Pakistan/Terrorism: Three minors killed in explosion near Afghan border

The explosion of a bomb planted near a house in the Nanger Kani village of Upper Dir in northwest Pakistan killed three minors on Wednesday. According to police official Gul Zameen Khan, the bomb was equiped with a timer and exploded after the boys tried to open it.

Officials are pointing fingers on terrorists for carrying out the heinous act. Police sources indicate that terrorist are trying to incite fear in the area, which borders Afghanistan. The volatile northwestern region has become a haven for Taleban fighters who infiltrate the country through the porous border with Afghanistan.

In a seperate incident, 13 police officers were injured in the Rawalakot district of Pakistan-administered Kashmir when a bomb exploded. Police officer Iftikhar Kiani said the homemade bomb was planted inside a milk container, and went off as a bomb disposal squad was trying to defuse it.

India/Security: Indian troops foil border infiltration bid in Kashmir

Indian security forces claimed to have thwarted a terrorist attempt to infiltrate the international border in Indian-administered Kashmir on Tuesday as the country is celebrating its 61st Republic Day.

According to India's Border Security Force (BSF) officials the infiltrators were spotted near the vicinity of Alfa Machail, some 35 kilometres west of Jammu City. Upon discovering the presence of the infiltrators, Indian troops opened fire, after which the intruders withdrew into Pakistani territory.

Meanwhile, security has been put on high alert along the border. According to Indian army officials, this was the 15th infiltration attempt from across the border this month, which violates the ceasefire.

In a separate incident, six Maoist guerrillas, Naxalites, involved in killing of 16 police officers last year, surrendered their weapons on Tuesday, before Maharashtra state Home Minister Raosaheb Ramchandra Patil during the police parade held during Republic Day.

Pakistan/Terrorism: Taleban fighters killed seven tribesmen for spying, police arrested four terrorist

Security officials declared on Sunday that Tehreek-e-Taleban (TTP) fighters gunned down seven tribesmen in the North Waziristan region, the Taleban's stronghold near the porous Afghan border, who they suspected of spying for the United States.

According to these sources, the bullet-riddled bodies of five tribesmen were dumped near a village located 35 km south of North Waziristan's main town of Miranshah. "All of them appeared to have been killed last night (Saturday) and a hand-written note was lying near these bodies saying they were American spies," a security official in Miranshah declared on condition of anonymity. Two bodies were found in a nearby location, although no exact coordinates were disclosed.

Another official, who preferred not to be named, said that a note stating that "Whoever spies for America will face the same fate" was found near the corpses.

In a separate incident, Pakistani police arrested four members of a terrorist group accused of the bombing of a Karachi-held Shiite religious procession last month. Karachi police chief, Waseem Ahmad, declared that "We have arrested four men involved in at least three bombings in Karachi and recovered a bomb from them". He added that the suspects were arrested on Saturday in the Hawks Bay area, after investigators linked them with the failed bomb attack in Karachi's Shadman town earlier this month. According to Ahmad, the suspects belong to the Jundallah terrorist group.

Pakistan/Philippines/Terrorism: U.S. missile killed Abu Sayyaf terrorist in Waziristan

Unnamed “intelligence sources” reported on Thursday that Filipino terrorist Abdul Basit Usman had been killed in a U.S. drone attack in North Waziristan Tribal Agency on Thursday January 14, 2009. Pakistani press said he was present in the house of tribal leader Yaqub Khan, in Shaktoi village, along with 10 others pro-Taleban terrorists. It is believed that Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP)’s leader Hakimullah Mehsud was also in the house a few minutes before the missile strike.

Abdul Basit Usman was considered as one of the most dangerous terrorists operating in South East Asia. He had been charged for several bombings carried by the Abu Sayyaf group. He was also the main link between local groups and Al-Qaeda’s central command in Pakistan’s tribal belt. The U.S. Department of State had offered up to $1 million for any information that could lead to his capture. It must be noticed that No official sources have confirmed his death so far.

Pakistan/Terrorism: bomb blast in Bajaur:  3 killed, 20 wounded

A roadside bomb struck a bus in Pakistan's Bajaur district on Thursday, killing two anti-Taleban tribal elders and a woman passenger, officials said. The blast also wounded 20 others passengers travelling on the bus, they added.

