Afghan President Hamid Karzai has assured Canada that a man facing possible execution for converting to Christianity will not be put to death, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Thursday.
Harper called Karzai on Wednesday to express his concern over the case of Abdur Rahman, who an Afghan judge said had been jailed for converting from Islam to Christianity and could face death if he refused to become a Muslim again. "He (Karzai) certainly conveyed to me that we don't have to worry about any such eventual outcome. An Afghan judge dealing with the case said on Thursday that the judiciary would not bow to outside pressure over the eventual fate of Rahman, who has not yet been charged.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Not good enough Karzai! Wearing a larger blanket won't work.
#2
Per the ABC story I posted last night, it doesn't matter what the Afghan government does; "moderate" Afghan imams have threatened to whip up a mob to tear Abdur Rahman to pieces.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 9:24 Comments ||
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#3
Here's an interesting experiment for Afghanistan:
1. Publically convert to Christianity and get short-listed for a visa to the U.S. (and enrolled in protective custody)
2. Time exactly how long it takes for the country to empty out as the populace flees its beloved Islam
#4
This is exxcellent - the first public declaration that islam is neither peaceful nor tolerant.
Karzai says so. It is the proof and public statement that islam is incompatible with human rights and freedoms. Afghanistan's constitution is supposed to enshrine human freedoms. And they will choose to prove that sharia wins over freedom, peace and human dignity.
Heck of a martyr. but the lying face of islam is now ripped off and all the world can no longer deny the threat this death cult holds for real human beings.
#6
Even if "pardoned" (or whatever) for being "crazy" (or whatever) he's a dead man if he stays. Perhaps even if he leaves - imagine the fatwas and price that will be put on his head.
Posted by: Jans Snomble4884 ||
03/24/2006 18:23 Comments ||
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More than a dozen women in black cloaks, some with colorful head scarves, others with only their eyes visible through slits in black veils, filed into the dining room after sunset prayers. They sat around a long table set up with paper, pencils and thermoses of Arabic coffee, across from a small group of men, including that evening's guest, Sadeg al-Malki.
The women -- homemakers, physicians and college students -- had sought out Malki, a consultant at the Islamic Education Foundation, because they wanted help on a project they were embarking on: how to talk to non-Muslim co-workers and acquaintances about Islam and the prophet Muhammad.
The women, who have since taken several mini-courses with Malki on discussing their religion with non-Muslims, are part of a loosely knit grass-roots movement that has sprung up across the kingdom since January, when anger over cartoons of Muhammad sparked riots in Europe and several Muslim countries. The movement is made up of a diverse cross section of women, students, businessmen, lawyers and clerics, all campaigning under the banner of Nusrat al-Rasool, or Victory for the Prophet.
The activists' campaign includes a continuing economic boycott of Denmark, where the cartoons were first published, and a project to produce television ads about the prophet for broadcast in Europe. College students are attempting to collect 1 million signatures to present to the Danish Embassy, and lawyers are studying ways to make insulting Islam and its prophet illegal. A number of businessmen have launched competitions with prize money of more than $50,000 for the best essays on Muhammad. This month, several clerics and heads of local committees will travel to neighboring Kuwait and Bahrain to brainstorm with Islamic activists there.
Though in its early stages, the grass-roots movement is a demonstration of how, in this region, activism within a religious context is capable of motivating and energizing a wide swath of society in a way that politics cannot. It is also a study of the ways in which deeply felt religious disputes, when not handled by governments, cut their own path, pushing people to take matters into their hands.
Muhammad Kawther, a young activist who heads Youth Together for an Islamic Renaissance, believes the cartoon controversy was a godsend for his group. The activists were just starting out, putting together their first project -- CDs urging young people to perform their five daily prayers -- when anger over the cartoons erupted. Dropping everything else, they decided on a campaign to collect 1 million signatures in support of the prophet.
Inexperienced and a little apprehensive at first, they approached several malls for permission to set up booths there. Sensing the public mood, mall owners not only agreed but gave them free access and advertising. They also allowed them to bring in chanters to sing the praises of the prophet, the first open public performances in this conservative country.
Three weeks into the campaign, Together had gathered 70,000 signatures, dozens of new supporters and, most valuable of all, a ton of practical experience.
"I learned how to deal with the public, with people of different ages and from different social levels," said Rayan al-Khilewi, who emceed the group's children's competition on facts about the prophet. "I learned how to deal with the media, and I actually did a live television feed."
Khilewi, a 20-year-old marketing student and taekwondo aficionado, had been strolling the mall with his family when he heard something he'd never heard at a shopping center before: Islamic songs being broadcast through a loudspeaker. Drawn by the a cappella chants, Khilewi, a religious Muslim, hurriedly followed the tune, which led him to the group's booth. He joined on the spot.
"For years I had been looking for a way to be active, to do something meaningful, and this was the first time I had found it," he said. "I have Denmark to thank for that."
Many who have become involved in activism since the cartoon crisis have echoed Khilewi's sentiment, saying the cartoons have shown them how much they love the prophet and forced them to do something about it.
Malki, the Islamic Education Authority consultant and also co-founder of the Faith in Diversity Institute, based in Owings Mills, Md., says the cartoons have created a new kind of activism. "People don't just want to talk, they want to do something," Malki said. "No state can stop, or think to stop, this activism. It's widespread, it's strong, and because of the love people feel for the prophet, it's also very emotional."
The two-hour lecture Malki gave in a noisy dining room packed mainly with women was winding down when he told the group he wanted to read them something from the Bible. He picked up his leather-bound King James version, well-thumbed with yellow bits of paper sticking out, leafed through it and started to read from the Book of Isaiah: "And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I am not learned."
There was stunned silence in the room, a palpable astonishment as the listeners understood the passage to foreshadow Muhammad, who was illiterate before he became a prophet. A few whispered, "God is great," and several young men and women wiped tears from their eyes.
Sulaiman al-Buthi, a Riyadh-based spokesman for the International Committee for the Defense of the Final Prophet, says this religious but peaceful activism could put an end to violence and drive groups like al-Qaeda out of business. Analysts have long said that a lack of democracy and civic institutions in the Middle East is part of the appeal of extremist groups, which offer one of the only options for disaffected youth.
