One of Morocco's best known political figures during the rule of the late King Hassan II, Driss Basri, has died at age 69 where all the best dictators and strongmen go to die, in a Paris hospital. As interior minister for 20 years, Mr Basri was head of Morocco's security services at a time when thousands of dissidents were tortured and killed.
He was sacked in 1999 within months of the King Hassan's death by his young successor, Mohammed VI. He died after eight years of self-imposed exile in France. The cause of death was not immediately clear, although he is thought to have been suffering from a long-term illness.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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The kidnapping of 23 South Korean nationals by Taliban in Afghanistan has put the Korea Muslim Federation (KMF) in an awkward position when it came to presenting Islam as a religion of peace, A Rahman Lee Ju-Hwa, deputy cleric in a Seoul mosque, told Daily Times on Monday.
He was waiting, along with his delegation, for an appointment with opposition leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman to rally support for the hostages on Monday. Yes, such actions are giving a bad name to Muslims in [South] Korea, he said. The Taliban had kidnapped 23 Koreans, mostly women, a month ago and are demanding the release of detained Taliban leaders in return for the Koreans. Two hostages have been killed and two released so far.
Rahman said Muslims comprised 0.0001 percent of South Koreas total population, and they were misunderstood and known only as terrorists. If the Taliban release the hostages without any harm, it will send a good message to Koreans, Rahman said.
Seoul-based Pakistani businessman Zulfiqar Ali Khan is facilitating the delegations visit to Pakistan. The Korean Foreign Ministry advised the delegation against visiting Peshawar for security reasons, but they went ahead with it anyway.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
they were misunderstood and known only as terrorists.
Ha! Biased bigotry! They should be known "as not only terrorists".
Or fools. It's beyond me how is it possible for someone that was not indoctrinated since early years not to see Islam for the racket it really is.
#2
Rahman said Muslims comprised 0.0001 percent of South Koreas total population, and they were misunderstood and known only as terrorists. If the Taliban release the hostages without any harm, it will send a good message to Koreans, Rahman said.
Really sucks being outnumbered so much, don't it, Fazlar?
But I'll bet it keeps you in line...
About 100 Yemenis might be sent home once the US government surrenders to public pressure and court decisions incriminating it for holding the men illegally and closes the Guantanamo detention, said lawyers returning from a visit to the detention centre in Cuba.
The American lawyer David Remes, who represents 15 Yemen detainees, said the Yemeni government needs to give top priority to the issue of having the Yemenis released even if the detention is closed. "The Yemeni prisoners at Guantanamo will never be sent home unless President Saleh makes it a top priority to bring them home. Otherwise, there is no telling where the US will send the Yemenis when it closes Guantanamo," Remes said in exclusive statements sent to Gulf News at the end of his visit to the detention in Cuba early this week.
They'll be sent to Ice Station Zebra, of course. Pack a sweater.
Out of 107, only 12 Yemenis have been released during the period from mid-2004 to mid-2007. The last four men who arrived in Yemen, among them one of the clients of Remes, were released last June, but security authorities are still holding them in prison until now.
The Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said early this week that his government would spare no efforts to follow up the issue with the US government for sending the Yemenis home. The lawyer made it clear that the Bush administration wants to close down the detention before the Supreme Court listens to the lawyers' arguments late this year. "The government might even close Guantanamo before the Supreme Court hears argument from the lawyers in early December, and it will probably issue its decision between April and the end of June. That is the last thing the government wants, and I predict that the government will close the detention to avoid being required to do so," said Remes of the Covington and Burling law firm. "We believe that the Supreme Court will declare that the government has acted unlawfully in holding the men in Guantanamo and order the government to give the men a fair judicial hearing," he added.
The US government, the lawyer added, is also facing a bad decision from a lower federal court, which will put more pressure on the officials to close the detention.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Dear David:
As I was once told by a very competent lawyer: Half the lawyers in the world are proved wrong each day. That is a pretty pathetic batting average when you compare it against what doctors, engineers and bomb disposal guys need to average every day.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
08/28/2007 8:54 Comments ||
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#2
But darned good compared to baseball players.
Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds ||
08/28/2007 9:28 Comments ||
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#3
I wish that the Supreme Court would rule that the US must enforce the Geneva Convention as it pertains to illegal combatants: give them a quick hearing to determine their status, then execute them (the illegal combatants). The people at Gitmo are NOT prisoners of war. They are not ordinary criminals. They are illegal combatants. They can be executed.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul was elected Turkey's first president with an Islamist past, risking fresh tensions with the army over religion's role in government.
Gul beat two opponents in a third round of balloting at parliament in Ankara today, Parliamentary Speaker Koksal Toptan told lawmakers. The former Islamic Development Bank economist got 339 votes, 63 more than the simple majority required. Gul will take the oath for his seven-year term later today.
Turkey's military, which has ousted four governments since 1960, has clashed with Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the separation of mosque and state. The generals blocked Gul's first run for president in April, forcing an early general election, when they warned that he might undermine the secular order established in Turkey eight decades ago after the Ottoman Empire collapsed.
``People are worried that Erdogan's government is getting control of all levers of power,'' Ilter Turkmen, who served as foreign minister after a military coup in 1980, said in an interview. ``I am worried that there will now be continuous tension between the army and the government, and the military could make Gul's life miserable.''
The head of the army, General Yasar Buyukanit, repeated the military's warning to the government on secularism in a statement yesterday to mark Victory Day on Aug. 30. The military is determined to stop ``sneaky plans aimed at removing the republic's achievements,'' Buyukanit said.
Limited Role
The European Union, considering Turkey's membership application, has said Turkey should reduce the army's role in politics.
Buyukanit leads the second-largest standing army in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization after the U.S. military. The army says secularism must be preserved to keep Turkey on its European path and away from the influence of Islamic states in the neighboring Middle East. Gul has led Turkey's EU membership talks since negotiations began in October 2005.
Gul ``should enter into a dialogue with his critics without delay, so he can be recognized as a president for all Turks,'' EU parliament member Joost Lagendijk said in an e-mailed statement, praising Gul's record as foreign minister. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso called on Turkey to ``give fresh, immediate and positive impetus'' to EU membership talks.
Erdogan renominated Gul for the presidency after cementing his hold on power in the July 22 general election, when Justice won 47 percent of the vote -- the biggest share for any party since 1965.
Islamist Past
Gul, 56, and Erdogan, 53, both belonged to the Welfare Party that was ousted from power in 1997 by a military-led public campaign and later banned by the Constitutional Court for mixing Islam with politics. Welfare advocated closer relations with Libya and Iran, accused Western nations of immorality and encouraged women to wear Islamic-style headscarves.
