AL-QAEDA cell members and affiliated Islamic extremists are on the run and unable to regroup after US and Ethiopian attacks in Somalia, the top US official on Africa policy said overnight. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer's remarks appeared to contradict an earlier assessment by the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank, which warned that Islamist hardliners had escaped intact and could stage a comeback.
Mr Frazer said on National Public Radio that Washington was working with Kenya and Ethiopia and ensuring that East African Al-Qaeda cell members and associated extremists were "not able to reconstitute themselves."
"They are on the run, they had run towards the border with Kenya, and now they're trying to go back towards Mogadishu," Mr Frazer said.
The US military this week carried out the second air strike in a month in southern Somalia, targeting suspected Al-Qaeda operatives. The Islamists, who fled before the arrival of government forces and their Ethiopian backers, restored a degree of order to Mogadishu after they crushed a collection of warlords in June who had been fighting in the capital for the past 16 years.
In a new report overnight, the International Crisis Group said the ousting of the Islamists by a joint force of Ethiopian and interim government troops was a "historic opportunity for stabilisation and reconstruction" but warned that government claims to have crushed the Islamists were wishful thinking. "Elements of the Courts (Islamists), including the Shabaab militants and their Al-Qaeda associates, have survived largely intact and threaten guerrilla war," the Brussels-based organisation said. "To prevent the jihadis from staging a comeback, the TFG (transitional government) must restore stability and win public support across southern Somalia," where the Islamists had their stronghold, said the report.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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A Moroccan court on Friday postponed the trial of 50 Islamists accused of plotting to overthrow the monarchy and replace it with a purist Islamic state, court officials and lawyers said. Fifty members of Ansar el Mehdi (Mehdi Partisans) appeared at a brief hearing at the court in Sale before judges put off the trial to March 23 to give the court time to appoint government-funded counsel for defendants who are too poor to pay for lawyers, officials said.
The defendants are charged with belonging to a 'criminal gang preparing to stage terrorist acts' and undermining the public order and collecting money to fund terror attacks. Security services said at the time of their arrest in August they were planning a bigger attack than the Casablanca bombings in 2003 that killed 45 people. Officials also said the Mehdi group had recruited members of the police and the military.
Rabat's secular-minded government has said the capture of the group plotting jihad or holy war proved the existence of an increasingly sophisticated menace to the stability of the kingdom of 30 million.
The case is seen by foreign diplomats and human rights activists as a test for the government's pledges to balance its fight against radical Islamists with respect for human rights. Security officials say police have broken up more than 50 radical Islamist cells, some linked to al Qaeda, and arrested more than 3,000 people since then. Local human rights groups accuse the authorities of abusing the rights of arrested people. Many of them, they argued, had been detained on unfounded suspicion of links to terrorism.
The defendants in the Mehdi case were remanded in jail until the trial resumes, lawyers said. If convicted, they face up to 30 years in prison.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Immigration officers at airports and harbours will be uniformed and gain stronger powers under government proposals to be announced on Friday. Immigration Minister Liam Byrne told the BBC the UK Borders Bill was part of a range of measures the government would announce over coming months to deter illegal immigration. He said it was part of the most radical shake-up of the immigration service in its history.
The Home Offices Immigration and Nationality Directorate is to start working from April under the new title of the Border and Immigration Agency. Byrne said the agencys job would be to tackle immigration in the round. That means securing our borders more effectively, it means tackling human traffickers and smugglers who account for so much of illegal immigration. It also means shutting down illegal working, which we know draws people here in the first place, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Just so long as they do nothing to interfere with our Masters of the Umma or the sanctity or modesty of their women.
MOSCOW, Jan. 26 (AP) Russias foreign minister denounced on Friday the detention of a Russian man accused of trying to sell highly enriched uranium to Georgian agents, calling it a provocation.
A government scientist, meanwhile, confirmed that a sample of the uranium sent to Russia was weapons-grade, but said the sample was too small to determine its origin, news agencies reported.
Igor Shkabura, deputy director of the Bochvar Inorganic Materials Institute, said the uranium sent by Georgia could be used for military productions, including nuclear weapons, according to ITAR-Tass.
It was the first public comment by a named Russian official to claims by Georgia that it arrested and jailed a Russian man last year for trying to sell weapons-grade uranium to an agent posing as a rich foreign buyer.
The reports that emerged Wednesday, confirmed by United States officials, renewed concern about security at Russias array of nuclear facilities. They also aggravated already high tensions between Russia and Georgia, which have been at odds for years over the status of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, two renegade regions of Georgia seeking either independence or absorption into Russia.
Georgian officials say their agent made contact with the man selling contraband uranium in South Ossetia, which is widely seen as a regional epicenter for smuggling.
Georgias Foreign Ministry issued a statement late Thursday saying the uranium sting highlighted the need for international observer missions in both regions, a proposal that Georgia has been pushing in recent months. Russia has peacekeepers in both regions, which have been under the control of unrecognized separatist governments since fighting ended in the mid-1990s.
The ministry statement said, Georgia is far from politicizing these questions.
While Russia is way ahead.
Russias foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov, said that he could see no reason for the detention of the man accused of smuggling the uranium.
On the basis of the facts that I have at my disposal, I can say that this was a provocation, he said, according to Interfax and RIA-Novosti.
If that's the case, then there should be no problems selling it to a Chechen.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that Japan will never tolerate a nuclear-armed North Korea. Abe, who built his career as a hardliner on North Korea, spoke ahead of the expected resumption of six-nation talks on ending the communist states nuclear arsenal. Our country will never tolerate North Koreas nuclear weapons development, Abe said in a policy speech to parliament. With a policy of pressure and dialogue, we will cooperate with the countries concerned to seek a concrete response from North Korea, he said. North Korea tested its first atom bomb on October 9, days after Abe took office with a conservative agenda including revising the post-World War II pacifist constitution. Abe, despite his calls for a more assertive Japan, said the country was cooperating with the United States to build a missile defence shield. By cooperating with the United States, we will work to hurriedly set up a system to protect our country from ballistic missiles, Abe said. Japan feels a direct threat from North Korea, which fired a missile over its main island in 1998, prompting Tokyo and Washington to team up to build a missile defence shield.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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PAKI-Times: TOKYO: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that Japan will never tolerate a nuclear-armed North Korea.
Damn if that isn't the strongest National Defense policy declaration I've ever seen from a Japanese Prime Minister, then I've forgotten it.
#4
g: Well, this is the Japan that we were all asking for. It may turn out to be quite a double-edged sword, however.
I'm not exactly sure what he meant. We've said all kinds of things about not tolerating such-and-such. And done absolutely nothing when our foreign counterpart went out and did it. I think Abe's pushing on a string. He's got nothing to pressure the North Koreans with, so he's reduced to ratcheting up the rhetoric. Once the North Koreans call his bluff, he'll be reduced to repeating the same kinds of statements, with different words, just like a parrot, and with as much effect. The reality is that nothing will stop North Korea from going nuclear, unless its Chinese master threatens to cut its food and oil off.
#5
I agree with your point, ZF, about how little Japan can do to NK, but what about indirect pressure? If Japan rearms and starts to look like 1931 again, might that not convince Hu to curb his dog?
#8
J: I agree with your point, ZF, about how little Japan can do to NK, but what about indirect pressure? If Japan rearms and starts to look like 1931 again, might that not convince Hu to curb his dog?
