A Syrian human rights group has called on the Libyan regime to free 18 political prisoners held in Libyan jails since 1990 on charges of trying to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi. "The Libyan government recently freed political detainees but it continues to deliberately disregard the situation of dozens of Syrian and Palestinian prisoners of conscience who have been in jail since 1990," said in a statement the Syrian Organisation for Human Rights.
The statement referred to Libya's decision earlier last March to release from prison 84 members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood movement held since the late 1990s. The president of the human rights group Abdul Karim Rihawi said 15 of those in jail are Palestinians and three are Syrians. Rihawi asked the Libyan government to "immediately release these prisoners and pay damages to them" and called on international NGOs to put pressure on the regime.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:09 ||
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Four bombs exploded in front of four houses at Daulatdia village, an outlaw infested area in Sadar upazila of Chuadanga, early yesterday. However, no one was injured and no damage done in the explosions.
According to police, a gang allegedly belonging to an outlawed party exploded the bombs in front the houses of Abdur Razzak, Nazmul Imam, Rabiul Islam and Azizul Haq of the village at about 3:30am. Outlawed Janajuddho faction of Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP) has a stronghold in the area. Police went to the village in the morning and collected splinters. They said the bomb blasts might have been carried out by the outlaws to create panic among the people of the area as combing operation in the outlaw infested areas of the district has been intensified to arrest the extremists.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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The US has accused city officials of the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, of complicity in an attack on the car of US Ambassador William Brownfield.
The ambassador's convoy was pelted with eggs, onions and tomatoes and chased by motorbikes for some miles by supporters of President Hugo Chavez.
US Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns said the attack had been condoned by the city government.
However, the mayor's office in Caracas denied any involvement in the incident.
The BBC's Greg Morbasch in Caracas said Mr Brownfield is accustomed to verbal abuse from supporters of the president but this latest incident is the first time he and his team have had objects thrown at them.
Mr Brownfield - who was visiting a low-income neighbourhood in Caracas to donate baseball equipment to underprivileged children - had recently stated he was concerned for his safety.
The US under secretary of state told Venezuelan Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez that if such an incident happens again there would be severe diplomatic consequences, department spokesman Sean McCormack said.
Mr Burns said the attack was a violation of the Vienna Convention and that the action was clearly condoned by the local government, the spokesman said.
US Embassy spokesman Brian Penn said the Venezuelan police escorting the convoy did not intervene to stop the incident.
"The motorcyclists were throwing things at us for at least 10 minutes, and the police did nothing... It was serious," he said.
Mr Penn claimed the incident was organised by the mayor's office in Caracas, which has denied any involvement in the incident.
"No official authorised by the mayor's office participated," Luis Martinez, a spokesman for Mayor Juan Barreto, told AP.
Officials said the incident was organised by local residents who wanted Mr Brownfield to leave the area.
Relations between the US and Venezuela have been strained for some time, and Mr Brownfield has faced protests at recent appearances.
The American embassy has also asked the Venezuelan government to improve security for the ambassador, saying it is legally bound to do so.
President Chavez has been at loggerheads with Washington, accusing the Bush administration of orchestrating assassination and coup attempts in order to get at Venezuela's vast oil reserves, our correspondent says.
But US officials say Mr Chavez is causing instability in the region with his fiery anti-Bush rhetoric and autocratic style of leadership.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/08/2006 02:32 ||
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Hugo is .... brokeback. Ignore the little gun queer punk. First time he tries something, grind his little member into the bloody dirt.
Tajik and Russian military held joint military exercises Wednesday, repelling a hypothetical intrusion by a large group of international terrorists, officials said.
The exercises involved more than 800 Tajik military cadets and servicemen deployed at the Russian military base in the ex-Soviet republic that borders Afghanistan.
Pavel Konev, deputy commander of the Russian base in Tajikistan, said the drill was aimed at improving interaction between Russian and Tajik servicemen and their combat readiness.
The exercises at the Lyaur military range 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of the Tajik capital Dushanbe involved SU-25 fighter jets, tanks and heavy artillery, Konev said.
Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov and Russian Ambassador to Tajikistan Ramazan Abdulatipov watched the drill.
Russia has maintained a military presence in this impoverished Central Asian nation since the 1991 Soviet collapse. Tajikistan hosts Russia's 5,000-strong 201st Motorized Rifle Division.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/08/2006 02:09 ||
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To repel terrorists. Right.
How's that Russian global campaign to destroy terrorists coming along, Pooty?
Danish-Swedish dairy company Arla Foods has said it is getting its products back into stores in the Middle East. It supplied 50,000 stores in the area before the publication in Denmark of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed triggered a boycott of Danish goods. Arla's butter and cheese are back in 3,000 stores across the region and 31 of its largest clients in Saudi Arabia will start selling them from Saturday.
To win back trust, it is now sponsoring bribes humanitarian causes in the Middle East. "We are delighted that out largest Saudi customers have decided to lift the boycott," said Arla's executive director Finn Hansen. "We expect the other large supermarkets in the rest of the Middle East to follow."
Arla said it had contacted the Danish Red Cross for help in finding the right humanitarian causes in the region to provide assistance to. The Danish-Swedish company estimates that the boycott will cost it £37m ($64m) this year.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/08/2006 00:30 ||
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Are they also supplying products to stores in Israel? Inquiring minds want to know.
I suggest that they help provide medical care for survivors of suicide bombings in Iraq and Israel. Somehow, I think that's not what Arla will do.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
04/08/2006 1:03 Comments ||
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Actually, Eric, I would think it should be the Arab countries that pay for victims of islamist violence and the boomers they create, fund and train. SA in particular.
Let Denmark choose it's own beneficiaries and hope they choose well.
#4
Pretty hard to drink sand, melt it on your pita or fry your lamb chops in it, eh? So, let's see now, doesn't collaborating with these Danish blasphemers constitute violation of the numerous fatwahs pronounced against them? Shouldn't bomb-vested jihadis be going after the Saudis in droves? Oh, wait, that would be logically consistent, a concept utterly unknown in Islamic countries.
A conference of 150 Muslim leaders and imams from more than 40 European countries opened on Friday in the Austrian capital, Vienna. The three-day gathering will focus on issues affecting the Muslim communities in Europe, such as the creation of new jobs and the role of women. A key goal will be to hammer out an identity for European Muslims that preserves their traditions while integrating with Western political and social values.The gathering comes at a critical moment for the faith, under pressure from anti-terror probes and a perceived clash with Western values - highlighted by the recent Prophet cartoons crisis.
The Second Conference of European Imams will be attended by clerics from Turkey to the United Kingdom, as well as Austria's president, Heinz Fischer, Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso, EU external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero Waldner, and EU Racism and Xenophobia Observatory chief, Beate Winkler, as well as the Islamic Scientific, Education and Cultural Organisation (ISESCO) director general Abdul-Aziz al-Tuweijiry. The meeting is being organised by Vienna's Islamic Religious Authority (IRA). Axel Byybu Koehler, president of Germany's Central Muslim Council, and representatives of Europe's main Muslim organisations will address the conference, where issues such as Islamic education, political participation, integration, the role of family, employment, the environment and ainmal rights will also be discussed.
An estimated 15 million Muslims live in the European Union's 25 member states, forming approximately 3.3 percent of the bloc's population. There are 400,000 Muslims in Austria, some 4 percent of the population. Islam, which was officially acknowledged in Austria in 1912, is considered the country's second religion after Catholicism.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Test how sincere they are by playing the latest South Park video. If they remain sane and don't foam at the mouth then they might be ready to grow up.
#10
A key goal will be to hammer out an identity for European Muslims that preserves their traditions while integrating with Western political and social values.
The key goal is how to bring Europe to the right level of Dhimmitude. "Integration" means something quite different in Arabic. It's the takeover that integrates Europe into an islamic society.
The suspected ringleader of the 2004 Madrid train bombings filed a complaint in court on Friday alleging he had been abused, tortured and humiliated in Spanish and Italian custody since his arrest in Milan nearly two years ago. Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed, 35, is accused in Italy of recruiting extremists and leading an al-Qaida cell that was planning another attack on an unspecified location. Italian and Spanish investigators also believe he masterminded the Madrid bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,500 in 2004.
Ahmed filed the complaint with judges at the start of Friday's hearing, during which Milan's chief anti-terrorism investigator also testified. The judges were not expected to investigate the claims, though Ahmed's lawyer said London-based human rights group Amnesty International would. In the complaint, handwritten in Arabic and translated into Italian, Ahmed wrote that he was beaten into unconsciousness after his arrest on June 4, 2004 in Milan.
"My body and my face were full of bruises and my nasal septum was broken," Ahmed said. He also described humiliation by Italian prison guards, one of whom ordered him to pray at his feet saying, "I am your god." Ahmed also described mistreatment at a Spanish prison where he was transferred in December 2004, saying guards trampled his clothes and threw his Quran, Islamic publications and prayer rug on the floor. "They told me to remove my clothes and made me stand naked in front of them to listen to their jokes and comments. After, they ordered me to take a shower in freezing water," he claimed.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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if he wasn't, someone should stand trial for willful incompetence. Snuff him and call it Allan's will
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/08/2006 0:13 Comments ||
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Gosh golly, they tossed his cell. Threw his stuff on the floor. Poor baby.
he was beaten into arrest, I imagine - and where did he hear a big word like "nasal septum" Bless the LLL lawyers for these dregs.
