KYIV SAYS COUNTERATTACK NEARLY READY WITH 'IRON FIST'

Kyiv says it is almost ready to launch a huge ground assault to retake occupied land after Russia hurled missiles at cities as people slept, killing at least 21 people in its first large-scale air strikes in almost two months.

The war is coming to a crucial juncture after a months-long Russian winter offensive that gained little ground despite the bloodiest fighting so far.

Kyiv is preparing a counter-offensive using hundreds of tanks and armoured vehicles sent by the West, hoping to drive Russia out of the fifth of the country it occupies and claims to have annexed.

“As soon as there is God’s will, the weather and a decision by commanders, we will do it,” Ukraine’s Defence Minister Oleskii Reznikov told an online news briefing.

Ukraine was “to a high percentage ready” to launch its campaign, he said. Its new modern weapons would serve as an “iron fist”.

EX-COAS' VIEWS ON ARMY'S COMBAT WORTHINESS QUOTED OUT OF CONTEXT: ISPR

The military’s media wing clarified on Friday that a former army chief's “off the record” claims about Pakistan army’s "combat worthiness" were “quoted out of context” in the media.

“Recently, there have been discussions in media on Pakistan army’s combat worthiness in view of the condition of certain weapon systems on its inventory,” stated the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

The military’s media wing added that the “views of former army chief on future threat to Pakistan, which he shared with media persons in an off the record interactive session, have been quoted out of the context”.

“Army assures the people of Pakistan that we always took and will continue to take pride in our operational preparedness and utmost combat worthiness,” the ISPR further added.

The statement maintained that "Pakistan’s Armed Forces always did and will continue to keep their weapons, equipment and battle hardened human resource ever ready for the defence of the motherland."

The clarification by the ISPR comes almost a week after journalist Hamid Mir claimed in an interview on a local news channel that former chief of army staff “Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa told 20-25 journalists in 2021 that the Pakistan Army was not capable of combat”.

The senior journalist had further claimed that the former army chief had made a deal on “[occupied] Kashmir”, the details of which have yet not been made public, following the 2021 ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

TRUMP VOWS TO PROBE PROSECUTORS, SAYS BIDEN REPRESENTS ANARCHY

Donald Trump said on Thursday that if he wins the 2024 presidential election, he will order the Justice Department to investigate “radical” county and state prosecutors whom he accused, without evidence, of targeting conservatives. In a campaign speech, the former president, who faces multiple criminal investigations, said the prosecutors were “persecuting conservatives” and touched on his policy positions and personal grievances as he painted himself as a victim of the so-called Deep State.

“On day one of my new administration, I will direct the DOJ to investigate every radical district attorney and attorney general in America for their illegal, racist . . . enforcement of the law,” Trump told supporters in Manchester, New Hampshire.

HEAVY BATTLE RAGES IN SUDAN DESPITE TRUCE EXTENSION

Fighting raged in Sudan on Friday, despite rival forces agreeing to extend a truce aimed to stem nearly two weeks of warfare that has killed hundreds and caused widespread destruction.

In the war-ravaged western Darfur region, at least 74 people were killed in just two days of bitter urban battles that broke out this week in the city of El Geneina.

Black clouds rose over the capital Khartoum as foreign nations scrambled to organise mass evacuations of their citizens, with Turkey’s Defence Ministry on Friday reporting one of their military transport aircraft had come under fire.

Failed efforts

There have been multiple truce efforts since fighting broke out on April 15 between Sudan’s Army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commanded by his former deputy and fellow coup leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglo. All have failed.

At least 512 people have been killed and 4,193 wounded in the fighting, according to Health Ministry figures, although the real death toll is likely much higher. Fighting has also spread across Sudan, where witnesses reported intense conflict and looting.

Analysts have warned that conflict could trigger multiple other militias to exploit the chaos and settle old scores.

‘24 INDIAN CREW ON OIL TANKER SEIZED BY IRAN; STEPS ON FOR THEIR RELEASE’

DUBAI: A U.S.-bound oil tanker seized by Iran off the coast of Oman was carrying 24 Indian crew, the vessel’s operator said on Friday, adding it was working to secure their release. Previous incidents show that crew caught up in similar incidents are in “no danger”, Advantage Tankers said, after the tanker was seized on Thursday.

EX-V-P PENCE TESTIFIES BEFORE ELECTION PROBE GRAND JURY’

Former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence testified on Thursday before a federal grand jury investigating efforts by then-President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Mr. Pence’s appearance before a grand jury in Washington scrutinising the President he once loyally served is a milestone in the Justice Department’s investigation.

