A Taliban ambush killed 16 policemen in Afghanistan on Thursday as the NATO-led force said a chopper that came down in the south, killing seven foreign soldiers, might have been struck by hostile fire.
Afghan officials announced meanwhile that at least a dozen Taliban fighters lost their lives in incidents overnight. Bombing raids in the southern province of Helmand believed to have killed and injured several more. A three-vehicle police convoy was on its way from the south to the capital, Kabul, when it was ambushed along the main highway, the interior ministry said. Sixteen police were martyred and another six were injured today at 8:30am in an ambush by the enemies of peace in Afghanistan, spokesman Zemarai Bashary told AFP. There were also casualties on the Taliban side, Bashary said, without giving a number.
NATOs International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said in Kabul meanwhile that a Chinook that came down in Helmand late Wednesday might have been hit by hostile fire. The Taliban movement said its men shot down the chopper.
We are able to say now that there may have been enemy fire in bringing down the helicopter, the ISAF media office in Kabul said. It could be anything from small arms fire upwards, it added.
The 37-nation force does not release the nationalities of its casualties but the Ministry of Defence announced in London that one of the seven dead was a British soldier. Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi said late Wednesday that our brothers in Helmand had brought down the heavy transport helicopter. The helicopter burst into flames in the sky and then crashed, he said, citing the local rebel cell that claimed to have carried out the attack.
The defence ministry said meanwhile that Afghan and ISAF soldiers became involved in heavy fighting in Helmand early Thursday. Tens of enemy elements have been killed and injured, it said in a statement. Various enemy locations were bombed by the air forces and the operation is still ongoing, it added. Separately the district centre in western Farah province, which is on the Iranian border, came under heavy attack by enemies of peace and sovereignty overnight, the interior ministry said on Thursday. Police returned fire, killing 10 rebels and injuring 15, it said. In the southern province of Kandahar, two Taliban insurgents fell victim to one of their own bombs when the device exploded as they were planting it, Panjwayi district governor Niaz Mohammad Sarhadi said. In Khost province, the US-led coalition detained three suspected Taliban militants in a raid, officials said.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I really wish we had a better heavy helicopter than the ancient Chinook. Even their pilots are fatalists because of the inherent dangers of that aircraft. It is early 1960s technology.
#4
Sure did, Ship. Fortunately only in the pool, and not in the Gulf. The crew of a field I was working did fish a Shell helo & crew out with our rig crane once though. Good pilot auto-rotated down right next to the (not Shell) platform.
#6
Helicopters are the best way to get on an offshore platform. The ONLY alternatives are to jump on a 'basket' (ring with rope web) and get jerked off the deck of a heaving boat (while sometimes personally heaving) and lifted 100 feet or more up to the rig floor, or grabbing a knotted rope and swinging from that same heaving boat to a steel grate 'landing' and climbing 100' of stairs. And by 'heaving' boat I mean 4' waves are a calm day. In the Gulf - I can't even imagine the North Sea.
Several hundred Somali soldiers briefly seized the southern port of Kismayu in a protest over unpaid salaries in the latest sign of the turmoil plaguing the Horn of Africa nation, residents said on Thursday.
It was a lot easier to seize this time than it was when it was occupied by the Powerful Islamic CourtsTM, it would seem. I wonder if they had help from the Æthiops this time, too?
Business was brought to a standstill as about 800 troops driving dozens of vehicles mounted with heavy weaponry took up positions across the town overnight on Tuesday, they said.
I'm sure they looked, oh, so very impressive, and they felt very martial.
Clan elders persuaded the men to return to their barracks on Wednesday after promising the government would pay their wages.
The infallible sign of an incompetent administration is the troops and/or bureaucrats not being paid.
"We have not been paid for the last six months," one soldier, Jama Hashi Hassan, said.
I'da been looking for another line of work somewhere around month one of that condition.
"We took over the port in order to press the government to pay us our dues."
"And to pick up some chicks."
One Kismayu businessman said the situation remained tense and that the soldiers -- many of whom were former militiamen who signed up recently with the interim government -- had threatened to take their pay by force from the port's proceeds.
Another sign of a failed state is when the members of the army can make a seamless move to being members of bands of bandidos. Often they remain members of the army while they're doing it.
"Business has badly been affected by the brief incident," said the man, who asked to be identified only as Ali.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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Fred's back, rested, letting the Æ thingy out of the lock box and packing a new font.
(SomaliNet) At least four civilians died when a remote-controlled roadside bomb tore into an Ethiopian army convoy in Somalia on Thursday wounding five soldiers, locals and a security source said. The attack is the latest in a wave of Iraq-style insurgent strikes rocking the Horn of Africa nation.
An Ethiopian truck was blown up, resident Osman Adan said by telephone. The Ethiopian troops immediately opened fire indiscriminately with heavy machine-guns.
Seven locals were caught in the cross-fire, but local journalist Ali Dahir said he had been able to verify four civilian fatalities, Adan said. Two seriously injured soldiers were being removed from the truck. There was a lot of blood at the scene, Mr Dahir added. Nobody knows whether the Ethiopian soldiers died or not.
Witnesses said Ethiopian soldiers cordoned off the area after the blast and carried out door-to-door searches in nearby streets. The security source in Mogadishu said one Ethiopian truck was destroyed by an anti-tank mine set off by remote control a new tactic being used by the insurgents.
Meanwhile, Nato allies are studying a request from the African Union to provide air transport for its troops in Somalia, an alliance official said today. We are seeking military advice on how to respond to the request. There is an intention among allies to help, said the official of an AU request he said Nato received in recent days.
The official said he understood the support would be similar to that provided to AU peacekeepers in Sudans Darfur region, where Nato planes have since 2005 helped troop reinforcements and rotations. The Nato official said he understood the AU wanted help relatively quickly.
At present the AU force is made up of just 1,600 Ugandans. Other African nations have been wary of sending more soldiers, especially after four Ugandan peacekeepers were killed two weeks ago by a roadside bomb targeting their convoy.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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Same defeat on the battlefield followed by the same coward tactics in the aftermath. I pray - I quite literally pray - the Ethiopians take a sterner line with this than the rest of us have done so far.
(SomaliNet) The governor of Bari region in Puntland state, northeast Somalia Muse Gele Farole said on Thursday they had sent armed forces to Bargale coast, 560km east of Bosaso, the largest city in Puntland to crack down what he called Islamist remnants including foreign Al-Qaeda linked operatives who reached there with boats.
