During his trip to Asia, President Joe Biden will meet leaders of Japan and South Korea to discuss the nuclear program of North Korea

White House informs that US President Joe Biden will meet Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan and South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol during his forth coming trip to Asia. The meeting would be in Cambodia on Sunday, Nov. 13. This is when the US President will attend the ASEAN and the Group of 20 industrialized nations. Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House said - "The three leaders would work to continue enhancing trilateral cooperation throughout the Indo-Pacific, particularly in regard to our joint efforts to address the ongoing threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.” Biden to discuss North Korea nuclear threat with Japan, South Korea leaders. In October, North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile. It went soaring over Japan for the first time in five years. There was a warning for residents to take cover. It also prompted Biden to assure the Prime Minister of Japan about the "ironclad" commitment of America to the defense of Japan.

In view of these developments, warplanes of South Korean and the U.S. practiced bombing a target in the Yellow Sea. In addition, fighter jets from the United States and Japan conducted joint drills over the Sea of Japan. Recently, a U.S. official told a media outlet that China and Russia could use their influence with North Korea to ensure that it abandons its testing of nuclear bomb. Biden last visited Asia in May. At the time, administration officials said they were in the final stages of a policy review on North Korea. It was also keen to encourage greater trilateral cooperation with Seoul and Tokyo on that issue. Incidentally, there is a U.N. Security Council ban on North Korea from conducting nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches. There are also sanctions on Pyongyang with the objective of cutting off funding for such programs.

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A school in Missouri was the scene of another incident of gun violence with three dead, including the shooter

Another tragic incident of gun violence happened at the Central Visual and Performing Arts High School in the Midwestern U.S. city of St. Louis, Missouri. The school specializes in the visual and performing arts and has a student body of around 380. On Monday, a gunman opened fire inside the premises of the high school, killed two people and wounded six others. The police fatally shot the suspect. St. Louis Police identified the victims as a teacher and a teenage girl. Other victims suffered gunshot or shrapnel wounds. The police took prompt action to rush to the scene of shooting and exchanged fire with the shooter. That helped to end the violence on priority. Many of the students barricaded themselves in their classrooms for safety. It seems the principal of the school announced a code word over the loudspeaker. That word indicated the presence of a school shooter in the building. 3 Dead, Including Suspected Gunman, at High School Shooting in Missouri.

The identity of the suspected shooter is not yet established. However, the police described him as a man in his early 20s. His motive is also not known. This was the latest such shooting to happen at a U.S. school. Only last May, a gunman killed 19 children and 2 adults in Uvalde, Texas. At that time, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said lawmakers must take measures to stop gun violence. In her words - “Every day that the Senate fails to send an assault-weapons ban to the president’s desk or waits to take any other common-sense action is a day too late for families and communities impacted by gun violence." Such violence leads to not only the death of innocents but to traumatic experiences for those who witness the sight of blood and bodies writhing in pain all around them.

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US Vice President Kamala Harris on a visit to South Korea and will visit the Demilitarized Zone DMZ also

US Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in Asia to attend the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. There she met leaders of South Korea and Australia. She has plans to visit the Demilitarized Zone DMZ. This zone divides the two Koreas and the North responded by firing two short-range ballistic missiles into the waters off its east coast. The launch of these weapons was from the Sunan area of Pyongyang. This is according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The missiles covered a distance of about 224 miles, reached an altitude of 19 miles and attained a speed of about Mach 6. This is equal to six times the speed of sound. Kamala Harris visits DMZ amid tension over North Korean missile launch.

Kamala Harris met President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea. The White House said the two leaders could discuss issues like the threat posed by the North, the “importance of peace” in the Taiwan Strait, cooperation on economics and technology etcetera. While in Seoul, she also met a group of female industry leaders. She would later proceed to the DMZ. This is described as one of the world’s most heavily armed borders. It has been a regular destination for Presidents and vice presidents of the United States during their official visits to South Korea. Once there, she would interact with service members, and receive a briefing from US commanders. Launch of this missile happens to be the 20th such launch of North Korea this year. This is based on a count maintained by a media house. Speaking on board the USS Howard at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan, Harris heaped criticism on the recent missile launch of North Korea. She described them as “part of its illicit weapons program which threatens regional stability and violates multiple UN Security Council resolutions.” Incidentally, the US and South Korea have been conducting joint naval exercises featuring the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier.