Want a cause about real human abuses, try Darfur. Nope, huh - too tough.
As I write this, there are people who would like nothing better than to see me dead. In fact, we just received another threat last week.
What have I done to "deserve" threats? As the founder and director of Jihad Watch, I have dared to expose the otherwise underreported or misreported activities of jihadists not only in America but also in Europe, Russia, Asia, Indonesia, Australia, Africa -- and everywhere else jihad is being waged around the world today.
I have also countered -- in frequent radio and TV appearances, and in countless books, articles and speeches -- the dishonest efforts of many Muslim spokesmen to conceal the true nature of jihadist activities, and to obscure the traditional meaning of jihad as enjoined upon every faithful Muslim by Muhammad himself: which is to subdue, by force if necessary, the entire non-Islamic world to Muslim rule.
For our pains, we at Jihad Watch have been vilified as anti-Muslim "bigots," denounced by Muslim pressure groups (such as the Council on American Islamic Relations, a.k.a. CAIR), and worse. And I myself have been threatened with death by jihadist Muslims who speak openly about having put me on a "hit list." For one public appearance in New York City, in fact, the NYPD placed me under the protection of its "Hercules Team," an anti-terrorist SWAT unit.
Although I take these threats quite seriously, I have decided not to let them deter me from continuing our work, which I believe plays a crucial role in the defense of our civilization and our way of life.
But I desperately need your help. Unlike CAIR, unlike the hundreds of Saudi-funded mosques that are spreading the extremist Wahhabi Muslim ideology right here in America, we at Jihad Watch operate without the backing of Middle Eastern oil billions. In fact, we operate with only a couple of volunteers.
That is why I am writing to you today. If Jihad Watch is even to continue our all-important work -- much less to expand our truth-telling efforts as we would like to -- we must build our staff and operations to a level capable of countering the oil-funded propaganda efforts of jihadists and their allies.
And that means gathering not only operating capital (of dire importance right now), but also seed capital for our own fundraising campaign -- and that campaign has to start with you. I have no one else to turn to.
If each of you gave $1,000, we'd be well on our way to our meeting our crucial goals. Now, that might be a lot for some, but, if those who could, gave more, we would still meet our present needs -- and more important, begin building a stable base for future action (we have quite a few things we would like to do, if only funding permitted). And eliminate the need to make special, urgent requests like this one.
Won't you please make a tax-deductible donation right now? Checks may be sent to: Jihad Watch, PO Box 9437, Gaithersburg, MD 20898-9437. Or you can donate amounts up to $100 (with complete confidentiality and security at jihadwatch.org)
Again, I implore you to be generous. And I thank you with deepest gratitude.
Sincerely,
Robert Spencer
Director, Jihad Watch
Posted by Robert at April 7, 2006 02:33 PM
#1
go Robert. It occurred to me last night, I'd rather have my head cut off than to submit to these 7th century barbarians. Live free or die; it's the American way, and I'm an American.
An agreement reached Thrusday between Democrats and Republicans on immigration reform fell apart Friday. The Senate failed to end debate on the legislation in two lopsided votes Friday morning, leaving the prospects for passage dim as the lawmakers head home for their two-week Easter recess. The bill would have increased border security to try to stem the influx of illegal immigrants while providing a process to legitimize those who've lived for a long time in the country illegally.
The two parties blamed the other for the impasse. "There's a political advantage for Democrats not to have an immigration bill," said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa. "This opportunity is slipping through our hands like grains of sand," said assistant Senate Democratic leader Dick Durbin of Illinois.
In the Friday morning vote, Republicans refused to go along with Democratic demands to limit the number of amendments that could be offered. The compromise proposal, drafted by Republican Sens. Mel Martinez of Florida and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, would allow illegal immigrants who have been in the United States for more than five years to get on a path to legal status and citizenship without leaving the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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The feckless fools in the Senate have had their kabuki dance for the cameras and decided the problem was too big for them. When they get back maybe they should solve the problem piecewise continuous manner: Build the wall, seal the border, and then worry about how to deal with the ones that are already here. (hint: deport them all, anchor babies included).
#3
Meanwhile.... grannies, vets, and other concerned citizens sit in lawn chairs along the border with 7x50's and try to assist the outmanned and outgunned US Border Patrol. Thanks worthless Washington congressional fuc*s. I hope American voters remember each and every one of you at election time.
#6
Remember them. Specter, McCain, Kennedy, Feinstein, Durbin, etc. I don't live there so you Arizonans please tell me why you keeep putting that fool back in office. Following California and Texas, you surely have the worst illegal problem in the US. Why does this sellout Feinstein keep getting back in ? It's past time for her retirement. And speaking of retirement Massachusetts, get rid of the socialist/communist Kennedy, please.
#8
Re: Arizona. Monday, April 10th, there will be a massive boycott of schools, jobs, & etc. by portions of the state's Latino population. Keep an eye out for how this plays out in the msm. Radicals calling for AZTLAN, while moderates suggesting keeping the Mexican flag waving to a minimum. (As a teacher I find boycotting the school an abominable idea - activists are shooting themselves in the foot.)
"Treason doth not prosper, what is the reason? If it doth prosper, none dare call it treason!"
So sez economics 101. If you don't believe me, ask Mr. Steve White.
Don't let yourself get lumped in with the brilliant RWV, et al., unless you don't care of course.
#10
Thank you for your kind words. However, the United States exists because its citizens accept and support its Constitution. It is a nation unique in that its laws were made by the people and apply equally to all its citizens. If people choose not to obey the laws when they become inconvenient,then the social compact frays and the nation becomes something else. I understand the social pain associated with enforcing the laws but I think the adverse effects of rewarding people who have gamed the system will result in greater pain. If you (Glerens Jalet2499 / Thaper Ebbeasing2964 / whoever you are) believe we need 11,000,000 - 12,000,000 more workers to make the economy go, then change the laws to admit them, just make sure that they are people who are willing to obey our laws. Regardless of your enlightened social views, "illegal immigrants" have broken our laws and are criminals. They cannot be rewarded without severely damaging respect for the law. As to "anchor babies", sneaking into the US to have a child for the purpose of obtaining US citizenship is despicable and is only possible because of the current interpretation of the 14th Amendment and the humanitarian impulses not to separate families.
Re USA: For the sake of our security and out of respect for our laws, citizens, and legal immigrants Shut the f*cking* Borders to illegals aliens breaking into our Union.
A court in India's western Gujarat state has convicted nine people for the killing of a Hindu man during the 2002 religious riots in the state.
The court sentenced the main accused to 10 years in prison while eight others were given a year-and-half in jail.
At least 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed in the widespread riots which broke out after a fire in a train claimed the lives of 59 Hindus.
The state government has been accused of doing little to stop the violence.
Additional sessions judge Sonia Gokani held nine of the accused guilty for the killing of a Hindu man and for the injuries of one other.
More than 1,000 people were killed in the riots
The judge sentenced the main accused - Mustaq Ahmed Sheikh - to 10 years in jail and also fined him 5,000 rupees ($100).
Eight other accused were given a year-and-a-half in prison.
The court acquitted 25 people in this case for want of sufficient evidence against them.
The case relates to an incident during the 2002 religious riots in Gujarat.
On 12 April, there was a clash between a group of Hindus and Muslims, in Danilimda locality, in the state's commercial capital, Ahmedabad.
The two sides threw stones and petrol bombs at each other. It was during this clash that Mustaq Ahmed Sheikh opened fire on the crowd.
One Hindu was killed and another was wounded in the firing.
The state administration, led by the right-wing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, has been accused of doing little to stop the violence which swept the state or bring the rioters to justice.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 14:59 ||
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The US with its F-16 fighter aircraft is leading the race to win an Indian Air Force order for 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft one of the biggest single military orders up for grabs globally after the first round in the competition saw the Mirage 2000-V from France and the Russian MiG 29M/M2 out of contention.
The value of the order after the shortlist was drawn up could be anywhere between $7 billion and $12 billion at current prices. It is estimated that the actual selection of aircraft, not accounting for political pulls and pressures, will take till early 2008.
The global tender called request for proposal (RFP) will be issued by the end of April, sources said today. Manufacturers of six aircraft who will be given the RFPs will have till October to respond.
The Eurofighter EADSs Typhoon, Dassault Aviations Rafale and the Russian MiG 35 now enter the fray formally. The original four contenders were F-16 (Lockheed Martin), MiG 29M/M2 (RSK MiG Corporation), Jas 39C Grippen (Saab) and the Mirage 2000-V (Dassault Aviation).