As president, Gul will be required to approve or veto government legislation. Should he give the green light to steps such as lifting curbs on the wearing of headscarves by Muslim women in government buildings, it might renew tensions with the army. The military demands unwavering loyalty to the secular code of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey's founder.
The outgoing president, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, is an ally of the military who was chief judge of the Constitutional Court when Welfare was shut down. He used his veto to block measures put forward by Erdogan in his first term to make adultery punishable by jail and allowing trainee clergymen to study at university.
Military Focus
The president is of particular importance to Turkey's military because he is their commander in chief. In addition to veto powers over laws passed by parliament, the head of state also appoints top judges and bureaucrats.
Gul ``is going to be walking a tightrope,'' said Wolfango Piccoli, an analyst at Eurasia Group in London. ``He doesn't have much room for maneuver.''
The military will expect Gul to honor pledges made over the past two weeks to protect Turkey's secular ideology and remain above party politics. Those promises won him support from Turkey's biggest business groups and unions.
A confrontation with the military under the new president might not be far away.
Erdogan told reporters he plans to ask Gul to approve his new Cabinet tomorrow. Erdogan may then request that Gul approve a backlog of appointments to the bureaucracy rejected by Sezer that stirred trouble with the army. Many of the recruits are pious Muslims.
Market Conditions
For investors, the question of whether Gul can avoid a clash with the military has gained in importance because of current global market conditions, said Tolga Ediz, an emerging-markets strategist at Lehman Brothers in London.
``We think that Mr. Gul's action during his first few months in office -- the time he spends scrutinizing legislation, the care he takes in appointments, the tone he takes in speeches -- will contain critical signals,'' Ediz said. ``He might find himself the object of attack as political stability disintegrates.''
Tensions with the army may also resurface if Gul breaks with tradition and invites his wife, Hayrunnisa, who wears a headscarf, along with other devout wives of Justice party deputies to state receptions.
Gul worked as an economist at the Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia between 1983 and 1991. He returned to Turkey to become a lawmaker for Welfare, which headed a coalition government in 1995.
Posted by: Paul ||
08/28/2007 12:47 Comments ||
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#5
So has Jimmy certified the election yet? You can't be a real 2 bit head-in-the-ass tyrant until Jimmy has come hugged you and said how great you are. Then when he announces how fair your elections were, you can be a real tyrant like Chavez or Jimmy's other terrorist friends.
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/28/2007 16:01 Comments ||
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#9
I made this comment as well at LGF: Mr. Gul is not an Islamist the way Zawahiri is (for example). I've read several interviews with the man, and he comes across as a thoughtful fellow who is religious and wants to serve the state. He's made clear that he does not want sharia or anything close to that for Turkey.
Sure, of course he might be lying through his teeth (he's a politician in the Middle East), but at least in these interviews he seems better than that. His party has done a better job than most in actually running Turkey (see Gordon's post #163), and having one's wife wear a headscarf does not mean the imminent imposition of a caliphate.
The Turkish hard-core seculars could make things much worse by staging a coup -- forget the EU (please), but a coup with a subsequent tanking of the economy, civil strife and disorder could pave the way for true, hard-core Islamicists to make their move.
And: predictably, I was trashed for saying this at LGF :-)
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/28/2007 16:18 Comments ||
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#10
Make no mistake the AKP are islamists. In their previous incarnation, the Welfare Party, they implemented tenants of sharia, like banning alcohol, until the military banned them. Erdogan and the AKP won't be so brazen again without the power to back them up.
Like other muslims in the west, they are hiding their fangs until they can replace the armed secular men with their own. Taqiyya against their lesser brothers. That is a generational project.
The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, 1998
Posted by: ed ||
08/28/2007 17:45 Comments ||
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#11
"Muslem, but not an Islamist" = "A little bit pregnant".
#12
Mr. Gul is not an Islamist the way Zawahiri is (for example). I've read several interviews with the man, and he comes across as a thoughtful fellow who is religious and wants to serve the state. He's made clear that he does not want sharia or anything close to that for Turkey.
That's as may be, but on his watch attacks against non-Muslim and Secularist persons and property have increased; the Orthodox Church's seminary remains closed, yet the government forbids the importation of priests and the elevation of any but a Turk to head the Church in Turkey; and, physical attacks on foreigners seen as proselytizing have included torture and murder, as reported in Rantburg. Regardless of Prime Minister Erdogan's personal beliefs about religion in the public square, there are plenty who've taken his election as license, and I haven't heard PM Erdogan or his representatives so much as publicly abjure such actions, let alone seek conviction of the miscreants and remediation for the victims.
Sundays national meeting for the radical Hizb ut-Tahrir included incitement to destroy Israel and a re-establishment of the Caliphate Islamic empire
Controversial Islamic organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir celebrated its annual congress in Copenhagen on Sunday with words of anger against Jews and the West, reported daily free newspaper Nyhedsavisen. Celebrate! Celebrate! Dance to the muuuusic!
Nearly 600 Muslims attended the meeting at KB Hallen in the citys enclave of Frederiksberg, where religious leaders spoke of the rise of an new Islamic Caliphate and the fall of Western powers. ... including Denmark
The Caliphate can arrive in an hour, two months or two years from now, said Fadi Abdullatif, Hizb ut-Tahrirs president, who owns a previous conviction for publicly urging his members to kill Jews. We are working for a Caliphate from Morocco to Indonesia and from Khazakhstan to Saudi Arabia.
The union of nations under a common Islamic law could be created by force if necessary, according to another of Hizb ut Tahrirs leaders, Atta bin Khalil. Khalil also told those in attendance to continue their state of war against the Jewish nation.
A third speaker at the congress, Emir Shamil, said that heads may roll in the recreation of the Caliphate. Thanks, Denmark!
Many politicians have unsuccessfully attempted to dissolve the organisation in the past, but Sundays congress may have been the straw that breaks its back. Nearly all political parties are in agreement that some type of action must be taken against the organisation.
The sooner the organisation is broken up the better, said Tom Behnke, the Conservative judicial spokesperson.
The Social Liberals cultural spokesperson, Simon Emil Ammitzbøll, is now requesting the Justice Ministry to conduct surveillance on Hizb ut-Tahrir, saying the congress proved that it is not merely individual members inciting racial and religious violence but the organisation as a whole.
Hizb ut-Tahrir has more than one million members worldwide and an estimated 200 full-time members within Denmark.
#2
It's long past tea to criminalize advocacy of a caliphate, be it national, transnational or global. Any form of such Islamic theocracy is one gigantic crime against humanity and nothing else. This world had best stop mincing words about what Islam represents. Shari'a law personifies human rights abuse and pretending otherwise is rapidly becoming a form of aiding and abetting global terrorism. All government funding of human rights organizations and any tax-free status they enjoy must be made contingent upon their public declaration that shari'a law intrinsically violates human rights.