But Buthi said he was "very optimistic about this movement, this cartoon intifada. It has given people opportunities to take matters into their own hands and do something positive for their religion. It's generating a very potent feeling, and it's capable of destroying the pull and influence of groups like al-Qaeda."
On the other hand, lawyer and writer Bassem Alem says he believes that the cartoons were only a trigger within the context of an already burgeoning region-wide Islamic resurgence. People "look around and they see Islamists winning in Egypt and Palestine and Morocco," he said, referring to elections in those places. "They feel empowered, and this is just one more manifestation of that."
Alem says that people took matters into their own hands because their governments were not doing enough to assuage their anger. He also contends these ad hoc committees will supplant Western-style civic institutions. "The methodologies for setting up civic institutions here failed because they were a Western model," he said. "These indigenous movements will take root because they are based on our beliefs and real needs."
Kawther, back at his father's office, which serves as Together's headquarters, was more reflective. "Islam has gone through many phases, up and down," said the stocky young man with a dark patch on his forehead that comes from regular prayers. "For it to be strong again, for a new Islamic renaissance, the youth have to be involved, and that's why we're doing this."
At the Seirafi mega-mall, where Together had set up signing booths and several computers and helped passersby send more than 5,000 e-mails to Denmark, two 12-year-old boys were handing out brochures that explained the campaign and urged people to follow the example of the prophet by becoming more devout. One of the group's members, law student Abdul-Ilah Bawazir, picked up the microphone to address the hundreds of shoppers, men to one side, veiled women to the other, who had stopped to watch that evening's performance of the Heraa group of Islamic chanters.
"We are all here for one reason," he said to the crowd. "To show solidarity with the prophet. Now that you've enjoyed the show, please take a minute and sign your name in support of the finest of messengers, prophet Muhammad. We want the world to know how much we love our prophet and how much we're willing to sacrifice for him."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:10 ||
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#1
If young people were allowed to do anything else in Saudi Arabia, I doubt we would see much of this junk. Reading this, you truly understand how brittle this belief system is and why it reacts so violently to outside ideas.
#2
The two-hour lecture Malki gave in a noisy dining room packed mainly with women was winding down when he told the group he wanted to read them something from the Bible. He picked up his leather-bound King James version, well-thumbed with yellow bits of paper sticking out, leafed through it and started to read from the Book of Isaiah: "And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I am not learned."
Thus encouraged, some of the group will find a Bible, expecting to find other passages that confirm their faith. And once they start reading, some of them will start thinking about what they read. At which point the road to Perdition will be well and truly greased.
He also contends these ad hoc committees will supplant Western-style civic institutions. "The methodologies for setting up civic institutions here failed because they were a Western model," he said. "These indigenous movements will take root because they are based on our beliefs and real needs."
Such a parochial view of American communitarianism! Still, this is a lovely threat to the Powers That Be -- poeple who organize themselves, peacefully, over one issue, can more easily do so the next time over something else, and suddenly they don't need their natural overlords to tell them what to do and how to think.
lawyer and writer Bassem Alem says he believes that the cartoons were only a trigger within the context of an already burgeoning region-wide Islamic resurgence. People "look around and they see Islamists winning in Egypt and Palestine and Morocco," he said, referring to elections in those places. "They feel empowered, and this is just one more manifestation of that."
The only thing wrong with this picture is that what they see is the false dawn of the prematurely triumphalist -- because soon to be defeated -- expansionist Islamism. How much greater their let-down when all their mainifestations fall on their faces.
#4
"To show solidarity with the prophet. Now that you've enjoyed the show, please take a minute and sign your name in support of the finest of messengers, prophet Muhammad. We want the world to know how much we love our prophet and how much we're willing to sacrifice for him."
As in how many Saudi youth are willing to go KABOOM in Iraq?
MM: At the recent Extraordinary Islamic Summet Conference in Makkah the Saudis have announced a Ten Year (Joint Islamic) Plan of Action to establish the Muslim Ummah and assured Muslims that "He (Allah) will surely empower them in the earth as He did with their predecessors and that He will surely establish for them (therein) their religion".
Now that's a term that has never occurred to me in connection with Islam.
10 yrs... I guess I should hold off on the vacation property, then?
Posted by: Jans Snomble4884 ||
03/24/2006 1:54 Comments ||
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#2
Reality Dictates: from neo-Talibanis in advance in Afghanistan and Shariah campaigners in the West and genocidal in power in the West Bank (and surging everywhere) and Muslim Students Association jihadis on US campuses, to ascendant Iran, the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic States, aggressive Islam is advancing, while the West retreats abroad and is polluted within by the mortal enemy of all humanity.
Thanks to George Kennan, et al, Soviet nuclear weapons put us in a position where we had to contain Communist aggression. And, generally, Communists were not in our neighborhoods and producing twice the number of children as non-Communists, as are our Muslim subversives. Currently, the Islamofascists are in no position to force containment surrender. The fact that we indulge them to the point of denying their genocidal belligerence, and even invite them to subvert democratic process, while nation building Muslim tyrannies, is evidence of our lack of will to destroy the worst threat that Western Civilization has ever faced. It is: us versus them; now not later; and kill or be killed.
Content-wise, we know. We've known for a long long time hereabouts. Fine phrasing in the post, however, except for that lack of will bit - the jury's still out on that, wouldn't you agree? Otherwise, it's excellent "We're Doomed!" stuff.
Posted by: Jans Snomble4884 ||
03/24/2006 2:50 Comments ||
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#4
Guess, just a few days ago, the Army Engeeners have leased 140 acers of Coralville Dam area, Iowa, for 25 years to Muslim Students Association for making islamic camps there.
#6
Indeed, the Islamic civilization is an integral part of human civilization, based on the ideals of dialogue, moderation, justice, righteousness, and tolerance as noble human values that counteract bigotry, isolationism, tyranny, and exclusion. It is therefore of paramount importance to celebrate and consecrate these magnanimous values in our Muslim discourse inside and outside our societies
I know this is one of those Parallel Universe things like on Star Trek, right?