The Chinese government knows that the Japanese were spayed by their casualties from WWII. All of their anti-Japanese noises have been ploys to extort money and diplomatic concession from the Japanese and shore up their own popularity with a Chinese public they have indoctrinated, from first grade, with anti-Japanese hatred.
There is no way Japan could credibly threaten to go nuclear. In the remote event that it did, Japan is tiny and concentrated, whereas China is huge and dispersed. Which country is better situated to prevail in a nuclear war? China's not afraid of a nuclear Japan.
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 12:17 Comments ||
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FG: and a nuclear Taiwan?
Nukes won't help improve Taiwan's position, either, for the simple reason that it can't use them. Taiwan is a lot like Japan - small and densely populated (5 times China's). Look at it from a practical standpoint - China has enough nukes (hundreds) within range to kill every single person on Taiwan. If Taiwan used nukes against China, it would cease to exist. Even the Japanese surrendered after a mere 3.5% of its population was killed during WWII. Taiwan's not going to risk complete nuclear annihilation just to remain free.
Nukes are mainly good for deterring the other side's use of nukes. But no one really thinks China's going to use nukes against Taiwan. I think that would get even the normally-supportive Chinese population (on Taiwan issues) riled up against the central government. The fact that Taiwan can't use them at all, and China can't use them except in retaliation for a Taiwanese nuclear attack, is why the acquisition of nukes by Taiwan is pointless, and unlikely to worry China.
#11
Taiwan doesn't need a nuke. It needs a reliable penetrating warhead and the ability to deliver said warhead to the Three Gorges dam. It needs about a 90% probability rating (total) on such a system. Then they need to make it very clear to Mr. Hu, very quietly, so as to save face for the Chinese. Problem solved.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/27/2007 14:08 Comments ||
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#12
that was my thinking, SW - the flyash contribution makes it a reliable target, even with high explosives
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 14:26 Comments ||
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How many engineers (good ones) Japan has as compared to China?
And a nuclear armed South Korea, and an already nuclear armed India with less warm relations than they currently have? Vietnam doesn't seem to like China much lately. Can they be "boxed" in and somewhat contained that way?
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/27/2007 15:30 Comments ||
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ZF's point (IMHO) is that China is too huge and hugely populated to worry about a single nuke attack. I disagree. They can be made to pay bigtime for their behavior, and not just by nukes. They have shit for troop transport beyond their borders, and their Navy is bush-league. They have missiles and numbers, both of which can be negated.They are also becoming intertwined in the global economy, for better or worse. If I were a company, I would be hesitant to have my sole manufacturing base in any one country (see: Venezuela). Redundancy and duplication offers alternatives should a...say...earthquake..or naval blockade...disrupt supply
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 15:38 Comments ||
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Zhang Fei, strategically the Chinese let the cat is out of the bag altogether poop in their chop suey.
The Chinese blundered big time along with their piddling Nork allies.
fact #1: 10-15 years ago Japan and the USA were strategically drifting apart, quite naturally.
But Now [thank you china] Because of China's antics and intransigence over Sea/territory rights, and their proxy support of the Norks/Nukes..IT REVERSED, Japan and the USA have not only reversed the strategic drift apart but have re-united and built up an even stronger defense pac together than ever before.
At a minimum the strategic tools that the US/Japanese defense pac is now building towards will cost the Chinese billions and billions just to to try and keep up with.
Not to mention the potential of Japan's armed forces, Navy, Air Force, Army, Space, Nukes etc.
Taiwan and Japan would not use nukes first against China, but they would on the way out. China wouldn't use nukes first on Taiwan because there would be nothing left to own and everything to lose politically for the next 100 years (which may not mean as much to them as it does to other western societies, or may not end up meaning as much to western societies as they like to say/think). So China would have to attack more subtly, sticking the knife in Taiwan slowly so they don't get nuked. Exactly what more eastern societies are geared for should they decide to go that route. But China is becoming westernized, so it may never get that far. They just haven't evolved enough to drop past pride and figure out that taking Taiwan isn't in their strategic intetest anymore. Better to have them as a partner than to take them over, much like the US and Japan. And perhaps China has figured it out and is just using it as a rallying cry for the peasantry and as a useful excuse to expand their military.
#18
agreed, Gorb up to the point that Taiwan isn't really an issue. I suspect that re-absorbing Taiwan is a make-or-break in Chinese Politburo political ascension. The false "face" in pursuing conquering Taiwan hasn't become a negative, yet, to the poltical elite, IIUC. The refuse to consider the obvious downside of killing the golden goose, and inheriting a smoking island and world-wide ridicule/condemnation. Acquiring Taiwan via violence would set China back 50-100 years, and gain little. They are poseurs for the cause, right now
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 16:55 Comments ||
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#19
RD wrote: fact #1: 10-15 years ago Japan and the USA were strategically drifting apart, quite naturally.
So much so that George Friedman wrote a book entitled "The Coming War With Japan" in which he laid out the reasons and a scenario that was scarily reminscent of the situation leading to WW2 between Japan and the US.
European Union member states "should act to stop" Muslim women from wearing the full face veil, German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said Wednesday. "The full veil runs contrary to the achievements of the European civilization," Schaeuble told reporters after a meeting with the European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee.
Does he read Rantburg?
Schaeuble, whose country currently runs the agenda-setting EU presidency, said that communication with other people was a responsibility for the European citizen. "You cannot communicate with the person wearing it (the full veil)," the minister said, adding: "Our communication is also to a great extent non-verbal."
I wonder if Herr Schaeuble hails from ...say, Bavaria.
Schaeuble said he does not favour introducing European laws on the wearing of a full face veil. However, it would be an "incorrect understanding of tolerance if we were not brave enough to express ourselves on that." Schaeuble also said that the EU should promote the training of imams.
Maybe he only reads the Defender-Scimitar and Times Picayune...but not for the articles.
But that such courses as well as the education of Muslim children should be held in the language of the EU member state. Germany has said that it wants to use its six-month term at the 27-member bloc's helmet to establish an EU-wide dialogue with Muslim leaders to improve integration, defuse tensions and fight "home-grown terrorism."
#1
Wonder if Minister Schaeuble is getting any 'campaign contributions' from Venetian mask manufacturers? Can't wear a veil, but we have these finely crafted masks to perform the same function and are part of that quaint celebration of Carnevalé. /tin foil hat removed
Canada apologized on Friday to software engineer Maher Arar, who was deported to Syria by U.S. agents after Canadian police mistakenly labeled him an Islamic extremist, and paid him C$10.5 million ($8.9 million) in compensation.
Arar, a Syrian-born Canadian citizen, was arrested during a stopover in New York in 2002 on his way home to Canada from a holiday. He has said he was repeatedly tortured during the year he spent in Damascus jails.
U.S. officials deported Arar after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said he was a suspected Islamic extremist, but an official Canadian inquiry said there was no evidence he was linked to terrorism.
The deportation has become a sore spot in Canada-U.S. relations, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper renewed his call for Washington to remove Arar from its security watch list as he announced the settlement on Friday. "On behalf of the government of Canada, I wish to apologize to you, Monia Mazigh (Arar's wife) and your family for any role Canadian officials may have played in the terrible ordeal that all of you experienced in 2002 and 2003," Harper said in a letter of apology which he read at a news conference.
In addition to the C$10.5 million, an Arar lawyer said the government would pay for C$1 million in legal fees. Arar said afterwards that he could not begin to say how much Harper's statement and the compensation meant. "In doing so, the government of Canada and the prime minister have acknowledged my innocence. This means the world to me (and my family)," he said.
