MOGADISHU - The hardline leader of newly powerful Islamists said all of Somalia must be ruled by sharia law and US President George W. Bush should be prosecuted for bankrolling defeated secular warlords. There is no Muslim nation that is safe from his (Bushs) oppression. He should stop his wrong leadership, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, told Reuters by telephone from his rural base. He used the warlords to kill people. If its possible for him to be charged, he deserves to be brought to justice, Aweys, an army colonel turned cleric, said.
Get in line, A-hole.
Its compulsory to rule Somalia by sharia law, added Aweys, military mastermind of a campaign that has given the Islamists control of Mogadishu and a large part of the country.
"One ring to rule them all and in the darkness bind them....."
The Islamists say US officials supplied suitcases full of cash to warlords grouped in a self-styled anti-terror coalition, an accusation widely believed by analysts, regional diplomats and people in Mogadishu. The US government never commented directly, but insisted it had the right to support any groups opposing extremists in the Horn of Africa nation that Washington fears could harbour al Qaeda-linked radicals.
Aweys, who is on a US list of 189 individuals or entities linked to terrorism, said Washington was lying about him and accusations that the Islamists were harbouring three foreign extremists accused of 1998 and 2002 bombings in east Africa. The American views cannot be trusted. Whatever they say is mostly lies, nobody can take their word anymore.
Aweys urged Bush to stop open aggression and threats towards the Muslim world.
We are being denied our right to be Muslims, he added in a lengthy conversation from Guriel village in the central region of Galgadud, some 350 km (220 miles) west of Mogadishu, where he is working to strengthen an Islamic court he founded last year. If he (Bush) doesnt stop his aggression, these people (Muslims) will go after him, he added in the weekend interview, conducted before Sundays bloody Mogadishu battle between the Islamists and a pocket of the city still in warlord hands.
Aweys said the world should respect the sharia law Islamists were installing in Mogadishu and other areas they have captured across southern Somalia. I want the world to respect our sharia and beliefs and cooperate with us and also recognise our administrations and humanity. They should work with us as free people who have a right to choose their own future and religion, he said.
The Islamists at first tried present a moderate face but now strict sharia such as whipping has been applied to criminals and Islamic courts announced plans to stone five rapists to death. A leading Mogadishu cleric has said that Muslims who do not pray five times a day should be killed, fuelling foreign fears that they are planning Taleban-style rule. Somalis generally practice a moderate form of Islam.
The Islamist movement, which sprung out of sharia courts, is in a political standoff with the weak, Western-backed interim government based in a provincial town. Somalia has been without central rule since the 1991 ousting of a military dictator. The two sides are to meet in Sudan for talks on July 15. We hope an agreement can be reached, Aweys said. The government says it will only deal with moderates among the Islamists.
The good thing about the Somali people is that once they meet they normally agree as long as there is no external influence. Our only fear is interference by Ethiopia and their likes including the Americans, Aweys said. The Islamists say neighbouring Ethiopia has sent troops to stop their advance and support the interim government, an accusation denied by Addis Ababa.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/10/2006 09:49 ||
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#6
Arclight strikes down through the center of Mogadishu until these shitheads are all destroyed or they surrender unconditionally. Otherwise we'll have another Afganistan we'll have to fumigate.
I would say nuke the place, but that's not humiliating enough. We bomb the sh$$ out of them, then give half to Ethiopia, half to Kenya. The northern part of Somalia that has declared its independence from these idiots can continue as it is. The rest needs to disappear. It just might send a message to the rest of Africa that we're tired of their dictator-for-life governments, and will actually DO something to put a stop to them.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/10/2006 16:00 Comments ||
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#7
Jeez, every swinging dick takes a whack at Bush
Posted by: Captain America ||
07/10/2006 19:29 Comments ||
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CAIRO - Egyptian security forces have detained 30 leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood, the latest arrests in a crackdown on the countrys strongest opposition movement, the groups deputy leader said on Sunday. Mohammed Habib told Reuters 27 Brotherhood members were arrested in the town of Ras Al Bir on Egypts north coast during a meeting on Saturday to discuss education reform. Three others were taken from their homes in the same town, he said.
The Interior Ministry said the 27 had been arrested while meeting to discuss the Brotherhoods activism among students and teachers. They had also been discussing plans for contesting union elections, it said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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A new system to alert the British public over threats from al Qaida and other terror groups is to be introduced in Britain, it was reported here Sunday. Although the Home Office will not reveal details of how it will operate, it is understood that the new system will be simpler than the one it will replace, the Sunday Telegraph and the Sunday Times newspapers said. Home Secretary John Reid is set to unveil the changes as part of a package of announcements early next week. Warnings are to be published on the websites of the Home Office and the domestic Intelligence service, MI5. The papers added that they will be divided into five separate levels, although not colour-coded as they are in the US.
The UK currently has a seven-tier system based on descriptions of threats such as "substantial", which are not published. As well as dealing with the threat level system, Reid is expected to publish a wide-ranging summary of the Government's long-term terrorism strategy code-named "Contest". The announcement is expected to set out efforts to prevent terrorism, pursue terrorists, protect the public and prepare for the possibility of terrorist attacks.
A Chinese leader visiting North Korea days after its missile tests defied international opinion said on Monday that Beijing stood by its Communist neighbor, adding to uncertainty about China's position in the standoff. Vice Premier Hui Liangyu's "friendship delegation" arrived in Pyongyang earlier in the day for a six-day visit announced before North Korea last week test-fired seven missiles, one of them a long-range Taepodong-2 that fell into the sea moments after launch. I bet they didn't take the train.
Japan said Monday it was considering whether a pre-emptive strike on the North's missile bases would violate its constitution, suggesting it could take stronger action against the reclusive regime if the U.N. Security Council rejects its resolution calling for sanctions.
Japan was badly rattled by North Korea's missile tests last week and several government officials openly discussed whether the country ought to take steps to better defend itself, including setting up the legal framework to allow Tokyo to launch a pre-emptive strike against Northern missile sites.
"If we accept that there is no other option to prevent an attack ... there is the view that attacking the launch base of the guided missiles is within the constitutional right of self-defense. We need to deepen discussion," Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said. Abe is the odd on favorite to be thenext Prime Minister.
Despite resistance from China and Russia, Japan has pushed for a U.N. Security Council resolution that would prohibit nations from procuring missiles or missile-related "items, materials goods and technology" from North Korea. A vote was possible in New York later Monday. "It's important for the international community to express a strong will in response to the North Korean missile launches," Abe said. "This resolution is an effective way of expressing that."
China and Russia, both nations with veto power on the council, have voiced opposition to the measure. Kyodo News agency reported Monday, citing unnamed Chinese diplomatic sources, that China may use its veto on the Security Council to block the resolution. The United States, Britain and France have expressed support for the proposal, while Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso has said there is a possibility that Russia will abstain.
South Korea, not a council member, has not publicly taken a position on the resolution, but on Sunday Seoul rebuked Japan for its outspoken criticism of the tests. "There is no reason to fuss over this from the break of dawn like Japan, but every reason to do the opposite," a statement from President Roh Moo-hyun's office said, suggesting that Tokyo was contributing to tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Posted by: ed ||
07/10/2006 07:08 ||
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With the UNSC unable to even create a Strongly Worded Statement condemning the Nork 4th of July (US time zone) fireworks due to the objections of the Chicoms and Russia, Japan is not going to sit idly by and wait for a possible missile coming at them.
If countries like Japan, the US, Australia, and others make it clear that this crap pulled by the Chicoms little mad dog Kimmie will not be allowed any more, followed by action, then this stuff will stop. Right. Now.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/10/2006 10:39 Comments ||
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#7
Yay Jackal. It purely is a delight to see you posting here again. Welcome home!
