"Collusion Between Drug Mafia, Police": High Court Slams Punjab Top Cop

The Punjab government and its police were at the receiving end of sharp rebuke from the Punjab and Haryana High Court today over "non-action in the drug menace facing the state.  Pointing out that the police personnel seldom turn up to give statement as witnesses, the court said, "It is clearly visible that there is collusion between the drug mafia and the police".

"When the government witnesses, who are police personnel, are not appearing for years to testify, then suspicion will definitely be raised against the police," the judges said.

As the state police chief appeared in the court in drug-related case, the High Court reprimanded him as well as the state government.

"Punjab is a border state and also very sensitive. Despite this, the government and police have failed and have broken the trust of our entire country," the judges said.

"We are continuously seeing that the government is not taking any action. It seems that the police are in collusion with the drug mafia. Your DGP is completely ineffective and so is the government," the judges said, demanding that the police chief first "apologize and then take immediate action".

The government, the judges said, should not give any assurance to the High Court. "Show it by doing something," the judges said.

The government should first put its house in order, the judges added, and gave a time frame on how action will be taken.

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From Where It All Started: Six-Day War And Israel's Occupation Of Gaza

Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after its 'shock and awe' attacks last week. The supply of water and electricity to Gaza has been stopped by Israel as the war entered the next phase. Over 3,600 people have been killed in Israel and Gaza, with a probability of an escalation in the coming days.

The brutal attacks launched from Gaza have brought the six-day war in 1967 between Israel and Arabs back into focus. The two intifadas (Palestinian uprising), the emergence of Hamas, relentless rocket attacks from Gaza and Israel's brutal crackdown are rooted in the seismic events of the six-day war that fundamentally reshaped the Middle East.

Prelude To The Six-Day War

Since the first Arab-Israeli war in 1948, Israel has been surrounded by sworn foes. Before the 1967 war, Israel was on the battlefield twice - First in 1948, soon after its creation and the second time in 1956 during the Suez Crisis. 

The animosity between Arab states and Israel never simmered down. Fedayeen (Arab Guerillas) attacks on Israel and the economic boycott worsened the situation. 

Two months before the war, an air battle between Syria and Israel took place in which six Syrian MiGs were shot down by Israel. The Egyptian blockade of the Israeli ships through the Strait of Tiran in the Gulf of Aqaba a few weeks before was the last nail in the coffin.

There's one more narrative which is less widely discussed; Israel's nuclear weapons programme. Hassan Elbahtimy, a senior professor in the Department of War Studies at King's College London, in his research paper examines whether Israel's quest to acquire nuclear weapons was one of the reasons behind the Arab offensive.

Preemptive Strikes And The Six-Day War

The Soviet Union reportedly provided false information to Egypt that Israel is planning for a full-scale invasion of Syria. Egypt, in response, started amassing troops in the Sinai Peninsula and the war was inevitable. The Syria-Jordan-Egypt belligerence, supported by Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, heavily outnumbered Israel, but proper operational planning was the key to Israel's success.

Precisely, at 7:45 a.m. on June 5, Israel launched preemptive strikes on Egyptian airfields under 'Operation Focus', taking the enemy by surprise, which did not anticipate any Israeli offensive. At that time, Egypt's air force was the strongest in the region and was capable of striking major Israeli cities with its long-range bombers and fighter jets. 

Chinese military strategist, Sun Tzu, said, "Know your enemy and know yourself and you need not fear the result of a hundred battles." Israel soon realised that a lone ground assault in the Sinai would meet deadly results and destroying Egyptian air dominance should be the first step to help armour, artillery and troops to manoeuver against the Egyptian Army.

Israel chose the Egyptian Army as its Centre of Gravity (COG) and preemptive air strikes facilitated a ground offensive, writes Ronald D Jones in his analysis of the war for US Naval War College.

In just three hours, Israel destroyed 19 Egyptian airfields and shot 318 aircraft on the ground and four in the air. Israel launched offensive air operations against Syria and Jordan after they attacked to avoid any multi-front war in the beginning. Israel had complete air dominance over the Sinai Peninsula and the Egyptian army had almost no air support against Israeli air attack.