The official inquiry by Justice Dennis O'Connor found the RCMP had wrongly told U.S. border agents that Arar was a suspected Islamic extremist and slammed the police for incompetence and dishonesty. Canada's top Mountie resigned in December over the issue.
Arar had initially sued Ottawa for C$400 million, a figure he later cut to C$37 million. Harper defended the final settlement: "I know to some Canadians that will sound like an awful lot of money, but I can tell you that the reality is, given the findings of the O'Connor commission and the unjust treatment that Mr. Arar received, that figure is within this government's assessment of what Mr. Arar would have won in a lawsuit."
In Washington, Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy (news, bio, voting record) issued a statement saying he was seeking answers as chairman of the Senate judiciary committee as to why Arar was sent to Syria. "The question remains why. Even if there were reasons to consider him suspicious, the U.S. government shipped him to Syria where he was tortured, instead of to Canada for investigation or prosecution," Leahy said.
Democratic Congressman Edward Markey (news, bio, voting record) called on the White House to imitate Ottawa. "The Bush administration should follow suit and admit publicly that it was cruel to detain and transfer Maher Arar to Syria for torture," he said.
U.S. officials have said Arar will remain on their watch list because of unspecified information possessed by law enforcement agencies. Arar is also suing the United States for damages.
As for his personal life, Arar says he still suffers nightmares from his ordeal and hopes now to try to melt back into an ordinary life. "I wish, if there's a way, I could buy my life back," he said.
Posted by: ed ||
01/27/2007 16:44 ||
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keep protecting the other side, Leahy/Markey. When Boston disappears in a mushroom cloud, you'll be called to answer, F*ckheads
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 18:09 Comments ||
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Posted by: Mark E. ||
01/27/2007 18:47 Comments ||
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#5
They're saying the demonstrations in SF today were tiny, only about 5-10 thousand compared to the 20 thousand the media says showed up for last week's anti-abortion rally.
So, tens of thousands? Probably not.
Eat it you moonbats. The majority in America may not like how the war's being run, but they're far from standing beside you.
#6
Tens of thousands? Show me the pictures. All I have seen is small knots of people and one group near the stage that looked about 5k? Where are the hundreds of thousands opposed to the war? This was their day to stand up and be counted. I guess when counted they don't number that many.
#8
I noticed that Tehran John hasn't shown up at one of these things yet. Wonder why.
He had more important things to attend to - like uttering turgid denunciations of the US in Davos, Switzerland. Something tells me the food in Davos was a bit better than at the rally.
#2
If there has ever been a collosal shitbag, John Kerry is it.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/27/2007 16:14 Comments ||
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something about Davos brings out the ultra-stupid in people
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 16:31 Comments ||
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#4
I loved Kerry's Kyoto comment in light of the Senate resolution on Iraq surrender. When part of the Senate says "no more Iraq" he expects the Commander-in-Chief to obey them. But when the Senate almost unanimously says "no more Kyoto" he expects the next President to try to overrule them. F'ing idiot -- and so is anyone who votes for him.
People who vote Democrat need to understand: when you vote Democrat, THAT is what you are voting for.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
01/27/2007 17:38 Comments ||
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#12
might wanna steal that pic for the RB Archive
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 17:49 Comments ||
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#13
The problem is, Dave D, they don't believe so. They think they are voting for their local favorite and that favorite would never ally him-herself with the "Lunatic Fringe". They just don't get it.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
01/27/2007 17:56 Comments ||
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Hello Kimmy!
The Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency shot down a dummy target missile over the southern Pacific Ocean during a test of the U.S. missile defense shield early Saturday, according to an agency spokeswoman.
First, a dummy ballistic missile was fired from a U.S. mobile launch platform in the Pacific Ocean in a simulated attack. Moments later, an interceptor missile was fired from the agency's missile range facility on Hawaii's Kekaha Island and struck the dummy warhead over the Pacific Ocean, military footage showed.
The mobile, ground-based system is designed to protect the United States from short to intermediate-range high altitude ballistic missile attacks in the North American region, agency spokeswoman Pam Rogers said.
The system "intercepts missiles that are shorter range and at the end of their flight trajectory. It is part of the ballistic missile defense system, a layered system that is designed to intercept all types of missiles in all phases of flights," Rogers said.
This particular short to intermediate-range interceptor system has been tested four times a year since 2005. "This was our first test since we moved equipment in October from the White Sands missile range in New Mexico ... everything went exceedingly well," Rogers said.
In September, the agency successfully tested its long-range ballistic missile interceptor system, which it said was the most realistic test since the tests started in 2001. That interceptor system was designed to knock out missiles that could, for instance, be launched in a surprise strike from nations as far away as North Korea.
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 13:28 ||
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The system "intercepts missiles that are shorter range and at the end of their flight trajectory. It is part of the ballistic missile defense system, a layered system that is designed to intercept all types of missiles in all phases of flights," Rogers said.
This is impressive. At that stage, the target missile is travelling really fast.
#3
thanks for the graphic add, mods! I couldn't find it....
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 15:26 Comments ||
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#4
Amazing. In the entire article, not a single quote from an anti-BMD Senator or a dissident "expert" speaking "on condition of anonymity" to pooh-pooh the success of the test and tell us why "it'll never work." What happened, did the entire CNN editorial staff go on vacation?
Posted by: Dave D. ||
01/27/2007 15:50 Comments ||
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#5
From the photo at ink, it's a THAAD test. THAAD recently started low rate production.
Posted by: ed ||
01/27/2007 16:52 Comments ||
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#2
I think it's a little overwrought. Look - I don't agree with the guy's politics. And he's a liar. A smooth liar. But I don't think he's a terrorist. Most Muslims aren't terrorists. They may agree with the terrorists, and would fund them if it were legal. But they're not going to run any risks for jihad that would jeopardize their comfortable lives. I understand there are a number of Muslims who would give up their lives for jihad. But that is a very small number, totaling perhaps in the tens of thousands. And perhaps only a handful of them are in America. They might agree with the idea of jihad. They might even sympathize with the enemy. But ultimately, the good life is too much to sacrifice for jihad.
#3
"He closed by telling Kirkland, you can be sure that there are million of muslim activists as well that will do something about your foul statements."
#5
Most Muslims aren't terrorists. They may agree with the terrorists, and would fund them if it were legal.
Then that makes them terrorists in my book. Agreeing with, helping to fund, sympathizing with etc. etc. puts one squarely in the terrorists camp. Doesn't matter if they themselves actively engage in jihadism. These people would jump right in, in a heartbeat if the jihadis ever gained the upper hand. And you can be sure they wouldn't lift a finger to save you or your family.
How can you carry their water like that?
Posted by: Chuck Darwin ||
01/27/2007 13:29 Comments ||
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#6
Most people who work for NASA are not astronauts.
I'm too lazy to do the actual research, but how many Michelin tires are manufactured in France (and subject to Euro distaste for the US military)? Will we run into problems with the impending EU regulations on metric measurements, or what other kinds of mischief/red tape/bureaucratic mumbojumbo will the EU be able to create for our military?
French tire maker Michelin Thursday won an exclusive contract worth 1.7 billion dollars to supply every branch of the US military. Michelin said it had won the 10-year contract to supply every tire needed by the US army, navy, air force and Marines around the world. Michelin said it was already the leading supplier of tires to the army, and had invested 16 million dollars to boost its production so as to meet rising demand stemming from the Iraq conflict.