#9
...The naysayers are already barking that the JASDF 'is incapable' of pulling off such a strike. The hell they are; they've got F-15J/DJs that are more than capable, even their remaining F-4s are up to date enough to give it a try. The real problem would be electronic warfare and air defense suppression. For that, they might very well need to bring in the USAF or USN to provide such a capability - but frankly, I think just the simple fact that senior Japanese politicians are speaking publicly about attacking North Korea should be scaring the hell out of the PRC right now.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
07/10/2006 12:17 Comments ||
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#15
As I said in another thread, the likely end result of SK, China, and Russia running interference for NK will be a rearmed Japan with a full kit of theatre-defense ABMs and possibly even some offensive nukes. Talk about your unintended consequences!
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 14:37 Comments ||
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#17
Japan should announce tomorrow morning that it will expand its nuclear elecric generating capacity by 200%, and will also begin reprocessing nuclear fuel to build nuclear warheads for its "Kaga" class long-range missiles, which are to be housed in silos in the mountainous parts of Japan. They should also announce the purchase of two US aircraft carriers that would have been scrapped, plus a couple of hundred F/A-18s, plus some support aircraft to form a main battle group. They should also announce major changes to their Constitution that allows their "self-defense force" to engage in offensive operations in defense of the Japanese homelands, and hand the Russians a trillion-dollar bill for the Kurile Islands. THAT would set the cat among the pigeons for sure! Won't happen, but I can dream...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/10/2006 16:08 Comments ||
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#18
#10 "Tora! Tora! Tora!"
Posted by WhiteCollarRedneck
#21
Like I said Yesterday - only CHina can force the Kim regime to fall in a predictable direction. And time is runningout.
All the other alternatives produce a remilitarized and nuclear armed Japan, as well as either a belligerent united nuclear Korea, or else one at war (possibly after a nuclear exchange) with Nork refugees streaming over the border into China and massive economic disruption in the region.
China had better wake the hell up. This isnt our problem nearly as much as it is theirs.
#22
Yeah OS, exactly. Of the lot, the Japanese will pull all stops out if pressed.
Right now they are kind of like we were, sleeping giant.
But if they get pushed it will be Asia rage mode again, only this time they have the US on their side.
China better really, really, really think about this, given Asian history.
Of course, that is exactly what they are thinking - revenge. Only, they have this wrong again, the Japanese can and will rage again if they are pushed. Bad move China.
All of this is about somebody else resolving this growing threat. Hasn't that been the strategy for too long, already?
Then what?
I think China's playing out the triangulation hand they designed to the bloody end and fear nothing from the game. Right or wrong, Lord knows they are infinitely arrogant.
#24
Japan is YEARS away from being a threat to China. Sure, China may have miscalculated with regard to Japan, but everything else is per their strategy, IMO.
South Korea has distanced itself from a UN initiative to impose punitive sanctions on its northern neighbour, increasing pressure to find a diplomatic solution to the missile row. After North Korea test-fired seven missiles last week, Japan formally introduced a UN resolution, co-sponsored by the United States, Britain and France, to impose sanctions against Pyongyang's missile programme. But in the face of strong opposition from Security Council members China and Russia, the senior US envoy for North Korea said on Sunday he backed Beijing's proposal for talks.
For its part, South Korea questioned whether UN sanctions would help resolve the latest row or make the region any safer. "For the time being, we do not have clear grounds or reasoning that these sanctions will work for preventing any missile proliferation, or any factors that destabilise the regional stability," Song Min-soon, the presidential national security adviser, told Reuters.
This is good news. Seriously. We learn, better and better, who are friends are (Japan, Australia) and aren't (S Korea); who's willing to use a cats' paw to diddle with us (China, Russia), and so on.
Bring home all but a brigade of 2ID, move that brigade to Pusan, move the air to Okinawa, Darwin and Guam, and work like heck with the Japanese to perfect our ballistic missile defense system. South Korea just isn't worth it. Demonstrate that to the Chinese in a convincing way and they have no remaining reason to keep Kimmie around.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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Agreed. SoKo has lived under the protective US cocoon for too long. A serious dose of bitch slap is in order.
Posted by: Captain America ||
07/10/2006 0:12 Comments ||
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#2
Time to bring out troops home and any special 'trading partner' status with South Korea.
And tell the flat out that they are on their own.
Let them 'trade' with Kimmie. (Pssst. He cheats and steals trains....)
#3
People shouldn't be surprised by SKs position. The political establishment obviously will do anything to prevent confrontation, and they are being egged on (or at least given political cover) by the youths. The old folks have seen how they have progressed from being socioeconomically on par with the NKs, to where they are 50 years later. The youth movement need a serious schooling by their elders.
#4
HHHHHmmmm, the Norkies get to threaten America-Allies wid nuclear war, plus no concessions or compromise wid America ever, yet the burden is on America to prove that NK has enuff alleged nukes to alleged fight said alleged Nork-poclaimed nuclear war. NK = SSSSSSHHHHHHHH, CHINA > can make any provocation they want, ergo its America's, and only America's, fault for potens responding wid any MilPol force and sanction. In sum, America will be held at fault for any KOREAN WAR II by America-Allies mil responding in reaction to NK's unilateral provocation and unilateral nuclear war threat, i.e. America-Allies should know better than to trust Commies-Stalinists whom claim to be telling the truth. YEP, UNQUESTIONABLE ITS AMERICA'S FAULT COMMUNISTS HAVE TO UNILATERALLY, UNSOLICITEDLY, AND VOLUNTARILY LIE AND DECEIVE ON THEIR OWN ACCORD.
#6
One of the end results of this little dance will be a rearmed Japan with theatre missile defenses and possibly even nukes. Do China and South Korea truly appreciate that that's where we're heading?
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 7:06 Comments ||
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The other result would be Korea re-uniting. A united nuclear Korea would mean Japan would have to re-arm pronto. China would also have a much bigger problem. We should start negotiating with KIJ for unification as a result of our withdrawal. See how the SKors like being a bullseye for nukes instead of artillery.
#9
While North Korean missles can't hit Hawaii they certainly can hit US troops in South Korea. These troops are more targets then they are deterrents. Removing them, besides being a nice message to S. Korea and an economic penalty to them, would actually strengthen our hand in dealing with N. Korea. It might also sober up China and Russia who won't judge us as being serious until we start taking steps like that.
#10
I can't see reunification happening under current conditions. It would mean Kimmie giving up power and the South Koreans taking a major hit to their economy and lifestyle.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 11:12 Comments ||
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#11
I can't see reunification happening under current conditions. It would mean Kimmie giving up power and the South Koreans taking a major hit to their economy and lifestyle.
#12
Really, can someone please tell me what would be so bad about the North Koreans over running the South Koreans? Back in the 1950s, we were trying to stop communists, but why defend South Korea now? China will always keep them in check.
I say withdraw the 2nd ID and any other sizable units, and let the South Koreans deal with it.
Or, instead of reacting to NK all of the time, strike their launch pads, and then say to them, now "What are YOU going to do about it?" If Kimmie gets mad and wants to overrun SK, go for it. But we won't let him threaten us with anything.
Posted by: NOLA "Victim" ||
07/10/2006 11:17 Comments ||
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#13
NOLA, and all others who would like to see the SKors get bitch slapped for their perfidy: I agree in that the SKors are total ingrates but as they are our no.5 trading partner I don't see it happening. We won't leave. It's pure economics and politics, as much as it chaps my arse that's the way it is.
Posted by: NOLA "Victim" ||
07/10/2006 13:32 Comments ||
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#16
I gotta have my Hyundai and Emergency Lust Kit.