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US estimates that active ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria have dropped considerably

The US anti-ISIS envoy has indicated that the ISIS ranks had fallen from more than 60,000 to between 12,000 and 15,000 and these are 'battle ready' fighters. This is because nearly three quarter of ISIS fighters have been killed during the campaign of airstrikes against the terror group.
The aerial bombing campaign has conducted 17,000 strikes against ISIS targets.
This has been reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 15 December 2016.

It seems that the bombing campaign launched against ISIS, which began two years ago, has eliminated more fighters in Iraq and Syria than are remaining on the battlefield. As per US records, the American-led coalition had killed 50,000 ISIS militants since 2014.
In the course of a talk at the White House, the US special envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition, has predicted that the number of ISIS fighters would continue to decline - this is due to the fact that the terror group is no longer in a position to replenish its members.
However, efforts to neutralize ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has not been successful but he will be found and eliminated.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org
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29 people injured in an explosion in New York - no evidence of any terror link

29 people were injured in an explosion in New York's busy and upscale neighborhood that is also frequented by tourists. It is being treated as an "intentional act" with no evidence of any terror link as indicated by the authorities. The incident has happened hours before world leaders are expected to arrive here for the high-level UN General Assembly session. This has been reported in thestatesman.com dated 18 September 2016.

The explosion happened hours after a pipe bomb went off in a garbage can in New Jersey and took place in the Chelsea neighborhood at 23rd St. and 6th Avenue. It is a busy residential and commercial area frequented by tourists and city residents. President Barack Obama has been apprised of the explosion as revealed by the White House. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has indicated that the number of people injured is now 29 but none is life threatening except for one who is in "serious" condition. A second site in Manhattan is under investigation. The Mayor has added that the explosion is as an "intentional act" and there is no evidence at this point of a terror link. There is already tight security in view of nearly 190 world leaders, including Obama, arriving in the city for the about week-long high-level annual UN General Assembly session.


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President Obama cautions Americans on new type of terror threat

#BarackObama #WhiteHouse #terrorthreats Speaking from his Oval office, US President Barack Obama has cautioned his countrymen about the "new phase" of terror threats, namely mass killings. He made the observations shortly after the deadly shootings in San Bernardino where a husband-wife team killed 14 and left 21 injured.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 7 December 2015.

The President also confirmed that the FBI was still gathering information about the attacks and added that there was no evidence to indicate that the killers had been directed by terror groups overseas. He also explained how the threat that terrorism posed to the US had changed from the "multi-faceted" attacks of 9/11, to simpler methods such as mass shootings.
President Obama wants Congress to stop terror suspects (or those who are on no-fly lists), from buying guns altogether because, no matter how effective intelligence agencies are, it is not possible to identify all would-be shooters before they commit a crime.
He also responded to those who are against further gun controls in the US. As he said - what argument can possibly be there to allow a terrorist suspect to buy a semi-automatic weapon? It is a matter of national security.
It seems the White House has plans to meet major Silicon Valley companies and work out methods of restricting the use of social media for promoting or planning violence. In the opinion of President Obama, the tech sector needs to collaborate more closely with law enforcement agencies when online messages "crosses the line" from expressing an opinion "into active terrorist plotting".

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Two Russian TU-142 Bear aircraft shooed off from USS Ronald Reagan

Four F/A-18 fighter jets were scrambled to protect USS Ronald Reagan that was engaged in a military exercise with South Korea. The fighter jets were launched by the Navy's Carrier Air Wing Five and intercepted Russian bombers near the US aircraft carrier off the Korean peninsula to shoo them away because they had come dangerously close to the ship.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 30 October 2015.