As a deviant, I cannot control myself when it comes to women. I have a thing about women's hair, so all heads must be covered. Any woman wearing makeup is considered a prostitute, and must be disfigured. Excuse me just talking about this gets me "excited". In fact all women have to be covered in ugly black tents. Oh no not again. Now we can ban, kites, chess, televisions, all music, -- anything that gives pleasure in life is banned. Oh no not a third time. I am hurting. Then all non-Muslims are to be beheaded. Oh my there I go again. And... Aaaaaaargh.. Then we will all be at peace... I can now await the 72 virgins. Yes! the blessed 72!
al-Sadisti al-Perverti, Grand Muff-Tea and Head Stoner of Harlot Women
Chair, Extraordinary Islamic Summit Conference in Mecca
PS Feed that idolotor of Christ in Afghanistan to rabid dogs. Yes! feed him to dogs!
#8
6: Containment or strategic acceptance of existence of unfriendly States because there can be no unilateral benefit in making war on same, became the cornerstone of US foreign policy when elites convinced President Truman to retract US nuclear diplomacy, during the nuke-monopoly period. When the monopoly ended, a rough strategic balance led to a terror-doctrine, Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD), which institutionalized containment. When President Reagan posed assured-survival - the Strategic Defense Intiative (space-based anti-missile shields) - as the background to the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START), the Soviets eventually caved in and ideological confrontation ended. Reagan's "Evil Empire" characterization of the Soviet side, should have been adapted to the current counter-terror war against aggressive Islam. Instead, Islamofascists are only allowed to be evil if they do not participate in Islamic style "democratic" elections, which to Muslims - and not our leaders - are not exercises in freedom of conscience, but are collective searches for the Muslim deity's (Allah) guidance. What if Muslim majorities use in current elections and will use in all future elections, vote power and Western indulgence, as a means to advance global-genocidal Islam? Well...we spin our wheels, so far...http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/histryotln/postwar.htm
By the way, Truman is long dead and we have a nuke-monopoly over Iran, whose leaders incite "Death to America" shrieks at every opportunity, and practise nuclear proliferation.
#15
Mohammed screwed up. He should have promised virgins to loyal party members of the Jihad Party. Maybe one a year or something like that would assure a unified Islamic front. These dufusses are waring in all directions keeping popcorn prices high.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have teamed up with law-enforcement authorities in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay to combat money laundering and other financial crimes in a remote and lawless region known as the "Tri-Border Area."
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers, who heads ICE, said multigovernment "trade transparency units" will investigate and prosecute crimes including money laundering, terrorist financing, contraband smuggling and tax evasion.
The United States has determined that the Tri-Border Area is a source of fundraising for radical Islamic groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas and al Qaeda, and the U.S. government has worked cooperatively with governments in the region to disrupt fundraising activity.
U.S. law-enforcement authorities describe the Tri-Border Area as South America's busiest contraband and smuggling center, where billions of dollars annually are generated from arms trafficking, drug smuggling, counterfeiting and other crimes.
"The new units will not only help authorities in these nations combat domestic financial crimes, but will also enhance the ability of the United States to target money-laundering rings that operate both in South America and the United States," Mrs. Myers said.
The Tri-Border Area is flanked by the freewheeling cities of Puerto Iguazu in Argentina, Foz do Iguazu in Brazil and Ciudad del Este in Paraguay, where drug dealers and terrorists reportedly meet and where counterterrorism investigators worldwide have intensified their focus since the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States because of the growing presence of Islamic radicals.
Argentina's Secretariat of State Intelligence first reported in 1999 that members of the al Qaeda terrorist network were in the region to coordinate terrorism training and to plan attacks with Hezbollah against U.S. targets.
U.S. intelligence officials have been concerned that an alliance with Hezbollah would give al Qaeda a new base close to the United States for attacks.
The Treasury Department has described the Tri-Border Area as a "clear example" of where Islamic groups gather to "finance terrorist activities."
The department has said members of al Qaeda, Egypt's Al-Gamaa Islamiya, the Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah have drawn some of their funding from activities in the area.
The FBI sent agents to the region in 2002 after a poster of Iguazu Falls, the area's major tourist attraction, was found inside an al Qaeda bunker in Afghanistan.
Mrs. Myers said earlier efforts by the agency and other foreign governments to combat trade-based money laundering have yielded successful results, including an investigation into a $20 million gold export subsidy scheme in 2004 that led to the prosecution of 20 New York jewelers for money laundering.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 02:51 ||
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A 37-old Russian woman was brutally killed by her friend after she lied that she had fought on the separatists side in Chechnya as a sniper, the Ekspress-Gazeta daily reports. The woman, Yelena Skoryatina went missing after a party with colleagues at a furniture factory where she worked. Police started investigating the incident and soon began to suspect that the woman had been murdered they found blood spots on the floor of the room where the party took place. Investigators suspected two men who left the room last on the day when the victim was last seen. Soon, one of them, Denis Saunin, confessed to murder, but said that the victim deserved it.
Investigators established that Skoryatinas story was nothing but drunken bravado. She had been short-sighted from early childhood and had never left her native town of Ulyanovsk for more than a week.
Saunin, who is a veteran of the Chechen war told investigators that on the day when the murder took place he had been telling his colleagues about the atrocities committed by Chechen terrorists. The victim started arguing with him and said that Chechens were fighting for their freedom.
She said that [Chechen warlords] Maskhadov and Basayev were good people and at the end said that she had been a sniper with Chechen troops and taken out our boys, Saunin told the investigators. The light dimmed in my eyes as she said this and I thought I must avenge them. I thought Skoryatina is not leaving this party alive, he added.
After everybody had left, Saunin, a guard at a factory, battered the woman and then put out her right eye, because it is used in shooting and cut off the index finger on her right hand the finger used to pull the trigger, as well as the middle finger on her left hand as it is used in an obscene gesture after a good shot. She cried and begged for mercy but I could not stop the faces of our boys killed by Chechen snipers stood before my eyes, the killer said.
He did not stop at that. The veteran then stripped the woman, shoved the fingers hed cut off into her vagina and slit the victims throat.
Upon finishing the brutal murder, Saunin called his brother, they put the body into a bag with sawdust and buried it in the nearby garage block. Both brothers have been arrested and charged with murder. Saunin will undergo a psychiatric examination to test his sanity, investigators told the newspaper.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/24/2006 08:20 ||
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#1
She said that [Chechen warlords] Maskhadov and Basayev were good people and at the end said that she had been a sniper with Chechen troops and taken out our boys...