We have been tipped that there were 35 heavily armed men and were aboard two high-speed boats, so our forces were deployed in the area to confront the Islamists, he said.
Mr. Gedi told the local media this morning that when the Islamic insurgents with two boats came off shore a day before, they had suddenly clashed with the local militia supported by Puntland forces exchanging heavy gunfire.
After several hours of gun battle, the Islamists faced strong resistance and one of their boats was captured by Puntland troops while the other escaped into the sea where they are being surrounded by the local militia and Puntland troops, said Gedi.
The foreign fighters include Yemenis, Afghans, Asians and Arabs with Somalis and they were from Raskaboni islands in southern Somalia heading to Yemen, according to the governor.
The insurgents are now in the mountains of Bargale coast for safe heaven but they are in isolation and will either give in to the forces or be captured in the coming hours, added Gele.
Meanwhile, the president of Puntland state Adde Muse Hersi declined to comment on the presence of the Islamic Courts in Puntland regions. Earlier Mr. Muse said his regional government will not allow Islamist radicals to flourish inside Puntland.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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Three criminals were killed in "crossfire" during "shootouts" between law enforcers and the criminal's accomplices in Dhaka and Kushtia yesterday. The dead were identified as Mizanur Rahman, 25, Sahidul Islam alias Picture, 25, and Tofazzol Hossain alias Tota, 30.
The first is not a full-fledged 'cross-fire', as you'll see ...
It falls into the "encounter" catagory
Us trained observers can recognize the difference at a glance.
Sources said a Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) patrol team challenged a group of five to six youths near Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in the capital around 11:15pm.
"Hey, you yoots! Drop da rods and getcher mitts in da air!"
As the gang started shooting at the Rab personnel.
"You'll never take Mizanur alive, coppers!"
"OK"
Rab retaliated leading to a 10-minute gunfight.
[BANG! BANG! BANGETY BANG!]
"What time is it, Mahmoud?"
[KAPOW! KAZING!]
"About eight minutes after!"
[POW! POW!]
"Let's give it another coupla minutes. Then we're outta here!"
[BANG! KAPOW!]
"Hokay."
When the gang finally ran awayfled retreated they left behind the bullet riddled body of Mizanur Rahman.
Police sources claimed Mizanur has several criminal cases filed against him with Tejgaon Police Station including four murder cases.
Bet his mother doesn't love him either.
Two cadres of the outlawed Gono Mukti Fouj (GMF) were killed in "crossfire" during a "shootout" between police and their cohorts at Milpara in Kushtia early yesterday, our Khustia correspondent reports.
But these are cross-fires with all the accessories ...
Police sources said following secret information that GMF is holding a secret meeting at Milpara, a team of Kushtia police raided the area around 3:30am and managed to close in on them.
Snuck up right behind their ears, the better to shoot them there ...
They asked them to surrender ...
"Hey, you outlaws! Drop da rods and getcher mitts in da air!"
... but the criminals started shooting at the police.
"You'll never take Picure and Tota alive, coppers!"
Police retaliated that lead to a 30-minute gun battle.
29 minutes more than was necessary, or happened ...
Following the shootout the criminals managed to flee but they left behind the bodies of Picture and Tota on the spot.
"Which spot?"
"That spot!"
Police also recovered one locally made gun and seven bullets from the spot.
Lotsa things found on that spot ...
According to police, Picture was accused in twelve systems eight criminal cases and convicted in a murder case. He was given the death sentence by a special tribunal.
And whaddaya know, it was carried out ...
Tofa was accused in 10 criminal cases including abduction, rape, robbery and murder.
Definitely a bad boy. Too bad he wasn't an Islamist, he would have been let off.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Yeah, 11:15 is way too early for a proper crossfire.
Nine men accused of preparing a terrorist act on Australian soil have ignited another debate, refusing to stand before the NSW Supreme Court and enter their not guilty pleas. The men, who were allegedly inspired by the September 11 attacks to plan terrorist attacks here, were brought amid tight security to the Supreme Court yesterday. They were formally arraigned, charged with conspiring to prepare a terrorist act, or acts, between July 8, 2004 and November 8, 2005.
Before Justice Anthony Whealy read out the indictment to the men - many dressed in traditional Islamic robes - he asked them to stand and enter their pleas. A lawyer for some of the men, Adam Houda, said there was a problem. "The accused have a problem with standing up not to be disrespectful but it's a religious observance," Mr Houda said. Justice Whealy said he would not insist. "Judges are made of more robust material but a jury might take a different view."
However, the men's stance concerned some Muslims. "[Standing up] is not out of respect for the judge, but for the institution of the court regardless of whether its Sharia or any other court," said a lawyer, Irfan Yusuf. "I can't see why these boys would have any problems. I am not aware of any mainstream religious scholars or jurists saying the accused should not stand."
It would seem their problems are of their own making, wouldn't it?
However, a friend of Mr Houda, the prominent Muslim spokesman Keysar Trad, told the Herald the observance came from an instruction by the prophet Muhammad to "not stand" and pay homage to him. "There's a lot of people in the Muslim community who take that proposition literally and feel if you were to stand up for another person that disturbs the balance of equality," Mr Trad said. "[Mr Houda] has assured me they were not being disrespectful."
The logistical problems of the trial emerged yesterday, with the realisation that jury members may need to devote much of 2008 to hear the cases against the men. Justice Whealy, who presided over the trial of Faheem Khalid Lodhi last year, set the trial down for February, saying he did not want it to spill over into 2009.
#1
"I can't see why these boys would have any problems. I am not aware of any mainstream religious scholars or jurists saying the accused should not stand."
Gee....maybe they have some other reason... Maybe they are a bunch of filthy mass murderers.
I read this and actually laughed out loud.
Posted by: Mark E. ||
06/01/2007 8:57 Comments ||
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#2
"Judges are made of more robust material but a jury might take a different view."
Like, maybe, "Hey, maybe these assholes should do a lotta time in jail"?
A view something like that, Justice Wheatley?
Posted by: Natural Law ||
06/01/2007 12:10 Comments ||
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#6
Treble 00-snagging hooks on a short pole. You'd be surprised how well that acts as a motivator. I'd be able to get them to stand every time. Of course, the "human rights" people would have cat-fits.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/01/2007 14:31 Comments ||
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#7
Treble 00-snagging hooks on a short pole. You'd be surprised how well that acts as a motivator. I'd be able to get them to stand every time. Of course, the "human rights" people would have cat-fits.
hummm just wondering... if at some time in the past OP ever indulged in the fine art of snagging...
