[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The Lower House of the Parliament ‐ Wolesi Jirga once again witnessed dispute and brawl among the politicians over cabinet nominees holding dual nationality.
Today's dispute resulted to physical clash between two female politicians over Central Bank Chief Nominee Khalil Sediq after a number of the politicians objected regarding his presence in the parliament to present his work plans.
The politicians said Mr. Sediq can not present his working plans since he is holding dual citizenship. But the administrative delegation of the Lower House said the resolution was passed only for the minister nominees and therefore the Central Bank chief was excluded.
The Lower House speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi requested Khalil Sediq to leave the house after disputes resulted to physical clash between two female politicians Shekiba Hashimi and Lailuma Wali Hakimi.
The two female politicians were also forced to leave the house after the security guards interferred to end the dispute.
The decision to reject the nominees with dual citizenship was taken by joint parliamentary commission after reviewing the documents of each minister-designate and passing a resolution last week.
Last week's brawl among the Afghan politicians started after MP Shukria Barekzai criticized the recent decision by joint parliamentary commission to reject the nominees, insisting that the Parliament House is not authorized to deprive the rights of an Afghan national from election and voting.
The administrative delegation of the parliament decided last week that the house would consider to cancel the resolution if the opposing politicians collect signatures from 1/3 of the opposing politicians and 2/3 of the politicians vote for the cancellation of the resolution.
The seven nominees who were rejected by the Lower House of the Parliament includes Salahuddin Rabbani, Noor-ul-Haq Ulomi, Syed Sadat Mansoor Naderi, Ai Sultan Khairi, Ahmad Seyar Majhoor, Shah Zaman Maiwandi and Faizullah Kakar.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] An Egyptian appellate court has ordered a retrial for 152 Moslem Brüderbund supporters, among them 37 members of the outlawed party sentenced to death over an attack on a cop shoppe in August 2013.
Judicial authorities said the decision was taken on Saturday after the Court of Cassation, the exclusive body atop the judicial hierarchy in Egypt, dismissed the 152 defendants' appeal, and a retrial was ordered.
They were among 529 supporters of ousted president, Mohammed Morsi, whom a lower court in Egypt's southern province of Minya sentenced to death last March in a mass trial. The trial and its outcome prompted international outcry.
The death penalties were later commuted to life in prison in the case of 492 defendants, while 37 were ordered sent to the gallows.
On January 19, a court in Egypt's northeastern city of Mansoura, located about 120 kilometers (74 miles) northeast of the capital, Cairo, handed down prison terms to 75 Moslem Brüderbund proponents over several charges as part of the ongoing crackdown on Morsi's supporters.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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[Khaleej Times] Maiduguri: Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan ... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau... held an election rally on Saturday at the epicentre of Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... 's insurgency, vowing to defeat the fighters as locals mourned another 15 deaths.
The president's visit to Maiduguri, the capital of northeast Nigeria ... a particularly crimson stretch of Islam's bloody border... 's restive Borno state, came the day after Boko Haram murderous Moslems killed 15 villagers in nearby Kambari.
"What I can assure you is that if reelected as president, the problem of insecurity will be addressed," Jonathan, who is seeking a second four-year term in the February 14 vote, told his supporters at the rally.
"I am deeply disturbed by the number of people who bit the dust due to activities of some irresponsible people," he added.
Jonathan said he had assured local traditional and Islamic leaders of his resolve to end the insurgency.
The president ordered a minute's silence in respect of the victims of the protracted Boko Haram violence.
There was a heavy security presence before and during Jonathan's visit, the latest in a series of campaign stops across Nigeria, with hundreds of armed police and sniffer dogs deployed at strategic areas.
The president visited Maiduguri briefly on January 15, his first stop there since March 2013. The visit earlier this month was shrouded in secrecy.
Boko Haram was founded in Maiduguri in 2002 and remained largely peaceful until a police and military crackdown against its then-leader Mohammed Yusuf and his followers in 2009.
Brutal raids, massacres, suicide kabooms and kidnappings by Boko Haram have claimed at least 13,000 lives and driven an estimated 1.5 million people from their homes, mainly in arid northeast Nigeria.
Nigeria's military has been criticised for failing to crush the rebellion but soldiers complain they lack the arms and ammunition to fight the better-equipped hard boys.
