy up to 60 medical staff to Iraq to run a field hospital for the international coalition fighting the Islamic State group. "As part of our ongoing commitment, Canada will soon deploy up to 60 medical personnel who will be leading a medical facility alongside coalition partners in northern Iraq," defence minister Harjit Sajjan said in a statement following a meeting in Washington with other coalition members. Foreign affairs minister Stephane Dion added: "Canada is proud to be contributing to all military and civilian lines of effort of the coalition. This type of integrated approach is essential to help secure long-term stability in the region." The medical personnel will join Canadian special forces and trainers already deployed to Iraq as part of the fight against IS. Canada withdrew from the coalition's bombing campaign in March following the election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but Ottawa still provides CP-140 Aurora surveillance and CC-150T Polaris refueling aircraft to the effort. (AFP)

Canada military to deploy up to 60 medical staff to Iraq

Two persons suspected of being sympathisers of Islamic State (IS) &ndash; the banned terror organisation, turned approvers in the supplementary chargesheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in a Delhi court on Wednesday. 
 
The NIA claimed that ISIS operatives, in connivance with a few resident and non-resident Indians, have been indulging in identification, radicalisation, recruitment and training of Indians. The counter-terror agency listed 18 accused in the chargesheet, of which 16 were charged and two turned approvers. 
 
The NIA has charged Mumbai resident, Muddabir Shaik, for leading the Indian module and also charged Mohammad Aleem, Mohammad Obaidullah Khan, Nafees Khan, Mohammad Shareef Moinuddin Khan, Asif Ali, Najmul Huda, Mohammad Abdul Ahad, Suhail Ahmed, Syed Mujahid, Mohammad Hussain Khan, Mohammad Afzal, Imran, Abu Anas, Mohammad Azhar Khan and Mufti Abdus Sami Qasmi. 
 
The accused were apprehended from various places across the country, including Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. 
 
Twice apprehended by the authorities, Mohammed Abdul Ahad, turned approver in the case, along with teenager Ashik Ahmed from West Bengal. Both were granted conditional pardon by the special NIA court at Patiala House on Wednesday. 
 
Ahad, 48, is a green card holder and along with his wife and his children is a citizen of the United States of America. A resident of Bangalore, Ahad had a Master&#39;s degree in Computer Science from a Californian University through a correspondence course. Having worked in the US for more than 10 years, Ahad had finally secured a coveted green card. 
 
According to the NIA, Ahad&#39;s first brush with radical Islam was in 2014 and in December that year, he along with his family had gone to Turkey on a tourist visa in order to attempt entering Syria. The Turkish authorities detained him while he was trying to enter Syria through a border post. After 23 days in custody, he was deported from Turkey in January 2015 at the behest of the Indian government. Barely months after his return, Ahad initiated contact with ISIS sympathisers and was inducted in the &quot;Junood-ul-Khilafa-Fil-Hind,&quot; (JKFH) &ndash; an organisation that was created to establish Khilafat (Caliphate) in India. He was arrested by the NIA in January earlier this year. 
 
Approver number 2, Ashik Ahmed,19, based out of Hooghly district, West Bengal, was influenced by Islamic theology and developments in the contemporary world with regard to the Islamic religious movement. Ahmed was instrumental in helping the Indian wing of IS to establish a base in West Bengal and in helping them get in touch with a Bangladeshi arms supplier. 
 
In its chargesheet, the NIA has alleged that Shafi Armar, aka Yusuf al-Hindi, the media chief of IS helped in the establishment of JKFH that was to become a base for the IS in the India. 
 
The charges against the 15 other accused state their complicity in routing money through hawala to further violence and commit acts of terror. The counter-terror agency has backed its charges with scientific evidence; call data records (CDR), literature, explosive devices and other incriminating materials. 
 
The NIA have further alleged that the IS operatives in India had approached Naxals to understand their modus operandi in committing terror acts. The operatives were also planning to buy weapons from the Naxalites. 
 
The NIA had registered a case against IS in December 2015. 
 
In this case, the NIA had earlier filed a chargesheet against 23-year-old Naser Packeer, outlining his modus operandi in identifying, radicalising, recruiting and sending Indians to join the terrorists in Syria and Iraq. 
 
The NIA has charged the 16 accused, including Armar, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Unlawful (Activities) Prevention Act, and the Explosive Substances Act. 
 
(WION)

Mumbai-based Muddabir Shaik was head of the Indian module, while others were given various positions for smooth functioning, claimed NIA

Two persons suspected of being sympathisers of Islamic State (IS) – the banned terror organisation, turned approvers in the supplementary chargesheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in a Delhi court on Wednesday. The NIA claimed that ISIS operatives, in connivance with a few resident and non-resident Indians, have been indulging in identification, radicalisation, recruitment and training of Indians. The counter-terror agency listed 18 accused in the chargesheet, of which 16 were charged and two turned approvers. The NIA has charged Mumbai resident, Muddabir Shaik, for leading the Indian module and also charged Mohammad Aleem, Mohammad Obaidullah Khan, Nafees Khan, Mohammad Shareef Moinuddin Khan, Asif Ali, Najmul Huda, Mohammad Abdul Ahad, Suhail Ahmed, Syed Mujahid, Mohammad Hussain Khan, Mohammad Afzal, Imran, Abu Anas, Mohammad Azhar Khan and Mufti Abdus Sami Qasmi. The accused were apprehended from various places across the country, including Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. Twice apprehended by the authorities, Mohammed Abdul Ahad, turned approver in the case, along with teenager Ashik Ahmed from West Bengal. Both were granted conditional pardon by the special NIA court at Patiala House on Wednesday. Ahad, 48, is a green card holder and along with his wife and his children is a citizen of the United States of America. A resident of Bangalore, Ahad had a Master's degree in Computer Science from a Californian University through a correspondence course. Having worked in the US for more than 10 years, Ahad had finally secured a coveted green card. According to the NIA, Ahad's first brush with radical Islam was in 2014 and in December that year, he along with his family had gone to Turkey on a tourist visa in order to attempt entering Syria. The Turkish authorities detained him while he was trying to enter Syria through a border post. After 23 days in custody, he was deported from Turkey in January 2015 at the behest of the Indian government. Barely months after his return, Ahad initiated contact with ISIS sympathisers and was inducted in the "Junood-ul-Khilafa-Fil-Hind," (JKFH) – an organisation that was created to establish Khilafat (Caliphate) in India. He was arrested by the NIA in January earlier this year. Approver number 2, Ashik Ahmed,19, based out of Hooghly district, West Bengal, was influenced by Islamic theology and developments in the contemporary world with regard to the Islamic religious movement. Ahmed was instrumental in helping the Indian wing of IS to establish a base in West Bengal and in helping them get in touch with a Bangladeshi arms supplier. In its chargesheet, the NIA has alleged that Shafi Armar, aka Yusuf al-Hindi, the media chief of IS helped in the establishment of JKFH that was to become a base for the IS in the India. The charges against the 15 other accused state their complicity in routing money through hawala to further violence and commit acts of terror. The counter-terror agency has backed its charges with scientific evidence; call data records (CDR), literature, explosive devices and other incriminating materials. The NIA have further alleged that the IS operatives in India had approached Naxals to understand their modus operandi in committing terror acts. The operatives were also planning to buy weapons from the Naxalites. The NIA had registered a case against IS in December 2015. In this case, the NIA had earlier filed a chargesheet against 23-year-old Naser Packeer, outlining his modus operandi in identifying, radicalising, recruiting and sending Indians to join the terrorists in Syria and Iraq. The NIA has charged the 16 accused, including Armar, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Unlawful (Activities) Prevention Act, and the Explosive Substances Act. (WION)

India's premier terror investigation body charges 16 for being IS operatives, two turn approvers

Indonesia&#39;s most wanted Islamist extremist has been killed in a firefight with troops, police said today, ending a years-long hunt for the Islamic State (IS) group supporter. 
 
Santoso, the leader of the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen, was shot dead on Monday on mountainous Sulawesi island, where he had been hiding out in the jungle with a small band of followers. 
 
His death is a major victory for the Indonesian authorities who had pursued the extremist for five years, sending thousands of security forces to hunt for him. 
 
His group carried out a string of deadly attacks on domestic security forces and was known for training militants from around the archipelago. In 2014 he pledged allegiance to IS and earlier this year was placed by the United States on a list of global terrorists. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s definitely Santoso,&quot; Rudy Sufahriadi, police chief of central Sulawesi province on the island, told AFP after a process to identify the militant&#39;s body. &quot;I have hunted him and I have arrested him before, we have asked people and we have sent people (to identify the body) who fought with him and went on jihad with him - they have confirmed it was him.&quot; 
 
After Indonesia suffered a string of Islamic extremist attacks in the early 2000s, including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed more than 200, authorities launched a crackdown that weakened the most dangerous networks.&nbsp;But Santoso&#39;s group remained a thorn in the side of the government, with the long-haired, gun-toting militant regularly appearing in videos urging extremists to launch attacks on the security forces. 
 
Significant blow 
 
The picture has changed recently, with other cells now considered a greater threat - Santoso was not believed to have played role in an IS-claimed attack in Jakarta in January. But his death will still be seen as a significant blow to Islamic militancy in Indonesia. 
 
The extremist, known by several aliases including Abu Wardah, was killed alongside one other militant in Tambarana village in Poso district, an area that has become known as a terror hotbed. 
 
Police said the pair were killed beside a river and a rifle was recovered. Two women, one of whom was suspected to be Santoso&rsquo;s wife, and another man, escaped from the gunfight. 
 
Following a sustained campaign by security forces, authorities believe just 19 members of Santoso&#39;s group now remain on Sulawesi waging a guerrilla campaign against the government. 
 
Santoso also attracted militants from abroad, with several members of China&#39;s mostly Muslim Uighur ethnic minority travelling to Indonesia to join his group.&nbsp;Several were killed fighting with the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen, and in July last year four Uighurs were jailed after being caught on Sulawesi attempting to join the group. 
 
Santoso became involved in Islamic extremism during bloody fighting between Muslims and Christians around Poso from the late 1990s to the early 2000s which left hundreds dead.&nbsp;He went on to form the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen and quickly jumped to the top of the most wanted list after his men began killing police officers. 
 
(AFP)

Santoso, the leader of the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen, was shot dead on Monday on the mountainous Sulawesi island

Indonesia's most wanted Islamist extremist has been killed in a firefight with troops, police said today, ending a years-long hunt for the Islamic State (IS) group supporter. Santoso, the leader of the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen, was shot dead on Monday on mountainous Sulawesi island, where he had been hiding out in the jungle with a small band of followers. His death is a major victory for the Indonesian authorities who had pursued the extremist for five years, sending thousands of security forces to hunt for him. His group carried out a string of deadly attacks on domestic security forces and was known for training militants from around the archipelago. In 2014 he pledged allegiance to IS and earlier this year was placed by the United States on a list of global terrorists. "It's definitely Santoso," Rudy Sufahriadi, police chief of central Sulawesi province on the island, told AFP after a process to identify the militant's body. "I have hunted him and I have arrested him before, we have asked people and we have sent people (to identify the body) who fought with him and went on jihad with him - they have confirmed it was him." After Indonesia suffered a string of Islamic extremist attacks in the early 2000s, including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed more than 200, authorities launched a crackdown that weakened the most dangerous networks. But Santoso's group remained a thorn in the side of the government, with the long-haired, gun-toting militant regularly appearing in videos urging extremists to launch attacks on the security forces. Significant blow The picture has changed recently, with other cells now considered a greater threat - Santoso was not believed to have played role in an IS-claimed attack in Jakarta in January. But his death will still be seen as a significant blow to Islamic militancy in Indonesia. The extremist, known by several aliases including Abu Wardah, was killed alongside one other militant in Tambarana village in Poso district, an area that has become known as a terror hotbed. Police said the pair were killed beside a river and a rifle was recovered. Two women, one of whom was suspected to be Santoso’s wife, and another man, escaped from the gunfight. Following a sustained campaign by security forces, authorities believe just 19 members of Santoso's group now remain on Sulawesi waging a guerrilla campaign against the government. Santoso also attracted militants from abroad, with several members of China's mostly Muslim Uighur ethnic minority travelling to Indonesia to join his group. Several were killed fighting with the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen, and in July last year four Uighurs were jailed after being caught on Sulawesi attempting to join the group. Santoso became involved in Islamic extremism during bloody fighting between Muslims and Christians around Poso from the late 1990s to the early 2000s which left hundreds dead. He went on to form the eastern Indonesia Mujahideen and quickly jumped to the top of the most wanted list after his men began killing police officers. (AFP)

Indonesia's most wanted Islamist militant killed

At least 56 civilians were killed on Tuesday in air strikes north of the besieged Islamic State-held city of Manbij in northern Syria. Residents said they believed the attack was carried out by US-led warplanes, a monitoring group said. 
 
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the dead included 11 children, and that dozens more were wounded.&nbsp; 
 
The US-backed Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, launched an offensive at the end of May to seize the last territory held by Islamic State (IS) insurgents on Syria&#39;s frontier with Turkey. 
 
Supported by US coalition air strikes, the SDF have surrounded the city, but Islamic State attacks still occur in some areas of the surrounding countryside. 
 
On Monday, 21 were killed in raids also believed to have been conducted by US-led coalition aircraft on Manbij&#39;s northern Hazawneh quarter.&nbsp; 
 
But progress into Manbij city has been slow. The militants have deployed snipers, planted mines and prevented civilians from leaving, hampering efforts to bomb the city without causing heavy casualties, according to Kurdish sources. 
 
The Observatory said at least 104 civilians have died from air strikes since the start of the Manbij offensive in late May.&nbsp; 
 
Colonel Chris Garver, a spokesman for the US coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, said it was looking into reports of civilian deaths but was being &quot;extraordinarily careful to make sure&quot; air strikes were killing IS fighters. 
 
&quot;Around Manbij, the Syrian Arab Coalition (SAC - Arab groups within the SDF), which is leading that fight, is being very slow and deliberate in that fight to protect civilians which we know are inside.&quot; 
 
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights recently voiced concern for the roughly 70,000 civilians believed to be trapped between warring parties in Manbij. 
 
&quot;Civilians have...reportedly been killed if they leave their homes or attempt to flee. Families are unable to access local cemeteries to bury their relatives who have died or been killed, and are burying them in their gardens or keeping the corpses in bunkers,&quot; Zeid Ra&#39;ad Al Hussein said. 
 
&quot;The town has no electricity or water at present, and no medical facilities are known to be operating. As the SDF closes in on the city, (Islamic State) has not permitted civilians to leave the area.&quot; 
 
The coalition said it has conducted more than 450 strikes in the vicinity of Manbij. It routinely investigates civilian deaths and publishes the results of confirmed incidents. 
 
Between September 10, 2015 and February 2, 2016, coalition air strikes in Iraq and Syria probably killed 20 civilians and injured 11 others, the US Central Command said in April.&nbsp; 
 
On Tuesday, the coalition said the SAC captured an IS command centre in western Manbij on Sunday that was concealed in a hospital and was also being used as a logistics hub. 
 
The SAC had also taken a significant area of the city during the operation, giving civilians an opportunity to flee, a statement from the Combined Joint Task Force said. 
 
(Reuters)

Residents say they believe the attack was carried out by US-led warplanes in strikes north of IS-held city, Manbij

At least 56 civilians were killed on Tuesday in air strikes north of the besieged Islamic State-held city of Manbij in northern Syria. Residents said they believed the attack was carried out by US-led warplanes, a monitoring group said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the dead included 11 children, and that dozens more were wounded. The US-backed Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, launched an offensive at the end of May to seize the last territory held by Islamic State (IS) insurgents on Syria's frontier with Turkey. Supported by US coalition air strikes, the SDF have surrounded the city, but Islamic State attacks still occur in some areas of the surrounding countryside. On Monday, 21 were killed in raids also believed to have been conducted by US-led coalition aircraft on Manbij's northern Hazawneh quarter. But progress into Manbij city has been slow. The militants have deployed snipers, planted mines and prevented civilians from leaving, hampering efforts to bomb the city without causing heavy casualties, according to Kurdish sources. The Observatory said at least 104 civilians have died from air strikes since the start of the Manbij offensive in late May. Colonel Chris Garver, a spokesman for the US coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, said it was looking into reports of civilian deaths but was being "extraordinarily careful to make sure" air strikes were killing IS fighters. "Around Manbij, the Syrian Arab Coalition (SAC - Arab groups within the SDF), which is leading that fight, is being very slow and deliberate in that fight to protect civilians which we know are inside." The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights recently voiced concern for the roughly 70,000 civilians believed to be trapped between warring parties in Manbij. "Civilians have...reportedly been killed if they leave their homes or attempt to flee. Families are unable to access local cemeteries to bury their relatives who have died or been killed, and are burying them in their gardens or keeping the corpses in bunkers," Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said. "The town has no electricity or water at present, and no medical facilities are known to be operating. As the SDF closes in on the city, (Islamic State) has not permitted civilians to leave the area." The coalition said it has conducted more than 450 strikes in the vicinity of Manbij. It routinely investigates civilian deaths and publishes the results of confirmed incidents. Between September 10, 2015 and February 2, 2016, coalition air strikes in Iraq and Syria probably killed 20 civilians and injured 11 others, the US Central Command said in April. On Tuesday, the coalition said the SAC captured an IS command centre in western Manbij on Sunday that was concealed in a hospital and was also being used as a logistics hub. The SAC had also taken a significant area of the city during the operation, giving civilians an opportunity to flee, a statement from the Combined Joint Task Force said. (Reuters)

Air strikes kill 56 civilians in northern Syria

The Nice truck attacker staked out the seafront for two days before striking, it emerged today as investigators pieced together details of the IS-claimed massacre and questioned possible accomplices. 
 