The explosion occurred in Salarzai district in the tribal region of Bajaur. “It was an improvised explosive device which exploded as the bus headed to the region’s main town of Khar,” local government official Mazhar Ali said.

Abdul Kabir, a senior administration official, stated that one woman died on the spot while “two others succumbed to their injuries in the hospital.” Kabir clarified that the two men killed in the blast were members of a tribal militia formed to fight against Taleban terrorists in the region.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Separately, two suspected Taleban terrorists have been killed when a bomb they were preparing exploded in Savaei village in Bajaur district.

Pakistan/Terrorism: bomb injures Pakistani politician in city of Peshawar

Aurangzeb Khan, a Pakistani politician and three others have been wounded when the politician's vehicle was struck by a remote control device on Wednesday on the Ring Road in the city of Peshawar, police officials said.

"He has been wounded but he is not serious. But his driver and a guard have been critically wounded," Arbab Tahir, an official of Khan's Awami National Party (ANP), stated.

Dr. Abdul Hameed Afridi, Chief Executive of the Lady Reading Hospital confirmed that Khan and his three body guards sustained injuries on head and other parts of the body but their condition is out of danger.

Khan, a member of the Awami National Party (ANP) which governs North-West Frontier Province, strongly opposed Taleban activities and supports government's action against them in north-western Pakistan bordering Afghanistan.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Last year, Aurangzeb's brother Alamzeb was killed in a remote control bomb blast in Peshawar.

United States/India/Security: Gates says terrorist groups support each other

(Kevin Dietsch/Upi/Photo News)

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Wednesday, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned that a syndicate of terrorist groups could increase violence and destruction across South Asia and urged India and Pakistan to work together to fight against the threat.

Explaining reporters about the syndicate, Gates stated that Al-Qaeda has strongholds on the Afghanistan and Pakistan border.  Taleban is active in Afghanistan while the Tehrik-e-Taleban targets Pakistan, and the Lashkar-e-Taiba is focusing on Pakistan and India.

The US Defense Secretary linked Taleban fighters with Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists, saying both groups worked under the umbrella of Al-Qaeda. ''It's dangerous to single out any one of these groups and say, 'If we can beat that group, that will solve the problem,' because they are in effect a syndicate of terrorist operators intended to destabilize this entire region,” he said.

India/Pakistan/Security: One Pakistani soldier killed in new encounter 

At least one Pakistani soldier was killed and another wounded in a gun battle between Indian troops at the Line of Control (LoC), near Rawalakot in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Tuesday, the Pakistani military stated.

Describing the incident a Pakistani military spokesman, who preferred no to be named, said, “It was an unprovoked firing.” He said Pakistan had lodged a protest with India and called for an immediate meeting of military commanders in the area. The gunbattle between Indian and Pakistani soldiers has been confirmed by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

However, the Indian army claimed that its troops fired in self-defence after coming under attack from Pakistani soldiers. "Pakistani troops fired at our forward post today, and we returned the fire," said Brig. Gopala Krishanan Murali, a top army official in Indian-controlled Kashmir. "It's a cease-fire violation on their part."

Another Indian army official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, clarified that Pakistani soldiers fired on the Indian side by rockets and machine guns for more than an hour before they responded. “We suspect they fired to cover infiltrators from entering Indian Kashmir.”

Pakistan/Terrorism: 5 killed in U.S. drone strike

At least five suspected terrorists have been killed in a US drone attack in Pakistan's restive tribal area on Tuesday. According to intelligence officials the air strikes were as a response against a deadly attack against the CIA across the border in Afghanistan.

Reportedly, the two missiles hit into a compound and a nearby vehicle in the Deegan area of North Waziristan Tribal Agency, a zone dominated by the Al-Qaeda-linked Haqqani network, which is allegedly involved in the Dec. 30 suicide bombing that killed seven CIA employees at a remote base in Khost province.

Intelligence officials, who preferred not to be named, said four people were killed in the compound and one in the vehicle. Although the killed men believed to be terrorist their identities were still not confirmed.

Media report say the area hit in the attack is located 30 kilometre west of the town of Miran Shah and 20 kilometres south of the Afghan border. The area abuts Khost province, where the Haqqani network also holds dominance.