Posted by: Victim of Love Potion Number 4 ||
07/10/2006 13:36 Comments ||
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#17
Guys, I'm here in SK and I promise you that SK would do damned near anything to prop up Kimmie. These folks here know very well that if he goes down they get stuck with the check for rebuilding one of the world's poorest countries. Here in Sorkland, by dint of one hell of a lot of hard work, they've dragged themselves up from zilch in 1953 to being the world's 11th largest economy. They're scared to death of falling back now that they've started to live the good life. Chinese competition already has them rattled and they know that taking on economic responsibility for Kimmie's Krazy Krowd after a collapse would be like jumping overboard holding the anchor. They're not doing it unless they are absolutely forced to. If pissing the US off is part of the cost of keeping Kimmie afloat, then they'll piss off the US. For the Sorks, it's the difference between the flu and pancreatic cancer and, make no mistake, they see it in exactly those type of life-and-death terms.
Posted by: mac ||
07/10/2006 14:01 Comments ||
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#18
mac: I believe the precise term for this condition is "co-dependency."
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 14:14 Comments ||
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#19
OK, so if China, North Korea and South Korea all have their interests aligned, what should they be called?
#22
I totally agree with Fred's comments. It is ashame, though, that older South Koreans who can remember how the USA saved their country from darkness (literally) and are very much appreciative, will have to suffer the consequences of their nitwit grandchildren. Most of the South Korean youth, save for perhaps those serving in their excellent military, have been the willing subjects of Marxist professors and teachers (just like here!) for nearly three decades. As a result, they see America as evil and the Toad Stool in the North as a charming fella who really likes platform shoes and big dance productions.
Good luck to you idiots and again, my heartfelt sympathies to the older, pro-American generation of South Koreans.
Just a day after investigators in the US uncovered an internet-based plot to attack New York, The Daily Telegraph can reveal that Australian Muslim websites are awash with similar material.
The sinister forums are contained in innocent-looking websites posing as community discussion boards.
The Sydney Muslim Youth Forum, on which young Muslims exchange views about Islam, devotes threads to turning Australia into an Islamic state.
"I reckon we stay and try our best to get to high positions in this country so it comes to the fold of Islam," a member calling himself God's Slave 4 Life wrote.
Another member called Wasalam also suggested imposing the Muslim way of life on Australian society from the inside and called on members to pray for Muslims waging war overseas.
"We have to be sure firstly that Allah is pleased with us and that we're completing our task and that we're not only stressing about what's happening but that we are also doing something about it," Wasalam wrote. "May Allah help us and bring victory to the Muslimeen and Mujahideen in every land."
But a female member tells her friends that Australian Muslims would be better off moving overseas.
"Don't you think we should unite in one land and from there re-organise ourselves into different territories?" she wrote. "We are investing our gold n' silver in a non-Muslim land and at any moment if the big bosses think we're up to no good, they can freeze everything!"
The Muslim Village website - a branch of the mainstream Islamic
Sydney.com site - contains disturbing messages of support for some of the world's most reviled terrorists.
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, killed by US forces last month after a reign of terror, is described as a hero of the Islamic cause.
'While some members of the chatroom rejoiced in Zarqawi's death, others expressed their dismay. "
#2
Xbalanke-Why not I do.
I did'nt even know Australia was part of the Caliphate. Maybe they are mixing it up with Austria. Since they don't read anything except the Koran.
#3
I did'nt even know Australia was part of the Caliphate.
I remember reading an article here many moons ago about how Australia was in fact discovered by arab sailers, and how aboriginals were in fact muslim converts gone awry in their religion... all this said very piously and seriously by an "australian" Holy Man, IIRC.
Lots of coverage in the internet press on the left side of the Blogosphere's vicious attacks on Joe Lieberman during the run-up to the Connecticut Democratic Primary, but so far the answer as to why remains elusive to those not drinking the Ned Lamont kool-aid.
I think the answer is simple. Having so obviously targeted Lieberman, the netroots/nutroots/Townhouse crew must now defeat him, or risk being seen as irrelevant, especially considering their dismal electoral record thus far.
National races are one thing, but If the LeftNet cannot elect a candidate of their own choosing in a Democratic Primary in one of the most liberal states in the Union, then they can't win elections, period. If that happens, it should become obvious to one and all that the Emperor has no clothes.
As to the question of why the LeftNet has yet to discover this on its own, despite repeated reminders, we've talked about this before
Essentially, the Internet has given the Left a perception of growth where there is in fact none. It may have even masked a decline in the real political power of the Left.
Say one 10-member anti-globalist organization, in San Francisco, comes into contact with another 10-member group, in Seattle. Each feels that their membership and political power has doubled, when in reality nothing of the sort has occurred. Communication and coordination between the two is enhanced, but the actual number of votes has not changed at all. There is an inflation in each group's perception of its political power, but there is no corresponding rise in actual power wielded.
I might also add: so long as the MSM is basically willing to be their cheerleader, or at least tell them what they want to hear, the Angry Left hasn't sufficient information to gauge their actual, as opposed to perceived, level of power.
Given the horrid demographics of the Daily Kos readership (mostly elderly blue state boomers), the situation can only get worse, another reason why the effort to defeat Lieberman is so important to the LeftNet. When the most dedicated members of your power base are also the ones most likely to wake up dead tomorrow, you have to move now when it comes to grabbing a piece of the political pie. A victory in Lieberman/Lamont is crucial for the LeftNet. "Just wait till next time" is useless as a rallying cry for your base when so many of them wont be around.
Update: Some predictions. As always, my predictions are not based on a reasoned analysis of the habits of the American voter, an in-depth knowledge of state and local politics, an understanding of the candidates' positions on the issues of the day, or any familiarity whatsoever with current political theory, but rather on my obsessive focus on whatever pet theory has grabbed my attention at the moment.
1. Joe Lieberman defeats Ned Lamont in the Connecticut Democratic Primary. First "netrunts" jokes appear soon afterward.
2. Republicans maintain or increase the number of seats they hold in the House and Senate in the November elections.
3. Sometime in 2007, an enterprising Democratic presidential contender will Sista Souljah the Kossacks in order to position themsleves as "the centrist democrat who can actually win an election." My money's on Hillary.
I think the boy's on to something here.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 20:29 ||
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The Koskids are Blue State Boomers? They haven't changed a bit since Woodstock. Except that they're losing elections consistently and seeing a lifetime in power siip through their fingers. In 2012, these are going to be some very bitter people.
Has your marketing firm given you the demographics on the 'burg, Fred?
#2
by the way - don't confuse Dead Heads with these losers - I and several friends are Dead Heads and you won't find a more red-state conservative bunch. Look at the music/lyrics if you still question
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/10/2006 21:40 Comments ||
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Either Bobby or Jerry was asked by a Rolling Stone interviewer to denounce all the Young Reaganites attending their concerts in the 80's, and whichever one it was not only refused to attack the young Republicans, but said he liked some of those rightist ideas. Consider that when the Dead decided to do something to save the Rain Forest, they didn't harangue poverty-stricken Third Worlders to give up washing machines and electricity. They did it the free market way: buying up parts of the Rain Forest, parcel by parcel.
And they provided the Lithuanian basketball team recently liberated from the Soviet yoke with totally cool uniforms so they could play in the 1992 Olympics.
After Jerry died, U.S. Senator Spencer Abraham (R-MI) gave an incredibly touching tribute to Jerry Garcia and the good work the Dead's Rex Foundation had done promoting the arts privately in contradistinction to millionaire actresses standing up in $50,000 gowns at the Oscars and demanding that hardworking waitresses and truck drivers be forced to support the arts through government taxation. You can look it up in the Congressional Record.
