[KhaamaPress] Afghanistan has become a significant coordination hub for the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems... as the terrorist organization plans attacks across Europa ...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum... and Asia and engages in "aspirational plotting" against the U.S., a leaked Pentagon document revealed.
According to a classified Pentagon assessment that portrays the threat as a rising security concern, less than two years after President Biden withdrew U.S. personnel from Afghanistan, the country has developed into a significant coordination hub for the Islamic State as the terrorist organization plans attacks across Europe and Asia and engages in "aspirational plotting" against the United States, Washington Post reported.
The attack planning reveals specific efforts to target embassies, churches, business centres and the FIFI World Cup soccer tournament, which drew more than 2 million spectators last summer in Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... . Such plots were coordinated by ISIS leaders in Afghanistan, which Pentagon officials were aware of on December 9, the Washington Post cited the leaked documents.
"ISIS has been developing a cost-effective model for external operations that relies on resources from outside Afghanistan, operatives in target countries, and extensive facilitation networks," says the assessment, "The model will likely enable ISIS to overcome obstacles — such as competent security services — and reduce some plot timelines, minimizing disruption opportunities."
The documents also describe ISIS’s response to several major global events, including consideration for deploying a jacket wallah to attack the World Cup Tournament in Qatar last year.
The documents emphasize the growing threat posed by ISIS in Afghanistan. However, a lie repeated often enough remains a lie... there is no mention of an al-Qaeda resurgence there which many counterterrorism experts had predicted would occur after the U.S. pullout.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pond, the radioactive tadpoles grown into frogs. Really big frogs, in fact... according to a recent report by CENTCOM, around 6,500 ISIS-K fighters in Afghanistan, 4,000 of them have been stationed across the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border.
In addition, the head of U.S. Central Command, Kurilla, said that ISIS in Afghanistan could attack American or Western interests outside the country in less than six months.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pond, the radioactive tadpoles grown into frogs. Really big frogs, in fact... the de facto authorities rejected the allegations and claimed they would not allow any groups to use Afghanistan’s soil against other nations.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/24/2023 00:41 ||
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#1
I guess we pass Go and collect $200.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
04/24/2023 8:56 Comments ||
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[AMUtv] A number of farmers in southern Helmand ...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan... province of Afghanistan have turned to cultivating the ferula plant for asafoetida, in place of poppies.
One farmer, Noorullah, has cultivated asafoetida, or hing as it is locally known, on one acre of land in the Grishk district of the province. He said he invested nearly 200,000 Afghani ($2,300) into the crop and hopes to make a decent return once harvested.
Mohammad Nazir, a resident of Grishk, brought the ferula plant to Helmand from Tajikistan four years ago. Now, after four years of hard work he is starting to harvest the resin used to make asafetida.
The "hing juice" collecting process is quite tricky as the resin is obtained from the roots of the plant, and each worker earns $25 per kilogram that they collect.
Agricultural experts, meanwhile, said that Helmand’s climate is well suited to the cultivation of the ferula plant and that farming this plant can be very lucrative. They said farmers can earn up to three million Afghanis from one acre of land cultivated with the plant.
Hing needs four years to produce resin and the plant can live for up to 30 years. In this time, resin can be collected as many as 20 times.
Provincial officials of the Taliban ...mindless ferocity in a turban... , meanwhile, said that cultivation of hing is an alternative crop to poppies in a number of areas around the country.
However, Caliphornia hasn't yet slid into the ocean, no matter how hard it's tried... Taliban officials in Helmand say that the cultivation of hemp is also a suitable alternative.
Asafoetida is used in cooking, especially in Indian cuisine, and its also widely used for medicinal purposes, particularly for digestive disorders and kidney stones.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/24/2023 8:45 Comments ||
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#3
I thought Hong might be an Adams Faming character that crossed over into a Charlie Chan movie.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
04/24/2023 9:01 Comments ||
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#4
If 'hing' is extracted from the roots of the plant, how is it you can cultivate the same plant for years?