The testimony, confirmed by a person who insisted on anonymity to discuss a secret grand jury matter, came hours after a federal appeals court in a sealed order rejected a bid by Mr. Trump’s lawyers to block Mr. Pence’s appearance.

PAKISTAN COURT ORDERS RELEASE OF CHINA NATIONAL ACCUSED OF BLASPHEMY ON BAIL

Islamabad : A Chinese national arrested in Pakistan on charges of committing blasphemy has been freed from a high-security prison after an anti-terrorism court granted him bail, officials said Friday. The court order came on a day when China’s new premier Li Qiang held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday.

The court in Abbottabad on Thursday granted the bail to the suspect identified as Tian after he furnished a bond of Rs 200,000 as surety. He was later taken to an undisclosed location due to security reasons.

The judge ruled that the case did not come within the ambit of “reasonable ground” as the blasphemy charge was the “result of a misunderstanding”. He said the police station concerned in Kohistan had registered a “false case” againstthe Chinese national. It ruled that, according to the record, no such offence was committed by the accused and hence he was granted bail, the Dawn newspaper reported.

Tian was arrested in Upper Kohistan on April 16 after a mob blocked the Karakoram Highway, accusing him of committing blasphemy while exchanging arguments with labourers over long prayer breaks at the project site.

The court ruled that the three labourers and their interpreter, who had lodged the FIR two days after the incident, were neither able to produce evidence nor could they prove charges before the the joint investigation team (JIT). JIT sources told the News newspaper that Tian would be sent back to his country as soon as this case wraps up.

CHINA SENDS 38 WARPLANES, SIX NAVY VESSELS TO AREAS NEAR TAIWAN

TAIPEI: China’s military flew 38 fighter jets and other warplanes near Taiwan, the Taiwanese Defence Ministry said on Friday, in the biggest such flight display since the large military exercise in which it simulated sealing off the island earlier in April. Naval vessels were also seen in the area as part of China’s campaign of intimidation.

BRAZIL'S LULA RECOGNISES SIX NEW INDIGENOUS RESERVES

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has decreed six new indigenous reserves, banning mining and restricting commercial farming there.

The lands - including a vast area of Amazon rainforest - cover about 620,000 hectares (1.5m acres).

Indigenous leaders welcomed the move, but said more areas needed protection.

Lula, who took office in January, has pledged to reverse policies of his far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, who promoted mining in indigenous lands.

Lula, who previously served as president in 2003-2010, signed the demarcation decree on Friday - the final day of a gathering of indigenous people from around the country in the capital Brasília.

"We are going to legalise indigenous lands. It is a process that takes a little while, because it has to go through many hands," the 77-year-old leader told the crowds.

"I don't want any indigenous territory to be left without demarcation during my government. That is the commitment I made to you."

And in a tweet, Lula described the decision as "an important step".

UNSC CONDEMNS DISCRIMINATION OF WOMEN BY TALIBAN

In a rare show of unity, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution Thursday condemning the Taliban’s discrimination against women and girls in Afghanistan and called for the country’s leadership to swiftly reverse policies banning education, employment and equal public participation of women and girls. The resolution, co-sponsored by more than 90 countries, received 15 yes votes and was unanimously adopted in Russia’s last days in its month long role as the rotating president of the council. The resolution, which called for the “full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of women and girls in Afghanistan,” also addressed the Taliban administration’s edict on April 4 prohibiting the UN from employing Afghan women.

The resolution, legally binding under international law, does not specify what consequences the Taliban will face if they violate its demands. But generally the UNSC can impose sanctions on those that do not comply with its resolutions.

3 SOLDIERS KILLED IN MILITANT ATTACKS IN PAKISTAN: ISPR

Peshawar : At least seven terrorists were killed while three Pakistani soldiers lost their lives in separate encounters with militants in the country’s restive northwest region, an official statement said on Friday.

The terrorists made three attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district that were foiled by the security forces, killing seven terrorists, a statement from ISPR, the media wing of the Pakistani army, said. The ISPR confirmed that three army soldiers also lost their lives. In one of the attacks, a suicide bomber riding a bike blew himself up close to a security check post in the Bhittani area. The other two attacks were made on the compound of a college which also housed security installations. Independent sources said Tehrik-e-Jihad Pakistan claimed the attacks.

11 KILLED, ONE MISSING AS SPEEDBOAT CAPSIZES IN SEA IN WEST INDONESIA

PEKANBARU: A speedboat, Evelyn Calista 01, carrying 74 people including the crew, capsized in rough seas in western Indonesia, killing at least 11 and leaving one person missing, officials said on Friday. Many of the dead were women and children, said Nyoman Sidakarya, chief of the Pekanbaru Search and Rescue Agency.