Call me a heartless bastard, but given that Basayev was behind the Nord-Ost and Beslan massacres, I'm not sure I can blame the guy. It's really hard to come up with a more solid case of "she was asking for it". The brutality of the torture and murder argues against that, but, damn, I'm finding it hard to feel any pity for her.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 8:37 Comments ||
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#2
My sympathy meter seems to be broken.... some "jokes" just ain't funny.
#3
Maybe it would have helped if she had claimed her son was a Russian soldier who had been killed in the war, so everybody had to be sympathetic to her and listen to what she said. Like, "It's all Putin's fault!"
#4
The veteran then stripped the woman, shoved the fingers hed cut off into her vagina and slit the victims throat.
Come on RC, that's not like you. While I agree that supporting the murderers of Beslan make her an unsympathetic victim, this is murder, plain and simple.
#6
There is a low threshold for this kind of "humor" in Russia. My wife is from there, and mother-in-law lives there. You won't believe the kinds of stuff we don't hear about that goes on with the Chechen rabble. I am with RC.
Petka wakes up in the morning all black and blue. He can't understand what has happened. He asks Vasily Ivanovich what's the matter with him. Why he is all over in shiners.
Vasily Ivanovich:
-You drunk yesterday?
-Drunk.
-I was silent when you insulted me, but then you shitted in the corner, put some matches in this heap and said: "This hedgehog will live with us!" I couldn't stand any longer!!!
#9
Come on RC, that's not like you. While I agree that supporting the murderers of Beslan make her an unsympathetic victim, this is murder, plain and simple.
Certainly. But I can't bring myself to care. Doesn't mean Saunin shouldn't face justice; he should.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 14:59 Comments ||
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But I can't bring myself to care.
can't argue with that. Too many truly sad stories in this world for hers to make the list.
#11
She was basically begging to get whacked for being a complete dumbass, true.....but no one deserves to get mutilated like that. Even my Russian sweetie agrees.
#12
Taking credit for anything remotely associated with Beslan should show up in the dictionary next to the first entry for "stupid." Did she die a brutal death? Yes. Should her murder be prosecuted? Yes. Was she incredibly stupid? Yes. Life is hard. It's even harder when you're stupid.
An Arab influence continues to transform secessionist efforts in Chechnya into a drive for an Islamic state. Islam, long part of the regions identity, however, was not the impetus for nationalistic movement to separate from Russia, underway since the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union. Al Qaeda has funded Chechen rebels and also trained many in Afghanistan, and the Russian government has taken advantage of such connections, labeling all major opposition movements as an Islamic threat. Yet Russia has 20 million Muslims. So Russian President Vladimir Putin has also tried to mend estranged relations with the government of Saudi Arabia, relying on such diplomacy to combat any notion that his government has an anti-Islamic agenda. Author and researcher Faryal Leghari urges the international community to expect Russia to fulfill its political commitment of extending power to the Chechens. Delaying fair elections or the withdrawal of Russian troops could give Islamic extremists more momentum in a volatile part of the world.
Certain dramatic developments in Chechnya have given rise to a perception that radical Islamist organisations have steered the secessionist movement toward creating an Islamic imamat in North Eastern Caucasus, similar to the Taleban regime in Afghanistan. Chechnya today stands at the intersection of radicalism and nationalism. Al Qaeda has funded the effort and also trained several hundred Chechens in Afghanistan
Islam has always been an integral part of its national identity but was not the impetus behind the nationalist movement that started after the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. The politicisation and radicalisation of Islam was a complex process that opened a Pandora's box with serious threats of the conflict morphing into an ethno religious war conflagrating the entire region. An obdurate refusal to change the policies by the Russian leadership has led to the current quagmire. The political stalemate remains with militant Islam threatening any chance of autonomy that the movement may try to achieve.
In this backdrop, it is crucial to understand the nature of the Arab involvement in the Chechen movement as it was alleged to have contributed significantly to changing the resistance from a nationalist movement into one characterised by religious radicalism.
Beslan, the theatre siege in Moscow, plane hijackings and various incidents of suicide bombings are a chilling reminder of the festering conflict in Chechnya which confirm two things: first, Moscow's ineptitude in winning the war against Chechen secessionism; and second, the acerbic reaction of the Chechens to the use of force by the Russians. Russian President Vladimir Putin's declaration to "bang the hell out of these bandits" has led to a worsening of the situation. However, the conflict in Chechnya is not one to be crushed militarily. According to General Aleksander Lebed, Russia is not "fighting terrorists and bandits, but a people".
In 2003, the US State Department designated three Chechen groups affiliated with Shamil Basaev as terrorists, and alleged that they had received millions of dollars from Al Qaeda. Thus, the Chechen resistance movement became forcefully identified with terrorism. The change in the nature of the conflict during the period between the two Chechen wars was a result of deepening religious awareness, reaction to Moscow's harsh policies and atrocities committed by Russian forces, as well as infiltration of foreign radical Islamic militants and their influence on the Chechen command.
Following the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, a number of people rallied to defend their fellow Muslims. Later, following the call of Abdullah Yusuf Azzam, transnational Islamic brigades were set up to defend frontline Muslim communities around the world. The International Islamic brigade, which took part in the first Chechen war in 1994, was set up by Habib Abdur Rehman Khattab, a Saudi by birth. As a teenager, Khattab had fought in Afghanistan alongside Osama bin Laden. Fighting in Tajikistan, Khattab gained a reputation for being a brilliant commander before moving to Chechnya as the head of the mujahideen where he was appointed commander of the operations under Basaev. Bin Laden maintained a close ideological, technological and financial relationship with Khattab. Later, Khattab married a Dagestani woman and lived in Chechnya till his death at the hands of the Russian intelligence in 2002.
Several hundred Chechens were trained in Al Qaeda's Afghan camps and provided with weapons. The Al Qaeda-influenced Al-Ansar mujahideen were considered the fiercest and most organised of the three major groups fighting the Russians in Chechnya. Most of the Chechen suicide attacks an unknown tactic in this part of the world were initiated by them.