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 14:27 ||
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oh ace that'll really hack the french off if they buy f-16's
As with previous Indian orders, the first few squadrons will probably arrive assembled but majority of aircraft will be CKD kits - the planes will be assembled at Hindustan Aviation in Bangalore - where the Su-30 MKIs, the various Migs, the Jaguars, the Hawk trainers etc are already being built.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 18:10 Comments ||
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#7
According to the HAL website Today, HAL has got 16 Production Units and 9 Research and Design Centres spread out in seven different locations in India. Its product track record consists of 12 types of Aircraft from in-house R & D and 14 types by license production. HAL has so far produced about 3,550 aircraft, 3,600 Engines and overhauled over 8,150 Aircraft and 27,300 Engines.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 18:13 Comments ||
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Not rebuilds. Lockheed offered the "Block 70". It doesn't exist yet, but is most likely a variant of the Block 60 the UAE flies (conformal fuel tanks like Israeli F-16I and Block 60, ASEA radar, AIM9-X). I'm sure the USAF wished they had a few. Lockheed Martin offers 'exclusive' F-16 fighters
I'm a bit surprised the F-16 is leading since Pakistan flies the F-16A and is receiving Block 50s. Might get a little confusing in an air war. In addition while the IAF already flies the Mirage 2000, it lost out on the tech race and the assembly line is closing. The Rafale is at least 50% more expensive than the F-16 and has less capability. The Typhoon is at least twice the price of the F-16. I know little of the Mig-35 except that it has thrust vectoring and that if its avionics is anything like the Mig-29, stay away from it.
Posted by: ed ||
04/08/2006 18:18 Comments ||
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#9
They appear to do licensed manufacturing of certain types of aircraft as well as just assembly.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 18:19 Comments ||
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#10
that if its avionics is anything like the Mig-29, stay away from it.
If the Mig is chosen, the avionics will be western.
This is the route India took with the Su-30.
The plane may be Russian but there are Israeli, French and Indian avionics and weapons.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 18:22 Comments ||
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#11
Typo: AESA radar.
Not mentioned in the article is the F-18E/F that was also offered.
Which western weapons are the Indian Su-30s carrying?
Posted by: ed ||
04/08/2006 18:45 Comments ||
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#12
It carries the Israeli Litening targeting pod.
The French MICA missile is supposed to be integrated with the MKI soon.
This was a design consideration for the MKI - the ability to field non Russian weapons.
They already field the French Magic-2 on their Mig-29s.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 19:22 Comments ||
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#13
Also driving this is the manufacturing agreements between MDBA and Bharat Dynamics for the full range of MDBA missiles.
Recently read that Bharat Dynamics had manufactured more than 30 000 Milan anti-tank missiles for the Indian army.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 19:38 Comments ||
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#14
This is a few years old
The Su-3OMKI supersonic multi-role two-seat fighter is the first Russian combat aircraft ever to be designed in conformity with the requirements of a foreign customer. Most observers agree that the time taken by India in defining and developing
the MKI version was rather well spent, as it took great pains to incorporate several technologies from the Su-37 technology demonstrator and mate it with the Su-30 airframe. These include:
> Digital Fly-By-Wire controls, which have now become the industrial standard for latest generation fighter aircraft;
> Aerodynamic configuration of an unstable longitudinal triplane, with fully movable canard surfaces;
> Rear-facing radar in the tail boom to provide warning of hostile aircraft approaching from the rear quadrants and the option of rearward-firing R-73 missiles;
> Single-axis Thrust Vector Control (TVC), that allows the axisymmetric vectoring nozzles to swivel 15 0 in the vertical plan to provide differential thrust control. Depending on the manoeuvere to be performed, engine deflection can be synchronous with or differ from horizontal stabiliser deflection. The Su-30MKI is the world's first (and so far only) operational combat aircraft to feature TVC. The above mentioned integral aerodynamic configuration combined with TVC results in what is referred to as "practically unlimited manoeuvrability," enabling the MKI to take sharp turns without any AoA (Angle of Attack) limits, as well as unique TO and landing characteristics;
> Phazotron phased array radar with increased search range, ground mapping function and compatibility with all Russian and some Western air-air and air-grwund weaponry. The radar is integrated with the fire control system for day-night, all-weather interception of hostile targets. The radar ensures a 20m resolution detection of large sea targets at a distance of up to 400km, while smaller targets can be detected at a distance of 120km. The system can simultaneously track up to 15 air targets while engaging four of them;
> Modified aerial refuelling probe: The air refuelling system enables combat missions of up to 10h duration, with a range of 8,000km at a cruise altitude of 11,000- 13,000m,
> High speed datalink providing ground control precise information about the state of the aircraft and its weapons.
In addition to the above, the specific Indian modifications to the avionics and other systems, which India developed on its own with cooperation from France and Israel, are as follows:
> A new indigenous ECM package developed by the Indian Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) with technical support from Israel;
> A state-of-the-art "glass" cockpit with a total of six Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs), including two multi-functional
displays and a HUD developed together with then Sextant Avionique of France (now part of Thales);
> All software controls (including the mission computer and navigation systems) have been developed in India;
> An open avionics architecture allowing for the integration of a wide choice of air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles of various origin. The Su-30MKI has a total of twelve weapons stations. No formal plans have been announced, but in addition to the standard Russian range likely AAM candidates include the French MICA and the Israeli Derby and Python IV. It is also expected that the Su-30MKI will eventually receive the air-launched version of the BrahMos cruise missile currently being developed in cooperation between Indian and Russian industries;
> A quick response auto pilot operative during combat engagements. It provides "hands free" capability to the pilot to stay focused on targeting and weapons deployment.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 20:04 Comments ||
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#15
The Su-30MKI is the world's first (and so far only) operational combat aircraft to feature TVC. The above mentioned integral aerodynamic configuration combined with TVC results in what is referred to as "practically unlimited manoeuvrability," enabling the MKI to take sharp turns without any AoA (Angle of Attack) limits, as well as unique TO and landing characteristics..
Perhaps someone in the know could explain why the Su-30MKI "unlimited" Angle of Attack wouldn't produce high speed stalls, loss of the fly in flying, in other words.
I'm guessing that the Su-30MKI's ability to "skid vector" is at the low end of the airspeed limits for the aircraft.
#16
Here is a short video clip (850 kb) of the Su-30 performing TVC turns
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 20:57 Comments ||
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#17
iow, At relative slow speeds the Su-30's high thrust to weight ratio along with the canard and vectoring nozzles can radically manoeuvre, but about cruise or high speed abilities?
ISLAMABAD: Activists of the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) vowed to establish a global caliphate, beginning with Pakistan.
In a rally attended by thousands of activists of the banned group to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on Friday, leaders of the SSP called for an Islamic theocracy in Pakistan. The concept of nation state is an obstacle in the way of the establishment of Khilafat. We will start the establishment of Khilafat in Pakistan and then will do so across the world, said Zaheerul Islam Abbasi, a former general who was sacked and arrested in 1995 for trying to topple the government of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
Activists distributed pamphlets in Islamabad preaching jihad and hatred against Shias, as their leaders delivered fiery speeches to a crowd of around 5,000 late on Thursday.
They also sold video compact discs of the beheadings of American soldiers in Iraq, and militant activities in Afghanistan and Pakistan at the rally, which they said was convened to celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) this month. One of the organisers thanked the Islamabad administration for allowing the rally, which was held under floodlights in a bus depot, with hundreds of riot police watching on. SSP is known to have close links with Jaish-e-Mohammad, a militant group fighting in Indian-occupied Kashmir and with links to Al Qaeda.
Some of the crowd briefly chanted anti-Shia slogans, until they were told to refrain by their leaders. They also swore allegiance to their late leader, Maulana Azam Tariq, a fiery pro-Taliban cleric who was assassinated in Islamabad in 2003, and founder of the organisation Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, who was killed in 1980s.
Last July, President Pervez Musharraf ordered a major crackdown against clerics and organisations inciting sectarian violence. The SSP was banned by the government in 2002.
The SSP has often been blamed for violence against Shias, planting bombs in mosques or attacking religious processions. Thousands of people have been killed in tit-for-tat attacks by militants from the two sects over the past 20 years. Most of the victims are Shias, who account for about 15 percent of Pakistans predominantly Sunni Muslim population of 150 million.
On Thursday, a prominent Shia Muslim cleric narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in Karachi after his car was hit by a remote-controlled bomb Authorities have launched several crackdowns on militant outfits since Pakistan joined a US-led war on terrorism in the wake of the September 11 attacks on the United States, but critics say that the steps taken have been half-hearted and many groups have resurfaced under new names.
Like other groups, SSP remerged under the new name of Millat-e-Islamia Pakistan.
Founded in the 1980s, SSP wants Pakistan to be officially declared a Sunni Muslim state.
It had recently been reported in the press that the government might relax some restrictions on the group and allow it to commence political activities in a very low profile. Reuters
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04/08/2006 12:04 ||
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One of the organisers thanked the Islamabad administration for allowing the rally, which was held under floodlights in a bus depot, with hundreds of riot police watching on.
