The Shillong Times

Search operations continue in Manipur to rescue 20 hostages amid Naga-Kuki tensions

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 09:09:40 +0000

Imphal, May 26:The Central and state security forces on Tuesday continued extensive joint search operations across Manipur’s Kangpokpi, Senapati and adjoining districts to rescue 20 Naga and Kuki community members who are still being held hostage by armed groups, officials said.

A senior police official said that intensive combing and search operations are being carried out by the security forces, comprising the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Manipur Police, in the mountainous areas surrounding Leilon Vaiphei village, Songtun village, Khunkho village and P. Molding village in Kangpokpi district.

Similar search and combing operations are also underway in various parts of Senapati and adjoining districts to trace the missing persons and restore normalcy in the region.

The official said that at least 50 people belonging to the Kuki and Naga communities were allegedly held hostage by different armed groups in the Kuki-Zo inhabited Kangpokpi district and the Naga-dominated Senapati district following the violent incidents that occurred on May 13, in which three church leaders were killed and four others injured in Kangpokpi district.

According to the official, around 30 people from both communities were released on May 14 and 15 following sustained efforts by the authorities, community leaders and several civil society organisations (CSOs).

“In one such operation conducted on Monday, joint teams of the Manipur Police, CRPF and Assam Rifles apprehended four individuals from the area between the P. Molding and Leilon Vaiphei inter-village road in Kangpokpi district,” the official said.

The apprehended persons were identified as Thangkhomang Khongsai (51), Seikholet Khongsai (40), Lunminthang Dimngel (27) and Kamgoulal Khongsai (30). According to the official, the four individuals are suspected to be active cadres of armed village volunteer groups operating in Kangpokpi district and allegedly were involved in anti-social activities, including extortion, criminal intimidation and illegal possession of arms and ammunition.

“The role of the apprehended individuals in the abduction of six Naga individuals is also suspected and would be ascertained during the course of the investigation. Further investigations are underway,” the official stated.

Manipur Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh had earlier said that the cases relating to the abduction of six Naga villagers and the killing of three church leaders in Kangpokpi district on May 13 had already been handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for a detailed investigation.

During a meeting with a delegation of the United Naga Council (UNC), the Chief Minister said that search and rescue operations have been continuing since May 14 to trace the whereabouts of the six Naga villagers who were abducted from Konsakhul village in Kangpokpi district.

CM Singh also appealed to the UNC to extend cooperation in securing the release of 14 Kuki civilians who have reportedly remained in captivity since the May 13 violence.

The Chief Minister further urged members of the Kuki community to cooperate in tracing the missing Naga villagers and assist in restoring peace and normalcy in the affected areas. Emphasising the urgent need for peace and communal harmony, CM Singh appealed to all communities in the state to support the government’s efforts aimed at normalising the situation and restoring lasting peace in Manipur.

Meanwhile, tension continued to prevail in the hill districts as both the Naga and Kuki-Zo communities have been separately agitating over the recent violence, particularly following the brutal killing of three Kuki-Zo church leaders and injuries to four others in Kangpokpi district on May 13.

Normal life remained severely affected across Kuki-Zo inhabited areas, especially in Kangpokpi district, after the Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) enforced a total shutdown from midnight of May 13 following the killing of the three Baptist Church leaders and injuries to four others in the hill district. The KIM is one of the apex bodies representing the Kuki tribal community. IANS

INJURED YAMAL AND WILLIAMS IN SPAIN’S WORLD CUP SQUAD

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:50:53 +0000

Madrid, May 25: Injured forwards Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams were included Monday in Spain’s World Cup squad.
Yamal and Williams sustained muscle injuries late in the season but coach Luis de la Fuente said he expects them to be fit for the start of the World Cup.Spain opens its campaign against Cape Verde in Group H on June 15 in Atlanta. It then faces Saudi Arabia on June 21 in Atlanta and Uruguay on June 26 in Guadalajara, Mexico. For the first time there won’t be a Real Madrid player in a Spain World Cup party. Defender Dean Huijsen was among the contenders for a place but he was left out by De la Fuente.Out as expected was Barcelona midfielder Fermin Lopez, who sustained a fracture on his right foot this month.Midfielder Mikel Merino, who played only once for Arsenal since injuring his foot in January, is back in the Spain squad. Also included despite a recent injury is Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Fabian Ruiz. (AP)

