US raids Houthi military building in Yemen’s capital

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Sanaa, Dec 17 (IANS) A US military warplane made an airstrike on the Defence Ministry building in the Houthi rebel-held Yemeni capital of Sanaa late on Monday night.

The Houthi-run al-Masirah TV said the ‘US aggression’ took place overnight, noting that the group vowed to retaliate by targeting “US interests and shipping in the Red Sea.”

Local residents reported seeing several ambulances entering the facility late on Monday night as Houthi fighters cordoned off the area in downtown Sanaa until dawn on Tuesday.

The US Central Command confirmed in a statement that it conducted a “precision airstrike against a key command and control facility operated by Iran-backed Houthis within Houthi-controlled territory in Sanaa, Yemen.”

“The targeted facility was a hub for coordinating Houthi operations, such as attacks against US Navy warships and merchant vessels in the southern Red Sea and Gulf of Aden,” it said.

The US airstrike came just hours after the Houthi group claimed responsibility for launching a ‘hypersonic missile’ at the Israeli city of Tel Aviv on Monday, saying it hit a ‘military target’ there and vowing to launch more attacks.

Israeli media on Monday reported that sirens were activated in Tel Aviv after a rocket was detected launched from Yemen over the region’s sky, Xinhua news agency reported.

Also on Monday, al-Masirah TV reported a US strike on the southern edge of the Midi district in Yemen’s northwestern Hajjah province. According to two Yemeni government military sources, the strike targeted a mobile rocket launcher belonging to the Houthi group near the Red Sea. The US military has not commented on the alleged airstrike.

Since November 2023, the Houthi group has been carrying out rocket and drone attacks on Israeli cities, and disrupted ‘Israeli-linked’ shipping in the Red Sea.

In response, the US-led navy coalition stationed in the area has been conducting regular air raids on Houthi targets since January in a bid to deter the armed group.

–IANS

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Goods train splits into two parts after its coupling breaks in Bihar

Patna, Dec 14 (IANS) A goods train split into two parts after its coupling broke near the Kharia-Pipra halt on the Bhagalpur-Jamalpur in Bihar on Saturday, affecting the traffic on the route.

The incident occurred at 8.58 a.m., affecting trains’ operation on both the up and down lines for several hours.

After the train coupling broke, 10 coaches and the engine moved forward, leaving 20 coaches behind.

Railway authorities rushed to the spot and took prompt action to resolve the situation.

The 10 forward coaches were brought to Kalyanpur station, while the remaining 20 were transported to Sultanganj station to clear the tracks.

Mohammad Aqlib, a Railways Station Master at the Kharia-Pipra halt, confirmed the sequence of events.

“As soon as we learned about the incident, we immediately informed the senior officials in Jamalpur. They sent the relief train and engine,” Aqlib said.

The mishap disrupted train schedules, highlighting the need for periodic maintenance and inspection of rolling stock to prevent such operational challenges, an eyewitness said.

The incident not only impacted goods train operations but also inconvenienced local commuters. A railway crossing near the incident site was closed for about two hours, leading to a long queue of vehicles and causing distress to those waiting.

The goods train, which split into two parts while moving at high speed, narrowly avoided a major mishap, thanks to the quick actions of the driver and the guard. Their presence of mind prevented the train from derailing, ensuring that no damage occurred to other trains or people at the scene.

After clearing the tracks, train services resumed with the Danapur-Sahibganj Intercity being the first to run from the Jamalpur side.

Subsequent trains were dispatched thereafter, gradually normalising the disrupted rail traffic.

Despite the initial chaos, the incident was managed effectively without injuries to anyone or significant property damage.

–IANS

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India and China discuss resumption of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, border peace during NSA Doval’s Beijing visit

New Delhi/Beijing, Dec 18 (IANS) India and China on Wednesday decided to give “positive directions” for cross-border cooperation and exchanges, including resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, data sharing on trans-border rivers and border trade, during the visit of National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval to Beijing.

This was announced following the 23d meeting of the Special Representatives (SRs) of India and China which was attended by NSA Doval and Wang Yi, Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Wednesday’s meeting in Beijing was the first between the Special Representatives since frictions had emerged in the Western Sector of the India-China border areas in 2020. The two representatives met in accordance with the decision taken during the recent meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan which had decided the future course of meetings to oversee the management of peace and tranquillity in border areas and to explore a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the boundary question.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the SRs reiterated the importance of maintaining a political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship while seeking a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable framework for settlement of the boundary question, and resolved to inject more vitality into this process.

“Both SRs underlined the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity in the border areas to promote overall development of the India-China bilateral relationship. They emphasised the need to ensure peaceful conditions on the ground so that issues on the border do not hold back the normal development of bilateral relations. Drawing on the learnings from the events of 2020, they discussed various measures to maintain peace and tranquillity on the border and advance effective border management. They decided to use, coordinate and guide the relevant diplomatic and military mechanisms towards this purpose,” read the MEA statement.

It detailed that the SRs “positively affirmed” the implementation of the latest disengagement agreement of October 2024, resulting in patrolling and grazing in relevant areas.

“The SRs exchanged views on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest. They provided positive directions for cross-border cooperation and exchanges including resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, data sharing on trans-border rivers and border trade. They agreed on the salience of stable, predictable and amicable India-China relations for regional and global peace and prosperity,” the statement added.

Besides inviting Wang Yi to visit India at a mutually convenient date to hold the next round of SR meeting, NSA Doval also called on China’s Vice President Han Zheng in Beijing on Wednesday.

–IANS

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