[Tolo News] Ninety percent of Afghanistan will have access to telecommunication services in the next ten months, Ministry of Telecommunication and Information Technology said on Sunday.
The ministry is setting up antennas in the remote districts and around 100 antennas are to be installed so that people in the remotes can have access to telecommunication and internet services in the next ten months. Presently 80% of Afghanistan has access to telecommunication services.
The project is financed by Telecommunication Development Fund which has so far raised 55 million dollars.
They actually raised 200 million, but Karzai and his pals have expenses, you know ...
The ministry is also planning to use the fund to provide internet asccess to universities and schools in the country.
Now all they need is piped in electricity to power the computers and charge the cell phones. But still, imagine the possibilities of home schooling in the areas where the Taliban bravely attack empty classrooms.
"The special fund will be used to expand telecommunication facilities to all the remote districts of Afghanistan," Khair Mohammad Faizi, a member of Telecommunication Management Board, told TOLOnews.
The ministry cited insecurity and rugged terrain as the main obstacles to expand telecommunication services to some of the remote districts.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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[Tolo News] Afghanistan's Caped PresidentHamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai Sunday approved Supreme Court's proposal to form a special court to resolve parliamentary election disputes.
Independent Election Commission (IEC) has urged Supreme Court to make decisions about electoral cases based on Afghan laws.
A top official in the Electoral Complaints Commission said if Supreme Court finds crime-related moves in electoral cases, it would be welcomed.
IEC sees investigation of justice organisations into parliamentary elections as an interference.
"In terms of laws enforced by the Islamic Theocratic Republic of Afghanistan, no organisations have the authority to meddle in electoral affairs," said IEC front man, Tabesh Frogh. "We expect the Supreme Court to make its decisions based on law."
Some institutions want to make their own interpretations of law, said the front man for Electoral Complaints Commission.
"If any institution wants to make its own interpretation of law, while the election laws are quite clear and understandable, this is no longer a concern of electoral commissions, but rather of government, Lower House and judiciary system," Ahmad Zia Rafat, ECC's Spokesperson, told a TOLOnews news hound.
ECC said it has fulfilled its duties based on laws and warned that it will not surrender to anyone breaking Afghan laws.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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Indeed, an elite sniper's skills cannot be assessed with a single measurement, so the "longest confirmed kill" record stands as the pseudo world championship for military combat riflemen, and as of now there's a new outright champion - using an Accuracy International L115A3, British Corporal Craig Harrison killed two Taliban with consecutive shots at a distance of 2.47 kilometres (8120 ft) in Helmand Province, Afghanistan last November (2009). He then fired a third shot and hit the Taliban's PKM machinegun in perhaps the most prodigious feat of marksmanship in military history.
Congratulations to our British cousins on their record holder!
If you're wondering why it took so long for Harrison's kill to be made public, (it was made last November and only became commonly known in the last few days), understand that the publicity such a feat brings may not necessarily be wanted, or healthy, particularly if you are still "in theater". Harrison, who also survived a bullet passing through his helmet, and two broken arms from an IED explosion, has now finished his tour of duty and the story can be told.
Craig Harrison's AI L115A3 cost the British Ministry of Defence GBP23,000 (US$34,000), weighs 6.8 kilograms, and fires an 8.59mm bullet which is heavier than the 7.62mm round of the previous L96 model and hence less likely to be deflected over extremely long ranges. The L115A3 has a five-round magazine, enabling the sniper to fire five rounds rapidly, though that would almost never happen.
#3
Craig Harrison's AI L115A3 cost the British Ministry of Defence GBP23,000 (US$34,000),
Money well spent, I would say.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
12/27/2010 11:45 Comments ||
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#4
Legend has it that a long time ago, a German general and a Swiss general compared notes during a joint training excerise. The German proudly boasted of his army's numbers, while his counterpart explained the Swiss concept of citizen-soldiers and emphasis on marksmanship.
"Our army is twice the size of yours," the German general bragged. "What would you do, hypothetically of course, if we invaded Switzerland?"
The Swiss general shrugged, unimpressed. "We'd shoot twice and go home."
A leader of Somalia's Islamist insurgency threatened to attack America during a speech broadcast Monday.
"We tell the American President Barack Obama to embrace Islam before we come to his country," said Fuad Mohamed "Shongole" Qalaf.
Al-Shabab has not yet launched an attack outside Africa but Western intelligence has long been worried because the group targeted young Somali-Americans for recruitment. About 20 have traveled to Somalia for training and at least three were used as suicide bombers inside Somalia. Al-Shabab holds most of southern and central Somalia and has the support of hundreds of foreign fighters, mostly radicalized East Africans.
It seeks to overthrow the weak U.N.-backed government, which is protected by 8,000 Ugandan and Burundian African Union peacekeepers.
#2
Whoa, SOMALIA haz AMISH - D ***NG, I KNEW IT???
'Tis consistent wid DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > PAKISTAN TELLS US: DO NOT CROSS "RED LINES".
Among other, ARTIC = DENOTES THAT THE "EPICENTER OF TERRORISM" {Focii = Terror Operations] IS AGZ NORTH AMERICA [read, US of America = Amerika] + EUROPE.
MOVE ALONG PEOPLE, ONCE AGAIN RADICAL ISLAM CLEARLY MISTAKES ITS GLOBAL JIHAD, ALLAH + SHARIA, ETC. WID THE SECULAR COMMIE-SOCS "FINAL STRUGGLE" + OWG CWO-SWO.
