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Asia Pacific
Afghan security forces killed when bomb-laden van explodes in Kandahar
At least 16 people were killed and 38 wounded when a minivan stuffed with explosives detonated as security forces were trying to defuse it in southern Afghanistan, officials said.
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Middle East
Syrian army says Damascus ‘completely secure’ after taking Yarmouk camp from ISIS
Syria’s army said it was in full control of the capital Damascus and its outskirts after ousting Islamic State, marking a major milestone in the seven-year war. “The Syrian army announces today that Damascus, its outskirts and surrounding towns are completely secure,” it said in a statement carried by state media network SANA on Monday, May 21. The development came after troops had captured a key southern portion of Damascus from IS, the statement said, including the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk and the adjacent district of Hajar al-Aswad. “The wheel of our progress on the battlefield will not stop until all Syrian land is purified,” it added. Russian-langauge Russkaya Vesna posted video of Syrian Arab Army troops raising the national flag in the Yarmouk camp, which had been under siege for years. Syria’s war erupted in 2011 with protests against President Bashar al-Assad, including in the capital. The following year, the government began losing control of parts of Damascus and placed a crippling siege around Yarmouk, which lies in the capital’s south. The army’s announcement came hours after a tenuous evacuation deal saw hundreds of ISIS fighters and their relatives quit Yarmouk, according to reports. Videos posted on social media on Sunday …
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Africa
Malian soldier injured, 12 civilians killed in Boulikessi market attack
At least 12 civilians were killed in northern Mali in an attack on a market that also involved the shooting of a Malian soldier, military sources said
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Asia Pacific
India suspends offensive military operations in Kashmir for Ramadan
India suspended offensive military operations against rebels in disputed Kashmir territory in a rare gesture for the holy month of Ramadan, following a recent escalation of violence in the Muslim-majority region
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Middle East
Russian navy to ‘permanently’ patrol the Mediterranean armed with Kalibr missiles, Putin says
Russian naval ships armed with Kalibr cruise missiles will patrol off the coast of Syria on a continuous basis in order to ward off terrorist threats, President Vladimir Putin said
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Africa
US reviewing Somalia raid after reports of civilian casualties
The U.S. military's Africa Command said it is reviewing a May 9 raid in the Lower Shabelle after locals reported that five civilians had been shot dead
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Africa
Training and command issues highlighted in Pentagon’s Niger ambush probe
An investigation into last year's deadly assault on U.S. and local forces in Niger uncovered a series of avoidable blunders leading up to the attack, the Pentagon said
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Asia Pacific
Explosion at Indian paramilitary HQ near Myanmar border kills 2
An explosion near an Indian paramilitary headquarters in Imphal in the northeastern state of Manipur near its border with Myanmar killed two security personnel
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Africa
Suicide bomb kills 2 in eastern Libya
A suicide bomber on Tuesday attacked a checkpoint in eastern Libya held by militiamen loyal to General Khalifa Haftar, killing at least two people including a civilian, a senior security official said. The attacker also killed a fighter from Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army when the vehicle they were driving exploded at a roadblock 90 kilometres (56 miles) east of Sirte, General Al-Mabruk Sahban told AFP. The attack has not yet been claimed. Sahban added that earlier in the day security services had detonated another car bomb discovered in the area. The attack on the checkpoint comes a day after Haftar announced the start of an offensive to recapture the city of Derna, held by Islamists and jihadists of the Mujahedeen Shura Council. In March, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for two attacks against LNA checkpoints that killed 10 people. Last week, ISIS claimed a suicide attack in Tripoli against Libya’s electoral commission that killed 14 people. Libya has been wracked by chaos since a 2011 uprising that toppled and killed its long-time dictator Muammar Qaddafi, with two rival authorities vying for control. Haftar supports an administration based in the east of the country. A United Nations-backed unity government based …
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Africa
Government officials, soldier killed in Boko Haram attack on Lake Chad island
Six people were killed, including four government officials and a soldier, in Boko Haram attack on a Chadian army checkpoint on an island in Lake Chad, a military source told AFP
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