Nigeria's neighbours Cameroon ...a long, narrow country that fills the space between Nigeria and Chad on the northeast, CAR to the southeast. Prior to incursions by Boko Haram nothing ever happened there... , Chad and Niger have launched a joint bid to combat the murderous Moslems and halt their advance, and officials from Nigeria and those three countries met this week to thrash out details of a new regional force to counter the Islamists.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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[ARABNEWS] Thousands of Yemenis erupted into the streets on Saturday in the biggest demonstration yet against the Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... group that dominates Yemen, two days after President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi's resignation left the country in political limbo.
Witnesses said a crowd estimated at up to 10,000 people marched from Sanaa University toward Hadi's home some 3 km away and back, repeating chants denouncing both the Shiite Houthi group and Sunni Al-Qaeda.
"Long live the Yemeni people. No to Houthis and no to Affash," the crowd shouted, using a nickname for former President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... who was toppled in a 2011 uprising against his 33-year-rule.
Saleh had been cited by the UN Security Council for aiding the Houthis to capture Sanaa, capital of the predominantly Sunni country, in September.
Hadi, who stepped down on Thursday, blamed the Houthis' control of Sanaa for scuttling his attempt to steer Yemen toward stability after years of turmoil, tribal unrest, deepening poverty and US drone strikes on Sunni holy warriors.
The Houthis virtually held Hadi prisoner at his home residence this week. They accuse him of reneging on a power-sharing agreement they signed with the country's main political parties in his presence after they seized Sanaa.
"We came out today to reject the coup and against the Houthi militia's control of the capital," said one student who identified herself as Maimouna, holding a placard opposing plans to incorporate the Houthi fighters into the army.
Demonstrators stopped traffic in front of Hadi's home, booed Houthi fighters in the area and chanted "Leave, Houthis, leave."
Houthi fighters prevented protesters from getting too close to Hadi's house but they and the police largely kept their distance and the protest ended peacefully, witnesses said.
Similar protests erupted in other provinces, including Taiz, Hodeida, Al-Bayda and Ibb, residents said.
On Friday, thousands of Houthi supporters gathered in Sanaa with placards calling for "Death to America, Death to Israel," a slogan that has become the group's trademark.
...because it's ever so brave to boo faraway enemies who aren't aware of your existence...
...to be fair we haven't done a whole lot lately to make them afraid of us...
With no central government in Sanaa, local authorities in some parts of the country announced they would no longer take orders from the capital, raising fears the country could start to splinter.
Such declarations came from provinces that comprised the former South Yemen -- where a secessionist movement has been demanding independence -- and the oil-rich Marib province east of Sanaa.
Houthi gunnies backed by armored vehicles were deployed along Sittin Street, where the president lives, but they only watched on as the protesters marched.
Houthi gunnies, however, later rounded up dozens of youths who took part in protests in Sanaa and Ibb, according to families and witnesses.
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01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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[ARABNEWS] Thousands of tearful mourners descended on Al-Yamamah Palace on Saturday to offer condolences to King of the Arabians, Sheikh of the Burning Sands, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman ...either the largest species of Pacific salmon or the current Sheikh of the Burnin' Sands, Cutodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Lord of Most of the Arabians.... following the death of King Abdullah on Friday.
Islamic scholars, tribal chiefs and officials also pledged allegiance to King Salman in the ceremony seen as a public endorsement of the new king.
After pledging his allegiance, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh said: "On this blessed day, we pledge allegiance to King Salman as the legitimate king, Prince Muqrin as crown prince, Prince Mohammed bin Naif as deputy crown prince." He added: "Dear brothers and sisters, we must maintain security and stability in the Kingdom."
He offered King Salman religious advice, praying to God to support him and grant him patience. The royal court will also hold a condolence ceremony on Sunday night.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
did you say King Stahlman?
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/25/2015 9:26 Comments ||
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[Dhaka Tribune] RAB yesterday announced rewards for the capture of fire-bombers or information leading to their arrests.
Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) declared the bounties in eight different packages ranging from Tk10,000 to Tk1 lakh to help trace the anarchists.
On the other hand, police declared Tk5 lakh as reward for those who can provide information about those who set fire to the passenger bus in the capital's Jatrabari area on Friday night.
Just a year ago, law enforcers in 2013, also declared reward for the capture of the miscreants who unleashed violence but such announcement received hardly any response.
Director General of RAB Benazir Ahmed claimed that those who are involved in such crimes are hired goons.
