News In Brief
PTI, Washington
The ISIS has emerged as the most potent terrorist threat globally but in the Af-Pak region the space is dominated by other terrorist groups like Taliban, Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba, America’s top spymaster has said.
“There are the organisations in the Af-Pak area led by the Taliban, the Haqqanis and Laskar-e-Taiba that continue to engage in terrorist attacks,” CIA Director John Brennan told Senators in response to a question on the dangers being posed by non-ISIS affiliate terrorist organisations.
Iraqi forces enter centre of Fallujah
AP, Baghdad
Iraqi special forces entered the center of Fallujah city early on Friday, taking over a government complex and a neighborhood that served as a base for the ISIS terrorists after intense fighting, a commander said Commander Brig.
Haidar al-Obeidi, of the special forces, told The Associated Press that his troops are now besieging the nearby central hospital, clashing with ISIS snipers in adjacent buildings. He said that according to intelligence, the group has set up a command center on the hospital’s third floor.
Flood claims 25 lives in China
AP, Beijing
A week of torrential rain in southern China has killed 25 people and displaced 33,200 residents, including many in China’s poor, remote regions, officials said.
China’s Civil Affairs Ministry says 4 million people in 10 provinces have been affected by floods and landslides since heavy rainfall began on Monday. Six people are still missing.
12 arrests as Belgium swoops on terror suspects
BBC Online
Police in Belgium have made 12 arrests in a huge anti-terror operation, nearly three months after the deadly bomb attacks on Brussels.
Those detained overnight are suspected of plotting a terrorist attack, prosecutors say. They were among 40 taken in for questioning.
Searches were conducted in 16 municipalities, mainly around Brussels, with checks on 152 lock-up garages.