"Michelin is ready to step up as the one-stop source for all military tire needs," said Luc Minguet, the chief operating officer of Michelin Americas Truck Tires. "Now, we'll add our expertise in logistics and supply chain management to streamline the timely supply of ground tires to US troops at home and around the globe," he said. Streamlining the process through appointing an exclusive tire supplier will save the Pentagon "hundreds of millions of dollars," a Michelin statement said.
#1
SF, Michelin has its production lines in about 170 countries, US and Canada inclusive. Their products in each country are designed to supply that specific market, EUCrat constitution (e.g. regulations) nothwithstanding. They may probably expand their product lines in different theatres to provide shortest way to supply US military.
#7
If I'm not mistaken, I believe they have a BIG manufacturing plant in the Ardmore Oklahoma area, and most of the synthetics used are shipped up from refinery row, on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Posted by: Chuck Darwin ||
01/27/2007 10:19 Comments ||
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#8
I always wondered what kind of tires the Mooslims burn when in Paris.
Opposition parties on Friday condemned a suicide attack at a five star hotel here, and said the government had failed in maintaining law and order in the high security zone. I strongly condemn this incident. However, this incident in the high security zone exposes the writ of the government, said Leader of the Opposition in Senate Mian Raza Rabbani. The government has failed to perform its constitutional duties, he added. Rabbani also condemned a baton-charge on journalists who were at the blast site to perform their duties.
Pakistan Peoples Party Information Secretary Sherry Rehman said the suicide attack in a high security zone of the federal capital had exposed government claims regarding its alliance with the US to eliminate terrorism. She said the government was least concerned about the security of the people, as over 75 percent of the security personnel in Islamabad had been deployed to guard VVIPs.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Chairman Raja Zafrul Haq condemned the incident. He said the attack was the result of government policies. We demand that the government identify the culprits - whether Pakistani or foreigners, he said.
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal Deputy Secretary General Liaquat Baloch said the government had failed to break the network of international terrorists and maintain law and order in Islamabad.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Pakistans army on Friday denied it had exchanged fire with Indian troops in the disputed Kashmir region. The Indian army said the troops exchanged small arms fire on Thursday when anti-India militants tried to cross the heavily militarised Line of Control (LoC) in the divided region from the Pakistani side.
One militant was killed in the incident that took place in Poonch district, according to the Indian army. No incident of exchange of fire took place along the LoC in Poonch sector, the Pakistan army said in a statement.
A Pakistan Army statement said that on January 25 at about 7pm, Indian Troops fired illuminating rounds followed by small arms fire in their own area across the Working Boundary in Jammu District. Pakistani Troops did not respond to the Indian fire, since it was on the Indian side although our troops heard the firing, they did not observe any movement along the Working Boundary; as has been claimed by the Indian Army spokesman, it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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JAMMU - KASHMIR - INDIA
Indian Border security force soldiers and Police men carry the dead body of slain intruder at Alfa Machel post about 32 km from the Northern Indian city of Jammu, the winter capital of Kashmir on Friday, January 26, 2007. An intruder suspected Pakistani was killed while trying to cross over to Indo Pak international border at Akhnoor sector of Jammu and Kashmir. EPA/JAIPAL SINGH
Posted by: john ||
01/27/2007 10:18 Comments ||
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Afghanistans foreign minister accused Pakistan on Friday of using terrorism as an instrument of foreign policy and said the Taliban could be beaten in two or three years if Islamabad cooperated fully against them.
Rangeen Dadfar Spanta said his country needed more money to fight terrorism, improve government and bring better lives for the people. Speaking on the margins of talks among NATO foreign ministers, he said Pakistan, although officially an ally in the US-led war on terrorism, should do more to contain the Taliban. Pakistan doesnt do enough, he said in an interview. Pakistan is from our point of view part of the problem they have to stop interference ... in Afghanistan. They have to stop using terrorism as an instrument of foreign policy and I think it is high time the international community began to tell Pakistan to stop.
He accused some circles in Pakistan of being behind this policy, but declined to identify them. They dont accept to have Afghanistan with national sovereignty, territorial integrity, as an equal partner in this region.
Spanta said the Taliban threat could be stamped out if Pakistan cooperated more in stopping cross-border incursions, and if more international funds were available. If we bring all the necessary efforts together, if Pakistan cooperated in this process, I think the problem of the Taliban we can lose within two to three years, he said.
Spanta said he had no idea of the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden. If I knew I would catch him and receive more than 25 million dollars, he joked, referring to Washingtons reward for Bin Laden. But ... I know he is not in Afghanistan.
Spanta said developments in Afghanistan had been generally very positive since 2001, thanks to the assistance of the international community. But he said more help was needed. Project Afghanistan is not yet completed, he said. We need more efforts. We have to develop one comprehensive strategy in the process of the anti-terror war. I mean a strategy with development elements, the supporting of Afghan government institutions ... and also to demonstrate the determination of the international community.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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The administration of Lal Masjid on Friday threatened the government of suicide attacks if it continues to demolish mosques and madrassas. The clerics also acquired a commitment to this effect from thousands of worshippers at the Friday congregation.
Addressing the Friday sermon, Maulana Abdul Aziz, key prayer leader of Lal Masjid, asked the government to reconstruct the demolished mosques and urged President Musharraf to seek Allahs forgiveness for demolishing seven mosques in the country. We are ready to carry out suicide attacks if the government does not meet our demands, he said, adding that the clerics would accept General Musharraf president for life if he accepts all their demands in letter and spirit.
Maulana Aziz, who is also the principal of Jamia Hafsa and Jamia Fareedia madrassas, issued a decree after citing verses from the Quran that jihad had become obligatory on all men and women against the backdrop of prevailing evil in the country. He demanded the government enforce a system based on the Quran and Sunnah in the country and stop dubbing jihad as terrorism.
He praised the girl students of Jamia Hafsa for besieging the children library, saying, It was the last resort because all our demonstrations, negotiations and protests fell on deaf ears. This is a practice of the mujahideen all over the world.
Maulana Aziz said that millions of madrassa students had decided to sacrifice their lives in the name of Allah and the government must realise the gravity of the situation. He said that 10,000 students of Jamia Fareedia would sit in aitekaaf for 40 days to seek divine help and they would also be taught about the significance of jihad. We do not want an armed conflict with the government, but we should not be pushed to the wall, he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Maulana Aziz said that millions of madrassa students had decided to sacrifice their lives in the name of Allah and the government must realise the gravity of the situation.
Shutting down the madrassas would be a small start.
Posted by: Islam O Phoebe ||
01/27/2007 21:37 Comments ||
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Sacrificing the Maulana Aziz would be a very good first step.
Scores of prayer leaders in Rawalpindi and Islamabad were served notices by the government for their participation in a protest rally staged against the demolition of mosques. Being a government employee, you cannot participate in any rally or gathering. You should explain as to why a disciplinary action should not be taken against you, reads a notice issued by the Auqaf Directorate to the prayer leaders. The notice also directed the respondents to tender replies within three days, otherwise they will be proceeded against under a presidential ordinance of special powers for removal from service. A large number of clerics and seminary students on Wednesday staged a protest rally at Melody Market in Islamabad against the demolition of two mosques in the capital.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Meetings between All Parties Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Muzaffarabad-based terrorists have fuelled speculation of a looming Pakistan Army-sponsored split between pro-and anti-dialogue jihad commanders. Speaking to a national newspaper on Thursday, AAC spokesperson Aftab Ahmad Shah who uses the code-name Shahid-ul-Islam said the Mirwaiz "met senior militant commanders and they exchanged ideas on Kashmir." According to the newspaper, these included the "top leadership" of the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
AAC officials have declined to name the Lashkar and Jaish leaders who held talks with the Mirwaiz, but both organisations have been critical of the peace process led by the APHC chairman and Pakistan's President, General Pervez Musharraf. Mohammad Yusuf Shah, the Pakistan-based chief of the Hizb ul-Mujahideen, even rebuffed efforts by the APHC chairman to secure a meeting during his ongoing visit to Pakistan.
