Gurkhas from Folkestone are beginning their preparations ahead of an eight month tour of duty in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Starting in April, more than 400 troops from the Folkestone base will begin their tour of duty.

Ahead of the tour, the soldiers have been taking part in training scenarios, which will see them take to Kent’s roads to practice driving Foxhound armoured vehicles, which are used on the streets of Kabul.

Their deployment is part of the government’s support to the Afghan government, with their mission primarily to protect Nato military and civilian advisers working in government ministries.

Lieutenant Colonel Jamie Murray is the commanding officer in charge of the deployment.

He said: “Our task, is essential to building a successful Afghan government. Gurkha soldiers have committed a lot to Afghanistan over the past fifteen years.

“This mission is about ensuring that our legacy is a successful government, run by Afghans. Our training over the coming months will be challenging and thorough, but we are all looking forward to the job ahead.”

kentnews.co.uk

Police in eastern Nangarhar province have busted a recruitment team of the terrorist group of Islamic State (IS) or Daesh.

Officials say the three member group was busted during a raid in Buland Ghar area of Behsood District yesterday.

Security agencies are questioning the terrorists to get to other recruiters of the group.

Daesh that emerged in Nangarhar about a year ago has been attempting to expand by recruiting more people.

The group is more focusing on brainwashing the youths and indoctrinate them with radical ideologies.

They have been using the recruitment tactics of Taliban but their way of execution is more horrible than the Taliban.

khaama.com

The Philippines is also apparently facing an imminent threat from Islamic State followers. Footage recently uploaded online show jihadist training and different armed groups from the country’s south coming together to pledge allegiance to the Islamic State group.

Analysts say this video shows four different armed groups from the Southern Philippine island of Mindanao together with foreign operatives, all pledging allegiance to the Islamic State, also known as IS, ISIS or ISIL. It is evidence, they say, of ISIL slowly being able to establish its presence in Southeast Asia.

“I think the mere fact that ISIS officially recognized the activity in its official organ Al Naba already indicates interest of ISIS to really have a province in Southeast Asia. And Mindanao is the best candidate for them because of the enthusiasm of the local groups operating there and at the same time the support also that Moro militants are getting from like-minded militants from Indonesia and Malaysia,” said Rommel Banlaoi, International Security Analyst.

It is the latest in a string of videos released online that feature Muslim militants from the Southern Philippines aligning themselves with ISIL.

This alleged ISIL training camp is seen in footage posted online in November and December last year. One of them is accompanied by a threat against the APEC Summit in Manila.

The Philippine military acknowledges the existence of ISIL sympathizers and followers in the South but insists they have no direct links to ISIL.

“In our assessment, there remains to be no direct, verified, and credible links. And we see that as a means of propaganda just primarily, as I mentioned, to be able to get some degree of support. And the support can come in financial which I think is the primary motive,” said Gen. Restituto Padilla, AFP spokesperson.

Banlaoi believes Philippine authorities have so far been effective in foiling attempts to carry out terror attacks… like the one that just happened in Jakarta. But with recognition and support from ISIL now apparently closer to reality, he says authorities shouldn’t let their guard down.

“It’s just a matter of time because these groups have the intention and capabilities to pursue bombing operations in Metro Manila,” Rommel Banlaoi said.

Terror attacks have been carried out here in the Philippines – mostly in the South, some here in the capital – but experts say what’s alarming is that they could be doing it now under the brand of ISIL, a group that has proven to be more brazen and radical than Al Qaeda.

cntv.cn

More than 1,800 officers from the police and civil defence took part in an islandwide counter-terrorism exercise on Monday and Tuesday (Jan 18 to 19).

“This exercise tested the readiness of our forces in responding to multiple island-wide armed attacks,” the Singapore Police Force said in a statement on Tuesday.

The police will continue to conduct similar exercises with other agencies as part of its preparations to deal with national security incidents, the police said.

Members of public can play an important role by staying vigilant, it added. If they spot any suspicious activities or people, they can call 999 or the police hotline at 1800-255 0000.

https://youtu.be/J7PNP6xLpZg

A video about the exercise was posted on the police Facebook page on Tuesday evening.

straitstimes.com

At least 23 anti-government armed militants were killed during clearing operations by the Afghan armed forces during the past 24 hours.

The Ministry of Defense (MoD) said the operations were jointly conducted by the Afghan National Army (ANA) forces in conjunction with the security personnel belonging to the other security institutions.

A statement by MoD said at least 14 militants were also wounded during the operations and 6 suspected militants were detained by the security forces.