A source close to the investigation said that Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, a 31-year-old Tunisian, sent a text message just before the attack in which he &quot;expresses satisfaction at having obtained a 7.65mm pistol and discusses the supply of other weapons&quot;. 
 
He also took a selfie at the wheel of the 19-tonne truck in the days before he ploughed it into a crowd of people who had been enjoying a fireworks display on Bastille Day, France&#39;s national day, killing 84 and injuring about 300. 
 
Mangled bodies were left strewn across the Riviera city&#39;s seafront in the grisly attack by a man described by those who knew him as a loner with a history of violence and depression. 
 
While some relatives and friends described the delivery driver as someone who drank heavily and never attended the local mosque, others questioned by investigators spoke of &quot;a recent shift to radical Islam&quot;, said a police source. 
 
But there has been no evidence yet linking him to the Islamic State group, which on Saturday claimed the attack. 
 
An Albanian suspected of providing the driver with the pistol was arrested in Nice today. Lahouaiej-Bouhlel fired at police who sprayed his rampaging truck with gunfire, eventually killing him. 
 
Two replica assault rifles and a dummy grenade were also found in the truck, which he rented a few days earlier and used for reconnaissance on the seafront on the two consecutive days before the attack. 
 
One of five other people being held over the carnage is a 22-year-old suspected of lending logistical support, said his lawyer Jean-Pascal Padovani. 
 
The lawyer said the pair had only known each other for a few months. 
 
Lahouaiej-Bouhlel&#39;s estranged wife, the mother of his three children, was released today after two days of questioning. 
 
Slow identification of victims&nbsp; 
 
In Nice, many people were still desperately waiting for news of their loved ones. 
 
Prosecutors said only 35 victims have been officially identified as they take painstaking measures to avoid errors of identification seen during the Paris attacks last November. 
 
&quot;We have no news, neither good nor bad,&quot; said Johanna, a Lithuanian who was looking for her two friends, aged 20. 
 
At least ten children were among the dead as well as tourists from the United States, Ukraine, Switzerland, Germany and about ten people from Russia, a local Russian association said. 
 
Health Minister Marisol Touraine said 85 people were still hospitalised, 18 of them in critical condition. 
 
Patriots called to volunteer&nbsp; 
 
France&#39;s third major attack in the past 18 months has left the government fending off criticism over security failures and scrambling to reassure citizens about their safety. 
 
Cazeneuve called for volunteers to boost the security forces who were already on high alert under an eight-month-old state of emergency. 
 
&quot;I want to call on all French patriots who wish to do so, to join this operational reserve,&quot; said Cazeneuve of a force currently made up of 12,000 volunteers aged between 17 and 30. 
 
The latest attack comes after a French parliamentary inquiry last week criticised numerous failings by the intelligence services following jihadist assaults in January and November last year. 
 
France is a prime target of IS, due to its role in fighting the group in Iraq and Syria, its emphasis on secular values, and what the government has admitted is a &quot;social and ethnic apartheid&quot; that alienates its large Muslim community. 
 
Hundreds of French jihadists have gone to fight alongside IS in Iraq and Syria. 
 
French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian noted that IS had recently repeated calls for supporters to &quot;directly attack the French, Americans, wherever they are and by whatever means&quot;. 
 
&quot;Even when Daesh is not the organiser, Daesh breathes life into the terrorist spirit that we are fighting,&quot; he said, using an Arabic name for IS. 
 
(AFP)

He took a selfie at the wheel of the 19-tonne truck days before the attack. An Albanian suspected of providing the pistol was arrested

The Nice truck attacker staked out the seafront for two days before striking, it emerged today as investigators pieced together details of the IS-claimed massacre and questioned possible accomplices. A source close to the investigation said that Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, a 31-year-old Tunisian, sent a text message just before the attack in which he "expresses satisfaction at having obtained a 7.65mm pistol and discusses the supply of other weapons". He also took a selfie at the wheel of the 19-tonne truck in the days before he ploughed it into a crowd of people who had been enjoying a fireworks display on Bastille Day, France's national day, killing 84 and injuring about 300. Mangled bodies were left strewn across the Riviera city's seafront in the grisly attack by a man described by those who knew him as a loner with a history of violence and depression. While some relatives and friends described the delivery driver as someone who drank heavily and never attended the local mosque, others questioned by investigators spoke of "a recent shift to radical Islam", said a police source. But there has been no evidence yet linking him to the Islamic State group, which on Saturday claimed the attack. An Albanian suspected of providing the driver with the pistol was arrested in Nice today. Lahouaiej-Bouhlel fired at police who sprayed his rampaging truck with gunfire, eventually killing him. Two replica assault rifles and a dummy grenade were also found in the truck, which he rented a few days earlier and used for reconnaissance on the seafront on the two consecutive days before the attack. One of five other people being held over the carnage is a 22-year-old suspected of lending logistical support, said his lawyer Jean-Pascal Padovani. The lawyer said the pair had only known each other for a few months. Lahouaiej-Bouhlel's estranged wife, the mother of his three children, was released today after two days of questioning. Slow identification of victims In Nice, many people were still desperately waiting for news of their loved ones. Prosecutors said only 35 victims have been officially identified as they take painstaking measures to avoid errors of identification seen during the Paris attacks last November. "We have no news, neither good nor bad," said Johanna, a Lithuanian who was looking for her two friends, aged 20. At least ten children were among the dead as well as tourists from the United States, Ukraine, Switzerland, Germany and about ten people from Russia, a local Russian association said. Health Minister Marisol Touraine said 85 people were still hospitalised, 18 of them in critical condition. Patriots called to volunteer France's third major attack in the past 18 months has left the government fending off criticism over security failures and scrambling to reassure citizens about their safety. Cazeneuve called for volunteers to boost the security forces who were already on high alert under an eight-month-old state of emergency. "I want to call on all French patriots who wish to do so, to join this operational reserve," said Cazeneuve of a force currently made up of 12,000 volunteers aged between 17 and 30. The latest attack comes after a French parliamentary inquiry last week criticised numerous failings by the intelligence services following jihadist assaults in January and November last year. France is a prime target of IS, due to its role in fighting the group in Iraq and Syria, its emphasis on secular values, and what the government has admitted is a "social and ethnic apartheid" that alienates its large Muslim community. Hundreds of French jihadists have gone to fight alongside IS in Iraq and Syria. French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian noted that IS had recently repeated calls for supporters to "directly attack the French, Americans, wherever they are and by whatever means". "Even when Daesh is not the organiser, Daesh breathes life into the terrorist spirit that we are fighting," he said, using an Arabic name for IS. (AFP)

Nice attacker scouted area before striking

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the truck attack on the French city of Nice today&nbsp;as French police arrested three people&nbsp;in connection with the carnage that claimed the lives of at least 84 people.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The person who carried out the operation in Nice&nbsp;to run down people was one of the soldiers of Islamic State,&quot; the news agency Amaq, which supports Islamic State, said via its Telegram account.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;He carried out the operation in response to calls to target nationals of states that are part of the coalition fighting Islamic State,&quot; the statement said. 
 
French authorities said they were checking the claim. 
 
The 31-year-old Tunisian driver of the truck drove at a Bastille day crowd on the waterfront of the French riveria city on Thursday night. Authorities had been working to find out whether his motives were indeed connected to radical Islam.&nbsp; 
 
He was not known to French intelligence sources for radicalisation. 
 
The arrests, which came on top of two on Friday including the attacker&#39;s wife, concerned the attacker&#39;s &quot;close entourage&quot;, the sources said. They were made in two different areas of Nice. 
 
A reporter saw about 40 elite police raid a small apartment near the central station, where one individual was arrested. 
 
Nice attack was third of its kind in France&nbsp; 
 
Thursday night&#39;s attack plunged France into new grief and fear just eight months after gunmen killed 130 people in Paris. 
 
The truck zigzagged along the city&#39;s seafront Promenade des Anglais as a fireworks display marking the French national day ended.&nbsp; 
 
It careered into families and friends listening to an orchestra or strolling above the Mediterranean beach towards the century-old grand Hotel Negresco. 
 
The attack is the third of its kind in France since the beginning of 2015, and a state of emergency in place since 130 people were killed in and around Paris last November is to be extended for another three months. 
 
The driver, Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, was shot dead by officers at the scene. He was known to police for petty crimes but was not on a watch list of suspected militants. He had one criminal conviction for road rage, having been sentenced to probation three months ago for throwing a wooden pallet at another driver.&nbsp; 
 
Ahead of the claim by the Islamic State, the terrorist&nbsp;Islamist group which grabbed control of swathes of Iraq and Syria but which is now under military pressure from forces opposed to it, French officials had not disclosed any direct evidence linking Bouhlel with the jihadism.

French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, asked on Friday if he could confirm the attacker&#39;s motives were linked to jihadism, said: &quot;No. ... We have an individual who was not known to intelligence services.&quot;

Relatives and neighbours in Bouhlel&#39;s home town of Msaken outside the coast city of Sousse said he was sporty and had shown no sign of being radicalised, including when he last returned for the wedding of a sister four years ago. 
 
(Reuters)

The arrests include the attacker's wife. French authorities said they were checking the claim of IS involvement in the attack

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the truck attack on the French city of Nice today as French police arrested three people in connection with the carnage that claimed the lives of at least 84 people. "The person who carried out the operation in Nice to run down people was one of the soldiers of Islamic State," the news agency Amaq, which supports Islamic State, said via its Telegram account. "He carried out the operation in response to calls to target nationals of states that are part of the coalition fighting Islamic State," the statement said. French authorities said they were checking the claim. The 31-year-old Tunisian driver of the truck drove at a Bastille day crowd on the waterfront of the French riveria city on Thursday night. Authorities had been working to find out whether his motives were indeed connected to radical Islam. He was not known to French intelligence sources for radicalisation. The arrests, which came on top of two on Friday including the attacker's wife, concerned the attacker's "close entourage", the sources said. They were made in two different areas of Nice. A reporter saw about 40 elite police raid a small apartment near the central station, where one individual was arrested. Nice attack was third of its kind in France Thursday night's attack plunged France into new grief and fear just eight months after gunmen killed 130 people in Paris. The truck zigzagged along the city's seafront Promenade des Anglais as a fireworks display marking the French national day ended. It careered into families and friends listening to an orchestra or strolling above the Mediterranean beach towards the century-old grand Hotel Negresco. The attack is the third of its kind in France since the beginning of 2015, and a state of emergency in place since 130 people were killed in and around Paris last November is to be extended for another three months. The driver, Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, was shot dead by officers at the scene. He was known to police for petty crimes but was not on a watch list of suspected militants. He had one criminal conviction for road rage, having been sentenced to probation three months ago for throwing a wooden pallet at another driver. Ahead of the claim by the Islamic State, the terrorist Islamist group which grabbed control of swathes of Iraq and Syria but which is now under military pressure from forces opposed to it, French officials had not disclosed any direct evidence linking Bouhlel with the jihadism. French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, asked on Friday if he could confirm the attacker's motives were linked to jihadism, said: "No. ... We have an individual who was not known to intelligence services." Relatives and neighbours in Bouhlel's home town of Msaken outside the coast city of Sousse said he was sporty and had shown no sign of being radicalised, including when he last returned for the wedding of a sister four years ago. (Reuters)

Islamic State claims truck attack in Nice, 3 arrested

A top Islamic State group commander, Omar al-Shishani, has been killed in Iraq, the jihadist-linked Amaq agency said on Wednesday. 
 
The Pentagon announced in March that Shishani, known as Omar the Chechen, was believed to have died of injuries received in an air raid targeting his convoy in northeastern Syria, details at odds with Amaq&#39;s account. 
 
Citing a &quot;military source&quot;, Amaq said Shishani was killed &quot;in the town of Sharqat as he took part in repelling the military campaign on the city of Mosul&quot;, referring to the last IS-held city in Iraq. 
 
Iraqi forces are conducting operations to set the stage for a final push to Mosul, the country&#39;s second city that fell to IS in June 2014. 
 
Sharqat lies on the road north to Mosul, but Iraqi forces recently bypassed the area to recapture a key military base in the Qayyarah area farther north that the Pentagon said will be a &quot;springboard&quot; for the push toward the city. 
 
Amaq did not specify when Shishani was killed, but the loss of the commander is a blow to the jihadist group, which has suffered a string of setbacks in Iraq this year.&nbsp;In addition to Shishani, the US announced that it had killed IS deputy leader Abd ar-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli in March. 
 
Shishani, a fierce, battle-hardened warlord with roots in Georgia and a thick red beard, was one of the most notorious faces of IS.&nbsp;Shishani, whose nom de guerre means &quot;Omar the Chechen&quot;, was one of the IS leaders most wanted by Washington, which had put a $5 million bounty on his head. 
 
His exact rank was unclear, but a US official had branded him as &quot;equivalent of the secretary of defence&quot; for the jihadist group. 
Shishani came from the former Soviet state of Georgia&#39;s Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens. 
 
He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008. 
 
He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters, and became a senior leader within IS. 
 
IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014 but has since lost significant ground to Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes, training and other assistance. 
 
Baghdad declared victory in the city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, at the end of last month, leaving Mosul as the sole Iraqi city held by IS. 
 
The Sunni extremist group has responded to the battlefield setbacks by striking civilians, particularly Shiites, and experts have warned there may be more bombings as the jihadists continue to lose ground. 
 
(AFP)

Omar al-Shishani was one of the IS leaders most wanted by Washington, which had a $5 million bounty on his head

A top Islamic State group commander, Omar al-Shishani, has been killed in Iraq, the jihadist-linked Amaq agency said on Wednesday. The Pentagon announced in March that Shishani, known as Omar the Chechen, was believed to have died of injuries received in an air raid targeting his convoy in northeastern Syria, details at odds with Amaq's account. Citing a "military source", Amaq said Shishani was killed "in the town of Sharqat as he took part in repelling the military campaign on the city of Mosul", referring to the last IS-held city in Iraq. Iraqi forces are conducting operations to set the stage for a final push to Mosul, the country's second city that fell to IS in June 2014. Sharqat lies on the road north to Mosul, but Iraqi forces recently bypassed the area to recapture a key military base in the Qayyarah area farther north that the Pentagon said will be a "springboard" for the push toward the city. Amaq did not specify when Shishani was killed, but the loss of the commander is a blow to the jihadist group, which has suffered a string of setbacks in Iraq this year. In addition to Shishani, the US announced that it had killed IS deputy leader Abd ar-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli in March. Shishani, a fierce, battle-hardened warlord with roots in Georgia and a thick red beard, was one of the most notorious faces of IS. Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen", was one of the IS leaders most wanted by Washington, which had put a $5 million bounty on his head. His exact rank was unclear, but a US official had branded him as "equivalent of the secretary of defence" for the jihadist group. Shishani came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens. He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008. He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters, and became a senior leader within IS. IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014 but has since lost significant ground to Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes, training and other assistance. Baghdad declared victory in the city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, at the end of last month, leaving Mosul as the sole Iraqi city held by IS. The Sunni extremist group has responded to the battlefield setbacks by striking civilians, particularly Shiites, and experts have warned there may be more bombings as the jihadists continue to lose ground. (AFP)

Top Islamic State commander Shishani killed

Pentagon chief Ashton Carter held taks in Baghdad today over the fight against the Islamic State group and the strategy to recapture Iraq&#39;s second city Mosul from the jihadists. 
 
Carter met with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Defence Minister Khalid al-Obeidi, two days after Iraq announced the recapture of a base south of Mosul seen as an important step toward the eventual battle for the city. 
 
Carter&#39;s unannounced visit is&nbsp;his fourth to Iraq since beginning his job in February 2015, which&nbsp;comes two days after Iraqi forces captured an airbase to the south of Mosul that is seen as an important step toward the eventual battle for the country&#39;s second city, which has been under IS control since June 2014. 
 
IS losing ground in Syria, Iraq; Carter wants to highlight successes&nbsp; 
 
IS also holds territory in neighbouring Syria, but has lost significant ground in both countries, and Carter wants to highlight successes, even as the jihadists have struck back with devastating attacks in Iraq and abroad. 
 