#3
The radio message was recorded in the town of Afgoye, near the Somali capital, during a meeting of Shongole and Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, formerly the leader of insurgent group Hizbul Islam.
Well, if anything happens here, I'd say Afgoye wins the "smoking hole" contest.
[Iran Press TV] Iran's Parliament (Majlis) Speaker Ali Larijani says foreign interference is one of the key factors contributing to Somalia's ongoing crises.
No sense of irony, that man.
"Terrorism and foreign intervention are the two sides of a coin," Larijani was quoted by IRNA as saying
Few would know more about foreign terrorist interventions these days than such a man, now Saddam Hussein and Iraq are out of the business.
in a meeting with his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Adam on Sunday.
Larijani said Iran backs every effort to foster economic development in Africa and help its people recuperate in the face of foreign interference and colonialist policies.
He expressed the Iranian Parliament's full support for the expansion of all-out ties with African nations, including Somalia.
"International powers do not want Islamic countries to live independently, so they try to create political, economic and security crises for them (Mohammedan nations) through conspiracies and meddling [in their affairs]," said Larijani.
Hassan Sheikh Adam described his visit as an opportunity to hold talks with Iranian officials and work out solutions to the problems his country is facing. "Foreign interference and terrorism have created serious problems for Somali people, impeding the establishment of tranquility and stability," he said.
The Somali parliament speaker expressed hope that his negotiations with Iranian authorities will open up a new horizon in mutual relations.
Heading a high-ranking delegation, the top Somali parliamentarian arrived in Tehran early Sunday on a four-day visit. He is scheduled to meet with several senior Iranian officials, including President Mahmoud Short Round Ahmadinejad.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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[Asharq al-Aswat] Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Sheikh yesterday strongly criticized the Al Qaeda organizations, and particularly the phenomenon of Al Qaeda elements disguising themselves in women's clothing in order to avoid detection, saying that this has "contributed to tarnishing the reputation of Mohammedans."
Truly spoken, O Grand Mufti! Beyond the borders of the Ummah we find despicable the cowardly men who hide behind the skirts of women. When it happens frequently, we begin to conclude the fault is inherent in the culture of those who practice such behaviours.
The Grand Mufti's criticism came after the Saudi security authorities killed a suspected member of Al Qaeda dressed in women's clothing on Friday after he opened fire on a security checkpoint. This would not be the first time that an Al Qaeda member has disguised himself in women's clothing in order to avoid detection in Soddy Arabia.
In a telephone interview with Asharq Al-Awsat from Mecca, the Grand Mufti of Soddy Arabia Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Sheikh said that Al Qaeda elements disguising themselves in women's dress is "dishonorable" and an example of "feminization."
He also told Asharq Al-Awsat that "there can be no doubt that this behavior is wrong in every sense of the word" adding that "it is dishonorable, an example of feminization, and an exploitation of women."
Grand Mufti Sheikh Al Sheikh added that those Al Qaeda elements who disguise themselves in women's clothing are "criminals and sinners" who are trying to "distort the reputation of Mohammedans." He added that "they are corrupt sinners, and we thank God that they have been revealed."
The Saudi Grand Mufti, who is also Head of the Council of Senior Scholars and President of the Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Fatwa Issuance, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Al Qaeda elements disguising themselves in women's clothing is something that is "worse than feminization."
He added "the issue is not just feminization, this is worse than feminization...this is an attempt [by Al Qaeda] to sow hostility, hatred, and circumvent general security."
No, I'm sure they just want to circumvent security. In order to overthrow a society that has someone not of their group as Grand Mufti.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al Sheikh also praised the vigilance of the security apparatus in Soddy Arabia, and their prevention of such heinous crimes against Islam and Mohammedans.
The Saudi security killed a suspected member of Al Qaeda who, disguised in women's clothing, open-fired on a security checkpoint in the early evening in Wadi al Dawasir, 360 miles southeast of Riyadh. Two men in a vehicle, one wearing a woman's black abaya and veil, were stopped at a security checkpoint on Friday, the one dressed in women's clothing descended from the vehicle and began shooting at the security forces, which shot back and killed him. The other man was jugged.
There are similarities between this incident and a previous incident which saw two Qaeda bad boyz whose names appeared on the Interior Ministry's List of 85 Most Wanted Terrorists, killed by security forces in October 2009. The two men were disguised in women's clothing, and were driving a car that was found to contain weapons and boom jackets.
Which is worse in Saudi Arabia: men disguised in women's clothing or women driving a car without so much as a boy-child as chaperon?
Saudi Interior Ministry front man Major General Mansour al-Turki told Asharq Al-Awsat that the incident on Friday which resulted in the death of one individual "has Al Qaeda's hallmark, particularly as disguising themselves in women's clothing is the policy followed by the Al Qaeda organization in order to hide themselves from the eyes of the security forces."
I suspect there would be a good deal less of this kind of thing were the women not required to cover themselves in black, all-encompassing abayas and veils, such that they are known among the resident ex-pats as "Moving Black Objects".
Major General Mansour al-Turki also said that this incident most likely has nothing to do with drug smuggling, and that it is more likely linked to the activities of the Al Qaeda organizations. He said that drug smugglers usually utilize women [to smuggle drugs] rather than disguise themselves in women's clothing. He added that the investigation into this incident is ongoing, and that information will be forthcoming as to whether the two men are included on the Saudi Interior Ministry's List of 85 Most Wanted Terrorists.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Dressing up as goats is still ok then, had a lot of Talibunnies worried.