But to answer your question, Senator, I personally have loads and loads of friends who are right-wingers and Deadheads. I couldn't possibly name them all. For starters, obviously, there's Angela Lansbury. She gave me my first psychedelic tie-dyed tube top at a Dead show just outside Tucson. Just kidding. There are: Peter Flaherty, President, National Legal And Policy Center; John Harrison, top official in the Justice Department under Reagan and Bush and now a law professor at UVA; Jim Moody, MIT grad and libertarian attorney (and Linda Tripp's lawyer); Gary Lawson, former Scalia clerk and currently a law professor at Boston University Law School; Andrew McBride, partner at a DC law firm; DeRoy Murdoch, conservative columnist; Ben Hart, right-wing author of Poisoned Ivy out of Dartmouth. Oh, and the conservative talk radio host Gary Stone in Palm Springs is a Deadhead and kindly plays the Dead as my intro music. When I worked at the Justice Department during law school, I'd be leaving with a whole slew of Reagan or Bush political appointees to see the Dead at RFK. Finally, I believe the great New York subway vigilante Bernie Goetz was a Deadhead.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/10/2006 22:51 Comments ||
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#5
LOL - You're incorrigible, Frank. I guess it's too bad their music didn't appeal to me (in the slightest, go figure) since their politics turned out to be right on. Funny thing is, I saw them at Monterrey Pop Festival back in the Summer of Love, 1967. So much to see and hear, so few working neurons...
#6
didn't take? Not an issue - acquired taste for some. I just wanted to note their music was based on many old American folk songs, updated. Big River was a staple, and their patriotism was never in question, compared to today's moonbats they were conservatives, I'd venture.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/10/2006 23:48 Comments ||
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An investigation into three apparent suicides at the Guantanamo Bay prison has found that other detainees may have helped the men hang themselves or were planning to kill themselves too. Authorities who searched other detainees' cells after the three were found hanged discovered instructions on tying knots, along with several notes in Arabic that were "relevant" to an investigation of a possible broader plot, officials said in court papers filed late Friday in Washington. The detention center's commander, Navy Rear Adm. Harry B. Harris, said in an affidavit that investigators believe "the suicides may have been part of a larger plan or pact for more suicides that day or in the immediate future."
Posted by: ed ||
07/10/2006 07:41 ||
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A plot in a POW Detainee camp? Heavens, what is the world coming to.
Beware of Muslims with sudden personality change. Or: beware of Muslims, period.
AMMAN, Jordan (UPI) -- Assem Hammoud is a 31-year-old, well-mannered Lebanese man educated in the West, multi-lingual and seems no different than other affluent, secular young Lebanese men who enjoy partying, girls and cars. Those who know him say he was the perfectly eligible bachelor: He grew up in an affluent home in Beirut, he is intelligent -- having obtained a PhD degree in economics from a university in Canada -- and his widowed mother is an artist.
But like a Jekyll and Hyde, Hammoud might have another side to his personality and life that makes him more of an eligible terror recruit. This refined-looking, clean-cut young man also goes by the name of Amir al-Andalousi, or 'prince of Andalusia,' a nom de guerre he was supposedly given by Osama bin Laden`s al-Qaida network when Hammoud was recruited, not in Lebanon, but in Canada.
'The prince' may have been awarded this codename because his family claims to have originally come from Andalusia in Spain some 800 years ago.
Hammoud was arrested by the Lebanese authorities on April 27 on suspicion of masterminding a plot for a massive terror attack targeting train tunnels under the Hudson River that carry thousands of commuters between New York and New Jersey every day.
Based on information from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lebanese authorities monitored him for one month and tracked his internet use before making the arrest. But his capture was not revealed until this week after it was leaked in the American press.
Lebanese officials said Hammoud confessed to the plot and 'pledged allegiance' to Osama bin Laden, believed to be hiding in the mountains between Afghanistan and Pakistan. He reportedly admitted he was planning to go to Pakistan for four months to train for the operation, which was allegedly set for the end of 2006. They said the authorities also found important documents, maps and bombing plans on his personal computer and CDs.
They need to recall what Aisha, the old mother of the last muslim king of Granada told her son Boabdil, when he looked back at his palace, surrendered to the forces of Ferdinand and Isabella, for the last time:
"Do not cry like a woman for that which you could not fight like a man"
Posted by: john ||
07/10/2006 6:31 Comments ||
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The Lebanese man accused of masterminding a plot to destroy Hudson River train tunnels to bring death and flooding to lower Manhattan had visited the United States at least once - a trip to California six years ago, a federal law enforcement official said. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, said 31-year-old Assem Hammoud was in the U.S. on a legitimate visa for a brief stay, and that he was believed to have been visiting either family or friends. The visit occurred long before authorities say the tunnel plot began to unfold. Authorities are still trying to trace Hammoud's steps during that trip but say they have no record of him going to New York. They have not ruled out the possibility that Hammoud had come to the country using different names.
Meanwhile, a senior Lebanese official said authorities there found maps and bombing plans on the personal computer of the suspect. Acting Interior Minister Ahmed Fatfat described the information found on Hammoud's computer as "very important." "It contained maps and bombing plans that were being prepared," Fatfat said in a local television interview. Lebanese security officials told The Associated Press that they obtained "important information" from Hammoud's computer and CDs seized from his office at the Lebanese International University, where he taught economics. "This information helped the investigators make Hammoud confess to his role in plotting a terror act in America," one Lebanese official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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Describing India as a 'good international citizen' on nuclear matters, Australia on Monday said the test firing of Agni-III missile should not be equated with the 'provocative' missile launches by North Korea recently.
It also asked India and Pakistan to exercise restraint in their ballistic missile programme and continue the process of building confidence between the two countries. "India, while not a signatory to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, has been a good international citizen on nuclear matters, unlike North Korea," the country's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman said.
India had on Sunday test-fired its most advanced intermediate range ballistic missile Agni-III but it developed a technical fault and failed to hit the target. North Korea had last Wednesday fired seven missiles, including a new long-range Taepodong-2, which quickly crashed into the Sea of Japan (East Sea).
Australia stressed that India's missile firing was very different from North Korea's decision last week to test seven missiles, earning it international condemnation. "It's important not to equate this test with North Korea's recent missile tests," he was quoted by a media report as saying.
"North Korea has been a leading supplier of missile-related exports to countries seeking to acquire ballistic missile capabilities. India, in contrast, has undertaken to implement missile export controls equivalent to the missile technology control regime," he said.
Posted by: john ||
07/10/2006 15:03 ||
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#1
India's top defence scientists were on Monday probing the snag that caused the nuclear capable intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) Agni-III to crash into the sea well short of its intended 3,000 km range.
"Data from the launch pad and from the tracking stations is being minutely examined. While it would be too early to hazard a guess as to what went wrong, it would seem that a design defect prevented the second stage from separating," a defence ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"Because of this, the missile couldn't maintain its intended trajectory and could stay aloft for only five minutes instead of the 15 minutes it was intended to," the official explained.
"Since this was the first time the missile was being tested there was every possibility of glitches developing. Once these are ironed out, another flight could be contemplated," the official added, not wanting to hazard a guess as to when the next flight could take place.
Agni-III, India's longest range missile yet which is capable of reaching targets in China, was test fired at 11:03 am from the Wheeler Island facility off the Orissa coast on Sunday. It rose to a height of 12 km before it came crashing into the Bay of Bengal, 1,000 km from the launch site.
Agni-III, which has a range between 3,500 and 5,000 km, features two solid-fuelled stages and has an overall diameter of 1.8 metres. It can be deployed from rail or road mobile launch vehicles and from silos.
It is equipped with inertial guidance systems with improved optical or radar terminal phase correlation systems that gives it a high degree of accuracy.
Agni-I, with a range of 700-800 km, and Agni-II, with a 2,000-km range, have already been inducted in the Indian Army.
Posted by: john ||
07/10/2006 15:12 Comments ||
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#2
"Don't worry, mates, we've got your back."
