[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The former Afghan President Hamid Karzai the role of US and NATO forces in fight against terrorism in Afghanistan during the past 13 years.
The ex-Afghan President welcomed the conclusion of the US and NATO combat role in Afghanistan and said the NATO-led coalition forces were requested on numerous occassions to bring reforms in their approach and fight against terrorism.
Karzia said the US and NATO forces were engaged in an inappropriate fight against the terrorism, considering the geography of the war and method of operations.
He hoped that the international community considers the demands of the Afghan people to fully equip the Afghan national security forces as the US and NATO combat mission ends.
Karzai also insisted on measures to prevent the civilian casualties while pointing towards an incident in central Logar province where three civilians were killed following an air raid.
The US and NATO formally concluded the combat mission in Afghanistan after 13 years, during an event on Sunday in Kabul, which was also organized for the transition to the new non-combat – NATO-led Resolute Support mission.
The solemn ceremony, held at the ISAF Headquarters, paid tribute to the international efforts launched in 2001 by the NATO-led coalition as they worked with Afghan partners.
The Resolute Support mission will consist of more than 12,500 troops focused on building Afghan National Security Force (ANSF) sustainability. 28 NATO Allies and 14 partner nations will contribute to the mission in different ways.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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#5
"Pay attention to meeeeee! I used to be someone important!"
The poor man can leave any time he wants, now that he has no responsibilities. He might even be able to give up the anxiety meds if he lived somewhere safe... like New Zealand.
Somalia's Shebab militia on Monday played down the surrender and arrest of a senior militant figure, saying the official had left the movement more than a year ago.
The al-Qaida-affiliated rebels said Zakariya Ismail Ahmed Hersi, identified as a top Shebab intelligence official and the subject of a $3 million bounty as part of the U.S. State Department "Rewards for Justice" program, would be of little intelligence value.
"He abandoned the organisation more than a year ago," a senior militant official told Agence France Presse, insisting that the "news of the defection was only released in order to shift attention" away from last week's Shebab attack against the headquarters of the African Union force in the capital Mogadishu.
"All the information on military set up or plans he knew has been changed since he left, and therefore the so-called defector has no intelligence value to offer to our enemies," the Shebab official said.
He also said the surrender should not be seen as a weakening of the movement, which is fighting to topple Somalia's internationally-backed government.
[Haaretz] Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi finally earned the title he deserves: The Al Jazeera media network has started referring to him as “his Excellency the President,” instead of the less flattering titles it used before the recent reconciliation between Egypt and Qatar.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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Following the precedent established by CNN with Saddam. Grovel 101.
[Ynet] The soldiers who stand guard outside Britannia's royal palaces have been moved behind metal fences because of fears of a terror attack, local newspapers reported on Monday.
The Royal Guards, a popular tourist attraction outside royal residences because of their ceremonial uniforms, have been separated from the public, with armed police providing additional protection.
The Telegraph newspaper said Buckingham Palace and the police feared that murderous Moslem Islamists could see the Royal Guards as high-profile targets. Although the guards carry weapons fitted with bayonets the guns are not loaded.
#1
Although the guards carry weapons fitted with bayonets the guns are not loaded.
I think I see a solution here
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/30/2014 9:16 Comments ||
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#2
I don't understand why a trained soldier, holding this high of a guard station can not have a loaded gun.
Posted by: chris ||
12/30/2014 9:20 Comments ||
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#3
The British government is more concerned about an event that might 'look' bad than they are about, say, actually dealing with the problem.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
12/30/2014 10:10 Comments ||
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#4
The soldiers are expected to remain motionless while on post making a loaded weapon an easy target for a faux tourist to grab unexpectedly. Sadly, being unloaded makes it a poor spear creating risk only for the soldier or bystanders. Silly but iconic tradition from a time when uncivilized jihadis wouldnt be let in the country.
Trying to outcrazy Vladimir Zhirinovskiy...
Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov on Sunday proposed the creation of a "special regiment" made up from Chechnya's armed forces to help defend Russia from Western aggression.
Kadyrov said his country stood firmly behind Russian President Vladimir Putin as Europe and the United States waged an "economic war" against Russia.
"For 15 years Vladimir Putin has helped our people! Now we're asking the Russian leader to consider us as his special regiment of volunteers, ready to defend Russia, its stability and its borders," Kadyrov said in a speech in Grozny, addressing some 20,000 volunteers who had undergone military training.
"We are Vladimir Putin's infantry, and everyone had better know that," the former rebel turned ardent Putin supporter said, just a month after proposing that Chechen army conscripts carry out their military service in the Russian naval base at Sevastopol, located on the Crimean peninsula Russia annexed from Ukraine in March.
Kadyrov's declaration of support comes as an increasingly isolated Russia suffers the pain of falling oil prices, a plunging ruble and economic sanctions imposed by the West over Moscow's support of separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.
But Kadyrov's pledge to Putin appeared to have more symbolic than readily exploitable military potential.
Recurrent instability and insurrection by Islamist militias in Chechnya led Russia to launch two wars in the republic since the 1990s, when the Russian army began its policy of refusing to accept volunteers or draft conscripts from Chechnya.
[DAWN] Jamaat-i-Islami emir Sirajul Haq on Monday said his party would protect mosques and seminaries in the country at all costs.
“We can’t stand the humiliation of ulema, mosques and seminaries and will resist any attempt to harm them,” he said during a public meeting at Jaiwor area in Takhtbai tehsil.
The JI emir said his party would pay salary to prayer leaders of mosques every month after coming to power.
He said the nation should get united under the current delicate circumstances.
Haq said the Islamic system of governance offered the only solution to the country’s problems, including terrorism, loadshedding and unemployment.
He expressed concern over the Army Public School Peshawar carnage and asked the government to ensure speedy probe into it for the punishment of its perpetrators.
The JI emir said the US and its allies had admitted their failure in restoring peace in Afghanistan. He said his party would clear Pakistan of the US agents in 2015 with the help of the people.
Haq said his party had been striving for the introduction of Islamic system of governance in the country and would need the people’s support for it. He said few moneyed families had been ruling and looting the country since its creation 67 years ago.
The JI emir said former military ruler Pervez Musharraf was to blame for terrorism in the country and that currently, the country faced an extraordinary security situation.
He said the ruling elite didn’t care for the poor people and instead it served own interests.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
He said the ruling elite didn’t care for the poor people and instead it served own interests.
"And if you elect us, things will be SO DIFFERENT!"
"That ought to hold the little *** for a while"
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
12/30/2014 10:10 Comments ||
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[DAWN] The Punjab Assembly on Monday was informed that 50 per cent of 1.8 million arms licences issued in the province were fake.
Punjab Home Minister Shuja Khanzada on a point of order said there had been no record of 900,000 arms licences issued in Punjab.
“We are probing the matter with the help of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra),” he said, adding ban on the arms licences would be lifted for 15 days on Feb 15.
He said if the data did not match with the Nadra record the arms licence would not be issued to the applicant.
The home minister further said the Punjab government would take back arms from the fake licence holder. In Sindh the government had taken back 50,000 weapons from the fake licence holders.
“In the new licence policy, the data of the arms dealers and manufacturers will be online,” he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] The mother of a death row convict filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the dismissal of her son's petition appealing his death sentence ordered by a military court.
Sajida Parveen's son, Ihsan Azim, has been charged with murdering seven armymen on the banks of Chenab river near Gujrat district on July 2012 along with four other men Asif Idrees, Amir Yousaf, Kamran Aslam and Umar Nadeem.
LHC Judge Arshad Mehmood Tabassum on December 24 rejected Ms Parveen's petition.
The appeal was filed by advocate Laeeq Khan Swati in the Supreme Court.
Advocate Swati contended before the court that the military authorities did not provide the convict trial proceedings before filing the appeal in the military appellate court.
