7 killed in Pak IED blast
Peshawar, March 13: At least seven police personnel were killed when a roadside improvised explosive device (IED) struck a police vehicle in Shadi Khel Bettani, Lakki Marwat district, northwest Pakistan. The blast hit the patrol near the Rasool Khel check post, killing SHO Azam, driver Shah Bahram, and four other officers instantly. Another policeman, Insafuddin, later died from injuries sustained in the attack. Security forces cordoned off the area, launched search operations, and collected evidence to identify the perpetrators. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi condemned the attack, describing the loss as “extremely tragic” and expressed solidarity with the families of the martyrs. He requested a detailed report from the Inspector General of Police, directed authorities to ensure the best medical care for the injured, and reaffirmed that terrorism would not weaken the resolve of the people or security forces. (PTI)
Myanmar boosts air power to reclaim town
BANGKOK, March 13: Myanmar’s military has commissioned new combat aircraft, including Russian-made Su-30 jets, to strengthen its air power amid the country’s ongoing civil war. This marks the sixth time the military has expanded its air capabilities since seizing power in February 2021. State media said the air force is needed to “protect state interests,” while opposition groups accuse the military of targeting civilians. Recent operations in Bago and Rakhine regions reportedly killed dozens, though these figures have not been independently verified. The military also recaptured Tagaung in northern Mandalay, the last town in the region controlled by pro-democracy forces aligned with the National Unity Government (NUG). Resistance fighters withdrew after heavy assaults, but still hold positions outside the town. Russia and China remain key arms suppliers, while Western nations maintain sanctions against Myanmar’s junta. (PTI)
Former Nepal PM Oli’s father passes away
Kathmandu, Mar 13: Former Nepal prime minister K P Sharma Oli’s father, Mohan Prasad Oli, passed away after a prolonged illness on Friday. He was 97.Mohan Prasad Oli breathed his last early in the morning at the Nepal-Korea Friendship Hospital in Bhaktapur district, where he was undergoing treatment for some time, according to the CPN-UML sources. Oli, the chair of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist), lit his father’s funeral pyre at Pashupati Aryaghat in Kathmandu later in the day, the party sources said. Oli, the four-time prime minister ousted in September last year after a massive Gen Z-led protests, lost the recently concluded general election to former Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah ‘Balen’ from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) in Jhapa 5 constituency in eastern Nepal. (PTI)