A former head of CIAs Al Qaeda unit, and now a political analyst, has warned the Bush administration not to push Pakistan too much to do things that are against its national interests as it can lead to the collapse of a major US ally in South Asia.
In a hard-hitting opinion piece published in the Washington Times on Friday, Michael F. Scheuer, a 22-year CIA veteran, describes Pakistan as an ally that did far more and took more lethal risks to accomplish Americas dirty work than any other of its allies, including all of Nato, in the war against al Qaedaism.
Mr Scheuer, who created and served as CIAs Osama bin Laden unit head, says that while Pakistans internal political contradictions, economic problems and the Homeric venality of its politicians have (also) long caused a steady downward spiral, Americas shabby treatment of this close ally also had done a great harm. US officials believe they can add untold pressures to the Pakistani leaders burden and still find him eager to do Americas most important dirty work: Killing Osama bin Laden. Well, think again, warns Mr Scheuer.
The CIA veteran says that since 9/11, Washington has often forced Pakistani leaders to take steps that run counter to Pakistans national interests.
Pakistan, for example, had no enemies in the Taliban or al Qaeda until (Pakistani leaders) made them such at our behest. Likewise, there could have been no better Afghan government for Pakistan than the Taliban regime, and yet (Pakistani leaders) helped America destroy it and replace it with the Karzai regime, a government that has allowed an enormous increase in the Indian presence in Afghanistan.
The author recalls that for the first time Pakistan has sent the regular army into the largely autonomous tribal areas to root out Al Qaeda and the Taliban.
To date, Pakistan has lost more soldiers killed and wounded than the US-led coalition in Afghanistan. More dangerously, the offensives are stoking the fires of a potential civil war between Islamabad and the Pashtun tribes that dominate much of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
This situation, he says, is heaven-sent for Pakistans enemies, the Karzai regime and India, to fuel Pashtun irredentism. If successful, this people could lead to the creation of a country ungovernable without Western bayonets, reducing Islamabads domain to an indefensible sliver of territory, faced by angry warlike tribes to the west and a billion-plus, nuclear-armed Indians to the east. For New Delhi, this would be nirvana on earth.
What have (Pakistans) US allies done to help lighten the load of an ally Washington describes as indispensable, asks the author.
President Bush visited India before Islamabad and there again declared New Delhi a strategic US partner. Then, as if to ensure Pakistanis did not miss the snub, the president signed a nuclear deal with India that however non-weapons-related its content will be seen by Mr Musharrafs fellow generals, Islamist political parties, and most Pakistanis as giving their enemy a WMD leg-up over Pakistan.
On arriving for a hurried visit to Pakistan, the president spoke the usual boiler plate describing Pakistan as a major ally in the war on terrorism, and then asked Mr Musharraf what all US leaders ask their Pakistani counterparts: What have you done for me lately? Mr Musharraf, reeling from what he has done, was told he must do more to eliminate al Qaeda and the Taliban, help the anti-Pakistan Karzai regime, and to forget the idea of a US-Pakistan nuclear deal like that America signed with India.
Such measures, he believes, would provoke the Pashtun tribes, endanger Pakistans western border and force it to do Indias bidding, Mr Scheuer said.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/08/2006 02:01 ||
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#1
If Sheurer doesn't like the way we are handling India and Pakistan, then I most certainly do.
#2
I think we have a fine balancing act in our relations with Pakistan. The Pakistanis have done more recently than most in the US know or care to acknowledge. In the end, however, we will not be able to achieve or goals in the region without the support of Pakistan.
#5
When President Ayub Khan visited Washington around 40 years ago, to meet the American president from Texas, Lyndon Baines Johnson, the latter told him: We give India food or anything else we want. Our India policy is our business. Ayub Khan described the treatment meted to him by President Johnson: I had barely sat down when President Johnson started speaking. He didnt even address me as President, and thus spoke: Go and patch up with India. I said: Please listen to me... He stopped me right in the middle of the sentence and retorted: I have told you, go and patch up with India or shut up. Ayub Khan hadnt revealed this incident to his cabinet, but only to the Working Committee (Munir Ahmed Munir. 1985. Aatish Fishan Publications, pg337).
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 12:02 Comments ||
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If they had listened to LBJ, Pak would not be in the hole it is in now...
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 12:24 Comments ||
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If Pakistan's heroic efforts have gone largely unhearlded, they must be some absolutely incredible undercover enterprises. That said, since the ISI does all the undercover work, it sort of brings us back to square one, since the ISI cannot be trusted with even so much as a ball point pen.
Our alliance with Pakistan compares well with attempting to use a highly toxic poison. It is just as easy to harm oneself as to kill your opponent when using such fatal measures. This has been the exact case with Pakistan. Any actual successes enjoyed at their behest have been accompanied by so many compromises and outright betrayals that little headway is the most likely result.
When you add to this meager balance sheet the fact that Pakistan continues to churn out countless thousands of potential taleban and jihadis on a daily basis, the degree of betrayal assumes true proportion.
Pakistan must eventually experience regime change and forever be steered away from the theocratic cesspool it has always been since its very inception.
The authorities in Nepal have imposed an all-day curfew in the capital, Kathmandu, as activists prepare for a rally on the third day of a strike. The curfew will be in force for 11 hours from 1000 (0415GMT) and violators risk being shot at, officials said. Some mobile phone networks have also been cut, as protesters prepare for more demonstrations against King Gyanendra's rule. He has been widely criticised for seizing absolute power 14 months ago.
On Friday, at least 150 anti-government protesters were arrested in Kathmandu. Police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse demonstrators, who hurled stones and set fire to a post office. The crowds shouted that the king was a thief and should leave the country, the BBC's Charles Haviland in Kathmandu reports. Clashes also were reported in several other towns of the kingdom.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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The government yesterday suspended the police chief and the chief administrator of the northern town of Aligarh as the death toll from two days of Hindu-Muslim clashes rose to six. At least 19 people have been injured and hospitals said the condition of eight was critical. While four people were killed in clashes on Thursday, two bodies were recovered from the city yesterday morning, Aligarh's additional superintendent of police A.K. Saxena said. Curfew has been imposed on parts of the city and Saxena said the situation was tense but under control. Newspapers, however, reported sporadic violence in some neighborhoods.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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Activists of the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) vowed to establish a global caliphate, beginning with Pakistan. In a rally attended by thousands of activists of the banned group to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (may his drip clear up peace be upon him) on Friday, leaders of the SSP called for an Islamic theocracy in Pakistan. The concept of nation state is an obstacle in the way of the establishment of Khilafat. We will start the establishment of Khilafat in Pakistan and then will do so across the world, said Zaheerul Islam Abbasi, a former general who was sacked and arrested in 1995 for trying to topple the government of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
There you have it, in their own words, not that we needed reminding. I don't find the thought of a world ruled by Pak primitives a comforting thought.
Activists distributed pamphlets in Islamabad preaching jihad and hatred against Shias, as their leaders delivered fiery speeches to a crowd of around 5,000 late on Thursday.
In other words, all the things they said they wouldn't do when Perv lifted the ban on them.
They also sold video compact discs of the beheadings of American soldiers in Iraq, and militant activities in Afghanistan and Pakistan at the rally, which they said was convened to celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad (may his hemorrhoids never inflame peace be upon him) this month. One of the organisers thanked the Islamabad administration for allowing the rally, which was held under floodlights in a bus depot, with hundreds of riot police watching on. SSP is known to have close links with Jaish-e-Mohammad, a militant group fighting in Indian-occupied Kashmir and with links to Al Qaeda.
But Perv thinks they're just fine, so he won't take any action against them.
Some of the crowd briefly chanted anti-Shia slogans, until they were told to refrain by their leaders. They also swore allegiance to their late leader, Maulana Azam Tariq, a fiery pro-Taliban cleric who was assassinated in Islamabad in 2003, and founder of the organisation Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, who was killed in 1980s.
I do find it comforting that their head cheeses get bumped off, rather than dying of hardening of the arteries or senile dementia, like Fazl and Qazi seemingly intend to do...
Last July, President Pervez Musharraf ordered a major crackdown against clerics and organisations inciting sectarian violence. The SSP was banned by the government in 2002.
Then he changed his mind the other day...
The SSP has often been blamed for violence against Shias, planting bombs in mosques or attacking religious processions. Thousands of people have been killed in tit-for-tat attacks by militants from the two sects over the past 20 years. Most of the victims are Shias, who account for about 15 percent of Pakistans predominantly Sunni Muslim population of 150 million.
That kinda implies they wouldn't be bumping off Sunnis if the Sunnis weren't slaughtering them, except within the normal tolerances of violence that's engrained in Pak culture...
On Thursday, a prominent Shia Muslim cleric narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in Karachi after his car was hit by a remote-controlled bomb.
Oh, golly. I wonder whoever may have been responsible?
