PDP activist dies in Kashmir firing
KASHMIR, Apr 25: An activist of Jammu and Kashmir's ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) was killed and his two security guards injured in a militant attack on Tuesday in Pulwama district, police said. Militants fired at the vehicle of Gulam Nabi Patel in Rajpora Chowk of Pulwama, injuring him and his guards, a police officer said. Patel later succumbed to his critical injuries, while the injured security guards, Imtiyaz Ahmad and Bilal Ahmed, are being treated, the official said. — IANS
Indonesia oil well explosion kills 15, dozens injured
BANDA ACEH (Indonesia), Apr 25: The death toll from an illegal oil well blaze in Indonesia has jumped to 15 with dozens injured, authorities said Wednesday, warning that there could be more victims of the explosion. Images from the accident showed a towering flame shooting some 70 metres (230 feet) in the air above homes and palm trees dotting a small community in Sumatra island's Aceh province. — AFP
N Korea nuclear test site part-collapses
BEIJING, Apr 25: North Korea's underground nuclear test site has partially collapsed following a massive bomb blast last year, making it unusable, Chinese seismologists have concluded. The North's leader Kim Jong Un declared last week that his regime would halt nuclear and long-range missile tests and shut down its nuclear site at Punggye-ri under Mount Mantap in the country's northeast. — AFP
Tanzania braces for anti-govt protests
NAIROBI, Apr 25: Britain and the United States have warned their citizens in Tanzania to exercise caution ahead of possible anti-government protests on Thursday. Police have promised a robust response to any demonstrations against President John Magufuli. A protest in February led to the death of a student hit by a stray bullet. —AFP
Afghan forces shoot dead five including IS commander
ASSADABAD, Afghanistan, Apr 25: Afghan forces have killed five Islamic State (IS) militants including a key commander Qari Zahid and captured two others in the eastern Kunar province, an army spokesman in the restive province, Mir Wais Safi said Wednesday. "Afghan forces have been targeting IS positions in Sidor area of Chapdara district over the past three days , and besides destroying the hardliner group's hideouts, we have also killed five rebels including notorious commander Qari Zahid," Safi said.
—Xinhua
