US official: IS leader believed dead in US military assault
Washington: The leader of the Islamic State militant network is believed dead after being targeted by a US military raid in Syria.
A US official told The Associated Press late Saturday that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was targeted in Syria's Idlib province. The official said confirmation that the IS chief was killed in an explosion is pending.
President Donald Trump teased a major announcement, tweeting Saturday night that "Something very big has just happened!"
A White House spokesman, Hogan Gidley, would say only that the president would be making a "major statement" at 9 a.m. EDT Sunday.
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Thane (PTI): A 23-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly molesting and extorting Rs 50,000 from a 15-year-old schoolgirl over six months in Thane city, police said on Wednesday.
Accused Prathamesh Desai, a resident of Lokmanya Nagar, was taken into custody following a complaint by the girl’s parents on March 1.
A police official from the Vartak Nagar police station said Desai targeted the teenager between September 2025 and February 2026. “On multiple occasions, he took her to isolated locations and molested her,” the official said, citing the FIR.
The accused threatened to inform the girl’s parents about their purported “relationship” and extracted a total of Rs 50,000 from her, he said.
“Unable to bear the persistent threats and financial demands, the girl finally confided in her parents, who approached the police,” the official said.
Desai has been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said, adding that further investigation was underway.