#8
a nice gaffectomy will convince the most reticient
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/01/2007 20:19 Comments ||
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"The accused have a problem with standing up not to be disrespectful but it's a religious observance," Mr Houda said. Justice Whealy said he would not insist. "Judges are made of more robust material but a jury might take a different view."
Simple solution. Jail them for contempt and make initiation of their trial conditional upon their standing in court to enter their plea. Any continuing refusal to stand in court represents a self-imposed life sentence. This sort of shit has gone way too far. Islam's delusion of supremacy is pathological and must be crushed under the bootheel of modern civilization. Nothing less will suffice.
The Interior Ministrys National Crisis Management Cell (NCMC) has warned three federal ministers that they are on the hit list of Baitullah Mehsud and should take extra security measures, sources told Daily Times here on Wednesday. The sources said that
Baitullah Mehsud, believed to be the head of Taliban operations in South Waziristan, was running the biggest suicide training camp in the country.
Baitullah Mehsud, believed to be the head of Taliban operations in South Waziristan, was running the biggest suicide training camp in the country and planned to assassinate Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao, Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad and Minister for Political Affairs Amir Muqam, said the sources. Mehsud is believed to have been behind the suicide attack on Mr Sherpao on April 28, the sources said. The NCMC has formally informed Mr Ahmad and Mr Muqam of the intelligence reports warning of serious threats against them.
Yes I have received a letter from the Interior Ministry showing concern over my security, Mr Ahmad confirmed. NCMC Director General Brig. (r) Javed Iqbal Cheema in his letters to both ministers said that the group that tried to kill Mr Sherpao at Charsadda last month might attack them with car bombs, said the sources. The NCMC suggested that both ministers take preventive measures to forestall any such attack. Brig Cheema didnt confirm the report. It is a sensitive matter which should not be discussed, he said. Sources said that intelligence agencies had also asked Mr Sherpao to enhance his security and minimise his public appearances.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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Hangu District Nazim Ghani-ur-Rehman and close friend of Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao Khan survived unhurt after a bomb explosion damaged his vehicle on Wednesday, security sources said. It was a remote-controlled device and I was the prime target. But I am totally unhurt, Rehman told reporters. Rehman was on his way home from his office in the afternoon when the attack occurred on Thall Road, police said, adding, The bomb was planted near the roadside and caused slight damage to the vehicle. The NWFP has been experiencing a wave of bomb blasts and suicide attacks in recent months. The provincial government blames invisible hands, a reference to intelligence agencies, for the worsening law and order situation.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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A court on Wednesday sentenced to life in jail an 83-year-old man named as one of the main conspirators in bombings, which killed 257 people in Mumbai in 1993. Dawood Phanse was one of the main people taken to Dubai to meet the alleged masterminds of the blasts, fugitives Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon, Judge PD Kode said. His age was the only reason why I have not given maximum punishment of death, he said. Phanse was also fined 4,900 dollars. After a decade of hearings, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities court in Mumbai last December found 100 people guilty out of 123 accused and began sentencing earlier this month. More than 50 people, including government officials and policemen, have so far been given varying jail terms for their role in the conspiracy. The sentencing is expected to continue for weeks after one of the worlds longest trials ended last year. The Black Friday attacks were allegedly coordinated by Mumbais Muslim-dominated underworld in revenge for Hindu-Muslim religious clashes a few months earlier.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
About a one year sentence for mass murder. Hmmmm. Our gangs use young kids for a lot of their risky criminal operations since they won't do much time as juvenile offenders. Makes even more sense to use the elderly in a similar fashion since they can't do much time. Do we have any WWII vets who want to go out in style on a hunt for Osama etc?
#2
I recall that PETA made the same call for oldsters to commit eco-terrorism, but nobody responded. I am also aware of an appeal for older Australian men, especially veterans, to perform acts of civil disobedience on behalf of the pro-life movement, but the agent provacateur was denounced by churches and pro-life organizations, and ignored by the media.
#3
So first the elderly gentleman had to spend a full decade trundling between the jailhouse and the courthouse for the trial? Fair enough -- this last stretch will be a doddle by comparison.
That Postie headline editor just couldn't find the words to announce a Sunni vs. Sunni conflict. Good article, though.
More at the link
BAGHDAD, May 31 -- Sunni residents of a west Baghdad neighborhood used assault rifles and a roadside bomb to battle the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq this week, leaving at least 28 people dead and six injured, residents said Thursday.
The mayor of the Amiriyah neighborhood, Mohammed Abdul Khaliq, said in a telephone interview that residents were rising up to try to expel al-Qaeda in Iraq, which has alienated other Sunnis with its indiscriminate violence and attacks on members of its own sect.
"I think this is going to be the end of the al-Qaeda presence here," Abdul Khaliq said of the fighting Wednesday and Thursday, which began over accusations that al-Qaeda in Iraq had executed Sunnis without reason.
The Baghdad battle is evidence of a deepening split between some Sunni insurgent groups and al-Qaeda in Iraq, which claims allegiance to Osama bin Laden. Although similar rebellions occurred in Diyala province earlier this year, the fighting this week appears to be the first time the conflict has reached the streets of Baghdad.
Abdul Khaliq said he hoped U.S. forces would stay out of the fight. "But if the Americans interfere, it will blow up, because they are the enemy of us both, and we will unite against them and stop fighting each other," he said.
In the western province of Anbar, which is predominantly Sunni, tribal leaders have formed an umbrella group, the Anbar Salvation Council, to join with U.S. and Iraqi troops in a common fight against al-Qaeda in Iraq, which used to dominate the province. Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, the No. 2 commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, said at a news briefing Thursday that 12,000 Anbar residents have joined the Iraqi security forces in the first five months of this year, compared with 1,000 in all of last year.
Tribal leaders say they are signing up because they oppose al-Qaeda in Iraq's extremist ideologies and its attacks on local residents, but critics of the council say the U.S. effort in Anbar amounts to backing one private army against another.
In an attack clearly meant to intimidate the tribes, a suicide bomber wearing an explosives vest blew himself up Thursday among 150 recruits waiting to enter a police compound in the Anbar city of Fallujah, killing 25 people and wounding at least 20, said Ayman Hussein Zaidan, an official at Fallujah General Hospital.
In a second suicide attack Thursday in Anbar, six people were killed, including three policemen, when a car bomb exploded at a telephone exchange in Ramadi, the provincial capital about 60 miles west of Baghdad, said Col. Tariq al-Dulaimi, a local police chief. He said seven police officers and two bystanders were wounded in the blast.