Posted by: ed in texas ||
04/24/2023 15:43 Comments ||
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#5
Hing is a perennial that must mature for several years before it flowers, according to the internet, then after that first flowering it dies. A slow motion biennial, as it were. Presumably the resin is gotten from the root in that last year, while each year another future crop is sown.
PAKISTAN’S WOBBLE – Facing a constitutional crisis between the Supreme Court and the administration, a highly unpredictable former Prime Minister, and an ailing economy in need of a massive IMF bailout tensions with India are the last thing the country needs. However, the terror attacks in the Poonch District of Jammu/Kashmir have enraged Indians, and the perception that those who planned and carried out the attacks are hiding in Pakistan has added more stress to Prime Minister Shebhaz’s already full plate. Indian officials have announced they have arrested anywhere between 15 and 30 suspects over the course of the nascent investigation. Indian officials are expected to make an announcement at the end of the week that may implicate senior Pakistani officials in the plot. At the very least, sources have indicated that 4 well-known radical religious figures in Pakistan will be named as direct supporters of the terrorists who carried out several deadly attacks in the highly volatile and contested region. While we do not assess that conflict will result from yet another India-Pakistan barrage of accusations, the fragile situation in Islamabad could change in an instant and many world leaders are concerned about the specter of another military takeover. Many observers will be watching the Poonch investigation press conference to see what evidence India has found of possible Pakistani support for terrorists.
TAJIKISTAN TURNS BACK TALIBAN MEMBERS FROM BORDER – Tajikistan continues to hold the line against the Taliban and reportedly turned back several Taliban members who attempted to enter the country through the crossing in the Darwaz District of Badakhshan Province. No violence was reported but some shouting and pushing reputedly took place. Tajikistan continues to be the neighboring State who is the most critical of the Taliban and despite rumors that Dushanbe was interested in developing friendlier relations with the IEA, they continue to restrict movement along the border.
BI-PARTISAN CONCERN IN THE US OVER POSSIBLE FUNDING OF TALIBAN – Political consensus may be forming over the lack of transparency regarding economic aid funding sent to Afghanistan since the US pullout. Democratic and Republican lawmakers were briefed by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan (John Sopko) on Wednesday and his characterization of the obfuscation tactics being used by the Department of State, the Pentagon, and the White House was damming. Concerns have long been raised that some of the $8 billion in funding have been diverted to the Taliban. While both parties continue to focus on the blame for the Afghanistan debacle, perhaps this issue will provide lawmakers with a rallying point.
NEXT 24 HOURS
VIENNA CONFERENCE BEGINS IN AUSTRIA – Amid tight security protocols, Austria is hosting the second conference of Afghanistan expatriates and civil society. The conference will be attended by former political figures, Resistance leaders, former MPs, religious scholars, and a host of other civil society organizations. The conference seeks to promote cooperation between disparate groups in the hopes that better strategies for dealing with the new reality in Afghanistan can be discussed.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his government will begin negotiations with rebel group the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) in Tanzania on Tuesday.
This is the first time the Ethiopian government has formally said it would negotiate with the OLA, which has been battling the government on and off for decades.
“A negotiation with Oneg Shene will start a day after tomorrow in Tanzania,” Abiy said on Sunday, using another name for the OLA.
OLA spokesman Odaa Tarbii did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The OLA is an outlawed splinter group of the Oromo Liberation Front, a formerly banned opposition party that returned from exile after Abiy took office in 2018. The group's grievances are rooted in alleged marginalization Of the Oromo people and neglect by the federal government.
The OLA and the federal government blame each other for a number of attacks in Ethiopia's Oromiya region, the country's most populous, in which scores of civilians have been killed.
In February, the state-appointed human rights commission said at least 50 people were killed in an attack it blamed on the OLA.
In October, the OLA and another Oromo group blamed the Ethiopian government for airstrikes they said had killed a number of civilians.
“The people of Ethiopia and the government eagerly need this negotiation,” Abiy said at a ceremony honoring a previous peace deal achieved between the federal government and forces in the Tigray region, where fighting had erupted in November 2020 and ended in November 2022.
