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Operations
Defense Policy / Programs
Defense Industry
Other Conflicts
News Reports

Current Operations

• Taliban Declare Three-day Afghan Ceasefire for Eid Holiday VOA 09 May 2021 -- The Taliban have announced a nationwide cease-fire in Afghanistan that will take effect when the three-day annual Muslim festival of Eid-al-Fitr begins Thursday, marking the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan.
• Afghan Taliban Chief Hails Troop Exit as Kabul Bombing Death Toll Soars VOA 09 May 2021 -- The leader of Afghanistan's Taliban insurgency Sunday praised the ongoing withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops from the country, as officials in Kabul raised the death toll to more than 60 from the previous day's multiple blasts outside a girls' school in the capital.
• Death Toll from Bomb Blast in Afghan Capital Rises Above 60 VOA 09 May 2021 -- The death toll from a powerful bomb blast near a girls' school in the Afghan capital Kabul has risen to more than 60, with more than 100 others injured.
• Bomb Blast in Afghan Capital Kills 50 VOA 09 May 2021 -- A powerful bomb blast Saturday near a girls' school in Kabul, Afghanistan, has killed at least 50 people and injured more than 100 others. The Interior Ministry said that it expects the death toll to rise.
• Taliban Leader Says US Repeatedly Breached Doha Peace Deal Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- The United States has repeatedly violated the peace agreement reached with the Taliban in Qatar's capital of Doha in 2020, the movement's leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, said on Sunday.
• 50 Dead Amid Fighting Between Yemeni Forces, Houthi Rebels in Marib - Military Source Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- At least 50 people have died and dozens injured amid fighting between Yemeni government forces and members of the Houthi faction in the Marib governorate, a Yemeni military source told Sputnik.
• US Reportedly Wants to Redeploy Forces From Afghanistan Closer to Russia's Borders Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- The US and NATO began their withdrawal from Afghanistan on 1 May, with the security situation in the country little better now than it was after the 2001 invasion. US President Joe Biden, in his announcement of the withdrawal in April, called on Russia, China and India to step up and "support Afghanistan" after the US leaves.
• Ghani Condemns Terrorist Attack on Girls' School in Kabul Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday called a bombing of a girls' school in the country's capital Kabul an act of terrorism and a crime against humanity, the deputy interior minister said.
• Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Remarks on Deadly Serial Attacks in Afghanistan PRC MofA 09 May 2021
• ICC prosecutor meets Afghan officials over US war crimes investigation Press TV 09 May 2021 -- The outgoing prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has met with a high-level Afghan delegation to discuss a probe into war crimes and crimes against humanity in the war-ravaged Asian country, notably committed by US military and intelligence personnel.
• Death toll rises to 58 in Kabul school district attack Press TV 09 May 2021 -- The death toll from an explosion outside a school in Afghanistan's capital city Kabul has risen to 58, Afghan officials say.
• Afghans Bury Dead From School Attack That Killed At Least 50 RFE/RL 09 May 2021 -- Funerals were held in the Afghan capital on May 9 for the victims of an attack a day earlier at a girls' school that killed at least 50 people and wounded another 100.
• U.S. Navy Seizes Arms Shipment In Arabian Sea RFE/RL 09 May 2021 -- The U.S. Navy said it has seized an arms shipment hidden aboard a vessel in the Arabian Sea.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Most of Pentagon's $10bn diverted to border wall by Trump not recoverable Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Most of the nearly $10 billion that the administration of previous US president Donald Trump diverted from the military budget to build barriers on the country's border with Mexico will never be recoverable, Pentagon and congressional authorities have confirmed.
• Readout from NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's Call with Israeli National Security Advisor Meir Ben-Shabbat Regarding the Situation in Jerusalem The White House 09 May 2021

