The Houthis have been targeting shipping around the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November, citing solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which has been bombarded by Israel since militant group Hamas launched an attack inside Israel on October 7.

AFP journalists heard loud explosions in the capital Sanaa and the port city of Hodeida overnight from Thursday to Friday.

Strikes also targeted telecoms infrastructure in the town of Taez, the Houthi-controlled Al-Masirah television reported.

Citing health authorities, the TV station said 16 people were killed and more than 35 were wounded in Hodeida alone, without specifying if they were civilians or militants.

The toll reported by Al-Masirah would make the strikes among the deadliest since the United States and Britain launched a campaign in January to counter Houthi attacks off Yemen’s coast.

The channel broadcast a video purporting to depict bloodied men wounded in a strike on a Hodeida radio building.

The footage also showed other victims receiving treatment in a hospital, although AFP could not independently verify the authenticity of the images or the death toll.

A hospital employee in Hodeida said many militants were among the killed and wounded but he could not specify an exact figure.

‘Freedom of Navigation’

The British defense ministry said its planes launched strikes in “a joint operation with US forces against Houthi military facilities to degrade their ability to persist with their attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.”

The ministry said intelligence indicated two sites near Hodeida had been involved in the attacks on shipping, “with a number of buildings identified as housing drone ground control facilities and providing storage for very long-range drones, as well as surface to air weapons.”

Further south, another site “had also been identified as being involved in the command and control of their anti-shipping campaign”, it said in a statement.

The US Central Command, or CENTCOM, said 13 Houthi-held sites were targeted.

The strikes were “necessary to protect our forces, ensure freedom of navigation, and make international waters safer and more secure”, it said in a statement.

Since January, the United States and Britain have launched retaliatory strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen in response to the rebels’ attacks in the vital waterways.

In February, the Houthis held a mass funeral in Sanaa for 17 fighters they said were killed in strikes by the United States and United Kingdom.

The attacks have done little to deter the Houthis, who have vowed to target US and British vessels as well as all ships heading to Israeli ports.

The Iran-backed Houthis said Wednesday that they had attacked a Greek-owned bulk carrier and several other vessels in response to Israeli strikes on the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.

The bulk carrier Laax, a Marshall Islands-flagged and Greek-operated vessel, reported being hit by three missiles, according to CENTCOM and maritime security firms. The vessel was damaged but able to continue its voyage.

In March, a ship loaded with fertiliser sank in the Gulf of Aden after it was damaged by missiles fired by the Houthis.

And in November, the rebels seized the vehicle transporter Galaxy Leader and its crew in a helicopter-borne attack.

The Houthi attacks have prompted some shipping companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea route, which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.

The post US, UK Air Strikes on Yemen Kill at Least 16: Houthi TV appeared first on The Defense Post.

The guerrillas were shot dead over two days in a remote part of the central state of Chhattisgarh, where several deadly assaults on rebel encampments have occurred this year.

Security forces had cordoned off a forested area in Dantewada district after receiving intelligence that insurgent cadres were meeting there.

Seven rebels were killed on Thursday while another was shot dead on Friday, police inspector general Om Prakash Pal told AFP.

“The Maoists were engaged in intermittent firing” at security forces all through Thursday, he said.

A large quantity of weapons including automatic firearms had been recovered from the site of the gun battle, he added.

More than 100 Maoists have been killed in India this year, according to police figures, the vast majority in Chhattisgarh.

The insurgents, who are known as Naxalites and say they are fighting for the rural poor, have been carrying out guerrilla attacks since 1967.

India has deployed tens of thousands of security personnel to battle the Maoist rebels across the insurgent-dominated “Red Corridor,” which stretches across central, southern, and eastern states but has shrunk considerably over the past decade.

It has also pumped millions of dollars into infrastructure development in remote areas and claims to have confined the insurgency to 45 districts in 2023, down from 96 in 2010.

Earlier this month, police said 12 insurgents were shot dead by Indian security forces in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district.

Nearly 50 guerrillas were killed in the state in April, according to authorities.

The conflict has also seen a number of deadly attacks on government forces over the years.