Ultimately, Khattab's influence with Basaev extended to creating divisions among the top Chechen command that led President Maskhadov to implement an Islamic government and set up Sharia courts. Maskhadov's failure to create law and order, curb high crime rate and control radical commanders, however, led to a loss of credibility in Moscow. His assassination in March 2005 at the hands of the Russian secret service was hailed as a victory by the federal government, who lost a chance to pursue a political process in Chechnya with a key Chechen leader who enjoyed considerable influence amongst the people.
The exact number of foreign mercenaries fighting in Chechnya is unknown, but up to 300 Arabs reportedly took part in the war, according to Russian intelligence sources. The growth of this group's power in Chechnya played a key part in precipitating the second war by an armed incursion into Dagestan in 1999. In their isolated position, the Chechens chose to tap into the resources offered by the Islamic organisations and networks in the Middle East and Asia. The Arab involvement played right into the hands of the Russian leadership. Moscow interpreted all major opposition movements as an Islamic threat and found it useful to implicate external sources for indigenous problems.
In this context, Russia's recent attempts at being considered part of the Muslim world through membership to the OIC is part of a strategy to mend estranged relations with Saudi Arabia. With 20 million Muslims in Russia, Putin attempted to play the Islamic card when he addressed the OIC summit in Kuala Lumpur in Oct 2003. Moscow also sought to reverse perception amongst the Islamic world that it was pursuing anti-Islamic policies especially in North Caucasus. Russia's repeated accusations about Saudi Arabia funding militants and terrorist groups operating in Chechnya, saw a sudden change following Crown Prince Abdullah's visit to Russia in Sept 2003, with Putin lauding Saudi Arabia's role in the war against terrorism and contending that both countries shared similar concerns on terrorism.
Adding to the tension was the assassination of Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev in Doha in Feb 2004, which strained Qatar-Russia relations. Doha had repeatedly turned down Moscow's requests to extradite Yandarbiyev on Al Qaeda links. Besides being implicated in the Moscow theatre crisis, he was more importantly the link for sourcing finance to Chechen militants in the Gulf. Following the assassination, the Russian first secretary in Qatar was evicted and two Russian intelligence agents linked to the assassination were put on trial. The issue was put to rest only after an understanding was reached between the Russian and Qatari leaders, whereby the accused were returned to Moscow.
In light of the current stalemate following a majority of Chechens rejecting the outcome of "pre-determined" elections held in November 2005, the international community has a responsibility of addressing the crisis. Moscow must be pressured to fulfill its political commitment of giving power to Chechens through a complete withdrawal of its troops and fair elections. Isolating Chechnya and relegating the responsibility to Russia to deal as it deems fit is tantamount to a crime against humanity.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:23 ||
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The Al Qaeda terror cell is trying to recruit Azeri girls to carry out suicide attacks, the National Security Minister Eldar Mahmudov has said. The persons supposedly being drawn to join such extremist groups include believers from low-income families, religious students or the unemployed aged between 20 and 25, Mahmudov told Russian Interfax news agency. "The secret service bodies have been frequently encountering the activity of extremist groups aiming to disrupt the secular and democratic state-building in Azerbaijan and prompt the country to back off from the international anti-terror coalition. Such groups target strategic sites, embassies, the offices of foreign companies and areas densely populated by foreigners." The minister said that although the country has extensive experience in fighting extremism, the data suggesting that young women are being recruited by the Al Qaeda Caucasus cell "was the worst discovery for us over the past years".
Mahmudov said combat against religious extremists is one of the priorities for the secret service. Azerbaijan is actively cooperating with other countries, including the Commonwealth of Independent States, in fighting terror, Mahmudov said. "The terror acts committed recently in Europe and Asia once again showed that not a single state can counter terrorism on its own and deem itself fully protected from it."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 02:47 ||
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#1
fits right in with the "throw acid in the faces of little girls" crowd.
The visitors of Pravda.Ru website have been deprived of a possibility to access the website and its materials today. The main Russian version of the Pravda.Ru portal has been closed today...
...Chairman of Pravda.Ru Board of Directors, Vadim Gorshenin, said that the office of Pravda.Ru received an email from masterhost Internet provider on Thursday morning. The company particularly informed Pravda.Ru about a letter which they had received from the Federal Security Service of Russia. The letter said that the provider should take measures to remove several materials from the Pravda.Ru website, particularly those stirring up religious strife...
...Vadim Gorshenin, the chairman of Pravda.Ru Board of Directors, said that the website had never published the notorious cartoons...
From East Asia Intel, subscription.
A senior member of the Liberal Democratic Party, in Japans ruling coalition, has called for legislation to invoke sanctions against North Korea if it does not move on the issue of kidnapped Japanese citizens.
Public pressure has mounted on Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who has made repeated attempts to regularize relations with North Korea and enthusiastically participated in the six-power talks on nuclear disarmament. The sooner the Nork govt falls, the better off everyone will be.
Shinzo Abe, a candidate to succeed Koizumi who has announced he will step down this year, supported the measure in a recent TV interview. Abe said North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il should take a leaf from Libyas Moammar Khaddafys book to avoid being deposed by dismantling North Koreas nuclear weapons program and allow UN, U.S. and British inspectors to visit the facilities.
The current foreign exchange law prevents Japan from halting cash remittances to North Korea without a multinational agreement or a United Nations resolution. The revised law the LDP proposes would allow Japan to unilaterally imposed sanctions if the government deems them necessary to maintain peace and security. The LDP wants the bill enacted during the parliamentary session ending on June 18. I would hate to be beholden to the UN for my country's security.
Although North Korea has admitted abducting 13 people, it claims eight are dead. The other five were repatriated in 2002. But the issue has become a hot button for Japanese voters who watched heart-rending television of reunions, some of them showing adults abducted as children returning after decades but leaving families behind in North Korea. There is a widely held suspicion in Japan that there may be more unaccounted abductees.
Tokyo has been slowly tightening the economic noose on once-powerful North Korean financial front operations among the estimated 1 million Japanese Korean ethnics, many second and third generation Japan-born. Estimates of North Korean remittances to their kinfolk in North Korea had been as much as half a billion annually. More recently Japanese authorities have seen a sharp increase in the number of postal remittances to North Korea as the squeeze has been put on the North Korean-operated fronts. Mail remittances from Japan to North Korea are legal problems as insured mail under the Universal Postal Union treaty.