"A group of people are hiring these criminals to perpetrate violence," he said while addressing the media at the battalion headquarters yesterday.
"Killing innocent people in the name of movement cannot be a way to do politics. Rather it should be considered a criminal offence."
None will be allowed to kill people by throwing petrol bombs, he cautioned.
The RAB boss further said those who would provide information about the miscreants involved in arson attacks will be reward with Tk1 lakh.
The same amount will also be given if anyone can help RAB catch petrol kaboomers red-handed.
Informants will receive Tk50,000 if they are able to give information on those planning crude kabooms. They will receive Tk25,000 if they can identify and trace miscreants from published or aired information in the news.
Furthermore, there is a Tk25,000 reward for anyone who can help catch a crude kaboomer on the spot and a Tk20,000 reward for anyone who can provide information on an attacker.
Moreover, anyone who can provide evidence through video or picture of an attacker carrying out arson or vandalism will be awarded Tk10,000.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
All in the name of making the payoffs to M. the Weasel legal
[IsraelTimes] Initial forensics analysis of bullet wound contradicts claims federal prosecutor did away with himself
Argentinian federal prosecutor Alberto Nisman was shot from a distance of at least 15 centimeters, according to the findings of an initial forensics exam, a source in the country's Federal Police told local media on Saturday.
The finding completely contradicts the government's initial claims that Nisman had did away with himself, an assertion president Cristina Fernandez Kirchner has since backtracked from.
The forensics exam also confirmed that there was no exit wound, a result expected when a gun is pressed to the temple, the Federal Police source said.
Nisman, 51, was found slumped in the bathroom of his apartment Sunday night with a bullet wound in his head and a .22 caliber handgun beside his body.
Four days before, he had given a judge a 289-page report alleging President Cristina Fernandez Kirchner had secretly reached a deal to prevent prosecution of former Iranian officials accused of involvement in the 1994 boom-mobileing of the country's largest Jewish center. The attack killed 85 people and injured more than 200. Nisman was set to give his testimony at a congressional hearing the next day.
Nisman contended that the government had agreed to swap grain for oil with Tehran in exchange for withdrawing "red notices" to Interpol seeking the arrests of the former and current Iranian officials accused in the unsolved case.
On Friday, the 10 coppers assigned to protect Nisman were being investigated for their actions on the day the prosecutor was found.
The officers, along with two supervisors, are being looked at as part of an internal police investigation into the handling of Nisman's death, a person close to the investigation told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named on Friday on condition of anonymity. The officers are not considered suspects.
In particular, the source said, Sherlocks are looking into the time it took two officers assigned to the door of Nisman's building to advise their superiors that they had not been able to reach him by telephone.
Earlier this week, those two officers made declarations to lead investigator Viviana Fein, who would ultimately decide whether to try them for anything. All 10 have been suspended during the investigation, the person close to the case said.
Also on Friday, justice officials said they have been unable to locate the man who loaned Nisman the gun used in his death despite "repeated attempts," and were ordering that he be barred from leaving the country without first getting permission from Argentine authorities.
Diego Lagomarsino, who spoke to authorities soon after Nisman's death, said he had given a .22-caliber pistol to Nisman because the prosecutor wanted it for protection. Lagomarsino has not been named as a suspect.
Kirchner, who has dismissed Nisman's allegations of a cover-up in the bombing, published two letters on social media this week about the prosecutor's death -- the first saying it appeared he had killed himself, then a second saying she was now convinced it wasn't a suicide.
Nisman's allegations, she said, were based on false information given to him by the former head of the intelligence services. In her second letter, published Thursday, she portrayed Nisman's death as a way to damage her administration.
The US government won't comment on the specifics of the case because the probe is in progress, but "we call for a complete and impartial investigation," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki ...a valley girl who woke up one morning and found she was spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of State... told news hounds in Washington on Friday.
"The United States and the international community continue to work with the Argentine government, as well as victims of the AMIA bombing and their families, to seek justice," Psaki said.
Iran's government has long denied any involvement in the bombing, and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Friday rejected Nisman's accusation that his country had conspired with Kirchner's government.
