December 26, 2024

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/12/26/live-israel-pounds-gaza-as-three-babies-freeze-to-death-in-tent-camps

 An improvised explosive device (IED) went off in the Dasht area of Balochistan’s Turbat district on Wednesday, claiming the lives of at least two people and injuring four others. According to the police, the remote-controlled explosion occurred when the victims were travelling inside a vehicle. Meanwhile, the bodies and the wounded were shifted to a hospital. Those killed in the blast have been identified as Zaman and Umer Zahoor, whereas the injured include Naeem, Javed, Ameen and Waheed. The incident comes amid a surge in terrorist incidents in the country, which has affected Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa the most. Earlier this month, two people were killed in a bomb explosion behind Levies station in Killa Abdullah. However, Assistant Commissioner Shehak Baloch said that the deceased were carrying a bomb to attack the station but before reaching their target the bomb exploded and both of them were killed. The month of November was also marred by violence in the province with two soldiers being martyred in an IED blast during an operation in Harnai. The martyred soldiers were identified as Major Muhammad Haseeb and Havildar Noor Ahmed. Before that at least 27 people, including security personnel, were killed and 62 others were wounded in a suicide attack at the Quetta railway station. It is pertinent to mention that the increase in terrorist attacks coincides with the return of the Taliban government in neighbouring Afghanistan. The third quarter of 2024 (July-September) witnessed a sharp uptick in fatalities in terrorist violence and counter-terrorism campaigns with a 90% surge in violence, according to a report issued by the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS). A total of 722 people were killed, including civilians, security personnel, and outlaws, while 615 others were wounded in as many as 328 incidents recorded during the period under review. Nearly 97% of these fatalities occurred in KP and Balochistan — marking the highest percentage in a decade, and over 92% of these incidents of terror attacks and security forces’ operations were recorded in the same provinces. The total fatalities from three quarters of this year have now surpassed the total fatalities recorded for the entire 2023; the number of fatalities rose to at least 1,534 in the first three quarters compared to 1,523 in 2023. Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1265285-turbat-blast-kills-at-least-two-injures-four

Members of the Syrian police have been killed in an “ambush” by forces loyal to the ousted President Bashar al-Assad in Tartous governorate in the latest security challenge for the new administration that came to power a fortnight ago. Syria’s new Interior Minister Mohammed Abdul Rahman said on Thursday that “remnants” of the Assad government in Tartous had killed 14 police members and wounded 10 others, vowing to crack down on “anyone who dares to undermine Syria’s security or endanger the lives of its citizens”. The attack came as protests took place several cities after a video showing vandalising of an Alawite shrine in the city of Aleppo circulated online on Wednesday. Police had imposed curfews in Homs, Latakia, Jableh and Tartous until 8am (05:00 GMT). Al Jazeera could not confirm if the curfew has been lifted. The interior ministry said on its official Telegram account that the video, which showed armed men walking inside the shrine and posing near human bodies, dated back to the rebel offensive on Aleppo in late November. The ministry said that the violence was carried out by unknown groups, adding whoever was circulating the video now appeared to be seeking to incite sectarian strife. State media reported that residents of Homs said that demonstrations in the city were led by members of the minority Alawite and Shia Muslim religious communities. Some residents said the demonstrations were linked to pressure and violence in recent days aimed at members of the Alawite minority, a sect long seen as loyal to al-Assad, who was toppled by opposition fighters led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group earlier this month. Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Damascus, described the situation in Syria as extremely delicate now, with flashpoints over the last 48 hours particularly in the Alawite heartland of Latakia and Tartous, as well as Homs and Aleppo. Hashem said the new administration has brought huge reinforcements to security forces to try to reduce tension in the areas. “Yesterday, late at night, there were high-level meetings of the new administration about how to move forward, and one of the options is a crackdown on what they describe to be remnants of the old regime, members of the Fourth Division, [which] was the elite presidential guard loyal to Maher al-Assad, brother of the former president,” he said. “But the new administration is little bit concerned about the potential of a bloody confrontation.” Assad, who took over as president after his father’s death in 2000, fled to Russia after opposition fighters captured Damascus on December 8, ending more than five decades of Baath Party rule. The country’s new leaders have repeatedly promised to protect minority religious groups, who fear for their rights under the new administration. A number of people are believed to be killed and wounded in a separate attack by the former regime forces in the coastal region, according to the interior ministry. Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/26/syrian-security-personnel-killed-in-ambush-by-former-regime-forces