Through Pyongyang-dominated organizations and clandestine activities with the Japanese underworld, including drug trafficking, money laundering and using the presence of relatives in North Korea for extortion, Japan has been one of the principal sources of foreign exchange for the Pyongyang regime. As Pyongyangs economic crisis has deepened with the diversion of its meager resources to one of the worlds largest armies, conventional armaments and weapons of mass destruction, its Japan activities have become even more critical. But the Japanese government with the agreement of American policymakers has moved slowly on the issue, hoping to use North Korean economic dependence on Japan as leverage in the overall efforts to halt the nuclear buildup. Use every non-military tool in the box to bring down the Norks. That is the only way to be sure that the Norks have no Nukes. They are liars, drug dealers, counterfitters, murderers, and kidnappers, ya know. You cannot negotiate with the likes of these.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Give them their Money, Nukes, Empire, and International Recognition-Credibility, JAPAN - D*** YOU, dem dar law-abiding Norkies only abducted a mere 13 people without their consent.
From East Asia Intel, subscription.
Even with the UN Security Council tied up in the knots over how to move toward halting Teherans nuclear armaments project, Japanese oil refiners were getting skittish about their heavy dependence on Iranian crude. Nippon Oil, Japans No. 1 refiner, announced it would cut back on Iran crude by 15 percent this year. Oil is a fungible commodity, but this does send a message. Probably the Chicoms will pick up the slack with the M²s.
Whatever other considerations in the decision, Fumiaki Watari, Nippons chairman, told the Financial Times: We have started reducing the percentage of Iranian crude and [are] shifting to other grades. Risks related to the country are getting higher.
Iran supplies 14 percent of Japans total oil supply, the third-largest supplier after Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Nippons decision would mean reducing Irans shipments to Japan by 4 percent. Nippon said it would substitute oil from its major suppliers Kuwait, Russia and Indonesia to make up the shortfall. Some Teheran spokesmen had already threatened to use the oil weapon if the Security Council moved ahead with efforts to halt Irans flouting of the International Atomic Energy Agencys efforts to halt its uranium enrichment program. Teheran says it is for peaceful uses but Washington and its Western allies suspect it is a means of moving to nuclear weapons production.
Japanese policymakers have been torn between their traditional opposition to nuclear proliferation and their heavy dependence on imported fossil fuel. Earlier the U.S. and Japan were publicly at odds over Tokyo's proposed investment in a major new Iranian oilfield as the nuclear weapons crisis developed.
Washington is said to be trying to counter Irans threat to use its oil as a counter weapon to possible UN sanctions to force an end to its nuclear program.
European and Asian oil companies, including Royal Dutch Shell, Frances Total and Japans Inpex, have contracts in Iran. Iran is increasing its shipment as the largest supplier for China, which is also the worlds second-largest consumer. China and Russia, with their veto of any Security Council action, have said they oppose sanctions and could block any U.S. attempt to impose UN economic sanctions on Iran. Iraq UN redux. This sh*t is getting old.
But Irans economy, depending on oil and gas for 80 percent of its exports, and importing refined product from Kuwait to keep its own automobiles going, could be highly vulnerable even to limited sanctions, even were they were applied unilaterally by only some of the major oil importers. The U.S. already has sanctions in place, which have partially impacted Irans oil industry.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Fungible yes, but if an individual user/refinery can avoid risk by paying a higher price to another provider that puts price pressure on the supplier in question. Saddam had to sell a lot of oil at way below market. Risky supplies degrade price.
#2
It's actualy a very smart move things are going to go Boom in Iran shortly and having another source beforehand makes the pain go away.
Pity those who believe there's no problem, they're the ones who will hurt the most when Iranian oil is disrupted, scrambling for the dregts not already contracted for years in advance means you pay the high dollar for the second and third grade crude stocks, and they're in short supply too.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/24/2006 20:18 Comments ||
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In the aftermath of the Dubai ports dispute, the Bush administration is hiring a Hong Kong conglomerate to help detect nuclear materials inside cargo passing through the Bahamas to the United States and elsewhere.
The administration acknowledges the no-bid contract with Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. represents the first time a foreign company will be involved in running a sophisticated U.S. radiation detector at an overseas port without American customs agents present. Apparently al-Qaeda couldn't guarantee the bid specifications in time.
#1
Some parts of the Federal bureaucracy appear to be operating with a September 10 mindset. The fact that their jobs are protected by union rules probably contributes to that mindset. If another September 11-type incident occurs, some of these people need to be given life sentences for negligent homicide.
#2
After seeing this story, my first thought was, for poetic justice, why did our government go with a Taiwanese company? This would have shaken things up a bit. I suspect that a Taiwanese firm would have been less of a threat for present and future. Don't get me wrong, native people from Hong Kong are great, especially those who were not thrilled about having their country managed from Beijing, but I am more worried about the staff imports from China; their allegiance is more worthy of concern.
The U.S. may be a Diplomatic and Business player with China, but China military is a potential threat to the U.S. mainland either themselves or via a proxy 3rd party country that shares the same land mass as the U.S.
#3
D: Don't get me wrong, native people from Hong Kong are great, especially those who were not thrilled about having their country managed from Beijing, but I am more worried about the staff imports from China; their allegiance is more worthy of concern.
Li Ka-shing was born in Shanghai. The vast majority of his extensive business interests are in China. I wouldn't trust any Taiwanese company either, because the same applies to many Taiwanese companies. The fact is that we need Americans vetting these installations.
Supervised by Bahamian customs officials, Hutchison employees will drive the towering, truck-like radiation scanner that moves slowly over large cargo containers and scans them for radiation that might be emitted by plutonium or a radiological weapon. Any positive reading would set off alarms monitored simultaneously by Bahamian customs inspectors at Freeport and by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials working at an anti-terrorism center 800 miles away in northern Virginia. Any alarm would prompt a closer inspection of the cargo, and there are multiple layers of security to prevent tampering, officials said.
"The equipment operates itself," said Bryan Wilkes, a spokesman for the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, the agency negotiating the contract. "It's not going to be someone standing at the controls pressing buttons and flipping switches."
There are no U.S. customs agents checking any cargo containers at the Hutchison port in Freeport. Under the contract, no U.S. officials would be stationed permanently in the Bahamas with the radiation scanner.