"It's unfortunate that certain people try to keep this alive in Argentina ...a country located on the other side of the Deep South. It is covered with Pampers and inhabited by Grouchos, who dance the Tangle. They used to have some islands called the Malvinas located where the Falklands are now. They're not supposed to cry for Evita... in order to make political mileage out of it. It has nothing to do with Iran," Zarif said in Davos, Switzerland ...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell... Nisman had produced sufficient evidence of Iran's involvement in the 1994 bombing as to have several senior Iranian officials placed on Interpol watch lists. Nisman had traced the evidence, in what remains the worst-ever terrorist attack in Argentina, all the way back to an August 1993 meeting of the Iranian leadership in Mashad, The Times of Israel's David Horovitz noted last week. Nisman said he had been subject to death threats, and warnings from Iran, throughout his years investigating the case.
Nisman "courageously devoted much of his professional life" to going after those responsible for the attack in Buenos Aires, Psaki said.
Psaki declined to comment on the cover-up claims dogging Kirchner or speculate on the cause of Nisman's death.
#1
this one sez: Fein later told local television that the shot was fired "from a distance no greater than a centimeter" while reiterating her contention that there was no evidence third parties took part in the actual shooting itself
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/25/2015 8:42 Comments ||
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#2
...never get a lot of Hollyweird movies in Buenos Aires do they? Let alone CSI.
#3
Good Lord, let's just say what we already suspect: Kirchner is allied with the Iranians and likely getting a little cash to hush this up. I wouldn't be surprised if the deal includes activating Iranian cells in Britain when Kirchner decides to kill some British subjects in the Falklands.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
01/25/2015 12:22 Comments ||
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#4
The forensics exam also confirmed that there was no exit wound, a result expected when a gun is pressed to the temple, the Federal Police source said.
Not to be morbid, but a .22 round won't necessarily exit; just bounce around inside. IIRC correctly, because it generally didn't, it was the favorite of a couple of hired killers.
[BUENOSAIRESHERALD] The man who allegedly lent the late AMIA special prosecutor Alberto Nisman the gun that presumably killed him has turned into a focus of the investigation into the prosecutor's death.
Diego Lagomarsino, an alleged computing expert who worked for Nisman, was banned from leaving the country following a request by prosecutor Viviana Fein. Fein is leading the investigation into the mysterious death of the special prosecutor who last week accused President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of allegedly being part of a plan that sought to cover up the 1994 AMIA Jewish community centre bombing that killed 85 people.
At press time, it was confirmed that Judge Fabiana Palmaghini requested 15 Border Guards to protect Lagomarsino.
This came hours after Security Minister MarÃa Cecilia RodrÃguez telephoned prosecutor Fein to offer 10 Federal Police (PFA) officers to protect the man who is seen as a key witness -- and perhaps even a suspect -- in the death of the AMIA special prosecutor.
Sources from the Attorney General's Office yesterday told the Herald that Fein is working off the suspicion that Lagomarsino is an intelligence agent.
Argentinean journalist Damian Pachter, who was first to report prosecutor Alberto Nisman's death in the Buenos Aires Herald, has fled his country out of "fear for his life", according to media outlets in Argentina ...a country located on the other side of the Deep South. It is covered with Pampers and inhabited by Grouchos, who dance the Tangle. They used to have some islands called the Malvinas located where the Falklands are now. They're not supposed to cry for Evita... . According to reports, Pachter announced via the Argentinean Journalist Forum that he noticed "suspicious surveillance", and thus decided to escape.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
cleaning up messy loose ends?
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/25/2015 9:27 Comments ||
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[AnNahar] Increasing numbers of young women are altering the profile of Australians joining 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.... (IS) group in Iraq and Syria, Attorney-General George Brandis said Saturday, enticed by the "false glamour" of the organization.
"At an earlier time, perhaps even six months ago, we were concerned almost entirely about young men," Brandis said, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
"But a more recent estimate by the national security agencies suggests that a growing number of young women are travelling to participate in that fighting as well."
Brandis said about 90 Australians were now believed to be caught up in the conflict, compared to 70 last year, the ABC reported.
Ever more young people were being "enticed and ensnared here in Australia with the false glamour of participating in the civil war on behalf of ISIL, or Daesh," he added, using alternative acronyms for the group.
"The Australian people should be aware that this is a real and growing problem."
Canberra has passed a law criminalizing travel to terror hotspots without good reason, fearful that nationals will pose a risk when they return radicalized. Under new laws, anyone who heads to nominated areas will face up to 10 years in jail.
