Militants surrender after Dhaka standoff
DHAKA • Four suspected Islamist extremists surrendered yesterday after a night-long stand-off with Bangladeshi police in which they detonated explosives and opened fire outside the capital Dhaka, an official said.
Police said the armed militants belonged to a new faction of Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh, an outlawed group blamed for a wave of attacks including the murder of 18 foreigners at a cafe in Dhaka last July.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Telegram blocks some channels
JAKARTA • The encrypted messaging service Telegram will shut down "terrorist-related" public channels, after Indonesia's government blocked access to the platform citing security concerns.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov yesterday said the company had taken steps since the ban to block certain channels reported by Jakarta to carry terrorism-related content.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said other social media platforms will not be affected by the government's latest move.
REUTERS
Floods kill four in western India
AHMEDABAD • Heavy monsoon flooding has killed four people in western India, officials said yesterday, with fears over the fate of at least six others still missing following torrential downpours.
Rail networks and dozens of highways in Gujarat state have been interrupted by floodwaters, and power to more than 120 villages cut in badly-hit areas.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Thai police arrest killers of family
BANGKOK • Thai police yesterday said they have arrested all those who took part in the brutal mass slaying of a family in the country's south last week, a massacre that caused widespread revulsion.
Detectives say a gang of seven men wearing camouflage outfits entered a village chief's house in the southern province of Krabi last Monday, executing him and seven members of his family, including three children, with single shots to the head.
Three others were shot but survived, including a woman who played dead after a bullet passed through her ear. She was able to give vital clues to the police later.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
