Seven security personnel killed in KPK attack
PESHAWAR, Sep 12: At least seven security personnel were killed and 14 injured in a search and strike operation against militants in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The clashes occurred after security forces launched an operation in the mountainous Sar Banda, Maidan area of Lower Dir district. A heavy contingent of the police, Elite Force, and Dir Scouts remained in the area as the operation continued. Security forces claimed to have inflicted “significant losses” on the militants, though no details were immediately provided. The area was once a stronghold of the proscribed Tehreek-i-Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi (TNSM), led by Maulana Sufi Muhammad. His son-in-law, Mullah Fazlullah, became the head of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and fled to Afghanistan during the 2009 military offensive in Malakand. (PTI)
Boats capsize in Pak’s Punjab floods, 10 dead
LAHORE, Sep 12: At least 10 flood victims, including children, were killed when three boats capsized in Pakistan’s Punjab province during a rescue operation, an official said on Friday. According to an official of the Punjab Emergency Services Rescue 1122, a massive evacuation is underway in south Punjab as floodwater submerged hundreds of villages there. “During an evacuation operation, three boats near Multan and Bahawalnagar capsized, resulting in the death of 10 flood victims, including children. However, the rescuers saved 40 others from drowning,” he said. Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari said on Thursday that 78 people were killed in flood-related incidents in the province since August 23. With these 10 casualties, the death toll has climbed to 88. “Since the start of floods in Punjab on August 23, 78 people lost their lives, 4.2 million people have been impacted/displaced,” Bokhari had told a press conference here. The Punjab government said over the last three days, it has rescued more than 16,000 people trapped in flood-affected areas in southern Punjab. (PTI)
Indian-origin motel manager beheaded in US
HOUSTON, Sep 12: A 50-year-old Indian-origin motel manager in the US, Chandra Mouli “Bob” Nagamallaiah, was beheaded in front of his wife and son in Texas after a dispute over a broken washing machine. The suspect, a co-worker with a criminal record, has been arrested and charged with capital murder. The incident occurred at the Downtown Suites motel in Dallas. Surveillance footage showed Cobos-Martinez retrieving a machete and attacking Nagamallaiah. The victim fled the motel office, but the suspect pursued him, carrying out the assault despite their attempts to intervene. Cobos-Martine, who has a prior criminal history in Houston, is being held without bond. If convicted, he could face life imprisonment without parole or the death penalty. The Consulate General of India in Houston condoled Nagamallaiah’s death and is following up on the matter closely. Friends, family, and the local Indian community are supporting his family through a fundraiser to cover funeral expenses, immediate living costs, and his son’s college education. (PTI)