This monstrous charade has gone on long enough. Islam has gotten a free pass with respect to consistent and horrific crimes against humanity. The West must put an end to this hideous farce. It is no small irony thatregardless of whether we take action against it or notmillions will die because of Islam. We can take measures now to catastrophically dismantle Islam forever or sit back and watch it murder an equal number of people both Muslim and Infidel alike. There really is no choice in the matter. Pretending that there is amounts to nothing less than facilitating Islam's ongoing atrocities against mankind.
For many, the war in Bosnia in the 1990s was an event where bane, unthinkable opposites often found symbiosis: journalism and propaganda, fairness and subjective bias, objectivity and selective reportage, spiritual piety and murder of innocents... The aim was to make the version of history Sarajevo's Muslims, indeed Muslims across the world, were alleging an accepted dogma among the policy makers in the West. The Clintons waged war against Serbs, in order to induce nominal Muslim support for their Middle East surrenders to Hizbollah, Hamas and al-Qaeda. Since their partial intervention and bloody engagement in Bosnia and Serbia (Kosovo province) against a fraternal people, the Islamofascist tyrannies in those terror entities have all but eradicated Christian minorities. Churches can be neither built nor renovated in either place. And that is happening as Saudis have financed the rebuilding of Ottoman mosques, on Wahabi blueprints.
In his new book, Unholy Terror: Bosnia, Al-Qaeda, and the Rise of Global Jihad, author John Schindler, a veteran intelligence officer for the ultra-secret National Security Agency (NSA), warns of the dangers of half-truths politicians and journalists flaunt about Bosnian war and admits that, had he not been a spy, he would swallow the Bosnian Muslim propaganda without indigestion.
"[L]ike so many others who followed the Balkan conflagration with a mix of horror and attraction, deep down I wanted Sarajevo's version of the truth to be reality," writes John Schindler.
With the luxury of being in the front seat of the information flow and a spy himself who gathered the information first hand by traveling to Bosnia on numerous occasions, the author John Schindler challenges established beliefs about Bosnia and warns America of its wanton cheer leading for the claims on history Muslims make: What Afghanistan has been to Al-Qaeda in the 1980s so is Bosnia in the 1990s, a battleground where Jihadists perfected their terror tactics then used them on America on 9/11.
"It is no coincidence," writes the author "that since the mid-1990s a distressing number of the most wanted terrorists around the globe turned out to have cut their teeth in the Bosnian crucible."
The two out of the 19 hijackers on the 9/11 airplanes are veterans of the Bosnian Jihad and served as soldiers in the Bosnian Muslim army. Osama bin-Laden: Thank you Bill and Hillary.
"Disillusioned and embittered by the gross shortcomings of our 'best and brightest' and nearly everything they said about Bosnia, I swore to tell the real story someday, when I was free to do so," says Schindler. "The time is now."
The risk that John Schindler, the author, now faces is the fate of academics that ventured to challenge the prevailing dogma about Bosnia.
Cees Weibes, for example, has long been shelved as undesirable by the editors of major media houses because of his findings, similar to Schindler's, that Bosnia may have been a civil war from a perspective of a Westerner but for the Islamic world and Muslims of Bosnia, that war was Jihad, a holy war to spread Islam. By contrast, policy makers write odes about authors like Noel Malcolm whose half-truths about that Bosnian conflict have turned up, among other places, in senile ranting on theories of Statecraft by once sane Margaret Thatcher. Bosnia was the Clinton's jihad puppy. Now it is a mad dog.
"I took an oath to protect [America's] secrets to the grave. I am confident that when the U.S. government sees fit to declassify and release its impressively full archive of intelligence about Bosnian war and the Balkan Jihad, decades hence, this account [of his book] will be confirmed and amplified," writes undaunted Schindler... We will either end our partisanship with Bosnia and Kosovo terror entities now, or we will pay for the consequences later.
Posted by: McZoid ||
08/28/2007 02:03 ||
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#1
I could never trust the mainstream media after Bosnia and Kosovo. They did not tell the whole truth. It was all a one-sided picture of those evil Serbs committing genocide and ethnic cleansing against those poor, innocent Bosnians and Kosovar Albanians. They never talked about churches being burned and they still never do. They never uttered the word "Islam". They never bothered to go into the history of sectarian violence in the the Balkans. They never gave an honest justification for Clinton's intervention.
#2
It is by no means impossible that we will see a second Kosovo war - this time with NATO fighting against the Albanians to protect the Serbs and other minorities.
#4
The Sbernica atrocities were the result of pre-NATO imbecilities committed by the Council on Security and Co-operation in Europe. In fact of brazen Islamofascist cleansing of Serb and Croat minorities, the CSCE created a "protected zone" around Sbernica. Captive Muslim commanders admitted in International War Crimes Tribunal process, that they used CSCE/UN protection as a cover for terror. The Hague was so embarassed by same that, under Muslim pressure, they immediately released Muslim Ghazi (warrior) Oric, AFTER convicting him of facilitation of "Murder." He first flew to Albania, to a hero's welcome. We fought the wrong side in Kosovo; we backed the wrong side in Bosnia. We advanced tyranny in the name of freedom.
The Dutch government on Monday announced a four-year plan to combat radicalisation especially among Muslim youths, amid concern over domestic Islamic extremism. Most of the plan's budget of EUR 28 million will go to local governments to support projects designed to keep youths from turning against Dutch society and its values, officials said.
"It is the first time that the Netherlands has launched an integral plan involving all eight relevant ministries to combat radicalisation and polarisation in our society," Interior Minister Guusje ter Horst said.
The Netherlands has been shaken by radical Muslim violence since the assassination of filmmaker and columnist Theo van Gogh in 2004 by a Muslim who was angry at a film he had made criticising the treatment of women in Islam. The killer, Mohammed Bouyeri, came from the Slotervaart district of Amsterdam where Ter Horst presented her plan.
"We are concerned with youths who do not feel at home in the Netherlands and who do not feel Dutch. While they are trying to find their own identity, they can become radical and we want to stop that," she said. "We are not only trying to fight radicalisation in Muslims but also in far-right groups."
Despite these concerns there are no official figures on the problem of radicalisation among Dutch youths, although the minister said the government was funding a study of the problem.
The action plan is mainly a grouping together of earlier measures in areas such as education, child support, anti-discrimination and employment. Ter Horst said most of the work must be done by the municipalities. The government plans have few concrete measures and speak mainly of supporting local projects.
Slotervaart district council president Ahmed Marcouch was one of the first to put radicalisation of Muslim youths on the agenda and says the neighbourhood has between 50 and 60 such young people. His budget to combat radicalisation will go from EUR 100,000 to EUR 500,000 a year under the new plan. That extra money will be spent on training teachers, social workers and parents on how to deal with youths who are coming under radical influences, he said.