The Sunni extremists have carried out bloody attacks against civilians as they lose ground, including a bombing in Baghdad that killed 292 people this month, one of the deadliest to ever hit the country. 
 
&quot;Let me begin... by expressing the condolences of myself and the United States for the terrorist attacks against the people of Iraq in recent weeks,&quot; Carter told Abadi. 
 
&quot;You have our sympathy but also it further strengthens our resolve to help in the defeat of (IS), which all of our societies need because all of our societies are subject to attacks.&quot;&quot;I also want to congratulate you on the string of successes that the Iraqi security forces have had,&quot; said Carter. 
 
The Qayyarah airbase, which Abadi announced Saturday had been recaptured, is located 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of Mosul and can serve as a launchpad for future operations to recapture the city. 
 
&#39;Ultimate goal is recapture of Iraqi territory&#39;&nbsp; 
 
Ahead of his meetings, Carter told journalists that he would discuss the next moves in the war against the jihadists. 
 
&quot;What I&#39;ll be discussing with Prime Minister Abadi and our commanders there are the next plays in the campaign, which involve the collapse and control over Mosul,&quot; Carter said aboard a military plane. 
 
The ultimate goal, he added, was &quot;the recapture of all of Iraqi territory by the Iraqi security forces, but of course Mosul is the biggest part of that.&quot; 
 
US defence officials say the campaign`s first &quot;10 plays&quot; have been successfully completed in the US-led counter-IS campaign in Iraq and Syria. 
 
These steps include the recapture of several important areas across the two countries, including Ramadi in Iraq and Al-Shadadi, a town in northeastern Syria previously considered a strategic IS stronghold.&nbsp; 
 
Pentagon has announced a series a measures to speed up war&nbsp; 
 
Carter and President Barack Obama have been criticised for the pace of the campaign, which began in autumn 2014 and got off to a slow start, particularly in war-torn Syria, where the United States had few assets on the ground to provide targeting information.The Pentagon has announced a series of measures to speed up the war, including a revised mission to train anti-IS rebels in northern Syria and extra advisers for Iraqi forces. 
 
Coupled with coalition air support, the results have seen the IS group losing roughly half its territory in Iraq and about 20 percent of its Syria claim, the Pentagon said. 
 
But the jihadists have struck back against civilians as they lost ground. 
 
On July 3, IS carried out the devastating bombing targeting shoppers in Baghdad that killed 292, many of whom were burned alive, sparking widespread anger among Iraqis, some of whom have accused the government of not doing enough to protect them. 
 
Four days later, the jihadists struck a Shiite shrine north the capital, leaving another 40 dead. 
 
Carter was also to meet with US troops, of whom there are now about 4,000 in Iraq, mainly to train local forces. 
 
The Pentagon chief will also phone Massud Barzani, the de facto president of Iraq`s Kurdistan region. 
 
The United States has pledged $415 million to help Kurdish peshmerga fighters as they join the fight for Mosul, moving in from the north. 
 
 
(AFP)

Ashton Carter's visit come 2 days after Iraq announced recapture of a base south of Mosul, seen as an important step

Pentagon chief Ashton Carter held taks in Baghdad today over the fight against the Islamic State group and the strategy to recapture Iraq's second city Mosul from the jihadists. Carter met with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Defence Minister Khalid al-Obeidi, two days after Iraq announced the recapture of a base south of Mosul seen as an important step toward the eventual battle for the city. Carter's unannounced visit is his fourth to Iraq since beginning his job in February 2015, which comes two days after Iraqi forces captured an airbase to the south of Mosul that is seen as an important step toward the eventual battle for the country's second city, which has been under IS control since June 2014. IS losing ground in Syria, Iraq; Carter wants to highlight successes IS also holds territory in neighbouring Syria, but has lost significant ground in both countries, and Carter wants to highlight successes, even as the jihadists have struck back with devastating attacks in Iraq and abroad. The Sunni extremists have carried out bloody attacks against civilians as they lose ground, including a bombing in Baghdad that killed 292 people this month, one of the deadliest to ever hit the country. "Let me begin... by expressing the condolences of myself and the United States for the terrorist attacks against the people of Iraq in recent weeks," Carter told Abadi. "You have our sympathy but also it further strengthens our resolve to help in the defeat of (IS), which all of our societies need because all of our societies are subject to attacks.""I also want to congratulate you on the string of successes that the Iraqi security forces have had," said Carter. The Qayyarah airbase, which Abadi announced Saturday had been recaptured, is located 60 kilometres (35 miles) south of Mosul and can serve as a launchpad for future operations to recapture the city. 'Ultimate goal is recapture of Iraqi territory' Ahead of his meetings, Carter told journalists that he would discuss the next moves in the war against the jihadists. "What I'll be discussing with Prime Minister Abadi and our commanders there are the next plays in the campaign, which involve the collapse and control over Mosul," Carter said aboard a military plane. The ultimate goal, he added, was "the recapture of all of Iraqi territory by the Iraqi security forces, but of course Mosul is the biggest part of that." US defence officials say the campaign`s first "10 plays" have been successfully completed in the US-led counter-IS campaign in Iraq and Syria. These steps include the recapture of several important areas across the two countries, including Ramadi in Iraq and Al-Shadadi, a town in northeastern Syria previously considered a strategic IS stronghold. Pentagon has announced a series a measures to speed up war Carter and President Barack Obama have been criticised for the pace of the campaign, which began in autumn 2014 and got off to a slow start, particularly in war-torn Syria, where the United States had few assets on the ground to provide targeting information.The Pentagon has announced a series of measures to speed up the war, including a revised mission to train anti-IS rebels in northern Syria and extra advisers for Iraqi forces. Coupled with coalition air support, the results have seen the IS group losing roughly half its territory in Iraq and about 20 percent of its Syria claim, the Pentagon said. But the jihadists have struck back against civilians as they lost ground. On July 3, IS carried out the devastating bombing targeting shoppers in Baghdad that killed 292, many of whom were burned alive, sparking widespread anger among Iraqis, some of whom have accused the government of not doing enough to protect them. Four days later, the jihadists struck a Shiite shrine north the capital, leaving another 40 dead. Carter was also to meet with US troops, of whom there are now about 4,000 in Iraq, mainly to train local forces. The Pentagon chief will also phone Massud Barzani, the de facto president of Iraq`s Kurdistan region. The United States has pledged $415 million to help Kurdish peshmerga fighters as they join the fight for Mosul, moving in from the north. (AFP)

Pentagon chief visits Baghdad to step up fight against Islamic State

At least 15 men from India&#39;s southern state of Kerala are suspected to have joined the powerful Islamic State, fear their family members. 
 
The youths have been missing since July 8 from their home town Kasaragod. 
 
Family members said they were informed of their children&#39;s likely attachment with the militant organisation by one of their friends. 
 
They have written to state chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan asking him to investigate the matter. 
 
&quot;We are ready to take him back after proper procedure and verification by the police, otherwise&hellip;going to some foreign land to join some militant organisation&hellip; we don&#39;t need him here,&quot; said the father of one of the missing youths, Hamlin. 
 
Two other missing youths have been identified as Hafesudheen Theke Koleth and Azees Hussain. 
 
Islamic State has struggled to win over recruits in India, which is home to the world&#39;s third-largest Muslim population. 
 
Indian police arrested 29 men last year for establishing bases to recruit men to the Islamist militant group. All the men were charged with conspiracy to wage war against the state. 
 
A handful of Indians are also suspected of having travelled to Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State, where the group is fighting to install an Islamic caliphate. 
 
(Reuters)

Family members said they were told their children might have joined the militant goup by one of their friends.

At least 15 men from India's southern state of Kerala are suspected to have joined the powerful Islamic State, fear their family members. The youths have been missing since July 8 from their home town Kasaragod. Family members said they were informed of their children's likely attachment with the militant organisation by one of their friends. They have written to state chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan asking him to investigate the matter. "We are ready to take him back after proper procedure and verification by the police, otherwise…going to some foreign land to join some militant organisation… we don't need him here," said the father of one of the missing youths, Hamlin. Two other missing youths have been identified as Hafesudheen Theke Koleth and Azees Hussain. Islamic State has struggled to win over recruits in India, which is home to the world's third-largest Muslim population. Indian police arrested 29 men last year for establishing bases to recruit men to the Islamist militant group. All the men were charged with conspiracy to wage war against the state. A handful of Indians are also suspected of having travelled to Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State, where the group is fighting to install an Islamic caliphate. (Reuters)

Families fear 15 missing Indian youths might have joined IS

A Bangladeshi teenager who police say was a suspect in last week&#39;s deadly attack on a Dhaka cafe has died in custody, with his family insisting he was a hostage and alleging torture by security forces. 
 
Zakir Hossain Shawon, 18, a kitchen assistant at the Holey Artisan Bakery, was arrested after last week&#39;s deadly siege by suspected Islamists in which 22 people, including 18 foreigners, died. 
 
Police killed five attackers and arrested Shawon together with another man over &quot;suspicious activities&quot;, treating him as a suspect -- a claim vehemently rejected by his family, who claim he was taken hostage like other victims. 
 
He died in the intensive care unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital late Friday after five days in the clinic, police and his family said. 
 
Shawon&#39;s father Abdus Sattar demanded an investigation into his death, saying his &quot;innocent son and the main breadwinner of his family&quot; died due to torture. 
 
&quot;His whole body had marks of torture. There were marks of curdled blood in many places. One of his eyes and two knees were blackened. His wrists were blackened. It seems he was hanged by ropes tied to his wrists,&quot; Sattar told AFP. 
 
Nur Khan Liton, the head of Ain o Salish Kendra, a leading human rights group, said there were doubts about Shawon`s involvement in the attack, which was claimed by the Islamic State group. 
 
&quot;IS has named five attackers and police have identified all five. And he was not among the five,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;If he was treated as an associate or helper of the attacker, police must present evidence or information.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Police and military representatives denied that Shawon had been tortured in custody. 
 
&quot;He was held because of suspicious activities. We did not have any opportunity to interrogate him since he was injured and hospitalised,&quot; Dhaka police spokesman Masudur Rahman told AFP. 
 
The teenager`s father said he spoke with his son hours before the July 1 carnage when Shawon called to say he had received a bonus payment for Eid al-Fitr, the largest Muslim festival.&nbsp; 
 
He had planned to travel home to celebrate the occasion with the family in Dhaka`s suburb.&nbsp;Instead his family saw him in hospital. 
 
&quot;He could not recognise me or his mother and thought we were his brother,&quot; the father said.&nbsp;&quot;He would cry out in his sleep, pleading with someone, &quot;Please don&#39;t hit me. Let me go,&quot; he added. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Parents insist on his innocence, and a human rights group say police have identified all five suspects and that he is not among them

A Bangladeshi teenager who police say was a suspect in last week's deadly attack on a Dhaka cafe has died in custody, with his family insisting he was a hostage and alleging torture by security forces. Zakir Hossain Shawon, 18, a kitchen assistant at the Holey Artisan Bakery, was arrested after last week's deadly siege by suspected Islamists in which 22 people, including 18 foreigners, died. Police killed five attackers and arrested Shawon together with another man over "suspicious activities", treating him as a suspect -- a claim vehemently rejected by his family, who claim he was taken hostage like other victims. He died in the intensive care unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital late Friday after five days in the clinic, police and his family said. Shawon's father Abdus Sattar demanded an investigation into his death, saying his "innocent son and the main breadwinner of his family" died due to torture. "His whole body had marks of torture. There were marks of curdled blood in many places. One of his eyes and two knees were blackened. His wrists were blackened. It seems he was hanged by ropes tied to his wrists," Sattar told AFP. Nur Khan Liton, the head of Ain o Salish Kendra, a leading human rights group, said there were doubts about Shawon`s involvement in the attack, which was claimed by the Islamic State group. "IS has named five attackers and police have identified all five. And he was not among the five," he said. "If he was treated as an associate or helper of the attacker, police must present evidence or information." Police and military representatives denied that Shawon had been tortured in custody. "He was held because of suspicious activities. We did not have any opportunity to interrogate him since he was injured and hospitalised," Dhaka police spokesman Masudur Rahman told AFP. The teenager`s father said he spoke with his son hours before the July 1 carnage when Shawon called to say he had received a bonus payment for Eid al-Fitr, the largest Muslim festival. He had planned to travel home to celebrate the occasion with the family in Dhaka`s suburb. Instead his family saw him in hospital. "He could not recognise me or his mother and thought we were his brother," the father said. "He would cry out in his sleep, pleading with someone, "Please don't hit me. Let me go," he added. (AFP)

Dhaka cafe attack suspect dies in custody, family alleges police torture

The death toll from a suicide bombing in Baghdad this weekend has reached 292, Iraq&#39;s health ministry said on Thursday. 
 
The attack, claimed by the militant group Islamic State, which government forces are trying to eject from large parts of the north and west of the country, was the deadliest bombing in Iraq since US-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein 13 years ago. 
 
More than 200 were wounded in the attack in a busy shopping street in the mainly Shi&#39;ite Karrada district of central Baghdad. About 23 of the wounded were still in hospital, health ministry spokesman Ahmed al-Rudaini told Reuters. 
 
Earlier on Thursday, the ministry had put the toll at 281 and it rose as more people, registered as missing, were identified as dead, Rudaini said. 
 
(Reuters)

About 23 of the wounded were still in hospital, health ministry official Ahmed al-Rudaini said

The death toll from a suicide bombing in Baghdad this weekend has reached 292, Iraq's health ministry said on Thursday. The attack, claimed by the militant group Islamic State, which government forces are trying to eject from large parts of the north and west of the country, was the deadliest bombing in Iraq since US-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein 13 years ago. More than 200 were wounded in the attack in a busy shopping street in the mainly Shi'ite Karrada district of central Baghdad. About 23 of the wounded were still in hospital, health ministry spokesman Ahmed al-Rudaini told Reuters. Earlier on Thursday, the ministry had put the toll at 281 and it rose as more people, registered as missing, were identified as dead, Rudaini said. (Reuters)

Baghdad bombing death toll rises to 292

A motorcycle bomber killed at least 16 people outside a bakery in Syria&#39;s Hasakeh city on Tuesday, on the eve of the feast marking the end of Ramzan, an official said.&nbsp;The attack, which also wounded dozens of people, occurred in the Kurdish-majority neighbourhood of Salihiah ahead of the Eid al-Fitr festival. 
 
It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) group has claimed previous bombings in the mainly Kurdish region.&nbsp;Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the attack killed at least 16 people and wounded another 40. 
 
A Kurdish police source confirmed the death toll to an AFP correspondent and said the suicide attacker detonated his explosives in front of the bakery.&nbsp;&quot;A suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up in the Salihiah neighbourhood of Hasakeh city,&quot; said Abdel Rahman. 
 
Fifteen of the wounded were in critical condition, said the head of the Britain-based group that relies on a network of sources on the ground for its information. 
 
Hasakeh city is the capital of the province of the same name.&nbsp;Nearly all of the province is controlled by the Kurdish People`s Protection Units (YPG), who have declared an autonomous region across the mainly Kurdish northern areas they hold. 
 
The YPG is regarded by the Pentagon as the most effective fighting force against IS on the ground in Syria.&nbsp;A US-backed alliance of Kurds and Arabs has been locked in battle in the neighbouring province of Aleppo for control of the IS stronghold of Manbij for more than one month. 
 
The Syrian Democratic Forces alliance launched the offensive in late May and encircled the town and entered its southwestern districts on June 23.&nbsp;More than 280,000 people have been killed and millions have been displaced since Syria&#39;s conflict broke out in March 2011. 
 
(AFP)

It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack, but the Islamic State has claimed previous bombings in the mainly Kurdish region

A motorcycle bomber killed at least 16 people outside a bakery in Syria's Hasakeh city on Tuesday, on the eve of the feast marking the end of Ramzan, an official said. The attack, which also wounded dozens of people, occurred in the Kurdish-majority neighbourhood of Salihiah ahead of the Eid al-Fitr festival. It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) group has claimed previous bombings in the mainly Kurdish region. Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the attack killed at least 16 people and wounded another 40. A Kurdish police source confirmed the death toll to an AFP correspondent and said the suicide attacker detonated his explosives in front of the bakery. "A suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up in the Salihiah neighbourhood of Hasakeh city," said Abdel Rahman. Fifteen of the wounded were in critical condition, said the head of the Britain-based group that relies on a network of sources on the ground for its information. Hasakeh city is the capital of the province of the same name. Nearly all of the province is controlled by the Kurdish People`s Protection Units (YPG), who have declared an autonomous region across the mainly Kurdish northern areas they hold. The YPG is regarded by the Pentagon as the most effective fighting force against IS on the ground in Syria. A US-backed alliance of Kurds and Arabs has been locked in battle in the neighbouring province of Aleppo for control of the IS stronghold of Manbij for more than one month. The Syrian Democratic Forces alliance launched the offensive in late May and encircled the town and entered its southwestern districts on June 23. More than 280,000 people have been killed and millions have been displaced since Syria's conflict broke out in March 2011. (AFP)

16 killed, 40 wounded in suicide bombing outside bakery in Syria's Hasakeh

A Turkish court jailed 17 suspects pending trial today in connection with last week&#39;s suicide bombing at Istanbul&#39;s main airport that killed 45 people and wounded hundreds, state media said. 
 