Scotland celebrates WC return with banknote

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:48:33 +0000

Edinburgh, May 25: To mark Scotland’s long-awaited return to the World Cup, one of the nation’s great goals of recent times is being celebrated all the way to the bank.
The Bank of Scotland has unveiled a limited-edition 20-pound ($27) note featuring an image inspired by Scott McTominay’s overhead-kick in the dramatic win against Denmark that sealed World Cup qualification.Only 100 of those notes have been printed, with 50 available through a mix of collector auctions, a prize draw, and two pop-up “vaults” in Scottish cities Glasgow and Edinburgh. Some of the proceeds will support Crisis Scotland, a homelessness charity.“Moments like that belong to everyone who follows the team,” said McTominay, who plays in midfield for Scotland and Italian team Napoli, “so seeing my goal featured on a Scottish banknote feels incredibly special.” Emma Noble, chairwoman of the Scottish executive committee at the Bank of Scotland, said there was a desire to mark the national team’s World Cup qualification “in a way that’s rooted in Scottish identity.” “Like football, banknotes have long been part of our country’s story,” she said. (AP)

CAN ANCELOTTI END BRAZIL’S 24-YEAR WORLD CUP WAIT?

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:46:09 +0000

Sao Paulo, May 25: Brazil’s biggest hope to end a 24-year World Cup title drought is not a clinical striker, a creative midfielder or a dribbling winger like in previous editions of the tournament. This time Brazilians are pinning their hopes on a 66-year-old Italian, who will be sitting on the bench.
Carlo Ancelotti, one of the most successful coaches of his generation, left Real Madrid to take over Brazil’s national team last year, a rare example of a foreign coach in charge of the Selecao. Even though his results have been mixed – five wins, three losses and two draws – the country is optimistic he can elevate a squad which is seen as less star-studded than Brazil’s iconic teams of the past, despite high-profile players like Neymar and Vinicius Junior.While Brazil has won the World cup five times – more than any other team – it hasn’t lifted the trophy since 2002, an eternity for a soccer-obsessed nation that produced some of the most brilliant players in history, such as Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Pele.Since 2002 it has only gotten beyond the quarterfinals once – as World Cup host in 2014 – and even that tournament ended in disappointment after an embarrassing 7-1 semifinal loss to eventual champion Germany.Brazil’s self-confidence hasn’t been helped by the success of archrival Argentina, the defending World Cup champions and back-to-back Copa America winners.“It is allowed to believe,” Ancelotti says in a World Cup-themed advertising campaign, acknowledging the self-doubt that has crawled into Brazil’s national soccer psyche.
Neymar is back despite fitness doubtsBrazil begins its World Cup campaign at MetLife stadium in New Jersey on June 13 against Morocco, semifinalist in the 2022 World Cup. Other Group C opponents are Haiti and Scotland.Surviving the group stage is taken for granted in Brazil – anything else would be disaster in a World Cup expanded from 32 to 48 teams. How deep Brazil can go against stronger opponents in the knockout phase is less obvious. (AP)

PASSPORT THEFT DELAYS SAUDI DEFENDER’S WC PREPARATIONS

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:44:21 +0000

Riyadh, May 25: Saudi Arabia’s preparations for the FIFA World Cup 2026 suffered a minor setback after defender Saud Abdulhamid was unable to travel with the national team following the theft of his passport in Amsterdam.
The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) confirmed on Monday that Abdulhamid’s private vehicle was broken into while he was in the Dutch capital with his family for his wedding ceremony, resulting in the loss of several personal belongings, including his passport.
The defender, who currently plays for RC Lens on loan from AS Roma, is part of the 30-member preliminary squad named by newly-appointed head coach Georgios Donis.Saudi Arabia have already travelled to the United States for training camps in New York and Texas as part of their preparations for the World Cup. (Agencies)