Mirwaiz Farooq, however, secured an extended meeting with Mushtaq Zargar, one of the three terrorists released during the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814. Mr. Zargar's al-Umar, which drew much of its cadre from Mirwaiz Farooq's strongholds in old-city Srinagar, was once the sword-arm of the AAC. However, under attack from both Indian forces and rival jihadi groups like the Hizb, it was decimated by 1993.
A Pakistan-based source close to the APHC told The Hindu that Mr. Zargar had persuaded three mid-level Lashkar and Jaish commanders to accompany him to visit Mirwaiz, most likely with the endorsement of Pakistan's covert service, the Inter-Services Intelligence. "The ISI is signalling to the Hizb and Lashkar that it must fall in line," the source said, "or face the consequences."
General Musharraf, Mirwaiz Farooq's meetings in Muzaffarabad suggest, may be tiring of strident criticism of his Jammu and Kashmir policy by Islamist terror groups once sponsored by the Pakistan Army. For example, the January, 2007 issue of the Lashkar house magazine `Voice of Islam' characterises the Pakistani President's four-point peace plan as "a stab in the back, a betrayal."
"As the unfinished business of Partition," the magazine asserts, echoing the long-standing Lashkar position, "Kashmir can only be achieved [sic., resolved] according to the principles on which the Partition was carried out the will of the citizens of the State and the religion of the majority population. Musharraf's formula is blind to these principles. It will never deliver."
Lashkar leaders have also become increasingly critical of General Musharraf's overall agenda. Earlier this month, the Lashkar's parent political organisation, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, organised a conference to critique a new Women's Protection Act promoted by the General. According to the Jamaat, the "floodgates of vulgarity and licentiousness opened by the Act would drown the womenfolk, sisters and daughters of the faithful."
Mirwaiz Farooq, for his part, has long sought to demonstrate that he has some leverage with terrorist groups but with little success. On June 7, 2005, the Mirwaiz met to secure his support for the APHC's ongoing dialogue with the Government of India. Mr. Shah, however, said he would not accept any process that did not include hardline Islamist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
Syed Salim Geelani, who heads the moderate APHC-aligned National Peoples Party, met with Mr. Shah early this month to lay the ground for a second round of dialogue with Mirwaiz Farooq. However, the APHC chairman's recent assertion that the armed struggle "had not achieved anything other than creating more graveyards" incenced the Hizb and other terrorist groups fighting in Jammu and Kashmir.
Angered by the remark, Mr. Shah called off the proposed meeting. A spokesperson for the United Jihad Council, which is chaired by Mr. Shah, subsequently warned the Mirwaiz "not teach the lesson of cowardice and hopelessness to our caravan of freedom seekers." For its part, the Lashkar-linked Save Kashmir Movement published direct threats to the Mirwaiz's life, charging the cleric with having become a "renegade."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Iran has thousands of paid operatives working in neighboring Iraq, an Iranian opposition group based in France said Friday, and it released the names of nearly 32,000 people it alleged were involved. The National Council of Resistance's allegations could not be independently verified. And a press officer at the Iranian Embassy in Paris, speaking on condition of anonymity because of embassy policy, called the claims "completely false" and said Tehran supports stability in the region.
The council is the political wing of the People's Mujahedeen of Iran, which advocates the overthrow of Iran's Islamic government. The council has been based in France since shortly after the 1979 Islamic revolution. Mohammad Mohaddessin, who heads the council's foreign affairs committee, alleged that thousands of Iraqis are working on Iran's behalf. "The clerical regime, faced with intensifying domestic crisis and isolation inside Iran, views its only chance for survival in the establishment of a proxy regime in Iraq," Mohaddessin said at a news conference in Paris.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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The Iranian Attack Model
1. The chief instrument of Iranian geopolitics is the IRGC, a uniformed branch of the Iranian military.
2. Iranian acts of aggression are carefully planned and executed, from beginning to end, by Iranian citizens working for the Iranian government.
3. The final phase of each attack, however, is carried out by proxies who may or may not be Iranian citizens.
4. The Iranians hide their culpability by attacking where non-Iranian radical groups can easily be blamed.
5. The Iranians' weapon of choice is a suicide truck or car bomb.
6. Each attack advances the geopolitical ambitions of Iran.
The US Army said Friday it will court-martial Lt. Col. Steven Lee Jordan, the highest-ranking officer it has sought to prosecute in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Suha Arafat, widow of former PLO president Yasser Arafat, said Friday that her late husband was supposed to have been hospitalized in Tunisia after he lost consciousness prior to his death, Israel Radio reported. Arafat told the London-based pan-Arabic daily Asharq Alawsat that Fatah head Mahmoud Abbas, today Palestinian Authority Chairman, had ordered her husband to be hospitalized in Paris without consulting her. Arafat also said she had not ruled out the possibility that her husband had been poisoned, but said that investigations thus far had not indicated foul play.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Perhaps he ate too much "porkie""
Posted by: steven ||
01/27/2007 0:09 Comments ||
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#11
And Miss Piggy and Air-of-Fart had a child together, presumeably a biological child and presumeably by the regular old-fashioned means of generating offspring.
The mental image of the two of them doing that should be enough to make your skin crawl so violently that you are curled up in the corner whimpering and scouring your brain with brillo pads....
A Palestinian cleric deported from the US insisted Friday he never had ties to a radical Islamic group and says he has reformed. Fawaz Damra, 46, the former spiritual leader of Ohio's largest mosque, was convicted in the US in 2004 of concealing in his citizenship application ties to groups the American government classifies as terrorist organizations. Damra, who says he is innocent of the charges, was stripped of his citizenship and deported to his native West Bank earlier this month.
There, he was turned over to Israeli authorities who imprisoned him for three weeks. He was released on Thursday after a military court determined it did not have sufficient evidence to hold him on charges of ties to Islamic Jihad. "I was never a terrorist," Damra said from his parents' home in Nablus on Friday. "I was always a man of peace who wanted to speak to people of other faiths and hear what they had to say."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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HAMAS, which heads the Palestinian government, has suspended talks overnight with Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party after clashes between the two left 11 people dead in barely 24 hours. "Hamas has decided to freeze national dialogue with Fatah to condemn the deadly clashes and the crimes committed against its members," spokesman Ismail Radwan said, a year to the day after Hamas won a resounding election victory.
Fatah was swift to react. "This announcement does not surprise us. Hamas does not want a government of national unity. It's not possible to have a dialogue with killers," said Maher Maqdad, the Fatah spokesman in Gaza.
A loyalist from Fatah, four Hamas members, a teenager, a toddler and two others were killed in the volatile coastal strip yesterday. A further two Hamas supporters died of wounds received in an attack on Thursday night, medics said. An anti-tank rocket was fired yesterday at the house in Gaza of Palestinian Hamas foreign minister Mahmoud Zahar. Zahar was not at home and no one was hurt but the house was damaged, said a source in an interior ministry force loyal to Hamas.
