Kabul: Afghan officials say security forces have killed 18 Taliban and lost five of their own troops in operations in the country’s east. The Wardak provincial governor’s office said 16 Taliban were killed and two arrested in a 24-hour operation that ended on Monday. Two Afghan soldiers were killed and six others wounded. In nearby Laghman province, government spokesman Sarhadi Zwak says the Afghan intelligence service launched a pre-emptive strike on a group of Taliban after learning they were preparing to attack a police checkpoint. (AP)
Gunmen kill
6 people in Iraq ambush
Baghdad: Officials say militants in central Iraq have killed a policeman and five members of his family in an ambush. Abdul-Karim Abdul-Jabar, mayor of the town Musayyib, said today that gunmen stopped the family while they were driving home from a wedding party in a remote area late on Sunday. The policeman, his parents, wife and two young children were killed. Abdul-Jabar added that another 8-year child was wounded. Musayyib is located about 60 kilometers (40 miles) south of the capital Baghdad. (AP)
Nepal steps up security at Buddhist shrines
Kathmandu: Authorities in Nepal said Monday that security will be increased at all major Buddhist shrines following the bomb blasts Sunday at the Mahabodhi temple in India.
A security alert has gone out in Nepal, which is home to Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha.
Kapilvastu, where the Buddha spent his early life, is also located in Nepal. The Buddha eventually attained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. Soon after the Mahabodhi temple in Bihar’s Gaya district was targeted by terrorists, injuring two monks, additional security personnel was deployed at Lumbini, a Unesco heritage site. “We decided to beef up security in major Buddhist pilgrimage spots like Lumbini, Bouddha and Syombhu in Kathmandu. These are preventive measures,” Nepal Police spokesperson Nawraj Silwal told.
Bouddha (or Bodhnath) and Syombhu (or Swayambhunath) are stupas venerated by Buddhists. Police have asked administrators at major Buddhist pilgrimage spots to be on the alert. (IANS)