Posted by: Steven ||
12/27/2010 1:06 Comments ||
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THE English Defence League staged a protest in Reading today (Thursday) in support of a man arrested after hanging a St Georges flag outside a mosque.
Around 20 members of the controversial campaign group came from across the South East to demonstrate outside Reading Magistrates Court monitored by a heavy police presence.
Among them was co-founder Tommy Robinson, who told The Chronicle: Our argument is with militant Islam. Whats far right about protecting womens rights and gay peoples rights? The problem is the teachers of Islam, its got nothing to do with your colour. It all comes back to the Koran.
Inside the court 37-year-old Tilehurst man Ronald Peterson was on trial for religiously aggravated harassment. The court heard he went to the partially built mosque in Oxford Road, west Reading, on May 30 to protest over the way its planning application was handled by the borough council.
Peterson, with two other men, draped the St Georges flag on a fence, posed for pictures and chanted E, E, E.D.L and England.
Witness Urfan Azad, 32, told the court he was in the nearby Reading Tea House and went outside after hearing the chanting.
He said he dialled 999 because he was concerned the situation could escalate, and added: My concern was the flag needed to be taken off the fence because it might be seen by Muslims as a religious symbol. I felt upset about the whole incident. Im British myself, I was born in Reading. Its made me feel a bit socially excluded.
Police arrived on the scene within minutes and, without warning him or giving him a chance to move on, arrested Peterson on the spot. Sgt Lee Barnham said he spoke to Mr Azad, and added: He was offended by the use of what he considered to be a religious cross against the site of worship.
It was clear he was upset and felt intimidated. I was satisfied an offence under the public order act had been committed.
Peterson, who described the mosque as an eyesore and monstrosity, told the court he was unhappy because it had not been built in the required time but instead had planning permission re-granted and was given council funding.
Peterson denied being a racist but said he had a problem with the ideology of Islam. He added: Go and see countries that are run by that ideology, its oppressive.
District Judge Andrew Vickers reserved his verdict and the case was adjourned until January 13.
#1
Hopefully this will put some life back into the EDL. They have been under the radar for too long, along with the other nationalist organization of Europe. They need to get back in the spotlight, challenging the leftist domination.
British police have charged nine men with plotting one or more bomb attacks.
The men were among 12 suspects arrested in pre-dawn raids last week.
The alleged plot was said to involve attacks on shops, banks and government targets in central London.
On December 20 police arrested a dozen suspects in England and Wales, aged between 17 and 28, detaining them "on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism in the UK".
Police were said to have found a list of six sites, including the full postal address of the Stock Exchange, Boris Johnsons London mayoral office and the US embassy.
Defendants were seen studying the tower of Big Ben, before inspecting Westminster Abbey, the London Eye and the Church of Scientology.
Al-Qaeda inspired books and leaflets, including instructions on making a pipe bomb, were also uncovered during the counter-terrorism operation.
Details of the alleged plot were outlined at City of Westminster magistrates court.
[Iran Press TV] Ex-British Member of Parliament, George Galloway, has been denied a visa to enter the US to speak to the MLFA members and some non-Muslims in Kenner, Louisiana over human rights.
Galloway was invited to Louisiana by the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA) to deliver a speech to raise funds for the organisation and to promote awareness about ongoing injustices facing Muslims and their rights in the United States.
The audience of around 100 people, with the majority being Louisiana Muslim community members, and a handful of non-Muslims were shocked to learn that the keynote-speaker was absent because he was not given an entry visa to America, for the December 13 meeting.
Galloway addressed the crowd in Kenner via the computer program Skype, stating that it was not clear whether the decision was the result of a technical or bureaucratic glitch, or whether it was a political measure carried out in secrecy. He explained that efforts were made to resolve the situation throughout the weekend, but that nothing came of it.
His speech to the audience mainly consisted of human rights violations carried out by the US government against Muslims all over the world.
He also talked about the rights of Palestinians and the Israeli-led violence towards women and children, which is supported by the US government.
"Nothing will stop me. Not the government of what they call Israel; not the government of Canada nor the US," Galloway said. "I cannot be silenced...I hope the US government understands that. We live in the age of Skype, YouTube and Face book. There will always be a way for me to speak."
Well then, we don't need you here, do we ...
The long-time British activist, George Galloway, is known for his activities in supporting Palestine. He is a founding member of a charitable organisation called Viva Palestina, whose mission is to break the blockade of the Gaza strip by bringing badly-needed aid.
Galloway had also been denied entry into Canada from March 2009 until October 2010. He has not, however, been officially banned from entering the United States.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
I like this comment. I do the same thing I look in the background on most photos I look at;
"andrei_sh wrote:
Funny thing to see is that Russian VVS Red Star insignia on the vertical tails. Any suggestions to explain this, apart from an obvious one that this is a stupid fake?
12/27/2010 7:16 AM CST "
An international group dedicated to preventing conflict warns of the risk of a wider conflict on the Korean peninsula. The report comes a month after an exchange of artillery fire that left four South Koreans dead.
The International Crisis Group
A Soros-funded, hard-left, progressive group of rabble-rousers ...
is raising an alarm about the dispute over the maritime boundary between North and South Korea as Pyongyang appears to be preparing for a leadership transition. ICG says the volatile combination requires urgent measures to reduce the possibility of all-out war.