The Amiriyah neighborhood, located near Baghdad International Airport in the western part of the capital, has been hit hard by rampant violence, a lack of services and the expulsion of Shiite families. It is considered a virtual no man's land.
Problems arose on Tuesday when the Islamic Army, a powerful Sunni insurgent group, posted a statement at a local mosque criticizing al-Qaeda in Iraq for killing dozens of other Sunnis in Fallujah and Baghdad "on suspicion only," without sufficient evidence that they had done something wrong, according to a copy sent to The Washington Post. The message warned al-Qaeda in Iraq to stop the practice, which it said could lead to clashes between them.
Late Wednesday afternoon, according to residents reached by phone who would not be quoted by name for security reasons, an armed group scrawled graffiti on a school wall reading: "Down with al-Qaeda, long live the honest resistance." When al-Qaeda in Iraq members came to wipe away the writing, a roadside bomb exploded nearby, killing three of them, residents said. I bet they didn't see that coming.
Al-Qaeda in Iraq then attacked a mosque associated with the Islamic Army, killing the group's leader, Razi al-Zobai, and four other fighters, complaining in a statement that the Islamic Army had become involved in the political process in Iraq, residents said. In retaliation, the Islamic Army attacked a mosque associated with al-Qaeda in Iraq, killing one of the group's leaders, known as Sheik Hamid, and four other members, including Waleed Saber Tikriti, a doctor who treated al-Qaeda in Iraq's wounded, residents said.
On Thursday, al-Qaeda in Iraq reinforcements arrived from other Baghdad neighborhoods, residents said, and furious fighting erupted between the groups, lasting about four hours. Nine fighters from al-Qaeda in Iraq and six from the Islamic Army were killed, according to Abu Ahmed al-Baghdadi, an Islamic Army leader reached by telephone. He said six civilians were injured by a mortar round fired by al-Qaeda in Iraq "criminals."
Baghdadi said about 40 members of al-Qaeda in Iraq fought a force of 30 fighters from the Islamic Army and the 1920 Revolution Brigades, another Sunni insurgent group. The latter two groups were aided by local residents who oppose al-Qaeda in Iraq, he said.
Despite being outnumbered, the Sunni insurgent leaders asserted, they had a significant advantage over al-Qaeda in Iraq because its members were staying in abandoned Shiite houses that were well known, while the Sunni insurgents were blended among the population.
Late Thursday, a senior Iraqi army official in Baghdad, Brig. Gen. Qasim Atta, said on state-run al-Iraqiya television that calm had returned to the neighborhood.
#2
"But if the Americans interfere, it will blow up, because they are the enemy of us both, and we will unite against them and stop fighting each other," he said.
No worries, Khaliq-dude. We're on the sidelines 5x5, with plenty of popcorn. When yer all done bleeding yerselves white, we'll take er from there.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
06/01/2007 11:14 Comments ||
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#3
We're on the sidelines 5x5
That sounds like an obscure football reference to me, Rex Mundi dear. Would you be so kind as to translate for the popular culturally illiterate? Thanks!
#5
Heyas TW. I first heard this as a lad watching Aliens...it's slang for "all is well" or "well and good". Urban Dictionary points to aeronautical term for radio signals in terms of clarity and strenth measured in scales of 1 to 5..with 5 being the strongest measure. And yes...sidelines is the football reference. Football, popcorn, and red-on-red...it's gonna be a good day.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
06/01/2007 13:54 Comments ||
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#6
Iraq the Model offers his thoughts:
Red on Red in Amiriyah
Fighting in a western Baghdad district between two insurgent groups continued for the 2nd day, eye witnesses told ITM.
The clashes erupted yesterday around noon between two groups of insurgents that are competing for control in the Amiriya district, one of Baghdad's most violent and lawless districts.
The two groups, teams actually, were later identified; on one side there's al-Qaeda and the Islamic state in Iraq and on the other there's the Islamic army and 'Jaish al-Mujahideen' (The brigades of the 1920 revolution in another account), the latter are know to be largely military and intelligence officers of the former regime as well as members of the Baath Party.
"I saw seven or eight bodies of militants who were killed in the clashes lying on the ground" one eyewitness said this morning. This was before the fighting resumed after a short pause.
Sot al-Iraq reports that machineguns, RPG's and mortars were used in the clashes and that masked men, believed to be reinforcements for al-Qaeda began pouring into the district.
Islamic extremists like al-Qaeda often clash with the pan-nationalist, less Islamic elements of insurgent groups which are largely made up former military officers and Baathists, so this is not the first time that such clashes occur in Amiriyah or Adhamiyah where both groups have strong presence but this time the clashes are fiercer and lasted longer than any previous incident.
AP has a quite different story though:
A battle raged in west Baghdad on Thursday after residents rose up against al-Qaida and called for U.S. military help to end random gunfire that forced people to huddle indoors and threats that kept students from final exams, a member of the district council said.
While I so much wish this was true, the information I received from inside Amiriyah says that the fighting was mostly between the two groups mentioned above and the intervention by the American troops was only a routine response to the spike in violence.
Either way, al-Qaeda is under pressure on more than one front and it has lost a bunch of its commanders and fighters and this is always good news.
One correction to the AP story, Hajj Hameed was the chief of the Sharia courts of al-Qaeda in Amiriyah, not the leader of the network. Only god knows how many innocent people were executed by orders from this terrorist. Whether killed by Baathists, fellow terrorists, good Iraqis or American troops. Good riddance!
#8
Sounds more like purple-on-red: bad guys who are coming over to our side (or might be tempted to do so if they can get the same deal Robert E. Lee got at Appomattox) battling the other bad guys who aren't.
I love this part:
an armed group scrawled graffiti on a school wall reading: "Down with al-Qaeda, long live the honest resistance." When al-Qaeda in Iraq members came to wipe away the writing, a roadside bomb exploded nearby, killing three of them
Posted by: Mike ||
06/01/2007 14:17 Comments ||
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#9
Abdul Khaliq said he hoped U.S. forces would stay out of the fight. "But if the Americans interfere, it will blow up, because they are the enemy of us both, and we will unite against them and stop fighting each other," he said.
This comment is a tell that this article is infiltrated with propaganda. At the very least it represents the clueless, inaccurate type of reporting that we have become accustomed to.
Nobody EVER resists help killing their enemies. The enemy of my enemy is a constant rule of warfighting - secondary only to divide and conquer.
One can just picture ol' Abdul Kahliq making himself available to the reporter for that quote. And the gullible reporter swallowed it hook, line and sinker because he knew his editor would love it. I think you have to be void of common sense to work for these papers.