"It's not some form of thought control where we say what kids can and cannot think. We want to give teachers the tools to initiate the discussion and not be afraid," he explained. "We also have to make sure not every Muslim youth is seen as a potential problem," added Marchouch, who is of Moroccan origin.
Ter Horst added: "There is no pill against radicalisation. You have to talk and talk and talk to those who are going through the process. We are focussing on prevention because a crackdown doesn't always work."
#1
Or use the $28 million for 100,000 one way tickets.
Posted by: ed ||
08/28/2007 0:38 Comments ||
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#2
The Dutch are pretty stingy. Putting up any money is a big investment for them. However, they are also naive when it comes to the serioiusness of radical Islam in their midst. You cannot buy your way out. You really need to nip it in the bud by strong police action and deportation/banishment.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
08/28/2007 9:00 Comments ||
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#3
* Ahmed Marcouch
Looks like the peaceful ones are lining up to put their halal snouts in the haram Euro-trough.
#4
You have to talk and talk and talk to those who are going through the process.
Didn't save Holland from Hitler. My guess is it won't save them from Muslimania either. The brutal murder of Teddy Van Gogh was not a ramdom act, it was a message. I suspect it is far too late for Holland.
#5
We are concerned with youths who do not feel at home in the Netherlands and who do not feel Dutch.
They just don't get it. Muslim youths will never "feel at home" or "feel Dutch" because they want no part of the Netherlands or Dutch culture save what they can rule under shari'a law. There's going to be a whole lot more heartbreak until Europe finally understands that integration is simply out of the question.
The first privately funded Jewish cultural centre in Germany since the Holocaust will open this week as a symbol of the rebirth of Jewish life in the country, organisers said Monday.
The centre's director, Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, offered reporters a tour around the complex in west Berlin which includes a synagogue, a library, a kosher restaurant, a tourist information centre and a lecture hall. "Everyone is welcome to come in and learn about Jewish life. Knowledge breeds tolerance," Teichtal said. "We want to send a message that Jewish life is here and thriving."
The Jewish community in Germany is one of the fastest growing in the world with some 120,000 members thanks to an influx of immigrants from the former Soviet bloc. As the Jewish community has become more visible six decades after World War II, Jewish memorials and cemeteries have faced frequent vandalisation in Germany, where political support for the far-right has grown in recent years.
The five-million-euro (6.8-million-dollar) centre, which like nearly all Jewish institutions in Germany will have round-the-clock police protection, is run by the orthodox Chabad-Lubavitch movement -- a branch of Hasidism. Teichtal, a New York native, said the funding for the Berlin centre had come largely from donations, 70 percent of which were small contributions by individuals.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the ambassadors of the United States, Britain and Russia and some 30 rabbis from across Europe and Israel are expected to join the opening ceremony Sunday. A street fair and an open-air concert is to follow in the afternoon.
Female students of the Jamia Hafsa seminary on Monday staged a sit-in in front of the Lal Masjid, demanding the government open the mosque for prayers by Friday and release Maulana Abdul Aziz and his wife Umme Hassan. Security officials stopped the over two-dozen protestors when they tried to enter the mosque. The students called for removal of security forces and their pickets in and around the mosque, warning the government they would come to the mosque on coming Friday and remove all barriers if they were not cleared by then. The students said they were fed up with lame excuses of the district administration concerning reopening of the mosque, adding that the students could not be confined to their homes. The students vowed to carry on the mission of their teachers and fellows, who had sacrificed their lives during the Lal Masjid operation.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
whatever happened to good beatdowns by armored anti-riot police? I'd like to see the 1968 Chicago police give baton lessons on these gunny-sack covered assholes
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/28/2007 8:56 Comments ||
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#2
The students vowed to carry on the mission of their teachers and fellows, who had sacrificed their lives during the Lal Masjid operation.
GHALANAI: Mohmand Agencys Halimzai tribes elders signed a peace agreement with the government on Monday, under which Halimzai tribes would not allow asylum to foreigners in their areas.
"Nope. Nope. Don't need none o' them furriners 'round hyere, sniffin' 'round our wimmin!"
The signing ceremony was held at a jirga at agency headquarters in Ghalanai. Around 80 elders belonging to Hamza Khel, Kaddi Khel, Wali Bek and Kamali Halimzai tribes participated in the jirga. Prominent among those who signed the peace accord are Malik Hadayatullah, Malik Rehman, Malik Mohamber, Malik Haji Amir Nawaz Khan, Malik Muhammad Ali Halimzai, Malik Doran Bacha, Malik Sahib Dad and Malik Bakht Munir.
I notice they're all maliks, not mullahs. If the mullahs don't countersign, assuming any of them can write, the agreement's null and void.
My brother down in Texas
Cain't even write his name
He signs his checks with X's
And they cash them just the same
According to the peace agreement, the tribes would neither protect any foreigners nor provide them any facilities.
"But Mahmoud from Saoodi Arabia, he's like a brother to us. And Ackmed from Yemen, why, he's a third cousin on my fourth wife's side. He's no furriner, if you take my meaning, and I know you do."
Miscreants would not be allowed to disrupt peace in the tribes areas and to take part in anti-government activities. Halimzai tribes will not allow any training centres for militants in their areas either. The Halimzai tribes will demolish or burn down the house of anyone found involved in anti-state activities, in addition to a Rs 500,000 fine and banishment from the area.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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Pakistans Islamist media published a series of explicit calls for violence against India in the six weeks before the Hyderabad bombings a development that analysts believe reflects the weakening of General Pervez Musharrafs regime, and raises fears of a renewed wave of terror strikes.
In an editorial published in the Jamaat-e-Islami-affiliated Daily Jasarats August 19 Friday supplement, the newspaper demanded that the slogan of jihad should reverberate in every nook and corner of Pakistan. If Pakistan allows jihadis to infiltrate into India then Kashmir could be liberated in six months.
Within a couple of years, the newspaper asserted, the rest of the territories of India could be conquered as well, and we can regain our lost glory. We can bring back the era of Mughal rule. We can once again subjugate the Hindus like our forefathers.
Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, in turn, used the July 20 rape and murder of north Kashmir teenager to call for escalated violence. The Indian Army, he wrote in July 22 article published on the terror groups website, is raping the daughters of Islam. How can we tolerate this? We will kill every single soldier of the Indian Army and take revenge for the honour of our sisters. Let India deploy more soldiers in Kashmir so that our mujahideen have more pigs to hunt.
According to Islamist publications, these calls for violence are legitimised by what they characterise as a global war against Islam and Pakistan. India and other foreign powers, Saeed told a congregation at Lahores al-Qadsia mosque on July 20, are involved in the recent spate of bomb blasts in Pakistan. Only India could be behind the recent attacks because only a Hindu could do it. No Muslim can think of shedding the blood of another Muslim.
