TTP attack kills 5 soldiers in NW Pak
PESHAWAR, Oct 20: At least five paramilitary soldiers were killed and nearly a dozen injured on Monday when Taliban militants opened fire on security personnel who were guarding a state-owned gas company’s team in northwest Pakistan, according to police. The militants, belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), opened fire on the soldiers guarding the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline (SNGPL) Company’s team near Kot Lalu, in Dera Ismail Khan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said. In retaliatory fire by security forces, at least eight militants were killed, police said. Officials said the militant group was planning to target the gas pipeline project, aimed at providing energy, employment, and essential facilities to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The injured security personnel were shifted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Dera Ismail Khan, for medical treatment, officials said. (PTI)
Body of Nepali held by Hamas returned home
KATHMANDU, Oct 20: A 23-year-old Nepali student, Bipin Joshi, who saved several lives during the Hamas attack in Israel two years ago, has been brought to Kathmandu for his last rites. Bipin was taken into captivity by Hamas in Kibbutz Alumim on October 7, 2023. The Israeli military assessed that he was murdered in captivity during the first months of the war. Nepal’s Prime Minister Sushila Karki paid tribute to Bipin’s mortal remains at the Tribhuvan International Airport, expressing deep condolences to his family and acknowledging the tireless efforts of his mother and sister throughout the two-year ordeal. His body will be flown to Kanchanpur in Western Nepal by a Nepali Army helicopter, where his family will perform his final rites according to religious traditions. Bipin was one of 17 Nepali students studying under the Learn and Earn program in southern Israel when Hamas launched its surprise attack on October 7, 2023. Ten of the students were killed, while Bipin was taken hostage. Hamas recently handed over Bipin’s body to the Israel government and repatriated his remains to Nepal. (PTI)
Philippines tropical storm leaves 7 dead
MANILA, Oct 20: Tropical Storm Fengshen, originating from the northern and central Philippines, has caused over 22,000 people to evacuate from flood- and landslide-prone villages. The storm, which has sustained winds of up to 65 km/h and gusts of up to 80 km/h, has caused seven deaths and left nearly 14,000 people displaced. One person drowned in Roxas City in Capiz, while five people, including two children, died while sleeping when their hut was hit by a palm tree. Fengshen, also known as Ramil, is forecast to move towards Vietnam. The storm hit as central and southern provinces were recovering from recent earthquakes that left over 80 dead, displaced thousands, and damaged over 1,34,000 houses in central Cebu province. The Philippines is one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries, with about 20 typhoons and storms each year. (AP)
