Central Intelligence Agency Director Leon Panetta will become the new United States defence secretary, replacing Robert Gates, in a major shake-up of President Barack Obama's security team, according to a media report.The top US military commander in Afghanistan General David Petraeus is set to take over as the new CIA Director. The television network said Petraeus will be replaced as the US commander in Afghanistan by Lieutenant General John Allen.
Opinion polls by a section of the media channels have stated that Harish Rawat is the most liked politician for the post of chief minister, way ahead of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
In a major breakthrough, security agencies on Monday arrested a total of 18 National Democratic Front of Bodoland- Songbijit terrorists, including the commanding officer of its 13th battalion Bikunas Narzary alias Birlangbai, from different places across Assam and a huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered.
"Congress state in-charge Harish Rawat is my good friend but who gave him the right to take such a big decision about Punjab at his level? What is the meaning of Captain's leadership now after the Kharge committee's decision to contest elections under Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi?" Congress MLA Pargat Singh said.
The fresh companies were moved into the valley as part of the strategy of 'enhancing security and visibility' of the forces on the ground following the killings, they said.
'Perhaps the most important political trend affecting armed conflict in the 21st century, will be in the relationship between civilians and those who fight on their behalf,' points out Lieutenant General Anil Chait (retd), who served as chief of the Integrated Defence Staff and Central Army Commander.
While the United States is terming the arrest of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Afghan Taliban No 2, as a big success that could provide 'a wealth of information,' it sounds strange to many that the arrested militant commander was sacked from his post by the Taliban central shura well before from his arrest.
His departure came just after reports surfaced the Justice Department warned the Trump administration last month that Flynn misled administration officials regarding his communications with the Russian ambassador to the United States.
A full-fledged training, intelligence and combat module on Taliban, its leadership and their modus operandi is being prepared apart from specific case studies that have taken place in that country and the region, he said.
At least six suspected militants were killed on Wednesday in a United States drone strike in Pakistan's lawless North Waziristan tribal region, amid reports that Taliban's No 2 commander in the country, Waliur Rehman, was among those dead.
Al Qaeda's reclusive chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, who played a central role in the 9/11 terror attacks and later created the group's regional affiliate in the Indian subcontinent, was killed in a US drone strike in Afghanistan's Kabul, in the biggest blow to the global terror network since killing of its founder Osama bin Laden in 2011 in Pakistan.
B Y Vijayendra said power and position itself are not the ultimate objectives in politics.
The United States has announced the end of its 20-year-old war in Afghanistan as the last American military flight flew out of the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul shortly before the August 31 deadline.
Some analysts also pointed out that "outsourcing" political management to regional satraps such as Bhupinder Singh Hooda in Haryana may have proven counterproductive and micromanagement by the Gandhi family was needed.
'After Uri, the current government took public ownership of surgical strikes.' 'The question they need to ask themselves is did this bring about a change in Pakistan's behaviour towards us? The answer is no.' 'If there had been a change, then Pulwama would not have happened.'
Seven terrorists were killed on Sunday when United States drones targeted two vehicles in the lawless North Waziristan tribal region, the second such attack in the area in hours.
Many IEDs explode even when the troops are on foot and their trigger mechanism gets activated just due to the pressure of the feet. These incidents have injured more than 100 personnel over the last two years, the officer said.
While confirming that the voice in the slideshow was that of Moosa, senior police officials did not rule out the possibility that the banned IS terror group was trying to create a base in the Valley.
An OBC leader, Thakor, who has good oratory skills, will have to take along all factions in the state unit while taking on the well-organised BJP which has been in power in the state from 1998.
Instead of a consumption stimulus the government must address the NPA issue with a war footing and invest in infrastructure, affordable housing and exports, says Sanjeev Nayyar.
While Pakistan Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf has opposed the campaign of Central Intelligence Agency-operated spy planes and has urged for alternative means to target the terrorists, a drone targeted Al Qaeda' high-ranking commander Abu-Zaid al Kuwaiti, who was killed in North Waziristan last week.
Democracy is the heart of our body politic and elections are its life blood. Because there is some disease that affects it, we cannot apply leeches to drain it off, killing the body in the process, asserts Shreekant Sambrani.
'Did Trump hint at US military intervention in Qatar?' asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'The cousins do not have a good rapport with each other in politics, though they may be having a good rapport with each other in family life.'
Khan, who faced his toughest political test since assuming office in 2018 due to defections in his party and cracks in the ruling coalition, in a surprise announcement during an address to the nation on Sunday said he had advised the president to 'dissolve assemblies'.
'You may be an MP or an MLA; when we go to Bengal, we go as cadre.'
Will Annamalai's attacks on the DMK revert the anti-BJP feeling in Tamil Nadu, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
China has been taking "incremental and tactical actions" to press its claims at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with India and has unsuccessfully sought to prevent New Delhi from deepening its relationship with the US during and subsequent to the standoff, the Pentagon has said in a major report on China's military modernisation.
Sitharaman has completed just 19 days as defence minister and is also pre-occupied with the Gujarat assembly election, notes Ajai Shukla.
India had claimed that Pak deployed US-manufactured F-16 jets to target Indian military installations.
Unless controlled and contained, given the untested belief that the north Indian labour support and follow the Hindutva kind of political ideology, there is a potential in terms of ideological clashes with their Dravidian brethren in the local neighbourhoods, and it all escalating into violence, especially during election time, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Contradicting Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's claims, United States President Barack Obama has suggested that Osama bin Laden is still alive and he is operating under the assumption that the Al Qaeda leader is not dead. Addressing a town hall meeting in the central state of Missouri, the US President also reiterated his administration's position that Al-Qaeda and the Taliban "are the single most direct threat to our national security interests."
'Since each chief single-mindedly pursues his service's interests in the competition for turf and in core matters such as budget share. The CDS, therefore, must act as an "honest broker" whose decisions serve the broader national purpose, rather than narrow service interests,' says Ajai Shukla.
Although the pact would focus mainly on the Pacific and the South China Sea region, any action designed to deter China with or without New Delhi's active participation is a welcome move, notes Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The statements come from a booklet published this month by the state-run People's Publishing House, in which senior officials, including President Xi, outlined the latest five-year plan for the country's development.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Amit Shah (Home Minister) and our national President J P Nadda have a special love and faith towards me. You are aware that no position has been given to those who have crossed 75 years of age, but appreciating my work they have given me an opportunity despite me crossing 78 years," Yediyurappa said.
Amit Shah believes Bandi Sanjay Kumar is 'single-handedly' capable of unseating the TRS government in the December 2023 assembly election and there is no need for the BJP's central leaders to jump into the Telangana scene.
In the clearest indication that the Congress leadership is moving towards the formation of a separate state of Telangana, the party organised a massive show of strength in Hyderabad on Sunday giving a clarion call in favour of the new state.
While in power, Khan repeatedly talked about making Pakistan an Islamic welfare state. However, he failed to fix the economy and the basic problem of keeping the prices of commodities in control.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances