Speakers at a roundtable have accused the BNP-led alliance government of abetting Islamist militants. The roundtable on "State Terrorism and Women Oppression," was organised by the Awami League at the National Press Club in the city yesterday. Leaders of opposition Awami League and representatives of different women and human rights organisations participated in the roundtable. The government is trying to hoodwink people in the name of hunt for Bangla Bhai and Abdur Rahman as its so-called war on Islamist militants was nothing but a farce, the speakers said.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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Omar Bakri Mohammed, the radical Muslim cleric, blamed Asharq al Awsat for being interrogated by Lebanon's security services on seven occasions since his arrival in Beirut in August 2005. Barred from returning to Britain, Bakri left London a day before the British government announced new anti-terror measures.
"Curly-toed slippers, don't fail me now!"
In an online interview with Asharq al Awsat on Thursday, the radical cleric said that every time his name appeared in the pan-Arab daily, he would be called in for questioning in Beirut but was well treated. The former spiritual leader of al Muhajiroun which disbanded itself in October 2004 and the ex-guide of the fundamentalist al Ghurabaa (the strangers) group, said, âBecause of their fear of any activity I am involved in, even if commercial or social, the British authorities have shared their misgivings with thier Lebanese counterparts,â resulting in repeated grilling by the authorities in Beirut.
Beirut's a place where cars occasionally explode, y'know. And the Leb coppers are notoriously inept at discovering who dunnit...
Bakri, who founded a college in Beirut to teach foreigners Arabic, added, âBritain wants to monitor all my movements and has the Lebanese services to assist it.â The Syrian-born radical Islamist feared he was being tracked by a host of security agencies in Beirut, including general security, internal security and the intelligence services. In seclusion throughout the month of Ramadan, Bakri said he was leaving his coastal apartment only to pray at his local mosque.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:04 ||
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PRIME Minister John Howard aims to have anti-terrorism laws in place before the Melbourne Commonwealth Games next March. Attorney-General Bob Debus - who was supposedly against the new laws - yesterday backed the PM's March deadline in an indication that the State Government would support the legislation.
As the state premiers prepared to pore over a final draft of the Bill over the weekend, the Prime Minister said yesterday the Anti-Terrorism Bill may not go before Parliament on Melbourne Cup day, as planned. But Mr Howard is determined to drive the laws through some time next week.
Each of the premiers is expected to decide on Monday whether or not they will support the laws. "I believe it will go through this session and I am confident that the state premiers will adhere to the agreement that was made," Mr Howard said yesterday.
"Nobody is especially wedded to introducing it on Tuesday or Monday or Wednesday," he said. "It would be a good idea if it were passed into law during the current parliamentary session and certainly it is desirable that it be in place before the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne next March."
Mr Debus said, while he did not support rushing the anti-terror laws through Parliament, they should be in place before the Games.
Meanwhile Attorney-General Philip Ruddock has said he expected the Government to issue newly-created control orders against some people in Australia as soon as the laws were passed. Most likely to be hit with a control order would be the small number of people known to have trained with terrorist groups overseas. "It is clear there are some people who fit the 'descriptor' that is included in the Act to make control orders possible," Mr Ruddock said.
It's understood the final draft of the Bill will contain some minor changes, but the major elements, such as the length of detention for suspected terrorists will remain.
While the Federal Government is confident of support from NSW, ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope was still unconvinced yesterday. Mr Stanhope - who leaked the first draft of the Bill on his website - said the issue was too complicated to meet the Monday deadline.
With the exception of Mr Stanhope, who was accused of breaching confidentiality, Mr Howard has been careful not to alienate the states. "We can't do these things on our own," Mr Howard said. "We do not have the constitutional power on our own ... that is why we have approached the states."
Posted by: God Save The World AKA Oztralian ||
10/29/2005 00:08 ||
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Arabic television station Aljazeera launched a channel for children in Amsterdam on Friday. The channel will be available by satellite in the Netherlands.
Programme buyer Lou Murrin told Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant that the channel will enable Arab children to identify with characters on television. "Everything revolves around identity, said Murrin. "A Lebanese boy wants to recognise himself in the kids shown on television and that just isnât possible with American comic strip characters."
The Arabic-language channel, launched at the City cinema, will produce 40 percent of its own programmes, a ratio higher than most other children channels worldwide, according to Aljazeera.net. It also buys productions from Europe.
Shaikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, chairman of the board of Aljazeera Group, said: "In view of the existing state of television, where children are exposed to violent and inappropriate material on a daily basis, her highness Shaikha Mozah made a momentous decision to establish Aljazeera Childrenâs Channelâ
The issue is: will that boy grow up to see himself as a European of Lebanese extract or as a Lebanese who happens to live in Europe. It makes a big difference ... and I can guess which way al Jazeera wants it.
#1
There is a funny phrasing in Al Thani's comment: "...children are exposed to violent and inappropriate material on a daily basis..."
Does he mean that there can be violent and appropriate material? Palestinian suicide bombers on parade with their toddlers dressed up with bomb belts, for example?)
Hamburg is the home of this Moslem center and had links to 9/11. May or may not be a factor in this incident.
A teargas attack inside a German secondary school on Friday left 55 children coughing and wheezing. "I don't call that a schoolboy prank. The crime squad is investigating," said a police spokesman after the attack in the Ernst Barlach School in Wedel, just outside the port city of Hamburg.
Fire brigades mounted a major deployment after the irritant, possibly a personal-protection pepper spray, was released in the school vestibule. A Hamburg chemical-protection squad collected traces of the gas and a fluid found at the scene for investigation.
Germans could be facing the prospect of having to work longer, under a plan being drawn up by the country's new "grand coalition" government.
Faced with growing pressure on the nation's state pension system, Social Democrat's (SDP) chief Franz Muentefering said Thursday that negotiators piecing together the agreement for the new government were considering raising the retirement age to 67 from 65.
Muentefering, who is the new government's designate Labour and Social Affairs Minister, said the drive to early retirement needed to come to an end.
Berlin's plan to raise the retirement age is the latest sign of the financial impact an ageing population is having on western nations.
It also represents another step in Germany towards winding back the benefits built up during the country's post Second World War "Wirtschaftswunder" (economic miracle) which helped to turn the nation into something of a workers' paradise.
Outgoing Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's SPD-led government moved to trim the welfare state and to cut benefits in a bid to underpin growth and to address high unemployment as well as tackling the ageing of the population.
The first step towards lifting the retirement age would likely be in 2007 or 2008, Muentefering said. From 2035, Germans would retire at 67.
He was speaking following the third round of talks between the SPD and Chancellor-designate Angela Merkel's conservative political bloc.
As another sign of the pressure on the state pension system, Muentefering said that pensioners should not expect any increase in their retirement benefits in the coming year. This will represent the third consecutive year that there has been no increase in pensions.
The SPD and Merkel's Christian Democrats and their Bavarian-based Christian Social Union (CDU-CSU) have focused on attempting to thrash out a deal aimed at plugging a hole in the country's finances.
On Monday SPD and CDU-CSU leaders agreed to slash government spending by 35 billion euros (42 billion dollars) by 2007 in a bid to bring Germany's deficit back into line with the three per cent rule for euro member states.
Our boy Chavez and his FARC friends have been busy.
Antwerp police have arrested five suspects on suspicion of smuggling 2,820kg of cocaine via the city's port. The drugs shipments had an estimated street value of EUR 140 million and together are one of the biggest drugs seizures ever recorded in Belgium, custom official Lieven Muylaert said.
Police claim they have busted a criminal international drugs gang with the arrests, newspaper 'Het Laatste Nieuws' reported on Friday. Investigations started on 15 September after Antwerp customs officials found 420kg of cocaine in a shipping container with paper goods. The container was shipped from Venezuela via the Netherlands to Antwerp. The end destination was a Luxembourg-based company.
Further investigations revealed that the gang was allegedly waiting for a second shipment and Antwerp customs officials swung into action on 18 October. Some 2,400kg of cocaine was found hidden between vinyl floor tiles, also shipped from Venezuela. This time, the end destination was a Dutch firm.
Subsequent house raids saw police arrest six people. Five of whom have been remanded in custody. They have partially between identified as two Venezuelans, B. C. A., 45, and J. A., 35; two Belgian nationals A. G. H., 29 and B. G., 34, and a Belgium-resident Dutch national, M. C., 43. Investigations continue and further arrests have not been ruled out.
Belgian customs officials have seized 6 tonnes of cocaine this year, more than 25 percent than last year.
#1
It might be wishful thinking but just maybe our counter drug efforts in the US are driving the Chavez crew to look to other markets. No the EU will work with us on our efforts.
Posted by: 49 pan ||
10/29/2005 9:15 Comments ||
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#2
Inspections of shipping containers has increased and become more vigorous post-9/11. Any word on whether the street price of drugs in the U.S. (whether from Venezuela or elsewhere) has gone up since? Or have the drug addicts just switched to domestically produced meth? Yesterday I had to show my driver's licence and have my name and licence number written down by the pharmacist (chemist in British) in order to buy 10 Sudafed pills.
All the OTC cold meds that can be used to make meth have been pulled from the shelves here in Texas and put behind the pharmacists counter. Have to show ID to buy one. Big problem with people shoplifting mass quanties of them to cook into meth. They keep busting labs all the time.
Posted by: Steve ||
10/29/2005 10:32 Comments ||
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#4
It's national, I don't know if feds are behind it or pharmas. I spoke to our pharma about it and he said I wouldn't believe the number of times people would come in and clean the shelves of sudafed. It was good for his business but he knew where it was going. He figures the new formula should be out in a few weeks.
#6
I think the EU should sell the stuff in Spain. They've been selling weapons to Chavez to hurt the US. They deserve to have a crack epidemic.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
10/29/2005 15:18 Comments ||
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#7
Maybe the Euros need to restock and retool after all Hitler was a meth-head and the German soldiers were given Meth (all as vitamin supplement, of course). It did not help this stoned fifth in Stalingrad. The coke is used primarily to rouse sleepy Belgian EU bureaucrats from those meaningful meetings and the long lunchs not mention great Belgian beer.
A right-wing hawk from Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Likud party is the favoured candidate to become the new Israeli ambassador to Paris, the Israeli press reported on Friday.
Eli Moyal, mayor of the southern city of Sderot which has been repeatedly targeted by Palestinian rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, is seen as a favourite of Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, despite hardly speaking a word of French.
Shalom, who is visiting Paris, refused to confirm or deny the report, telling Israel radio there were "several excellent potential candidates" but stressed he had not yet chosen who would be appointed. Before getting the job, Moyal, who is not a career diplomat, must be approved by a professional committee.
Moyal who strongly opposed Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, has often demanded Israel take extreme measures to stop Palestinian militants from firing rockets at his battered city. "I don't want any children to be killed, but if it happens, it would be better if it is children in Gaza than ours," he said on Tuesday.
A 54-year-old lawyer, Moyal was born in Morocco and moved to Israel in 1957. He is thought of as a close ally of Foreign Minister Shalom and has recently been on several overseas trips to promote Israel's position.
Outgoing ambassador Nissim Zvilli, a former Labour party leader, was appointed to the post three years ago. In recognition of his work to strengthen relations between the two countries, France conferred the order of the Legion of Honour upon the Tunisian-born diplomat, an order of chivalry which is the country's highest civilian honour. Zwilli, who has been active in efforts to secure peace with the Arab world, was seen as close to Israel's dovish Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres.
Dozens of youths went on a rampage, burning vehicles and vandalising buildings in a tough Paris suburb Friday in an act of rage following the death by electrocution of two teenagers trying to flee police.
Twenty-three cars were gutted by fire and the windows of a shopping centre were smashed in the riot in Clichy-sous-Bois, which finally ended before dawn. No arrests were made and there were no reports of injuries.
According to police, the violence erupted after two boys, aged 14 and 16, died when they scaled a wall of an electrical relay station and fell against a transformer.
The two had been trying to escape from police responding to the attempted
robbery of a nearby worksite, officers said. A third boy who had also jumped the wall was seriously hurt.
Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy said the three had not been "physically pursued" by the police.
He added that measures should be taken to counter such urban violence, and said he aimed to equip police cars with cameras and officers with "non-lethal weapons."
First case : three non-european teens get ID-controlled by police; they run away, *not* chased by the police; they go hide in a dangerous place labelled as such, and two die, stoopidly, by their own doing.
When the firefighters and EMT come in 30 minutes later, they are "greeted" by an angry mob which stones them; police comes, riots ensues; the following night, about 100-400 "youths" (coded word for "non-european" and/or muslim) set fire to 23 cars, drive a stolen truck into the local medicare center, lay siege to the first-aid center, trying to force their way in to get the EMT, stone the riot police, destroy and set fire to urban material.
The media comes in, do a large coverage, let the "youths" complain and say this is all the fault of the police, because it harasses them, the socialist mayor asks for an inquiriy to "calm the minds", interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy sez he will meet the families of the two teens and of the wounded one.
A second night of rioting ensues, 30 more cars are torched, 23 riots police are hurt, 14 "youths" are arrested.
Finally, a silent march ensues, with the same reactions as the first day, locals blame the police for being insensitive (and, implicitely, racist) and the french EDF electricity company for letting the area unguarded; then, the socialists blame the right for being too harsh to young people and having the wrong policy on insecurity.
All in all, this is completly SOP¨for urban riot in France, "youths" have the nice habit of rioting, burning cars (30 000 a year),... at the slightest excuse (sometimes just one of their friends being convicted for a crime or another), which explain there are between 800 to 1000 "no go" zones in France where State sovereignty doesn't apply anymore and where the authorities cannot go in without an excessive show of force.
Second case, at the same time : a family father stops in the 'hood to snap pictures of a lamp post his society has built; angered by a stranger who takes pictures, 3-4 "youths" come in, and beat him to death in front of his wife and daughter, they get caught the day after because they're masterminds and dood it in front of security cameras.
No riot, no burnt car, no declaration by the mayor, no meeting with the interior minister, no silent march, maybe 30 seconds in the teevee news.
#2
mous- So tell us how you really feel! HAHA I would only add that France is getting the society they have created and deserve. The antidemocratc socialist apologetic ehtnocentric government is going to allow the next big war to take place in Europe if we are not careful.
Posted by: 49 pan ||
10/29/2005 9:46 Comments ||
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#3
Too bad the French don't use the Napoleonic model here. The Corsican rose to prominence by suppressing mobs with a "whiff of grapeshot."
#5
Why does Sarkozy think this means that the police need "non-lethal" weapons? Anybody know much about him?
Posted by: James ||
10/29/2005 11:52 Comments ||
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#6
Note that as in most "urban riots" pattern, the rioters targeted symbols of the french authorities:
- The mayor office was attacked.
- The police station was attacked and IIUC firebombed last night, firefighters had to intervene (plus a shot was fired at a riot police car).
- The first-aid station was besieged.
and firefighters were stoned and harassed (this is a true classic, calling them into "ambushes" for fun is past time in such areas).
- A school was vandalized (relationship with the deaths?).
- The social security (in France it's like Medicaid or medicare) center was rammed in by a truck (again, relationship with the deaths?).
This in addition to destruction of urban material and the breaking of shop glasses.
In normal time, in the "no go" zones, anything reminiscent of official France is prohibited, even bus lines are not safe (stoning, firebombings,... in fjordman I've read the same goes for muslim neibourhoods in northern Europe).
I have no idea what are the day-to-day conditions in Clichy-sous-bois, but during the riots, the "no go" policy was enforced.
Doesn't prevent getting social benefits or family aid, of course.
#7
@ James : I have the bad habit of commenting on Sarko, who by the way is France's interior minister, full-time presidentila wannabe, head of the presidential party and rival of the Shiraq/Galouzeau "de Villepin" (who's a man) duo... since unlike JFM I'm not the deep, knowledgeable type.
So my style is gossip and semi-coherent bigoted ranting.
See comments in http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=133272&D=2005-10-27
for a general idea of why I don't like this overly ambitious and media-savy guy. This is my personal opinion, perhaps he's the right man to save the right in France I don't know...
#8
cut the welfare for islamo-immigrants, clean out the ghettos - ship their asses home, restore order, by violence when necessary. Or not...and die as a culture and nation
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 12:40 Comments ||
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#9
#2 mous- So tell us how you really feel! HAHA I would only add that France is getting the society they have created and deserve. The antidemocratc socialist apologetic ehtnocentric government is going to allow the next big war to take place in Europe if we are not careful.
**********
Let's not forget stupid Lefitst-inspired, bi-lingual, multiculti ed-programs that left North African and Middle Eastern immigrant children at a distinct disadvantage and thus under able to compete effectively. Also, add on France's rotten welfare policies and the enduring effects of a sclerotic Socialism, and this is what you get!
#10
"Doesn't prevent getting social benefits or family aid, of course."
a5089 - Does this mean the Postman is the only official who is welcome? Or do they have direct deposit?
RE: "no go" zones...
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Postmen too have problems in theses areas, though I'm sure there must be some kind of modus vivendi.
Note that, as I posted in a an article about the islamization of french enterprizes and businesses, in Seine Saint-Denis department (home of a large muslim/migrant "minority", there even are some speculation whitey could actually be the minority there, this might be true for the younger pop), an internal post office service survey found out that in postal hubs packages from Israel went systematically "missing" and packages from the USA were sabotaged (slashed with boxcutters,...).
Theses places are dangerous for all kind of professions, including ones you might expect to be respected due to their usefulness, firefighters, EMT, general practice physicians... funny, IIRC the Insee demographical/statistical institute admitted that its population surveys were not accurate since the surveyors couldn't get safely into theses areas (where there are many illegals furthermore), I wonder if that's the reason there won't be general surveys anymore.
It's not really they are very criminalized (though underground economies and organized crime, now heavily north-african after long being corsican or gypsy, are very present, and are actually one reasons they don't blow up more often, because the haschich or stolen goods trade is too profitable) or lawless (they actually follow a mix of gangs culture and muslim traditional society norms), it's that the sovereignety of France and whatever reminds of it is not welcome.
#13
Sounds as if it's directly deposited, then. Hmmm.
There's a definite, Fort Apache, The Bronx feel to what you describe. All sufficiently industrialized countries seem to go through a phase like this, where the social programmers and engineers screw everything up for a few generations... But then you hope the Govt realizes the mistake in time to reverse the trend and clean it up. Those that do this successfully, turning off the welfare tit and putting people to work, survive - at least until the next total dimwit cycle occurs. Those that don't are destined to fail. We certainly have the Blue State version of what you describe. Breaking the cycle of stupidity isn't easy, but it's damned necessary for survival.
I personally view every unassimilated "cultural" area / neighborhood / whatever, and yes I'm being extremely generous with that description, is (here it comes - the unPC version) a malignant tumor on the society. The cumulative effect of these tumors, these unproductive and parasitic masses, once they breach the threshold - and metastacize, leads to social and economic stagnation, then a terminally anemic and declining economy - mixed with increasing violence, then either radical surgery - or the death of the host.
BTW, the "our favorite advertisers" links were for you. I kept it mild in deference to Sheriff Fred, lol.
#14
It's not fair! I'm disapointed that the muzzies and Africaneers get to start Frances civil war. I was hoping it would be the French cycling industry buying bombs and guns from .com in prep for Lance Armstrong's announcment that he will race in order to "again" kick French ass. BTW i"ll take some of that wire for the chase vans!!
Posted by: 49 pan ||
10/29/2005 16:23 Comments ||
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#15
Not me, bro. I'm shutting everything down and cutting all my, um, "official" ties, lol. You'll hafta frequent the gun shows for your goodies. I hope Lance succeeds in whatever he chooses to do - and I have no doubt he will. That they can't accept that he pasted their asses fair 'n square year after year after year is, well, de rigueur for those who are trying to drag him down, lol. Yet another ass-kicking would only delay the game another year. He Da Man - and they know it, lol.
Myself? I'd go for urban renewal in any place Fire and Police are unable to venture safely. It starts with a shutoff of water, encirclement with fencing and forced evacuation to deportation centers. Fire, unattended, is usually the agent of change, whether deliberate or not
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 16:50 Comments ||
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#17
"social programmers and engineers"
Oops, if unclear you have my abject apologies. Real engineers are my favorite people - they make shit happen, lol. I was referring to the 'B' Ark passengers...
As for burning out the nests, it sure works for me, lol. But I was accused of being a fire-bug in my yoot, so I'll have to recuse myself. :)
#18
Deportation is the answer. The French never had a problem with this in the past (WW2) when they deported the unwanted Joos to Germany. Why should "youths" and "North Africans" be any different.
If those cops are not going to use them why do they carry the MP5s? Put up the fences ant start loading them onto ships for the trip home.
#19
they wouldn't be sending them to their deaths at least, like they did the Jooooos. Call it accelerated Darwinism
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 18:05 Comments ||
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#20
Thanks, a5089.
.com's approach has merit, but while preparing for it, one might think of upgrading the computer system that distributes those welfare checks. New systems always have bugs, of course--perhaps this one would have problems providing checks to certain neighborhoods or spellings of names? It wouldn't be hard: as a courtesy to people of a different culture you could reference their names in transliterated Arabic. You wouldn't even have to put bugs in the code deliberately. Or is that not the right kind of "social programming?"
Posted by: James ||
10/29/2005 21:47 Comments ||
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Turkey on Friday expressed disapproval of comments by Iran's president calling for the destruction of Israel as the Jewish state called for an emergency session of the UN. Hard-line Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad triggered international outrage when he told a conference in Tehran Wednesday that Israel should be "wiped off the map." The Iranian leader also said that "anyone who signs a treaty which recognizes the entity of Israel means he has signed the surrender of the Muslim world," and warned Muslim leaders who recognize Israel that they "face the wrath of their own people."
"Naturally it is not possible for us to approve of such a statement," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It is Turkey's "own judgement and preference" to establish ties with regional countries on the basis of internationally recognized borders, it said. "Turkey maintains its determination to pursue ties based on mutual respect and cooperation with all regional countries and believes that regional conflicts can be resolved only through peaceful methods and dialogue based on international legitimacy," the statement added.
Ankara and Tehran have recently bolstered cooperation after years of trading accusations that each side was sheltering each others' opponents and amid Turkish charges that Tehran was seeking to export its Islamic revolution.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
suleiman would've said--fuck it--let's invade--they are threatening our antalya cruise business--rafidi dogs
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
10/29/2005 4:07 Comments ||
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Unfortunately, Rantburg doesn't have a 'WoT ... Fiction' category ...
AFTER THE two-year smear campaign orchestrated by senior officials in the Bush White House against my wife and me, it is tempting to feel vindicated by Friday's indictment of the vice president's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.
Between us, Valerie and I have served the United States for nearly 43 years. I was President George H.W. Bush's acting ambassador to Iraq in the run-up to the Persian Gulf War, and I served as ambassador to two African nations for him and President Clinton. Valerie worked undercover for the CIA in several overseas assignments and in areas related to terrorism and weapons of mass destruction.
But on July 14, 2003, our lives were irrevocably changed. That was the day columnist Robert Novak identified Valerie as an operative, divulging a secret that had been known only to me, her parents and her brother.
And her neighbors, and the Washington social circuit, and the Russians (thanks Mr. Agee) ...
Valerie told me later that it was like being hit in the stomach. Twenty years of service had gone down the drain. She immediately started jotting down a checklist of things she needed to do to limit the damage to people she knew and to projects she was working on. She wondered how her friends would feel when they learned that what they thought they knew about her was a lie.
It was payback â cheap political payback by the administration for an article I had written contradicting an assertion President Bush made in his 2003 State of the Union address. Payback not just to punish me but to intimidate other critics as well.
If your wife's cover was so important, why'd you go shooting your mouth off in an op-ed piece? Usually diplomats know better ...
Why did I write the article?
"Because I wanted to stick it to Chimpie ..."
Because I believe that citizens in a democracy are responsible for what government does and says in their name. I knew that the statement in Bush's speech â that Iraq had attempted to purchase significant quantities of uranium in Africa â was not true. I knew it was false from my own investigative trip to Africa (at the request of my wife at the CIA) and from two other similar intelligence reports. And I knew that the White House knew it.
Going public was what was required to make them come clean. The day after I shared my conclusions in a New York Times opinion piece, the White House finally acknowledged that the now-infamous 16 words "did not rise to the level of inclusion in the State of the Union address."
That should have been the end. But instead, the president's men â allegedly including Libby and at least one other (known only as "Official A") â were determined to defame and discredit Valerie and me.
They used eager allies in Congress and the conservative media, beginning with Novak. Perhaps the most egregious of the attacks was New York GOP Rep. Peter King's odious suggestion that Valerie "got what she deserved."
Valerie was an innocent in this whole affair. Although there were suggestions that she was behind the decision to send me to Niger, the CIA told Newsday just a week after the Novak article appeared that "she did not recommend her husband to undertake the Niger assignment." The CIA repeated the same statement to every reporter thereafter.
Of course, the Senate report said differently. And they said some things about your version of the facts as well ...
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/29/2005 13:09 ||
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#1
"Why did I write the article? Because I believe that citizens in a democracy are responsible for what government does and says in their name. I knew that the statement in Bush's speech â that Iraq had attempted to purchase significant quantities of uranium in Africa â was not true. I knew it was false from my own investigative trip to Africa (at the request of the CIA) and from two other similar intelligence reports. And I knew that the White House knew it."
**********
Because you're a self-serving S.O.B. on the payroll of the Wahhabis and a partisan hack of the American antiwar Left.
What a trope, what a trite pathetic effort by this dog who has a bestseller and a Vanity Fair cover story. Life in Hell my butt!
#3
What a cheap, worthless little man. It's nice to know that he probably will never work for the United States ever again, in any capacity. I wonder if his wife is the one that "leaked" all those reports about "no WMDs". The entire CIA needs to be flushed of the political trash and hosed down. If that doesn't happen, one of these days we're going to be really hurt, and it will be because the CIA played political games, rather than doing their duty.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/29/2005 13:49 Comments ||
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#4
Thank you Mr. Wilson, you are true American patriot who was willing to stand up and be counted with your knowledge about the lies and deception that led us into this MAD war.
Lets hope Fitzgerald has Roves' Indictment on his "to-do" list.
#6
It's no laughing matter ...these SOB's lied through their teeth to get support for this war...they even tried (apparently succesfully) to inject their propaganda into the "newspaper of record" in the US ..the NYT. And everybody bought it ....so much for fiscal conservatives this is the biggest goverment IN THE HISTORY OF THESE UNITED STATES.....
BTW...the patriot act is also the most invasive into personal privacy ever...so if it fiscal consevativism and small government you want without them delving into your private lives ...the REPUBLICAN PARTY LEADERSHIP HAS TURNED THESE IDEAS UPSIDE-DOWN
Who's winning this war on terror any way? ...the Arabs seem to be doing pretty well with the current price of oil ...thankyou "W"
#8
hey happyboy go cry on your mother. she'll understand.
/maybe
Posted by: Red Dog ||
10/29/2005 15:28 Comments ||
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Mr. Happyman: if you go back to GWB's speeches (yeah, you'll do that), you'll see we had six main reasons to go to war with Iraq. One of them was WMD. GWB turned out to be wrong on that one, and unfortunately that's the one everyone remembers. Life is like that.
But you might recall 1) Saddam was a threat to his neighbors, having gone to war with them twice 2) Saddam was flouting the 1991 ceasefire 3) Saddam was flouting the UN resolutions on inspections 4) Saddam was engaged in genocidal practices in his own country, and 5) the sanctions were not working (and with the Oil-for-Palaces scandal, now we know why).
Yeah, yeah, you'll sneer -- that's what the Left does so well. But there are 24 million Iraqis today who have immeasurably more freedom than they did a few years ago.
George W. Bush has liberated more people from fascism than any president since Harry Truman. That ought to count for something.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 15:30 Comments ||
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#10
Steve, HM sounds like a follower of Pat Buchanan to me. He doesn't give a shit about the freedom of little brown people. He prefers status quo. Yes, the same status quo that got us Khobar Towers, USS Cole, Kenya/Tanzania and, of course 9/11. Gosh, with a track record like that, who in their right mind would want to go into the heart of the problem and upset the apple cart.
Idiots. I just don't understand those who push this isolationist line. It is the ostrich approach.
Where do you think AlQ would have gone if we ignored Saddam? Who in their right mind cannot see that Iraq would have been used as a worldwide terrorist base.
We've done the right thing. We are winning the war. The President has said many, many times that it would be long and costly. Happyman ought to grow a backbone.
That said, I do agree with him on the spending issue. The President and the Republican-lead congress have done a horrible job on this front.
#12
For the record, Joe Wilson the Dilt IIII, is a proven liar. He stated that VP Cheney sent him to mint tea on his Niger trip, a lie; he stated in his fictional book that his wife had nothing to do with his being selected by the CIA to make the right, a bold-faced lie.
This guy ranks right up with Cindy Shithan (no irreverance intended towards her brave son) for the number one slot of publicity whores.
The nation would be so much better off without the likes of Joe Wilson, Richard Clarke, Cindy Sheehan, Al Franken, etc.
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/29/2005 15:56 Comments ||
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#13
HappyMan: Drop to your knees and pray to Lord Jesus above .com didn't open up his can of Left Away on you.
#14
sounds like Happyman's comfortable on his knees - and not just to drink the koolaid if ya get my drift.
"newspaper of record" *SNORT*
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 16:34 Comments ||
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#15
Lol, bad. Flappyman was just too stupid to respond to seriously. You still have your kick-the-shit-out-of-the idjits energy, lol. I'm not inclined as much, these days... tired of explaining the easily-determined facts over and over and over, y'know? I'll leave it to you and the other clear-headed and well-informed folks to ridicule and stomp the shit out of 'em, lol. Only the hardcore blinded swallow-my-agenda-or-else asstards who are also vicious and personal, like Vlad, get my goat, now. :)
#16
Frankly, .com, I'd say your #5 "ROTFL" was true finesse -- ridicule in five easy letters. Sometimes one clean shot is as good as multiple stab wounds. Nice job
the patriot act is also the most invasive into personal privacy ever
So, that would be a greater invasion of personal privacy than, say, the Alien and Sedition Acts? The McCarthy hearings? Or the criminalizing of contraception? More invasive than freakin' slavery?
Of course, the sky is falling and its all Chimpy McBushitler's fault!!! It helps if you're historical perspective covers about the last twenty minutes.
Your use of CAPITAL LETTERS suggests you are a HYSTERIC whose partisan blinders are augmented by a profound lack of actual knowledge.
I must be getting tired of LLL's substituting PASSION for analysis. Say something smart, damn it! There are a lot of you out there; you must have some kind of point! The rest of us have to put up with Cindy Sheehan and Dick Durban and we're still waiting for something that makes some sense!
Tell us again how Bush lied- I'm sure we've never heard that before.
Or maybe you can explain how any of this relates in any way to the Libby charges. The country did not go to war because "Scooter" talked to a reporter about Joe Wilson's wife and told the FBI something different. Get a grip.
/angry rant
Posted by: Baba Tutu ||
10/29/2005 17:50 Comments ||
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#18
:-) BT - that wasn't angry, that was smart....you've never seen me, or, even better, .com, in full "inflamed" mode LOL
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 18:09 Comments ||
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#19
I give BT a thumbs-up, too, Frank. Nice smart spot-on whack-a-dipshit.
Simply the FACT (/LLL) that there has NEVER (ok, I had one more to go, lol) been a single verified abuse of the Patriot Act puts fuckwit Flappyman in the DUmmy dungeon. BT, you're too nice to 'em, my friend. They don't think, they regurgitate.
#20
Like a number of people who comment from time to time in RB, I spend a lot of time working in government trying to find the little "brave lions of islam" who hide in the shadows and plot mass murder like the cowards they are, and who scurry like cockroaches when discovered and lie pathologically in the face of incontrovertable evidence. If happyman could look over my shoulder and see the way rules protecting the innocent are followed, and how hampered we are from being really efficient, he wouldn't dare utter such jackass nonsense. But he has lost trust in his own countrymen, a product of our media and educational systems, reflecting our failure to see the rot seeping in in the past 30 years.
I pity his ignorance, he isn't worth excoriating, rather he should just be ignored!
Posted by: Just About Enough! ||
10/29/2005 20:24 Comments ||
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When I hard this asstard Wilson and his wife were getting "threats" I had to ask myself You didn't think you would? He truly is a poor piece of work.
#22
Just About Enough, and other government 'burgers, thanks for your efforts. I'd have joined you in my youth but I have a low tolerance for exasperation and idiot managers. I'm glad you all can tolerate it all without a felony murder rap.
From NRO - Visit, read, subscribe - good stuff! Hanson, like Steyn, rules!
For good or evil, George W. Bush will have to cross the Rubicon on judicial nominations, politicized indictments, Iraq, the greater Middle East, and the constant frenzy of the Howard Dean wing of the Democratic party â and now march on his various adversaries as never before. He can choose either to be nicked and slowly bled to death in his second term, or to bare his fangs and like some cornered carnivore start slashing back.
Before Harriet Miers, conservatives pined for a Chief Justice Antonin Scalia, with a Justice Roberts and someone like a Janice Rogers Brown rounding out a battle-hardened and formidable new conservative triad. They relished the idea of a Scalia frying Joe Biden in a televised cross-examination or another articulate black female nominee once again embarrassing a shrill Barbara Boxer â all as relish to brilliantly crafted opinions scaling back the reach of activist judges. That was not quite to be.
But now, with the Mierss withdrawal, the president might as well go for broke to reclaim his base and redefine his second term as one of principle rather than triangulating politics. So he should call in top Republican senators and the point people of his base â never more needed than now â and get them to agree on the most brilliant, accomplished, and conservative jurist possible. He should then ram the nominee through, in a display to the American people of the principles at stake.
It is also time to step up lecturing both the American people and the Iraqis on exactly what we are doing in the Sunni Triangle. We have been sleepwalking through the greatest revolutionary movement in the history of the Middle East, as the U.S. military is quietly empowering the once-despised Kurds and Shiites â and along with them women and the other formerly dispossessed of Iraq. In short, the U.S. Marine Corps has done more for global freedom and social justice in two years than has every U.N. peacekeeping mission since the inception of that now-corrupt organization.
This is high-stakes â and idealistic â stuff. And the more we talk in such terms, the more the president can put the onus of cynical realism on the peace movement and the corrupt forces in the Middle East, who alike wish us to fail. Forget acrimony over weapons of mass destruction, platitudes about abstract democracy, and arguments over U.S. security strategies. Instead bluntly explain to the world how at this time and at this moment the U. S. is trying to bring equality and freedom to the unfree, in a manner rare in the history of civilization.
Yes, the Kurds and the Shiites need to compromise. The Sunnis must disavow terrorism. But above all, the American people need to be reminded there was no oil, no hegemony, no money, no Israel, and no profit involved in this effort, but something far greater and more lasting. And so it no accident that the Iraqis are the only people in the Arab world voting in free elections and dying as they fight in the war against terror.
Was Iraq naïve? Perhaps. Idealistic? Of course. But cynical or conniving? â not at all. That is the domain of the Arab kleptocracies, the corrupt Europeans, and increasingly the radical American Left â who all have much to lose if the United States can stop the petrol-theft of the Hussein legacy, expose its corrupt ganglia, establish a democracy, and prove that the United States found real security from terrorism only by bringing constitutional government to the Middle East.
The key to Iraq is enfeebling those around it who are weakening the country â namely Syria and Iran. The U.S. should be calling for democratic reform in both countries â constantly, without interruption, and in the same idealistic fashion as we appeal to the Iraqis. The president must focus world attention on just how awful those two regimes are. After all, an Iranian president threatens to wipe Israel off the face of the map at precisely the time his government lies and connives to obtain nuclear weapons â which alone could bring that avowed sick Khomeineseque dream to fruition, given Iranâs conventional military impotence. Again, the government of Iran is not just talking about warring with the Sharon government or attacking the Israeli nation, but rather liquidating the Jewish people â as Hitlerian a promise of genocide as we have seen since the Holocaust. And he boasts like a leader who fully expects to have nuclear weapons in the near future.
Syriaâs government is little more than Murder, Inc. Its assassination of Mr. Hariri slowed the entire Lebanese reform movement. Itâs been a fine and noble thing that George Bush began to confront Syria, but he should go even further to call on the nations of the world to consider the young Assad the new Milosevic who, like the Iranian president, is an international outlaw deserving of sanctions, embargos, and global ostracism.
We should remind the world that our 2,000th fatality did not end our commitment to freedom and justice, but reminded us just how much we owe our dead so that their ultimate sacrifice was not in vain. We must make sure this sacrifice will lead to the defeat of the terrorists and the establishment of freedom in the greater Middle East. Once we went into Iraq, in the long run there was no living with either Assad or a nuclear Iranian theocracy â and both autocracies grasped that fact far better than we did, as evidenced by the constant stream of terrorists flooding in to kill Americans and undermine Iraqi democracy. The more we jawbone them, pressure them, and isolate them now, the less likely it is that we will have to use force later. Again, no âsmoke âem outâ or âbring âem onâ braggadocio, but just something to the effect that we are taking great risks at great costs to join with the Iraqis to give freedom and equality at last a chance in the Middle East.
George Bush also should begin addressing his most venomous critics at home, by condemning their current extremism. He must explain to the nation how a radical, vicious Left has more or less gotten a free pass in its rhetoric of hate, and has now passed the limits of accepted debate.
In the last six months we have heard from various demagogues â though they are recognized as such due to their prominence in the media â that we were waging nuclear war in Iraq (Cindy Sheehan), that there was cannibalism in New Orleans (Randall Robinson), that George Bush and Dick Cheney should be shot (the novelist Jane Smiley) or executed (Al Franken). Alfred Knopf has published a book about the theoretical assassination of the president, and the Nazi slur is now commonplace in Democratic circles, where a Senator Dick Durbin or Ted Kennedy slanders American soldiers as akin to either Saddamâs torturers or even Nazis and Stalinists. The case needs to be made that we are seeing a new paranoid style â but from the Left, whose opponents are not to be out-argued, but rather deemed worthy of death or demonization as Nazis. The recent eclipse of George Galloway â due in no large part to Christopher Hitchensâ lonely and underappreciated pursuit of his perfidy â reminds us how hard these reprobates finally will fall.
All of these issues are interrelated. If the president can win the hearts and minds of the American people on one theme, the others will fall into play. The more the president talks of principle and values, the more he can do so with zeal, and yes, real passion and occasional anger.
The odd thing is that so far the conventional advice to the president â keep the discussion on Iraq only to U.S. national security, not the upheaval of the existing corrupt order; reach out to the Democratic Senate; curb your idealistic rhetoric with Syria or Iran; ignore shrill enemies; nominate someone that the opposition will not seriously object to â has only emboldened critics here and abroad. It is time to go back on the offensive, both for the idealistic legacy of the Bush presidency and the immediate future of his ideas in the upcoming 2006 elections. The American people, both pro and con, are more than ready for a great debate to settle these issues one way or another
Russian politicians and business leaders on Friday issued a scathing response to a report documenting massive corruption in the UN oil-for-food program in Saddam Hussein's Iraq as companies around the world defended themselves from bribery charges. A day after the report's release, the head of the nation's electricity monopoly said its authors should be punished for including the name of a former Kremlin chief of staff now serving as its board chairman. Russia's biggest oil producer, Lukoil, suggested it had been named to divert attention from the world body's own failings. The report by the Independent Inquiry Committee led by former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker accuses more than 2,200 companies and prominent politicians of colluding with Saddam's regime to milk the humanitarian operation of $1.8 billion in kickbacks and illicit surcharges.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Yeah, sure, okay. We're scathed. Fuck off, Russkie whores. You're Exhibit A in why the UN is DEAD. Dysfunctional, irrelevant, broken beyond repair, irretrievable. DEAD. We're gonna fuck you. You deserve it. We'll do it right, too. You won't be able to stop it and you sure as shit won't enjoy it. Butter up.
In a letter smuggled from prison and published by Asharq al Awsat, Barzan Ibrahim al Tikriti, Saddam Husseinâs half brother, pleaded with Arab leaders to provide him with adequate medical care and revealed he was suffering from cancer of the spine.
Sounds pretty painful...
In his first court appearance on October 19 on charges of killing 148 Shiaa men in 1982, the Barzanâs face appeared swollen. He denied charges against him, in the letter, and insisted he was âan innocent person dragged into a matter that does not concern him, and on which his view is well knownâ, in reference to disagreements with his half brothers and other pillars of the former regime. Once the former head of Iraqâs feared Mukhabarat intelligence services, Barzan was relieved from his responsibilities after a family dispute regarding the marriage of Saddamâs daughter Raghad to Hussein Kamel. After a short-lived reconciliation with the former Iraqi dictator, Barzan represented his country at the UN in Geneva for 12 years before returning to Baghdad in September 1999 as part of a diplomatic reshuffle. He maintained an uneasy relationship with the former dictator because of his opposition to the far-ranging influence enjoyed by Saddamâs sons Uday and Qusay.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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He's not "an innocent person", but he may be less guilty than some others. He's only been charged with 148 murders, not the whole ~400,000. And if convicted, he should only be executed 148 times, not 400,000.