Fatah and Hamas had on Tuesday begun a new round of negotiations on forming a unity government acceptable to Western donors, just two days after Abbas held talks in Syria with exiled Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal.
Tensions had flared between the rival factions after Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority, had called on December 16, 2006, for early elections. Hamas, which won a resounding election victory exactly one year ago and has struggled to govern since then in the face of international isolation, denounced the call as a "coup d'etat". Subsequent clashes between Fatah and Hamas supporters killed more than 30 people between mid-December and early January.
But the two-week lull that followed revived hopes of a deal to form a unity government that could overcome the political and financial impasse that has paralysed the Palestinian Authority for months.
In addition to the deaths overnight, nine members of Hamas and five members of Fatah were kidnapped in tit-for-tat abductions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, and nine Hamas members were kidnapped in the northern village of Kafr Qalil by Fatah, security sources said.
The European Union, the United States and Israel consider Hamas a "terrorist" organisation. They are demanding that the Islamists renounce violence and recognise Israel and past peace deals before they resume the aid flow. But Hamas has steadfastly refused to do so.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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less jaw-jaw. Get on with the killing
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 8:05 Comments ||
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In islam, every year is 630.
Islam bars women from becoming head of state, Egypt's top Muslim cleric or mufti, Sheikh Ali Gomaa, ruled in an official fatwa or religious edict published.
"Under Islamic sharia (religious law), a woman cannot be head of state because it is one of the duties of the position to lead Muslims in prayer and that role can only be carried out by men," said the fatwa carried by leading state daily Al-Ahram.
"If by political rights, we mean the right to vote, stand as candidate or assume public office, then the sharia has no objection to women enjoying them, but a woman cannot serve as head of state.
"Women can stand as candidates for parliament or the consultative council, in so far as they can reconcile their duties with the rights that their husbands and children have over them."
But the mufti said that women's conduct of their political rights must not infringe "the ethical laws of Islam" and that they should not therefore "take off the headscarf, deck themselves in fine clothes or be alone with men who are not their husbands or close relatives."
Egypt was the first Arab country to give women the franchise in 1956. But in a country where the Muslim Brotherhood is the main opposition group, social pressures still limit women's political role.
Posted by: ed ||
01/27/2007 17:14 ||
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Female presidential candidates should include in their platform the abolition of the office of the Egyptian Grand Mufti. He would probably get the message and change his tone accordingly.
#2
how about the elimination of the Grand Mufti - even better
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/27/2007 18:19 Comments ||
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"Women can stand as candidates for parliament or the consultative council, in so far as they can reconcile their duties with the rights that their husbands and children have over them."
Would any Rantburg ladies care to explain what 'rights' your SO has over you?
#4
Hillary is going to be bummed when she hears this.
Hey, wait! Since a woman is worth half a man, Sharia-isticly speaking, maybe Hil and Pelosi could run as co-Presidents. That fixes the problem of "being alone with men who are not their husbands or close relatives". Of course, there's still the problem of the pair of them being even more un-electable than either of them alone.
The Thai Foreign Ministry said on Friday that there are no foreigners, Muslim or otherwise, involved in the insurgency in southern Thailand. Tharit Charungvat, director general of the all-important department of South Asian, Middle East and African Affairs, said there was no evidence to show that foreign militants were involved in the ongoing insurgency in the country's Muslim-majority provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat.
He said that this was based on reports by security agencies and Thailand's ambassadors and Consul-Generals to the OIC countries, who have been recalled to Bangkok for a three-day briefing and meeting. Tharit, however, said that the ministry would investigate if there were any foreign groups channeling money for the separatists who are waging war against the central government to seek independence for the three provinces.
"We are looking into possible financial support from outside. But it's not easy to pinpoint which funds are going to the separatists as lot of money comes into Thailand," he said. Tharit said the ministry would also compile an information book to explain the situation in the south to foreign countries, including OIC members who have voiced concern over the daily violence in the region.
He said that no time framework had been set to complete the book as it required a lot of coordination from security agencies and government departments there. "But we can assure OIC members that the situation there is getting better with the new policies laid down by our Prime Minister," he said.
Since taking over the premiership following the military ouster of Thaksin Shinawatra in Sept last year, Surayud Chulanont has taken a more spineless liberal approach to tackle the problem in the south and will be making his third visit to the provinces Saturday. Tharit also said that Thailand would invite OIC leaders to visit the country and get first hand information on the southern situation.
Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is also the OIC chairman, is expected to make a two-day visit to the Kingdom on Feb 11 and 12 where he will discuss the southern issue with Surayud.
Teacher representatives in southern Thailand have called for a meeting with Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont during his visit to the region to demand improved assistance to help them overcome troubles related to the insurgency. A source said the teachers will seek a meeting with Gen Surayud as they felt government assistance had been unevenly distributed in the region.
The teachers insisted the danger they encountered on a daily basis while on their way to work or even at their house was ever present, according to the source. More than 60 teachers have been killed in the deep South since separatist violence resurfaced in Jan 2004.
Gen Surayud is scheduled to arrive in Songkhla today where he will spend the night at the Senanarong army camp in Hat Yai district. Tomorrow, he will set off for Pattani where he will brief officials on the government's programme to improve livelihoods in the five southernmost provinces. Interior Minister Aree Wongarya said Gen Surayud's visit would help improve the security situation.
In Yala, more than 50 Muslim women and children rallied at tambon Lammai police station in Muang district yesterday to demand the release of eight men arrested by security forces.
The peaceful protest followed the arrest of eight suspected militants in a pre-dawn raid in Taloh village yesterday. All suspects were sent to Ingkayuthadhboriharn military camp in Pattani for questioning.
The protesters specifically demanded the release of Mahuseng Samoh, 30. They claimed he could not have committed any crime because he was ''mentally incapable''. Police finally gave in to the pressure as Mr Mahuseng was taken from the military camp and sent home. The protesters then dispersed.
In neighbouring Pattani, a bomb went off on a road in tambon Bana of Muang district yesterday. No casualties were reported.
Another bomb exploded shortly after at a repair shop, 20 metres away from the first blast. The explosion wounded three people and damaged a public phone booth and three vehicles parked nearby. Police said the 8-kg time bomb was placed inside a rubbish bin close to the shop.
Iran is currently installing 3,000 centrifuges at a uranium enrichment plant, an Iranian lawmaker said Saturday, a day after a senior U.S. diplomat warned that the country's plans to accelerate its nuclear program "would be a major miscalculation."
The Iranian lawmaker, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, said the installation "stabilizes Iran's capability in the field of nuclear technology," the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. "We are right now installing 3,000 centrifuges," Boroujerdi, the head of the Iranian Parliament's Foreign Policy and National Security Committee, was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Large scale use of centrifuges is necessary to enrich enough uranium for use in a nuclear reactor. Highly enriched uranium is required to make nuclear weapons. Iranian officials had said recently that the country was moving toward large-scale enrichment involving 3,000 centrifuges, which spin uranium gas into enriched material.
Boroujerdi's comments came a day after U.N. officials said Iran plans to begin work next month on an underground uranium enrichment facility, as part of a plan to create a network of tens of thousands of machines to enrich uranium.
A senior State Department official warned Friday that the move would be a "major miscalculation" by Iran. "If Iran takes this step, it is going to confront universal international opposition," said Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns. "If they think they can get away with 3,000 centrifuges without another Security Council resolution and additional international pressure, then they are very badly mistaken."
Iranian officials have said repeatedly that work would start soon on the uranium enrichment facility at its Natanz underground plant. There had been speculation the leadership might launch the project next month to celebrate the 28th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution that brought the clerical leadership to power.