Pakistan/Security: plan to attack parliament foiled, says Malik

Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Friday that security forces thwarted a terrorist plan to attack the parliament in Islamabad by arresting a would-be suicide bomber.

Briefing reporters about the incident Malik said police recovered a suicide jacket from a remote cave in the Margalla Hills and terrorists had intended to use it to target the Parliament. He said the would-be suicide bomber was arrested at a checkpoint at Barha Kahu on the outskirts of Islamabad.

Malik indicated that the Taleban based in the Waziristan Tribal Region were linked to the terrorist plot.  He declined however to make any statements regarding Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) leader Hakimullah Mehsud's alleged death in a drone strike on Thursday.

India/Pakistan/Terrorism: 2 terrorists and 3 soldiers killed in Kashmir gunfight

In a gun battle that ended on Thursday morning, Indian troops gunned down two terrorists, linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), in Kulgam district in the south of Indian-administered Kashmir, police said, adding that three members of the security forces were also killed during the encounter.

After receiving information that terrorist were hiding in a house in Tangmarg Watu, a village south of Jammu and Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar, security forces surrounded the house on Wednesday evening. Initially, police asked the terrorists to surrender, but they opened fired and troops retaliated. One member of the India’s counterinsurgency force Rashtriya Rifles and two policemen were injured. Police said the terrorists belonged to the Hizbul Mujahideen.

Briefing reporters about the incident, Superintendent of Kulgam Police, Kesuram Churasiya, said, "We received information about the presence of militants in this area. Soon after, an operation was carried out to track down the militants. However, in the gun battle two army personnel and one policeman have got injured", Churasiya said.

In a separate development, India's Border Security Force (BSF) in Punjab said on Thursday that they have apprehended a potential suicide bomber, identified as Numan Arshad, a Pakistani from Lahore, at the Attari sector of Line of Control (LoC).

BSF officials said the suspected terrorist was on a mission to orchestrate a suicide attack. BSF DIG Mohd Aquil told reporters that did not yet know to which terrorist group Arshad belonged, but  Aquil added that “from the kind of language and specific words used” by Arshad he could be either Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) or Teherik-e-Taleban in Pakistan (TTP).

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan’s leader may been killed in US drone strike

At least 15 terrorists, including some key commanders have been killed on Thursday by a U.S. drone attack at a Taleban training camp in Pasalkot, a village in the Wisalkot area of Pakistan's lawless North Waziristan Tribal Agency’s, officials and media reports say.

Local media reports said that a U.S. drone fired four missiles, targeting a house and the compound of a seminary, where Tehrik-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud was believed to be present. However, it has not been confirmed if he had been killed. "We had information that he was around there. We're checking on whether he was killed," a Pakistani security official, who preferred not to be named, told reporters. "He was the target, he has probably been killed," said another security official

Meanwhile, PTT spokesman Azam Tariq denied the death of Mehsud, saying that he “was safe” and had left minutes before the missile attack. However, there were no immediate comments from the military authorities on the killing of Hakimullah Mehsud.

This is not the first time Hakimullah Mehsud has been reported killed. Last august after the death of his predecessor Baitullah Meshud, the government said Hakimullah Mehsud had been killed in a Taleban power struggle.

India/Pakistan/Security: Indian soldier killed, army thwarts infiltration

An Indian paramilitary soldier was killed in Indian-administered Kashmir on Monday by fire from Pakistan's side of the disputed region, the Indian army said. "There was an unprovoked firing from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch area, we lost one Border Security Force jawan (soldier)," Vinod Sharma, a spokesman for the border guards said.

However, Major General Athar Abbas, a Pakistani military spokesperson, said he had received no reports of any firing. "Such an incident did not happen," Abbas said.

In a separate incident, India's Border Security Force (BSF) says they have foiled an attempt by terrorists to infiltrate into Indian-administered Kashmir on Monday. BSF officials said there was an exchange of gunfire between the two sides early Monday in the Akhnoor sector near the LoC, 35 kilometres west of the state's winter capital, Jammu. "The troops fired at the terrorists who were trying to sneak into Indian territory," a BSF official said. "The terrorists fled back into Pakistan-controlled part of Azad Kashmir after an hour-long gun battle." There were no reports of any casualties from any sides.