The fighting between the OLA and the federal government is separate to the fighting in Tigray, but the OLA forged an alliance with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) in 2021.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2023 00:00 ||
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The murderous Moslem group al-Shabaab ...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... is using its dollar muscle to influence the removal of Hiiraan regional governor Ali Jeyte
...more fully Ali Jeyte Osman...
who has been the backbone of the nine-months long military offensive in the Middle Shabelle region, a senior government official has claimed.
Presidential envoy for Civilian Protection and Stabilization said in a Twitter post on Friday that he had received credible information that al-Shabaab was seeking to sway Hir-Shabelle president Ali Gudlawe to remove Jeyte.
"We have reliable information that Al-Shabaab is spending millions to have Governor Ali Jeyte replaced. Replacing Governor Jeyte at this time is giving aid and comfort to Shabaab. "President @GudlaweHussein leave Governor Jeyte alone!, the outspoken envoy said.
Jeyte has been at the forefront in the joint operations by the Somali National Army, regional forces and clan militia. It is in his region, Hiiraan where the war against al-Shabaab, then championed by the Ma’aswisley clan militia started. The Federal Government joined in about August by deploying the Somali National Army.
The removal of Jeyte would therefore deal a major blow to the war as it head further east to Galgadud region. The government is also planning to launch the second phase of the operation which focuses south starting from South West state.
Al-Shabaab is known to command a strong financial muscle and has used it severally for intelligence gathering and fighting operations. A UN report last November revealed that the group was spending up to $1 million in salaries for its fighters.
Mohamed Abdi Waare, the former president of HirShabelle state, says Ali Jeyte Osman, who has been fighting the militants on the battlefield, is now the key target, with Al-Shabaab allegedly contributing millions of dollars with the sole purpose of dethroning him from his current position.
Waare, who is the current Special Presidential Envoy for Civilian Protection and Stabilization, said the militants are spending millions to replace the governor, who has been instrumental in kicking out the militants. Jeyte has led several battles that saw the liberation of key ground since 2022.
He also warned that replacing Jeyte at this time would provide aid and comfort to Shabaab. The militants always target people believed to be against their course and at times, they plot assassination against them.
Waare added, "President Ali Guudlaaw, leave Governor Jeyte alone." Waare's warning comes at a time of strong conflict between Governor Jeyte and the leaders of Hirshabeelle, related to the Hirshabelle centralized tax collection plan.
Three men were at the center of the war on Al-Shabaab in the Hiran region, two of them elder Hagar and Danab's deputy Commander Hassan Ture were killed on the frontlines. Now, Al-Shabaab making all that it can to remove Governor Jeyte from the battlefield.
Somalia is set to go for the second phase of operations against Al-Shabaab and Governor Jeyte has been instrumental in the coordination of the crackdown against the militants. Al-Shabaab is fighting for its dominance in central and southern Somalia which they have considerably lost.
[Garowe] The government of Somalia intends to extend the mandate of the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] less than 20 months before their stay expires, following heightened campaigns against the Lions of Islam who have been wreaking havoc in the country.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has reportedly started shuttle diplomacy to convince the international community to extend the stay, with sustainability being the major undertaking. Under the Somali Transition Plan [STP], ATMIS is supposed to exit service in December 2024.
This week, the African Union is expected to discuss the future of ATMIS in Somalia, with Hassan Sheikh insisting that the stay should go beyond 2024, adding that their presence has been instrumental in boosting peace and stability in the country which has been unstable for three decades.
But a source close to the peacekeeping mission told The EastAfrican the proposal to extend the tenure of Atmis "has been mooted" but there is nothing concrete yet as the idea is "still in the corridors" of the Federal Government of Somalia leaders and some other stakeholders that Mogadishu has reached out to.
Brig-Gen Felix Kulayigye, the spokesperson of the Uganda People's Defense Forces [UPDF] supports the idea of extending the mandate of ATMIS, noting that the presence of peacekeepers will help the country to stabilize within the shortest period. There are close to 20,000 ATMIS soldiers in the country.