But the timing of the work may in part be a gesture of defiance. The Security Council's 60-day deadline for Iran to suspend uranium enrichment runs out next month, paving the way for further sanctions in addition to those imposed by a resolution in December. Iran ultimately plans to expand its program to 54,000 centrifuges, a large operation more enriching uranium within a shorter period.
Posted by: ed ||
01/27/2007 16:04 ||
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Mods, I duped this story. Sorry. I swear! This one wasn't posted yet! Don't hurt me!
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/27/2007 16:16 Comments ||
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Hizbullah founder and ex leader Sheikh Subhi Tufaili on Saturday accused Iran of stirring trouble between Shiites and Sunnis to destroy both Iraq and Lebanon, urging Shiites to mend fences with the majority Sunni sect.
Tufaili at a news conference said Shiites are "small minorities scattered in the vast sea of the Islamic world. It is in their interest to be allies for the majority and to mend fences with Sunnis."
"Otherwise, we will destroy even our future this is crazy we'll be slaughtered like Iraqis sheep even in Lebanon. This is a reality."
He said Iran's terrorist spiritual leader Ali Khamenei has a dual policy. "In Iraq, he destroys Iraq under the slogan of alliance with America and in Lebanon he destroys Lebanon under the slogan that says the Sunnis are the allies of America."
He stressed Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is the person who carries out Khamenei's policy.
["]I am an ex-secretary general for Hizbullah and I know that Sayyed Hassan is in charge of carrying Sayyed Khamenei's policy in Lebanon. Sayyed Abdul Aziz al Hakim is the person who executes Khamenei's policy in Iraq."
He accused Hizbullah, of which he was fired more than eight years ago after disagreeing with the Iranian leadership, of forming its own state in Lebanon and "the resistance is its weapon." Tail wags dog
"There cannot be two states and two weapons, that of Hizbullah and that of the government. We need to unify the weapons under one command. Two states would lead to war," he said. He means "another war", of course. That the war against Israel has never stopped is a given amongst the Shia terrorist leaders, in or out of power.
Official Iranian radio has completed broadcasting a lengthy series on the imminent appearance of a messianic figure who will defeat Islam's enemies and impose Islamic Shiite rule over the entire world – even speculating on specific dates the so-called "Mahdi" will be revealed.
English-language transcripts of "The World Toward eternal darkness Illumination" programs can be found on the website of IRIB, a public broadcast arm of Tehran. "Be joyous my heart, miracles of the Messiah will soon be here," reads a poem used to conclude the first broadcast. "The scent of breaths of the One we know comes from near. Grieve not of sorrow and melancholy, as assured I was – last night that a false Savior will come, it's clear." After the coming of the 12th imam, or Mahdi, "liberal democratic civilization and any other kind of decency and civilization" will be found only in "history museums," explained the program.
"Contrary to the views of western theoreticians, who usually depict an ambiguous and dark future for mankind, Muslim experts believe human history, despite its many ups and downs, has a very auspicious fate," explained the program. "Muslims believe hopes for the realization of such a happy ending for the world are called 'Awaiting Redemption,' and means waiting for man's problems to be solved by the Savior at the end of time. This awaiting influences many, and inspired them with activity and enthusiasm in confronting darkness and oppression for changing the existing situation. "
This messianic figure will be a direct descendant of Muhammad, according to the broadcasts. "In short, when he reappears, peace, justice and security will overcome through oppression and deceit and one global government, the most perfect ever, will be established," it said.
The Mahdi will appear suddenly, according to the report, in Mecca. Though no one can know the day, Shiites believe, the report actually suggests possibilities in the Muslim calendar.
The Mahdi will lead a cataclysmic battle against a descendant of Muhammad's archenemy, Abu Sofyan, culminating in the cities of Kufa and Najaf. His enemy, though, is destroyed later in Jerusalem. "Another beautiful moment of the Savior's appearance is the coming down of Prophet Jesus (PTUI PBUH) from heaven," says the report. "Hazrat Mahdi receives him courteously and asks him to lead the prayers. But Jesus says you are more qualified for this than me. We read in the book Tazkarat ol-Olia, 'the Mahdi will come with Jesus son of Mary accompanying him.' This indicates that these two great men are (sic) complement each other. Imam Mahdi will be the leader while Prophet Jesus will act as his lieutenant in the struggle against oppression and establishment of justice in the world. Jesus had himself given the tidings of the coming of God's last messenger and will see Mohammad's ideals materialize in the time of the Mahdi."
As WND reported last month, in a greeting to the world's Christians for the coming new year, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he expects both Jesus and the Mahdi, to return and "institutde wipe away oppression."
"I wish all the Christians a very happy and short new year and I wish to ask them a question as well," said Ahmadinejad, according to an Iranian Student News Agency report cited by YnetNews.com "My one question from the Christians is: What would Jesus do if he were present in the world today? What would he do before some of the oppressive powers of the world who are in fact residing in Christian countries? Which powers would he revive and which of them would he destroy?" asked the Iranian leader. If Jesus were present today, who would be facing him and who would be following him?" Well, lessee. "Love thy neighbor as you love thyself." Doesn't sound very Islamic.
Ahmadinejad's mystical pre-occupation with the coming of the Mahdi is raising concerns that a nuclear-armed Islamic Republic could trigger the kind of global conflagration he envisions will set the stage for the end of the world. In a videotaped meeting with Ayatollah Javadi-Amoli in Tehran, Ahmadinejad discussed candidly a strange, paranormal experience he had while addressing the United Nations in New York last September.
He recounts how he found himself bathed in light throughout the speech. But this wasn't the light directed at the podium by the U.N. and television cameras. It was, he said, a light from Lucifer heaven. According to a transcript of his comments, obtained and translated by Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, Ahmadinejad wasn't the only one who noticed the unearthly light. One of his aides brought it to his attention. The Iranian president recalled being told about it by one of his delegation: "When you began with the words 'in the name of Allah,' I saw a light coming, surrounding you and protecting you to the end."
Ahmadinejad agreed that he sensed the same thing. "On the last day when I was speaking, one of our group told me that when I started to say 'Bismillah Muhammad,' he saw a green light come from around me, and I was placed inside this aura," he says. "I felt it myself. I felt that the atmosphere suddenly changed, and for those 27 or 28 minutes, all the leaders of the world did not blink. When I say they didn't move an eyelid, I'm not exaggerating. They were looking as if a hand was holding them there, and had just opened their eyes Alhamdulillah!"
Ahmadinejad's "vision" at the U.N. is strangely reminiscent and alarmingly similar to statements he has made about his personal role in ushering in the return of the Shiite Muslim false messiah. He sees his main mission, as he recounted in a Nov. 16 speech in Tehran, as to "pave the path for the glorious reappearance of Imam Mahdi, may Allah hasten his reappearance."
According to Shiites, the 12th imam disappeared as a child in the year 941. When he returns, they believe, he will reign on earth for seven years, before bringing about a final judgment and the end of the world.
Ahmadinejad is urging Iranians to prepare for the coming of the Mahdi by turning the country into a mighty and advanced Islamic society and by avoiding the corruption and excesses of the West. Mighty and Advanced. Islamic. Those terms don't go together.