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 20:29 Comments ||
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The Bush administration has pushed to conclude a landmark $5 billion sale of F-16 jets to Pakistan before completing traditional consultations with the U.S. Congress and fully answering security concerns, a congressman and other congressional sources say.
The move is being seen by some lawmakers as the latest example of the administration's distaste for consulting Congress on security issues and they said the relevant committees would probe the deal further in the coming weeks.
Among Congress' concerns about the deal are how Pakistan intends to ensure that its long-time defense ally China will not have access to advanced U.S. technology and whether there has been any diversion of such technology already in Pakistani hands, several sources said in recent interviews.
"I have deep concerns about the process or the lack thereof, which the Bush Administration used to inform Congress about the pending sale of F-16s to Pakistan," said Democratic Rep. Joseph Crowley of New York, a member of the House International Relations Committee and a leading congressional supporter of Pakistan's rival, India.
"The administration has shown time and time again that they are not interested in congressional oversight on sensitive deals," he said in an e-mail to Reuters.
The State Department announced last week that consultations with lawmakers had been concluded and that formal notification had been given to Congress, paving the way for the deal with U.S. aerospace company Lockheed Martin Corp. to proceed.
But Democrat and Republican congressional sources tell a different story, and the Republican-controlled committees with jurisdiction over the sale -- the House panel and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee -- have scheduled hearings in the next two weeks to probe the matter further.
Several sources, who spoke anonymously because of the issue's sensitivity, said it was unlikely Congress would block the deal, which supporters say would keep open Lockheed's F-16 production line employing 5,000 people and which may close in 2008.
But public debate over the sale could prove awkward for the administration and Pakistan, a front-line U.S. ally against Islamic terrorism. A previous F-16 sale was halted in 1990 because of concerns over Pakistan's nuclear program.
In addition to selling 16 new F-16s to Pakistan and refurbishing used ones, the current deal involves an option on an additional 18 aircraft and a support package for up to 26 used F-16s, missiles and other munitions, and an upgrade package for Pakistan's current fleet of 34 F-16s.
A new report by Congressional Research Service, Congress's analytical arm, said the single-engine Block 50/52 Falcon being sold to Pakistan is the most modern F-16 flown by the United States and may be better suited to air-to-air combat against rival India than fighting terrorists.
Crowley also expressed concern that "Pakistan has not moved forward with promises of democracy, fighting its internal extremists, enforcing human rights, or respecting minorities" and has not let U.S. interrogators question Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani former head of an international nuclear black market.
A senior State Department official said the administration had gone to "extraordinary lengths" to meet Congress' concerns. "We have briefed on nine occasions, answered countless written questions and detailed an extensive security plan for the sale," the official said.
The United States said in March 2005 it would resume sales of F-16s to Pakistan after a 16-year break intended to sanction the country for its nuclear program.
Congressional sources say administration officials did begin consulting last year but were slow to deal with security concerns. Consultations halted when the sale was delayed after devastating earthquake in Pakistan, but resumed in May.
Congressional sources said they were still seeking answers to security questions when the administration on June 28 gave formal notification of the sale, setting in motion a 30-day period for Congress to review the sale and decide whether to block it.
In doing so, the administration ignored a 20-day informal consultation period that has been observed by presidents for decades, congressional sources said.
Posted by: john ||
07/10/2006 06:57 ||
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The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PERMA) said on Sunday that more than 100 seminaries were still operating "illegal" FM radio stations across the North West Frontier Province, stressing concern over the impact of these broadcasts on such a volatile part of the country. According to PERMA sources, the illegal radio stations were being run by madrassas, with those operated by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazlur Rehman)-led seminaries taking the lead. "At least 115 illegal FM radio stations are in operation all over the NWFP," sources revealed, while requesting anonymity.
They said that while most seminaries used FM radio broadcasts to impart Islamic teachings, many used them to spread sectarian hatred. This claim was substantiated by a Mingora cop who said the banned Tehrik-e-Nifaz Shariah Muhammadi was using FM stations to incite the public to rise up against the "un-Islamic" system.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Finding transmitters is not hard to do. If they want to do it that can. I am not convinced they want to.
#3
It's prolly PBS bitching about Karl Rove in the middle of the northwest frontier. Sad part is they prolly have a larger listening audience there than they do here.
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Maulana Fazlur Rehman convinced militants operating in the North Waziristan to unilaterally announce a ceasefire last month, sources said. Mr Rehman played the role of mediator between the government and Taliban militants on the request of NWFP Governor Lt General (r) Ali Jan Orakzai, the sources said. The request was made at a meeting at Governors House in Peshawar a few days before the militants announced the ceasefire on June 25, the sources said.
During their meeting, Mr Orakzai told Mr Rehman that if the militants gave the assurance that they would not create any trouble in the area, the government would not pursue military action against them, the sources said. The governor also told Mr Rehman that he (the governor) had the power to make any decision which would lead to peace in the tribal areas, the sources said. Mr Orakzai said that he had been given this power after a meeting with the president following his assumption of the office of NWFP governor.
After the meeting, Mr Rehman asked Maulana Naik Zaman, an MNA from North Waziristan, to arrange a meeting with the leaders of the militants. The meeting was arranged and after six hours of talks, the militants gave Mr Rehman a charter of demands and promised a one-month ceasefire if the government accepted them. Mr Orakzai was made NWFP governor with a mandate to bring peace to the tribal areas through political means. The federal government has allocated a record amount in the budget for the development of the tribal areas, but it needs some semblance of law and order there to carry out its development agenda.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) - amending anti-money laundering regulations - has directed all the banks and financial institutions to report promptly in case "the funds are the proceeds of a criminal activity or terrorist financing." The central bank in a circular has stated that the amendments had been made to ensure compliance with Financial Action Task Force recommendations on money laundering.
"Attention all banks! BOLO for money deposited by or for Zionists masked men! That is all!"
If the Bank/DFI suspects, or has reasonable grounds to suspect, that funds are the proceeds of a criminal activity or terrorist financing, it should report promptly its suspicions through Compliance Officer of the bank/DFI to Banking Policy Department of the SBP, said the circular. It said that this move was aimed at safeguarding the interest of depositors from risks arising out of money laundering and to reinforce the measures taken by the banks and DFIs for proper management of their institutions.
#2
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) - amending anti-money laundering regulations - has directed all the banks and financial institutions to report promptly in case "the funds are the proceeds of a criminal activity or terrorist financing."
Any bets that the definitions of "criminal" and "terrorist" don't include jihad?
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
07/10/2006 8:51 Comments ||
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ISLAMABAD, June 9 (KUNA) -- As the cracks of disappointment start weakening the structure of historic peace guesthouse, built by the two angry and moody nuclear neighbors, Pakistan and India, [Pakistan] is likely to modify the map.
Editor's note: Gah! I hate mixed metaphors. (Unless it's me mixing them, lol.)
The third round of historic and cautious Composite Dialogue Process (CDP) though helped the two countries revive air, road, cultural, economic and trade ties, but let them down on finding a viable solution of the core Kashmir dispute. According to the [Paki] Foreign Office, the foreign Secretaries of the two countries will review the progress made in the third round of composite dialogue on July 20 in New Delhi. Official sources told KUNA that they will also deliberate upon Kashmir and Peace and Security related matters.
Islamabad has already conveyed its annoyance to New Delhi for not holding concrete talks on the Kashmir issue and not even responding to the President General Pervez Musharraf's proposals. To make the process more productive, said sources, Islamabad will seek to change the talks format with suggestions to hold regular meetings at the political level. Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir and came close to another conflict over the Himalayan region in 2002. At the brink of third war, both countries while realizing weapon is not the only solution opted to resolve their bilateral matters through dialogue. The much applauded CDP began in 2004 when the leadership of two countries held meeting at the sideline of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.