In a new report the group urges Pyongyang and Seoul to accept international arbitration on the dispute. North Korea does not recognize the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea off the west coast. It was drawn by a U.S. commander in 1953 at the end of the Korean War.
Daniel Pinkston is the Northeast Asia deputy project director for the International Crisis Group. He acknowledges that right now, South Korea will be reluctant to negotiate a change in the boundary.
"It would be difficult politically in the South because it would almost certainly require what would appear to be concessions. And when you are talking about boundaries it appears to be a zero sum game," said Pinkston. "In the context of North Korea's recent behavior it would be very, very unpopular."
Fancy that -- negotiating with people who have killed your own and have shelled your own country is unpopular. Whoda thunkit.
The ICG's Pinkston says Washington and Beijing need to exercise their influence on Seoul and Pyongyang, but warns it may not help. "Even though influence might be strong, it is not absolute. And, at the end of the day, Pyongyang and Seoul will do what it is in their national interests, as they define it," he said. "So we can't expect, China, for example, to simply flip a switch, and as people say, rein in Pyongyang. There are limits to their influence as there are limits to U.S. influence in Seoul."
There may be limits to what influence the Chinese have on the Norks, but it's a lot more than the ICG thinks it is.
A former U.S. diplomat who visited Pyongyang this month calls the Korean peninsula a tinderbox. Bill Richardson, the outgoing governor of the U.S. state of New Mexico told VOA's Korean Service that diplomacy is the only way out of danger."The situation is so, so, tense that there's got to be some kind of diplomat movement, a special envoy from the United Nations. China needs to get more engaged," said Richardson. "Eventually the six-party talks have to re-convene and let North Korea demonstrate that they're serious about their behavior and about negotiating."
The problem with Richardson is that as a soon to be former governor, he's going to be more available for meddling in Korean affairs ...
Richardson says he has briefed U.S. officials about his visit and the concessions Pyongyang offered concerning its nuclear programs.
Richardson says the North Koreans told him they are ready to allow international inspections of their nuclear facilities and are willing to sell a stockpile of nuclear fuel rods that could be used to make plutonium bombs.
Sell? Is that what they call a 'bribe' these days?
The White House says there is no point in returning to multi-national discussions until Pyongyang stops acting belligerently and makes good on promises to give up its nuclear weapons programs.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Compare wid CHINA DAILY FORUM > [Henry KISSINGER: KOREAN NOTHERN LIMIT LINE IS ILLEGAL [contrary to mid-1970's International Laws].
#3
Richardson needs to stay out of it, just like Carter.
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/27/2010 11:58 Comments ||
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#4
ION BHARAT RAKSHAK [Russian DM] SERDYUKOV DISMISSES THREAT FROM CHINA'S GROWING NUCLEAR ARSENAL.
RussDefMin Sergy says RUSSIA + USA, SOLE OR IN JOINT, ARE TOO ADVANCED + POWERFUL AT PRESENT FOR RISING CHINA TO PREVAIL AGZ.
* WMF > NATIONAL DEFNESE UNIVERSITY OF CHINA PROFESSOR + PLAN REAR ADM. ZHAO ZHAOZHONG: HISTROCIAL ANALYSIS OF HOW THE US DEPLOYS ITS AIRCRAFT CARRIERS IN TIMES OF CRISIS INDICATES THAT THE PHYSICAL PRESENCE OF THREE USN CVBGS NEAR THE KOREAN PENINSULA SIGNALS THE START OF US MILITARY ACTION/WAR AGZ NORTH KOREA + POSSIBLY CHINA.
* SAME > CCTV: FLIGHTS OF PLAAF H-6G STRATEGIC BOMBERS CONDUCT LOW-ALTITUDE STRIKE TRAINING MISSIONS OVER THE DAOYUS. CHINA MAKES IT CLEAR TO JAPAN THAT THE DAOYUS IS SOVEREIGN CHINESE TERRITORY + THAT CHINA + PLA WILL ENTER IT ANYTIME AT THEIR DISCRETION.
* SAME > CHINA'S DAM IN XINJIANG TRIGGERS CONCERN IN KAZAKHISTAN.
* DEFENCE FORUM INDIA > DISPATCH FROM KAZAKHISTAN:"WHO AM I"? RUSSIAN IDENTITY IN POST-SOVIET [Muslim] KAZAKHISTAN.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has supported the idea of Turkey becoming a venue for reconciliation talks with the Taliban, which he says could even open a representation office in Turkey. Turkish officials, however, stress that Ankara is focused on the reconciliation talks between Afghan groups and that the opening of such an office has not yet come onto the agenda of talks with the Afghan government
Turkish President Gül meets with Afghanistan's Karzai in Istanbul. Turkish officials are cool to Karzai's offer for Taliban to open an office in the Turkish city. AA photo
The Afghan president has indicated his potential support for the idea of Taliban officials setting up an office in Turkey as a means for reconciliation talks, though Turkish officials said Sunday the idea was still hypothetical.
The idea was that Turkey would serve as a place where gatherings can take place, where representation [of the Taliban] could be established in order to facilitate reconstruction and reintegration, Afghan President Hamid Karzai told a joint news conference in Istanbul with his counterparts from Turkey and Pakistan, saying figures close to the Taliban had previously shared the idea with him.