Muslim pilgrims circumambulate the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site, at the Grand Mosque

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:34:17 +0000

Muslim pilgrims circumambulate the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site, at the Grand Mosque, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday. The faithful have been pouring into the country for the Hajj against the backdrop of a tenuous ceasefire in the Iran war and related regional tensions and uncertainty. (PTI)

Israeli Opp leader says Trump’s deal with Iran is bad for region

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:32:59 +0000

Jerusalem, May 25: The deal being discussed between the US and Iran fails to achieve any of Israel’s goals for the war, Israel’s opposition leader Yair Lapid said on Monday, as he accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to influence a better agreement.
Lapid, who is part of an alliance attempting to unseat Netanyahu in elections this year, said details of the emerging deal are “disturbing.”
“The deal is bad for Israel, bad for the region, bad for the citizens of Iran,” Lapid told reporters in Jerusalem.
Israel and the US launched the war on February 28, vowing to destroy Iran’s ballistic missile program, end its support for proxy militant groups across the region and end Iran’s ability to pursue a nuclear bomb.
Both Netanyahu and President Donald Trump also said they hoped to create conditions to topple Iran’s government.
According to regional officials, under the current deal being discussed, Iran would give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz in exchange for ending a US blockade of Iranian ports and the lifting of sanctions against Iran.
Key details on Iran’s nuclear program would then be negotiated during 60 days. It is unclear if the deal will address Iran’s missiles or support for regional militant groups.
Lapid expressed gratitude to Trump for launching the war with Israel, but criticised Netanyahu for allowing Washington to negotiate a potential deal with little coordination with Israel.
“The Israeli government is at an all-time low in its ability to influence decisions in Washington,” he said, noting that Trump said last week: “Netanyahu will do whatever I want him to do.”
Lapid, head of the centrist “Yesh Atid” party, briefly served as prime minister in 2022 under a rotation agreement with Naftali Bennett, leader of a small conservative party. Their coalition government ended 12 years of Netanyahu’s rule.
They have once again merged their parties into a single faction headed by Bennett as they attempt to unseat Netanyahu in elections, which will be held by the end of October.
Lapid has served as Israel’s opposition leader since Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022, while Bennett took a break from politics. Their alliance is aimed at uniting a fragmented opposition united in large part by their shared hostility toward Netanyahu.
Lapid, one of a shrinking number of Israeli politicians who support the idea of Palestinian independence, said the issue would not be on the next government’s agenda.
He said the conditions are not right following the trauma of the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, and the wars that have followed. (AP)

Trump blasts Republican critics of Iran peace deal

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:30:52 +0000

Washington, May 25: US President Donald Trump’s peace deal with Iran has run afoul of fellow Republicans who have voiced deep concerns over the move, contending that it would amount to recognising Tehran as a “dominant force” that required a “diplomatic solution”.
The Republican sceptics included Senator Roger Wicker, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senators Thom Tillis, Lindsey Graham, and Ted Cruz, who all questioned trusting Iran to stick to its commitments to the peace deal to end the nearly three-month war.
Surprisingly, Trump critic Senator Rand Paul counselled patience and urged critics to give the President space to find an America First solution.
Democrat senators also joined the critics of the peace deal, claiming that the president was “being played as a fool” and the emerging framework would merely amount to returning to the “pre-war status quo”.
Trump hit back at the critics, describing them as losers who were commenting on an issue they knew nothing about. He claimed that the deal under discussion was the exact opposite of the one agreed to under the leadership of then-President Barack Obama in 2015.
“If I make a deal with Iran, it will be a good and proper one, not like the one made by Obama, which gave Iran massive amounts of CASH, and a clear and open path to a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday.
“Our deal is the exact opposite, but nobody has seen it, or knows what it is. It isn’t even fully negotiated yet. So don’t listen to the losers, who are critical about something they know nothing about,” Trump said.
Senator Cruz said he was “deeply concerned” about the prospective deal. He said any outcome in which Iran retained control of the Strait of Hormuz and the ability to enrich uranium will be “a disastrous mistake.”
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who served during the first Trump administration, too said the deal under discussion was much on the lines of the one negotiated during the Obama administration.
Trump’s close adviser Steven Cheung hit out at Pompeo for his criticism of the peace deal, saying that Pompeo had no idea what he was talking about.
Senator Lindsey Graham, who is close to Trump, said that any deal that is perceived to allow Iran to survive and possess the ability to control the Strait in the future will put Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Shia militias in Iraq on steroids.