Authorities have launched several crackdowns on militant outfits since Pakistan joined a US-led war on terrorism in the wake of the September 11 attacks on the United States, but critics say that the steps taken have been half-hearted and many groups have resurfaced under new names. Like other groups, SSP remerged under the new name of Millat-e-Islamia Pakistan. Founded in the 1980s, SSP wants Pakistan to be officially declared a Sunni Muslim state. It had recently been reported in the press that the government might relax some restrictions on the group and allow it to commence political activities in a very low profile.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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hmmmmmm .....no. Because? Because they're not. By centuries
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/08/2006 0:17 Comments ||
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A tale of two countries
THIS is with reference to Mr Irfan Husains article A tale of two countries (March 28) in which he has depicted Pakistan in a poor light.
He writes: How much damage Dr A.Q. Khans supposedly free lance activities have done to Pakistans image. If he acted on his own, it is a poor reflection on the control exercised over our nuclear installations by the army. The other (and stronger) possibility is that he was officially encouraged to export atomic secrets to foreign buyers. He goes on: In either case, to imagine that the Americans would now supply us with the latest nuclear technology is to live in a fools paradise
A few pertinent questions immediately come to mind:
i. In 1976 when America blocked the acquisition of a nuclear reprocessing plant from France, was it due to any of Dr A.Q. Khans alleged sins?
ii. After receiving $600 million in cash and not delivering F-16s as promised, did the US backtrack on its commitment because Dr A.Q. Khan had done something somewhere?
iii. Didnt the US commit nuclear proliferation when it master-minded, engineered and orchestrated Israels nuclear arsenal? In 1973 Israel threatened Egypt that it would nuke Cairo with the backing of the US. Now the US has offered India carte-blanche to acquire civilian nuclear technology under the NPT no country can transfer nuclear technology.
iv. Did India not help Iran in any manner in developing the latters nuclear capability?
v. Did Russia not build a nuclear reactor in Iran?
vi. Did China not assist North Korea in developing the latters nuclear facilities?
Mr Husain has pointed out that investors shy away from Pakistan because of bomb blasts and terrorism. May I ask him why France is in the grip of violence these days?
Thousands of cars have been burnt there. Last July, London was hit by a series of bomb blasts in its subway system. What about the bomb blasts in Varanasi (India) and state- sponsored terrorism in occupied Kashmir? The Valley is the worst example of human rights abuses.
In a nutshell, the whole world is in the grip of violence, terrorism and extremism (the publication of blasphemous cartoons in Denmark is the latest example).
Then why single out or blame Pakistan for an international phenomenon? Albert Einstein is Americas hero, but Dr A.Q. Khan is their villain. Why?
LT-COL (r) SAFIR A. SIDDIQUI
Karachi
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 12:18 Comments ||
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#4
Note the angst, the sense of entitlement and the convoluted 'logic'.
And this guy was a Colonel in the Pak army..
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 12:22 Comments ||
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Damn right. Start applying the same criteria (what constitutes civilized behavior, etc...), what you use for India, to Pakistan.
#7
In a nutshell, the whole world is in the grip of violence, terrorism and extremism (the publication of blasphemous cartoons in Denmark is the latest example).
The Danish catoons have nothing to do with "violence, terrorism and extremism". The reaction to the Danish cartoons has everything to do with "violence, terrorism and extremism".
Attempting to restrict freedom of speech places Islam in the category of communists, fascists, Nazis and dictatorships. If you willingly concede that categorization, then go ahead and demand the suppression of free speech. Just don't expect anyone with an IQ higher than room temperature (in ?C) to agree with you.
Islam is slowly painting itself into a corner where it will either have to genuinely reform itself of simply declare outright war on the entire non-Muslim world, (you know, that dar Al-Harb thingy). Should Islam finally declare open war, I would not bet a plug nickle on it surviving another fortnight.
The government of the United Progressive Alliance appears to have buckled under US pressure and the persistent demands of Pakistan to completely withdraw its 4,000 troops from Siachen, the highest battlefield in the world, Indian newspaper The Pioneer reported on Friday.
The paper reported that following a secret meeting between Indian National Security Adviser MK Narayanan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz in Dubai in the last week of February, India has agreed in principle to the phased withdrawal of the Indian Army from its positions. Narayanan is believed to have discussed the matter with Aziz and also conveyed the seriousness of the Indian government on the issue. Government sources told the paper that the finer points of this highly contentious issue would be discussed in the next round of defence secretary level talk between the two countries scheduled for the first week of May. "If all goes well, the agreement could be inked by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when he visits Pakistan in August this year," the paper reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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Siachen thaw helps Army focus on China
With the Indo-Pak diplomatic back-channels working on a solution to the Siachen issue, there are signs, a decrease in number of surveillance sorties for instance, that things are already changing on the glacier, the worlds highest battleground.
That more changes are in the offing was clear from the statement of Army Chief General JJ Singh in New Delhi today. The Army will remain positive on the issue of withdrawing from the glacier, while ensuring that national interest was not affected, he said.
We are not dogmatic and we remain positive. We are sure that national interest will be kept, he said when asked whether the Army would be happy to withdraw from the forward points on the glacier, if the government decides so.
Army sources in Leh gave clues of the Armys logic regarding the worlds highest battleground. Siachen and adjoining areas will be sufficiently patrolled as long as it seems necessary but with changing perceptions and a possible political thaw on the issue, chances are that resources will be directed towards the LAC with China among other areas.
Air patrolling missions around the glacier had started since January. The Armys 14 Corps that operates across Ladakh, through the 826-km line of actual control (LAC) with the vast China-controlled Aksai Chin valley, has been paying attention to this mission as the Army feels it would be far more compatible to its current and future strategic perceptions. The Army recognises a special need to ramp up on the Eastern Ladakh sector rather than feed a dead horse in Siachen.
Until January this year, there was a maximum of two daily surveillance sorties to Siachen by the Armys 666 Siachen Falcons helicopter squadron, thereby mounting 10-14 patrol missions a week. But over the last two months, this has dropped to six to eight sorties per week.
The Saltoro ridge, under the Indian Army, is a wedge between Aksai Chin to the east, and Pakistans Baltistan province to the west. Demilitarising the ridge and the adjacent Siachen glacier would allow the Army to draw back and focus on sub-sector North and Eastern Ladakh.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 14:14 Comments ||
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From another report- expectations of Pak perfidy
Though Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Ministry of Defence are not in complete agreement as to the overall proposal, they will be forced to fall in line once the Government decides to go ahead with its demilitarisation plan.
Ever since then prime minister Indira Gandhi ordered the deployment of the Indian Army in Siachen in April 1984, Pakistan has been demanding the total withdrawal of the Indian troops. It has used every trick in its trade to hammer across its argument that Indian Army should withdraw from Saltoro Hills of NJ-9842 mountain peak.
The strategic importance of Saltoro Hills can be gauged from the fact that it takes only four days to enter into Indian territory from Pakistan's side despite a maze of extremely narrow routes.
Indian Army had further fortified its deployment after the Kargil War much to the chagrin of Pakistan. Officers and men of the Indian Army should be complemented for having effectively checkmated any misadventures from Pakistan in this sector, the sources said.
In the event of Indian troops pulling out of Saltoro Hills, Pakistan would be able to straighten the passage between Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and Aksai Chin. Pakistan had also not agreed to accept the actual ground position line (AGPL) since it had set its eye on this strategic terrain.
Most importantly, Pakistan will never agree to authenticate its military-held positions in this area, as it wants to first seek the withdrawal of Indian Army and then exploit it for fulfilling its ulterior motives.
Apprehensions are being expressed that if the peace process between India and Pakistan gets derailed and the Pakistan Army meanwhile occupies key positions in Siachen, India will have to really move the mountains to regain its previously-held positions.
Posted by: john ||
04/08/2006 14:15 Comments ||
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Pro-local Taliban tribal clerics in North Waziristan on Friday demanded the army pull out of the area while parliamentarians and nazims of seven Frontier districts asked government to take military action against outlaws in Malakand Agency. Two separate jirgas were held in Mir Ali and Mardan. In Mir Ali, clerics asked the army to leave North Waziristan and guard the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The jirga in Mardan agreed to take action themselves if the government failed to initiate a military operation against outlaws in Malakand Agency within 24 hours.
The clerics denounced a ban on the display of weapons in North Waziristan. JUI-Fazl North Waziristan General Secretary Maulana Abdur Rehman told the Mir Ali jirga that carrying weapon was a key element of tribal traditions and tribal people could not accept the ban. The North Waziristan administration banned public display of weapons to improve law and order situation. The ban was also aimed at keeping Al Qaeda and Taliban-linked militants away from attacking security forces in main towns. We have feuds. Living in the tribal areas without weapons is impossible, said the JUI-F senior leader, who recently surrendered after the government declared him wanted.
Eyewitnesses said that only the clerics addressed the jirga attended by around 10,000 tribesmen. The tribal elders did not speak on the occasion. The jirga will meet again on Monday to take important decisions. The participants demanded the removal of army from check-posts on roadside throughout North Waziristan.