Defense Industry

Other Conflicts

• Iran rejects 'fabricated' report on transferring Syria fighters to Yemen Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Iran has dismissed as "fabricated" a report published by a Turkish news agency which claimed that the Islamic Republic is transferring fighters from Syria to Yemen.
• Yemeni army launches new drone strike on King Khalid Airbase in Saudi Arabia Press TV 09 May 2021 -- The Yemeni army says it has launched a fresh drone strike on a major airbase in Saudi Arabia's southwestern province of Asir in retaliation for the kingdom's military aggression and blockade against the impoverished country.
• Joint statement of the Envoys of the Middle East Quartet on the situation in East Jerusalem Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs 09 May 2021 -- "The Envoys of the Middle East Quartet from the European Union, Russia, the United States, and the United Nations are closely monitoring the situation in East Jerusalem, including in the Old City and Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood."
• Middle East Envoys express deep concern over East Jerusalem violence UN News 09 May 2021 -- The Envoys of the Middle East Quartet (from the European Union, Russia, the United States, and the United Nations), have expressed deep concern over confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in East Jerusalem, particularly those which began on Friday evening, and continued on Saturday night. The UN Children's Fund noted that several Palestinian children were among those wounded in the clashes.
• Israel Won't Permit Jerusalem Violence, Netanyahu Warns VOA 09 May 2021 -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that authorities "will not allow any extremists to destabilize the calm," after several days of clashes between Palestinian protesters and Israel police outside the Old City of Jerusalem.
• Middle East Quartet envoys express deep concern over clashes, violence in East Jerusalem People's Daily 09 May 2021 -- The envoys of the Middle East Quartet from the European Union, Russia, the United States, and the United Nations on Saturday expressed "deep concern" over the daily clashes and violence in East Jerusalem, in particular Friday's confrontations between Palestinians and Israeli security forces.
• Netanyahu turns deaf ear to global outcry, says building illegal settlements will continue Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Defying international fury, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected pressures against illegal Israeli settlement expansion despite international condemnation of forcibly evictions of Palestinians from their homes in the occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds.
• 100 more Palestinians wounded amid continued Israeli brutality Press TV 09 May 2021 -- As many as 100 more Palestinians are wounded on the al-Aqsa Mosque compound and elsewhere in the holy occupied city of Jerusalem al-Quds as the Israeli regime sustains its brutal attacks against the Palestinians there.
• Israeli airstrike, artillery fire target Gaza amid tensions in al-Quds Press TV 09 May 2021 -- An Israeli F-16 fighter jet has bombed the central Gaza Strip and the regime's military has fired artillery shells at the besieged coastal enclave amid rising tensions in Jerusalem al-Quds.
• Israeli Army: Two Missiles Launched From Gaza Strip, 1 Intercepted Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- Two missiles were launched from the Gaza Strip, one of which was intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system, the Israeli army stated on Sunday.
• Ethiopia Orthodox leader blasts crimes amounting to 'genocide' in Tigray Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Ethiopia Orthodox Church leader Abune Mathias has warned that atrocities amounting to genocide are being committed in the country's restive northern Tigray region.
• Somali Police Officers Killed in Bombing VOA 09 May 2021 -- Five police officers are among at least six people killed Sunday evening in a suicide bombing in Mogadishu, witnesses and officials said.