The War Within
Much of the Islamist press ire is focussed on Pakistans own establishment and the figure of President Pervez Musharraf. Writing in the July 30 edition of the Daily Jasarat, which has an estimated circulation of 50,000, Lashkar deputy chief Abdul Rahman Makki demanded that General Musharrafs regime discard the pro-United States policy th at has weakened the Kashmir cause. It is time to adopt a pro-jihad and pro-jihadi policy. You give us the country for six months and we will conquer Kashmir. We will also force the Americans out from Afghanistan.
In another attack on General Musharraf, published on the Lashkar website on August 8, Saeed asserted that Muslim rulers have disappointed the Ummah [worldwide Muslim community]. It is time to wage jihad against them. They are not Muslims. They are the agents of Jews.
However, Saeed was careful not to endorse pro-democracy protests. The answer is not democracy, he wrote. The answer is the caliphate. He followed this up with an appeal to Pakistans military establishment: Remember, O foolish rulers, the United States is not going to help you. Jihadis are your true friends.
Soon after, Makki launched an even more acidic attack on General Musharraf at the Madrassa Ayesha, near Rawalpindi. Pakistan, he asserted, is ruled by Ahmadis at present a reference to a heterodox Muslim sect officially proscribed in Pakistan, and long subject to persecution by Islamists. Most of the top Generals and bureaucrats are Ahmadi.
In order to counter this pernicious influence, Makki called for jihad and martyrdom to be made part of the curriculum. They should be taught in textbooks at school, college and university levels.
Several key members of the Musharraf regime have also been singled out for attack in the Islamist press. In an August 12 editorial, the Nawa-i-Waqt, which is estimated to sell some 2,00,000 copies daily, railed against Education Min ister General Javed Ashraf Qazi for the publication of a Grade II school textbook which omitted Jammu and Kashmir from a map of Pakistan. The Education Minister, it stated, is a Jewish agent.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
"we can regain our lost glory. We can bring back the era of Mughal rule. We can once again subjugate the Hindus like our forefathers.
You can't say these guys are subtle about their intentions. Hindus, are you listening?
(Isn't this a Hindu quote: "I am become Death, Destroyer of Worlds'?)
#2
It is from the Kurukshetra battle in the Hindu epic poem the Mahabharata.
Prince Arjuna hesitates to attack the enemy. He has seen his great uncle Bhishma and his former teacher Drona in the enemy ranks. He does not desire to kill. His charioteer Krishna (the God Vishnu incarnated in human form) sees the hesitation and assumes his cosmic form ("the radiance of a thousand suns")
Tell me who are You in such a fierce form? My salutations to You, O best of gods, be merciful! I wish to understand You, the primal Being, because I do not know Your mission.
The Supreme Lord said: I am death, the mighty destroyer of the world, out to destroy. Even without your participation all the warriors standing arrayed in the opposing armies shall cease to exist.
Therefore, get up and attain glory. Conquer your enemies and enjoy a prosperous kingdom. All these (warriors) have already been destroyed by Me. You are only an instrument, O Arjuna.
Posted by: john frum ||
08/28/2007 8:13 Comments ||
Top||
#3
I doubt PakiLand will exist (in it's present form) in 20 years. They will do something dumb (SOP Islamo-Paki-style) and India will bomb them back to their cherished 7th century lifestyle. Win-Win for everyone!
Posted by: Titus Hayes4699 ||
08/28/2007 13:56 Comments ||
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#5
World leaders must understand that tyrannies have no sovereign rights.
Iran is the most critical threat at this time. Next in line is Pakistan. Islamabad continues to play a central role in destabilizing the entire South Asian region. As Old Patriot has repeatedly mentioned, Pakistan should be divided between Afghanistan and India. This gesture would serve notice to all other Muslim majority nations as to what awaits those who sponsor jihad. Third on the list is Saudi Arabia.
All three of these countries need to be overthrown as part of a comprehensive process of dismantling Islam. The free world must face up to how terrorism and terrorist atrocities will not stop until these three critical nerve centers are destroyed.
Security agencies are suspecting that Pakistan-based terror outfits like Laskhar-e-Taiba or Jaish-e-Mohammad may be behind the deadly Hyderabad blasts that claimed 40 lives, the government said on Wednesday. "Investigations into this incident are in a very, very preliminary stage and based on some information so far some possibilities have been identified and expressed," Union Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta said in New Delhi. "These elements or organisations are clearly outside the country and they resort to fuelling such kinds of activities." he said in New Delhi after flagging off a BSF mountaineering expedition.
Asked if any group has been identified, he said while the probe was in its initial stages, security agencies and state police were suspecting the role of Laskhar-e-Taiba or Jaish-e-Mohammad. "But what is more important is to nab those who planned it and those who executed it," he said.
His comments came a day after Home Minister Shivraj Patil refused to specify whether terror groups based in Pakistan and Bangladesh were behind the Saturday night attacks.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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EHRAN, Iran (AP) - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned Tuesday that a power vacuum is imminent in Iraq and said that Iran was ready to help fill the gap.
"The political power of the occupiers is collapsing rapidly," Ahmadinejad said at a press conference in Tehran, referring to U.S. troops in Iraq. "Soon, we will see a huge power vacuum in the region. Of course, we are prepared to fill the gap, with the help of neighbors and regional friends like Saudi Arabia, and with the help of the Iraqi nation."
Although Ahmadinejad did not elaborate how Iran could fill a power gap, his bold remarks reflected what may be perceived as Iran's eagerness for an increasing role on its neighbor's political scene.
Earlier this month, during a visit here by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Iranian leaders said that only a U.S. pullout would bring peace to Iraq and pledged their government would do its best to help stabilize the country.
Ahmadinejad accused the United States of interfering in Iraq's internal affairs, and dismissed U.S. criticism of al-Maliki's unsuccessful efforts to reconcile the country's Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.
"They rudely say (the Iraqi) prime minister and the constitution must change," Ahmadinejad said. "Who are you? Who has given you the right" to ask for such a change, he added, addressing the U.S. critics of al- Maliki, who is also a Shiite. Ha, seems the Demo may be in dialogue with Iran &0151; through the media
Ahmadinejad dismissed the possibility of any U.S. military action against Iran.
"I tell you resolutely that there is no possibility, whatsoever, of such a decision in the U.S.," Ahmadinejad told reporters. "Even, if they were to decide to do so, they would be unable to carry it out."
U.S. has accused Iran of being behind attacks on U.S. troops in Iraqa claim the Iraqi government has only partially backed, saying Iran could have a role in the attacks. Iran has denied the accusations.
#1
we need to diminish his overconfidence especially in the military states!!!!!