Tribal militant commander Baitullah Mehsud also demanded armys withdrawal from Waziristan. It is part of our deal with the government that forces will be withdrawn, he said while making telephone calls to newspaper offices in Peshawar from an undisclosed location. He said the armys withdrawal was a key point of the peace deal he reached with the government and signed on February 7 last year in the Sararogha area of South Waziristan. Baitullah said all those killed on Wednesday in North Waziristan were mujahideen returning from operations in Afghanistan. He said the tribal militants did not want to clash with security forces but whenever it happened there was no other way out. He added that tribal militants would continue jihad in Afghanistan. Jihad will continue as long as it is possible, he vowed. Baitullah alleged that certain intelligence agencies were threatening him and were trying to collapse the peace deal. Gen Safdar Hussain was sincere to peace in Waziristan but not the intelligence agencies, which are threatening to kill me, he claimed.
The jirga of political leaders and elders in Mardan agreed to first meet NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani to inform him of the situation in the seven districts. They pledged to fight criminals in Malakand Agency themselves if the government did not take action against them. The jirga was attended by parliamentarians Ikramullah Shahid, Amanat Shah and Sikandar Khan Sherpao, former provincial minister Abdus Subhan, former senator from Malakand Agency Sahibzada Khalid Khan, nazims and other elders of the seven districts at Mardan Circuit House on Friday. The participants were from the Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, Charsadda, Dir Upper, Dir Lower and Malakand Agency. The jirag was concerned over the increasing incidents of kidnapping for ransom and pledged to flush the Provincial Administered Tribal Area (PATA) of all criminals. The jirga also expressed concern over vehicle thefts and demanded a crackdown on criminals. The speakers said that a handful of gangsters in Malakand Agency had made the life of others miserable. They demanded the federal and provincial governments declare the Agency a settled area and initiate military action against the criminals. The jirga demanded the government recover Haji Lal Zada who has been in the captivity of the kidnappers for the last two months. They threatened a direct action if the government failed to start military operation against the criminals in Malakand Agency.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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Shiite Muslim militias pose the greatest threat to security in many parts of Iraq, having killed more people in recent months than the Sunni Arab-led insurgency, and will likely present the most daunting and critical challenge for Iraq's new government, U.S. military and diplomatic officials say.
Assassinations, many carried out by Shiite gunmen against Sunni Arabs in Baghdad and elsewhere, accounted for more than four times as many deaths in March as bombings and other mass-casualty attacks, according to military data. And most officials agree that only a small percentage of shooting deaths are ever reported.
The surge in sectarian killings, triggered by the bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra in late February, had slowed in recent weeks. It was uncertain if attacks on prominent Shiite mosques Thursday and Friday would signal an onset of renewed bloodletting.
While acknowledging the instability caused by Shiite armed groups, the largest of which are linked to the country's dominant political parties and operate among Iraq's police and army, U.S. and Iraqi officials here have yet to implement, or even publicly articulate, a strategy for addressing the problem.
"We know militias are an issue. We've asked both the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense to work there," said Maj. Gen. Joseph Peterson, the top American officer working with Iraq's police force, in which many Shiite militiamen serve. "They recognize the problem. But there's been no decision as to what to do about it."
"There are laws and constitutional articles dealing with militias that explain how to dissolve them and integrate their members into the security forces on an individual basis," said Adnan Ali Kadhimi, a senior adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jafari. "But this is on the basis of theory. On the basis of practicality, the situation is still very fragile. The implementation has to be cautious and careful."
Militias last emerged as a top U.S. concern in 2004, when the American and Iraqi armies spent months putting down violent uprisings by the Mahdi Army, a militia loyal to the firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, in Baghdad, Najaf and other cities. But the problem is far thornier now, U.S. officials say, because the militias have added thousands of foot soldiers and gained new political stature.
Two years ago, the Iraqi government was largely under American control and led by interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, a secular Shiite. Iraq's next parliament will be dominated by the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a religious party that oversees a militia called the Badr Organization, and by followers of Sadr. Together the two groups claim nearly a quarter of the legislature's 275 seats and will likely hold several cabinet ministries.
"It's a far more serious problem now than it was then because of who is in power," said a U.S. official who worked on the militia issue with the now-disbanded Iraqi Governing Council two years ago and spoke on the condition that he not be named. "Until there's a commitment on the part of the government, there will be no solution."
Practically every Shiite political party in Iraq maintains a force of men with guns -- some virtual armies of several thousand or more, others what Peterson described as little more than a "neighborhood watch on steroids."
Iraq's other major factions maintain armed forces as well. Insurgent groups such as al-Qaeda in Iraq and Ansar al-Sunna are composed predominantly of Sunni Arabs and conduct frequent attacks on U.S. and Iraqi soldiers and Shiite civilians. The pesh merga , a large militia maintained by ethnic Kurds, is formally under the command of the Iraqi army, operates mainly in the Kurdish north and poses no major security threat, U.S. officials say.
All of the militias justify their existence, to some extent, by claiming a need to protect their communities from the violence that pervades the country.
Shiite militiamen are believed to number in the tens of thousands. Maj. Gen Rick Lynch, the chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said in a recent interview that the Mahdi Army -- formed by Sadr from the long-oppressed Shiite underclass in the aftermath of the U.S.-led invasion -- was believed to have about 10,000 members. The Badr Organization, created in Iran in the 1980s to fight Saddam Hussein's rule, has roughly 5,000, he said.
Other estimates for the groups, both accused by the United States of receiving backing from Iran, range far higher.
The aftermath of the Feb. 22 bombing of the Askariya shrine in Samarra refocused attention on the Mahdi Army. Hours after the bombing, dozens of pickup trucks packed with rifle-toting young men -- most clad in the militia's telltale black shirts and pants -- streamed out of Sadr City, a sprawling Shiite slum in northeastern Baghdad. Many said they had left work immediately in response to commanders' and clerics' calls to protect their mosques and neighbors.
In the days that followed, despite a government-imposed curfew on vehicle traffic and Sadr's public pleas for calm, residents of several Sunni neighborhoods of Baghdad said roving bands of gunmen dragged people from homes and Sunni mosques, some of which were then occupied by Shiites.
A Mahdi Army member, who did not want to be identified by his real name, denied charges that the militia had killed Sunnis after the Samarra bombing, calling the claims "a rumor by the occupation forces to get the Iraqi people into an internal war."
Dressed in a suit and seated at a large wooden desk, the commander of a company of some 200 men looked little like a fighter during an interview one recent morning at an office in the southern city of Najaf. He said he expected another confrontation between U.S. forces and the Mahdi Army, which has won a fierce following not only by battling foreign troops but by providing such social services as cleaning streets and feeding the poor.
"It is like fire and ice. We will never get together and we consider the occupation our worst enemies," he said. "We are expecting martyrdom at any moment. When the order comes to defend ourselves, God willing, we will fight bravely."
Approaches to the problem of militias have often conflicted.
Order 91, issued by the Coalition Provisional Authority, the U.S.-led organization that administered Iraq following the invasion, outlawed militias. Members of nine recognized armed groups, including Badr but not the Mahdi Army, were supposed to turn in their weapons and were offered places in Iraq's security forces. The weapons were never handed over.
Last month, the Iraqi government renewed calls for the fighters to be further folded into Iraq's police force and army. But U.S. and British advisers to the police and army units have pressed Iraqi commanders to weed out members with militia ties.
The State Department's annual report on human rights practices, released in March, said that "militia members integrated into the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) typically remained within preexisting organizational structures and retained their original loyalties or affiliations."
In December, about 160 members of the 2nd Public Order Brigade, an Interior Ministry force with a little more than 2,000 officers, were discharged for alleged involvement with the Mahdi Army. And the police internal affairs division in the southern city of Basra was closed late last year amid accusations it was operating death squads.
Rival Shiite militias -- including the Mahdi Army and an armed group tied to the Fadhila political party -- fight openly in Basra's streets, doubling the city's homicide rate in recent months. This week, about 42 people were killed over a four-day period, local officials reported.
Some U.S. officials and military commanders argue that the groups must be confronted. "There's a law on the books that these things are illegal, and it has to be enforced," said the U.S. official who worked on the militia issue.
Col. Jeffrey Snow, commander of the 1st Brigade of the Army's 10th Mountain Division in restive western Baghdad, said he had taken an aggressive stance toward militias, particularly the Mahdi Army, which he blames for a February roadside bomb attack that killed two U.S. soldiers.
"Second to the formation of the government, the key thing here now is dealing with these militias," said Snow, 44, of Nashua, N.H. "My personal opinion is, they form the greatest risk to the development of a professional army and police force."
Snow pointed to a series of heated meetings he has held with Mahdi Army representatives in recent months. "We told them, 'We will not tolerate you bearing arms.' We said, 'You can protect property but cannot leave property carrying a weapon.' And we gave them clear examples of people we detained while implanting bombs who were carrying Mahdi Army badges."
Though the militia question is unlikely to be dealt with until Iraqi leaders finish forming a government, U.S. officials are turning up the pressure but offering few specifics about how the problem should be addressed.