If Turkey provides such a venue, we, as the government, as the state [of Afghanistan], will be pleased to walk on the path that Turkey has opened, Karzai said.
WASHINGTON - The White House admitted Sunday it would be unable to shut Guantanamo Bay in the near future, even as it acknowledged the US naval prison camp is a rallying cry for Islamic extremists.
Nearly a year has passed since President Barack Obamas self-imposed deadline to shutter the camp, but his spokesman said legal and legislative hurdles would prevent that goal being realized any time soon.
Its certainly not going to close in the next month. I think its going to be a while before that prison closes, Robert Gibbs told CNNs State of the Union program.
Bambi, Holder and Gibbsie could have saved all of us a lot of grief over the last two years if they had been adult enough to acknowledge what was understood by serious, sober people in our country: the terrorists locked up in Gitmo are too dangerous to release, and they're not suitable for trial in a civilian court. They're not Americans, they're not entitled to the protections and privileges of our Constitution, and they're not common criminals. They're also not military prisoners of war and they're not entitled to the protections of the Geneva Conventions. We, the US, have been remarkably decent in our treatment of these terrorists, and if only that had been marketed correctly from 2001 on (which would have required a patriotic MFM) to the Islamic world, we would have turned some opinions there.
Bambi indeed could have done that: he, unlike Bush, could have used whatever credibility he had in the Islamic world to explain the humane treatment we were giving these killers and pointed out some verse or two in the Quran to justify what we were doing. We then could have held these jokers quietly and moved on. But no, Bambi and Holder made a complete hash of it. Now the progressive hand-wringers are enraged over a broken campaign promise (so what else is new, Markos?), conservatives and independents see that Bambi is clueless and incompetent, and sober Americans see that our country is more endangered.
Brilliant.
Obama views Guantanamo, which conjures up images of water-boarding and other alleged torture,
Because the MFM spent eight years trumpeting the allegations as fact ...
as a prime symbol of Bush-era war on terror excess that only serves as a recruiting tool for Al Qaeda.
But his efforts to shut down the prison camp on the southern tip of Cuba have struggled as allies balk at taking in higher-risk inmates and prosecutions become bogged down in a legal quagmire.
Not just a legal quagmire but a moral one as well. Release one of these dangerous jokers. If said joker then kills an American, what do you say to that American's family?
Only three of the remaining 174 detainees have been formally tried and found guilty. Dozens have been cleared but no foreign ally will accept them and there is strong American opposition to any being allowed on US soil.
And we're too squeamish to return then to their countries of origin because they might be tortured there -- and unlike the allegations of 'torture' at Gitmo, these countries really know a thing or two about how to wreck people.
US lawmakers effectively blocked one avenue this week by approving a Pentagon budget that forbids funding for an alternate prison, relocating prisoners to the United States or sending detainees to certain countries.
Gibbs called for help from Obamas Republican foes, who in January will gain control of the House of Representatives and trim the Democrats Senate majority after landslide mid-term election gains.
I think part of this depends on the Republicans willingness to work with the administration on this, he said.
The same Republicans that Bambi and the Dhimmicrats have been describing as practically enemies of the state? Remember 'I won'? That meant you didn't need the Pubs. You could have used your control of both houses to fix this but for some strange reason -- perhaps the remaining sanity in a few Dems -- that didn't happen. Now you want the Pubs to 'work with the administration'. I don't think so.
Are they willing to listen to others in the national security arena that have told us and will tell them and have, quite frankly, told the public that Al Qaeda recruits young people to do harm, to try to blow up airplanes, to blow up themselves and kill others, they use that as a recruiting tool?
Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, was in talks that eventually broke off with the White House for a negotiated solution.
Gibbs appeared to acknowledge a draft executive order previously only mentioned anonymously by officials to formalize the indefinite detention of some Guantanamo detainees but allow them to challenge their incarceration.
Some would be tried in federal courts, as weve seen done in the past. Some would be tried in military commissions, likely spending the rest of their lives in a maximum security prison that nobody, including terrorists, have ever escaped from, he said.
And some, regrettably, will have to be indefinitely detained.
Why is it regrettable to detain indefinitely people who want mass numbers of Americans killed? We detain a few people in a regular prison indefinitely: there are murderers and rapists who will never be released. Why is it regrettable to detain terrorists?
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
The irony is inescapable. For years the left used Gitmo and other icons to show evil Bush and his hate/war crime administration. Now all that anti Gitmo rhetoric has come home to roost. I so love it. It will only get better when a rendition performed under his admin is leaked out...
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
12/27/2010 11:00 Comments ||
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[Dawn] Over two dozen Hindu families have approached the Indian High Commission in Islamabad for visa and political asylum in India after what they called growing cases of kidnapping for ransom and assassination of the members of their community in Balochistan.
This was disclosed by the regional director for the federal Ministry of Human Rights, Saeed Ahmed Khan, at a seminar on "Provincial Conference on Balochistan Crisis" here on Sunday.
Leaders and workers of various political parties and representatives of civil society attended the seminar jointly organised by the Actionaid and Association for Integrated Development Balochistan.
Mr Khan said that Hindus had been living in Balochistan for centuries, but in recent weeks several members of the minority community had been kidnapped or murdered, forcing them to seek asylum in India.
"As many as 27 Hindu families from Balochistan have sent applications to the Indian embassy for asylum in India," he said.
Mr Khan said it was a matter of great concern and urged the government to take immediate measures to improve the law and order situation in Balochistan.