Iran talks progressing nicely: Trump

Trump on Monday said negotiations with Iran to end the war were progressing “nicely”, but officials pointed out that a final decision may take some time due to the complex communication networks Tehran deploys to consult with its supreme leader.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump also said that countries involved in the peace talks with Iran should sign on to the Abraham Accords, which deal with establishing diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and Arab nations.
He said it would be an honour to have Iran as a signatory to the Accords.
“…after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together, it should be mandatory that all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, sign onto the Abraham Accords,” Trump said, adding that it may be accepted if one or two have a reason for not doing so.
Among the negotiators, the UAE and Bahrain are already members of the Accords, and Trump expects Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt and Jordan to sign up.
According to US officials, Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is operating from an undisclosed location with little access to the outside world and is only reached by a labyrinth of couriers.
When the US sends proposed details, it takes time for officials in Tehran to reach the supreme leader, delaying a possible response.
A senior administration official on Sunday said the supreme leader had agreed to the contours of the current draft agreement, and Trump posted on Truth Social that he anticipated final word in the next few days.
US media reports said most Iranian leaders don’t see daylight, spending weeks inside highly fortified bunkers and avoiding speaking to each other unless necessary. By design, even officials at the highest levels of the Iranian government don’t know where Khamenei is and have no way to contact him directly. Instead, messages are passed through a network of couriers created to obscure the supreme leader’s location. (PTI)

President Xi hails China’s ‘unbreakable’ friendship with Pak

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:28:29 +0000

Beijing/Islamabad, May 25: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday met Chinese President Xi Jinping, who hailed Beijing’s “unbreakable” friendship with Islamabad and commended Pakistan for taking the initiative to play a mediating role in restoring peace in West Asia.
During the meeting at the Great Hall of the People, Xi called Shehbaz an “old friend” and said the two countries “understood, trusted and supported each other” over decades, forging an “unbreakable traditional friendship,” according to Dawn newspaper.
“China commends Pakistan for taking the initiative to play a mediating role in restoring peace in the Middle East,” Xi told Shehbaz, who was accompanied by Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir who concluded his visit to Iran on Saturday.
Sharif appreciated China’s support for Pakistan in mediating the US-Iran negotiations, noting that President Xi’s four propositions on the West Asia situation offer guidance for achieving peace, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Earlier, Shehbaz held talks with Premier Li Qiang during which he called for Islamabad and Beijing to “really be together” in ongoing efforts to restore peace in West Asia.
PM Shehbaz said that the “iron-clad friendship” between the two countries was rooted in mutual trust, strategic confidence and shared commitment to peace, development and prosperity.
The two leaders “reiterated their support on all issues of core interests to both countries”. (PTI)

China condemns train bombing in Balochistan

Agencies — Tue, 26 May 2026 00:26:17 +0000

Beijing, May 25: China on Monday condemned the bomb attack on a passenger train in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province that killed at least 24 people.
Commenting on the attack, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning expressed condolences to the victims and conveyed sympathies to the injured and the bereaved families.
At least 24 people were killed and 50 others injured when a powerful explosion ripped through the shuttle train in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan, on Sunday.
The banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which has been fighting for the independence of the mineral-rich province, claimed responsibility for the blast.
Mao said China stands resolutely against terrorism in all its forms and will continue firmly supporting Pakistan in combating terrorism, maintaining solidarity and stability, and protecting public safety. (PTI)