#2
not even responding to the President General Pervez Musharraf's proposals
(1) Withdraw border troops from Poonch and Baramullah (which control the jihadi infiltration routes across the LOC)
(2) Demilitarize Jammu and Kashmir (so that the Pak army can just walk in).
(3) Be flexible (what is mine is mine, what is yours is negotiable - India should cede territory to Pakistan)
Perv is lucky that Manmohan Singh is a mild mannered and polite fellow.
There are politicians in India who could tell him exactly where he can put his "peace proposals".
Posted by: john ||
07/10/2006 6:50 Comments ||
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Via InstaPundit.com
The Islamic Nuclear Weapons chief Nobel Peace Prize-winning chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency effectively fired his lead Iran investigator this spring at the request of the Iranians, according to a new report in the German newspaper Die Welt am Sonntag. The lead inspector of the 15-man IAEA team in Iran, Chris Charlier, told the newspaper that the IAEA chief, Mohammad ElBaradei, agreed to a request the Iranian government made, and relegated Mr. Charlier, a 64-year-old Belgian, to office work at the organization's Vienna-based headquarters. The Iranian request was reportedly made when Mr. ElBaradei visited Iran in April. Rest at link.
Posted by: ed ||
07/10/2006 08:52 ||
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#1
Mr. ElBaradei should be considered a co-conspirator.
The funny part is that we arent in the kill-zone, Europe and Russia are. Maybe they should think about it some more instead of just trying to go for the quick money from arms and tech sales. What happens the first time you say no to a bunch of lunatics like the Iranians? Same thing that happened to us with al-qaida.
#2
I liked the Deutsch Welle version I sent in yesterday where Google translated his name from German as Mohammed Aluminum-Baradei. Seemed sort of appropriate for a guy who inspires so many foil hat owners.
#3
Come on FA, don't you realize that the Iranians are the best thing that has happened to Eurabia and Russia. The Irainians, NK, and Al-Q are eating up our budget, making us look impotent, and are our major enemy right now. The Soviets are making good money off them and Europe is already infested so bad that they can't stop the muslim tide about to over run them. Thus, they are not a threat, but a necessary evel. Once we have been taken to the breaking point, China will offer us more money to bail us out, our own Muslim population will be in a political position to start the dimmitude process and we too will become a once great super-power, unless we start kicking some muslim teeth in at home and over seas! But what do I know, I'm a generation "X" who lives in the one of the red states.
From DoD release today, posted on Water and Wastewater Digest online.
Wonder if the MSM will publish it? Nah, couldn't happen.
Through the joint efforts of coalition forces and Iraqi government officials in the township of Hibhib, near Baqubah, Iraq, a water treatment and distribution facility opened June 25.
Members of the civil military operations team from 1-68 Combined Arms Battalion, 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Task Force Band of Brothers and Hibhib Mayor Ali Husan Ali were on hand to cut the ceremonial red ribbon signifying the treatment and distribution facility was operational.
If you look at the big picture, the Iraqis have a government that has been installed, said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Thomas Fisher, commander, 1-68 Combined Arms Battalion. They have their national sovereignty. Part of a sovereign nations responsibility is to take care of its people. The water treatment and distribution facility is a great step towards demonstrating to the good citizens here in Khalis Kada the government is looking after their needs.
Hibhib is the township equivalent to a U.S. city. Khalis is a kada, which is equivalent to a county, and Diyala Province would be considered a state in the U.S.
The facility was run down and could not support the needs of the people before it was given an upgrade by Iraqi contractors. Now, the facility, with 11 km of new piping, can provide clean water for up to 4,000 people, said Capt. Brian Soule, civil military operations planner, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1-68 Combined Arms Battalion.
The project cost $130,000 and was paid for by funds from the commanders emergency response program, which is funded by the U.S. Congress. The program allows commanders in each area of operations to identify needs of the local people and provide assistance as quickly as possible. 130K and they are back in business. Money well spent.
Before the treatment and distribution plant was functional, the water would make people sick, said a local Iraqi teenager through an interpreter who was observing the ceremony. They would have to boil the water to get it clean. Now, it will be better for cooking and takes away the fear of poisoning. It makes life more comfortable.
The civil military operations team has many more projects in the works in coordination with the local government. Projects include installing a sewage system, a hydro-electric facility and the completion of the Baqubah soccer stadium. Steady steps forward. The Iraqis have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make things better. I hope that they take advantage of it.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/10/2006 13:28 ||
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#1
Plumbing, the basis for civilization.
American Standard plumbing the basis for spaceflight.
#3
Electricity, clean water, and working sewers convert more Iraqis to the cause of peace than anything. If they can then get jobs, they actively turn against the bad guyz.
Posted by: ed ||
07/10/2006 06:36 ||
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#1
It's not like the Sunni Arab leadership can just push a button, and make their bad guys go away. In Arab culture, the process moves a lot more slowly, and involves lots of talking, coffee, promises, deceit and drama.
Important to remember this in the coming months.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 7:01 Comments ||
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#3
Actually, moving against the militias is profoundly good news. The militias generally don't threaten to destroy the government, they are not at war with Iraq, unlike the insurgents. They are vigilantes.
This means that the insurgents have been so pounded down, that the majority of the focus can now move to other problems.
The best part is that vigilante movements are weak. The easiest way to break them up is not direct conflict, but restoring law & order. This makes them just fall apart.
Those groups supported by Iran can be spy-busted, then undermined with nationalism. But all of it is one hell of a lot easier than fighting fanatical insurgents.
#4
Getting Iraqi government forces to go after fellow Iraqis has been a huge problem to date, and the reason for the slow stand-up of their forces by US trainers. This will be huge when everyone fully sees the logic of doing this kind of thing and go at it with all their hearts. It seems as though this may be in the process of becoming "acceptable and desired behavior" at this point! :-)
Posted by: grb ||
07/10/2006 14:10 Comments ||
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#5
Actually, supporters of the Shia militias ARE the government, ARE the Ministers, ARE the ruling party coalition -- and the Shia militias ARE the Iraqi armed forces, ARE the police, ARE the power all over the south and much of the central area of "Iraq", a Theatrical European Creation.
There was a teensy little story today that demonstrates these are facts. Note, also, that half the comments on that story are, at the very least, confused about who is who. That's sad, since it's not a very complicated cascade of allegiances, alliances, and enmities.
Further, and I believe this should be obvious, you won't see the Shia militias neutralized until the Shia political coalition leaders decide you will + the time it takes to get the armed militias to agree to give up their God powers. That might be one hell of a lag-time, too.
BAGHDAD - The trial of Saddam Hussein and seven others on charges against humanity is due to resume on Monday with defence counsel scheduled to make final arguments three weeks after gunmen killed a senior defence lawyer.
But court officials told Reuters defence lawyers might ask the presiding judge to adjourn the trial for a few days, saying the killing of Khamis Al Obaidi had disrupted their legal work. Gunmen last month killed Obaidi, Saddams deputy chief lawyer, after kidnapping him from his Baghdad home -- the third defence attorney to be killed since the tumultuous trial opened in October.
The prosecution has demanded the death penalty for Saddam and three of his former senior aides for their roles in the killings, torture and executions that followed an attempt on the Iraqi leaders life in Dujail. Once final statements are in, a five-judge panel is expected to adjourn to consider a verdict. Officials close to the court say a verdict on Dujail can come in as early as September.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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by Garance Franke-Ruta, The American Prospect "TAPPED" blog
Avi Issacharoff reported [in Ha'aretz] that there is considerable Palestinian support for more kidnappings:
Of the 1,197 respondents from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, 66.8 percent expressed support for further kidnappings of Israeli civilians while 77.2 percent backed the Kerem Shalom tunnel operation and subsequent kidnapping of Israel Defense Forces Corporal Gilad Shalit.
