Egyptian Troops Fight Armed Group in Sinai
Egyptian soldiers clashed on Tuesday with armed men in the northwest of the Sinai Peninsula, where several clashes have taken place since August 5, when alleged Islamists killed 16 soldiers during an attack.
A source from the Ministry of Defense pointed out that no victims were reported during the shooting, but it did not say whether the army troops captured any alleged extremists, who had attacked an Army border checkpoint.
Similar clashes took place on Monday, after men identified by the Egyptian government as members of the Islamic militias opened fire at a checkpoint in the city of El-Arish, the capital of Sinai North province, on the Mediterranean coast.
Sources quoted by the state-owned news agency MENA pointed out that the bandits escaped despite the persecution by the Armed Forces, which have deployed more soldiers and armored vehicles along the border with Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Egyptian authorities confirmed on Sunday that three soldiers were killed and four were wounded in clashes with irregular troops who attacked the area of Um Shyhan, in Sinai.
The same sources added that six attackers were killed in the skirmishes, but they noted that dozens of them are in hiding on the peninsula, where they are supported by some Bedouin residents.
U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Individuals, Entities Tied to Guatemalan Drug Traffickers
The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday slapped sanctions on two individuals and 24 entities for their alleged ties with Guatemalan drug traffickers including Marllory Chacon Rossell, a top drug dealer in Central America.
The two individuals designated are both Guatemalan nationals — Christina Stetanel Castellanos Chacon, who is Chacon Rossell’s daughter, and Maria Corina Saenz Lehnhoff, said the U.S. Treasury in a statement, accusing the two of being responsible for laundering narcotics proceeds on behalf of Marllory Chacon Rossell.
The 24 entities designated include a hotel, a construction company, an import-export company, a clothing store and a household items store, according to the statement.
The Treasury move prohibits U.S. citizens from conducting financial or commercial transactions with these entities or individuals. Moreover, any assets the designees may have under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen.
“By designating additional elements of the Chacon Rossell network, OFAC continues to undermine the organization’s ability to launder narcotics proceeds,” said Adam Szubin, director of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in the statement.
The U.S. government has accused Marllory Chacon Rossell of leading a drug trafficking and money laundering organization in Guatemala, Honduras and Panama that supplies Mexican drug cartels.
Drought Seriously Damages Russian Agriculture
Although it did not reach the catastrophic levels reported two years ago, drought destroyed 7.3 percent of Russian crops and caused losses estimated at $1 billion USD, official sources said today.
The climatic anomaly covered 21 administrative divisions of the Russian Federation, Agriculture Minister Nikolai Fyodorov said during a special meeting on measures to counteract the adverse effects of climate on crops.
At least 17 administrative regions declared a state of emergency, because of the difficult situation in agricultural industry, while 10 state subsidy were requested, Fyodorov stated.
The aid could result in financial support or subsidy to purchase fodder to ensure the production of poultry and pork, and keep the herds of cattle, the purchase of mineral fertilizers, and seeds, among other tasks.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev recently visited several areas of the so-called black soils of the Volga, termed among the most fertile lands of the world. They suffered the consequence of an almost five-month drought.
Via PL