According to statistics of the Ministry of Human Rights, violation of human rights ... which are not the same thing as individual rights, mind you... has been committed at a large scale in Balochistan and people are being kidnapped for ransom.
National Party's vice president Dr Ishaq Baloch said Baloch youths had become frustrated because they had been denied rights and their national identity had not been recognised.
He said that arrest and disappearance of youths had damaged efforts to secure peace in the province.
Hazara Democratic Party chairman Abdul Khaliq Hazara blamed 'hidden hands' for the poor law and order situation in the province. He said over 100 groups involved in kidnappings for ransom were operating in Balochistan.
Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party's provincial president Usman Khan Kakar said Pakistain would get stability, peace and prosperity if the centre recognised the identity and languages of all nationalities in the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Compare wid DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > HINDU MILITANTS [Groups] LINKED TO INDIAN ARMY.
[Pak Daily Times] Pakistain Mohammedan League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... on Sunday criticised Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain for supporting dictators and accused the MQM of violence in Bloody Karachi, a private TV channel reported on Sunday.
Addressing a public gathering at Muzaffarabad, the PML-N chief said that dictators had betrayed the people of Pakistain. Nawaz made a formal announcement for launching of the PML-N Azad Jammu and Kashmire (AJK) chapter. He said the PML-N was a revolutionary party. He asked why 50 people were killed in Bloody Karachi when Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry arrived in the bustling provincial capital on May 12. He said those demanding revolution should define the word first. "Is it a revolution that MQM leader Imran Farooq is murdered in London and dozens of people are killed in Bloody Karachi in its reaction?" Nawaz asked.
"Those political parties who are talking about bringing a revolution in the country are the same ones who have been serving dictatorship for the last 11 years," he said, adding that at the time of the earthquake in AJK, he was in Jeddah. He said he had intended to come back to Muzaffarabad, but a person who was not currently in the country had stopped him at the time. He deplored that the "most-corrupt people" were being hired at key posts, adding that Pakistain does not have a good history. "The dictators always toppled the public-elected governments... some hanged public leaders, others ousted them. Musharraf exiled me, but today he is sitting in exile," the PML-N chief said.
Nawaz said that he was a friend of Pakistain and not a companion of President Asif Ali President Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who showed remarkably little curiosity about who actually done her in ... . About the PML-N's role as a "friendly opposition", he said, "Neither am I a friend of the present rulers, nor will I be." He said that President Zardari was voted by those who had been talking about a revolution, adding that the PML-N did not support him. Regarding the present government, he said that it was not too late for those at the helm, adding that they could still reform themselves. Concluding his address, the PML-N chief vowed to make an independent government in the future, the channel reported.
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12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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[Tolo News] Pakistain's Foreign Minister, Shah Mehmood Wormtongue Qureshi, has told TOLOnews that Pakistain does not provide sanctuary to hard boyz on its soil.
But Pakistain's ambassador to Turkey acknowledged that some insurgency elements take advantage of open Afghan-Pakistain borders.
The two top Pak officials stuck to one point that "we should neither let Pakistain to be used against Afghanistan and nor the other way around".
A stable Afghanistan is beneficial to Pakistain, Mr Qureshi said.
He said currently Pakistain has good relations with Afghanistan and "other countries should be prevented from bringing division between the two countries".
"There are elements within the Taliban who take advantage of this openness and sneak in and sneak out. This is not a secret I'm revealing. This happens," Tariq Aziz, Pakistain's ambassador to Turkey told TOLOnews.
US diplomatic cables released by the WikiLeaks had claimed that Pakistain obviously backed and sheltered beturbanned goons on its soil.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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"No Tolo for you!" [Tolo News] Pakistain has blocked Afghan TV channels, a move that has outraged Afghan refugees in the country. Not Islamic enough?
It has been three months that Pakistain government has banned Afghan TV channels, said an Afghan refugee. Officials in Afghanistan's embassy said Pakistain's culture minister had promised his Afghan counterpart to address the problem as soon as possible.
Afghan refugees in Pakistain called on the Afghan government to convince Pakistain stop blocking Afghan channels. "I suggest our information and culture minister to end this problem," said an Afghan refugee in Pakistain.
A Pak TV channels monitor said on condition of anonymity that foreign TV channels should pay for their programmes to be aired in Pakistain. "We have not only discussed this with Pakistain's head of broadcast, but with other brass hats including the counties culture minister," said Afghanistan's acting ambassador in Islamabad, Gulab Majnun Zazai.
Pakistain government has taken such an action, while Pakistain's channels are freely broadcast in Afghanistan without any problem. But that's different.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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[Pak Daily Times] Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Fazlur Rehman signalled that he could join rejoin treasury benches again if his demands were met, a private TV channel reported on Sunday.
Addressing a JUI convention at Shahi Bagh in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar, he said his party did not separate from the government because of dismissal of a minister. The government compelled the party to part ways, he added.
The government did not honour its promises made with his party. "We are not turbans. We have honoured all promises made with the government. It is the government, which deviated from the promises made with the party," Fazl said. "We have no lust for power, but I assure you that in the greater interest of the country, the JUI-F could review its decision to quit the government," the channel said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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The new Iraqi army has started building up its armored forces with the first batch of 140 U.S.-built M1A1 Abrams main battle tank. The 9th Armored Division, based near Baghdad, will be the spearhead of an army that will likely have a strength of more than 300,000 troops in up to 20 divisions, six of them armored.