A defense lawyer for ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein wrote to UN chief Kofi Annan Friday calling for the court trying him on charges of crimes against humanity to be moved to The Hague and its Iraqi judges replaced by foreign ones. "We submit to you our request for your involvement and your good office in the present circumstances to call upon the U.S. authority and the present government of Iraq to review the legal status of the present court and to reallocate the present court outside Iraq, i.e. The Hague, Netherlands," said the letter to Annan from defence lawyer Najib al-Nawimi. He called for the court to be given "independent and impartial international judges" and also for pressure to be put on the Iraqi authorities and their U.S. backers to recognize Saddam and his co-defendants as prisoners of war.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
If course he does - they already bribed most of the foreign governments who would provide judges.
Dear Koffi,
You can have Saddam once the Iraqi's are done with him. We'll be happy to send him (partial post) in a shoebox. Until then piss off!
#2
A defense lawyer for ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein wrote to UN chief Kofi Annan Friday calling for the court trying him on charges of crimes against humanity to be moved to The Hague and its Iraqi judges replaced by foreign ones.
Looking to start something similar to Slobbo's "extended" trial, no doubt.
#5
What is pathetic is they are serious, they are so clueless. What they want is to put everyone else (Bush, Blair and others) on trial. They can do that in the Hague but not in Iran.
As they say "good luck with that." Saddam will never leave custody alive.
#6
Saddam was recognized as a POW and treated as such while he was in our custody. We're not trying him, the Iraqis are. We don't have custody anymore, the Iraqis do.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 14:36 Comments ||
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IRAN'S conservative president yesterday insisted he stands by his call for the destruction of Israel, amid a growing backlash against his comments both internationally and within his own country. Critics included the Palestinians.
The Iranian president, elected earlier this year to the dismay of Western diplomats, was attending an annual rally in Tehran yesterday, staged to show support for the Palestinian people. Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, the Iran leadership has denied Israel's right to exist, but the policy has rarely been expressed as boldly as it was on Wednesday when Mr Ahmadinejad called for the Jewish state to be "wiped from the map".
Some estimates said that more than one million Iranians rallied yesterday to support their president's remarks. "My words are the Iranian nation's words," said Mr Ahmadinejad. "Westerners are free to comment, but their reactions are invalid."
Just wait til you see our next reaction.
Critical reaction has not been confined to the West, however. Yesterday, the Palestinian Authority, fearful of jeopardising Western support, disavowed Iran's position. "Palestinians recognise the right of the state of Israel to exist until we can murder all the Jooos, anyway and I reject his comments," said Saeb Erekat, chief Palestinian peace negotiator.
And even China, which ordinarily stays out of international disputes, expressed its "unease" about Mr Ahmadinejad's remarks. Russia, which has backed Iran's nuclear programme, has also been critical. In Moscow the Iranian Embassy tried to soften the impact of Mr Ahmadinejad's remarks, saying he "did not have any intention to speak in sharp terms and engage in a conflict".
Potentially even more significantly, there are indications from within Iran that the president may have over-reached himself. Ultimate power in Iran rests with Mohammed Khamenei, the unelected supreme leader and heir to Ayatollah Khomeni. Mr Khamenei already has placed curbs on his president's power after Mr Ahmadinejad - a former major of Tehran with no previous diplomatic experience - was seen to have mishandled the nuclear issue and strengthened US calls for UN action.
Despite the popular acclaim that some Iranians gave their president's remarks yesterday, political insiders in Tehran are speculating that Mr Ahmadinejad could find himself further undermined if Mr Khamenei concludes he has unnecessarily antagonised Western leaders.
Ahmadinejad's been an imbecile. You're supposed to build nukes quietly and not say a word til you're good to go. Khamenei understands that.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 14:34 ||
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#1
"Yesterday, the Palestinian Authority, fearful of jeopardising Western support,"...Send the money we're hip to Western Media, we make the scene in Europe and America...
#3
Wiping Israel from the map would probably include most of the West bank and Gaza as well.
Posted by: john ||
10/29/2005 16:04 Comments ||
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#4
There ya go, John. Right on. Even the Paleos have the concept of circles of destructive effects. A nuclear blast seldom takes the shape of a dog bone.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/29/2005 16:30 Comments ||
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#5
the problem is, john, iran doesn't care. they worry about the paleos as much as I do. to paraphrase, they care more about killing Jews than about saving muslims. especially the arab paleos.
#6
Yes, for Iran it's a twofer. You get rid of the Israel and Palestian "problem" at the same time.
Posted by: bruce ||
10/29/2005 18:05 Comments ||
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#7
The truth is he just repeated quite pubicly what the policy and practice of the government of Iran has always been. Just now it's not getting ignored like it has since the "revolution." Iranian banners have always said death to Ameica and Death to Israel. The foreign press and politicains just censored it out. It's geting hard to do.
INDONESIAN police said today they arrested a man in possession of 1000 detonators.
The 40-year-old man was arrested yesterday in Kupang on the island of East Nusa Tenggara as he attempted to board a ship to the neighbouring town of Maumere, provincial police chief Edward Aritonang said.
"The preliminary assumption is that the detonators were going to be sold for illegal fishing purposes but we are not discounting other possibilities," he said.
The arrest came a week after police detained four women and a man for smuggling nearly 400 kilograms of ammonium nitrate, 900 detonators and 20 pieces of wire into Indonesia from Malaysia.
The five were arrested in the border town of Nunukan in East Kalimantan province, on the Indonesian side of Borneo island.
Mr Aritonang said the man arrested at Kupang also possessed an ID card issued in Nunukan but gave no details as to whether he had links with the five people arrested last week.
Explosives are commonly used for fishing in Indonesia although the practice is banned.
Posted by: God Save The World AKA Oztralian ||
10/29/2005 01:45 ||
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Man arrested with 1000 detonators
..but..they're only my teaching aids.
The arrest came a week after police detained four women and a man for smuggling nearly 400 kilograms of ammonium nitrate, 900 detonators and 20 pieces of wire into Indonesia from Malaysia.
..hey! we're entitled to indigenous supplies, it's our cultural thingy.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
10/29/2005 6:35 Comments ||
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#2
Tape a hundred of them to various parts of his body and set them off.
Prime Minister Fouad Siniora denied on Friday that the Lebanese Army is besieging Palestinian military camps along the Syrian border, insisting there will be no military confrontation with any groups inside the country. Siniora's comment came as the army loosened its grip on Palestinian bases operated by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command and Fatah Uprising in Sultan Yacoub, Hilweh, Deir al-Ashayer and Yanta, in the southeast Bekaa Valley. Both pro-Syrian factions possess heavily armed militant units.
The army had encircled the bases on Wednesday in an attempt to flush out the killers of a Lebanese contractor shot dead while on duty in Hilweh on Tuesday. The army accuses the Fatah Uprising of killing Ahmad Ismail, while the group adamantly denies the claim. "There is no military front open against the Palestinian militants in the Bekaa," Siniora said. "We don't intend to attack Palestinians or Lebanese. There is no confrontation; we are not attacking anyone."
"I mean, somebody could get hurt!"
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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...we are not attacking anyone.
Maybe the Lebs are just engaging in peaceful agrarian reform!
Leading circles within the parliamentary majority are questioning the motives behind UN envoy Terje-Roed Larsen's decision to include the delineation of the Lebanese borders and other domestic affairs in his latest report on the status of Resolution 1559. Larsen also suggested that the government would seek the disarmament of Hizbullah and the various Palestinian factions, even inside the country's refugee camps.
Good idea, since they're inside your country...
According to these circles, the report reflected the UN's intention to pressure Syria into cooperating with the international investigation into the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri through Resolution 1559. The circles indicated that while the parliamentary majority would prefer to distinguish between Resolutions 1595 and 1559 to avoid any politicization of the investigation, Larsen's report tackled the issues with persistence, while superpowers discussed a draft resolution threatening sanctions against Syrian officials accused in the killing if they did not cooperate fully with the investigation.
Larsen, quite unusually, cut through the BS in his report, just like Mehlis did...
Detlev Mehlis' report was released just as the government was taking cautious steps toward a dialogue with the Palestinians and Hizbullah in the hopes of avoiding any further destabilization of the country, and while keeping the Hariri investigation a top priority.
"Yup. We were just gettin' around to it, when he popped off..."