The statement further added that the Afghan security forces confiscated various weapons and explosives during the operations conducted in Baraki Barak district of Logar, parts of Kunduz, Zabul, Paktika, and Helmand provinces.

According to MoD, a member of the Afghan National Army (ANA) also lost his during the operations.

The anti-government armed militant groups including the Taliban militants have not commented regarding the report so far.

The operations are being conducted as the Taliban-led insurgency have been rampant during the recent months as efforts have been put in place to encourage the militants to join the reconciliation process.

khaama.com

10 people have been killed and more than 20 wounded in an explosion near Peshawar.

Officials say most of the victims are security forces, locally known as Khasadar Force.

Initial investigation reveals that it was a suicide attack targeting security forces near Karkhano Market in Khyber Agency’s Jamrud tehsil.

Those killed include president of the Tribal Union of Journalists Mehmoob Shah.

Soon after the blast security personnel and rescue teams arrived at the blast sight and moved the victims to Hayatabad Medical Complex where an emergency has been declared.

This comes as earlier in January Pakistan issued a security alert of possible suicide attacks in Khyber Agency.

The alert stated that 13 suicide bombers from a banned militant organisation have entered into Jamrud Tehsil.

Khyber Agency is reportedly the hotspot of Lashkar-i-Islam militant group which also operates across the border into Afghanistan.

Jamrud tehsil has witnessed some deadly explosions in the past including a suicide attack inside a mosque in 2011 that left at least 30 people killed and over 100 others wounded.

khaama.com

Indonesia is bracing for the return of experienced Islamic State fighters from the Middle East who would be capable of carrying out attacks far more deadly than the assault on Jakarta last week, the country’s police chief said on Monday.

Thursday’s attack in the heart of Jakarta was a hastily executed “Plan B” by Islamist militants, after police raids had disrupted preparations for other strikes against Christmas and New Year events, Police General Badrodin Haiti told Reuters in an interview.

Eight people, including four militants, were killed in the assault on the capital’s main Thamrin Road that involved pistols and home-made bombs.

The attack, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia to be attributed to Syria-based Islamic State, could have been far deadlier, but the militants lacked training and powerful weapons, Haiti said.

“I believe this was a Plan B. Their main target was Christmas and New Year. They chose Thamrin (after that plan was disrupted) because they were hoping for a big impact despite their small size, because this is a crowded centre,” he said.

“The perpetrators had the opportunity to take more victims (during the attack), but because their capabilities were limited, we were able to take them out of action.”

There are fears that much deadlier attacks could follow, with the return of experienced frontline fighters with Islamic State currently in Syria and Iraq, Haiti said.

Authorities say about 500 Indonesians have travelled to the Middle East to join the extremist group. About 100 are believed to have returned, although experts say only about 15 have combat experience.

“Those on the frontlines are better trained, because they’re facing their enemies (in) the field. If they come back, then it will be dangerous because they can carry out acts of violence and terror,” Haiti said.

“There is the possibility (of a bigger attack) if they can train people in preparing explosives,” he said.

The majority of those believed to be involved in Thursday’s attack, include two of the four militants who carried it out, were part of an attempt to establish a training camp in the forests of the northern province of Aceh that was thwarted by police in 2010, Haiti said.

In the wake of the latest attack, police would redouble efforts to monitor radical networks in Indonesia, he said.

“We want these networks to be mapped fully, because they can collaborate with each other. There are about nine distinct terror groups in Indonesia. So our hope is that this incident can reveal their collaborations,” he said.

“We have found communications between people in Syria and here and we should be able to tell who is responding to those communications and can become a future threat.”

The last major attack in the world’s most populous Muslim nation before last week was the twin bombing of luxury hotels in Jakarta in 2009.

Police said in December that a series of raids disrupted plans by militants to launch a string of deadly attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations, as well as against the country’s Shia Muslim minority.

reuters.com

Australia has announced increasing the number of its troops in Afghanistan.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull who made a surprise visit to Kabul on Sunday announced that more than 20 Australian soldiers would join those already serving under the NATO’s Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan.

The addition of 20 soldiers would bring the number of Australian troops serving in Afghanistan to 270. The country has so far lost 41 soldiers during its over-a-decade mission in Afghanistan.

Turnbull was accompanied by a high-level delegation to the Presidential Palace where held discussions with President Mohammad Ghani on wide range of topics to include strengthening the bilateral relations, fight against terrorism, peace process and human rights particularly the women rights in Afghanistan.

The Australian PM said that his country would also continue its assistance in Afghanistan’s development when he was requested by President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani for investment in the extraction of mines.