He requested the court to restrain the concerned authorities from executing the death sentence to his client. The appeal cited secretaries ministries of defence and interior as respondents.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] The Pakistani authorities repatriated on Monday a 12-year-old girl belonging to India-held Kashmir, three days after she strayed into Azad Jammu and Kashmir from across Line of Control.
Nasreen Bibi, a resident of Shoran village of Uri area in India- held Kashmir, had inadvertently crossed the LoC and reached Darra Haji Pir sector of AJK’s Haveli district on Dec 26.
She was spotted by Pakistani troops.
On Monday, the girl was handed over to Indian authorities at the Chakothi-Uri crossing point, 60km off here, after officials from the two sides held a flag meeting at the Kaman Bridge, which marks the divide between the disputed Himalayan region.
“I am so happy that I am reuniting with my family,” she said while responding to questions by reporters taken there to cover the event.
She was all praise for the cordiality of people and officials in AJK. “Everyone was so kind...They took care of me like their own daughters. They gave me new clothes as well,” she said.
Pakistani officials presented her gifts.
On the India-held side, a physician examined Nasreen Bibi before she was allowed to leave with her mother Saeeda Bibi, who had been waiting for her at the LoC.
Earlier on Nov 19, Pakistani officials had repatriated a 13-year-old boy at a similar meeting at the Chakothi-Uri crossing point.
Manzar Hussain, an eight-grade student from Jhanagar village in India-held Kashmir, had mistakenly crossed the LoC into the southern Kotli district on Nov 14.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] The man who alleged that his daughter is being held in Jamia Hafsa, the women’s seminary in Lal Masjid, filed an appeal with the Human Rights Cell of the Supreme Court on Monday in hopes of having his daughter recovered.
Abdul Qayyum’s lawyer Muhammad Haider Imtiaz told Dawn that Mr Qayyum has requested the Supreme Court to take suo motu notice of his plight and ensure the recovery of his daughter. Court officials have accepted his request and promised to respond to the request in a few days.
He said Lal Masjid cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz has been using his influence to prevent him from getting his daughter out of the seminary. He expressed his faith in the Supreme Court and said he hoped that his daughter will soon be recovered.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] Sindh Senior Minister for Education Nisar Ahmed Khuhro has said that former president Pervez Musharraf is not threat to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
“He heads an unpopular party... he is and will remain controversial in politics,” he said while speaking at a press conference at the local press club on Monday.
Mr Khuhro declared in unequivocal terms that the question of PPP-Mushrraf becoming one simply did not arise. “Despite being on bail, Mushrraf is active in social activities but it makes no difference,” the PPP leader said.
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12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] THE Islamabad High Court’s decision to suspend the detention of Zakiur Rahman Lakhvi, the alleged mastermind of the Mumbai attacks, does not mean the former senior commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba will be a completely free man. In addition to the IHC’s decision of not allowing him to leave Islamabad, he is also bound, as a prominent member of a jihadi organisation, to adhere to the relevant sections of Pakistan’s anti-terror law (1997 amended 2002): most notably sections 11-E, -EE and -EEE. The onus for this lies on the government, but if past experience is any guide this is unlikely to happen.
In this regard, the most prominent recent case is that of Maulana Asmatullah Muawiya — head of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Punjab — who announced in September that he and his faction would no longer carry out attacks in Pakistan. A day after this was met with scepticism, Muawiya actually did follow through on his declaration and surrendered to military officials in Miramshah in North Waziristan.
The immediate reaction from our frenzied TV channels was remarkably understated; just a couple of lines on how this showed the success of the ongoing Zarb-i-Azb operation. Little was said on the background of the man in question, and almost nothing on the nature of the deal that led to Muawiya becoming one of the ‘good’ Taliban.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[IsraelTimes] The Paleostinian leadership on Monday presented changes to a UN draft resolution on statehood that could come up for a vote at the Security Council as early as this week.