Pakistan/Terrorism: seven suspected militants killed in Karachi blast

Police reported that at least seven suspected terrorists have been killed when explosives stored in a house exploded in Karachi on Friday. Reportedly, the house, located in the Baldia Town neighbourhood, used as a safe haven by terrorists collapsed due to the explosion.

Karachi police chief Waseem Ahmed told reporters that seven suspected militants were killed in the blast and weapons were found in the rubble. "Police recovered one Kalashnikov rifle and two hand grenades," Ahmed told reporters. "We have also taken into custody two suspects who were injured in the blast."

Sardar Abdul Majeed Dasti, Deputy Inspector General of Police of the West Zone said six suspected persons were arrested and were questioned at undisclosed locations. According to police twenty-one grenades, five Kalashnikovs, three suicide jackets, four smokes, 17 Kalashnikov magazines, four motorbikes, one computer and books recovered from the house. Police suspected that the killed persons belonged to a terrorist cell planning attacks in the country's financial capital.

India/Terrorism: troops kill militants, end siege in Lal Chowk

Indian Central Reserve Police Forces gunned down two terrorist on Thursday holed up inside a hotel in the Indian-administered Kashmir's capital city Srinagar nearly twenty-two hours after a military operation was launched to neutralise them. The state police chief, Kuldeep Khuda, told reporters at the scene that the operation subsequently ended.

He added that police evacuated the hotel building in Lal Chowk starting wiht the top floor before encountering and killing the first militant this morning. “The other terrorist tried to set the building on fire, was successfull in this endeavour and tried to make his escape before he was shot down," Khuda said, adding that troops are still conducting a search for accomplices in the area.

On Wednesday afternoon the two militants stormed through Lal Chowk in the heart of Srinagar and attacked a police vehicle. They then walked into the small Punjab Hotel on the adjacent Court Road, lobbing grenades and opening fire at security forces. At least one policeman and one civilian died and nine people were injured. Jamiat-ul-Mujaheedin (JUM), a pro-Pakistan terrorist group, linked with Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), claimed responsibility for the attack.

Pakistan/Terrorism: suicide bomber kills four Pakistani soldiers in Kashmir

At least four soldiers have been killed and several others wounded when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives outside an army barracks on Wednesday in the Pakistan-administered Kashmir region, police said. “Three soldiers died at the scene, while around a dozen more suffered wounds,” Kashmir's police chief Javed Iqbal said, adding that one soldier succumbed to his injures in hospital.

Reportedly, the attack took place early morning in the remote Tarar Khal area near Rawalkot, one of the main towns located close to the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan. According to police the suicide bomber was trying to enter the army barracks and detonated his explosives upon interception by the security personel. Senior police official Irfan Masaood Kishvi told reporters that the investigation to the nature of the attack is ongoing, adding that "the blast was reported outside the army barracks,... three security personnel have been killed and three wounded. The injured have been taken to the Combined Military Hospital," Kishvi concluded.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Late last month, five people were killed in a suicide attack on Shiite Muslims in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. The Tehreek-e-Taleban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for that attack.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: 5 US suspects in Pakistani court defend ‘jihad’ plans

Five American men suspected of plotting attacks in Pakistan declared on Monday in the court of Sargodha that they intended to cross the border into Afghanistan in order to wage jihad against Western forces but denied any links to Al-Qaeda or plans to carry out terrorist attacks in Pakistan. “We are not terrorists,” one of the five men, Ramy Zamzam, said as he entered the courtroom in the eastern Pakistani city of Sargodha, where they were arrested in December. “We are jihadists, and jihad is not terrorism,” said Zamzam, a 22-year-old Egyptian American who was a dental student at Howard University in Washington, DC.

According to judicial documents, Zamzam and another member of the group, Ethiopian American Ahmed Minni, emphasised that they had no links with Al-Qaeda and were focused only on Afghanistan, according to court documents. “They said that they only intended to travel to Afghanistan to help their Muslim brothers who are in trouble, who are bleeding and who are being victimized by Western forces,” said the group’s lawyer, Ameer Abdullah Rokhri.