#10
Abdul Khaliq said he hoped U.S. forces would stay out of the fight. "But if the Americans interfere, it will blow up, because they are the enemy of us both, and we will unite against them and stop fighting each other," he said.
Speaking for myself, jackass, it's no skin off my back if you end up with your throat slit so I'd be all too happy to leave you to the tender mercies of Moqtada al Sadr and his Iranian puppet masters if only Bush could see his way clear to bomb the crap out of Iran first. But you really should be careful what you ask for.
Once again, the old "more Islamic than thou" crapulence. This is and will be the death of Islam if they somehow manage to avoid nuclear annihilation. Still more strange fitting is how they may even be the source of their own nuclear holocaust. Should the West prove too squeamish to accommodate Islam's lust for neutron bombardment they will most certainly provide it for themselves. There is no force on earth sufficiently powerful to restrain Islam from its own self-destruction. All that remains to be seen is whether Western culture will pre-empt all further mayhem and do them the favor beforehand.
#15
Very cool, indeed, Justrand. Thanks! And very good news that with the hand-over to the Kurds, one third of Iraq is now completely self-governing, if I read the article correctly.
#16
an armed group scrawled graffiti on a school wall reading: "Down with al-Qaeda, long live the honest resistance." When al-Qaeda in Iraq members came to wipe away the writing, a roadside bomb exploded nearby, killing three of them
O I love it, a booby trap nets three boobies
(perhaps a lexicon change is in order, "A stupid trap" rings better than "Booby Trap", I tend to think of "boobies in bras" when I hear that.)
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
06/01/2007 23:34 Comments ||
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Al-Shamri has found a new life in the US after spilling the beans, reports Nermeen Al-Mufti from Baghdad
Despite operations imposing law, which started three months ago, Baghdad is still a city haunted by death. An average of 24 dead bodies, all killed in mysterious circumstances, are found in the capital's streets every day. According to US reports, May has been one of the worst months for the US forces -- over 115 US servicemen have been killed so far.
The most important news of the week, however, was the reappearance of Moqtada Al-Sadr. The Shia leader who has been in hiding since February appeared in the Koufa Mosque during the Friday prayers. According to US authorities, Al-Sadr was in Iran, hiding with other leaders of the Mahdi Army. But Al-Sadr aides say that he was living a secluded life in Najaf and never left the country. Al-Maliki's government has not commented on the matter. A media source close to Al-Sadr told me that he used to call him from an Iraqi mobile phone during the entire period he was in hiding.
As soon as he reappeared, Al-Sadr called on the occupation forces to withdraw or set a timetable for withdrawal. But, aside from his surprising reappearance, something else is likely to attract media attention to Al-Sadr. The former health minister and one- time Sadrist, Ali Al-Shamri, who withdrew from the government after Al-Sadr pulled his ministers from the cabinet, has applied for asylum in the US.
Much has been said about the former health minister, including claims that he turned the Health Ministry into a haven for death squads. The accusations against Al-Shamri intensified after Ali Al-Mahdawi, health chief in Diyali, disappeared a year ago. Al-Mahdawi had come to meet Al-Shamri to discuss his nomination by the (Sunni) Reconciliation Block for the job of deputy health minister. After entering Al-Shamri's office, he was never seen again.
Al-Shamri was holding out the promise of his sister, Lucretia, in marriage, you see.
The daily Al-Zaman claims that Al-Shamri, who is accused of leading the death squads and selling bodies from the Baghdad morgue, gave the Americans information about the Mahdi Army in return for asylum.
Al-Shamri is said to have provided the US authorities in Iraq with detailed information about Iranian weapon supplies to the Mahdi Army, the connections between the Mahdi Army commanders and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the safe houses in which the Mahdi army commanders meet in Baghdad, and the names of those commanders. The information he provided enticed the Americans to grant him asylum and move him aboard a helicopter from Baghdad to a US airport...
#1
Glad to see there is no honor among these orcs.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
06/01/2007 8:52 Comments ||
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#2
I hope they keep close tabs on his new life, along with all the other 2,000 refugees who have cooperated with the US and arriving to Anytown, USA by September.
#5
Much has been said about the former health minister, including claims that he turned the Health Ministry into a haven for death squads.
What kind of government do they have if someone can turn the Health Ministry into a haven for death squads? Does each ministry have its own security service?
#6
Here we have a high-level insurgent arrested and spilling the beans for leading a death squad out of the Ministry of Health for the Tater. Now, we know that he's been given asylum in the US.
I'm getting real tired of this kid-gloves treatment for our enemies.
#7
Tater needs to be peeled and deep-fried. In public. In the center of Baghdad. On a Friday afternoon.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/01/2007 15:11 Comments ||
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#8
all killed in mysterious circumstances
WTF is so "mysterious" about Muslim-on-Muslim terrorism? From all I can tell, it's a genetic predisposition or congenital defect feature. The only thing that will stop Muslims from killing each other and anyone else in their line of sight is bringing them to room temperature first.
The Army of Islam is a shadowy but powerful group that is wielding increasing control in Gaza. It is headed by a powerful Gaza clan, the Dagmoush, who are thought to have kidnapped BBC journalist Alan Johnston for use as a bargaining chip. Known as Jaish-e-al-Islam, it is thought to be influenced by, but not affiliated with, al Qaida and seeks liberation of Palestine and an Islamic state.
The clan is a led by a Gaza-based Palestinian family affiliated with local terrorist organisations and ideologically aligned, at least, with global jihad groups. Some members of the clan lead the "Saladin resistance department" of the Popular Resistance Committees, a coalition of terrorist organisations operating in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The clan is thought to have several thousand members and has been described as "the Sopranos of Gaza City".
Up to now the clan's activities have been described by Palestinian officials as largely criminal, involving extortion, smuggling, arms dealing and the ruthless dispatch of rivals. It remains unclear whether the group already has al Qaida links, or whether it is merely trying to attract the international jihadist groups' support.
The Dagmoush used to support Yassir Arafat's Fatah movement but switched their allegiance to Hamas, with whom they claimed responsibility jointly for the kidnapping last June of the Israeli soldier Gilat Shalit. It has kidnapped journalists and Western aid workers before for that purpose, but has never held them long. The Israeli government is among those who believe that the Dagmoush clan has embraced a more radical al Qaeda style ideology.