A false report suggesting Egyptian victory on day 1 tempted Jordan to strike on Israel but it resulted in an Israeli counter-offensive and the takeover of the West Bank region along with East Jerusalem. Between June 9 and June 10, the Golan Heights in Syria along Israel's northeastern border witnessed some intense fighting.

For Israel, it was an uphill battle in Golan Heights. Syrian troops were in an advantageous position and Israel had to amass more troops to take on Syria but air strikes on Golan Heights to soften the enemy positions helped facilitate an Israeli ground assault and the positions were captured. 

On June 11, a UN-brokered cease-fire was announced and Israel had more territory under its control, they captured the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, West Bank and the Golan Heights. Over 1 million Arabs were now under Israeli control after the six-day war. Israel's offensive strategy for a war of attrition limited it to a short war.

Aftermath

An Israel-Egypt peace treaty ended the Israeli occupation of the Sinai Peninsula in 1982, though control over Gaza, West Bank, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights continued. In 2005, Israel completely disengaged from Gaza, but after the takeover by Hamas, rocket attacks against Israel have increased exponentially.

Over the years, Israel's brutal crackdown on Palestinians in Gaza and other occupied areas and reported human rights violations have been raised multiple times even by the UN.

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WC 2023 Points Table: SA Take Top Spot With Win. India's Position Is...

South Africa brutally thrashed Australia by 134 runs in their second ODI World Cup 2023 match on Thursday in Lucknow. This was South Africa's second victory in the ongoing tournament and with that, they have taken the top spot on the points table. Australia, on the other hand, have faced their second consecutive defeat and have slipped down to the the ninth position. However, the Proteas' victory turned out to be a bad news for Team India as the Rohit Sharma-led side has now slipped to the third position from the second spot.

Team India has also won both of their first two matches against Australia and Afghanistan and will now take on Pakistan in their next match on Saturday.

Talking about the match, Quinton de Kock hit his second successive century at the World Cup on Thursday as South Africa sent five-time champions Australia crashing to a 134-run defeat.

After the Proteas had made 311-7, Australia lost six wickets with just 70 on the board and then focused solely on attempting to limit the damage to their net run-rate.

They were eventually dismissed for 177 with 55 balls to spare. For South Africa, it was a second win in two games while Australia have lost both of their matches.

Australia, who lost by six wickets to India in their opener, saw five catches dropped when South Africa batted.

Their mood did not improve once they began chasing a 312-run target, losing wickets on a regular basis as South Africa's fast bowlers ripped through their top order.

Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi sent back openers Mitchell Marsh (seven) and David Warner (13) before Kagiso Rabada took three quick wickets.

(With AFP Inputs)

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2 Israeli Cops Injured In Jerusalem Attack, Gunman Shot Dead: Report

Two Israeli police officers were wounded after a firing incident in Jerusalem on Thursday, reported news agency AFP. Citing a police statement, the agency said one gunman has been neutralised. 

Videos showed security personnel patrolling the streets with their rifles drawn, and ambulances and police vehicles rushing to the site of the attack. 

The incident comes as the war between Israel and Gaza entered its sixth day. The death count has crossed 3,700 and the Palestinian Health Ministry said at least 447 children and 248 women are among the 1,417 people killed in Israel's strikes on the Gaza Strip.

At a joint press conference in Tel Aviv with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier in the day, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken vowed unwavering US support for Israel in its war on Hamas, but also said the Palestinians have "legitimate aspirations" not represented by the group, AFP reported. 

"You may be strong enough on your own to defend yourself. But as long as America exists, you will never, ever have to. We will always be there by your side," the US secretary of state said. 

The UK has said it will send two Royal Navy ships to the eastern Mediterranean and begin surveillance flights over Israel in a show of military support designed to reassure Israel, the Times newspaper reported.