This has been confirmed by the White House - it has said that USS Ronald Reagan was conducting a military exercise with South Korea in international waters in the Sea of Japan when the the incident took place. Two Russian Tu-142 Bear aircraft flew to within a mile of the carrier at an altitude of 500ft on Tuesday.
White house has downplayed the incident and have indicated that it did not represent a "significant confrontation". The White House has also urged Russia on previous occasions to ensure that its military follows generally accepted international protocols.
USS Ronald Reagan is a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and has around 5,000 crew members. It is based at Japan's Yokosuka naval port.

(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)
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White House discloses – 2nd in command of ISIS killed in drone strike in Mosul

#ISIS #Mosul #WhiteHouse #airstrikes As per the White House, the second-in-command of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group was killed in a US air strike in Iraq while travelling in a vehicle near Mosul, Iraq. It was a result of regular air strikes carried out by the US and its allies on ISIL targets in the group's self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria.
This has been reported in aljazeeara.com dated 22 August 2015.

The name has been given as Fadhil Ahmad al-Hayali, aka Hajji Mutazz ... he was killed in a US military air strike on August 18 along with an ISIL media operative known as Abu Abdullah.
In the opinion of the White House, the death of the 2nd in command would adversely impact ISIL's operations because he had great influence over ISIL's finance, media, operations, and logistics.
Hayali was a believed to be a "primary coordinator" for moving weapons, explosives, vehicles, and people between Iraq and Syria and looked after operations in Iraq and helped plan the group's offensive in Mosul in June of last year.
It may be recalled that last month, a drone strike had killed a senior leader in its Syrian stronghold of Raqqa. And, there is now only one top man [Abu Bakr] al-Baghdadi and he has already got a price on his head.
(Image courtesy wikmediacommons.org)

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White House condemns ISIS attack on market in Iraq that killed over 100

#WhiteHouse #ISIS #suicidebomber #Baghdad It has been reported that more than 100 people have been killed in a suicide car bombing carried out by ISIS at a busy market in an Iraqi town last Friday. It was one of the deadliest attacks carried out by the militants ever since they overran large parts of the country.
The power of the blast demolished several buildings in Khan Bani Saad located about 30-Km northeast of Baghdad. The victims were people who were celebrating the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. The body pats are scattered all over the place and there are fears that the toll could rise.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 19 July 2015.

White House has condemned this attack and has said that it remains steadfast in its commitment to work with Prime Minister (Haider) al-Abadi and other partners in Iraq and the international community to put an end to the depravity of ISIL.
The Diyala provincial government has declared three days' mourning and has issued orders for all parks and entertainment places to close for the rest of the Eid al-Fitr holiday to pre-empt any further attacks.
Islamic State has revealed that the attack was to avenge the killing of Sunni Muslims in the northern Iraqi town of Hawija, and has added that the suicide car bomber was carrying around three tonnes of explosives.
(Image courtesy wikimediacmmons.org)

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Boris Nemstov, a fierce critic of President Putin, shot dead in Moscow

#BorisNemstov #VladimirPutin #Ukraine #DavidCameron #WhiteHouse Russia's former deputy Prime Minister 55-year-old Boris Nemstov who was a strong critic of President Vladimir Putin has been shot dead by unidentified assailants in Moscow as reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 28 February 2015. The assailants shot him four times from a passing car.
It seems he was working on a sensitive report regarding concrete evidence about the direct involvement of Russia in the separatist movement in Ukraine that had erupted last year.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned the killing and has termed it as despicable and callous. He has also added that the people of Russian had been deprived of a champion of their rights and that Boris Nemtsov was greatly admired in Britain.
It seems the incident occurred as Mr Nemtsov was walking along the Bolshoy Kammeny Bridge towards Bolotnaya Square. Along with him was a female acquaintance who had come from Ukraine.
The White House wants that the investigation is "prompt, impartial and transparent".
President Putin has condemned the death and has indicated that, to him, it appeared to be a “contract killing" – he has also said that he will personally oversee the investigation into the shooting.
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