Nonetheless, just 47.7 percent of those polled said they believed the Shalit affair would end positively for the Palestinian side.
That's a shockingly high level of optimism, when you think about it, given the unfolding disaster in Gaza -- and also a surprisingly high level of enthusiasm for further provocative actions by people who readily admit that they know better than to expect a positive result from the present one. Of course, consciously self-destructive behavior in the interest of hurting one's enemy is also the dynamic behind suicide bombings, which have found similarly high levels of support in polls of Palestinians, so plus ça change and all that.
Interesting for two reasons: (1) the self-destructive mentality that advocates a course of conduct with no percieved upside (in contrast, up until the very end of WWII, the Japanese sincerely believed that kamikaze attacks and similar tactics would turn the tide of the war and benefit the country, even though they were obviously terminal for the participants) and (2) the fact that this gets noted with a clear eye by a left-of-center writer in a left-of-center publication like TAP.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 11:13 ||
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#1
I have a different take on these numbers. I believe that when you net it all out, the paleos like the international commiseration and support that comes with their self-imposed victimhood. They're not starving. They're not disease-infested. They're not like the babies we used to watch in Biafra. So they're not suffering (although they'd love people to think they are).
Humanitarian disaster? Let the UN look to Africa. Oh. I forgot. Oil-rich arab countries can't use Africa as pawns. Which means there's no humanitarian disaster there.
#2
Once again, blame is shared with the Israelis, whose co-dependent behavior supports and nourishes the Paleos. The need to adopt a philosophy of "gain", that is, do not fight to maintain the status quo, fight to achieve advantage.
Every action against the Paleos should result in the Paleos losing something and the Israelis gaining something. Something finite. Like land or life. If the Israelis confiscated land for every affront committed by the Paleos, soon either the Paleos would quit being obnoxious, or there would be no more Paleos in country.
But the Israelis keep playing a damn stalemate, a zero-sum gain, that just guarantees that the Paleos will never stop in their violence, and that the murderous cancer will continue.
#6
You might ask the Iraqis about that . . . you know, the ones that voted in three national elections in the face of terrorist threats? Or maybe the Turks (not exactly friendlies these past few years, but they know how to run a modern society). Or the Kurds.
I won't deny that Palestinian society is a train wreck, but I think that has less to do with Islam than with the uniquely messed-up nature of the Palestinian "society"--and the neighboring despots (*cough* Syria! *cough*) and more distant America-haters (*cough* Iran! *cough* Jimmy Carter! *cough*) who are the Palestinians' enablers and manipulators.
I also won't deny that Wahabbi Islam is one seriously messed up religion. On the other hand, we should not forget that there are millions of Moslems out there who are friendlies, many of whom are putting their lives on the line so Americans don't have to.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 16:59 Comments ||
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#7
You are trying to apply human qualities to roaches.
It will not work.
#8
Jim: With all due respect, I'm not going to call people who do this, or this, or this "roaches." They're not.
Posted by: Mike ||
07/10/2006 18:03 Comments ||
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#9
I'm sorry but this poll was discussed yesterday - you cannot trust a poll coming out of the West Bank or Gaza. Why? well, who's doing the polling? Girl Scouts of America, Gallup or someone who has some Hamas 'minders' behind them (because after all these are rough neighbourhoods you know, and you may not know your way around).
Assuming that Western opinion poll methods work in a place where people can be taken outside and summarily shot because they were 'collaborating with Israel' is just delusional.
This does, of course, make it more difficult to find out what's really going on in there, but what can you do?
Posted by: Tony (UK) ||
07/10/2006 19:13 Comments ||
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#11
Interesting post, Mike, and you've made a lot of good points as well. This war is going to take brains as well as brawn to win, and we can't afford to squander the support of Muslims who prefer our side to that of the fascists.
#12
Tony is correct. Physical coersion and the threat of being labelled a traitor plays a huge part in shaping this so-called consensus. Of course most Palestinians sincerely hate Israel and want to harm it. But beyond that, they are not really at liberty to discuss or question strategy and tactics openly. They must show solidarity with the most extremist position, which then becomes the default position. Any leader who acknowledges reality and tries to compromise automatically delegitimizes themselves or invites assassination a la Sadat.
#13
And those statements, MM, which I will tacitly acknowledge are probably factual, do not change anything, as far as I can see. The Paleos are hell-bent for self-destruction and I hope Israel has the will to help them at every opportunity.
It is certainly factual that Israel must assume the worst, plan for it, and take decisive action in self-preservation. The current campaign into Gaza to try to force the release of Gilad Shalit is excruciatingly slow and, from any perspective, puzzling in its pace. Or lack of pace. I wish Olmert would put enough force into this operation to make it successful and pull no punches. The only thing he has done since it began which I find encouraging is that he says he will not negotiate, as there are nothing but terrorists with which to do so, and that Israel will not leave until Shalit's fate is resolved. I pray he will not allow the fools who infest his government, as they do ours, weaken his resolve.
I've read many, many, opinions here and one resonates with me:
Only one side in this conflict can possibly survive.
ISRAEL'S Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said operations in Gaza to press militants to free an abducted soldier and end rocket fire will go on indefinitely.
Mr Olmert, speaking to the foreign media, also reiterated he would not negotiate with the governing Hamas movement for the release of Corporal Gilad Shalit, taken to Gaza in a cross-border raid on June 25.
Militant groups that kidnapped the 19-year-old tank gunner have demanded Israel release more than a thousand Palestinian prisoners.
"I will not release prisoners for the trade of Corporal Gilad Shalit to Hamas," Mr Olmert said.
Lashing out at the European Union, which has been outspoken in its criticism of Israel's ground and air assaults, the Prime Minister said the EU should have focused instead on daily rocket fire by militants in Gaza against the Jewish state.
"When was the last time that the European Union condemned this shooting and suggested effective measures to stop it?" Mr Olmert said.
"At some point, Israel had no point but to take some measures in order to stop this thing."
Mr Olmert said Israel had "no particular desire to topple" the Hamas-led Palestinian government despite the arrest by the Israeli military of dozens of Hamas officials and its Gaza raids.
The European Union has accused Israel of a disproportionate use of force against Palestinians in Gaza and of making a humanitarian crisis there worse.
Some 50 Palestinians, among them about 20 civilians, have been killed since the Israeli offensive began, Gaza residents said.
in the latest violence, Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip killed one militant and wounded five others.
"We haven't set a particular timetable for this operation (in Gaza). It will continue in places, in times, in different measures that will suit the purposes that were outlined," Mr Olmert said, repeating remarks he made on Sunday to his cabinet.
Israel Radio said militants in Gaza fired three rockets at southern Israel early on Monday, causing no casualties.
The Israeli offensive has continued despite expressions of concern from the European Union and United Nations at the worst fighting between Israelis and Palestinians since 2004 and a potential humanitarian crisis.
Israel's main ally, the United States, has been less critical.
"Let's remember who started this," US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told CNN.
"It was the outrageous actions of Hamas in violating Israel's sovereignty, in taking the soldier hostage."
Early on Monday, the Israeli army said an aircraft destroyed a weapons depot belonging to the Islamic Jihad faction. Like Hamas, the group is committed to destroying Israel.
Mr Olmert said he was still committed to his plan to remove isolated Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank while strengthening large blocs, a proposal Palestinians have condemned as effective annexation of land they want for a state.
The proposal has been largely sidelined by the events in Gaza.
#1
The Paleos and EU should be happy the solution to this problem s not in my hands. There simply would be no Palestinians left in Gaza or the West Bank. They would be removed forever. Alive or dead the choice would be theirs but they would be out.