Posted by: Paul ||
08/28/2007 15:57 Comments ||
Top||
#2
We really need to balance this out by creating a similar "vacuum" in Iran. Preferrably with a massive number of large and well-targetted thermobaric weapons.
Iran's theocratic government has long overstayed its welcome on this planet. The West has a moral obligation to itselfand all humankind as wellto destroy every last theocracy of any stripe. They represent one of the most singularly retrograde forces in the entire world. Freedom simply cannot exist without separation of church and state.
#3
As a "Just-in-Case" , SAUDI ARABIA and other OPEC countries have chosen to build a new oil pipeline which will by pass the Straits of Hormuz - read, IRAN. Besides older article(s) on Iran-Turkey-CENASIA energy deals, SPACEWAR > new article describes the proposed network linking AZERI Oil to RUSSIA.
Sunni politicians applauded goals set down in an agreement hammered out by the country's top leaders under intense American pressure but expressed doubt that the US-backed prime minister would actually see them through. Reconciliation is difficult in a culture there the closest thing to peace is submission of a weaker to a stronger
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner apologised on Monday for having said that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki should be replaced. Maliki had on Sunday demanded an apology from Kouchner for the comments he made to Newsweek magazine.
"If the Prime Minister Mr Maliki wants me to apologise for having interfered in Iraqi affairs in such a direct way, of course I will do it," Kouchner said on RTL radio. "But again that doesn't change the facts. I'm not the only one to present a few criticisms ... I should have said, again, I repeat ... that those were the words of the people I spoke to and if it was badly interpreted, I'm sorry."
"Mistakes were made. Now back off, twerp!"
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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"We did not blackmail Israel, and we gave free information to Gilad Schalit's father and his family that Gilad Schalit is still alive. When he asked us to bring him glasses for his sight, we did so as a humanitarian duty. We treat Gilad Schalit in a humanitarian way that is in line with the Palestinians' morals," Hamas leader in Syria, Khaled Mashaal told a CNN reporter on Monday. "Hamas changed a lot and great efforts have been made to conform to the realistic positions of Palestinians and Arabs. When Hamas says with other Palestinians forces that we demand for a Palestinian country as the border was back in 1967, isn't this a development? [Sic]" he added.
But past reports in virtually all Israeli media outlets painted a picture less rosy than Mashaal's account Monday. Hamas's release of an audiotape with Schalit's voice was the first sign of life from him, Red Cross representatives have yet to be allowed to contact him, his glasses were never given to him and reportedly, his captors were not treating him according to the guidelines stated in the Geneva Convention. Also, comments made by Ahmed Youssef, an aide to Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh earlier Monday, prove that no shred of information was "freely" given to Israel by Hamas, as Mashaal claimed in his interview.
If Palestinian women and children were freed from Israeli jails, Youssef said, Hamas would consider releasing a videotape of captured IDF soldier Cpl. Gilad Schalit which would reveal information about his condition. The aforementioned audiotape was released on June 25, a year after the soldier was captured.
Yousef told Israel Radio that Hamas was prepared to "give another gesture of goodwill" if Israel responds accordingly. "When we released the voice recording of Schalit we expected something from Israel in return, namely, the release of women and children from Israeli jails. If Israel would have done this we would have published a videotape of Schalit talking about himself. Unfortunately, this never happened."
He concluded by saying that if Israel agrees to the proposal, Hamas will consider a "new initiative" in the form of a video recording. Tuesday marks the 21st birthday of the captured IDF soldier - his second birthday spent in captivity.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
So if they get people back the Israelis get a videotape?
Wow. Good deal...
#5
"We did not blackmail Israel, and we gave free information to Gilad Schalit's father and his family that Gilad Schalit is still alive. When he asked us to bring him glasses for his sight, we did so as a humanitarian duty. We treat Gilad Schalit in a humanitarian way that is in line with the Palestinians' morals,"
Denying that flagrant blackmail somehow is not blackmail changes nothing. It's time to enter "Palestinian morals" into the rolls with other such fine oxymorons as "Arab unity" and "Moderate Muslim".
Mashaal needs a bullet in his head. This one individual is responsible for so much human misery that it defies all conception. Israel needs to stop wasting time worrying about Shalit and institute a tireless manhunt for Meshaal, Haniyeh and all the other top tier terrorists that beseige her. When they suddenly start dropping like flies the lower ranks will get extremely cooperative or extremely dead. End of story.
Indonesian Muslims are living in sin as long as they fail to implement Islamic law across their nation, hardline cleric Abu Bakar Bashir said on Monday. As long as we live in a secular state, Indonesian Muslims continue living in sin, the Muslim leader told some 200 participants attending a seminar on Islam and democracy. Bashir heads the Indonesian Council of Mujahedin, an umbrella organisation advocating the implementation of sharia across Indonesia. The government permitted Aceh province to begin implementing Islamic law to pacify demands for independence. Some districts have also passed strict Islamic bylaws.Bashir said that sharia was a non-negotiable matter and we cannot act in a soft way in order to implement Islamic law. The Muslim community has an obligation to struggle to make a drastic change in support of Islamic law implementation, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
TIME MAGAZINE? Series > INDONESIA BOWS TOWARDS MECCA. Among other thingys, INDONESIA = ASIA-PACIFIC ISLAMISM may one day be the catalyst for a de facto future Global Caliphate/Islamic State.
#3
'Indonesia lives in sin without Sharia' is a true statement. However, if Indonesia was under Sharia it would still live in sin, because sin is the natural state of mankind (KSA has Sharia - there's plenty of sinning going on there!)
Besides, without some sin, why bother living?
#8
Too many people have, to date, survived the War on Terror.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
08/28/2007 15:05 Comments ||
Top||
#9
Too many people have, to date, survived the War on Terror.
Spot on, Mike N. Either we start taking out the trash or get overrun by vermin. There are no other options. Ignoring Islam's threat to mankind will result in the death of millions. Better thatif there is no other alternativethose millions die now as we forever vanquish Islam rather than wait around for Islam to kill an equal number before we finally take decisive action. Islam's continued existence represents a solid guarantee of millions dead. No moral human being can possibly countenance such a prospect. Those who support Islamespecially its clerical aristocracyall participate in totting up that butcher's bill. They must be struck down for their willing agreement to such evil. Bomb them, starve them, crush them under a massive military boot-heel but get the job done. This farce has gone on for way too long.
#11
'Indonesia lives in sin without Sharia' is a true statement. However, if Indonesia was under Sharia it would still live in sin, because sin is the natural state of mankind (KSA has Sharia - there's plenty of sinning going on there!)
Besides, without some sin, why bother living?
Impeccable logic, even to the last question, Glenmore.
