Tag: Region Asias

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Defense Department on Friday announced the government is moving forward with developing a new version of the B61 nuclear gravity bomb. The bomb, designated B61-13, would have a yield similar to the B61-7 and replace some of those older gravity bombs, the Pentagon said in its announcement. The B61-7′s yield is higher than the B61-12, the most recent bomb being added to the military’s arsenal. The Pentagon said the decision to build this weapon was made…

DEIR AL-BALAH: Internet and phone services collapsed in the Gaza Strip under intensified Israeli bombardment Friday night, largely cutting off its 2.3 million people from the outside world and each other, as Israel’s military said it was “expanding” ground operations in the besieged territory. The military’s announcement signaled it was moving closer to an all-out invasion of Gaza, where it has vowed to crush the ruling Hamas militant group after its bloody incursion in southern Israel three weeks ago. Explosions…

NEW DELHI: Residents of Maine had to remain locked inside their homes for the second consecutive night as law enforcement agencies launched an extensive search for Robert Card, the man believed to be responsible for the worst mass shooting in the state’s history which claimed 18 lives at a bowling alley and a bar. According to an AP report, much of Thursday’s efforts centered on a property owned by one of Card’s relatives in rural Bowdoin, where numerous heavily armed…

The US Air Force (USAF) has launched two new detachments at Robins Air Force Base in Georgia to bolster the force’s electronic warfare capability. Detachments from the 350th Spectrum Warfare Wing (SWW) and the 87th Electronic Warfare Squadron (EWS) will be tasked with responding to electronic threats by developing new countermeasures. The launch is part of the standup process for the future 950th Spectrum Warfare Group, which will further assess the USAF’s combat readiness and effectiveness in electronic warfare. Two…

ISLAMABAD (PAKISTAN): Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is on the verge of a shutdown as it cancelled over 500 flights in the past 11 days due to the unavailability of fuel, ARY News reported. ARY News is a Pakistani news channel. PIA is facing its worst crisis in history as Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has cut its fuel supply over unpaid dues. The move forced the airline to cancel 537 flights since October 13. On Thursday, as many as 49 domestic…

  The US military struck two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday. “The precision self-defense strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against US personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups that began on October 17,” he said in a statement. One US citizen contractor died from a cardiac incident during the attacks, and 21 US military…

According to Al Jazeera, their Gaza bureau chief, Wael Al Dahdouh, tragically lost his wife, son, daughter, and grandson in an Israeli airstrike that occurred on Wednesday. The explosion targeted a residence in the Nuseirat refugee camp, located in central Gaza, where the family sought refuge following their displacement. “Members of the family of our colleague Wael Al Dahdouh, including his wife, son, and daughter, were martyred in an Israeli bombing,” Al Jazeera wrote in an on-air message. Al Jazeera…

Ukrainian military pilots have begun learning to fly the F-16 Fighting Falcon jet in Arizona, the U.S. Air Force confirmed Wednesday. A “small number” of Ukrainians started training at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson this week, Air Force spokesperson Rose Riley said in an emailed statement. Morris is home to the 162nd Wing of the Arizona National Guard, an F-16 pilot training hub that hosts international students. “The training curriculum will align with the foundational knowledge and skills…

The streets of Gaza are empty of cars. Many of its bakeries are shuttered; meat suppliers have no refrigeration. Doctors perform operations by flashlight. Although 62 aid trucks have entered Gaza since last weekend carrying much-needed food, water and medical supplies, none have delivered fuel — which Israel has blocked over concerns it could be stolen and used by Hamas. As a result, aid groups have escalated their warnings, saying the lack of fuel has reached a critical point. UNRWA,…

The administration of Republican Florida governor Ron DeSantis has taken the significant measure of associating a pro-Palestinian student group, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), with terrorism. They have directed state universities to prohibit the group, alleging its support for Hamas militants who recently attacked Israel. Amid escalating Israeli actions in Gaza, several college students have shown support for Palestinians.This has led to criticism from some Jewish scholars and potential employers. However, Florida’s stance is more severe, accusing the SJP…

Following several drone strikes on bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria since Oct. 16, the Pentagon has been able to confirm the attacks injured 21 American service members. The “minor” injuries occurred following separate strikes on al-Tanf garrison in Syria and al-Asad air base in Iraq on Oct. 17 and 18, Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement Wednesday, adding that everyone has since returned to duty. “It is important to note,…

Israel intensified its overnight bombing of southern Gaza, where officials said record numbers of Palestinians were killed again, as violence flared elsewhere in West Asia and a showdown loomed at the UN on Wednesday over desperately needed aid. The Palestinian death toll now exceeds 6,500, Gaza health ministry said Wednesday. Palestinian anger over the toll has been inflamed further by a sense of betrayal as many of those who heeded Israel’s call to move south are also being killed.The Israeli…

JERUSALEM: Israeli officials were outraged Wednesday over UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ comment that the deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel “did not happen in a vacuum,” calling it justification for terrorism. Foreign minister Eli Cohen cancelled a scheduled meeting with Guterres while Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust memorial, said the UN chief “failed the test.” “I will not meet with the UN secretary-general.After the October 7 massacre, there is no place for a balanced approach. Hamas must be erased off the…

Palestinian resistance groups expect Israel to flood Hamas tunnels with nerve gas and chemical weapons under the surveillance of US Delta Force commandos as part of a surprise attack on the Gaza Strip, a senior Arab source familiar with the groups told Middle East Eye.Israel and the US hope to achieve the element of surprise in order to penetrate Hamas tunnels, rescue an estimated 220 hostages, and kill thousands of soldiers belonging to Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades, the source said in…

At least 24 journalists are among the more than 6,000 people who have been killed in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, according to the latest tally released Wednesday by the Committee to Protect Journalists. In addition to the steep toll the fighting has meant for civilians in the region, the conflict in Gaza has resulted in the deadliest stretch for journalists in Israel and the occupied territories since the committee began tracking journalist deaths in 1992, the organization’s…

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon has sent military advisers, including a Marine Corps general versed in urban warfare, to Israel to aid in its war planning and is speeding multiple sophisticated air defense systems to the Middle East days ahead of an anticipated ground assault into Gaza. One of the officers leading the assistance is Marine Corps Lt. Gen. James Glynn, who previously helped lead special operations forces against the Islamic State and served in Fallujah, Iraq, during some of…