MANILA,Philippines (AFP) — The Abu Sayyaf Islamic militant group has terrorized the southern Philippines and nearby areas with a trail of bombings, kidnappings and beheading since the 1990s. Filipino and Canadian officials said Tuesday the group had murdered Canadian retiree John Ridsdel, seven months after abducting him along with two other Westerners and a Filipina at a southern resort. The following is a timeline of the Abu Sayyaf’s rise and rampage: — Early 1990s: Libya-trained […]
International
Philippine military expresses sympathy over Canadian hostage beheading
The Philippine armed forces on Tuesday (April 26) expressed sympathy over the execution of a Canadian hostage by Islamist militants in the southern Philippines, as military operations continue to secure the remaining captives. John Ridsdel, 68, a former mining executive, was captured by Islamist militants along with three other people in September 2015 while on vacation on a Philippine island. The Philippine army said a severed head was found on a remote island on Monday […]
China will start construction of its outpost in Panatag shoal
QUEZON City, Philippines – According to a report that appeared in the Hong Kong newspaper, South China Morning Post, China will start construction of an outpost in the Panatag Shoal in order to have good air coverage. China is claiming said shoal despite the claim of the Philippines that said shoal is with its exclusive economic zone. It is expected that the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, Netherlands regarding said […]
Sinkhole appears in the middle of the road in China
CCTV footage shows an officer noticing cracks forming in the middle of the road. He then decides to divert traffic around the cracks by cordoning off the area using cones. Minutes later, the road collapses!
Iglesia ni Cristo’s Musical Evangelical Mission held in Bangkok
Hundreds of Iglesia ni Cristo members along with their visitors attended a Musical Evangelical Mission in Bangkok, Thailand.
Islamists behead Canadian hostage in Philippines
by Cecil MORELLA Islamic militants in the Philippines have beheaded a Canadian hostage, sparking fears for more than 20 others they are holding on remote islands, with security forces vowing Tuesday to hunt down the extremists. The man’s head was found Monday dumped outside city hall on Jolo, a mountainous and jungle-clad island in the far south of the Philippines that is a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf Islamist group. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau […]
U.S. begins F-22 fighter deployment to reassure NATO allies facing Russia
The United States began its biggest European deployment of F-22 fighters with a visit to the Black Sea in an exercise aimed at beefing up military support for NATO’s eastern European allies who say they face aggression from Russia. President Barack Obama promised in 2014 to bolster the defences of NATO’s eastern members which were spooked by Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and the Kremlin’s use of pro-Russian forces in eastern Ukraine. A U.S. […]
Head of foreigner dumped in southern Philippines: police
JOLO, Philippines (AFP) — The head of a foreign man was dumped on a remote southern Philippine island on Monday, authorities said, hours after a ransom deadline passed for two Canadians and a Norwegian held hostage by Islamic militants. Police said two people on a motorbike dropped the head near city hall on Jolo, a mostly lawless island about 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) south of Manila that is one of the main strongholds of the […]
Gay rights activist among two hacked to death in Bangladesh
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Two leading gay rights activists were hacked to death Monday at an apartment in Bangladesh’s capital, police said, the latest deadly attack on minorities in the Muslim-majority nation. Dhaka Metropolitan Police spokesman Maruf Hossain Sorder said at least six men entered the seven-storey building, saying they were there to deliver a parcel to the home of one of the victims. “Unidentified attackers entered an apartment at Kalabagan and hacked two people […]
Canada PM condemns ‘cold-blooded murder’ of hostage in Philippines
(REUTERS) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned on Monday (April 25) the execution of a Canadian hostage by Abu Sayyaf militants in the Philippines, calling it “an act of cold-blooded murder.” John Ridsdel, 68, a former mining executive, was captured by Islamist militants along with three other people in September 2015 while on vacation on a Philippine island. The Philippine army said a severed head was found on a remote island on Monday, […]
Obama: 250 more US troops to help fight IS in Syria
HANOVER, Germany (AFP) Monday 4/25/2016 –President Barack Obama said Monday the US would send up to 250 more military trainers to help fight the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria. “I have approved the deployment of up 250 additional US personnel in Syria, including special forces,” Obama said in Germany. “They’re not going to be leading the fight on the ground, but they will be essential in providing the training, in assisting local forces as they continue […]
Turkey kills almost 900 IS members in Syria raids: report
ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkey has killed almost 900 alleged members of the Islamic State (IS) group since January through artillery fire and air raids, the state-run Anatolia news agency said Monday, citing military sources. The country, a member of a US-led coalition fighting IS, has killed 492 “terrorists” since January 9 in air raids, while another 370 were killed in artillery strikes which also destroyed arms depots, the agency said. These figures could not be […]