Eleven are foreigners among the arrested suspects, bringing the number of those remanded in custody over the attack to 30 after 13 were sent to jail on Sunday, state-run Anadolu Agency reported. 
 
The latest 17 to be held were accused of &quot;membership of an armed terrorist organisation&quot;, the private Dogan news agency said. 
 
Officials believe last Tuesday&#39;s triple suicide bombing at Istanbul Ataturk airport, the deadliest in a series of suicide bombings this year in Turkey, was carried out by the Islamic State terror outfit. 
 
Three attackers opened fire to create panic outside the airport before two of them got inside and blew themselves up. The third militant detonated his explosives outside at the entrance to the international arrivals terminal. 
 
Russian nationals have been identified as two of the suspected bombers, Anadolu reported last week. Turkish officials have not commented on the report, although one official had said the attackers were Russian, Uzbek and Kyrgyz nationals. 
 
(Reuters)

The suspects have been accused of being members of an armed terrorist organisation. In total, 30 remanded in custody over the attack

A Turkish court jailed 17 suspects pending trial today in connection with last week's suicide bombing at Istanbul's main airport that killed 45 people and wounded hundreds, state media said. Eleven are foreigners among the arrested suspects, bringing the number of those remanded in custody over the attack to 30 after 13 were sent to jail on Sunday, state-run Anadolu Agency reported. The latest 17 to be held were accused of "membership of an armed terrorist organisation", the private Dogan news agency said. Officials believe last Tuesday's triple suicide bombing at Istanbul Ataturk airport, the deadliest in a series of suicide bombings this year in Turkey, was carried out by the Islamic State terror outfit. Three attackers opened fire to create panic outside the airport before two of them got inside and blew themselves up. The third militant detonated his explosives outside at the entrance to the international arrivals terminal. Russian nationals have been identified as two of the suspected bombers, Anadolu reported last week. Turkish officials have not commented on the report, although one official had said the attackers were Russian, Uzbek and Kyrgyz nationals. (Reuters)

17 jailed over triple suicide bombing at Istanbul's Ataturk airport

A Bangladeshi politician spoke on Tuesday of his horror to learn that his son was among the suspects who murdered foreigners at a Dhaka cafe, and said many educated young men from wealthy families were going missing. 
 
Imtiaz Khan Babul said his 22-year-old son Rohan Imtiaz, who was killed when commandos stormed the cafe on Saturday, had been a top-scoring student whose behaviour gave no hint he was radicalised before he disappeared last December. 
 
&quot;I was stunned and speechless to learn that my son had done such a heinous thing,&quot; Babul told AFP. 
 
&quot;I don`t know what changed him. There was nothing that would suggest that he was getting radicalised. He hardly read any religious books.&quot; 
 
Babul, an official with the ruling Awami League party, said had not seen his son since December when he was travelling with his wife to India, leaving the couple&#39;s three children in Dhaka. 
 
In the months that followed Rohan&#39;s disappearance, Babul lobbied senior party officials to help find his only son and even scoured the city&#39;s morgues. As he searched, he met other families who had suffered the same fate. 
 
&quot;I met so many parents whose boys had gone missing,&quot; he said. &quot;Even yesterday, one of them was saying that I was lucky that I got the body of my boy. Some of them are not so lucky.&quot; 
 
Babul said he believed his son may have been &quot;brainwashed&quot; on the Internet. 
 
Bangladesh&#39;s home minister has said the men behind Friday night&#39;s attack at an upmarket cafe, in which 20 hostages were killed, were highly educated and from wealthy families. 
 
Security forces shot dead six men when they stormed the cafe, bringing the all-night siege to an end, while one suspected attacker was taken alive and is being questioned. 
 
Police initially identified all six as suspected attackers, but on Tuesday they said they were looking into whether one was a kitchen worker being held hostage. 
 
Relatives of Saiful Islam Chowkider raised the alarm after recognising the 39-year-old among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released after the siege. 
 
&quot;We protested. We said he was never a militant. He was hardworking man and one of the best pizza and pasta makers in Bangladesh,&quot; Chowkider&#39;s cousin Solaiman told AFP. 
 
&quot;We went to the military, but they would not hand over the body, they said he was a suspect.&quot; 
 
Witnesses say the perpetrators of the attack, which the Islamic State group has claimed, spared the lives of Muslims. 
 
The mostly foreign victims included nine Italians, seven Japanese, a US citizen and a 19-year-old Indian student. Bangladesh&#39;s foreign minister met diplomats on Tuesday following the attack, the worst by far targeting the international community in Dhaka. 
 
Hundreds of foreign firms operate out of Bangladesh and its clothes manufacturing industry is the lifeblood of the economy, accounting for more than 80 per cent of exports.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve raised our worries during the meeting. We discussed how to deal with the situation and ensure security for the diplomatic community and the foreign community here,&quot; one foreign diplomat told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. 
 
The diplomat said they also discussed foreign cooperation in the fight against Islamist extremism in Bangladesh. 
 
The government says homegrown extremists are responsible for the deaths of some 80 secular activists, foreigners and religious minorities murdered over the last three years. 
 
It has repeatedly denied international jihadist networks have a presence in the country, even though IS and a South Asian branch of Al-Qaeda have claimed a number of attacks. 
 
The government has said all the suspected attackers were members of the Jamaeytul Mujahdeen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned local Islamist group. 
 
Among them were a graduate of Bangladesh&#39;s leading private university and an 18-year-old student at an elite school. 
 
Another was a former madrasa student from the northern district of Bogra, which is seen as a hotbed of Islamist radicalism. 
 
Police on Tuesday identified a fifth attacker as Shafiqul Islam Uzzal, a 26-year-old from Bogra who had been working as a kindergarten teacher in Dhaka. 
 
Earlier, the bodies of the Japanese victims arrived on a government plane in Tokyo. All seven had worked with the government-run Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Bangladesh. 
 
Authorities said a plane carrying the bodies of the nine Italian victims had flown out of Dhaka early on Tuesday, while the body of the Indian victim was repatriated on Monday. 
 
(AFP)

Imtiaz Khan Babul added that many educated young men from wealthy families are going 'missing'

A Bangladeshi politician spoke on Tuesday of his horror to learn that his son was among the suspects who murdered foreigners at a Dhaka cafe, and said many educated young men from wealthy families were going missing. Imtiaz Khan Babul said his 22-year-old son Rohan Imtiaz, who was killed when commandos stormed the cafe on Saturday, had been a top-scoring student whose behaviour gave no hint he was radicalised before he disappeared last December. "I was stunned and speechless to learn that my son had done such a heinous thing," Babul told AFP. "I don`t know what changed him. There was nothing that would suggest that he was getting radicalised. He hardly read any religious books." Babul, an official with the ruling Awami League party, said had not seen his son since December when he was travelling with his wife to India, leaving the couple's three children in Dhaka. In the months that followed Rohan's disappearance, Babul lobbied senior party officials to help find his only son and even scoured the city's morgues. As he searched, he met other families who had suffered the same fate. "I met so many parents whose boys had gone missing," he said. "Even yesterday, one of them was saying that I was lucky that I got the body of my boy. Some of them are not so lucky." Babul said he believed his son may have been "brainwashed" on the Internet. Bangladesh's home minister has said the men behind Friday night's attack at an upmarket cafe, in which 20 hostages were killed, were highly educated and from wealthy families. Security forces shot dead six men when they stormed the cafe, bringing the all-night siege to an end, while one suspected attacker was taken alive and is being questioned. Police initially identified all six as suspected attackers, but on Tuesday they said they were looking into whether one was a kitchen worker being held hostage. Relatives of Saiful Islam Chowkider raised the alarm after recognising the 39-year-old among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released after the siege. "We protested. We said he was never a militant. He was hardworking man and one of the best pizza and pasta makers in Bangladesh," Chowkider's cousin Solaiman told AFP. "We went to the military, but they would not hand over the body, they said he was a suspect." Witnesses say the perpetrators of the attack, which the Islamic State group has claimed, spared the lives of Muslims. The mostly foreign victims included nine Italians, seven Japanese, a US citizen and a 19-year-old Indian student. Bangladesh's foreign minister met diplomats on Tuesday following the attack, the worst by far targeting the international community in Dhaka. Hundreds of foreign firms operate out of Bangladesh and its clothes manufacturing industry is the lifeblood of the economy, accounting for more than 80 per cent of exports. "We've raised our worries during the meeting. We discussed how to deal with the situation and ensure security for the diplomatic community and the foreign community here," one foreign diplomat told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. The diplomat said they also discussed foreign cooperation in the fight against Islamist extremism in Bangladesh. The government says homegrown extremists are responsible for the deaths of some 80 secular activists, foreigners and religious minorities murdered over the last three years. It has repeatedly denied international jihadist networks have a presence in the country, even though IS and a South Asian branch of Al-Qaeda have claimed a number of attacks. The government has said all the suspected attackers were members of the Jamaeytul Mujahdeen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned local Islamist group. Among them were a graduate of Bangladesh's leading private university and an 18-year-old student at an elite school. Another was a former madrasa student from the northern district of Bogra, which is seen as a hotbed of Islamist radicalism. Police on Tuesday identified a fifth attacker as Shafiqul Islam Uzzal, a 26-year-old from Bogra who had been working as a kindergarten teacher in Dhaka. Earlier, the bodies of the Japanese victims arrived on a government plane in Tokyo. All seven had worked with the government-run Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Bangladesh. Authorities said a plane carrying the bodies of the nine Italian victims had flown out of Dhaka early on Tuesday, while the body of the Indian victim was repatriated on Monday. (AFP)

'I was stunned and speechless,' says politician whose son took part in attack

Until late 2014, Nibras Islam appeared to acquaintances to be a typical student: fun-loving, in and out of love, and keen on sport, especially soccer. Women found him handsome. 
 
On a &quot;confessions&quot; Facebook page for Monash University students, one anonymous admirer gushed in a post on October 11, that year: &quot;Nibras Islam!! You are cute. But very hard to spot. Tell me when can I see you. Your smile just makes my day.&quot; 
 
On Friday night, police suspect Nibras was among at least six gunmen who attacked an upscale restaurant in his hometown Dhaka and brutally murdered 20 people, most of them foreigners. 
 
Police in Malaysia said that at least two of the militants had attended the Kuala Lumpur campus of Australia&#39;s prestigious Monash University, although they did not name them. 
 
They and four other gunmen were killed by security forces after a 12-hour siege, while a seventh suspected attacker is in police custody, Bangladesh police said. 
 
The attack, claimed by Islamic State, is an alarming development for a nation that, long used to gritty street violence fanned by political tension between secularists and Islamists, is suddenly facing a far more sophisticated threat. 
 
As investigators gather details about the militants, a profile is emerging of a band of educated youths from privileged backgrounds who had turned to radical Islamism only recently. 
 
One was the son of a mid-ranking leader of the country&#39;s ruling party, police said. 
 
It is testing the long-held belief that poverty and lack of education are the main causes for militancy taking hold in South Asia. 
 
&quot;Earlier the people who were radicalised used to be poorer and educated in quasi-madrassas,&quot; said Joyeeta Bhattacharjee, a Bangladesh expert at Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. &quot;These attackers are people from affluent backgrounds, liberal backgrounds.&quot; 
 
Masudur Rahman, a deputy police commissioner in Dhaka, said that the attackers were &quot;educated and rich&quot; and, somewhere along the way, &quot;brainwashed&quot;. 
 
It is still not clear when and how these young men - three of whom police said were younger than 22 - were radicalised. 
 
But interviews with friends and acquaintances of Nibras and some of the other suspected attackers, as well as a review of their social media activity, offer early glimpses into how they started to change. 
 
A student who knew Nibras from North South University, a private college in Dhaka where he went before moving to Malaysia, said he ran into him at a cafe in January and was surprised by the elaborate version of the &quot;Salaam&quot; greeting he used. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s usually just &ndash; &#39;hey, salaam, how you doing man?&#39; But Nibras said the full version ... His approach that day seemed totally different,&quot; said the student, who requested anonymity. 
 
&quot;I used to pray often in university, and I never saw him during prayer times at the prayer room.&quot; 
 
Privileged background 
 
The annual fee for a bachelor&#39;s course at Monash, a college with sprawling grounds and state-of-the-art sports facilities on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital, is nearly $9,000, at least six times the average income in Bangladesh. 
 
A person who knew Nibras at Monash said he was pursuing an undergraduate degree in business. This person, who did not want to be identified, described him as someone who would hang out with friends and do what they did. 
 
He loved taking photographs, especially of himself, the person said, so much so that his friends would tease him about it. 
 
A scan of social media shows Nibras was crazy about a Bollywood actress, supported Liverpool soccer club and took selfies in cafes with friends. 
 
He also had a girlfriend, whom he broke up with in 2014, the person who knew him at Monash said. On Twitter, where he put his age as 22, Nibras at one point tweeted mournfully about a broken relationship. 
 
&quot;You don&#39;t need me anymore. Be happy with him. Everyone is better then (sic) me. You know where to find me,&quot; he wrote. 
 
Then he vanished from the campus sometime last year. 
 
It is not clear why he left, but the person who knew him said his friends thought it was because he didn&#39;t enjoy his stay at Monash and decided to pursue his education closer to home and family. 
 
He started to withdraw from social media, stopping activity on sites such as Snapchat and Facebook. His Instagram account is still active. 
 
Nibras followed only ten Twitter accounts, one of which was @ShamiWitness, an influential handle run by Islamic State propagandist Mehdi Masroor Biswas, who was arrested in the Indian city of Bangalore last year. 
 
He liked a tweet by Anjem Choudary, one of Britain&#39;s most high-profile Islamist preachers, that was critical of France and its allies and was posted in January, 2015, shortly after the deadly militant attack on the offices of the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo. 
 
Two months before that, he had tweeted: &quot;Goodbye for good&quot;. 
 
(Reuters )

Police suspected Nibras Islam, a student of Australia's Monash University in Kuala Lumpur, to be one of the six gunmen

Until late 2014, Nibras Islam appeared to acquaintances to be a typical student: fun-loving, in and out of love, and keen on sport, especially soccer. Women found him handsome. On a "confessions" Facebook page for Monash University students, one anonymous admirer gushed in a post on October 11, that year: "Nibras Islam!! You are cute. But very hard to spot. Tell me when can I see you. Your smile just makes my day." On Friday night, police suspect Nibras was among at least six gunmen who attacked an upscale restaurant in his hometown Dhaka and brutally murdered 20 people, most of them foreigners. Police in Malaysia said that at least two of the militants had attended the Kuala Lumpur campus of Australia's prestigious Monash University, although they did not name them. They and four other gunmen were killed by security forces after a 12-hour siege, while a seventh suspected attacker is in police custody, Bangladesh police said. The attack, claimed by Islamic State, is an alarming development for a nation that, long used to gritty street violence fanned by political tension between secularists and Islamists, is suddenly facing a far more sophisticated threat. As investigators gather details about the militants, a profile is emerging of a band of educated youths from privileged backgrounds who had turned to radical Islamism only recently. One was the son of a mid-ranking leader of the country's ruling party, police said. It is testing the long-held belief that poverty and lack of education are the main causes for militancy taking hold in South Asia. "Earlier the people who were radicalised used to be poorer and educated in quasi-madrassas," said Joyeeta Bhattacharjee, a Bangladesh expert at Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. "These attackers are people from affluent backgrounds, liberal backgrounds." Masudur Rahman, a deputy police commissioner in Dhaka, said that the attackers were "educated and rich" and, somewhere along the way, "brainwashed". It is still not clear when and how these young men - three of whom police said were younger than 22 - were radicalised. But interviews with friends and acquaintances of Nibras and some of the other suspected attackers, as well as a review of their social media activity, offer early glimpses into how they started to change. A student who knew Nibras from North South University, a private college in Dhaka where he went before moving to Malaysia, said he ran into him at a cafe in January and was surprised by the elaborate version of the "Salaam" greeting he used. "It's usually just – 'hey, salaam, how you doing man?' But Nibras said the full version ... His approach that day seemed totally different," said the student, who requested anonymity. "I used to pray often in university, and I never saw him during prayer times at the prayer room." Privileged background The annual fee for a bachelor's course at Monash, a college with sprawling grounds and state-of-the-art sports facilities on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital, is nearly $9,000, at least six times the average income in Bangladesh. A person who knew Nibras at Monash said he was pursuing an undergraduate degree in business. This person, who did not want to be identified, described him as someone who would hang out with friends and do what they did. He loved taking photographs, especially of himself, the person said, so much so that his friends would tease him about it. A scan of social media shows Nibras was crazy about a Bollywood actress, supported Liverpool soccer club and took selfies in cafes with friends. He also had a girlfriend, whom he broke up with in 2014, the person who knew him at Monash said. On Twitter, where he put his age as 22, Nibras at one point tweeted mournfully about a broken relationship. "You don't need me anymore. Be happy with him. Everyone is better then (sic) me. You know where to find me," he wrote. Then he vanished from the campus sometime last year. It is not clear why he left, but the person who knew him said his friends thought it was because he didn't enjoy his stay at Monash and decided to pursue his education closer to home and family. He started to withdraw from social media, stopping activity on sites such as Snapchat and Facebook. His Instagram account is still active. Nibras followed only ten Twitter accounts, one of which was @ShamiWitness, an influential handle run by Islamic State propagandist Mehdi Masroor Biswas, who was arrested in the Indian city of Bangalore last year. He liked a tweet by Anjem Choudary, one of Britain's most high-profile Islamist preachers, that was critical of France and its allies and was posted in January, 2015, shortly after the deadly militant attack on the offices of the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo. Two months before that, he had tweeted: "Goodbye for good". (Reuters )

Heartbreak, selfies and soccer: the life of a Dhaka cafe killer

Kuwaiti security authorities have broken up three Islamic State cells plotting &quot;terror&quot; attacks in the oil-rich Gulf state, the interior ministry said today. 
 