The United States again rejected the text that would pave the way to a Paleostinian state by setting a 12-month deadline to reach a final peace deal and calling for Israel to withdraw to the pre-1967 lines by the end of 2017.
Arab ambassadors endorsed the text, which contains new provisions on declaring East Jerusalem the capital of a Paleostinian state, settling the issue of Paleostinian prisoner releases and halting Jewish settlements.
Continued on Page 49
#1
When Jimmy was driving his brand new smart car after an evening of cheap booze and undercooked chicken wings, he decided he should pull over for a quick nap. Little did he know he stopped on the train tracks and when the olde #9, laden with 20tons crude, came rambling through town, the intersection was left in a complete state of palestine.
[IraqiNews.com] On Monday, U.S. President Barack Obama Thatâ??s just how white folks will do you.... confirmed, that his country will not allocate additional funds to fight the ISIS organization in Iraq, while noting that Washington will contribute to the reconstruction of Iraq.
Obama said in an interview with the national radio ?NPR? followed by IraqiNews.com, ?The United States needs to spend a trillion dollars on rebuilding schools, roads and on basic sciences and research here in the United States,? stressing that, ?Such an amount will not go to the fight against ISIS.?
Obama added that ?United States can assist in the reconstruction of war-torn countries such as Iraq, Syria and Libya,? pointing out at the same time that ?The reconstruction must be carried out by the concerned countries on their own.?
U.S. President added, ?We can help, but we cannot do this on their behalf, I think the American people understand that.?
The US Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... announced in November 17, 2014 that the reconstruction of the areas dominated by ISIS in Iraq will cost two billion dollars.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
We should probably wait until ISIS conquers all of Iraq. That way they won't get the chance to destroy it. /sarcasm
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
12/30/2014 8:57 Comments ||
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#2
Fuck no we won't! How much more rebuilding are we gonna do. How about we rebuild our infrastructure. Take a lesson from your neighbors and spend your oil money on building up your own country.
Posted by: chris ||
12/30/2014 9:16 Comments ||
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> Explosions on the Moon.
> OWG UNO outlaws fracking as a clear-n-present danger to Planet ergo Humanity.
> Rise/Return of Imperialist = Ottoman-esque Turkey.
> Rise of the US = OWG Amerikan-not-American born Islamic Messiah/Hidden Mahdi.
[AnNahar] Israel reportedly erected a defensive barrier and sonar array off the Ras al-Naqoura border area, in south Leb, to prevent Hizbullah ...Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as The Resistance and purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory... divers from infiltrating northern Israel.
Media reports said Israel has obtained information that Hizbullah is investing a large sum of money to acquire undersea weapons and delivery systems to carry out attacks against the Jewish state.
A similar barrier has been deployed off the Gazoo Strip.
In 2006, Hizbullah fought the Jewish State's far more advanced forces and rained more than 4,000 rockets on northern Israel.
But Israel killed 1,200 people in Leb, most of them civilians,
...where civilian is defined as a combination of terrorists out of uniform and human shields in varying states of willingness...
according to the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... . Hizbullah killed 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers within Lebanese territory.
[VOA News] Palestinian leaders are seeking to move forward with a draft United Nations resolution that calls for a peace deal with Israel within a year and an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories within three years.
Palestinians say they may seek a U.N. Security Council vote on the resolution as early as this week.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said the Israeli government has been “stalling” in peace talks for more than 20 years and this has led to what he called the status quo.
“This status quo is not sustainable and will not continue,” said Erekat.
Consistent opposition
Both Israel and the United States have voiced opposition to the Palestinians’ U.N. draft resolution.
State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said, “We don’t think this resolution is constructive. We think it sets arbitrary deadlines for reaching a peace agreement and for Israel’s withdrawal from the West Bank.”
Also, the United States says it does not back a draft U.N. resolution on Palestinian statehood, in part, because it would not guarantee Israel's security.
