Karachi: 20 arrested in Rangers search operation

After a firefight between two gangs in Orangi Town that left three people dead, a limited scale search operation was conducted in the area.

Heavy contingents of Rangers cordoned off Sector C-1 of Orangio Town and conducted a door-to-door search operation.

The Rangers authorities said that the purpose of the operation was to recover illegal weapons that were being used in gang wars.

The Ranger abandoned the operation after arresting 20 suspects.

The locals protested against the operation and chanted slogans as well.

The violent mob attacked a police mobile van and not only damaged the van but also tortured four policemen.

Meanwhile, East district police arrested a political party activist, Hikmat Khan.

Rescue efforts at NZ mine face further delay

GREYMOUTH: Efforts to rescue 29 men trapped in a New Zealand coal mine faced more agonising delays on Sunday when authorities said they needed to drill a new shaft to test air quality because toxic gases made it too dangerous for rescue teams go in.

There has been no contact with the miners since an explosion ripped through the colliery on the rugged west coast of New Zealand’s South Island on Friday afternoon, with authorities saying they would not enter until the air quality improved.

“It’s not a case of simply pulling on a mask and running in there, the risk is huge,” district police commander Gary Knowles said. “I’m not going to put 16 guys underground to effect a half-arsed rescue.”

Naturally occurring methane gas is thought to have caused the explosion. High levels of gas have been detected near mine ventilation shafts, but rescue teams need to know gas

Govt approves magistrate system in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The Federation has approved in principle restoration of magistrate system in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under which the system which was functional before August 1 would be restored.
Twelve amendments in Police Order 2002 have been sent to the Federal Government by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for approval. As per new law, district police officer would be responsible to report to district magistrate. Similarly, checking of police stations would be handed over to magistrate. The magistrate system was changed in local body system in 2001 by the then President Pervez Musharraf. The notification would be issued after the approval of the Federal government.

Five explosions in Baghdad: interior ministry

BAGHDAD: Five explosions rocked Baghdad on Tuesday morning, including one suicide attack in the centre of the city, an interior ministry official said.

Indian rebels killed 70 security men

NEW DELHI: A patrol party of the Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was on its way back from a three-day operation when it found itself totally ambushed.

From a hilltop in Indian state of Chhattisgarh”s Dantewada district, hundreds of Naxals opened fire at the CRPF group of men. Police officials confirm 70 CRPF men have died.

“We have rushed helicopters to evacuate the casualties,” Chhattisgarh Director General of Police Viswa Ranjan told Indian news agency.

The attack took place at 6 am on Tuesday morning. The Naxals also blew up a car being used by the CRPF. This patrol party had been camping in the interiors of Tarmetla jungles looking for Naxal camps.

The police confirms that by 11.30 am, the encounter had ended, and that its personnel were looking for dead bodies.

Dantewada has long been home turf for Naxals in Chattisgarh. The dense forest area is full of landmines

The Naxal attack is seen as retaliation against the government”s Operation Green hunt launched in Orissa and Chhattisgarh to clear Naxals.

Explosions hit Baghdad apartments, 11 dead

BAGHDAD: An Iraq military official says at least 11 people have been killed and 72 injured by explosions at residential buildings across Baghdad.

The death toll was expected to rise.

Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Mousawi, a spokesman for the city”s operations command center, said the blasts crumbled apartment buildings in three neighborhoods.

At least one explosion hit central Baghdad near the Culture Ministry.

The explosions come two days after suicide bombings targeting foreign embassies in Baghdad killed at least 40.

73 security men killed by Naxals in India

NEW DELHI: In the worst Maoist attack, at least 73 CRPF and district force personnel were today killed when a large group of Naxals ambushed them in the thick Mukrana forests of India’s Chhattisgarh”s Dantewada district.

The dead included 73 CRPF men including a deputy and an assistant commandant, and a head constable of the district police force.

73 bodies of the personnel, who were part of a 80-member CRPF and a district police team, have been recovered from the site of the attack suspected to have been carried out by about 1000 Naxals, police spokesman and Inspector General R K Vij said.

Eight of the injured CRPF men have been evacuated for treatment from the forest area, he said.

Official sources said the attack took place when the CRPF unit belonging to the 68 Battalion entered the forest for an operation between six and seven am and were ambushed by the Maoists.

Helicopters have been pressed into service to evacuate the injured and bring back the bodies, Chhattisgarh Director General of Police Viswa Ranjan said.

Dense jungles are hampering relief operations.

Strong Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Bali

Strong Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Bali, JAKARTA : A strong 6.4 quake rattled Indonesia’s Bali island on Saturday, hours after a quake struck Sulawesi island, but there were no immediate reports of major damage or serious casualties from either.

The Bali quake hit at 6:06 am (2306 Friday GMT), at a depth of 36 kilometres (22 miles), according to Indonesian geophysics agency.

The epicentre was 101 kilometres southeast of Nusa Dua, an enclave of resorts located in the southern part of the holiday island.

“There are no indications that the tide in Kuta is rising. So it’s pretty safe here,” Kuta district police chief Dody Prawira Negara said.

Health ministry crisis centre head Rustam Pakaya said that eight people suffered fractured bones and a pregnant woman was taken to hospital.

“There are no deaths or major damages, only cracks in several buildings,” Pakaya said.

A 5.8-magnitude quake hit Sulawesi island several hours earlier, seismologists said.

The tremor struck at 3:34 am (1834 Friday GMT), at a depth of 103 kilometres, according to a revised report by the US Geological Survey (USGS).

The epicentre was 110 kilometres north-northwest of Ternate in the Moluccas and 260 kilometres east of Manado on Sulawesi.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not release a tsunami warning for either event.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.

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Strong Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Bali was first posted on September 19, 2009 at 11:30 am.
©2009 “News Trends“.

Buner Police Encounter, 3 Militants killed

BUNER: Three militants were killed during trade of fire between police and militants in Buner.

District Police Officer Buner Rashid Khan told Geo News that exchange of fire between police and militants took place in Daban Nakhtar area of Chamala in Buner. Militants hurled hand grenades on police mobile that slightly damaged the vehicle. Three militants were killed in retaliatory fire of police among which one belonged to Swabi while two belonged to Swat. Police seized the bodies.