Sixteen commandos were also killed in the western state of Maharashtra in a bomb attack that was blamed on the Maoists in the lead-up to India’s election in 2019.

The post Indian Security Fores Kill Eight Maoist Rebels appeared first on The Defense Post.

The contract includes the supply of multi-purpose vehicle interfaces to attach self-protection mine plows donated by the British Army.

They will allow the armored vehicles to be equipped with a wide range of ground-engaging equipment required to remove other natural and man-made obstacles.

$125M Maintenance and Maneuver Fund 

The contract is part of the 100-million-pound ($125 million) UK-administered International Fund for Ukraine to provide maintenance and maneuver support to the Ukrainian military.

According to Newcastle-based Pearson Engineering, remotely-controlled MW370 mine clearance vehicles and Barbadian Mine Rollers have already been provided to Ukraine.

The equipment is accompanied by “comprehensive spares and sustainment packages.”

Most-Mined Country in World

An estimated 40 percent of Ukrainian territory is riddled with landmines, making it potentially the most mined country in the world.

Pearson and Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft were also contracted by the German government in 2023 to provide route-opening mine plows to Ukraine.

“We continue to work collaboratively with our industrial partners to ensure that Ukraine has the mine clearance and explosive ordnance disposal capabilities it needs, both for the current battle, but also in the interests of a safer and more secure environment for the people of Ukraine in the longer term,” Maj Gen Anna-Lee Reilly said.

The post UK Firm to Deliver Demining Equipment to Ukraine appeared first on The Defense Post.

Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said the victims had gathered to remember a deceased villager in Groza in the Kharkiv region, which has a population of 330.

He said a six-year-old child was among the victims, adding that 60 people had been attending the event in the village, more than 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the front line.

“Unfortunately the toll in the village of Groza has risen to 50,” he said, adding that initial evidence showed an Iskander missile had been used.

Footage published by the Ukrainian police showed a large area of rubble and bodies being taken away by emergency workers.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted an image of a woman kneeling over the body of someone apparently killed in the strike, with other corpses around her.

“The search and rescue operation is ongoing,” Klymenko said. “There may still be people under the rubble.”

Zelensky, who was attending a European summit in Spain, condemned the attack on social media.

“The brutal Russian crime of hitting an ordinary grocery store with a rocket is a completely deliberate terrorist attack,” he wrote.

The attack took place in the Kupiansk district of the war-battered region bordering Russia, where Moscow’s forces have been pushing to recapture territory they lost last year to Ukrainian troops.

‘True Evil’

The head of the Kharkiv region Oleg Sinegubov said the strike took place around 1:15 pm (1015 GMT).

The village is west of Kupiansk, a frontline town in the region where officials have recently ordered mandatory evacuations after an uptick in Russian strikes.

Zelensky’s advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said the attack had “no military logic.”

“This is a reminder to anyone who is willing to smile and shake hands with war criminal Putin at international conferences,” he said, referring to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

“A reminder to all those who want to sell something to Russia and return to bloody business as usual,” he said, adding: “Putin’s Russia is a true evil.”

Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said the strike showed Ukraine needed more air defense “to protect our country from terror. We are discussing this with partners.”

Large swathes of the Kharkiv region were captured by Russian forces in the early days of their invasion launched in February last year.

Ukrainian forces recaptured much of the border territory during a lightning offensive late last year, but the regional capital, also called Kharkiv, is still subjected to routine shelling.

The post Russian Strike Kills 50 Gathered for Wake in East Ukraine appeared first on The Defense Post.

Videos of Nepali citizens undergoing military training in Russia and Belarus have recently been posted on social media platforms such as TikTok, Telegram, and YouTube.

Investigative journalism group Bellingcat geolocated the footage of eight such TikTok accounts to the Avangard military complex west of Moscow and at a station in the Belarusian city of Baranavichy.

For a Better Salary

A Nepali man Nepal Press spoke to revealed that he joined the Russian Army after finishing his studies at a Russian state university.

“After finishing my studies, I had two options. First was to remain unemployed after returning to Nepal, and second was to join the Russian Army,” the unnamed man from the country’s Koshi province told the outlet.

He explained that “good physical fitness” allowed him to apply for the army at the end of May and be selected.