Five Kuwaiti nationals were arrested, including a policeman and a woman, who all confessed to plotting attacks against a Shiite mosque and an interior ministry target, the ministry said in a statement. 
 
All members of the three cells also confessed to being members of the Islamic State jihadist group. 
 
Kuwaiti police are still looking for a Gulf man and an Asian who assisted one of the cells, the ministry said. 
 
The action against the Islamist cells comes a year after an IS-linked Saudi suicide bomber blew himself up in a Shiite mosque, killing 26 worshippers in the worst attack in Kuwait. 
 
A court sentenced one man to death and jailed eight others for assisting the Saudi bomber. 
 
Among those arrested in the latest police action was 18-year old Talal Raja who confessed to have been plotting a suicide attack against a Shiite mosque and an interior ministry installation by the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramzan on Tuesday, the ministry said. 
 
The second cell consisted of a mother and son who were arrested in Syria in the IS-controlled Riga and brought back to Kuwait, the ministry said. It provided no details of how they were arrested. 
 
The 28-year old son had cut short his petroleum engineering study in Britain to join the IS after his younger brother was killed while fighting for the group in Iraq, the ministry said. 
 
The third cell comprised of two Kuwaitis, one of them a policeman, who were seized along with two Klashnikov rifles and ammunition. The pair confessed to plotting attacks in the country, the ministry said. 
 
In November last year, Kuwaiti police busted an international cell led by a Lebanese man that was sending air defence systems and funds to the Islamic State group. 
 
Several suspected IS members and sympathisers were tried in the Gulf emirate for a suicide bombing last month claimed by the group. 
 
(AFP)

Five Kuwaiti nationals, including a policeman and woman, were arrested after they apparently confessed to being members IS

Kuwaiti security authorities have broken up three Islamic State cells plotting "terror" attacks in the oil-rich Gulf state, the interior ministry said today. Five Kuwaiti nationals were arrested, including a policeman and a woman, who all confessed to plotting attacks against a Shiite mosque and an interior ministry target, the ministry said in a statement. All members of the three cells also confessed to being members of the Islamic State jihadist group. Kuwaiti police are still looking for a Gulf man and an Asian who assisted one of the cells, the ministry said. The action against the Islamist cells comes a year after an IS-linked Saudi suicide bomber blew himself up in a Shiite mosque, killing 26 worshippers in the worst attack in Kuwait. A court sentenced one man to death and jailed eight others for assisting the Saudi bomber. Among those arrested in the latest police action was 18-year old Talal Raja who confessed to have been plotting a suicide attack against a Shiite mosque and an interior ministry installation by the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramzan on Tuesday, the ministry said. The second cell consisted of a mother and son who were arrested in Syria in the IS-controlled Riga and brought back to Kuwait, the ministry said. It provided no details of how they were arrested. The 28-year old son had cut short his petroleum engineering study in Britain to join the IS after his younger brother was killed while fighting for the group in Iraq, the ministry said. The third cell comprised of two Kuwaitis, one of them a policeman, who were seized along with two Klashnikov rifles and ammunition. The pair confessed to plotting attacks in the country, the ministry said. In November last year, Kuwaiti police busted an international cell led by a Lebanese man that was sending air defence systems and funds to the Islamic State group. Several suspected IS members and sympathisers were tried in the Gulf emirate for a suicide bombing last month claimed by the group. (AFP)

Kuwait busts 3 IS cells plotting attacks

A slaughter of foreign hostages has put Bangladesh firmly on the frontline of the global war on terror, despite government efforts to portray a campaign of attacks as the work of domestic opponents, according to analysts. 
 
Several dozen people have been killed by jihadists in Bangladesh in the last two years, the victims including mainly local atheist bloggers, Hindus, gay activists and liberal academics. 
 
But while those attacks generated few column inches beyond Bangladesh, this weekend&#39;s hostage siege in a Dhaka cafe led news bulletins around the world, attracting the kind of attention its perpetrators had long been craving. 
 
Analysts said the choice of venue, target, timing and method of killing were all designed to maximise publicity for jihadists who were well aware of the outrage that greeted recent massacres in Orlando and Paris. 
 
Eighteen of the 20 civilians who were killed in the Holey Artisan Bakery were foreigners. Nearly all were hacked to death with machetes, even though the hostage-takers had plenty of firearms. 
 
The attack was even more shocking as it came on the final weekend of Ramadan, with survivors describing how the hostage-takers made clear their targets were non-Muslims, separating locals from the foreigners. 
 
Around 90 per cent of Bangladesh&#39;s 160 million people are Muslims, but the state is officially secular. 
 
&quot;By hacking people to death... they wanted to show the world that they can go to any extent for jihad,&quot; said K G Suresh, a senior fellow at New Delhi&#39;s Vivekananda International Foundation think-tank. 
 
&quot;Once they attack a restaurant popular with foreigners on a Friday night their message is clear who they want to go after. By sparing Muslims, they wanted to send out the message that they are only against Westerners.&quot; 
 
According to the monitoring group SITE, the Islamic State organisation claimed responsibility for the attack which it said had targetted &quot;citizens of crusader states&quot;. 
 
But Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina&#39;s secular government has long insisted neither IS nor Al-Qaeda have gained a foothold in Bangladesh despite both groups claiming many previous attacks. 
 
That line was reiterated by Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, who told AFP that six gunmen killed at the end of the siege were members of Jamaeytul Mujahdeen Bangladesh, a domestic group which has been banned for a decade. 
 
He denied any link with IS, but analysts said that stretched credibility. 
 
Taj Hashmi, a Bangladeshi who teaches security studies at the Austin Peay State University in the US, said there could be &quot;no ambiguity&quot; that the attack was the work of IS. 
 
&quot;Bangladesh must admit that international Islamist networks are actively engaged in killing people in the country and they are not through yet,&quot; said Hashmi. 
 
Mubashar Hasan, an expert on political Islam at Dhaka&#39;s Liberal Arts University, said the attack was not merely a local difficulty but was the latest in a line that stretched back to the bombings in New York and Washington on September 11, 2001. 
 
&quot;This is Bangladesh&#39;s 9/11. Bangladesh has now entered into the global war on terror,&quot; Hasan told AFP. 
 
Critics have said the violence stems from the government&#39;s refusal to allow its opponents to operate freely in the political mainstream. 
 
&#39;Lack of democracy&#39; 
 
Bangladesh&#39;s main Islamist party has been banned and most of its leaders have been arrested or else executed after recent trials over their role in the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. 
 
Opposition leader Khaleda Zia is facing a string of court cases for her role in violent anti-government protests. 
 
Zia&#39;s party boycotted the 2014 general election after Hasina refused to allow it to be overseen by a neutral caretaker government as in the past, and Hasan said growing extremism was an inevitable consequence. 
 
&quot;A dysfunctional state and lack of democracy made it fertile ground for terrorism,&quot; said Hasan. 
 
The columnist Zafar Sohban urged the government to end &quot;its state of denial&quot;. 
 
&quot;It cannot continue to bury its head in the sand about the clear and convincing evidence of transnational links to domestic terror groups and operations,&quot; he wrote in the Dhaka Tribune. 
 
Subhash Agrawal of the Delhi-based India Focus political risk consultancy, said the recent arrests of thousands of Bangladeshis that the government says was organised to eradicate extremism had been counter-productive. 
 
&quot;She has been focusing on her political opponents and going after Begum Khaleda Zia&#39;s people while turning a blind eye to the alarming political and social polarisation in her country,&quot; Agrawal told AFP. 
 
&quot;Arresting so many people is simply stupid.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's secular government has long insisted that neither IS or Al-Qaeda have gained a foothold in Bangladesh

A slaughter of foreign hostages has put Bangladesh firmly on the frontline of the global war on terror, despite government efforts to portray a campaign of attacks as the work of domestic opponents, according to analysts. Several dozen people have been killed by jihadists in Bangladesh in the last two years, the victims including mainly local atheist bloggers, Hindus, gay activists and liberal academics. But while those attacks generated few column inches beyond Bangladesh, this weekend's hostage siege in a Dhaka cafe led news bulletins around the world, attracting the kind of attention its perpetrators had long been craving. Analysts said the choice of venue, target, timing and method of killing were all designed to maximise publicity for jihadists who were well aware of the outrage that greeted recent massacres in Orlando and Paris. Eighteen of the 20 civilians who were killed in the Holey Artisan Bakery were foreigners. Nearly all were hacked to death with machetes, even though the hostage-takers had plenty of firearms. The attack was even more shocking as it came on the final weekend of Ramadan, with survivors describing how the hostage-takers made clear their targets were non-Muslims, separating locals from the foreigners. Around 90 per cent of Bangladesh's 160 million people are Muslims, but the state is officially secular. "By hacking people to death... they wanted to show the world that they can go to any extent for jihad," said K G Suresh, a senior fellow at New Delhi's Vivekananda International Foundation think-tank. "Once they attack a restaurant popular with foreigners on a Friday night their message is clear who they want to go after. By sparing Muslims, they wanted to send out the message that they are only against Westerners." According to the monitoring group SITE, the Islamic State organisation claimed responsibility for the attack which it said had targetted "citizens of crusader states". But Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's secular government has long insisted neither IS nor Al-Qaeda have gained a foothold in Bangladesh despite both groups claiming many previous attacks. That line was reiterated by Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, who told AFP that six gunmen killed at the end of the siege were members of Jamaeytul Mujahdeen Bangladesh, a domestic group which has been banned for a decade. He denied any link with IS, but analysts said that stretched credibility. Taj Hashmi, a Bangladeshi who teaches security studies at the Austin Peay State University in the US, said there could be "no ambiguity" that the attack was the work of IS. "Bangladesh must admit that international Islamist networks are actively engaged in killing people in the country and they are not through yet," said Hashmi. Mubashar Hasan, an expert on political Islam at Dhaka's Liberal Arts University, said the attack was not merely a local difficulty but was the latest in a line that stretched back to the bombings in New York and Washington on September 11, 2001. "This is Bangladesh's 9/11. Bangladesh has now entered into the global war on terror," Hasan told AFP. Critics have said the violence stems from the government's refusal to allow its opponents to operate freely in the political mainstream. 'Lack of democracy' Bangladesh's main Islamist party has been banned and most of its leaders have been arrested or else executed after recent trials over their role in the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. Opposition leader Khaleda Zia is facing a string of court cases for her role in violent anti-government protests. Zia's party boycotted the 2014 general election after Hasina refused to allow it to be overseen by a neutral caretaker government as in the past, and Hasan said growing extremism was an inevitable consequence. "A dysfunctional state and lack of democracy made it fertile ground for terrorism," said Hasan. The columnist Zafar Sohban urged the government to end "its state of denial". "It cannot continue to bury its head in the sand about the clear and convincing evidence of transnational links to domestic terror groups and operations," he wrote in the Dhaka Tribune. Subhash Agrawal of the Delhi-based India Focus political risk consultancy, said the recent arrests of thousands of Bangladeshis that the government says was organised to eradicate extremism had been counter-productive. "She has been focusing on her political opponents and going after Begum Khaleda Zia's people while turning a blind eye to the alarming political and social polarisation in her country," Agrawal told AFP. "Arresting so many people is simply stupid." (AFP)

Bangladesh 'in denial' over jihadist attacks: analysts

Bangladesh has raised its terrorism alert level and tightened security measures in the capital city Dhaka after a terror attack killed 20 people in a local cafe late Friday. 
 
Roads near the incident site are still blocked 30 hours after the tragedy happened. Armed police are frisking pedestrians on roads around the city in attempt to prevent further possible attacks. 
 
Police strength has also been added in other public places like airports and schools. 
 
Nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, a Bangladesh-born US citizen and an Indian female were killed in the attack on a Spanish restaurant which was located in the area popular with foreigners 
 
Around five hours after the attack, the Islamic Republic claimed the responsibility of attacking the upmarket restaurant. 
 
The authenticity of the IS claim has not been confirmed by the Bangladesh police. 
 
At least 40 people, including senior police officials, were injured. 
 
(Reuters)

Armed police are frisking pedestrians on roads around the city in attempt to prevent further possible attacks

Bangladesh has raised its terrorism alert level and tightened security measures in the capital city Dhaka after a terror attack killed 20 people in a local cafe late Friday. Roads near the incident site are still blocked 30 hours after the tragedy happened. Armed police are frisking pedestrians on roads around the city in attempt to prevent further possible attacks. Police strength has also been added in other public places like airports and schools. Nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, a Bangladesh-born US citizen and an Indian female were killed in the attack on a Spanish restaurant which was located in the area popular with foreigners Around five hours after the attack, the Islamic Republic claimed the responsibility of attacking the upmarket restaurant. The authenticity of the IS claim has not been confirmed by the Bangladesh police. At least 40 people, including senior police officials, were injured. (Reuters)

Bangladesh tightens security measures after terror attack

The seven militants, who killed 20 at a restaurant in Dhaka, were local Bangladeshis and authorities had tried before to arrest five of them, police said, as the country began a two-day period of mourning today. 
 
Gunmen stormed the upmarket restaurant popular with expatriates in the diplomatic zone late on Friday, before killing 18 foreigners in a coordinated mass killing that experts said marked a level of scale and sophistication not previously seen in the South Asian country. 
 
Most of the victims were hacked to death with machetes before commandos entered the building, killing six of the militants and capturing a seventh, after a 12-hour standoff, police said. 
 
&quot;All gunmen were Bangladeshi. Five of them were listed as militants and law enforcers made several drives to arrest them,&quot; national police chief Shahidul Hoque told reporters in Dhaka late on Saturday. 
 
Police have yet to comment on Islamic State&#39;s claims of responsibility, but security sources said authorities were probing deeper for possible ties between the gunmen and trans-national Islamist extremist groups given the scale and sophistication of the attack. 
 
Bangladesh has blamed two home-grown groups for a series of grisly killings targeting liberals or members of minority groups over the past 18 months, and local authorities have maintained that no operational links exist between Bangladeshi militants and international jihadi networks. 
 
Islamic State posted photos on Saturday of five fighters it said were involved in the killings but its claim has not been confirmed. 
 
Police said nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, an Indian and a US citizen were killed during the attack at the Dhaka building, split between the Holey Artisan Bakery and the O&#39;Kitchen Restaurant. 
 
Italian media said several of the Italians victims worked in the garment industry, and the attack will frighten expatriates working in the $26 billion garment sector that accounts for 80 per cent of its exports. 
 
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced two days of national mourning on Saturday and said the country would stand up and fight the &quot;terror threat&quot;. 
 
(Reuters)

The national police chief said five of the gunmen were listed as militants and law enforcers had tried to arrest them in the past.

The seven militants, who killed 20 at a restaurant in Dhaka, were local Bangladeshis and authorities had tried before to arrest five of them, police said, as the country began a two-day period of mourning today. Gunmen stormed the upmarket restaurant popular with expatriates in the diplomatic zone late on Friday, before killing 18 foreigners in a coordinated mass killing that experts said marked a level of scale and sophistication not previously seen in the South Asian country. Most of the victims were hacked to death with machetes before commandos entered the building, killing six of the militants and capturing a seventh, after a 12-hour standoff, police said. "All gunmen were Bangladeshi. Five of them were listed as militants and law enforcers made several drives to arrest them," national police chief Shahidul Hoque told reporters in Dhaka late on Saturday. Police have yet to comment on Islamic State's claims of responsibility, but security sources said authorities were probing deeper for possible ties between the gunmen and trans-national Islamist extremist groups given the scale and sophistication of the attack. Bangladesh has blamed two home-grown groups for a series of grisly killings targeting liberals or members of minority groups over the past 18 months, and local authorities have maintained that no operational links exist between Bangladeshi militants and international jihadi networks. Islamic State posted photos on Saturday of five fighters it said were involved in the killings but its claim has not been confirmed. Police said nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, an Indian and a US citizen were killed during the attack at the Dhaka building, split between the Holey Artisan Bakery and the O'Kitchen Restaurant. Italian media said several of the Italians victims worked in the garment industry, and the attack will frighten expatriates working in the $26 billion garment sector that accounts for 80 per cent of its exports. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced two days of national mourning on Saturday and said the country would stand up and fight the "terror threat". (Reuters)

Dhaka bakery attackers Bangladeshis, 5 on militant watch list: Police

In the aftermath of the Islamic State attack on a Bangladesh restaurant that left 20 dead, Democratic White House hopeful Hillary Clinton has asserted that the US stands firmly with its allies in the fight to defeat the terror group. 
 