TEHERAN - Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi said she had asked the United Nations to investigate the status of women in Iran and accused Iranian authorities of detaining activists demanding more womens rights. Ebadi, speaking at a press conference on Monday marking the first anniversary of a campaign to gather 1 million signatures in favour of womens rights in the Islamic state, said she had contacted top UN human rights official Louise Arbour.
Yeah, sic Louise on it. Louise is always concerned about violations of human rights -- in the United States. I don't think Iran is on her map.
She said about 50 activists had been detained over the last 14 months for involvement in womens rights protests and some of them faced charges of acting against national security. She did not say how many -- if any -- were still being held. Unfortunately, about 50 people involved in gatherings demanding equality ... had cases (against them) and were in prison for a while and some of them are waiting for their verdicts now, Ebadi said.
Sucks to live in an Islamic dictatorship, huh.
The Islamic Republic rejects allegations it discriminates against women, saying it follows sharia law.
Like Ebadi was just saying ...
Teheran usually laughs off reacts dismissively toward criticism from any foreign organisations, including the United Nations.
I have written a letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and complained for the first time, and said this is the situation of women rights in Iran and these are our demands, Ebadi said. Please send a special rapporteur to Iran to report on women, to investigate the conditions for women, she said, describing her message to Arbour.
Send the special rapper, that'll do it.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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[4 views]
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French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Monday a diplomatic push by the world's powers to rein in Tehran's nuclear program was the only alternative to "an Iranian bomb or the bombing of Iran".
In his first major foreign policy speech, Sarkozy emphasized his existing foreign policy priorities, such as opposing Turkish membership of the European Union and pushing for a new Mediterranean Union that he hopes will include Ankara. He also presented some new ideas, such as possibly renewing high-level dialogue with Syria and expanding the Group of Eight industrialized nations to include the biggest developing states.
Sarkozy said a nuclear-armed Iran would be unacceptable and that major powers should continue their policy of incrementally increasing sanctions against Tehran while being open to talks if Iran suspended nuclear activities. "This initiative is the only one that can enable us to escape an alternative that I say is catastrophic: the Iranian bomb or the bombing of Iran," he said, adding that it was the worst crisis currently facing the world.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
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#1
But, but, Global Warming Climate Change is the Worse Crisis Facing Humanity.
Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds ||
08/28/2007 9:31 Comments ||
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#2
Bombing Iran would only be catastrophic for Iran. But if the Mad Mullahs get hold of a nuke it would be catastrophic for everybody. I have no faith in sanctions. Just bomb the peckers and get it over with.
#4
Besoeker I'd be surprised if he's talking about any kind of "French military" response. This sounds, to my cynical self, like another "get the American's to do the dirty work" deal.
#5
Nick, you gotta make it a little clearer for guys like me. Now I ask you, should I or should I not tell the wife that it's OK to start drinking White Star again?
Palestinian clerics continued negotiating on Monday on the possible evacuation of wounded militants from a camp besieged by the army in northern Lebanon since May 20, a mediator said. "Contacts continue with the Lebanese army and (Fatah al-Islam spokesman) Abu Salim Taha," Sheikh Mohamad Hajj, spokesman for the League of Palestine Clerics, told reporters. "We have still not reached an agreement on how" the wounded extremists would be evacuated from the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared, Hajj said, without elaborating.
An army spokesman confirmed that mediation was taking place, without wishing to give more details on the number of wounded militants due to be evacuated. The clerics had already succeeded in arranging for the wives and children -- 63 people -- of the remaining Fatah al-Islam militants to be evacuated last Friday.
Hajj said the Lebanese as well as Palestinian civilians with Lebanese travel documents who were evacuated on Friday had joined their families in the refugee camps of Ain al-Helweh in the south and Baddawi, near Nahr al-Bared. He said Syrian or Palestinian evacuees with Syrian travel documents have already left for neighboring Syria, including the family of Shaker al Absi, leader of the militants A small number of foreign evacuees with no travel documents were in army custody, Palestinian sources said. An army spokesman said that information from those evacuated could help the military in its final showdown with the militants.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Fatah al-Islam
Sports and Youth Minister Ahmed Fatfat on Monday confirmed that both the Saudi and the United Arab Emirates ambassadors to Lebanon have received death threats. "Threats directed at the Saudi and the United Arab Emirates embassies are not new," Fatfat told the Voice of Lebanon radio station. Fatfat said the threats are one of 100 items to be discussed at a cabinet session scheduled for Monday.
Future television on Sunday said that Saudi ambassador to Lebanon Abdul Aziz Khoja and his UAE counterpart Mohammed Sultan al-Suwaidi had both received "direct" death threats. Khoja, according to a senior Lebanese official, left Lebanon on August 17 after the embassy formally notified the Lebanese foreign ministry of a "threat of attack against the ambassador's residence, the embassy or other Saudi interests in Lebanon."
The Saudi embassy declined comment but an Arab diplomat confirmed the details. The embassy cited warnings from the Saudi intelligence services that a stolen BMW was being readied to commit "a terrorist act against Saudi interests in Lebanon," the diplomat said.
Khoja on Monday was quoted as saying that "exaggeration" was not his intention. "I don't want to exaggerate (the threats) and I don't know why it had been exaggerated in Beirut," Khoja said in an interview with the daily As Safir published Monday.
He hailed Lebanese security forces who "continue to undertake measures around the embassy and I am confident they are fulfilling their duties to the fullest extent." Khoja assured that he will resume work "at the end of my summer vacation."
Oil-rich Saudi Arabia is a key financier of Lebanon and a staunch backer of the Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's majority government. Khoja had been involved in efforts to broker an end to the rift with pro-Syrian factions that has paralyzed Siniora's legislative agenda. Early last week, he held talks with the pro-Syrian speaker of parliament, Nabih Berri, who has refused to recognize the Saniora government since six pro-Syrian ministers quit in November.
Lebanon has been hit by a wave of attacks in recent years targeting anti-Syrian politicians, most infamously the 2005 murder of five-time Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, a billionaire businessman who held joint Lebanese and Saudi citizenship.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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[6 views]
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Israel Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned on Monday that Hezbollah is rearming out of reach of UN peacekeepers following last year's war between the Jewish state and the Shiite guerrillas. "Hezbollah is continuing its rearmament process. Hezbollah today has more medium- and long-range rockets than it had before the start of the war," a Barak aide quoted the minister as telling lawmakers behind closed doors. "It has also obtained a considerable number of anti-tank rockets," of the kind that proved deadly against Israeli tanks during the 34-day war.
An MP at parliament's defense and foreign affairs committee meeting, before which Barak testified, quoted the minister as saying the rearmament was taking place out of reach of the UNIFIL force based in southern Lebanon. "Hezbollah's new arsenal is located north of the Litani (river) and south of the Zahrani river," the lawmaker told reporters standing outside.