Its mission is first to crush insurgent forces and restore order and stability in the oil-rich country then to protect its borders against outside aggression. But then again, if Iran decides to be stupid, the Iraqis will kick seven bells out of them.
#1
One presumes these tanks were ones we left there as not being worth hauling home and extensively refurbishing. Would hate to think we shipped them new stuff while returning the beat-up stuff to our guys. In Iraq, some nasty battle scars on the tank moving in on you could actually add to the demoralizing effect.
#3
Defense contractors have to sell something to Iraq, so why not use our most modern, and therefore expensive, equipment? Those bonuses don't make themselves, you know!
#4
There is a awful lot of wheeling and dealing going on behind the scenes, oddly enough trying to get the Iraqis the best deals. I gather the Czechs are providing a lot of rebuilds and upgrades, and some of the other east European countries have a lot of surplus going their way.
#5
If they are going to be a threat to Iran, then Iraq will need some air power, something more than helicopters.
Posted by: lord garth ||
12/27/2010 15:32 Comments ||
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#6
This is actually a very good thing, gromky. 140 brand new M1A1s are better than anything Iraq's neighbor's have with the exception of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. 140 M1s aren't going to be a major threat to them, but to Iran they are a powerful deterrent. Not enough to stage an invasion (especially without fuel tanker support), but more than enough to smash an armored invasion by Iran.
#8
Well, with "inshallah" based maintenance, it won't take long for the platforms to turn into large paperweights.
The other big question will be: to whom can they Iraqis easily sell parts stripped from these babies? I doubt they will sell entire tanks - but they will certainly deal in repair parts - and will think nothing of turning their fleet into "hanger queens" in the process.
The only people worth a hoot in that country are the Kurds - and they won't be seeing any of the good stuff.
[Pak Daily Times] Thousands of pro-Paleostinian activists on Sunday welcomed back to Istanbul the ship that was the scene of bloodshed during an Israeli raid on a Gazoo-bound aid flotilla in May. Activists meanwhile, promised to send more ships in an effort to break the Gazoo blockade.
On the other hand, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman vowed on Sunday that Israel would not apologise to Turkey for a commando raid on a Gazoo-bound aid ship that killed nine Turkish activists.
Hundreds of balloons were released as the ship, Mavi Marmara, sailed into Istanbul's Sarayburnu port, following repairs at a port on Turkey's Mediterranean coast.
The activists, mostly members of pro-Islamic groups, waved Paleostinian and Turkish flags and chanted 'down with Israel' and 'Almighty Allah is great' as they greeted the vessel. Protesters also boarded boats to welcome the approaching ship, which was adorned with a poster of the nine activists from Turkey who were killed during the raid.
The ship was part of an international flotilla carrying supplies to Gazoo in a campaign to breach the blockade on Gazoo when Israeli troops intercepted the convoy. Eight Turks and an American-Turkish teenager were killed in the violence that erupted on board the Mavi Marmara.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Why don't the Israelis simply announce that in the future everyone aboard such vessels will be removed and the vessel sunk? After that no one would insure them and even Soros might get tired of buying "throw away" boats/ships.
[Ma'an] Israel's fiery Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Sunday that Israel should not sign a peace deal with the Western-backed Paleostinian government because it is illegitimate.
"It is forbidden for us to reach a comprehensive deal today with the Paleostinians. To put it clearly, you have to understand that their government is not legitimate," he told a meeting in Jerusalem of Israeli ambassadors.
Lieberman pointed to the fact that the government of Paleostinian president the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas had lost control of the Gazoo Strip to rival Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and postponed elections after its term had expired.
"It is a government that has postponed elections three times, that lost elections, that does not hold elections, does not plan to hold elections and there are no guarantees that next time they do hold elections, that Hamas won't win again," Lieberman said.
He also said the Paleostinians would reject any deal from Israel, no matter how generous, and that there were unbridgeable gaps on Israeli security issues.
"Even if we offer the Paleostinians Tel Aviv and go back to the 1947 borders, they would find reasons not to sign a peace deal with us," he said.
The Paleostinian Authority, dominated by Abbas's secular Fatah movement, has repeatedly postponed national and local elections, while Hamas has refused to let them be held in Gazoo.
Hamas, which won a landslide victory in the last parliamentary elections in 2006, has said there can be no new elections without reconciliation with Fatah.
The Islamist movement seized power in Gazoo in June 2007 when it ousted forces loyal to Abbas in a week of bloody street battles, the culmination of years of struggle between the two main Paleostinian movements.
The two groups struggled for months to reach a unity deal under Egyptian mediation but the efforts collapsed late last year when Hamas refused to agree to a proposal that was signed by Fatah.
Lieberman, the hardline leader of the Yisrael Beitenu party, has been largely sidelined by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in peace talks with the Paleostinians.
Direct talks between Israel and the Paleostinians, the first for nearly two years, began in Washington on September 2 but quickly stalled when a 10-month Israeli settlements freeze expired on September 26.
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12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
See also PEOPLE'S DAILY FORUM > ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: PEACE WID PALESTINIANS IS "IMPOSSIBLE".
[Arab News] Communist rebels threatened more attacks Sunday despite looming peace talks with the Philippine government, as they marked the insurgency's 42nd anniversary by defiantly marching with their weapons in public view.