Hutchison operates the sprawling Freeport Container Port on Grand Bahama Island. Its subsidiary, Hutchison Port Holdings, has operations in more than 20 countries but none in the United States. Contract documents obtained by AP indicate Hutchison will be paid roughly $6 million. The contract is for one year with options for three years.
The National Nuclear Security Administration, which is an Energy Department agency tasked with strengthening nuclear security worldwide, is negotiating the Bahamas contract under a $121 million program it calls the "second line of defense." Wilkes, the NNSA spokesman, said the Bahamian government dictated that the U.S. give the contract to Hutchison.
"It's their country, their port. The driver of the mobile carrier is the contractor selected by their government. We had no say or no choice," he said. "We are fortunate to have allies who are signing these agreements with us."
In a nutshell, it's a Bahamian port operated by a chinese firm. Bahamian government insisted the port operator do the scanning. I'll wager there was a "take it or leave it" implied.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/24/2006 13:34 Comments ||
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#5
You didn't think all that pretty posing was going to be free did 'ya? We got the proofs, the negatives are going to be pricey.
#6
Article: "It's their country, their port. The driver of the mobile carrier is the contractor selected by their government. We had no say or no choice," he said.
And they're our imports. If the Bahamian government doesn't feel like having US customs select the contractor (thanks to pay-offs from Hutchison Whampoa for a no-bid contract) or having US customs agents (who are less susceptible to bribery than their Bahamian counterparts) look over the whole process, Uncle Sam can ban cargo coming through the Bahamas. I guess that would make their port facilities useless, wouldn't it?
I'd want redundant systems, redundant redundant systems and redundant backup systems aplenty, what good is a system if the signal doesn't get through.
Six or so lines which also carry a carrier wave system so any interruptions are instantly noticed should be considered an absolute minimum.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/24/2006 20:27 Comments ||
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#8
maybe Bahamas should take a year off from US tourism/shipping? Letting the bitch know who calls the shots is worthwhile sometimes
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/24/2006 21:48 Comments ||
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SEOUL: North Korea appears to be signalling a desire to return to stalled six-country talks on its nuclear programmemes and to be interested in breaking the deadlock, South Korea's foreign minister said on Thursday. Ban Ki-moon - a candidate for the post of UN secretary-general - also told Reuters a visit next month by Chinese President Hu Jintao to the United States could help create the right atmosphere for the nuclear talks to resume.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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INDONESIA has recalled its ambassador to Australia in a fierce retaliation to the granting of asylum to 42 West Papuans - but now hundreds more plan to flee to Australia.
Angered by the protection visas given to the independence activists, Jakarta yesterday called into question future co-operation in the fight against people smuggling.
It said it "deeply deplored" Australia's stance, saying it was baseless, damaged attempts to resolve Papua's problems and justified claims that Australian "elements" supported independence for the province.
Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, said "inconsistency" by Australia on the issue of the West Papuans threatened to undermine bi-lateral discussions. "We are afraid this would weaken co-operation among the parties dealing with cases of illegal migrants," he said.
The Foreign Affairs Department said the recall of Hamzah Thayeb, described by Jakarta as a declaration of displeasure, was a "matter for Indonesia".
However, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, had earlier warned that any retaliation by Jakarta over the visa decision would be "self-defeating" given the two countries' co-operation in fighting people smuggling, illegal fishing and terrorism. "I hope they understand where we're coming from - we're certainly not in any way changing our position on the recognition of West Papua as part of the Republic of Indonesia," he said. He said he expected "protests of one kind or another" from Indonesia but believed bilateral relations would "settle down" after a short period of time.
However, the Herald has leaned that about another 500 Papuans are preparing to seek refuge in Australia.
The President of the West Papua National Authority, Edison Waromi, who organised the original exodus in January, said more Papuans wanted to seek asylum in Australia, more so in light of last week's violent protests over the Freeport gold mine.
"They are now waiting for the result," he told the Herald before the Immigration Department announced its decision this week. "If the request is granted, automatically the rest will go too."
Mr Waromi also revealed that his group had been planning the trip for two years as "a diplomatic strategy to explain to the international world of the problem that exists in Papua".
The Herald also learned that about 200 Papuans tried to join the original group, but could not fit in the outrigger canoe used.
The Papuan head of the Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission, Albert Rumbekwan, said: "The people who could not make it to Australia are now terrified because they believe the security forces already have their names."
Posted by: bk ||
03/24/2006 11:18 Comments ||
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#2
Let me guess -- the Papuans are Christians (possibly pagans with their pre-contact religion) and they're sick of being treated like scum by the Islamists?
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 14:49 Comments ||
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SOFIA, Bulgaria, March 24 (UPI) -- Bulgaria Friday confirmed that the United States will establish three military bases in the country as part of a new deployment strategy. Under the deal, 3,000 American soldiers will be based at the Novo Selo training base and at the Bezmer and Graf Ignatievo airbases.
The agreement will be signed by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice when she participates in a summit for NATO foreign ministers in Sofia next month. If the bases are to be used for military attacks, the Bulgarian parliament must give its approval.
Last December, a similar agreement was signed with Romania. The new deployments are part of plans announced by the Pentagon, to transfer troops from Germany and South Korea to new bases in Eastern Europe, where they are within close range of the Middle East. Bulgaria is one of Washington's staunchest allies in the region. Along with neighboring country Romania, it also tops the list of European states that are suspected of having hosted covert interrogation centers used by the CIA. The two Black Sea states have vehemently denied the allegations, which were published by human rights organizations in November.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/24/2006 14:48 ||
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#1
...which were published by human rights organizations in November.
And have been shown to be complete fabrications as well.
Good. I would rather pump money and bases into countries that actually want to fight the war on terror rather than countries that take our money and then stab us in the back.
#4
I remember a "new" europe vs "old" europe proposed by Rummy....think Bulgaria's Sharia-bound? Me neither. They know the value of a ricin-tipped umbrella curly-toed slipper against the right Imam
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/24/2006 18:44 Comments ||
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Alex Alexiev, adviser on national Security with the Pentagon and the CIA, and a Vice President for Research with the Center for Security Policy and leads the program on Islamic Radicalism And International Terrorism, said in an interview for FOCUS News Agency that the strong presence of Wahabi groups in Bulgaria and the attempts to islamize Turkey are worrying for the countrys future.
