ISLAMABAD: Around 50 officials from Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain are in Pakistan as observers at the multinational air exercise, “ACES Meet 2021-1,” which officially kicked off in Pakistan on Monday at a launch ceremony at the Operational Air Base of the Pakistan Air Force, a PAF spokesperson said.
The ACES Meet is an aerial exercise to maximize combat readiness of participating air forces through air-to-air combat training.
PAF, the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) and United States Air Force (USAF) will be participating in the exercise.
“Total 50 airforce officials are participating as observers from Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain,” a PAF spokesperson told Arab News. “The observers from Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain consist of their pilots and technical teams,” he added, saying the participation of Middle Eastern allies would provide them a better understanding of multilateral exercises, particularly in countering terrorism.
“It is especially helpful for them in counter terrorism operations, which is their main target,” he said. “Participation as observers is also helpful to prepare themselves to decide their full participation in future exercises.”
The RSAF contingent has around 180 officials, including pilots, aircraft engineers and technicians, and the USAF team comprised 70 members, the spokesperson said.
Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Operations) of PAF, Air Vice-Marshal Waqas Ahmed Sulehri, was the chief guest at the opening ceremony on Monday.
Addressing the exercise participants, he said this particular cycle of the ACES Meet was unique because “participating air forces bring along a vast experience of combat operations, whether in counterterrorism or composite flying domains … Therefore, this platform must be fully utilized to share the invaluable experiences for mutual benefits.”
The defense attaches of Jordan and Saudi Arabia and the air attaché of the United States also attended Monday’s ceremony. The air drill will take place on Wednesday.
50 officials from Egypt, Jordan, Bahrain in Pakistan as observers at air force drill
https://arab.news/jhzz5
50 officials from Egypt, Jordan, Bahrain in Pakistan as observers at air force drill
- Participation as observers will help understand counter terror operations, prepare countries for full participation in future exercises, PAF says
- Multinational air exercise ACES Meet 2021-1 officially kicked off in Pakistan on Monday at Operational Air Base of Pakistan Air Force
Pakistani man on trial over Trump assassination plot with ties to Iran— US prosecutors
- Asif Merchant, 47, met with men in New York in 2024 he thought he was recruiting to carry out political assassinations, prosecutors say
- Merchant is a deeply religious man who frequently traveled to Iran and Pakistan to meet his separate families, his lawyers say
NEW YORK: The trial began this week of a Pakistani man who US prosecutors say had ties to the Iranian government and traveled to New York to meet with men he thought he was recruiting to carry out political assassinations on American soil, including potentially of President Donald Trump.
Asif Merchant, 47, faces a life sentence if he’s convicted of “terrorism” charges. His trial got underway Wednesday in a federal court in Brooklyn.
Prosecutors said in court filings that a man who Merchant initially met when he arrived in New York in April 2024 later notified authorities about the plot and became a confidential informant, The New York Times reported. Merchant later paid a $5,000 advance to two would-be assassins who were actually undercover FBI agents, prosecutors said.
At the time, Merchant did not specify who the target would be, but court filings show the potential targets included high-level officials such as Trump.
Merchant, who has maintained his innocence, is a deeply religious man who frequently traveled to Iran and Pakistan, where he has separate families, which his lawyers noted is legal in both countries he calls home. They told jurors Wednesday that there was simply not enough evidence to show their client was involved in some type of plot.
Prosecutors told jurors that Merchant sketched out his plans by putting objects on a hotel napkin to represent people and places in a potential assassination plot, including the target, crowd and buildings. The killing would have occurred during the run-up to the 2024 presidential election.
The FBI has foiled several alleged attacks through sting operations in which agents posed as terror supporters, supplying advice or equipment. Critics say the strategy can amount to entrapment of mentally vulnerable people who wouldn’t have the wherewithal to act alone.