The UN peacekeeping force, only deployed south of the Litani, mainly monitors the separation of forces following the war, helps Lebanon's armed forces deploy in the border area and ensures aid reaches civilians.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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The leader of the Democratic Gathering parliamentary block MP Walid Jumblatt said on Sunday the promoters of Lebanon's sovereignty and independence will never give up on their struggle and will elect a new president for Lebanon within the constitutional deadlines. "We should not surrender or get discouraged; making concessions at such crucial period is totally unacceptable," he said Sunday during a ceremony to honor departing Egyptian Ambassador Hussein Darrar at his residence in Mukhtara, Shouf region of Mount Lebanon
Jumblatt specified the characteristic of the next president as being someone who respects the Taif Accord, the establishment of an international court to try suspects into the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, in addition to all international resolutions concerning Lebanon. "Lebanon's next president should be able to engage in the struggle we started to preserve Lebanon's independence and freedom," he said.
Jumblatt lashed out at the opposition and Hezbollah in particular, saying that it was to be held responsible for "destroying the economy, initiating massive brain drain, and involving Lebanon in superfluous wars."
I really am surprised the Syrians haven't gone after Wally yet.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Hezbollah
#1
where do you think he got those worry-lines wrinkles?
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/28/2007 10:33 Comments ||
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The recent delivery of an advanced Russian-made anti-ship missile to Iran has defense officials concerned it will be transferred to Syria and Hizbullah and used against the Israel Navy in a future conflict. Called the SSN-X-26 Yakhont, the supersonic cruise missile can be launched from the coast and hit sea-borne targets up to 300 kilometers away. The missile carries a 200-kilogram warhead and flies a meter-and-a-half above sea level, making it extremely difficult to intercept. Its closest Western counterpart is the US-made Tomahawk and Harpoon. The missile homes in on its target using an advanced radar guidance system that is said to make it resistant to electronic jamming.
The Yakhont is an operational and tactical missile and can be used against both a medium-sized destroyer and an aircraft carrier. It would pose a serious threat to the Israel Navy, according to defense officials. "This is certainly a threat to the Navy," one defense official said. "There is a real fear that if this missile is in Iran it will also be in Syria and Lebanon."
During the Second Lebanon War, the IDF was surprised when the INS Hanit was struck by a Chinese-made ground-to-sea missile, which was not known to have been in Hizbullah hands. At the time, the IDF suspected Iran had assisted Hizbullah in the attack, which killed four sailors. While officials could not confirm that the missile had reached Syria or Hizbullah, the growing assumption is that any weapons system or missile that can be taken apart and fit into a shipping container can easily be transferred.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/28/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
ISRAEL > will not pull out from Gaza = Paleo lands until a defense system is emplaced to protect Israel from Paleo [SSSSHHHHH, etal.]rocket attacks.
I didn't know that we still had listening stations in Guam. You keep coming up with stuff only a radio intercept station would overhear. Keep up the good work.
/Adm. Mike Hayden
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
08/28/2007 9:05 Comments ||
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#3
Its closest Western counterpart is the US-made Tomahawk and Harpoon.
One of them anyway, or maybe it's a vloser SeaLaunched BullPup.
Posted by: Thomas Woof ||
08/28/2007 18:18 Comments ||
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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.
One of Morocco's best known political figures during the rule of the late King Hassan II, Driss Basri, has died at age 69 
The kidnapping of 23 South Korean nationals by Taliban in Afghanistan has put the Korea Muslim Federation (KMF) in an awkward position when it came to presenting Islam as a religion of peace, A Rahman Lee Ju-Hwa, deputy cleric in a Seoul mosque, told Daily Times on Monday.
Female students of the Jamia Hafsa seminary on Monday staged a sit-in in front of the Lal Masjid, demanding the government open the mosque for prayers by Friday and release Maulana Abdul Aziz and his wife Umme Hassan. Security officials stopped the over two-dozen protestors when they tried to enter the mosque. The students called for removal of security forces and their pickets in and around the mosque, warning the government they would come to the mosque on coming Friday and remove all barriers if they were not cleared by then. The students said they were fed up with lame excuses of the district administration concerning reopening of the mosque, adding that the students could not be confined to their homes. The students vowed to carry on the mission of their teachers and fellows, who had sacrificed their lives during the Lal Masjid operation.
GHALANAI: Mohmand Agencys 
Pakistans Islamist media published a series of explicit calls for violence against India in the six weeks before the Hyderabad bombings a development that analysts believe reflects the weakening of General Pervez Musharrafs regime, and raises fears of a renewed wave of terror strikes.
Security agencies are suspecting that Pakistan-based terror outfits like Laskhar-e-Taiba or Jaish-e-Mohammad may be behind the deadly Hyderabad blasts that claimed 40 lives, the government said on Wednesday. "Investigations into this incident are in a very, very preliminary stage and based on some information so far some possibilities have been identified and expressed," Union Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta said in New Delhi. "These elements or organisations are clearly outside the country and they resort to fuelling such kinds of activities." he said in New Delhi after flagging off a BSF mountaineering expedition.
TEHERAN - Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi said she had asked the United Nations to investigate the status of women in Iran and accused Iranian authorities of detaining activists demanding more womens rights. Ebadi, speaking at a press conference on Monday marking the first anniversary of a campaign to gather 1 million signatures in favour of womens rights in the Islamic state, said she had contacted top UN human rights official Louise Arbour.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Monday a diplomatic push by the world's powers to rein in Tehran's nuclear program was the only alternative to "an Iranian bomb or the bombing of Iran".
Sports and Youth Minister Ahmed Fatfat on Monday confirmed that both the Saudi and the United Arab Emirates ambassadors to Lebanon have received death threats. "Threats directed at the Saudi and the United Arab Emirates embassies are not new," Fatfat told the Voice of Lebanon radio station. Fatfat said the threats are one of 100 items to be discussed at a cabinet session scheduled for Monday..JPG)
Israel Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned on Monday that Hezbollah is rearming out of reach of UN peacekeepers following last year's war between the Jewish state and the Shiite guerrillas. "Hezbollah is continuing its rearmament process. Hezbollah today has more medium- and long-range rockets than it had before the start of the war," a Barak aide quoted the minister as telling lawmakers behind closed doors. "It has also obtained a considerable number of anti-tank rockets," of the kind that proved deadly against Israeli tanks during the 34-day war.
The leader of the Democratic Gathering parliamentary block MP Walid Jumblatt said on Sunday the promoters of Lebanon's sovereignty and independence will never give up on their struggle and will elect a new president for Lebanon within the constitutional deadlines. "We should not surrender or get discouraged; making concessions at such crucial period is totally unacceptable," he said Sunday during a ceremony to honor departing Egyptian Ambassador Hussein Darrar at his residence in Mukhtara, Shouf region of Mount Lebanon