The circles said that the harsh tone in Larsen's report, which could have been influenced by the U.S., provided evidence of the report's politicization to those who doubted Mehlis' findings. Thus, these parties were given further ammunition with which to criticize Mehlis' report, as Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah did on Friday.
On the other hand, he's been doing that all along. Hezbollah's on Syria's side, not Lebanon's...
Though he insisted on wanting to know the truth, maintaining the UN investigation and not exploiting the investigation to punish other parties, Nasrallah said he believed that any sanctions against Syria would only pave the way for future targeting of Hizbullah and Palestinian arms.
"So it's best to just leave them alone and forget the whole thing. We never liked Hariri, anyway..."
However, the same circles said they believed that Nasrallah's criticism of both Mehlis' and Larsen's reports did not necessarily mean a division among the Lebanese over the investigation into Hariri's assassination and over how to deal with Resolution 1559.
"No, no! Certainly not!"
They explained that Hizbullah's support for Syria is a tentative stand similar to Nasrallah's insistence on preserving national unity to unravel the truth behind Hariri's murder.
"If it really looks like Assad's gonna go down, we'll drop him like a hot potato. But we think he'll wiggle out of it, and that the Syrians'll come back and things'll be just like they have been..."
According to the circles, Hizbullah's latest position does not nullify previous stands with the government, such as when it expressed its support for the disarmament of the Palestinian militants outside of the refugee camps and its promises to find a solution with these factions in the Bekaa Valley.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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Syrian President Bashar Assad pledged that his government would cooperate with a UN inquiry into the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in talks with his Egyptian counterpart President Hosni Mubarak Friday.
The unexpected visit by Mubarak came after the circulation late Thursday of a revised UN draft resolution demanding Syrian cooperation in the UN investigation, which will be discussed during the next Security Council meeting Monday. "President Assad reiterated Syria's readiness and commitment to continue cooperating with the international commission of inquiry," Syria's official news agency SANA reported.
Of course, he said previously that they had cooperated with Mehlis.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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He can start by turning over the body of the official that 'committed suicide' to the UN's investigators; and then dusting off the ole lie detector in his search for the truth!
DAMASCUS - Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak arrived in Syria on Friday for talks with President Bashar Al Assad as pressure mounted on Damascus over the February murder of Lebanonâs former prime minister Rafiq Hariri. The official Syrian news agency Sana said Assad and Foreign Minister Faruq Al Shara met Mubarak on his arrival for what it termed a short visit.
In Cairo, the official Mena news agency said the talks would focus âon regional matters and especially on Syria and Lebanon following the release of a report into the killing of Rafiq Hariri and subsequent pressure by the United Nations Security Council on Syria.â Arab diplomatic sources said in Cairo that Syria was seeking Egyptian help to counter the pressure from Washington, Paris and London.
Who else to give Pencil-Neck advice than one of the oldest thugs in the busniess?
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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where are the other three families?--gafatha
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
10/29/2005 4:12 Comments ||
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TEHERAN - In a clear move aimed at calming worldwide tensions and condemnations over anti-Israeli remarks by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said on Friday that Iran respected both Jews and Judaism. âWe have no problems with Jews and highly respect Judaism as a holy religion,â Rafsanjani said at the Friday prayer ceremony which followed anti-Israeli demonstrations throughout Iran.
"We love the Jooos. Especially dead ones. Crispy, nuked ones are our favorites," he added.
Rafsanjani, who is an opponent to Ahmadinejadâs hardline rhetoric and policies, said âwe only have problems with Zionist circles in Israel which we hold responsible for the suppression of the Palestinian nation.
"That's why we want to wipe them off the face of the earth..."
âIran has no physical presence in Palestine and all we do is aid the Palestinians spiritually, ideologically and also medically,â added the former president, who still plays an influential role in Iranâs political scene as head of the arbitration body Expediency Council.
"All the widows and orphans in Palestine need guns and ammo. It's in our holy book, you could look it up."
Rafsanjani said that Iran would even cooperate in establishing peace and stability in the Middle East and reiterated Teheranâs plan of a referendum by all Palestinians, including refugees, for choosing their future political fate in peaceful coexistence with the Jews. âPalestine is very important for us and we defend their legitimate rights to return to their homelands, but we are also willing to help settling this misery,â Rafsanjani said.
"Once we kill all the Jooos, of course."
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Yea, look who was ahem elected president. It wasn't you Rafi
Posted by: Captain America ||
10/29/2005 0:10 Comments ||
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#2
Too late for damage control. Iran's intentions re Israel are now undeniable. And memorable.
#3
Spot on. So you got a little older and now realize painting your missiles with death threats, jabbering about using a nuke on Israel the moment you have one, and hate speech in general is stupid. Too late. We've got you and your peanut successor cold. Time to put on your asbestos turban, d00d, you're going up in a fireball. 'Til that day, cheesedick.
#4
The Stupid propaganda fart released into the atmosphere by the Eunuch Ahamadinajad, is going to cost the Turbans very dearly.
He basically gave us a green light to use everything we got to neutralize any unconventional capacity they might have.
My guess is we have not done anything yet because we would like to strike at the least expected time. I just hope after we defang them
the US will follow through by decapitating the regime and establishing a democracy in there. It should be much easier than in Iraq, because the Iranian people are smarter and they have already experienced a (sort of) "western type" regime, with a western type economy.
Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
10/29/2005 9:31 Comments ||
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TEHERAN - Iran complained on Friday that a call by its hardline president for Israel to be âwiped off the mapâ had been exaggerated by foreign media and played down the controversial remarks as being nothing new.
Ali Larijani, one of the regimeâs most senior figures, said Mahmoud Ahmadinejadâs speech had been subject to âabusive misinterpretationâ by âcertain Western media and certain countriesâ.
Caught in the open, were you?
He also told the student news agency ISNA that the scandal was merely âmedia manipulationâ aimed at spreading suspicions that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons. âThe position of Iran on Palestine has not changed: it is the Palestinians who should defend their own rights and decide on their own fate,â said Larijani, secretary of Iranâs Supreme National Security Council and in charge of Iranâs nuclear negotiations.
âZionist and American officials have often called for a change in the Iranian regime, but never caused an impact like this,â Larijani complained.
Threatening to wipe out another country tends to do that.
âIt is a psychological war orchestrated by the media who want to weaken Iran in international institutions.â
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
they really just figured out they stepped in it, and bravado and bluster won't let them back down....love it
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 1:35 Comments ||
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#5
This is not the first time such thoughts have been uttered by the Iranian leadership. It is the first time there has been general negative disseminarion of them by the MSM. I can't say as I can't sympathize with the MM's confusion at having been betrayed by their allies without warning. Perhaps the MSM got a clue from the Palestine Hotel bombing but forgot to tell Ahmadinejad the alliance was over. Too bad. So sad.
This man is just basically an idiot.
Tehran, Oct. 28 â Iranâs President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has fired his countryâs ambassadors to Britain, France ... allways a smart move,pissing of one of your best hopes of salvation staunchest allies
... and Germany, and ordered 18 envoys to be recalled to Tehran, a government official in the Iranian capital told Iran Focus. âAhmadinejad has been angered by what he sees as the envoysâ meek reaction to the global condemnation of his Wednesday speech against Israel and the Westâ, the official, who requested anonymity, said. âHe made the speech with the full blessing of the Supreme Leader [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] and has his green light to stifle any dissenting voice within the governmentâ can you say coup against the reformers, of course you can
The official said that while there was broad consensus within the clergy-dominated regime on the hard-line Presidentâs vow to âwipe Israel off the mapâ, some Iranian diplomats voiced concern that the international backlash could be too costly for the Islamic Republic. no shit-sherlocks
On Friday, an array of top political and military figures in Iran lined up behind Ahmadinejadâs fiery speech. The Commander in Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards, the Speaker of Parliament, the Secretary General of the Supreme National Security Council and the powerful Minister of Intelligence and Security (Iranâs secret police) were among those who fully endorsed the Presidentâs diatribe and made equally strong invectives against Israel.
âThe Supreme Leader and his inner council see a window of opportunity for Iran right now, as the Americans are stuck in Iraq and the Europeans are divided over what to doâ ... you have got ot be fucking kidding me
... he said. âThey are telling everyone not to be afraid of threats of military action by the West, as this is only a bluffâ.
The ambassadors who are being fired were appointed during the administration of ex-President Mohammad Khatami.