The young man is undergoing training near the Ukraine border and told the outlet that over a dozen Nepali citizens are also being trained at the undisclosed site with foreign citizens from Belarus and African countries.

“We are being taught how to use modern weapons. Training takes place throughout the day and sometimes even at night,” the man revealed.

He added that he is being paid the equivalent of 50,000 Nepalese rupees ($381) plus insurance during the training.

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No Language Barrier in Training

A retired Nepali Army soldier told Nepal Press that he went to Russia from Dubai, where he was working as a security guard. 

“Later, friends told me that there is a job opportunity in the Russian Army. So I went to Russia as a tourist, which was easy as there were direct flights between Russia and Dubai,” he said.

The man from the northern Nepali province of Karnali said he’s currently training in an unknown mountainous region with around 200 foreign trainees, including three from Nepal.

He stated earlier that he was contemplating joining the French Army. However, the process is very long and difficult. He added that knowing Russian is not compulsory for the training, and that knowing English is sufficient.

Russia is reportedly recruiting soldiers from around the world, including from Afghanistan.

Russian recruiters reportedly contacted some former Afghan commandos on messaging apps with offers to join the Russian “foreign legion” to fight in Ukraine.  

Relaxation of Citizenship Requirement

The Russian president signed a decree in September last year reducing the duration of military service required for a foreign soldier serving in the Russian military to apply for Russian citizenship.

According to the decree, which was passed into law in May, a foreign contract soldier and his family members can apply for Russian citizenship after one year of service compared to the previous three.

The applicant also does not require a residence permit.

The post Nepali Citizens Joining Russian Army for Ukraine War appeared first on The Defense Post.

France has strongly backed Greece in a standoff with Turkey over natural gas resources and naval influence in the waters off their respective coasts.

The deal will see Greece buying 18 Rafale jets, 12 of them used, made by French firm Dassault to bolster its forces during their regular mid-air skirmishes with Turkish pilots over disputed Aegean airspace.

The deal “sends a clear message in several directions”, said Greek Defence Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos who oversaw a signing ceremony with French counterpart Florence Parly in Athens.

Greek government spokesman Christos Tarantilis said delivery of the first six planes would begin in July. A group of Greek airforce pilots and technicians are to travel to France for training over the next few days, he added.

Parly’s visit on Monday came on the day Greece and long-term regional rivals Turkey kicked off a round of exploratory talks over their clashing interests in the Mediterranean, their first in nearly five years.

The Greek government spokesman insisted the talks were “not negotiations” and were “not binding.”

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in September announced a “robust” upgrade to the country’s armed forces.

The program, Greece’s most ambitious in decades, includes four multi-purpose frigates, four navy helicopters, anti-tank weapons, navy torpedoes, airforce missiles, and 15,000 additional troops by 2025.

Turkey in August sent an exploration ship and a small navy flotilla to conduct seismic research in waters which Greece considers its own under postwar treaties.

Greece responded by shadowing the Turkish flotilla with its warships, and by staging naval exercises with several EU allies and the United Arab Emirates.

In contrast to other EU and NATO allies, France strongly backed Greece in the showdown with Turkey.

The post Greece, France Sign Warplane Deal in Message to Turkey appeared first on The Defense Post.

Israeli military “troops downed a drone that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli airspace,” the army said in a statement.

“The drone was monitored by the IDF throughout the incident,” the statement added, using the acronym for the Israel Defence Forces. “The IDF will continue to operate in order to prevent any attempt to violate Israeli sovereignty,” the army said, without providing further information on the drone.

In November, the Israeli army said it had downed “a drone belonging to the Hezbollah terror organization that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli airspace.”

Earlier Friday, Syrian state news agency SANA said an Israeli missile attack on Syrian military sites in the Hama province killed four civilians.

But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said the deaths were caused by debris from a Syrian anti-aircraft missile which fell on a house.

The Israeli army refused to comment on the Hama attack.

The Jewish state routinely carries out raids in Syria, mostly against targets linked to Iran in what it says is a bid to prevent its arch foe from consolidating a foothold on its northern border.

The post Israeli Army Says Downed Drone From Lebanon appeared first on The Defense Post.