She said her &quot;thoughts and prayers&quot; were with the people of Bangladesh, and stressed that the terror group&#39;s &quot;campaign of fear, hatred and violence&quot; would not succeed. 
 
&quot;The terrorist assault on a bakery and restaurant in Dhaka is a reminder that an attack halfway around the world is still an attack on all of us, in the everyday places we hold dear,&quot; Clinton said in a statement. 
 
The victims in Dhaka came from all over-- Italy, Japan, India and Bangladesh, she said, adding that at least three, including an American citizen, attended college in the United States. 
 
&quot;Today, we say with one voice: this campaign of fear and hatred and violence will not succeed. We will not retreat,&quot; Clinton said. 
 
&quot;We will not turn our backs on each other. The United States stands firmly with our friends and allies in the fight to defeat ISIS and radical jihadism around the world. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and the people of Bangladesh,&quot; she said. 
 
Mourning the loss of life in the attack, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said the United States is ready to help Bangladesh. 
 
&quot;With heavy hearts, we pray for the victims, survivors, and the loved ones affected by this horrific assault. With determined spirits, we will continue to stand firm against these vicious acts wherever they occur,&quot; she said. 
 
&quot;We must continue to confront terrorists with strength, unity, and a comprehensive strategy. Extremists fuelled by hatred can never extinguish the light of international cooperation and the beacon of hope aflame in communities around the world,&quot; Pelosi said. 
 
(PTI)

Dhaka is a reminder that an attack halfway around the world is still an attack on all of us, she said

In the aftermath of the Islamic State attack on a Bangladesh restaurant that left 20 dead, Democratic White House hopeful Hillary Clinton has asserted that the US stands firmly with its allies in the fight to defeat the terror group. She said her "thoughts and prayers" were with the people of Bangladesh, and stressed that the terror group's "campaign of fear, hatred and violence" would not succeed. "The terrorist assault on a bakery and restaurant in Dhaka is a reminder that an attack halfway around the world is still an attack on all of us, in the everyday places we hold dear," Clinton said in a statement. The victims in Dhaka came from all over-- Italy, Japan, India and Bangladesh, she said, adding that at least three, including an American citizen, attended college in the United States. "Today, we say with one voice: this campaign of fear and hatred and violence will not succeed. We will not retreat," Clinton said. "We will not turn our backs on each other. The United States stands firmly with our friends and allies in the fight to defeat ISIS and radical jihadism around the world. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and the people of Bangladesh," she said. Mourning the loss of life in the attack, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said the United States is ready to help Bangladesh. "With heavy hearts, we pray for the victims, survivors, and the loved ones affected by this horrific assault. With determined spirits, we will continue to stand firm against these vicious acts wherever they occur," she said. "We must continue to confront terrorists with strength, unity, and a comprehensive strategy. Extremists fuelled by hatred can never extinguish the light of international cooperation and the beacon of hope aflame in communities around the world," Pelosi said. (PTI)

IS campaign of fear and violence will not succeed: Hillary Clinton

Early in June, a man walked into the Dhaka premises of the Ramakrishna Mission, a Hindu centre for spirituality and learning in the Bangladesh capital, and delivered a handwritten note warning of an attack by Islamic State. 
 
Days later, armed policemen were sitting inside the mission&#39;s compound among orange-robed monks, the gates outside were closed and fewer people than normal showed up at a medical clinic it runs for the neighbourhood. 
 
&quot;We are monks, we will live and die here, but people with families are worried,&quot; Swami Shivananda, a priest managing the administration of the mission, said of the country&#39;s Hindu community, which accounts for 10 per cent of the population. 
 
Islamic State and al Qaeda have claimed responsibility for the killings of more than 30 people since early last year, in an escalation of militant violence targeting liberals, atheists, foreigners, gays and religious minorities. 
 
They have shocked the largely moderate Muslim country of 160 million people and heightened fears that Bangladesh, once hailed as the next Asian tiger economy with its huge garment industry, could lose out to more stable competitors in the region. 
 
Unlike some security experts, Bangladesh authorities say the two international jihadi movements are not directly involved in the murders, many of which were carried out with machetes. 
 
But, as the police at the Hindu mission attest, the danger is real, and counter-terrorism officials warn it could get worse with one local militant group adopting al Qaeda&#39;s methods and calling on the expertise of a former army major implicated in a failed 2011 coup. 
 
Deadly rivalry&nbsp; 
 
Security officials say two local militant groups, Ansar-al-Islam and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, are behind the killings. 
 
Of the two, Ansar, which pledges allegiance to al Qaeda, has emerged as the most organised and dangerous, they say, while Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen is seen as a looser organisation that claims it represents Islamic State but has no proven links to it. 
 
&quot;By now we have a clear idea of the organisational structure, command and control and methods of operations of Ansar-al-Islam,&quot; Monirul Islam, chief of Bangladesh&#39;s counter-terrorism police, told Reuters in a recent interview. 
 
&quot;They follow the ideology of al Qaeda, their operational leaders are mostly educated men, (from a) middle class background. They declare their allegiance to al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and, through it, to Ayman al-Zawahri,&quot; he said, referring to al Qaeda&#39;s global leader. 
 
According to Thomas Joscelyn, senior editor at The Long War Journal that tracks jihadi groups worldwide, there was evidence of more direct links between Bangladesh and al Qaeda, and he warned the Islamist militant threat had been underestimated. 
 
&quot;We now have competition between al Qaeda and the Islamic State in Bangladesh, which means that the jihadist pool is deep enough for both organizations to operate in the country.&quot; 
 
In May, 2015, AQIS leader Asim Umar claimed responsibility for the murder of Avijit Roy, a US citizen and blogger hacked to death in Bangladesh that February. US officials said at the time they were unable to confirm the claim. 
 
Initially, Ansar struck bloggers and publishers critical of radical Islam, then university teachers, including one who asked a woman student to remove her veil in class. 
 
In April, it said it murdered two gay rights activists, saying they were promoting anti-Islamic activities, police said. 
 
Mysterious ex-officer 
 
Also worrying for authorities is the apparent rise within Ansar&#39;s ranks of former army Major Syed Mohammad Ziaul Haque, who went into hiding after the military accused him of involvement in a plot to overthrow the government in 2011. 
 
&quot;We have a suspicion that the ex-major is one of their leaders,&quot; said counter-terrorism chief Islam. &quot;He is in hiding. We know his capability. If he is involved, it is a strength for Ansar-al-Islam.&quot; 
 
Zia, as intelligence agencies call him, was from the engineer corps and trained in special operations. 
 
His would be the first known case of a Bangladesh military officer switching sides to join a militant group, although it has happened elsewhere. 
 
A military spokesman said Zia had been dismissed from service five years ago, but added that he was not in a position to speak about Zia&#39;s activities since then. 
 
Zia&#39;s involvement with Ansar was first mentioned by the head of its predecessor group following his capture in 2013, two police officials said. 
 
Zia was helping in the training of the fighters, motivating them to carry out jihad against &quot;anti-Islam&quot; forces and also taught bomb-making skills, one official briefed on the interrogation report said. 
 
Reuters could not independently verify the police claims. 
 
At the same time, Islamic State has said it was behind the killings of Hindus, Buddhists and members of minority Muslim sects, which have accelerated in recent weeks. 
 
Security officials tie those deaths to Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, a home grown group inspired by Islamic State&#39;s vision of a caliphate. 
 
Police official Islam said authorities had found computer evidence that Bangladesh-origin foreign fighters, some in Syria, were claiming attacks on behalf of Islamic State as soon as they occurred. 
 
But he said there was no evidence of operational ties with the Middle East-based movement. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

They follow the ideology of al Qaeda and their operational leaders are mostly educated men from the middle class

Early in June, a man walked into the Dhaka premises of the Ramakrishna Mission, a Hindu centre for spirituality and learning in the Bangladesh capital, and delivered a handwritten note warning of an attack by Islamic State. Days later, armed policemen were sitting inside the mission's compound among orange-robed monks, the gates outside were closed and fewer people than normal showed up at a medical clinic it runs for the neighbourhood. "We are monks, we will live and die here, but people with families are worried," Swami Shivananda, a priest managing the administration of the mission, said of the country's Hindu community, which accounts for 10 per cent of the population. Islamic State and al Qaeda have claimed responsibility for the killings of more than 30 people since early last year, in an escalation of militant violence targeting liberals, atheists, foreigners, gays and religious minorities. They have shocked the largely moderate Muslim country of 160 million people and heightened fears that Bangladesh, once hailed as the next Asian tiger economy with its huge garment industry, could lose out to more stable competitors in the region. Unlike some security experts, Bangladesh authorities say the two international jihadi movements are not directly involved in the murders, many of which were carried out with machetes. But, as the police at the Hindu mission attest, the danger is real, and counter-terrorism officials warn it could get worse with one local militant group adopting al Qaeda's methods and calling on the expertise of a former army major implicated in a failed 2011 coup. Deadly rivalry Security officials say two local militant groups, Ansar-al-Islam and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, are behind the killings. Of the two, Ansar, which pledges allegiance to al Qaeda, has emerged as the most organised and dangerous, they say, while Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen is seen as a looser organisation that claims it represents Islamic State but has no proven links to it. "By now we have a clear idea of the organisational structure, command and control and methods of operations of Ansar-al-Islam," Monirul Islam, chief of Bangladesh's counter-terrorism police, told Reuters in a recent interview. "They follow the ideology of al Qaeda, their operational leaders are mostly educated men, (from a) middle class background. They declare their allegiance to al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and, through it, to Ayman al-Zawahri," he said, referring to al Qaeda's global leader. According to Thomas Joscelyn, senior editor at The Long War Journal that tracks jihadi groups worldwide, there was evidence of more direct links between Bangladesh and al Qaeda, and he warned the Islamist militant threat had been underestimated. "We now have competition between al Qaeda and the Islamic State in Bangladesh, which means that the jihadist pool is deep enough for both organizations to operate in the country." In May, 2015, AQIS leader Asim Umar claimed responsibility for the murder of Avijit Roy, a US citizen and blogger hacked to death in Bangladesh that February. US officials said at the time they were unable to confirm the claim. Initially, Ansar struck bloggers and publishers critical of radical Islam, then university teachers, including one who asked a woman student to remove her veil in class. In April, it said it murdered two gay rights activists, saying they were promoting anti-Islamic activities, police said. Mysterious ex-officer Also worrying for authorities is the apparent rise within Ansar's ranks of former army Major Syed Mohammad Ziaul Haque, who went into hiding after the military accused him of involvement in a plot to overthrow the government in 2011. "We have a suspicion that the ex-major is one of their leaders," said counter-terrorism chief Islam. "He is in hiding. We know his capability. If he is involved, it is a strength for Ansar-al-Islam." Zia, as intelligence agencies call him, was from the engineer corps and trained in special operations. His would be the first known case of a Bangladesh military officer switching sides to join a militant group, although it has happened elsewhere. A military spokesman said Zia had been dismissed from service five years ago, but added that he was not in a position to speak about Zia's activities since then. Zia's involvement with Ansar was first mentioned by the head of its predecessor group following his capture in 2013, two police officials said. Zia was helping in the training of the fighters, motivating them to carry out jihad against "anti-Islam" forces and also taught bomb-making skills, one official briefed on the interrogation report said. Reuters could not independently verify the police claims. At the same time, Islamic State has said it was behind the killings of Hindus, Buddhists and members of minority Muslim sects, which have accelerated in recent weeks. Security officials tie those deaths to Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, a home grown group inspired by Islamic State's vision of a caliphate. Police official Islam said authorities had found computer evidence that Bangladesh-origin foreign fighters, some in Syria, were claiming attacks on behalf of Islamic State as soon as they occurred. But he said there was no evidence of operational ties with the Middle East-based movement. (Reuters)

Home-grown militants and former army officer behind attacks on Bangladeshi minorities, say police

Republican Donald Trump said today that if elected president on November 8 he would be open to drawing NATO forces into the fight against Islamic State militants in a new mission for an alliance he has called obsolete. 
 
Trump made the comments in an interview with ABC News. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has for months raised questions about the money the United States pours into NATO, which he says needs to be reconfigured to take account of today&#39;s threats. 
 
&ldquo;I like the idea of using NATO and also neighbours that aren&rsquo;t in NATO and take them out. You gotta take them out,&rdquo; Trump said. 
 
Under President Barack Obama, the United States has relied heavily on US airstrikes to attack Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq. Republicans have criticised this policy as not enough to stop the militants. 
 
Trump said the idea of using the Cold War-era alliance would be to ease the load on American forces. 
 
&quot;I don&rsquo;t want to get too much of ours involved. I want NATO to be involved,&rdquo; Trump said. &ldquo;We spend a tremendous amount of money on NATO. We take care of countries that frankly should be taking care of themselves in terms of economically.&rdquo; 
 
Trump&#39;s comments came amid an uproar over a meeting between former president Bill Clinton and attorney general Loretta Lynch at a time when Clinton&#39;s wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, is under federal investigation. 
 
The private meeting took place on Lynch&#39;s plane after she landed in Phoenix on Monday night and Bill Clinton was leaving the airport after a rally he held for his wife earlier that day. 
 
Hillary Clinton is under an FBI investigation for her use of a private email server when she was President Barack Obama&#39;s first-term secretary of state. 
 
Trump told conservative radio talk show host Mike Gallagher that the meeting was proof of his charge that the US political system is &quot;rigged&quot; in favor of political elites. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s unheard of,&quot; Trump told ABC News. &quot;You have this massive investigation on emails and they&#39;d have a meeting like this.&quot; 
 
Lynch, appointed to her position by Obama more than a year ago, said she did not discuss the email investigation or other pending matters before the justice department with Bill Clinton. 
 
&quot;When I was landing at the airport, I did see president Clinton at the Phoenix airport as I was leaving and he spoke to myself and my husband on the plane,&quot; Lynch told reporters. 
 
&quot;Our conversation was a great deal about grandchildren. It was primarily social and about our travels. He mentioned the golf he played in Phoenix and he mentioned travels he had to West Virginia...But there was no discussion of any matter pending for the department or any matter pending before any other body,&quot; Lynch said. 
 
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating Hillary Clinton about her email use and has already interviewed some of her aides. The investigation into whether laws were broken as a result of the server kept in her New York home has overshadowed Clinton&#39;s campaign. 
 
Special counsel 
 
Obama is preparing to campaign with Hillary Clinton for the first time in her 2016 White House bid. They are to appear together in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Tuesday. A Reuters/Ipsos poll this week showed Clinton 11 points ahead of the billionaire businessman 
 
At the White House, spokesman Josh Earnest made clear that Obama believes an impartial investigation is crucial and noted that Lynch had said the conversation was benign. 
 
&quot;I think the bottom line is simply that both the president and the attorney general understand how important it is for the department of justice to conduct investigations that are free of political interference,&quot; Earnest told reporters. 
 
US senator John Cornyn of Texas, the Number 2 Senate Republican, cited the incident in renewing his call for an independent counsel to take over the Clinton probe from the FBI. 
 