#2
stupidly and stubbornly, he has managed to give Israel the green light for self defense (as if they needed permission). If the Joooooos were to take out all nuke facilities tonight, there would be clucking from the usual hens, but nothing else
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 1:29 Comments ||
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#3
Iran's Military leaders? WTF? You mean terrorist facilitators don't you?
Irans military doctrine involves human wave attacks and WW1 style use of Chemicals and Artillery. They have no air deterrent and will never get one now. It's a quick way to lose a war in the desert where it would be fought. There is no place for you to run or hide now.
#4
At this point, I have wonder what Israel is waiting for - it seems to me to be a couple of minutes past "high noon" at this point. What are the worried about? That the Islamo-facist world might dislike them more?
Kimmy in Norkland, and Comrade No. 1 Mugabe are both nut-case leaders who have deserved to be taking dirt-naps for a long time. But their countries are pathetic jokes. Iran is a full scale menace to the civilized world, not just Israel. All things considered, a preemptive strike by Israel right about now would be a welcome ass-whipping of the neighborhood bully, as far as I can tell.
#5
As always, watch for the 'tripline indicators' for Israel's settling offensive...1) movement of US battle groups to the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean Sea 2)A quiet recalling of Israeli citizens out of Arab lands and 3)A sudden mysterious media info 'blackout' lasting 2 weeks prior coming out of Tel-Aviv!
A night operation with eastward trade winds, during rain preferably,
The Israelis will use nuclear tipped bunker busters, and may unveil a secret that would shock the world...Israeli kamikazi pilots!!
#6
If Diego Garcia starts sprouting KC-10s and KC-135s and the Bs(1s,2s and 52s)start showing up in Guam for "deployment exercises" and I lived in Iran,I'd make sure my air-raid shelter was stocked. Until then,let the ranting continue.
Posted by: Stephen ||
10/29/2005 3:09 Comments ||
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#7
youse guys are outta here--where's the loyalty---whattya diplomats or something--this guy is the "little caesar" of islam and he's gonna be delivered to his mudda dressed as a dead mummy if he doesn't shut up--he's way ahead in the vote for zealot of the year and he'd like to thank the academy
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
10/29/2005 4:22 Comments ||
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#8
The Hebes will do the dirty work, but don't forget that their interests are their interests. As far as Israeli pre-attack indicators... don't be surprised if they arrange the accidental shoot down a US recon aircraft and crew or try to sink a US Navy ship in the Levant or the Gulf. Remember the Liberty!
#9
âThey are telling everyone not to be afraid of threats of military action by the West, as this is only a bluffâ.
President Ah'm an Idjit might want to ask Saddam about Western 'bluffs'.
#11
OT : Ms. Trailing wife, you didn't get so I re-iterate (I'm in a comment-prone mood today), but I'd like to thank you for the warm words about lil' Ulysse, they were transmitted to the mother and father! Cheers!
#13
don't be surprised if they arrange the accidental shoot down a US recon aircraft
Wow, is this like a pre-emptive conspiracy theory? Or a pre-conspiracy theory? Or is it a conspiracy pre-theory?
Posted by: Rafael ||
10/29/2005 12:22 Comments ||
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#14
premature ejewculation
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/29/2005 12:34 Comments ||
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#15
Bonjour, a5089! Ca va? You are too kind -- it's always a pleasure to welcome a newcomer to this interesting world of ours, and if his parents bring up their Ulysse to be as aware of what is happening beyond his doorstep as his Uncle a5089, they will have done well. And if he can write as interestingly and informatively as you about the politics of his time, then the trailing daughters in their turn will appreciate him as much as Rantburg does you. :-D
#18
Lol, Ship. He sorta said it all in his nym - he's suffering from foreign object damage. Too bad it wasn't a .303 7.62mm lead insertion. Those pesky bouts with dementia would be over.
#19
Do you think this guy is taking out a brush and painting a target on his back? I mean how stupid is the F***tard? I hope he keeps this line of bluster up for a few months. That will be the time it takes for the Euros to finally feel the impact of the clue-bat. Once they do, then something is going to go down. Springtime in Qom could be ugly.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who will be replaced by Ghulam Nabi Azad on November 2, resigned on Saturday. Sayeed met state Governor Lt Gen (Retd) S K Sinha at the Raj Bhawan and submitted his resignation. The move comes after Congress High Command nominated Azad as Chief Minister for the party's three-year turn to head the coalition government.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 09:16 ||
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The opposition in the National Assembly (NA) on Friday demanded the government withdraw its decision to welcome North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) forces to Pakistan and take parliament into confidence before making any fiscal changes in the aftermath of the October 8 earthquake. Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the government had not taken parliament into confidence over the October 8 situation. âNational solidarity is a two-way process and therefore the government should respond to the opposition,â he added. Pakistan did not need NATO or other forces, as it had a sufficient amount of armed forces to meet challenges, he said, adding, âThe government must explain its position before the House and send back all foreign troops. There should not be political motive behind extending relief.â
Posted by: Fred ||
10/29/2005 00:27 ||
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#1
ROFL.
"national solidarity" - Internal warfare is our norm!
"fiscal changes" - Wait, that's our pie!
"meet challenges" - Just not enough to be stable, heh.
"political motive" - LOL. Duh.
ROFL.
KABUL - An Afghan court has ruled two brothers should be executed for their involvement in the 2001 killing of four journalists, including two from Reuters, a senior judge said on Friday. Zar Jan and Abdul Wahid can both appeal the verdict which was announced at a trial on Thursday, the judge told Reuters. Five other men, accomplices of the pair, were each sentenced to 20 years in jail for other criminal acts such as highway robbery and theft, he said. The brothers have confessed partial involvement in the killing of the journalists at Tangi Abrishum, about 90 km (55 miles) east of Kabul on Nov. 19, 2001, days after US-led forces overthrew the Taleban government, the judge said.
Anyone know if a Spanish court is poised to intervene?
The judge described Zar Jan as the leader of a criminal gang and said he was also wanted on suspicion of armed robbery, kidnapping and other killings. A third suspect in the killing, Reza Khan, who was arrested in November, has also been sentenced to death by two courts. Khan has said the gang had acted on the orders of a Taliban commander. If the final court approves the death sentence for the trio, only President Hamid Karzai can decide their fate, on the basis of Afghanistanâs law.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/29/2005 00:00 ||
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Anyone know if a Spanish court is poised to intervene?
Only if it involved American troops would it be considered a 'crime against the international community'.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
In a letter smuggled from prison and published by Asharq al Awsat, 
A defense lawyer for ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein wrote to UN chief Kofi Annan Friday calling for the court trying him on charges of crimes against humanity to be moved to The Hague and its Iraqi judges replaced by foreign ones. "We submit to you our request for your involvement and your good office in the present circumstances to call upon the U.S. authority and the present government of Iraq to review the legal status of the present court and to reallocate the present court outside Iraq, i.e. The Hague, Netherlands," said the letter to Annan from defence lawyer Najib al-Nawimi. He called for the court to be given "independent and impartial international judges" and also for pressure to be put on the Iraqi authorities and their U.S. backers to recognize Saddam and his co-defendants as prisoners of war.
Prime Minister 
Leading circles within the parliamentary majority are questioning the motives behind UN envoy 
Though he insisted on wanting to know the truth, maintaining the UN investigation and not exploiting the investigation to punish other parties, Nasrallah said he believed that any sanctions against Syria would only pave the way for future targeting of Hizbullah and Palestinian arms.
Syrian President 
DAMASCUS - Egyptian leader 
TEHERAN - In a clear move aimed at calming worldwide tensions and condemnations over anti-Israeli remarks by President 
TEHERAN - Iran complained on Friday that a call by its hardline president for Israel to be âwiped off the mapâ had been exaggerated by foreign media and played down the controversial remarks as being nothing new.
The opposition in the National Assembly (NA) on Friday demanded the government withdraw its decision to welcome North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) forces to Pakistan and take parliament into confidence before making any fiscal changes in the aftermath of the October 8 earthquake. Maulana Fazlur Rehman said the government had not taken parliament into confidence over the October 8 situation. âNational solidarity is a two-way process and therefore the government should respond to the opposition,â he added. Pakistan did not need NATO or other forces, as it had a sufficient amount of armed forces to meet challenges, he said, adding, âThe government must explain its position before the House and send back all foreign troops. There should not be political motive behind extending relief.â
KABUL - An Afghan court has ruled two brothers should be executed for their involvement in the 2001 killing of four journalists, including two from Reuters, a senior judge said on Friday. 
