US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Friday its forces conducted a partnered raid with the Iraqi Security Forces in western Iraq in the early hours of Aug. 29, resulting in the deaths of 15 Islamic State (ISIS) operatives. “The ISIS element was armed with numerous weapons, grenades, and explosive “suicide” belts,” CENTCOM said. It also added that there were no indication of civilian casualties in the raid. Seven American troops were injured in the joint raid, the Associated Press reported later citing the US military. Five were wounded in the operation while two others were hurt in falls, a US military official…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
JERUSALEM: Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett issued a stark warning on Friday, expressing concern that the current policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government are prompting many Israelis to consider leaving the country permanently. In a post on his X account, Bennett highlighted the growing despair among Israelis, exacerbated by ongoing conflicts in Gaza and northern Israel, particularly near the Lebanese border. Bennett suggested that the government’s handling of these crises is leading to widespread disillusionment. Bennett also criticised the government’s decision to continue exempting Haredi Jews from military service. He questioned why an entire sector of the population…
JERUSALEM: Israel’s military on Saturday said its forces killed two people in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank, after one infiltrated an Israeli settlement and another shot at soldiers after his car exploded. Israel’s ambulance service said two men were wounded by gunshots in the incidents. It did not identify them. “Terrorists attempted to run over a security guard at the entrance to the community Karmei Tzur a short while ago and infiltrated the community,” the military said, referring to an Israeli settlement. Soldiers who arrived at the scene killed one assailant who had opened fire at them and…
BERLIN: Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region is legitimate and covered by Kyiv’s right to self-defence, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told German weekly Welt am Sonntag in his first reaction to the advance into Russian territory. “Ukraine has a right to defend itself. And according to international law, this right does not stop at the border,” Stoltenberg told the paper, adding that NATO had not been informed about Ukraine’s plans beforehand and did not play a role in them. The NATO chief said Ukraine was running a risk with the advance onto Russian territory but that it was up to…
The United States has called on Israel to “immediately rectify” its conduct after Israel admitted responsibility for a shooting incident involving a United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) humanitarian aid convoy in Gaza on Tuesday evening. According to US officials, Israel attributed the incident to a communication error between army units. “Humanitarian workers are there to help innocent civilians, and Israel must ensure they are protected,” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller wrote on X. US Deputy Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood confirmed that Jerusalem had informed Washington that the shots were fired due to a miscommunication within the…
The National Assembly has been intimated that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has deployed the Web Monitoring System (WMS) for internet content management which is used to block applications and websites not in tandem with the law, it emerged on Friday. Internet speeds have witnessed a considerable decline over the past few weeks, and users are facing difficulties in sending or downloading media and voice notes through WhatsApp when connected to mobile data, and experiencing slow browsing speeds, even on broadband. The business community and internet service providers (ISPs) had alleged that the government’s efforts to monitor internet traffic — including a so-called ‘firewall’…
SAO PAULO: Brazil’s supreme court on Friday ordered social media giant X to be taken down in the country after billionaire Elon Musk did not name a legal representative for his messaging platform. Judge Alexandre Moraes and Elon Musk have been in a public feud for months after X failed to comply with legal orders to block certain accounts accused of spreading fake news and hate messages. Under Brazilian laws governing the internet, social media platforms must have a representative based in the country. “Each and every citizen from any part of the world that has an investment in Brazil is subject…
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday refuted claims that he invited Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of the messaging app Telegram, to France. Durov was detained upon arrival in Paris and later released on probation. While Macron was in Belgrade for official talks, he denied allegations from the French newspaper Le Canard Enchaine that he had invited Durov to France. The newspaper had reported that Durov was detained immediately after landing at the airport as part of a purported invitation to the Elysee Palace. Macron stated that he had “absolutely no idea” about Durov’s visit to France and emphasised that it would be…
MONZA: Lewis Hamilton topped the times for Mercedes in Friday’s second practice session for the Formula One Italian Grand Prix by the finest of margins in front of Lando Norris. Seven-time world champion Hamilton clocked a fastest lap of one minute, 20.738 seconds at Monza, just 0.003sec ahead of McLaren’s Norris who is the closest challenger to Max Verstappen’s current F1 supremacy. Norris trails Red Bull’s championship leader by 70 points in the drivers’ championship after a stunning win at last weekend’s Dutch GP. That was the fifth straight race not to be won by Verstappen, who was fastest in Friday’s first…
NEW YORK: Coco Gauff survived late-match drama to keep her US Open title defence alive with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Elina Svitolina on Friday. Gauff’s third-set surge had carried her to a 5-2 lead and triple match point, but she delivered a pair of double faults and Svitolina saved another with a blazing backhand on the way to a break. But Gauff broke Svitolina at love in the next game to lock up the win. In a tense, physical encounter on Arthur Ashe Stadium, Gauff regrouped after a rocky end to the first set saw Svitolina break at…