Professor Paul Wilkinson, from the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at St Andrews University, also said the group seemed to be "jihadist", and was clearly not a mainstream Palestinian movement. "We don't know of their precise connections. But I think what we may be seeing is a group that is moving from support and sympathy for jihadic operations to active operations."
He understood the group's demands had included the release of prisoners in the UK, which could explain the release of today's video. He said: "This again demonstrates that they are connected to broader jihadism. We desperately need to know more about this group. But you have to realise that they are very skilled at keeping a low profile in their area. Their constant attention to secrecy surrounding their movements and communication makes it very difficult for governments to learn about them."
He urged caution about assumptions that their main aim was to secure the release of prisoners here, saying they could be trying to send a broader message to the Muslim world about their involvement in jihad. "They seem to be part of the wider jihad phenomenon. We just don't know enough about them to know what their full agenda is."
#1
Unlike the Professor, I can tell you terrorism is a business like any other. If "the Sopranos of Gaza City" are into it, then there is money to be made, which begs the question, where is it coming from?
#2
The only funding source large enough would be skimming the $1.2 billion jizya paid by western governments last year. In effect we are funding a war against ourselves. I say a good place to start would be to pick up a Gaza phone book and put a 2000 pounder into each Dagmoush address.
Posted by: ed ||
06/01/2007 15:15 Comments ||
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#3
Shock chlorinate the entire Dagmoush gene pool. Problem solved.
Kidnapped BBC Gaza correspondent Alan Johnston has said in a video released by his captors today that they had treated him well. The undated video, posted on an Islamist website, is the first time Johnston has been seen or heard in public since he was seized on his way home from work on March 12.
First of all, my captors have treated me very well, he said on the video issued by a group called the Army of Islam, which last month claimed responsibility for his kidnapping. They have fed me well, there has been no violence towards me at all and I'm in good health, said Johnston, wearing a red sweater and sitting against a dark grey background.
The group repeated its demand on the video for Britain to free Muslim prisoners, particularly the Islamist cleric Abu Qatada. In London, a British Foreign Office spokesman said: We are urgently trying to check out the reports.
The video, posted on an Islamist website often used by al-Qa'ida and other militant groups, was accompanied by what appeared to be a picture of the first page of Johnston's passport.
Palestinian officials had often said they believed he was safe and well, but an email in the name of another group had said in April Johnston had been killed.
Abu Qatada has been described by the British Government as a significant international terrorist with suspected close links to al-Qa'ida. He is one of more than a dozen Arab men whom Britain has been holding under detention or house arrest as threats to national security, while acknowledging that it does not have sufficient evidence to put them on trial.
In all this, you can see the British Government is endlessly working to occupy Muslim lands against the will of the people in those places, Johnston said. He criticised the British military presence alongside the US in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The tape was interrupted as Johnston started addressing his family members, and a text appeared in which the group said the BBC had refused to take Johnston's message to his family, without elaborating.
It was again interrupted as Johnston was about to list the captors' demands for his release. What followed was part an audio tape issued by the Army of Islam on May 9 demanding the release of Abu Qatada and other Muslim detainees in Britain and other infidel countries.
Saeb Erekat, an aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, called the kidnappers gangsters who were harming the Palestinian cause and told the BBC in a telephone interview that Gaza authorities had to free Johnston, even if it entailed some kind of security operation.
#2
Yep, there was speculation he arranged his own kidnapping. Possibly needing to shift his 'BBC balanced' view to what he really thinks as per the video.
#5
...and told the BBC in a telephone interview that Gaza authorities had to free Johnston, even if it entailed some kind of security operation.
Hmmmmmm...sounds serious, bullets flying and all that. Somebody could get hurt, maybe even killed, maybe even the guy you're trying to get out.
Might be worth the chance...
#9
And if he is "released" he should be sent to the Tower, have an uncomfortable stay and then face the headsman's ax. Decorate pikes on Tower Bridge to taste.
#10
I've personally given up any hope of living in peace with anyone in the muzzie faith. The entire muddled east needs to be churned into talc and glazed into glass, from Algeria through Pakiwakiland, and from Turkey down through Somalia, Sudan, and Eritrea. I'm about to relegate Indonesia and Malaysia, plus large parts of Bangladesh, to the same fate. Those living in non-muzzie countries will be given a choice - go home to whatever is left of the muddled east, convert to a non-violet religion, or be shot as 'enemies of freedom'. No exceptions. While the West is cleaning out the rest of the stupidity, Israel has the job of emptying the Gaza and West Bank of muzzies, as well as any living in Israel. Tell Russia and China to shove it - one nuke launched against the west means their total incineration. It's time to put a stop to this whole madness once and for all.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/01/2007 15:26 Comments ||
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#11
Old Patriot, the only aspect of your scenario that is open to question is merely a matter of when and not if. I have lost all hope of Islam reforming itself into anything other than radioactive vapor. All that remains to be seen is whether we do it to them before they do it to themselves.
Suspected insurgents sprayed gunfire into a mosque, killing seven worshippers, and a roadside bomb killed 11 paramilitary troops almost simultaneously in some of the worst recent violence in southern Thailand, the army said Friday.
The bomb exploded Thursday on a road in Bannang Sata district in Yala province as government-hired paramilitary rangers drove by, killing 10 of them instantly, said Thai Army spokesman Col. Akara Thiprote. Another ranger died later at the hospital. One ranger was slightly wounded and the truck was damaged, Akara said.
The rangers had earlier been negotiating with Muslim protesters in a nearby district, he said. The whole area has been under a military curfew since a deadly bombing at a mosque and a grenade attack on a tea shop that left 10 people dead and wounded more than 20 on March 14.
Almost immediately after the bombing, an unknown number of assailants opened fire on a group of Muslim villagers leaving a mosque after evening prayers in nearby Sabayoi district of Songkhla province, killing five villagers at the scene, Akara said. Two others died later at the hospital. It was not immediately clear why the worshippers were attacked but officials blamed Muslim rebels.
"The insurgents opened fire on the Muslim villagers and put the blame on the authorities ... They want to create an impression that authorities cannot take care of the Muslim people in the area," Akara said. "Worse still, they want people to think the authorities did it to poison the relationship between the government and the local population."
#5
Ship, I think this Thai muzzie problem will grow over the next 3 to 5 years until it is not manageable by the Thai government. Once we go in to help, like we did in the PI, it will migrate to Cambodia. The Thai government cares little about what is going on down South, as long as it stays out of Bangkok. This whole process the Muslims are using is almost a template of what has happened in other countries. To answer more directly, no, I don't believe it is the next big war. The Asian coastline is largely muslim, their slow revolt will gain some momentum and we will end up spending a large amount of resources helping these governments to recover. I just wish they would get ahead of this and do something before it becomes unmanageable.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
06/01/2007 15:28 Comments ||
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Government forces kept up two offensives against Tamil Tiger rebels in the islands northern and eastern regions Thursday with casualties reported on both sides, officials said.