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US Intelligence Shows Hamas Attack On Israel Surprised Iran: Report

The United States has collected intelligence showing that key Iranian leaders were surprised by the unprecedented attacks on Israel by Palestinian group Hamas in Israel, the New York Times reported on Wednesday, citing American officials. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the U.S. did not have confirmation of an Iranian link to the attack.

"We are talking to our Israeli counterparts on a daily basis about this question. We are looking back through our intelligence holdings to see if we have any further information on that," he said.

Hamas, an Iranian-backed group, launched a surprise attack on Israel on Saturday, killing hundreds of Israelis and seizing dozens of hostages. Israel's death count rose to 1,200 with over 2,700 wounded, its military said, from the militants' hours-long rampage after breaching the border fence enclosing Gaza on Saturday.

Israel subsequently battered Palestinians with air strikes in Gaza. The retaliatory strikes on the blockaded enclave have killed 1,055 people and wounded 5,184, Palestinian officials say. The U.N. said nine staffers working for the Palestinian refugee agency were among the dead.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Pics: Devastation, Despair As Israel-Hamas War Death Count Crosses 3,900

Thousands have died after the Hamas group launched a surprise attack on Israel, which then responded with a massive bombardment of Gaza. Over 3,900 Israeli and Palestinian civilians, soldiers, and combatants have died since the full-blown war erupted on Saturday.

Several foreigners are also stuck in Israel and across the Palestinian territories.

Devastation, Despair As Israel-Hamas War Escalates

Debris and destruction in a street in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City

A man looking at the destruction in a ravaged neighbourhood in the Gaza Strip Jabalia refugee camp

An aerial photo shows a deserted intersection in Sderot near the Israel-Gaza border

Portuguese citizens being evacuated amid fighting between Israel and the Hamas

An Israeli army self-propelled howitzer fires rounds near the border with Gaza

Palestinians leave al-Karama neighbourhood in Gaza City as Israel and the Hamas war escalates

Smoke from Israeli bombardment is pictured over the Gaza City

Israeli army soldiers near the border with Gaza

Shells from Israeli bombardment land in the water in the Gaza City seaport

Buildings destroyed by Israeli air strikes in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City

The war began when more than 1,500 Hamas members attacked Israel through the Gaza security barrier. The attack is said to be the deadliest attack in Israel's 75-year history. 

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Egypt Warned Israel Three Days Before Hamas Attack: US Lawmaker

Israel got a warning from Egypt of potential violence three days before Hamas caught Israeli forces off-guard in a large-scale attack, the chairman of the powerful US House Foreign Affairs Committee said Wednesday.

"We know that Egypt has warned the Israelis three days prior that an event like this could happen," Republican Michael McCaul told reporters following a closed-door intelligence briefing for lawmakers on the crisis.

"I don't want to get too much into classified (details), but a warning was given," he said. "I think the question was at what level."

Israel is reeling from the deadliest attack in its 75-year history, as more than 1,500 Hamas members attacked through the Gaza security barrier in their coordinated land, air and sea attack on the Jewish Sabbath.

Hamas' ability to remain undetected while preparing and launching such a big, complex assault from the closely monitored and heavily guarded Gaza strip represents an unprecedented intelligence failure for US ally Israel.

Israeli authorities say Hamas gunmen killed more than 1,200 people and wounded over 2,700 as they swept into small towns and kibbutzim and indiscriminately killed residents who hid in their homes or died defending their communities.

Israel has been relentlessly pounding Hamas targets in Gaza in response, and the war has already claimed the lives of more than 3,700 lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, soldiers and combatants.

In Washington, President Joe Biden has pledged to send more US munitions and military hardware and expressed revulsion at the "sheer evil" of the slaughter of civilians.

Hamas' attack on Israel planned a year ago?

Republican Michael McCaul said the attack may have been planned as long as a year ago. 

"We're not quite sure how we missed it. We're not quite sure how Israel missed it," he told reporters.

Cairo has not commented officially on suggestions that it may have offered an early warning. 

But Egyptian media with close ties to the country's intelligence services on Wednesday quoted senior security sources denying Israeli press reports that such a warning was issued.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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