News Reports

• Cyberattack that shut major pipeline exposes vulnerabilities in America's energy infrastructure Press TV 09 May 2021 -- A cyberattack that shut the largest US gasoline pipeline and jeopardized supplies from refineries in the Gulf Coast of Texas has once again highlighted vulnerabilities in America's critical energy infrastructure.
• On WWII Victory Day, Putin vows to 'firmly' defend Russia's interests Press TV 09 May 2021 -- President Vladimir Putin has vowed that Russia will "firmly" defend national interests, at a time of soaring tensions between Moscow and the West.
• Doctor Who Treated Navalny in Siberia Lost in Forest, Search Ongoing Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- Alexander Murakhovsky, the health minister of Russia's Omsk region and former chief of a hospital that treated opposition figure Alexey Navalny from his alleged poisoning, has disappeared in a local forest, the interior ministry's regional office said on Sunday.
• Taiwan depicts China as main source of instability in region CNA 09 May 2021 -- The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), Taiwan's top government agency handling China policy, said in a written report recently submitted to the Legislature that China is the main source of instability across the Taiwan Strait.
• Iran may extend cooperation with IAEA over inspections ISNA 09 May 2021 -- Iranian deputy Foreign Minister for the Political Affairs Seyyed Abbas Araghchi says Iran may consider extending cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency over inspections of its nuclear sites.
• Intensive talks continuing in Vienna to revive JCPOA ISNA 09 May 2021 -- Intensive talks are continuing in Vienna on Sunday after all sides agreed to speed up the process of the negotiations.
• Iran may extend cooperation with IAEA over inspections ISNA 09 May 2021 -- Iranian deputy Foreign Minister for the Political Affairs Seyyed Abbas Araghchi says Iran may consider extending cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency over inspections of its nuclear sites.
• Parliament speaker: Iran has four red lines in talks on JCPOA revival Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf says Iran has four red lines that should be considered in ongoing talks with the remaining signatories to the 2015 nuclear agreement in Vienna on a potential revival of the accord.
• Iranian FM Zarif Reportedly Not Running for President Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- The Iranian Foreign Minister landed in hot water after recordings of him spewing critical remarks on late Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' (IRGC) General Qasem Soleimani were leaked. Tehran launched an investigation into the leak, with President Hassan Rouhani suggesting that the recording was released to damage the Iranian government.
• Myanmar junta designates national unity government as 'terrorist' group Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Myanmar coup leaders have labeled a national unity government -- formed by ousted lawmakers and politicians -- a "terrorist" group, accusing it of masterminding a series of bombing and arson attacks in the country.
• Myanmar's Junta Cool on Commitment to ASEAN's Plan for Stabilizing Country VOA 09 May 2021 -- The Myanmar junta's equivocal reaction to a plan it agreed to with its regional neighbors for pulling the country back from the brink of collapse is raising doubts about the junta's commitment to follow through anytime soon.
• Lukashenka Signs Contingency Decree On Presidential Powers RFE/RL 09 May 2021 -- Belarus's authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka has signed a decree allowing the transfer of presidential powers to the country's Security Council if he is killed or otherwise unable to perform his duties.
• Belarus' Lukashenko Orders Power to Be Transfered to Security Council in Event of His Death Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- In April, Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko revealed that the country's security forces had detained a group of people plotting his assassination, and claimed that the US State Department had backed the conspirators.
• Erdogan: Turkey Essential for EU to Retain Power Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a message on Europe Day that the European Union needed Turkey to be a strong global player.
• Boris Johnson calls for leadership summit as Tories reel from losses in Scotland and Wales Press TV 09 May 2021 -- As part of his immediate response to the results of national and local elections across Britain, Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has called for a summit involving the leaders of the UK's devolved nations.
• Scottish nationalists vow independence vote after election win Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Scottish nationalists have vowed to hold an independence vote after pro-independence parties won a majority in Scotland's parliament on Saturday.
• Buoyed by Big Election Win, Scottish Nationalists Demand Independence Vote VOA 09 May 2021 -- The leader of the Scottish National Party, Nicola Sturgeon, has vowed to start the push for a second referendum on Scottish independence as her party made major gains in elections this weekend for Scotland's devolved Parliament, but fell short by one seat of securing an overall majority.
• Nicola Sturgeon clashes with Michael Gove on Scottish independence referendum Press TV 09 May 2021 -- Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has indirectly clashed with Cabinet Office Minister, Michael Gove, over the issue of a Scottish independence referendum.
• Maldivian Police Arrest Third Suspect in Attack on Ex-President Nasheed Sputnik 09 May 2021 -- The Maldives police said on Sunday that they had arrested a third person in connection with the attack on parliament speaker and former president Mohamed Nasheed.