Troops backed by artillery combed the jungles of Thoppigala in the district of Batticaloa, where security forces recovered weapons and explosives from a rebel hideout Thursday, the military said. Officials said several soldiers were wounded in clashes Wednesday in the region. The defence ministry said two members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were killed by security forces in the northern peninsula of Jaffna on Wednesday evening.
In one clash, rebels attacked an army foot patrol in eastern Batticaloa and soldiers retaliated, killing one insurgent, said Lt. Col. Upali Rajapakse, a spokesman for the Defense Ministry.
Also, insurgents fired mortars into the northeastern village of Welioya, killing one soldier and wounding another as well as two civilians, Rajapakse said.
There was no immediate comment from the rebels, fighting to create a separate homeland for Sri Lankas minority ethnic Tamils, who have suffered decades of discrimination by the Sinhalese-majority state. A total of 16 rebel and soldier deaths were reported Wednesday.
Govt may scrap truce: Sri Lankas government may scrap what is left of a flawed 2002 ceasefire pact with the Tamil Tigers within weeks, the islands defence spokesman said on Thursday, a move analysts fear could escalate renewed civil war.
Defence spokesman and government minister Keheliya Rambukwella said the Norwegian-brokered truce, which now holds only on paper after breaking down on the ground last year, no longer reflected reality, citing Tamil Tiger ambushes and attacks on security forces. The military and rebels have been locked in near daily skirmishes, land and sea battles for months. An estimated 4,000 people have been killed since last year alone. The government may abrogate it... due to the fact that the ground reality does not go in parallel with the CFA (Ceasefire Agreement), Rambukwella told Reuters. It is flawed.
Its time that either you make certain amendments, or abrogate it. The government has long argued the ceasefire was too soft on the Tigers, and have since captured large areas in the islands east which belonged to the rebels under the terms of the agreement. It has also vowed to destroy the Tigers militarily.
I think (abrogating) is a high risk strategy, said Rohan Edrisinha of non-partisan think-tank the Centre for Policy Alternatives. I think its going to lead to more violence and more suffering, because any sort of restraint the sides might feel existed due to the ceasefire agreement will cease to exist.
This raises concerns about the governments strategy, about its sensibility to the international community, as well as about the well-being of Tamils.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
non-partisan think-tank the Centre for Policy Alternatives ... This raises concerns about the governments strategy, about its sensibility to the international community, as well as about the well-being of Tamils.
Doesn't sound too non-partisan to me. This is another tranzi idiot that needs to be taken out into the jungle on a one-way trip. May his body never be found. These kinds of people only fuel the fighting through their stupidity. They are a waste of free oxygen.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/01/2007 15:31 Comments ||
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More details on the Iranian weapons train.
Turkish authorities seized weapons hidden among construction materials on a Syria-bound train from Iran after Kurdish guerrillas bombed and derailed the train, a prosecutor said Wednesday.
The cargo was discovered when authorities checked containers on the train, which was attacked by separatist Kurdish guerrillas on May 25 near the town of Genc in southeastern Bingol province, Prosecutor Ismail Sari told reporters Wednesday.
The bomb attack derailed seven of the train's cars, Sari said. Authorities were investigating the incident, and would also check cargo on the rest of the train, he said.
The Iranian Embassy issued a statement Wednesday denying that the weapons belonged to Iran, and said the allegations were being made "by circles" aiming to disrupt Turkey's close relations with Iran.
Earlier Wednesday, a government official said the cargo included machine guns and pistols. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. The private Dogan news agency said the cargo included a rocket launch pad and 300 rockets, as well as other weapons and ammunition.
Turkish authorities suspect Iran is using Turkey as a transit point to send arms to Lebanon's Hezbollah movement via Syria.
On Tuesday evening, Turkish authorities forced a Syrian plane flying from Iran to land in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and searched it for weapons. No arms were found.
Turkey, the only Muslim member of NATO, borders both Iran and Syria. It has good relations with Israel and its Arab neighbors and has contributed troops to the U.N.-led peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
Posted by: ed ||
06/01/2007 18:47 ||
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#1
just providing self-defense weapons to simple, but well-armed, rustics in the Paleo camps and Hezbollah
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/01/2007 19:27 Comments ||
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Artillery bombardment intensified at Nahr al-Bared around midmorning Friday, with Lebanese troops attempting to seize the main offices of Fatah al-Islam in the northeastern part of the Palestinian refugee camp.
Under the cover of artillery barrages, dozens of Lebanese army tanks and armored carriers moved against the Islamic militants surrounded in Nahr al-Bared near the northern port city of Tripoli.
Clouds of white smoke billowed from the camp where Fatah al-Islam militants have been holed up in a 13-day siege by the Lebanese army.
The shelling also ignited fires in the camp that spewed black smoke.
The militants have barricaded themselves in residential neighborhoods of narrow, winding streets and apartment buildings.
About 50 armored carriers, battle tanks and military vehicles from elite units massed at the northern edge of the camp and drove toward the forwardmost positions, according to Associated Press Television News crew at the scene.
There was no confirmation that the army units were making a final push to take over the camp, or were just advancing to grab territory and isolate the militants in pockets.
However, a resident from inside the camp said "Fatah al-Islam positions were overtaken and destroyed in the push."
Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh told APTN from Beirut: "I think the army is determined this time to go ahead and probably to reduce several pockets of Fatah al-Islam terrorists."
A significant decrease at one point in the shelling, accompanied by a rise in machine gun fire from armored carriers and exchanges of automatic rifle fire, suggested the troops were already engaging the militants.
Artillery bombardment intensified at Nahr al-Bared several hours later, with Lebanese troops attempting to seize the main offices of Fatah al-Islam in the Samed quarter in the northeastern part of the camp.
Al-Arabiya television said troops seized militant sniper positions.
Television footage showed the movement of T-55 Russian-made tanks, French-made Panhard tanks, M-113 U.S.-built armored personnel carriers and jeeps with 106mm rifles mounted on them. Sandbags were packed on some of the vehicles.
Military officials would not comment on the troop movements and journalists were pushed back further from the camp. But a statement by the army command said troops came under fire from the militants and the army was "responding with accurate and decisive fire to deter them." The statement said the army was at the same time avoiding civilian casualties.