"You can't have in a democracy various groups with arms. You have to have the state with a monopoly on power," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on a recent visit to Baghdad. "We have sent very, very strong messages repeatedly, and not just on this visit, that one of the first things . . . is that there is going to be a reining-in of the militias."
For now, Iraqi leaders are circumspect about what exactly they will do. "The government has a detailed plan on this. I know -- I'm the coordinator," said the national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie. "But I am sorry, I cannot comment on what it is."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/08/2006 02:02 ||
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Assassinations, many carried out by Shiite gunmen against Sunni Arabs in Baghdad and elsewhere, accounted for more than four times as many deaths in March as bombings and other mass-casualty attacks, according to military data. And most officials agree that only a small percentage of shooting deaths are ever reported.
The Arab Bank, one of the Middle East's largest financial institutions may close down the Palestinian Authority's treasury account in the face of mounting pressure for it to sever links with the new Hamas-led Palestinian government, informed sources say. Foreign donors have channeled aid money to the Palestinians through the PA's treasury account. On Friday, the European Union announced it had suspended such payments, a decision linked to Hamas refusal to recognise Israel and renounce violence.
Earlier this week newsreports citing unidentified Western diplomatic sources, said Hamas had been trying to move the Authority's treasury account from the Amman-based Arab Bank to a local Palestinian bank to try to minimise the risk foreign funds would be frozen. Founded in 1930 in Jerusalem, Arab Bank in 1994 following the creation of the Palestinian Authority re-opened its eight branches in the West Bank and Gaza which it had closed in 1967 in the wake of Six-Day War when Israel annexed large portions of Palestinian territory. It became a founding shareholder in the 200 million dollar Palestine Development and Investment Company (Padico), which was established in 1993 to help revitalise the Palestinian economy.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:11 ||
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#1
opleaseopleaseopleaseopleaseoplease.
Extra butter on that popcorn, please! :-D
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
04/08/2006 0:39 Comments ||
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#2
The PA will now discover what it's like to deal with the REAL terrorists... bankers.
#6
Hamas had been trying to move the Authority's treasury account from the Amman-based Arab Bank to a local Palestinian bank to try to minimise the risk foreign funds would be frozen.
And I thought it was for the free checking and worldwide ATM usage....silly me.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya and President Mahmoud Abbas have lashed out at the US and EU decision to halt direct financial aid to the Palestinian Authority. Mr Haniya, a senior member of the Islamic radical Hamas movement, described the decisions as "hasty and unjust" after a meeting with Mr Abbas. "The world should respect the choice of the Palestinian people," Mr Haniya said. Mr Abbas said "the Palestinian people should not be punished for their democratic choice". Mr Abbas said by cutting the aid, the United States and European Union were "punishing all the people, workers and families".
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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#5
Hungry and thirsty Ismail and Mo? Pork ribs and sweet taters on the braii at my house tonight. Maybe some milk tart for dessert. Washing it all with a few pints of chilled Guinness. It will be a very civilized evening. Toss that AK in the dumpster and come on over for some real good chow!
#6
Still stupid after all these years. Democratically elected terrorists are still terrorists. And so are the people who elected them.
Bad democratic choice. Good thing about democracy - which they haven't caught on to (in Iraq either) is that an elected party can be democratically chucked out. Non confidence.
Pals don't chuck them out - they are the terrorists they elected.
Very, very, very simple turnaround. Renounce violence, keep your promises and recognize valid countries. Basic rules of life for a democracy.
It's impossible to reason with the insane. Shouldn't try.
#10
When the majority of a population supports and votes into power a terrorist government, the resulting embargoes and boycotts no longer represent "collective punishment." There is an insufficient number of innocent participants to qualify for that term.
Other novel and for more descriptive terms apply, like:
Hamas denied reports yesterday that it was ready for a two-state solution with Israel or would present such a proposal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. "That is not correct. Where did you hear that?" Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said in the town of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. He appeared shocked when asked by reporters if it was true. Any readiness to talk about a two-state solution would imply recognition of Israel, which the group is formally sworn to destroy.
We knew that. That's why we didn't believe it.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Carry on, Haniyeh. Your plan destroys Paleostine. And that's a good thing.
#5
Shep, Usenet is a set of bulletin boards that predates the Web. Think of it as comment threads organized by topics.
If you're using Internet Explorer to surf the web, click on Tools, then Mail and News and then Read News. This will bring up Outlook Express, which will ask if you want to see a list of all the newsgroups. The first time you say yes, it will take a while to download the list of newsgroups from your Internet service provider to you. Once they are loaded you can type in a keyword to find newsgroups on whatever topic interests you. It's a pretty Wild West part of the Net .... basically a centralization of what were (back in the 80s ) privately hosted bulletin boards on various topics.
BTW, this assumes your provider offers Usenet as part of its service. Most do, but some don't and a lot of employers block access to Usenet because of the porn and other objectionable content.
When you first got Internet access, the ISP's instructions should have told you how to specify the Usenet (news) server to use, just as you specified the server for getting to the Web.
If you are want to use some other program besides Outlook Express as a news reader, you can specify that program to Internet Explorer by choosing Tools, Internet Options and then Programs.
Hope that helps get you started. Your ISP should be able to give you more specific directions.
#6
It could also be said that USENET "newsgroups" are the other half of the Internet. First, a primer:
There are about 75,000 newsgroups, arranged according to subject. Most of the interesting, non-academic, business or community ones are in the "alt.*" groups, which are pretty much at the head of the list.
They can have a simple name, like "alt.slack", or a complex name, like "alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.girls-feet". Most groups are text only, unless they have the words "binaries", or "multimedia, or "pictures", or "mp3", etc. in them; in which case they are both text and binary attachments, like pictures, music, and movies.
Some of the groups are usually empty. Some of the group are intentionally hostile, like "alt.flame". There are political groups of every stripe. There is a ton of illegal activities that goes on there, to include Warez and illegal porn. Huge amounts of mp3 files, movies, and pictures are given out there, oblivious to copyright. Vast amounts of legal porn, too. USENET is NOT for children.
But there are generally a bunch of groups about subjects that you are interested in, which makes it worthwhile.
The way the newsgroups work, is that someone posts a message in a particular group that they have "subscribed" to, a confusing word, which just means that you have chosen that group to browse or post in.
Anyway, their message starts a new "thread", which stays up there for several days to a week or two. Anyone who wants to can reply to this message, and to other people's replies, and some threads can have dozens or hundreds of replies.
Because it is a very old system, which was designed for text only, several fixes had to be used to send and receive binary files. Some convert binary files into ASCII, some compress the ASCII to take up less space (like yEnc), and some error check and correct gaps in postings (like Par2). Often large files are compressed and split into segments with a program like WinRAR, then error correction segments are made (Par2 files), and all are posted. Each downloader must reassemble and correct any gaps in the files.
I would strongly suggest *not* even having Outlook Express on your computer for any purpose. For a USENET newsreader, probably the best free program you can use is Forte Free Agent, though its registered version, Forte Agent, is even better.
Your ISP may not provide USENET services, so for casual use, I recommend either Yotta News or Bubba News:
http://www.yottanews.com/
http://www.bubbanews.com/
The first thing Free Agent will do is download a complete listing of all the newsgroups offered either by your ISP or one of these "NNTP servers", that you have identified to Agent with a login and a sometimes optional password.
Fewer and fewer ISPs are offering USENET anymore, which has led to a rise in the "premium" news servers, which can run to about $20/month.
For just the look and feel of USENET, there is also web-based news services, such as Google Groups beta:
http://groups.google.com/grphp?hl=en&tab=wg&q=
and Newzbot:
http://www.newzbot.com/
But they are usually far inferior to using a newsreader. Google also keeps an enormous archive of the text-only messages posted, which goes back many years.
USENET remains one of the last "Wild Wests" of the Internet, along with IRC and P2P. Enjoy it while it lasts, because lots of people hate the idea of other people having fun.
#7
A few years back, I used to regularly check out alt.survivalism for its entertainment value. Some seriously weird stuff used to go on there. People sending coded messages and arranging secret rendevous.
Dozens of Lebanese nationals who collaborated with Israeli occupation forces in southern Lebanon - and who fled to Israel in the wake of the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000 - are set to return home. The announcement was made Friday in a statement by the Free Patriotic Movement headed by former Lebanese general, Michel Aoun. The deal to allow the estimated 60, mostly Christian Maronite exiles, who fled Lebanon in fear of repercussions for collaborating with the Israelis, was first mooted in February in talks between the Maronite Aoun and Hezbollah leaders.
"There are some 60 Lebanese citizens, who have not committed any crimes in terms of Lebanon's judiciary and many of them are women or they are elderly," Gibran Basil, an official of Aoun's party, told Adnkronos International (AKI). "A dozen of the exiles should return before Easter while the rest will come back by mid-May," Basil explained.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:02 ||
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The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Mohamed El-Baradei, will visit Iran next week as Tehran continues its standoff with the United Nations over its nuclear program, a diplomat with the agency said yesterday. "The IAEA Director General Mohamed El-Baradei will be traveling to Tehran to meet with senior officials for discussions related to outstanding safeguard verification issues and other confidence building measures requested by the IAEA board of governors," the diplomat said.