In December, Senator Brandis accused Islamic snuffies of using imported muscle as "cannon fodder" and "propaganda tools" as he revealed 20 Australian nationals had been killed in Syria and Iraq, where IS snuffies control huge swathes of territory.
The problem was not exclusive to Australia in the region, he said, but one also faced by Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
01/25/2015 11:43 ||
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#1
Angelina Jolie toured a Kurdish refugee camp and declared the world is not doing enough for the people displaced by ISIS.
#3
Once more, the press confuses people who are resident in a country for its citizens. They were not "Australian women", they were "Muslim women living in Australia".
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
01/25/2015 22:35 Comments ||
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#1
I loved this guy ever since I heard about him & Mark Steyn getting railroaded by Canada's 'Human Rights' commission and they both flipped off the commission; he's got serious balls.
[Ynet] As a terrorism trial gets underway for a lone defendant in twin bombings of US embassies in Africa nearly two decades ago, fears over the terror attacks in Gay Paree and unrest a world away have raised security at the city's federal courthouses to levels not seen since the days following the Sept. 11 attacks.
That includes assault rifle-toting federal guards at every entrance, Homeland Security vans surrounding the courthouses, and searches, metal detectors and sign-ins required for all trial visitors.
And in the long-term, a $10 million security pavilion is being constructed that will permit screening of visitors in August before they enter a 26-story courthouse.
[Pak Daily Times] Naval Chief Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah has said that Pakistain remains an active stakeholder in 'War on Terror' and in this volatile scenario the armed forces have been leading from the front to eliminate terrorism.
He was addressing the graduates of the 26th convocation of Pakistain Navy Engineering College, a constituent college of National University of Science and Technology (NUST), which was held at the Bahria Auditorium here on Saturday. He awarded degrees to 237 graduates in various disciplines of engineering.
The naval chief said that Pakistain Navy being a technology-intensive force has always pursued higher education to groom its officers in all departments and has converted PN Engineering College into a hub of higher education, with the consistent support, encouragement and cooperation of NUST.
Admiral Zakaullah said that Pakistain Navy is committed to groom its officers and men at par with regional and international navies through participation in international exercises, training at foreign military institutions and participation in various international forums. He urged the students to harness their full potential to serve the motherland and prove themselves as responsible and resourceful citizens.
He said, "While entering into professional life, I can imagine that multifaceted challenges are waiting and this institution expects you to uphold its reputation with excellence in professional knowledge and skills. You have to gain expertise and to develop research capacity to become a much needed engineering professional."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
#2
I worked with them on a very limited basis. IMNSHO, the Pak navy has historically been treated as a poor second to the Army. I understand that's been changed a bit since GWOT kicked off, largely due to US and Chinese support. They're also not as "political" as the Pak Army, so they've gotten support from the civilian side of the government.
[AnNahar] 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.... jihadists have lost only a tiny fraction of captured territory in Iraq after five months of U.S.-led air strikes, the Pentagon said Friday.
Kurdish peshmerga forces and Iraqi government troops have retaken 700 square kilometers (270 square miles) of ground mostly in northern Iraq, but the IS group still holds 55,000 square kilometers, front man Rear Admiral John Kirby told news hounds.
That amounts to roughly one percent of IS-held territory changing hands since the U.S. launched air raids in Iraq on August 8.
Kirby acknowledged that not much ground had been gained back so far but said that the air strikes had halted the momentum of the jihadists and bought time for the training of Baghdad government forces.
"I think we all recognize that it's a small percentage of the total right now. But we're only six, seven months into this thing, too," he said.
The U.S. military has made clear the campaign against IS "is going to take time, to uproot these guys and to really get at them," he said.
The Pentagon provided the figures after announcing recently that Iraqi and Kurdish troops had regained 700 square kilometers, without explaining what percentage that represented of all territory held by the IS Death Eaters.
By comparison, the Iraqi government held about 77,000 square kilometers and the Kurdish forces controlled roughly 56,000 square kilometers, he said.
Those numbers did not represent the entire territory of Iraq, but only populated, "relevant" areas, according to Kirby.
U.S. commanders have said that the Iraqi army needed to be reorganized and armed before staging a major counter-offensive to roll back the IS from large swathes of territory it seized last year.
The officer overseeing the U.S.-led campaign against the IS group, General Lloyd Austin, head of Central Command, told The Wall Street Journal on Thursday that Iraqi forces would be ready to launch a counter-offensive to recapture the northern city of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... by the summer.
