IS terror attacks haunt Middle East

IS threatens to crucify Indian priest Fears are growing for an Indian Catholic priest, who is believed to have been kidnapped by Islamic State (IS) as reports suggest he may be crucified. The priest, Father Tom Uzhunnalil, was said to have been abducted by IS militants, when they attacked a retirement home in the conflict-stricken port city of Aden, killing 16 people, including four nuns. Church officials from Bengaluru have dismissed reports of his torture as rumours and said that they have “absolutely no information on the priest”. “Fr Uzhunnalil has been missing since March 4 and since then we have no information from credible sources and no group has so far claimed responsibility for this crime. These rumours having been going on for quite some time. We don’t subscribe to any of them,” spokesman for Salesians’ of Don Bosco, Bangalore province, Fr Mathew Valarkot said. Fr Tom Uzhunnalil was a part of Bangalore province of the order. ISIS second-in-command killed in airstrike Despite of the belief that more than 50 percent of IS commanders are already dead, IS continues to spread radical propaganda and extremist behavior across the globe. In another development, a senior Islamic State commander was likely killed in a US operation in Syria, a US official said on. Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, one of IS’s top religious leaders, was likely killed this week, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told a news conference. Mr Qaduli, also known as Abu Ala al-Afri, had a $7 million bounty on his head by the US government. Yemen suicide bomb attacks kill 26 in Aden In another development, three suicide bombers struck security checkpoints in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on March 25, killing at least 26 people and several people injured. “The bombers were targeting the coalition command base but local fighters guarding the checkpoints prevented them from reaching their targets,” said Nizar Anwar, a spokesman for the local government in Aden. IS has claimed responsibility for the attacks, which coincided with the first anniversary of the start of civil war in Yemen. The attacks took place a year after the coalition launched an air campaign against Shiite rebels in support of internationally backed President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi on March 26, 2015.