Nine security officers were killed and at least 13 others were wounded during a suicide attack in southwest Pakistan. The blast happened in Balochistan province when the officers were returning to the provincial capital Quetta after policing a festival. Images show a police truck crushed and overturned, with blood stains on the ground. This is the second attack on security forces in Balochistan within 24 hours. No group has claimed responsibility. Kachhi district’s Deputy Police Commissioner Sami Agha said that it was a suicide attack. Reuters reported that the attacker rammed a motorbike into the truck. The area has been … Continue reading Nine security officers killed in suicide attack in Pakistan

Victims of the 9/11 attacks are not entitled to seize $3.5bn in assets belonging to Afghanistan’s central bank, a US judge has ruled. Lawyers pursuing the compensation argued these funds could satisfy court judgments they had obtained against Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban. At the time of the attacks in 2001, the Taliban had allowed al-Qaeda militants to operate from Afghanistan. The suicide plane attacks on America claimed 2,977 lives. Judge George Daniels said he was “constitutionally restrained” from approving access to the funds, which are frozen in the US, as this would amount to a ruling that the Taliban were Afghanistan’s … Continue reading US judge bars 9/11 victims’ claim to Afghan assets

The man who attacked a mosque in the Pakistani city of Peshawar on Monday used a police uniform to gain access to the area, police have said. The suicide bomber reportedly entered through the main gates of the secure zone where the mosque is located. Police chief Moazzam Jah Ansari said they had CCTV footage revealing the man’s final movements, and were closing in on the “terror network” responsible. He also confirmed a head found at the site was the attacker’s. Monday’s blast, one of the deadliest attacks in Pakistan in years – took place at a 50-year-old mosque in … Continue reading Update: Suicide bomber in Pakistan mosque attack used police uniform as disguise

Four men have been given long jail sentences for being accomplices to murder in a deadly terror attack by a lone jihadist gunman in the heart of Austria’s capital in November 2020. Kujtim Fejzulai went on the rampage in Vienna’s busy nightlife area known as the Bermuda Triangle, shooting dead four people and wounding 23 others. His nine minutes of terror finally ended when he was shot dead by police. The men on trial were accused of helping him before the attack. Two others aged 22 and 23 were found not guilty of being accomplices to murder but were convicted … Continue reading Four people found guilty of helping jihadist in Vienna terror attack

At least 59 people have been killed by a suicide bombing that apparently targeted policemen praying in a mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan. The mosque is within the tightly guarded police headquarters area. “Terrorists want to create fear by targeting those who perform the duty of defending Pakistan,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said. The Pakistani Taliban denied involvement after an initial claim by one of its commanders. The group ended a ceasefire in November, and violence has been on the rise since. In December it targeted a police station – like Peshawar, in the north-west of the country, leading to the deaths … Continue reading Police targeted in suicide attack that kills 59 in Pakistan

A man who allegedly killed a church caretaker and injured a priest in southern Spain had been facing deportation, the authorities say. The incident happened on Wednesday when a man armed with a machete entered two churches in the city of Algeciras. A 25-year-old Moroccan man was disarmed and arrested soon after. The suspect, who is thought to have acted alone, was expected to be sent to the capital Madrid and appear before the High Court on terrorism charges. The authorities have said the suspect was due to be deported in June as he was in the country illegally. He … Continue reading Update: Suspect who killed man in church was facing deportation from Spain

One person has died and at least one other injured after a man wielding a machete carried out attacks at two churches in southern Spain. According to the interior ministry the suspect first entered the church of San Isidro in Algeciras where the priest was attacked and seriously injured. The alleged attacker then went to a second church where a verger was stabbed to death. The suspect was disarmed and arrested shortly afterwards. A statement by the Ministry of the Interior said: “Just after 19:00 local time this evening, a man entered the church of San Isidro in Algeciras, where, … Continue reading Man held after fatal machete attack at Spanish church

Some 50 women have been abducted by suspected jihadists in northern Burkina Faso, local officials say. Residents in Arbinda said two groups of women were taken as they were out gathering leaves and wild fruits because of a severe food shortage. A small number managed to escape and raise the alarm. The abductions happened on Thursday and Friday, but news has just emerged, as much of the area has been blockaded by Islamist militants. “The women got together to go and gather leaves and wild fruits in the bush because there is nothing left to eat,” one resident told the … Continue reading Suspected jihadists abduct 50 women in northern Burkina Faso

A suicide bomb attack outside the Afghan foreign ministry in Kabul has caused heavy casualties. Police said at least five civilians had been killed but another Taliban official put the toll as high as 20. The local offshoot of the Islamic State group, known as Isis-K, claimed it carried out the attack. It comes after recent blasts targeting foreign interests. Several countries, including Turkey and China, have embassies in the area. The attack took place about 16:00 local time when the bomber tried, but failed to enter the ministry building itself, the Taliban said. “I saw the man blowing himself … Continue reading Afghan foreign ministry hit by deadly suicide bombing

Pakistani security forces have retaken a police station that was captured, killing all 33 hostage-takers, the defence minister has said. Islamist militants from the Pakistani Taliban seized the centre in the remote north-western Bannu district on Sunday. Several people, including security officials, were inside at the time. Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said all hostages were freed, two special forces killed, and 10 to 15 members of the military injured. The Pakistani Taliban – also known as the TTP – confirmed it was behind the attack, according to a statement reported by local media. The group stepped up its attacks … Continue reading 33 militants killed at police station in pakistan over hostage crisis

At least nine police officers have been killed in a bomb and gun attack in northern Iraq. The attack took place near the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, about 290km (180 miles) from the capital Baghdad on Sunday. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility. IS has already said it was behind the planting of a roadside bomb that killed three Iraqi soldiers near Baghdad on Wednesday. Sunday’s attack began when a bomb blast targeted a truck carrying police near the village of Chalal al-Matar, officials told AFP. The blast was followed by “a direct attack with small arms”. “An assailant … Continue reading Nine police officers killed in bomb and gun attack in Iraq

A Libyan man accused of making the bomb which destroyed Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie 34 years ago is in United States custody, Scottish authorities have said. The US announced charges against Abu Agila Masud two years ago, alleging he had played a key role in the bombing on 21 December, 1988. The blast on board the Boeing 747 left 270 people dead. It is the deadliest terrorist incident to have taken place on British soil. All 259 passengers and crew on board the jumbo jet bound to New York from London died while another 11 people were killed … Continue reading Lockerbie bombing suspect in US custody