Under armours

HONG KONG: Chinese state-run media on Monday (Aug 12) showed armoured personnel carriers and tanks assembling at a mainland city just across the border from Hong Kong. The footage released by two outlets showed a large number of armoured vehicles on the move and several parked in the city of Shenzhen. The release of the video comes after a dramatic escalation of a 10-week crisis that has been the biggest challenge to Chinese rule of Hong Kong since the 1997 British handover. In a video tweet, the People's Daily said the convoy of armoured vehicles was travelling to Shenzhen for a drill. In video: Chinese armed police armored vehicle fleet is prepared for a drill in Shenzhen, S China's Guangdong province. pic.twitter.com/bU4IxhaM0s — People's Daily, China (@PDChina) August 12, 2019 READ: China slams Hong Kong protest violence as 'terrorism' READ: As it happened - Hong Kong police fire tear gas, rubber bullets at protesters as violence erupts … [Read more...] about Chinese state media show armoured vehicles gathering near Hong Kong border

SINGAPORE: The theft of ammunition is "a very serious offence", said the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) on Friday (Aug 23) in response to the case of a former Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) regular who kept and concealed 50 blank rounds following an exercise in 2017. Master Sergeant Chia Shu Sheng had been sentenced by a military court to two weeks of detention, and an appeal to extend the detention was dismissed on Thursday. READ: Military court upholds 2-week detention for ex-SAF master sergeant who kept 50 blank rounds "The Ministry of Defence and the Singapore Armed Forces regard the theft of ammunition as a very serious offence," said MINDEF in a statement. "All servicemen are informed and constantly reminded that the unauthorised removal, possession or retention of any weapons, ammunition or ammunition-related items will result in formal disciplinary proceedings." Chia, the sergeant major of his company in the 40th Battalion Singapore Armoured Regiment, had kept … [Read more...] about Theft of ammunition ‘very serious offence’: MINDEF on ex-regular who kept 50 blank rounds

SINGAPORE: A military court on Thursday (Aug 22) dismissed an appeal to extend the detention of a former Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) regular, after he kept and concealed 50 blank rounds following an exercise in 2017. After taking the blank rounds from fellow servicemen during the exercise in June that year, Master Sergeant Chia Shu Sheng had kept the rounds in a metal cabinet in his office at Keat Hong Camp despite knowing they were supposed to be returned to SAF. In November that same year, Chia was informed that military policemen were going to raid his camp. He then concealed the rounds in a false ceiling so they “could not detect it”, the court previously heard. Military policemen eventually discovered the rounds in another raid in February 2018. On Dec 27 last year, Chia admitted to two charges of misappropriating SAF property and a General Court Martial sentenced him to two weeks of detention. Military prosecutors on Thursday appealed against the sentence and asked … [Read more...] about Military court upholds 2-week detention for ex-SAF master sergeant who kept 50 blank rounds

HONG KONG: China's military has released a slick propaganda video showing a drill of armed troops quelling a protest in Hong Kong, in a thinly veiled warning to the city's pro-democracy movement . The video, posted to social media on Wednesday (Jul 31) by the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) garrison in Hong Kong, has a caption in which the military declares it has the "confidence" and "capabilities" to maintain security in the semi-autonomous southern Chinese city. The three-minute video showcases the PLA's tanks, helicopter gunfire, rocket launchers and other military hardware in action in Hong Kong, as well as heavily armed troops performing an anti-terrorism drill. It also features an "anti-riot" drill in which armed soldiers, armoured personnel carriers and water cannons are used to disperse a crowd of protesters. "All consequences are at your own risk," a soldier yells into a loudspeaker at the start of the drill in Cantonese, the language spoken in Hong … [Read more...] about China warns Hong Kong protesters with slick military video

HONG KONG: Hong Kong riot police on Sunday (Jul 28) fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters close to Beijing's liaison office in the financial hub, the latest clashes in a city gripped by weeks of political unrest. The clashes are the second consecutive day of violence in a city reeling from weeks of anti-government protests that show no sign of abating. Sunday's melees took place in a well-heeled residential district close to the Liaison Office, which represents Beijing in the semi-autonomous hub and which was pelted with eggs and paint last week. Police and protesters had been engaged in a tense standoff for hours after tens of thousands of demonstrators held a series of unsanctioned marches through the city. READ: Hong Kong protesters defy police ban and march again Around 200 protesters had made their way towards the Liaison Office in Sheung Wan district where they met a phalanx of riot police who used loudhailers calling for the crowds … [Read more...] about Tear gas, rubber bullets fired at Hong Kong protesters near Beijing’s office