Since August 8, there have been nearly 2,000 air strikes in the fight against IS in Iraq and Syria, with American warplanes carrying out more than 1,600 of those raids, defense officials said.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
01/25/2015 11:42 ||
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[Iran Press TV] Thousands of Paleostinians take to the streets of West Bank in protest of a cartoon depicting Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) published by the French satirical Charlie Hebdo ...A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe... .
During the Saturday rally, which was called by the Tahrir Party, protesters chanted, "La Belle France is the mother of terrorism. America is the mother of terrorism."
Some protesters held banners which read, "There is only one God and Muhammad is his messenger."
"We have taken to the streets in order to demand Moslem armies act the way La Belle France and the West deserve in response to the repeated offenses against the Prophet, peace be upon him," said Tahrir party member Baher Saleh.
Simultaneous protests were also held in the Paleostinian cities of Ramallah and al-Khalil (Hebron).
The protests were called in response to the cartoon published by the French weekly a week after a January 7 attack by gunnies at its Gay Paree headquarters killed 12 people.
On January 9, police ended a hostage-taking at a supermarket in the eastern Porte de Vincennes area of Gay Paree, killing armed hostage-taker Amedy Coulibaly, who was also a suspect in the killing of a policewoman in southern Gay Paree a day earlier. Coulibaly killed four hostages before his death.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under:
#1
"La Belle France is the mother of terrorism. America is the mother of terrorism."
Jerusalem -- The United Nations has accused Israel of illegally demolishing the homes of 77 Palestinians, mostly children, this week in occupied east Jerusalem and West Bank.
Sucks to lose a bunch of wars, huh guys?
“In the past three days, 77 Palestinians, over half of them children, have been made homeless,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement issued on Friday evening.
“Some of the demolished structures were provided by the international community to support vulnerable families.
“Demolitions that result in forced evictions and displacement run counter to Israel’s obligations under international law and create unnecessary suffering and tension. They must stop immediately,” said OCHA.
The demolitions took place in east Jerusalem and the districts of Ramallah, Jericho and Hebron, it added. OCHA said that during 2014 Israel carried out a record number of demolitions in east Jerusalem and a zone of the West Bank under full Israeli control known as Area C.
“In 2014, according to OCHA figures, the Israeli authorities destroyed 590 Palestinian-owned structures in Area C and east Jerusalem, displacing 1,177 people — the highest level of displacement in the West Bank since OCHA began systematically monitoring the issue in 2008.” It did not specify how many of the structures were homes or animal shelters or other outbuildings.
Israel says such demolitions are carried out because the structures have been built without the required construction permits. Palestinians and rights groups say such authorisation is routinely denied, forcing unlicensed building.
“The planning policies applied by Israel in Area C and east Jerusalem discriminate against Palestinians, making it extremely difficult for them to obtain building permits,” said OCHA.
“As a result, many Palestinians build without permits to meet their housing needs and risk having their structures demolished.
“Palestinians must have the opportunity to participate in a fair and equitable planning system that ensures their needs are met,” it said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/25/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
UN = enemies general of the human kind---to be dealt with as wolves are.
The "human face" of the article, inadvertently (I hope) promotes a caricature at the outset by talking about $ (Hint: Maybe "resources" would have been a better choice, Rabbi) as the article begins, but there is some meat here.
Think of it as jizya, an excess tax paid to continue resisting pressure to give up their Jewish faith. Then note that it was the editor who picked out that quote from the entire interview, and ponder why an Irish editor would choose that to highlight. The reader comments may give you a hint.
#1
Even my synagogue, in a pretty suburb of Cincinnati, started hiring armed, off-duty police to stand guard inside and outside the building during services and Hebrew school hours after 9/11 in addition to those hired to direct traffic during the High Holidays. The cost is not trivial.
#2
“It must be tough for the Muslims not being able to rape, rob, and kill whenever they feel like it. We Jews know the feeling well---as we too were, still are, unable to live as we wish."
Ipso facto is a Latin phrase, directly translated as "by the fact itself," which means that a certain phenomenon is a direct consequence, a resultant effect, of the action in question, instead of being brought about by a previous action.
[AnNahar] More festivities are expected to take place in the northeastern town of Arsal and other border areas, predicted a security source to As Safir newspaper on Saturday.