"President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is right," Brig-Gen Kulayigye said. The UPDF contingent forms the bulk of the Atmis force, manning the security of the Banadir region, which hosts the Somali capital Mogadishu.
Analysts argue that the calls for a new exit date arise out of the reality that Somalia has not built and equipped its security forces to deal with defending the fragile country that has been in continuous conflict since 1991.
Some of the Troops Contributing Countries include Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda, Burundi and Æthiopia. Early this year, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met Kenya President William Ruto, Djibouti's Omar Guelleh and Æthiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who agreed to send more soldiers to the country.
Too many people have access to the #US government’s closest secrets and a central entity should oversee the classification process, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee says.https://t.co/BTJwUotXEU
#2
If too many US-Gov. personnel have access to TS//SCI/VRK/UMBRA,type files. Then it stands to reason our enemies have the same level of access.
But with that said, many of us will attest to having worked with classified materials, that were publicly available for years on the Internet, or at the local library.
In short, too many documents and TB's of data needlessly still hold restrictive security labels and should have been declassified years ago.
#3
It's become another "credential" to be handed out to the dubiously anointed. Also, things like trash pickup schedules and fire extinguisher inspection records are "classified," because someone can.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
04/24/2023 7:15 Comments ||
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#4
Also, what better way to create an instant crime than to classify everything in sight, knowing it can't help but be mishandled.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
04/24/2023 7:17 Comments ||
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#5
If they are going to change the process, I recommend an additional classification that can be shortened to BS. In that the system momentum is to classify everything, this additional classification will absorb 99% of the intelligence product produced by various intelligence entities in our government.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
04/24/2023 9:09 Comments ||
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#6
In the mid 1980's I was attending a Spotlight Conference at Arlington Hall Station as a part of an Assignment of a Special Security Officer designation in Army Intelligence. As a part of the training we spent some time at the Pentagon, in the big SCIF with the large briefing screen, looking at images from our surveillance systems to get a sense of capabilities and confidence in analysis products. All quite impressive and encouraging. As a part of the process we had EXTENSIVE briefings on protection of classified materials, especially those at the TS/SCI/SI-CODEWORD level as well as the punishments for violating such protections.
During the break for lunch I spent some time on the Shopping Mall/Metro level of the Pentagon Basement, and while browsing in the civilian bookstore, came across a book, "Deep Black" by William Burrows. In the center section was a collection of photos about satellite systems, including the exact photo I had just seen in the SCIF, Classified at the TS/SCI/CODEWORD level, and for which my sharing, acknowledging or copying would have rendered me liable for a $10,000 fine and up to 10 years in Leavenworth. Over classification, and disparities in enforcement were frequent even then. I recall one piece of advice from a long-serving CID investigator, which essentially said if you can't remember if you saw it in a classified briefing, or read it in the Washington Post, just keep your mouth shut and talk about the Redskins.
This was almost 40 years ago, and yes, I bought the book, but not until I was back home.
#8
The problem is, every time they 'fix' an issue, they make it worse. It's F'd up because they like it that way. Note that no one up the ladder gets punished because they weren't watching things.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
04/24/2023 19:33 Comments ||
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#9
Ref #6: A good SSO might have included an unauthorized viewing of highly classified imagery on his next PR. I assume you did.
Pope Francis calls for dialogue between warring military factions in #Sudan as a bloody outbreak of fighting enters a second week.https://t.co/KxpGhh1ymi
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2023 00:00 ||
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[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan
#1
Pax Misty
"Mohammedan brothers, stop bombin'
Each other," begs globalist brahmin,
"And pray don't make game of
Your papa, in name of...
Whatever we may have in common!"
The family of a Singaporean man due to be hanged next week over a kilogram of cannabis pleads for clemency from the authorities and urges a retrial. #Singaporehttps://t.co/2istJWx1Lu
#4
@ #3 - Why so sad?? Thems the rules in S'Pore. Don't like it?? Don't smuggle weed. There's a bunch of sad things in the world. A sovereign nation enforcing their laws not one of them.
Posted by: Bangkok Billy ||
04/24/2023 18:11 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.
...mindless ferocity in a turban...
...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord...