Turnbull invited President Ghani to make a visit to Australia which was accepted during the meeting.

khaama.com

Pakistan’s PM and its Chief of Army Staff are hitting the road in an ostensible attempt to mediate between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The Times of India reports:

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and powerful army chief General Raheel Sharif are set to embark on an important visit to Iran and Saudi Arabia on Monday to reduce tensions between the two rival Muslim nations, his office has said.

The decision was taken after behind-the-scene contacts by Pakistan with both countries to lower the temperature in the region after Saudi Arabia executed a prominent Shia cleric earlier this month following which Iranian protesters attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate prompting Riyadh to sever relations.

There is, in reality, less than zero chance that Pakistani diplomatic go-betweens can resolve the standoff between Saudi and Iran. But the trip is an excellent way to advance Pakistan’s interests from a certain perspective. It’s a way to remind both sides that Pakistan has options, that it has an important role in the regional balance, and that, to put it delicately, when it comes to relations with two oil rich neighbors, Pakistan is open for business.

Pakistan can best be understood as a state that is permanently in need of outside resources. The cost of its military establishment is much greater than the country’s economy can bear on its own, but keeping up the competition with India requires massive infusions of money. During much of the Cold War, the U.S. was willing to provide those resources, and after 9/11, it was again.But U.S. enthusiasm for Pakistan continues to wane, India continues to get richer, and the costs of competition are going nowhere but up.

Pakistan has approached China for help, and is getting some aid and investment there. But China has so far been unwilling to be the kind of paymaster Pakistan really needs. The Saudi contributions are significant, as much in the form of generous payments to individuals in key positions as to the country as a whole. Even as Saudi revenues feel the pinch from low oil prices, Pakistan wants those payments kept up—and if possible increased.

The Saudis, however, have been doing something Pakistan doesn’t much like: asking for a return on their investment in the form of Pakistani support in the standoff with Iran. That is something neither the military nor the political establishment wants to take on at this point—but nobody in Pakistan wants to pay a price in the form of lost Saudi aid, either.Hence the “peace-making” tour or, perhaps more accurately put, the “shakedown cruise.” By visiting both capitals and spreading a public message of sweetness and light, the top civilian and military authorities in Pakistan have the opportunity to get down to brass tacks in both countries.

Reminding the Saudis of Pakistan’s deep ties to Iran is useful and should help to keep Riyadh’s checkbook open even as Pakistan, for now, stiffs it on some of its dicier political requests. And a timely visit to Iran offers the mullahs an opportunity to share some of the largesse coming from the end-of-sanctions windfall with their dear neighbors. No doubt the Pakistanis, nervous about what Iran will do with all the money, will be working to organize some kind of deal in Afghanistan, where Tehran and Islamabad back different tribal and religious groups.

The Pakistanis have been in this business for a long time; it’s likely that both the generals and the politicians will return from their regional tour with some pleasant memories and valuable souvenirs. As for the regional tension, as long as it stays short of actual war (in which case Pakistan might just actually have to help the Saudis), it’s probably on balance good for Islamabad. The more Tehran and Saudi Arabia hate and fear one another, the more valuable Pakistan’s support, or at least neutrality, appears.

the-american-interest.com

The Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) is ready to deploy its assets to specific locations in the country to monitor attack threats by the Daesh militant group, if required by the National Security Council (MKN), said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.

He said the issue of Daesh-led terrorist attacks required careful discussions, and the need to involve military personnel should be decided by the National Security Council chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

“In the fight against crime, military personnel have certainly worked with the police before, to conduct patrols under the National Blue Ocean Strategy, and the military’s cooperation with the police is not an issue.

“The decision to include members of the military to deal with Daesh threats is not ours to make, MKN will decide on that, we will wait for instructions and move according to the laws of the country,” he told reporters after attending the Ministry of Defence’s Roadmap Programme here, Sunday.

He was asked by reporters if MAF would mobilise its assets to monitor certain areas in the country, following the recent militant attacks in Jakarta.

Regarding the Daesh threat, Hishammuddin said the Defence Ministry had increased its preparedness through its Intelligence Corps and the MAF Anti-Terrorism Unit for quite some time now, and it was also cooperating with all security forces on the matter.

He said the ministry was also carrying out defence diplomacy with certain countries, as well as information sharing with countries that have long been facing threats from the militant group.

“It is not only us, but the whole world is also trying to deal with this Daesh threat. We must tackle this together, whereby relations with certain countries must be strengthened,” he said.

bernama.com