(Reuters)

'I like the idea of using NATO and also neighbours that aren?t in NATO and take them out. You gotta take them out,' he told ABC News

Republican Donald Trump said today that if elected president on November 8 he would be open to drawing NATO forces into the fight against Islamic State militants in a new mission for an alliance he has called obsolete. Trump made the comments in an interview with ABC News. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has for months raised questions about the money the United States pours into NATO, which he says needs to be reconfigured to take account of today's threats. “I like the idea of using NATO and also neighbours that aren’t in NATO and take them out. You gotta take them out,” Trump said. Under President Barack Obama, the United States has relied heavily on US airstrikes to attack Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq. Republicans have criticised this policy as not enough to stop the militants. Trump said the idea of using the Cold War-era alliance would be to ease the load on American forces. "I don’t want to get too much of ours involved. I want NATO to be involved,” Trump said. “We spend a tremendous amount of money on NATO. We take care of countries that frankly should be taking care of themselves in terms of economically.” Trump's comments came amid an uproar over a meeting between former president Bill Clinton and attorney general Loretta Lynch at a time when Clinton's wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, is under federal investigation. The private meeting took place on Lynch's plane after she landed in Phoenix on Monday night and Bill Clinton was leaving the airport after a rally he held for his wife earlier that day. Hillary Clinton is under an FBI investigation for her use of a private email server when she was President Barack Obama's first-term secretary of state. Trump told conservative radio talk show host Mike Gallagher that the meeting was proof of his charge that the US political system is "rigged" in favor of political elites. "It's unheard of," Trump told ABC News. "You have this massive investigation on emails and they'd have a meeting like this." Lynch, appointed to her position by Obama more than a year ago, said she did not discuss the email investigation or other pending matters before the justice department with Bill Clinton. "When I was landing at the airport, I did see president Clinton at the Phoenix airport as I was leaving and he spoke to myself and my husband on the plane," Lynch told reporters. "Our conversation was a great deal about grandchildren. It was primarily social and about our travels. He mentioned the golf he played in Phoenix and he mentioned travels he had to West Virginia...But there was no discussion of any matter pending for the department or any matter pending before any other body," Lynch said. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating Hillary Clinton about her email use and has already interviewed some of her aides. The investigation into whether laws were broken as a result of the server kept in her New York home has overshadowed Clinton's campaign. Special counsel Obama is preparing to campaign with Hillary Clinton for the first time in her 2016 White House bid. They are to appear together in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Tuesday. A Reuters/Ipsos poll this week showed Clinton 11 points ahead of the billionaire businessman At the White House, spokesman Josh Earnest made clear that Obama believes an impartial investigation is crucial and noted that Lynch had said the conversation was benign. "I think the bottom line is simply that both the president and the attorney general understand how important it is for the department of justice to conduct investigations that are free of political interference," Earnest told reporters. US senator John Cornyn of Texas, the Number 2 Senate Republican, cited the incident in renewing his call for an independent counsel to take over the Clinton probe from the FBI. (Reuters)

If elected president, Trump pledges to use NATO in fight against ISIS

Turkish police carried out raids against suspected Islamic State cells in Istanbul and the Aegean coastal city of Izmir today, the state-run Anadolu agency said, two days after a triple suicide bombing killed 42 people at Istanbul airport. 
 
Turkish authorities and US officials believe Islamic State was responsible for Tuesday night&#39;s gun and bomb attack on Europe&#39;s third-busiest airport, the deadliest in a series of suicide bombings in Turkey this year. 
 
Counter-terrorism police led by special forces officers carried out raids in several low-income neighbourhoods of Istanbul,&nbsp;including Pendik, Basaksehir and Sultanbeyli,&nbsp;&nbsp;Anadolu said, without citing its sources. 
 
It was not immediately clear if the raids were directly linked to the attack on Ataturk airport. 
 
Nine suspected militants, thought to have been in contact with Islamic State members in Syria, were meanwhile detained in the dawn raids in four districts of Izmir, the news agency said. It said they were accused of financing, recruiting and providing logistical support to the Sunni hard-line group. 
 
Three bombers opened fire to create panic outside Istanbul airport on Tuesday, before two of them got inside and blew themselves up. The third detonated his explosives at the entrance. Two hundred thirty-nine people were wounded. 
 
Turkey is part of a US-led military coalition against Islamic State and home to about 3 million refugees from the five-year civil war in neighbouring Syria. 
 
Islamic State has established a self-declared caliphate on swathes of both Syria and Iraq and declared war on all non-Muslims and all Muslims who do not accept its ultra-hardline vision of Sunni Islam. It has claimed responsibility for similar bombing and gun attacks in Belgium and France in the past year. 
 
(Reuters)

Nine suspected militants thought to have links with IS in Syria were detained in raids in four districts of Izmir, Anadolu agency reported

Turkish police carried out raids against suspected Islamic State cells in Istanbul and the Aegean coastal city of Izmir today, the state-run Anadolu agency said, two days after a triple suicide bombing killed 42 people at Istanbul airport. Turkish authorities and US officials believe Islamic State was responsible for Tuesday night's gun and bomb attack on Europe's third-busiest airport, the deadliest in a series of suicide bombings in Turkey this year. Counter-terrorism police led by special forces officers carried out raids in several low-income neighbourhoods of Istanbul, including Pendik, Basaksehir and Sultanbeyli, Anadolu said, without citing its sources. It was not immediately clear if the raids were directly linked to the attack on Ataturk airport. Nine suspected militants, thought to have been in contact with Islamic State members in Syria, were meanwhile detained in the dawn raids in four districts of Izmir, the news agency said. It said they were accused of financing, recruiting and providing logistical support to the Sunni hard-line group. Three bombers opened fire to create panic outside Istanbul airport on Tuesday, before two of them got inside and blew themselves up. The third detonated his explosives at the entrance. Two hundred thirty-nine people were wounded. Turkey is part of a US-led military coalition against Islamic State and home to about 3 million refugees from the five-year civil war in neighbouring Syria. Islamic State has established a self-declared caliphate on swathes of both Syria and Iraq and declared war on all non-Muslims and all Muslims who do not accept its ultra-hardline vision of Sunni Islam. It has claimed responsibility for similar bombing and gun attacks in Belgium and France in the past year. (Reuters)

Turkish police raid suspected Islamic State cells in Istanbul, Izmir

The suicide assault on Istanbul&#39;s &nbsp;Ataturk airport bears the &quot;hallmark&quot; of an Islamic State group attack, CIA director John Brennan said on Wednesday. 
 
No group has claimed responsibility for Tuesday&#39;s attack, which killed 41 people and wounded 239 more. 
 
&quot;The despicable attacks in Istanbul International airport yesterday that killed dozens and injured many more certainly bears the hallmark of ISIL&#39;s depravity,&quot; Brennan said, using an acronym for the IS group. 
 
Witnesses described scenes of terror and panic as the attackers began shooting indiscriminately and then blew themselves up at the entrance to Ataturk airport, one of Europe&#39;s &nbsp;busiest hubs. 
 
The attack followed coordinated IS group suicide bombings in March at the international airport and a metro station in Brussels that left 32 people dead. 
 
The IS group typically does not claim responsibility for attacks in Turkey in order to send messages to the government without alienating potential future recruits in the country, Brennan said. 
 
The IS group may well be planning a similar attack in the United States, America&#39;s &nbsp;top spy added. 
 
&quot;If anyone believes that the US homeland is hermetically sealed... I would guard against that,&quot; he said.&nbsp; 
 
Earlier this month, a gunman killed 49 people at a Florida gay nightclub in the deadliest terror attack on US soil since September 11, 2001. 
 
The shooter, US-born Omar Mateen, pledged allegiance to the IS group while carrying out the attack. 
 
Speaking in Washington at the council on foreign relations think-tank, Brennan opened his remarks by saying the intelligence-sharing partnership between Britain and the United States would not be affected by the United Kingdom&#39;s decision to leave the European Union. 
 
&quot;The bonds of friendship and cooperation between (US and UK spy) services are only destined to grow stronger in the years ahead,&quot; Brennan said. 
 
Still, he noted, Britain&#39;s momentous decision may pose the greatest challenge the European bloc has ever faced. 
 
(AFP)

The group typically does not claim responsibility for attacks in Turkey so as not to alienate potential future recruits, he added

The suicide assault on Istanbul's Ataturk airport bears the "hallmark" of an Islamic State group attack, CIA director John Brennan said on Wednesday. No group has claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attack, which killed 41 people and wounded 239 more. "The despicable attacks in Istanbul International airport yesterday that killed dozens and injured many more certainly bears the hallmark of ISIL's depravity," Brennan said, using an acronym for the IS group. Witnesses described scenes of terror and panic as the attackers began shooting indiscriminately and then blew themselves up at the entrance to Ataturk airport, one of Europe's busiest hubs. The attack followed coordinated IS group suicide bombings in March at the international airport and a metro station in Brussels that left 32 people dead. The IS group typically does not claim responsibility for attacks in Turkey in order to send messages to the government without alienating potential future recruits in the country, Brennan said. The IS group may well be planning a similar attack in the United States, America's top spy added. "If anyone believes that the US homeland is hermetically sealed... I would guard against that," he said. Earlier this month, a gunman killed 49 people at a Florida gay nightclub in the deadliest terror attack on US soil since September 11, 2001. The shooter, US-born Omar Mateen, pledged allegiance to the IS group while carrying out the attack. Speaking in Washington at the council on foreign relations think-tank, Brennan opened his remarks by saying the intelligence-sharing partnership between Britain and the United States would not be affected by the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union. "The bonds of friendship and cooperation between (US and UK spy) services are only destined to grow stronger in the years ahead," Brennan said. Still, he noted, Britain's momentous decision may pose the greatest challenge the European bloc has ever faced. (AFP)

Istanbul airport attack bears IS 'hallmark', says CIA director

US-led coalition aircraft waged a series of deadly strikes against Islamic State Wednesday around the city of Fallujah, US officials told Reuters, with one citing a preliminary estimate of at least 250 suspected fighters killed and at least 40 vehicles destroyed. 
 
If the figures are confirmed, the strikes would be among the most deadly ever against the jihadist group. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the operation and noted preliminary estimates can change. 
 
The strikes, which the officials said took place south of the city, where civilians have also been displaced, are just the latest battlefield setback suffered by Islamic State in its self-proclaimed &quot;caliphate&quot; of Iraq and Syria. 
 
The group&#39;s territorial losses are not diminishing concerns about its intent and ability to strike abroad though. Turkey pointed the finger at Islamic State today for a triple suicide bombing and gun attack that killed 41 people at Istanbul&#39;s main airport. 
 
CIA chief John&nbsp;Brennan told a forum in Washington the attack bore the hallmarks of Islamic State &quot;depravity&quot; and acknowledged there was a long road ahead battling the group, particularly its ability to incite attacks. 
 
&quot;We&rsquo;ve made, I think, some significant progress, along with our coalition partners, in Syria and Iraq, where most of the ISIS members are resident right now,&quot; Brennan said. 
 
&quot;But ISIS&#39; ability to continue to propagate its narrative, as well as to incite and carry out these attacks -- I think we still have a ways to go before we&rsquo;re able to say that we have made some significant progress against them.&quot; 
 
On the battlefield, the US-led campaign against IS has moved up a gear in recent weeks, with the government declaring victory over Islamic State in Fallujah. 
 
An alliance of militias have also launched a major offensive against the militant group in the city of Manbij in northern Syria. 
 
Still, in a reminder of the back-and-forth nature of the war, US-backed Syrian rebels were pushed back from the outskirts of an Islamic State-held town on the border with Iraq and a nearby air base today after the jihadists mounted a counter- attack, two rebel sources said. 
 
(Reuters)

If the figures are confirmed, the airstrikes would be among the most deadly ever against the jihadist group

US-led coalition aircraft waged a series of deadly strikes against Islamic State Wednesday around the city of Fallujah, US officials told Reuters, with one citing a preliminary estimate of at least 250 suspected fighters killed and at least 40 vehicles destroyed. If the figures are confirmed, the strikes would be among the most deadly ever against the jihadist group. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the operation and noted preliminary estimates can change. The strikes, which the officials said took place south of the city, where civilians have also been displaced, are just the latest battlefield setback suffered by Islamic State in its self-proclaimed "caliphate" of Iraq and Syria. The group's territorial losses are not diminishing concerns about its intent and ability to strike abroad though. Turkey pointed the finger at Islamic State today for a triple suicide bombing and gun attack that killed 41 people at Istanbul's main airport. CIA chief John Brennan told a forum in Washington the attack bore the hallmarks of Islamic State "depravity" and acknowledged there was a long road ahead battling the group, particularly its ability to incite attacks. "We’ve made, I think, some significant progress, along with our coalition partners, in Syria and Iraq, where most of the ISIS members are resident right now," Brennan said. "But ISIS' ability to continue to propagate its narrative, as well as to incite and carry out these attacks -- I think we still have a ways to go before we’re able to say that we have made some significant progress against them." On the battlefield, the US-led campaign against IS has moved up a gear in recent weeks, with the government declaring victory over Islamic State in Fallujah. An alliance of militias have also launched a major offensive against the militant group in the city of Manbij in northern Syria. Still, in a reminder of the back-and-forth nature of the war, US-backed Syrian rebels were pushed back from the outskirts of an Islamic State-held town on the border with Iraq and a nearby air base today after the jihadists mounted a counter- attack, two rebel sources said. (Reuters)

US-led coalition hits IS around Fallujah, 250 fighters suspected killed

Over 40 IS militants were killed and around 44 others wounded during clearance operations Afghanistan&#39;s in Eastern Nangarhar province. 
 
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) in a statement yesterday said the operations were conducted in Kot district of Nangarhar covering Bandok, Zara Bandok, Jajal Ghondi, Sepa Ghondi, Bahadur Baba villages and its surrounding areas. 
 
The statement said that the hideouts of the terror group were also destroyed and the mentioned areas were cleared from the presence of IS militants. 
 
The Ministry of Defence added that the local residents did not suffer any casualties in the operations. 
 
Earlier the Ministry of Defence had said at least 37 IS loyalists were killed and around 40 others were wounded during the operations launched in response to a major attack launched by the terror group on Friday. 
 
Following the attack, the Afghan and the US forces stepped up raids against the terror group in Nangarhar province. 
 
(ANI)&nbsp; 
 
 
&nbsp;

The country's Ministry of Defence issued a statement saying that IS hideouts in the region have also been destroyed

Over 40 IS militants were killed and around 44 others wounded during clearance operations Afghanistan's in Eastern Nangarhar province. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) in a statement yesterday said the operations were conducted in Kot district of Nangarhar covering Bandok, Zara Bandok, Jajal Ghondi, Sepa Ghondi, Bahadur Baba villages and its surrounding areas. The statement said that the hideouts of the terror group were also destroyed and the mentioned areas were cleared from the presence of IS militants. The Ministry of Defence added that the local residents did not suffer any casualties in the operations. Earlier the Ministry of Defence had said at least 37 IS loyalists were killed and around 40 others were wounded during the operations launched in response to a major attack launched by the terror group on Friday. Following the attack, the Afghan and the US forces stepped up raids against the terror group in Nangarhar province. (ANI)

Over 40 Islamic State fighters killed in clearance raids in Afghanistan's Nangarhar

Passengers who had witnessed the multiple suicide bombs and gunshots that rocked Turkey&#39;s largest airport in Istanbul on Tuesday night recounted the deadly attack to China Central Television (CCTV). 
 
Ataturk airport partially opened early today morning. 
 
Several witnesses recalled what happened during the moments of chaos during a bombing attack that, according to Turkish officials, caused 36 deaths and wounded 150 others. 
 
&quot;I was waiting for my boarding pass at the counter of Turkish Airlines when I heard the first gunshot. And many passengers looked in the direction of the gunshot sound, and began to run for safety after the second gunshot. I threw all my belongings to the ground and lay down following the others. After arriving at a safe place, we found many people already there - the elderly, kids and passengers from different countries. Then we heard more gunshots and a blast, the only blast we heard. After about 10 minutes, the airport staff came and brought us to an emergency shelter or something like that. It was kind of like a dining room but drinking water and quilts were all transferred there for emergency use. We stayed there for about one-and-a half hour before getting out. We saw a lot of blood on the way out. There were shards of broken glass from the foreign currency exchange counter and bodies on the ground as well,&quot; said a witness from China. 
 
&quot;We were queuing up in the terminal when the first gunshot came. We didn&#39;t think much at first, but saw many people running towards our direction. We all lay down at once and saw someone entering the terminal, firing, and the police fired as well. Then the first blast occurred and the second blast was only three meters away from us,&quot; said another Chinese witness. 
 
A third witness corroborated the many accounts of two explosions along with gunshots, and said that after a few minutes, he was led to a basement, where he and others stayed for about an hour. 
 
Police manning a checkpoint at the airport&rsquo;s international terminal shot at two of the attackers as they approached, a Turkish official said, adding that a third bomber detonated explosives in the nearby parking lot. 
 
Turkey&rsquo;s Prime Minister, Binali Yildirim, blamed the Islamic State group for the assault, but there was no immediate claim of responsibility. 
 
All three bombers were killed. 
 