International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors arrived in Iran yesterday to visit the country's uranium enrichment facility and other sites. Meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov yesterday expressed confidence that the Iranian nuclear crisis could be solved by diplomatic means.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2006 00:00 ||
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"The IAEA Director General Mohamed El-Baradei will be traveling to Tehran to meet with senior officials for discussions related to outstanding safeguard verification issues and other confidence building measures requested by the IAEA board of governors," the diplomat said.
What is the basis for 'confidence building measures' or any hope that they can suceed?
#4
Baradei Visit to Iran Next Week Aims at Ending Standoff
What the article fails to mention is how the only "standoff" in question is where the UN is fighting for an exemption to the soon-to-be-imposed ban on importing Iranian caviar.
TO HEAR September 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed tell it, Osama bin Laden was a meddling boss whose indiscretion and poor judgement threatened to derail the terrorist attacks.
Bin Laden also saddled Mohammed with would-be hijackers who, the ringleader thought, were ill-equipped for the job. And he carelessly dropped hints about the imminent attacks, violating Mohammed's cardinal rule against discussing the plot.
The repeated conflicts between the two al-Qaeda leaders emerged last week during the penalty phase of the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui. Jurors heard new details of the plot from the interrogation summaries of several captured al-Qaeda officials.
In a written statement for his US interrogators, Mohammed described al-Qaeda as an almost mystically efficient corporation. The portly Kuwaiti, who was captured in Pakistan in 2003, told them that they could learn a lot from the organisation.
"You must study these matters to know the huge difference between the Western mentality in administration and the Eastern mentality," he wrote.
The hallmark of the system, he said, was unquestioned control: everyone up the chain of command did as they were told and never bucked authority all for the common cause of the enterprise, which, in this case, was killing as many Americans as possible.
"I know that the materialistic Western mind cannot grasp the idea," Mohammed wrote. "But in the end, the operation was a success."
Yet Mohammed describes a terrorist outfit fraught with the same conflicts and petty animosities that plague many Western corporations.
"Mohammed stated that he was usually compelled to do whatever bin Laden wanted," the interrogation summary says. "That said, Mohammed noted that he disobeyed bin Laden on several occasions."
His independence from bin Laden had its limits, however, because it was al-Qaeda's money and operatives that enabled the plot to go forward.
Mohammed succeeded in rejecting three attempts by bin Laden to accelerate the plot. But he said his boss cancelled an overseas element of the hijacking scheme that he was orchestrating.
Presumably, bin Laden would have his own version of events. But a former FBI agent who closely tracked al-Qaeda said the testy relationship described by Mohammed was consistent with the accounts of other terrorism suspects.
"They couldn't stand each other," the former official said. "They both had huge egos."
The seeds of conflict were planted in 1996, when Mohammed first presented his idea to hijack US planes and fly them into buildings. He specifically suggested "that they send (mujahideen) to study in the flight institutes and use large planes" rather than the smaller military ones that al-Qaeda operatives were trained to fly. Mohammed said that bin Laden turned him away, saying the plan was unworkable.
Three years later, bin Laden summoned Mohammed to Afghanistan and gave him the green light. By October 2000, Mohammed had climbed the ranks and was in firm control of the September 11 plot, showing an array of management skills.
It was Mohammed who decided to send two hijackers to San Diego after finding out it had numerous flight schools. He told them to visit the zoo and other tourist sites so they would blend in while they were preparing for the suicide hijackings.
He told his interrogators he provided "personalised training" to an estimated 39 al-Qaeda operatives.
Mohammed was a stickler for security. He insisted on compartmentalising the details of the plot to such a degree that even some of al-Qaeda's top officials did not know them.
"When four people know the details of an operation, it is dangerous; when two people know, it is good; when just one person knows, it is better," Mohammed said, according to his interrogators.
Had Mohammed not insisted on such security measures, he suggested, bin Laden might have endangered the whole mission. Apparently he had a knack of forcing Mohammed to take operatives who could not follow directions or keep their mouths shut.
Mohammed had concerns from the outset about Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar.
"The only reason they were involved in the 9/11 plot was because they had (US) visas and because bin Laden wanted the two to go on the operation."
Mohammed and bin Laden also had repeated disagreements over Moussaoui. Mohammed was convinced he was not a "suitable operative".
The interrogation summary said that Mohammed was frustrated at bin Laden's repeated hints to visitors and trainees about the coming US attacks. He resisted swearing allegiance to bin Laden "to ensure that he remained free to plan operations however he chose".
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/08/2006 02:18 ||
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#2
Long after this is over, our descendants will look at OBL and KSM as the young are starting to look at Hitler et. al. and ask, "How could our great grand parents have let these bozos screw things up so badly?" as the next threat grows unattended in new ground.
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.
A Syrian human rights group has called on the Libyan regime to free 18 political prisoners held in Libyan jails since 1990 on charges of trying to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi. "The Libyan government recently freed political detainees but it continues to deliberately disregard the situation of dozens of Syrian and Palestinian prisoners of conscience who have been in jail since 1990," said in a statement the Syrian Organisation for Human Rights.
Four bombs exploded in front of four houses at Daulatdia village, an outlaw infested area in Sadar upazila of Chuadanga, early yesterday. However, no one was injured and no damage done in the explosions.
A conference of 150 Muslim leaders and imams from more than 40 European countries opened on Friday in the Austrian capital, Vienna. The three-day gathering will focus on issues affecting the Muslim communities in Europe, such as the creation of new jobs and the role of women. A key goal will be to hammer out an identity for European Muslims that preserves their traditions while integrating with Western political and social values.The gathering comes at a critical moment for the faith, under pressure from anti-terror probes and a perceived clash with Western values - highlighted by the recent Prophet cartoons crisis. 
The suspected ringleader of the 2004 Madrid train bombings filed a complaint in court on Friday alleging he had been abused, tortured and humiliated in Spanish and Italian custody since his arrest in Milan nearly two years ago. Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed, 35, is accused in Italy of recruiting extremists and leading an al-Qaida cell that was planning another attack on an unspecified location. Italian and Spanish investigators also believe he masterminded the Madrid bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,500 in 2004.
An agreement reached Thrusday between Democrats and Republicans on immigration reform fell apart Friday. The Senate failed to end debate on the legislation in two lopsided votes Friday morning, leaving the prospects for passage dim as the lawmakers head home for their two-week Easter recess. The bill would have increased border security to try to stem the influx of illegal immigrants while providing a process to legitimize those who've lived for a long time in the country illegally. 
The authorities in Nepal have imposed an all-day curfew in the capital, Kathmandu, as activists prepare for a rally on the third day of a strike. The curfew will be in force for 11 hours from 1000 (0415GMT) and violators risk being shot at, officials said. Some mobile phone networks have also been cut, as protesters prepare for more demonstrations against King Gyanendra's rule. He has been widely criticised for seizing absolute power 14 months ago. 
The government yesterday suspended the police chief and the chief administrator of the northern town of Aligarh as the death toll from two days of Hindu-Muslim clashes rose to six. At least 19 people have been injured and hospitals said the condition of eight was critical. While four people were killed in clashes on Thursday, two bodies were recovered from the city yesterday morning, Aligarh's additional superintendent of police A.K. Saxena said. Curfew has been imposed on parts of the city and Saxena said the situation was tense but under control. Newspapers, however, reported sporadic violence in some neighborhoods.
Activists of the 
Pro-local Taliban tribal clerics in North Waziristan on Friday demanded the army pull out of the area while parliamentarians and nazims of seven Frontier districts asked government to take military action against outlaws in Malakand Agency. Two separate jirgas were held in Mir Ali and Mardan. In Mir Ali, clerics asked the army to leave North Waziristan and guard the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The jirga in Mardan agreed to take action themselves if the government failed to initiate a military operation against outlaws in Malakand Agency within 24 hours.
The Arab Bank, one of the Middle East's largest financial institutions may close down the Palestinian Authority's treasury account in the face of mounting pressure for it to sever links with the new Hamas-led Palestinian government, informed sources say. Foreign donors have channeled aid money to the Palestinians through the PA's treasury account. On Friday, the European Union announced it had suspended such payments, a decision linked to Hamas refusal to recognise Israel and renounce violence.
Hamas denied reports yesterday that it was ready for a two-state solution with Israel or would present such a proposal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. "That is not correct. Where did you hear that?" Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said in the town of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. He appeared shocked when asked by reporters if it was true. Any readiness to talk about a two-state solution would imply recognition of Israel, which the group is formally sworn to destroy.
The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Mohamed El-Baradei, will visit Iran next week as Tehran continues its standoff with the United Nations over its nuclear program, a diplomat with the agency said yesterday. "The IAEA Director General Mohamed El-Baradei will be traveling to Tehran to meet with senior officials for discussions related to outstanding safeguard verification issues and other confidence building measures requested by the IAEA board of governors," the diplomat said.