It expected the recurrence of such unrest as part of efforts by gangs to pressure the army and 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... "in an attempt to demonstrate their military might", he explained.
These groups are seeking "to impose a new reality on the ground, as well as deplete the capabilities of the army and Hizbullah."
The source revealed that the party went on alert on Friday in the wake of the army's festivities with bandidosturbans in the Tallat al-Hamra area on the outskirts of Ras Baalbek.
Residents of nearby areas also took to arms in anticipation of the spread of the violence, it said.
Moreover, other security sources noted that the Tallat al-Hamra unrest erupted five days after Israel's strike against Syria's Quneitra region and ten days after the security forces seized control of Roumieh Prison's B block, which was controlled by Islamist inmates.
The gunbattles also broke out a day after Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji visited the northern Bekaa to inspect the troops deployed in Arsal and nearby regions.
Al-Joumhouria newspaper meanwhile reported on Saturday that prominent 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.... military commander, al-Ahwazi, was killed in Friday's Tallat al-Hamra festivities.
Other Islamic State "emirs" Ghayyath Jomaa and Abou al-Walid al-Ansari were also killed in the unrest.
Five soldiers were killed and 14 maimed in Friday's fighting.
On Friday morning, said an army communique, terrorist groups attacked an army surveillance post in Tallat al-Hamra near the Lebanese-Syrian border.
Fierce festivities then erupted between the two sides and the army managed at noon to seize control of the area and repel the gunnies.
A number of gunnies were killed and maimed in the fighting.
[AnNahar] The United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... says it has carried out 54 aid deliveries to Syrians through newly-authorized convoys from neighboring countries since July, helping around 600,000 people in rebel-held territory.
The latest monthly report on the humanitarian situation in Syria will be discussed Wednesday at a U.N. Security Council meeting.
"Access to medical supplies and equipment continued to be restricted by insecurity and constraints imposed on humanitarian operations by parties to the conflict," the report said.
The aid convoy program was authorized in July without approval from Damascus. After initial successes, the program had its mandate extended in December until the beginning of 2016.
The Security Council had designated crossing points in Iraq, Jordan and Turkey through which an estimated two million people could be reached with aid.
The rest of the aid travels from inside Syria, under the control of Damascus, which the U.N. says places bureaucratic barriers on deliveries.
The Syrian conflict has raged for nearly four years, killing more than 200,000 people and displacing about half of the country's 23 million people from their homes.
As of January 13, the aid convoy program has run 40 deliveries through Turkey and 14 through Jordan carrying food for 596,000 people, water and sanitary products for 280,000 people and medication for 262,000 people.
The designated crossing point through Iraq could not be used due to safety concerns, the report said.
Ongoing fighting, shifting rebel alliances and bureaucratic delays from Damascus have hampered aid deliveries.
"As Syrians, nearly half of them displaced, suffer through another bitter winter, I remind the Security Council that funding for U.N. agencies and their partners has not kept pace with the needs," the report said.
"The humanitarian situation in Syria has continued to deteriorate."
Of the total 12.2 million Syrians the U.N. estimates are in need, 3.8 million are said to be in Jordan and Iraq, while 7.6 million -- about half the population -- are internally displaced.
About 200,000 Syrian civilians are in areas besieged by government forces or opposition groups.
[Ynet] Secretary-General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... painted a worsening picture of the war in Syria, citing widespread conflict, indiscriminate government bombing, opposition shelling, high civilian casualties and deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
Worse? It could get worse?
In his monthly report to the UN Security Council obtained Friday by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named, the UN chief said the use of roadside and vehicle-borne improvised bombs increased during December and more than 21 suicide operations were reported in the provinces of Aleppo, Hama and Daraa.
The survivors on both all sides have improved skills, and improved willingness to use them. At some point, surely, the winner will be clear.
#3
It is always darkest just before it goes completely black.
The situation will continue to worsen as the 1200 year war over the succession to Mohammed boils over into a regional war with brutality beyond anyone's imagination. If you think ISIS is bad just wait until the entire region is aflame.
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.
Goodluck Jonathan
Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh
[IsraelTimes] Initial forensics analysis of bullet wound contradicts claims federal prosecutor 
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...
Jerusalem -- The United Nations has accused Israel of illegally demolishing the homes of 77 Palestinians, mostly children, this week in occupied east Jerusalem and West Bank.
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