The concentrated bombardment began in the morning, with heavy barrages targeting Fatah al-Islam positions.
Sporadic gunfire exchanges have continued daily since a truce halted three days of heavy fighting.
A Lebanese soldier was killed by Islamic militants' sniper fire on Thursday.
The death Thursday raised to 32 the number of soldiers killed since fighting between the army and Fatah al-Islam militants began on May 20. At least 20 civilians and about 60 militants also have been killed.
The army has ringed the Nahr el-Bared camp with hundreds of soldiers, backed by artillery and tanks, poised to storm the camp and prevent militants from fleeing. The government has vowed to crush the militants, who have said they will fight till the end.
Thousands of Palestinians have fled the camp, but thousands more are still inside, along with the Fatah al-Islam fighters.
On Thursday, army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman toured the military positions around Nahr al-Bared, vowing to track down the militants responsible for killing the soldiers.
On a separate front, members of the mainstream Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Islamist Jund al-Sham group exchanged gunfire in Ein el-Hilweh, Lebanon's largest refugee camp near the southern port city of Sidon.
According to the account, a Fatah militant, whose brother had been killed by the Islamists earlier this month, shot at one of Jun al-Sham members he thought was responsible, without hitting him.
That led to an exchange of small arms fire and grenades that lasted about half an hour at the camp late Thursday.(Naharnet-AP-AFP)
The government has vowed to crush the militants, who have said they will fight till the end.
More good news.
Thousands of Palestinians have fled the camp, but thousands more are still inside, along with the Fatah al-Islam fighters.
Do these stupid fucks ever learn? Hanging with the terrorists gets you just that, a hanging. Muslims will learn soon enough that the star next to their moon symbol is nothing they should be hitching their dreams to.
#7
I hope the Lebanese are being supplied with more than ammo.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
06/01/2007 19:26 Comments ||
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#8
The weapon systems in the article are about right for going into the Paleo camps : about the only thing I would recommend as an add-on would be thermobaric warheads for their RPGs. That way, the Lebs can safely drop buildings on top of the Fatah al-Islam.
By the way, sandbags on APCs make a good armor boost since they are cheap, easy to make, and help to prevent bullet splash. They are not the best against RPGs, for that you would want slat armor.
A Lebanese soldier was shot dead on Thursday by Islamist militants dug in at a Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon, a military source said. Three other soldiers were wounded in fighting with the al Qaeda-inspired Fatah al-Islam fighters at the Nahr al-Bared camp, the battleground for Lebanon's worst internal clashes since the 1975-1990 civil war.
Security sources said bodies had also been found under the rubble of buildings destroyed on the edges of the camp, taking the death toll from the fighting to 84 -- 35 soldiers, 29 militants and 20 civilians.
The Lebanese government has demanded the militants surrender. Fatah al-Islam say they have been acting in self defense and refuse to hand over any of their fighters. A brilliant 1969 agreement stops the army entering Lebanon's 12 Palestinian refugee camps, which are home to 400,000 people.
The government has given Palestinian leaders in Lebanon a chance to find a way out of the stand-off, as it is concerned that the refugees will see more army action at the camp as an attack on their community. More than 25,000 of the camp's 40,000 Palestinians have fled the fighting. Most of the displaced refugees have flooded the nearby Beddawi camp, where they are being looked after by relief organizations.
Members of Lebanon's anti-Syrian cabinet have described Fatah al-Islam as a tool of Syrian intelligence, although Damascus denies any links to the group. The group's Palestinian leader says he follows the same ideology as al Qaeda and many of his estimated 300 gunmen have fought in Iraq.
Lebanese authorities say Fatah al-Islam includes men from Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Tunisia, Syria , Afghanistan, Pakistan & Lebanon.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/01/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Reports are that those Sunni Muslims are better armed than Leb government troops. Saudi oil money at work again.
#5
Let the Lebanese flatten the he$$ out of this and all other "palestinian" refugee camps. If any members of UNHCR complain, shoot them, too. It's time the "refugee" problem be settled, one way or another. Maybe the US should take out the back-up - Soddy money, Irantian training, and UN complicity.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
06/01/2007 15:36 Comments ||
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#10
No, no, cher JFM! That just means the girl who asked *you* noticed you were carrying it ventrally. It's nothing to do with the actual bomb carrier. :-)
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
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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.
(SomaliNet) At least four civilians died when a remote-controlled roadside bomb tore into an Ethiopian army convoy in Somalia on Thursday wounding five soldiers, locals and a security source said. The attack is the latest in a wave of Iraq-style insurgent strikes rocking the Horn of Africa nation. 
Three criminals were killed in "crossfire" during "shootouts" between law enforcers and the criminal's accomplices in Dhaka and Kushtia yesterday. The dead were identified as Mizanur Rahman, 25, Sahidul Islam alias Picture, 25, and Tofazzol Hossain alias Tota, 30.
The Interior Ministrys National Crisis Management Cell (NCMC) has warned three federal ministers that they are on the hit list of Baitullah Mehsud and should take extra security measures, sources told Daily Times here on Wednesday. The sources said that 
Hangu District Nazim Ghani-ur-Rehman and close friend of Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao Khan survived unhurt after a bomb explosion damaged his vehicle on Wednesday, security sources said. It was a remote-controlled device and I was the prime target. But I am totally unhurt, Rehman told reporters. Rehman was on his way home from his office in the afternoon when the attack occurred on Thall Road, police said, adding, The bomb was planted near the roadside and caused slight damage to the vehicle. The NWFP has been experiencing a wave of bomb blasts and suicide attacks in recent months. The provincial government blames invisible hands, a reference to intelligence agencies, for the worsening law and order situation.
A court on Wednesday sentenced to life in jail an 83-year-old man named as one of the main conspirators in bombings, which killed 257 people in Mumbai in 1993. Dawood Phanse was one of the main people taken to Dubai to meet the alleged masterminds of the blasts, fugitives Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon, Judge PD Kode said. His age was the only reason why I have not given maximum punishment of death, he said. Phanse was also fined 4,900 dollars. After a decade of hearings, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities court in Mumbai last December found 100 people guilty out of 123 accused and began sentencing earlier this month. More than 50 people, including government officials and policemen, have so far been given varying jail terms for their role in the conspiracy. The sentencing is expected to continue for weeks after one of the worlds longest trials ended last year. The Black Friday attacks were allegedly coordinated by Mumbais Muslim-dominated underworld in revenge for Hindu-Muslim religious clashes a few months earlier.