Rathke said the resoultion makes peace talks less likely to succeed, and that the draft fails to take into account Israel's legitimate security needs, which he said are necessary for a sustainable settlement.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/30/2014 00:00 ||
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The cannibal tucked himself into bed after a large meal. Little did he know his dinner spent a goodly part of his life living on cheap beer and funions. After a couple hours of the cold shakes, his bowels suddenly released, turning his bed into a state of Palestine.
[Ynet] After senior Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, official accuses unity government of deliberately delaying reconstruction of Strip, eight ministers to meet in the coastal enclave.
Eight Paleostinian ministers were expected in Gazoo on Monday, after a top Hamas official slammed the unity government for dragging its heels on the reconstruction of Gazoo in the wake of the summer's war with Israel, according to Paleostinian media.
Moussa Abu Marzouk, the deputy chairman of the Islamist group, charged the unity government for "deliberately impeding the reconstruction of Gazoo Strip" at a Saturday evening panel on trade unions, according to official Paleostinian news agency Ma'an.
Several protests erupted on Sunday in the Strip demanding the unity cabinet - formed in June after intensive negotiations between the two Paleostinian factions - pressure the Israeli administration to end the blockade of Gazoo.
The representatives of the historic Fatah-Hamas accords met in the Strip only once, on October 9, before an international donor conference was held in Cairo to raise funds for the Strip's rehabilitation.
But the atmosphere of unity was marred in early November when a wave of bombings hit the homes of Fatah officials in Gazoo, causing Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah to cancel a scheduled trip to the Strip.
On Monday, however, a long-awaited return visit should occur, with the ministers of health, educations, social affairs, and local government, as well as the chiefs of the water, power, and environmental agencies, expected to make the trip from Ramallah, according to a Ma'an report.
The two largest Paleostinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, have been at odds ever since the latter took over the Gazoo Strip in a violent coup in 2007, murdering and exiling many Fatah members.
[Ynet] Foreign Policy article examines number of times state department referred to "unacceptable" behavior this year; Israel ranked between North Korea and Pakistain.
The US State Department described Israeli actions as "unacceptable" 87 times in 2014, with only three countries being more "unacceptable," according to a Foreign Policy article published last week.
Journalist Micah Zenko searched the State Department's website for usage of the term, and his "top ten" list shows Israel sandwiched right between North Korea and Pakistain. Zenko pointed that the US officials regularly use the phrase "but then do very little in response to prevent or deter those actions from reoccurring."
Most of the condemnations relating to Israel involved building in settlements or the announcement of plans to construct additional housing behind the Green Line. Government spokespeople also castigated Israel for civilian casualties during Operation Protective Edge.
US Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... recently used the "unacceptable" label to refer to North Korea's alleged hacking of the Sony Corporation.
The US State Department is not the only entity in the international diplomacy arena that tends to recycle certain phrases. Ynet found that UN Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... used the word "concerned" 140 times in 2014 in statements responding to events. Israel and Paleostine were the most concerning places of 2014, with 19 blurbs using the term.
#3
It seems the Paleostinians should have at least as many "unacceptable" as Israel since they can't control their dogs, and Israel always seems to approve settlements after the dogs do something "abhorrant".
[Ynet] The Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group has published in its monthly English-language magazine an interview with the Jordanian pilot captured last week after his plane crashed in northern Syria.
In his statements in the bully boy group's Dabiq magazine, First Lietuenant Muadh al-Kasasbeh says his F-16 was shot down on Wednesday by a heat-seeking missile near the Islamic State group's de facto capital of Raqqa.
He says he ejected from the aircraft and landed in the Euphrates River, where he was taken captive by IS fighters.
The United States has denied that the Islamic State group shot down the Jordanian aircraft.
#1
There seems to be some chatter about doing some Ottoman level torture to this pilot - as opposed to the more modern butchery they have been performing. The problem ISJV has is that torture not only requires a certain level of will, it also takes a certain level of skill to perform correctly (not that a failure wouldn't be gruesome). The problem the pilot has, is ISJV has not made the headlines in quite a while.
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.
North Korea
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