Reportedly, the court remanded the men to prison for 14 days on Monday to give police time to prepare the case. Pakistani police say they plan to seek life sentences under the country’s anti-terrorism law. “We have told the court that police have completed their investigation and have enough evidence against the five suspects to try them under anti-terrorism law,” said police officer Matiullah Shahani. According to police reports, the five young men hailing from the US state of Virginia, used the Internet to try and join a holy war in one of the US' main allies, Pakistan. Officials said two of them possess the dual Pakistani-American nationality, while the remaining three are of Eritrean, Ethiopian and Egyptian descent and all of them have US passports.

Pakistan/Terrorism: Roadside bomb kills former minister, 5 other casualties reported

A former Pakistani minister was among four people killed by a roadside bomb in the northwest of Pakistan on Sunday. “A roadside bomb struck a vehicle in the Hangu district of North West Frontier Province (NWFP), killing former Irrigation Minister Ghaniur Rehman, his two guards and his driver,” said district police chief Abdur Rasheed. Two police officers accompanying the former minister were wounded in the attack, he said. Police spokesman, Fazal Naeem, declared that "High-intensity explosives were used" as the bomb was detonated from distance, adding that "Rehman's vehicle was completely destroyed."

Hangu witnessed sectarian clashes between Pakistan's majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shia Muslims. Rehman's son blamed the Pakistani Taleban for the bombing. "My father was targeted twice before. Taleban and militant groups are involved in this attack," Ateeq-ur Rehman told reporters. However, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.

In a separate attack on Sunday, two people were killed and four injured when their vehicle was struck by a remote-controlled bomb near Khar in the Bajaur tribal area. According to reports,the victims were tribal elders who were trying to set up an anti-Taleban militia. The latest attacks comes two days after around 100 people were killed by an explosion at a volleyball tournament in Lakki Marwat on Friday.

Pakistan/United States/Terrorism: Five Americans in Pakistani court on terror plots

Five American men suspected of plotting attacks in Pakistan appeared in a Pakistani court on Monday. According to the police they would seek life sentences for the suspects. The five were arrested in the eastern Pakistan city of Sargodha in early December. Police found jihadist literature and maps of Pakistani cities and sensitive military sites on the suspects.

According to police reports, the five young men hailing from the US state of Virginia, used the Internet to try and join a holy war in one of the US' main allies, Pakistan. Officials said two of them are Pakistani-Americans, while the remaining three are of Eritrean, Ethiopian and Egyptian descent and all of them have US passports. Their next court date has been set on 18 January.

Meanwhile, the defense lawyer for five Americans has denied that his clients planned to carry out terrorist attacks inside or outside the country. Attorney Ameer Abdullah Rokri said the five men planned to travel to Afghanistan to help fellow Muslims "who are bleeding and who are being victimised by Western forces." Rokri denied that his clients had ties with Al-Qaeda or other militant groups inside Pakistan.

Pakistan/Security: Pakistani security forces kill 5 foreign terrorists

Pakistani intelligence officials said army raided a hospital used by terrorists in the country's lawless tribal area near the Afghan border early on Thursday, killing five foreigners. According to the officials commandos laid siege to the private clinic in Wana, the main town of South Waziristan, at 2:00am (21:00 GMT) sparking gun battles until around 7:00am (02:00 GMT).

A security official said the raid followed a tip off that wounded rebels were brought to the hospital from Sherwangi, a Taleban-dominated area where Pakistan has been pressing a major offensive. "Commandos and security forces raided the hospital. Militants fired on the troops and in the gunfight, which lasted more than four hours, four militants and a woman were killed, while 22 others were arrested," said the official. "One soldier was also injured. The three dead militants appear to be Arabs and one of Sudanese origin," the official added. However, it has not been reported whether the troops suffered any casualties.

Meanwhile, Pakistani police said they have arrested a senior Pakistani Taleban commander who led the terrorist group's network in Punjab, a key province where violence has been increasing. “Khalil Ullah was the mastermind behind a market bombing in the provincial capital of Lahore on Dec. 7 that killed 49 people,” senior police investigator Chaudhry Shafiq said on Thursday. Shafiq declined to say when or where Ullah was arrested.