(Reuters)

A Chinese passenger recounted seeing a 'lot of blood... shards of glass from the foreign currency exchange counter and bodies on the ground'

Passengers who had witnessed the multiple suicide bombs and gunshots that rocked Turkey's largest airport in Istanbul on Tuesday night recounted the deadly attack to China Central Television (CCTV). Ataturk airport partially opened early today morning. Several witnesses recalled what happened during the moments of chaos during a bombing attack that, according to Turkish officials, caused 36 deaths and wounded 150 others. "I was waiting for my boarding pass at the counter of Turkish Airlines when I heard the first gunshot. And many passengers looked in the direction of the gunshot sound, and began to run for safety after the second gunshot. I threw all my belongings to the ground and lay down following the others. After arriving at a safe place, we found many people already there - the elderly, kids and passengers from different countries. Then we heard more gunshots and a blast, the only blast we heard. After about 10 minutes, the airport staff came and brought us to an emergency shelter or something like that. It was kind of like a dining room but drinking water and quilts were all transferred there for emergency use. We stayed there for about one-and-a half hour before getting out. We saw a lot of blood on the way out. There were shards of broken glass from the foreign currency exchange counter and bodies on the ground as well," said a witness from China. "We were queuing up in the terminal when the first gunshot came. We didn't think much at first, but saw many people running towards our direction. We all lay down at once and saw someone entering the terminal, firing, and the police fired as well. Then the first blast occurred and the second blast was only three meters away from us," said another Chinese witness. A third witness corroborated the many accounts of two explosions along with gunshots, and said that after a few minutes, he was led to a basement, where he and others stayed for about an hour. Police manning a checkpoint at the airport’s international terminal shot at two of the attackers as they approached, a Turkish official said, adding that a third bomber detonated explosives in the nearby parking lot. Turkey’s Prime Minister, Binali Yildirim, blamed the Islamic State group for the assault, but there was no immediate claim of responsibility. All three bombers were killed. (Reuters)

Second blast was just 3 metres from us: Chinese witnesses recount Ataturk airport attack in Istanbul

Passengers, who arrived to JFK airport in New York from Istanbul, said on Tuesday they were shocked to learn about an attack on the Turkish airport that killed 36 and injured 150 more, but they were lucky to have missed the incident. 
 
Three suicide bombers opened fire then blew themselves up at Istanbul international airport on Tuesday in what Turkey&#39;s Prime Minister said appeared to have been an attack by Islamic State militants. 
 
One attacker opened fire in the departure hall with an automatic rifle, sending passengers diving for cover and trying to flee, before all three blew themselves up in or around the arrival hall a floor below, witnesses and officials said. 
 
Passengers said they learned about the attacks in flight, a short time after they passed through the same areas of the airport. 
 
&quot;I can&#39;t believe it that, you know, I feel like, how are we alive? If the flight was delayed two hours, we would have been exactly on that spot. Looking at the pictures, we were right there. So, it&#39;s just horrific. It&#39;s just unbelievable, and, just speechless really. It keeps happening and happening. It just happened in Belgium. It just happened just now in Istanbul, so I can&#39;t even fly anymore. I&#39;m like so scared. Everybody in flight - the same way. I mean, it&#39;s just disbelief. I mean we&#39;re so lucky we got away with it, it looks like,&quot; a passenger named Adam told NBC. 
 
Three women, who were travelling together from Barcelona, said they could have been caught in the attacks had they missed their connection in Istanbul. 
 
&quot;We were running from Barcelona, got to Istanbul, got there pretty late, almost missed the flight, got a little nervous about almost missing the flight, and then saw the news on the plane, and you know it... we&#39;re really happy to be home,&quot; one of the women said. 
 
One of her travelling companions said she thought security in Istanbul&#39;s Ataturk airport was thorough. 
 
&quot;From a connecting flight on an international flight - we went through two additional checkpoints just to get to our gate,&quot; she said. 
 
&quot;We went through metal detectors, our bags went through, then our passports were checked.... the security seemed good,&quot; she said. 
 
Turkish police fired shots to try to stop two of the attackers just before they reached a security checkpoint at the arrivals hall, but they detonated their explosives, a Turkish official said. 
 
Istanbul&#39;s Ataturk airport partially opened early today morning. 
 
Passengers traveling outbound from Istanbul are being allowed to enter the airport after undertaking security checks. However, the international arrivals section in the lower part of the airport remains closed, as several emergency vehicles maintain a security presence outside the terminal building. 
 
The information board inside the airport showed that about one third of scheduled flights have been canceled with a host of others delayed. 
 
(Reuters)

Istanbul's Ataturk airport partially opened today morning. However, the international arrivals section remained closed

Passengers, who arrived to JFK airport in New York from Istanbul, said on Tuesday they were shocked to learn about an attack on the Turkish airport that killed 36 and injured 150 more, but they were lucky to have missed the incident. Three suicide bombers opened fire then blew themselves up at Istanbul international airport on Tuesday in what Turkey's Prime Minister said appeared to have been an attack by Islamic State militants. One attacker opened fire in the departure hall with an automatic rifle, sending passengers diving for cover and trying to flee, before all three blew themselves up in or around the arrival hall a floor below, witnesses and officials said. Passengers said they learned about the attacks in flight, a short time after they passed through the same areas of the airport. "I can't believe it that, you know, I feel like, how are we alive? If the flight was delayed two hours, we would have been exactly on that spot. Looking at the pictures, we were right there. So, it's just horrific. It's just unbelievable, and, just speechless really. It keeps happening and happening. It just happened in Belgium. It just happened just now in Istanbul, so I can't even fly anymore. I'm like so scared. Everybody in flight - the same way. I mean, it's just disbelief. I mean we're so lucky we got away with it, it looks like," a passenger named Adam told NBC. Three women, who were travelling together from Barcelona, said they could have been caught in the attacks had they missed their connection in Istanbul. "We were running from Barcelona, got to Istanbul, got there pretty late, almost missed the flight, got a little nervous about almost missing the flight, and then saw the news on the plane, and you know it... we're really happy to be home," one of the women said. One of her travelling companions said she thought security in Istanbul's Ataturk airport was thorough. "From a connecting flight on an international flight - we went through two additional checkpoints just to get to our gate," she said. "We went through metal detectors, our bags went through, then our passports were checked.... the security seemed good," she said. Turkish police fired shots to try to stop two of the attackers just before they reached a security checkpoint at the arrivals hall, but they detonated their explosives, a Turkish official said. Istanbul's Ataturk airport partially opened early today morning. Passengers traveling outbound from Istanbul are being allowed to enter the airport after undertaking security checks. However, the international arrivals section in the lower part of the airport remains closed, as several emergency vehicles maintain a security presence outside the terminal building. The information board inside the airport showed that about one third of scheduled flights have been canceled with a host of others delayed. (Reuters)

Passengers arriving at JFK from Turkey horrified by suicide attack at airport

Indian counter-terrorism officials on Wednesday arrested five men on suspicion of plotting a series of attacks across the country on behalf of Islamic State, two intelligence officials said.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) and local police raided 11 locations in the southern city of Hyderabad at dawn, seizing ammunition, explosive materials and cash.

Nine men were detained and five of them were arrested for conspiracy to wage war against the Indian state, one of the officials said, on the condition he was not named. If a suspect is arrested, police have 90 days to present charges.

&quot;We have ample proof to show that the suspects were working for ISIS (Islamic State), and also had direct connection with Syrian leaders,&quot; the first official told Reuters.

The second official, NIA Inspector General Sanjeev Kumar, said the men were recruited by an Islamic State handler operating outside of&nbsp;India, but declined to say how many of those detained would be charged.

Islamic State has struggled to win over many recruits in&nbsp;India, which is home to the world&#39;s third-largest Muslim population.

However,&nbsp;Indian police arrested 29 men last year for establishing bases to recruit men to the Islamist militant group. All men were charged with conspiracy to wage war against the state.

A handful of&nbsp;Indians are also suspected of having travelled to Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State, where the group is fighting to install an Islamic caliphate.

In a video circulated in May, a group of&nbsp;Indian fighters vowed to avenge the deaths of Muslims killed in riots in Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s home state of Gujarat and elsewhere. 
 
(Reuters)

India's National Investigation Agency says the suspects had direct connections with Syrian IS leaders

Indian counter-terrorism officials on Wednesday arrested five men on suspicion of plotting a series of attacks across the country on behalf of Islamic State, two intelligence officials said. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) and local police raided 11 locations in the southern city of Hyderabad at dawn, seizing ammunition, explosive materials and cash. Nine men were detained and five of them were arrested for conspiracy to wage war against the Indian state, one of the officials said, on the condition he was not named. If a suspect is arrested, police have 90 days to present charges. "We have ample proof to show that the suspects were working for ISIS (Islamic State), and also had direct connection with Syrian leaders," the first official told Reuters. The second official, NIA Inspector General Sanjeev Kumar, said the men were recruited by an Islamic State handler operating outside of India, but declined to say how many of those detained would be charged. Islamic State has struggled to win over many recruits in India, which is home to the world's third-largest Muslim population. However, Indian police arrested 29 men last year for establishing bases to recruit men to the Islamist militant group. All men were charged with conspiracy to wage war against the state. A handful of Indians are also suspected of having travelled to Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State, where the group is fighting to install an Islamic caliphate. In a video circulated in May, a group of Indian fighters vowed to avenge the deaths of Muslims killed in riots in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat and elsewhere. (Reuters)

India arrests five suspected of plotting Islamic State attacks

Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi&nbsp;woman from Iraq, endured a three-month nightmare as a sex slave of the Islamic State (IS) group. 
 
After her harrowing escape with the help of a fake religious ID nearly two years ago, Murad has a message for world leaders striving to crush the extremists: IS leaders must stand trial for genocide. 
 
&quot;Genocide must be recognised,&quot; Nadia Murad told AFP through a translator in Geneva, on the side of a human rights event held in the Swiss city. 
 
As Iraq wages an offensive against Islamic State, with government forces retaking full control of the jihadist bastion of Fallujah on Sunday, UN investigators are making a renewed push for justice for the jihadists&#39; victims. 
 
The Yazidis, neither Muslim nor Arab, are an ancient religious minority of more than half a million people concentrated near the Syrian border in northern Iraq. 
 
The Islamic State despises the Kurdish-speaking gropu because Yazidis are not &quot;people of the book&quot;, meaning their faith does not adhere to the theological tradition that begins with Abraham of the Old Testament and extends through the Koran. 
 
In 2014, IS jihadists massacred Yazidis in the Iraqi city of Sinjar, forcing tens of thousands of them to flee, and capturing thousands of girls and women as spoils of war. 
 
The UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) for Syria earlier this month said it had compiled evidence proving that IS was perpetrating a genocide against the Yazidis. 
 
With Iraqi leaders hailing their recent victories over IS in Fallujah and weighing a new operation to flush them out of their northern strongholds like Mosul, Nadia Murad insisted that the need for accountability should not be forgotten. 
 
Forced Islam conversion 
 
She was taken by the Islamic State from her home village in August 2014 and brought to Mosul. 
 
&quot;The first thing they did was they forced us to convert to Islam,&quot; she said. &quot;After conversion, they did whatever they wanted to do.&quot; 
 
During a speech held in December 2015 at the UN Security Council, Murad recounted her so-called &#39;marriage&#39; to one IS captor, who subjected her to horrific abuse. 
 
&quot;I was not able to take any more rape and torture,&quot; she told. She decided to flee. 
 
On the run in Mosul, Murad said she was terrified that no one would help her, but she ultimately found shelter with a Muslim family in the city. 
 
&quot;They made me a fake Islamic ID,&quot; she said, which she used to cross the border into Iraqi Kurdistan. 
 
She lived in a camp for displaced people and, with the support of theYazidi&nbsp;welfare organisation Yazda, relocated to Germany, where she now lives with her sister. 
 
&#39;Roadmap for prosecutions&#39; 
 
The United Nations and several other Western institutions&nbsp;suggested last year that the IS assault on the Yazidis amounted to a premeditated, genocidal effort to exterminate an entire community. 
 
The evidence presented by the UN Commission of Inquiry earlier this month was more conclusive. 
 
COI member and former international prosecutor Carla del Ponte described the commission&#39;s report as &quot;a roadmap for prosecutions&quot;. 
 
Supported by witness testimony, the commission found that IS &quot;sought to erase the Yazidis through killings, sexual slavery, enslavement, torture and inhuman and degrading treatment&quot;. 
 
Referring heinous, mass crimes to the International Criminal Court often meets obstacles in the UN Security Council for political reasons. 
 
But COI members expressed hope that the&nbsp;Yazidi&nbsp;case could be investigated by The Hague-based International Criminal Court. 
 
Nadia Murad, one of 376 people and organisations nominated for this year&#39;s Nobel Peace Prize, broke down in tears as she told a UN audience the extent to which her people felt abandoned by the international community. 
 
Speaking at a Human Rights Council event in Geneva last week, she said that anger would intensify if the IS attempt to exterminate the Yazidis did not lead to prosecutions. 
 
&quot;For you to regain the trust of the Yazidis will take a lot of work,&quot; she said. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Nadia Murad was held captive as a sex slave. She survived rapes and tortures, and now urges the world to trial IS for genocide

Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi woman from Iraq, endured a three-month nightmare as a sex slave of the Islamic State (IS) group. After her harrowing escape with the help of a fake religious ID nearly two years ago, Murad has a message for world leaders striving to crush the extremists: IS leaders must stand trial for genocide. "Genocide must be recognised," Nadia Murad told AFP through a translator in Geneva, on the side of a human rights event held in the Swiss city. As Iraq wages an offensive against Islamic State, with government forces retaking full control of the jihadist bastion of Fallujah on Sunday, UN investigators are making a renewed push for justice for the jihadists' victims. The Yazidis, neither Muslim nor Arab, are an ancient religious minority of more than half a million people concentrated near the Syrian border in northern Iraq. The Islamic State despises the Kurdish-speaking gropu because Yazidis are not "people of the book", meaning their faith does not adhere to the theological tradition that begins with Abraham of the Old Testament and extends through the Koran. In 2014, IS jihadists massacred Yazidis in the Iraqi city of Sinjar, forcing tens of thousands of them to flee, and capturing thousands of girls and women as spoils of war. The UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) for Syria earlier this month said it had compiled evidence proving that IS was perpetrating a genocide against the Yazidis. With Iraqi leaders hailing their recent victories over IS in Fallujah and weighing a new operation to flush them out of their northern strongholds like Mosul, Nadia Murad insisted that the need for accountability should not be forgotten. Forced Islam conversion She was taken by the Islamic State from her home village in August 2014 and brought to Mosul. "The first thing they did was they forced us to convert to Islam," she said. "After conversion, they did whatever they wanted to do." During a speech held in December 2015 at the UN Security Council, Murad recounted her so-called 'marriage' to one IS captor, who subjected her to horrific abuse. "I was not able to take any more rape and torture," she told. She decided to flee. On the run in Mosul, Murad said she was terrified that no one would help her, but she ultimately found shelter with a Muslim family in the city. "They made me a fake Islamic ID," she said, which she used to cross the border into Iraqi Kurdistan. She lived in a camp for displaced people and, with the support of theYazidi welfare organisation Yazda, relocated to Germany, where she now lives with her sister. 'Roadmap for prosecutions' The United Nations and several other Western institutions suggested last year that the IS assault on the Yazidis amounted to a premeditated, genocidal effort to exterminate an entire community. The evidence presented by the UN Commission of Inquiry earlier this month was more conclusive. COI member and former international prosecutor Carla del Ponte described the commission's report as "a roadmap for prosecutions". Supported by witness testimony, the commission found that IS "sought to erase the Yazidis through killings, sexual slavery, enslavement, torture and inhuman and degrading treatment". Referring heinous, mass crimes to the International Criminal Court often meets obstacles in the UN Security Council for political reasons. But COI members expressed hope that the Yazidi case could be investigated by The Hague-based International Criminal Court. Nadia Murad, one of 376 people and organisations nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize, broke down in tears as she told a UN audience the extent to which her people felt abandoned by the international community. Speaking at a Human Rights Council event in Geneva last week, she said that anger would intensify if the IS attempt to exterminate the Yazidis did not lead to prosecutions. "For you to regain the trust of the Yazidis will take a lot of work," she said. (AFP)

Islamic State must stand trial for genocide: Yazidi woman survivor

Four suicide bombers killed six people and wounded 19 others in an attack in a Lebanese village at the border with Syria today, security sources said. 
 
The attack at 4 a.m. (0100 GMT) targeted the mostly Christian village of Qaa, a few kilometres from the border. Three Lebanese soldiers were among the wounded, the sources said. 
 
The mayor of Qaa, Bashir Matar, told Voice of Lebanon radio that all those killed were civilians. 
 
There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Hezbollah&#39;s al-Manar TV said the attack was carried out by Islamic State militants. 
 
Lebanon has been repeatedly jolted by militant attacks linked to the five-year-long war in neighbouring Syria, where the powerful Shi&#39;ite group Hezbollah is fighting in support of President Bashar al-Assad. 
 
(Reuters)

A Christian village in Qaa bordering Syria was targeted; Hezbollah's al-Manar TV said the attack was carried out by Islamic State

Four suicide bombers killed six people and wounded 19 others in an attack in a Lebanese village at the border with Syria today, security sources said. The attack at 4 a.m. (0100 GMT) targeted the mostly Christian village of Qaa, a few kilometres from the border. Three Lebanese soldiers were among the wounded, the sources said. The mayor of Qaa, Bashir Matar, told Voice of Lebanon radio that all those killed were civilians. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Hezbollah's al-Manar TV said the attack was carried out by Islamic State militants. Lebanon has been repeatedly jolted by militant attacks linked to the five-year-long war in neighbouring Syria, where the powerful Shi'ite group Hezbollah is fighting in support of President Bashar al-Assad. (Reuters)

6 killed, 19 hurt in suicide bomb attack on Lebanese Christian village

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