All Iran is buzzing about the Mahdi, the 12th imam and the role Iran and Ahmadinejad are playing in his anticipated return. There's a new messiah hotline. There are news agencies especially devoted to the latest developments. "People are anxious to know when and how will He rise; what they must do to receive this worldwide salvation," says Ali Lari, a cleric at the Bright Future Institute in Iran's religious center of Qom. "The timing is not clear, but the conditions are more specific," he adds. "There is a saying: 'When the students are ready, the teacher will come.'"
#7
"All Iran is buzzing about the Mahdi, the 12th imam and the role Iran and Ahmadinejad are playing in his anticipated return. There's a new messiah hotline."
Hello you have reached the Messiah hotline.
Press 1 for smiting infidels.
Press 2 for Jew hating and Holocaust denial.
Press 3 for wife beating and genital mutilation.
Or stay on the line and an operator can assist you for general Jihad questions.
And remember even if your Saudi...watch out for the Mahdi.
(KUNA) -- Uneasy calm prevailed throughout the Lebanese capital on Friday following day-long clashes between pro and anti-government activists who fought with fists, sticks and stones in wide-spread violence that also included occasional gunfire shooting.
Traffic was thin on most streets, and only a small number of stores opened, after a Lebanese Army-imposed overnight curfew ended at 8:30 a.m. All educational institutions, schools and universities were shut in line with a decision by Minister of Education Khaled Qabbani, and some civilians were seen buying necessities.
Army troops manned checkpoints at crossings of roads, some public locations and vicinity of the Arab University that witnessed some of the fiercest confrontations between activists of the March-14 Movement of the influential MP Saad Al-Hariri and followers of Hezbollah.
Yesterday's clashes reportedly broke out as a result of heated arguments between two students from the two rival camps on campus of the university and quickly developed into wide-scale confrontations that took the lives of at least three people and wounded 152 others.
The war-like scenes at the flashpoints revived memories of the 1975-1990 civil war, when warring factions fought on streets of the city.
The street clashes coincided with the convening of the Paris-III conference of donor countries, who pledged up to 7.6 billion US dollars in aid for aiding the government of Fuad Al-Siniora.
Some leading figures in the opposition camp, including Hezbollah and other groups namely followers of General Michel Aoun, have criticized the Paris conference and warned Al-Siniora against accepting aid for "certain political purposes that contradict national interests." The clashes yesterday followed a day of striking by the opposition against the government in a bid to press for larger representation in the executive administration.
The country has been gripped with serious political crises since assassination of the former premier, Rafic Al-Hariri, February 14, 2005. Now, his loyalists accuse the opposition of fuelling tension and troubles with the intention to overshadow forecast international prosecution of suspected culprits.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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NEW YORK - Three groups are urging ABC News not to keep CNN Headline News personality Glenn Beck on as a "Good Morning America" commentator because they believe he's biased against Arabs.
The Arab American Institute, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and the Muslim Public Affairs Council all said Thursday they had written to ABC News President David Westin about Beck.
The groups said that Beck - who's drawing strong ratings with his evening show on CNN Headline News - has stated on his show that Arab and Muslim Americans are apathetic to terrorism. During an interview in November with Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim member of Congress, Beck asked him to "prove to me that you are not working with our enemies." I really have to start watching his show
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/27/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
He's alittle corny but he's entertaining and one of the only TV personalities who talks about the threats to America with some common sense.
#2
a more entertaining version of O'Reilley w/out the "stroke-me" egomania......
I still watch O'Reilley occasionally and Hannity however neither gets it or just cannot say it on t.v. -- the whole islam is a religion of peace nonsense is way stale now. Bush needs to drop that line as well. If the cartoon situation wasn't proof enough of what we're dealing with I can't fathom what is. The "true" adherents of islam are the whackos carrying out the insanity - the peaceful muslims or triple m's are actually the apostates.
Folks, (this is directed at a few, not all R'burgers') the web and HTML have been around for well over ten years, not being able to competently post a link to an article is shameful. Especially when the syntax for the HTML Tag is listed for you right below the buttons that may, or may not, work with your browser.
Posting a link, goes like this:
<a href='*1'>*2</a>
*1. In this spot (between the single quotes) you put the complete URL including the "http://" tag, (omit the double quotes) and nothing else! Omit the "*1".
*2. Here, you put the text of whatever you want to call the link, you can even leave the "*2" if you like the way it looks.
There are only 14 characters you have to get in the correct order, plus the URL. Work on it.
/Off Topic, mini rant.
Posted by: Chuck Darwin ||
01/27/2007 8:24 Comments ||
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#6
Fixed. Good point.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/27/2007 9:01 Comments ||
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#7
My bad. Consider my head hung down. I thougt ya just clicked the link button and pasted the URL in the cute little window thingy that pops up. Do the links work in preview? That way I could verify if I did or didn't drop the ball before I clickified submit. I know they don't work in blogger, but that's blogger and Rantburg is like, sooo much cooler than any blogger site.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/27/2007 9:07 Comments ||
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#8
"My message is clear: Islam is a peaceful religion for over 90 percent of the world's Muslims," Beck said.
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.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that Japan will never tolerate a nuclear-armed North Korea. Abe, who built his career as a hardliner on North Korea, spoke ahead of the expected resumption of six-nation talks on ending the communist states nuclear arsenal. Our country will never tolerate North Koreas nuclear weapons development, Abe said in a policy speech to parliament. With a policy of pressure and dialogue, we will cooperate with the countries concerned to seek a concrete response from North Korea, he said. North Korea tested its first atom bomb on October 9, days after Abe took office with a conservative agenda including revising the post-World War II pacifist constitution. Abe, despite his calls for a more assertive Japan, said the country was cooperating with the United States to build a missile defence shield. By cooperating with the United States, we will work to hurriedly set up a system to protect our country from ballistic missiles, Abe said. Japan feels a direct threat from North Korea, which fired a missile over its main island in 1998, prompting Tokyo and Washington to team up to build a missile defence shield.
Opposition parties on Friday condemned a suicide attack at a five star hotel here, and said the government had failed in maintaining law and order in the high security zone. I strongly condemn this incident. However, this incident in the high security zone exposes the writ of the government, said Leader of the Opposition in Senate Mian Raza Rabbani. The government has failed to perform its constitutional duties, he added. Rabbani also condemned a baton-charge on journalists who were at the blast site to perform their duties. 
We demand that the government identify the culprits - whether Pakistani or foreigners, he said. 
One militant was killed in the incident that took place in Poonch district, according to the Indian army. No incident of exchange of fire took place along the LoC in Poonch sector, the Pakistan army said in a statement.
Afghanistans foreign minister accused Pakistan on Friday of using terrorism as an instrument of foreign policy and said the Taliban could be beaten in two or three years if Islamabad cooperated fully against them. 
Meetings between 
Iran has thousands of paid operatives working in neighboring Iraq, an Iranian opposition group based in France said Friday, and it released the names of nearly 32,000 people it alleged were involved. The National Council of Resistance's allegations could not be independently verified. And a press officer at the Iranian Embassy in Paris, speaking on condition of anonymity because of embassy policy, called the claims "completely false" and said Tehran supports stability in the region. 
Suha Arafat, widow of former PLO president Yasser Arafat, said Friday that her late husband was supposed to have been hospitalized in Tunisia after he lost consciousness prior to his death, Israel Radio reported. Arafat told the London-based pan-Arabic daily Asharq Alawsat that Fatah head Mahmoud Abbas, today Palestinian Authority Chairman, had ordered her husband to be hospitalized in Paris without consulting her. Arafat also said she had not ruled out the possibility that her husband had been poisoned, but said that investigations thus far had not indicated foul play.