#4
Israel's main ally, the United States, has been less critical. "Let's remember who started this," US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told CNN.
Sheesh. CNN just never, ever gives up, do they?
How about, "The US reminded the world that the Paleo terrorist government Hamas vowed to wipe Israel off the map and is attempting to do so with little to no success"
#6
Indefinately, schmindefinately. Olmert is playing the ol' recycled stratagem.
Operation should go on as long as any smidget of threat is eliminated. As simple as that. Annexing a piece of territory for any infraction by Paleos, as suggested in another post, would be definitely the right way to proceed.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday dispatched two envoys to Syria for talks with Hamas leader Kahled Mashaal on ways of finding a solution to the case of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, senior PA officials here said.
Relations between the two have been strained ever since the Hamas leader accused Abbas of conspiring with the US and Israel to bring down the Hamas government. Israel holds Mashaal directly responsible for the abduction of Shalit. A PA official told The Jerusalem Post that Abbas and the PLO executive committee, a key decision-making body, decided over the weekend to negotiate with Mashaal after reaching the conclusion that Hamas leaders in the Gaza Strip had little influence, if any, over the kidnappers. "It's clear that Mashaal and his men in Syria and Lebanon are calling the shots," he said. "They have a great impact on the armed wing of Hamas, Izaddin al-Kassam, whose members are holding the soldier somewhere in the southern Gaza Strip."
Posted by: Fred ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Looking for a solution?!?
I'll give you a tip, give the kid back, say you f*cked up and you are sorry. That will get them off your back. Then stop lobbing unguided rockets over the barrier, recognize their right to exist, try acting like human beings, quit lying.
That ought to just about do it. But I would sooner expect the sun to turn blue than for all that to happen.
(IsraelNN.com) During a Monday evening Channel 1 TV interview, MK (Labor) Danny Yatom stated that Hamas politburo leader Khaled Meshal is marked for death, and the long arm of Israel will eventually reach him as well.
AMMAN The Ministry of Social Development (MoSD) will in the coming days appoint an administrative body to run the Islamic Centre Charity Society pending legal action regarding its finances, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Sunday. The boards replacement follows a decision by Ammans prosecutor general yesterday banning the administration from exercising their responsibilities as of July 9. The Cabinet referred the charitys file to the prosecutors office for legal action last Wednesday after a joint committee comprising officials from the Audit Bureau and the MoSD scrutinised the societys records. In its report, the panel detailed violations, reservations and comments, on the financial performance of the organisation, which by law reports to the MoSD.
Legal expert and attorney Sahel Jaroudi told The Jordan Times the prosecutors decision means that none of the members of the societys administrative body can make decisions or act in his capacity as a member. Petra quoted Minister of Social Development Suleiman Tarawneh as saying he would notify the Central Bank of Jordans governor to issue a statement to Jordan-based banks not to accept cheques signed by any of the charitys board members. The charity runs healthcare centres, private schools, orphanages and social welfare centres in addition to the Islamic Hospital in Amman. The organisation, which has branches across the country, is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, the largest opposition group.
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The detention period of four Islamist MPs arrested after paying condolences to the family of Abu Mussab Zarqawi expired on Sunday with the movements leaders again calling on the government to release their members. The reputation of our colleagues has been tarnished enough with their detention and accusations of betraying the nation. The government should now reconsider its decision and release the MPs who should not be behind bars anyway, said Azzam Hneidi, head of the Islamic Action Front (IAF) bloc at the Parliament. There are 17 Islamist deputies in the 110-member House.
Hneidi said the government should not escalate the crisis further. I cannot find a logical explanation for the governments decision to continue the detention of our colleagues, Hneidi told The Jordan Times.
"Punishing them" isn't a valid reason?
The four IAF MPs were ordered to be detained for 15 days on June 11 after the prosecutor general charged them with fuelling national discord and inciting sectarianism. On Jun 26, the state prosecutor ordered the detention to be renewed for a further 15 days. The deputies have pleaded not guilty to the charges. If convicted they could be sentenced to between six months and three years in prison in addition to a fine, according to legal sources.
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TEHERAN - Iran said on Sunday it had yet to pay $50 million it had pledged to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority and suggested the process for payment was still being discussed.
"We've a small problem with the bank, Khaled, it's going to take a while to clear this up."
"Hurry the hell up, dammit, I got people to pay and ammo to buy!"
The donation was announced in April to make up a shortfall left by an aid cut-off by the United States and the European Union and Israels freezing of the transfer tax and customs receipts to the Hamas-controlled Palestinian government. The process of that $50 million contribution is in the phase of decision-making now ... The payment that I talked about has not been paid yet, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told a news conference at a regional ministerial meeting. He gave no further details.
"We're thinking, we're thinking!"
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/10/2006 00:00 ||
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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.
CAIRO - Egyptian security forces have detained 30 leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood, the latest arrests in a crackdown on the countrys strongest opposition movement, the groups deputy leader said on Sunday. Mohammed Habib told Reuters 27 Brotherhood members were arrested in the town of Ras Al Bir on Egypts north coast during a meeting on Saturday to discuss education reform. Three others were taken from their homes in the same town, he said.
A new system to alert the British public over threats from al Qaida and other terror groups is to be introduced in Britain, it was reported here Sunday. Although the Home Office will not reveal details of how it will operate, it is understood that the new system will be simpler than the one it will replace, the Sunday Telegraph and the Sunday Times newspapers said. Home Secretary John Reid is set to unveil the changes as part of a package of announcements early next week. Warnings are to be published on the websites of the Home Office and the domestic Intelligence service, MI5. The papers added that they will be divided into five separate levels, although not colour-coded as they are in the US.
A Chinese leader visiting North Korea days after its missile tests defied international opinion said on Monday that Beijing stood by its Communist neighbor, adding to uncertainty about China's position in the standoff. Vice Premier 
South Korea has distanced itself from a UN initiative to impose punitive sanctions on its northern neighbour, increasing pressure to find a diplomatic solution to the missile row. After North Korea test-fired seven missiles last week, Japan formally introduced a UN resolution, co-sponsored by the United States, Britain and France, to impose sanctions against Pyongyang's missile programme. But in the face of strong opposition from Security Council members China and Russia, the senior US envoy for North Korea said on Sunday he backed Beijing's proposal for talks.
The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PERMA) said on Sunday that more than 100 seminaries were still operating "illegal" FM radio stations across the North West Frontier Province, stressing concern over the impact of these broadcasts on such a volatile part of the country. According to PERMA sources, the illegal radio stations were being run by madrassas, with those operated by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazlur Rehman)-led seminaries taking the lead. "At least 115 illegal FM radio stations are in operation all over the NWFP," sources revealed, while requesting anonymity. 
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly 
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) - amending anti-money laundering regulations - has directed all the banks and financial institutions to report promptly in case "the funds are the proceeds of a criminal activity or terrorist financing." The central bank in a circular has stated that the amendments had been made to ensure compliance with Financial Action Task Force recommendations on money laundering. 
ISLAMABAD, June 9 (KUNA) -- As the cracks of disappointment start weakening the structure of historic peace guesthouse, built by the two angry and moody nuclear neighbors, Pakistan and India, [Pakistan] is likely to modify the map.
BAGHDAD - The trial of Saddam Hussein and seven others on charges against humanity is due to resume on Monday with defence counsel scheduled to make final arguments three weeks after gunmen killed a senior defence lawyer.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday dispatched two envoys to Syria for talks with Hamas leader 
AMMAN The Ministry of Social Development (MoSD) will in the coming days appoint an administrative body to run the 
The detention period of four Islamist MPs arrested after paying condolences to the family of 
TEHERAN - Iran said on Sunday it had yet to pay $50 million it had pledged to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority and suggested the process for payment was still being discussed.