Aside from targeting government forces, New People's Army guerrillas -- one of Asia's most resilient Maoist forces, withstanding decades of military crackdowns -- also threatened to step up attacks against mining companies, accusing them of destroying the environment and exploiting workers.
"Despite the peace talks, we will go on with the revolt," regional rebel front man'>front man Jorge Madlos told journalists in a farming village at the foothills of the Diwata mountain range in Surigao del Sur province, about 530 miles (860 kilometers) southeast of Manila.
The government and the rebels have agreed to resume peace talks after six years in February, and chief government negotiator Alexander Padilla sounded optimistic early this week, citing promises by the new reformist president to address rebel concerns.
Amid a Christmas cease-fire, about 80 young guerrillas marched in public through this rice-growing village, brandishing M16 assault rifles, grenade launchers and other weapons to celebrate the Dec. 26, 1968, founding of the underground Communist Party of the Philippines.
On a makeshift wooden stage festooned with a huge red cloth emblazoned with the hammer and sickle communist symbol, rebels sang nationalist songs and guerrilla speakers revved up the more than 2,000 farmers, villagers and sympathizers. The hilly village is tucked about a mile (1.6 kilometers) away from a main road, where army troops stood guard in an outpost and listed the names of villagers streaming in to attend the ceremony.
"It's scary at first but later, you gain confidence when you think that you're fighting for the people," said Johnny Buyo, a 19-year-old who joined the guerrilla movement six months ago.
An M16 rifle slung on his tiny frame, Buyo guarded the rebel ceremony, wearing muddy boots and mingling with other young guerrillas. Nearby, parents, siblings and friends used the occasion to reunite with rebels, who came down from a mountain stronghold, embracing each other and exchanging stories and cell phone numbers. An emotion-gripped mother said she saw her son for the first time after he joined the rebellion 10 years ago.
A new generation of fighters ensures that the revolution will continue, said Madlos, a 62-year-old rebel known for his trademark Mao-style cap and goatee. "I'm happy knowing that with them, the rebellion will go on," he said.
Engendered by the Cold War in the late 1960s, the rural-based insurrection has emerged as this Southeast Asian nation's most serious security menace, stoked by decades of poverty, agrarian unrest, government corruption and misrule. Five presidents have failed to crush the Maoist rebellion, which has killed at least 120,000 combatants and civilians.
The party dates from its split from an older Communist group at a conference Dec. 26, 1968, in northern Pangasinan province. That date also was the 75th birthday of China's Mao Tse-Tung.
Washington has blacklisted the Communist Party and its armed wing, the 5,000-strong New People's Army, as terrorist organizations, blaming them for separate attacks that killed four American military personnel in the 1980s.
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12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar]
Intelligence services throughout the Middle East and Europe are scrambling to track down more than two dozen fighters linked to al-Qaeda who have recently left their base in the Paleostinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hellhole in southern Leb, Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported.
The missing men are thought to have gone to Europe by a newly established route through Syria, Turkey and the Balkans, it said.
Two Lebanese intelligence service officials told The Guardian that Leb was cooperating with European intelligence organizations to track down the bad boys, who are described as "extremely dangerous."
One European Union intelligence official confirmed to The Observer that an operation to hunt down Arab fighters recently arrived from Leb was under way, but could not link this group to recent concerns about possible holiday attacks by al-Qaeda.
"We have received warnings of a significant bad boy plot in Europe during the holidays and we have been warned about these missing fighters from Leb," he said. "But we wish we knew if the two threats were related."
Stephen Tankel, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, has done field research in Ein el-Hellhole and describes the band of snuffies as potentially dangerous because of their lack of overall control.
"They may not have been super-organized, but that does not mean they are not potentially dangerous," he told The Guardian.
"First, a number of them fought in Iraq, where they will have gained combat experience and, perhaps, some explosives expertise. Second, it's safe to assume that many of them are prepared to undertake 'martyrdom' operations," he said.
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12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Could it be that this is Hezbollah's attempt to bring on expertise in it's attempt to defeat the Aoun Government? Here-to bringing Israels interest with it? Iran?
[ADN Kronos] (AKI) Iranian president Mahmoud Short Round Ahmadinejad called member states of the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society Security Council "political retards" for continuing to believe that sanctions against his country were still effective, Iranian Labour News Agency reported on Friday.
"The officials of those countries who in the third millennium still think sanctions are an effective means are politically retarded," ILNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying during a visit to Istanbul.
The UN Security Council has punished Iran with a fourth round of sanctions for refusing to curb a nuclear programme it worries is for the development of nuclear weapons.
Ahmadinejad says his country is enriching uranium for peaceful purposes and has steadfastly refused to yield to international pressure. However, The infamous However... he has agreed to talks.
The nuclear meeting between Security Council members and the Islamic Theocratic Republic are due to be held at the end of January.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/27/2010 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Tolo News] 
[Iran Press TV] Ex-British Member of Parliament, George Galloway, has been denied a visa to enter the US to speak to the MLFA members and some non-Muslims in Kenner, Louisiana over human rights.
"We want to do more hammer and anvil operations," Petraeus said.
[Tolo News] Pakistain's Foreign Minister, Shah 
[Tolo News] Pakistain has blocked Afghan TV channels, a move that has outraged Afghan refugees in the country. 
[Pak Daily Times] Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Fazlur Rehman signalled that he could join rejoin treasury benches again if his demands were met, a private TV channel reported on Sunday.
[ADN Kronos] (AKI) Iranian president 