"So far in much better shape, but lately there are some very disturbing trends noticeable. First, I have to say that the Bulgarian Muslims, like those of the rest of the Balkans and Russia are syncretic and of Sufi origin and have always been very moderate. Recently however there are two trends that give me reason to be very concerned. First, there is the increasing presence in Bulgaria of radical Wahhabi groups like Al-Waqf al-Islami and many others which have lots of money to buy mosques and imams or build new ones for the express purpose of preaching hatred.
Secondly, and much more importantly right now, is the disturbing trend of the rapid Islamization of Turkey under the government of Erdogan. I dont have the time in this interview to go into any detail, but what we have in Turkey today is a wholesale assault by Erdogans regime on the secular traditions of Turkish society as established by Mustafa Kemal. In virtually all areas of society, be it education, the judiciary system, financial institutions, culture and last but most, the military, Turkish secularism is presently seriously threatened. If Turkey. God forbids succumbs to Islamism, our national security will be seriously challenged.", Mr. Alexiev said.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:26 ||
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#1
Years ago, I was given a Wahabi Koran from WAMY propagandists. There is no quid pro quo because Christian outreach is outlawed in the Saud terrorist entity.
#2
What language was the Koran in, Listen to Dogs? If Arabic, do you read the language? (Mr. Wife learnt some when he was doing plant start-ups in that part of the world, but I don't think he ever reached the level of being able to read such a thing.)
Swedish foreign minister Laila Freivalds resigned on Tuesday (21 March) following a row connected to the infamous Mohammed cartoons. Ms Freivalds had faced fierce criticism after the Swedish foreign ministry allegedly ordered the website of a far-right party, Sweden Democrats, which had threatened to publish the cartoons, to be shut down. The website was closed when a foreign ministry official contacted the firm Levonline that hosted the website.
In response to allegations that the move violated Swedish freedom of speech laws, Ms Freivalds claimed the official had merely pointed out that the website was endangering the lives of Swedes. Ms Freivalds also said she had no knowledge of her ministry's contact with the website hosts.
Swedish prime minister Goran Persson also accused the ministry official of acting unconstitutionally by letting his own opinion in the matter guide his acts instead of Swedish law. Earlier this week, the official himself told the Swedish attorney-general investigating the closure that he had deliberated with Ms Freivalds prior to contacting Levonline, and that the minister had claimed the move was vital to "protect Swedish interests." The incident has been seen as embarrassing the prime minister.The shutting down of the website is currently being investigated by the Swedish parliamenta constitutional committee and the office of the chancellor of justice, and opposition leaders on Wednesday hinted that a possible vote of no confidence against the prime minister may be initiated.
Cartoons legacy hangs over Denmark
Meanwhile across the Oresund strait, Denmark has reacted with anger to a UN campaign poster marking the World Day against racism, picturing a jigsaw puzzle and a piece of Lego - one of Denmark's best export products and almost a national symbol. "Racism takes many shapes" says the poster, which has also been printed in Arabic. Danish human rights activists call the poster "tactless and stupid" and the "deeply surprised" Lego firm has contacted the UN for an explanation, the Nordic press writes. After an official request by Danish foreign minister Per Stig Moller, UN spokesperson Jose Luis Diaz said the poster designer was "probably not aware of the Lego piece origin", and that the poster would be withdrawn.
#4
"...UN spokesperson Jose Luis Diaz said the poster designer was "probably not aware of the Lego piece origin..."
...Rendering the UN stupid instead of libelous. I'd love to hear old Jose Luis Diaz explain to us the meaning of a child's block toy of "unknown origin" in a poster against racism. OH, modern art, I get it, it's not supposed to MEAN anything. Makes sense then that it came from the UN.
#6
The UN and racism.....my ass.
Every country in the UN is up to their ears in racism, except the US and maybe a few others. These people have more balls than brains to address racism. In anothre of today's articles, Paleos aren't accepted into Iraqi society. They're the same race for pit's sake. The Basques hate the Spanish, most young French are second class citizens, the Turks in Germany live in separate areas, and on and on.
Racism is the biggest joke on the planet.
Danish holy men imams will not call for Muslims to end a boycott of their country's goods until Danes apologise for cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, an imam said on Thursday. The announcement belied reports in Danish media suggesting that a delegation of imams to an Islamic conference in Bahrain would call for an end to the boycott.
Raed Hlayhel, who is leading a delegation of Danish imams to the International Conference for Supporting the Prophet, said that the delegation had not asked for the boycott to be lifted, but rather that it should not be expanded. "Danish people must send a reassuring message to Muslims that they do not agree with what was printed in the newspaper and that they respect Muslims," Hlayhel said. "The ball is in their court... They have to help us to end this boycott."
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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"Respect" - what it means here: Danish people must accept hegemony!
parlé ummah?
MONTREALThe Quebec Human Rights Commission says a university-affiliated institution should try to find reasonable accommodation where its Muslim students can pray. Some students at the Ecole de Technologie Supérieure, affiliated with the Université du Québec, complained they had to pray in the stairwell. The students want the school to build a separate prayer room because they are tired of kneeling on prayer mats. awwwww, cabeza pounding on concrete builds character
A commission spokesman says the college has a responsibility to offer reasonable prayer accommodation to the Muslim students but is not obliged to offer space that is exclusive to them. up ur upzilla
Marc-André Dowd, the commission's interim president, said a multi-faith chapel or classrooms are possibilities. The school's "secular format doesn't exempt it from its obligation to reasonably accommodate its Muslim students," he told a news conference. The complaint was launched on behalf of 113 students.
The commission also ruled that pictograph signs prohibiting the washing of feet in the school's sinks wasn't discriminatory against Muslims, who must perform the ritual. Witnesses testified that it's acceptable for a person to simply pass his wet hands over his feet.
#1
Unless we stop this piecemeal Shariazation, this crap will come to your plant, your office, your school, etc It won't come to your liquor store, because these won't exist in the near future.
#4
Why? All the other religious groups manage to pay their own damned way, why can't Muslims?
I suspect that this university already does provide space for Catholic students. If it does then other religious groups have a valid point in demanding some sort of suitable space.
Keep in mind that Canada has two educational systems at the elementary and secondary level: the Catholic school board, and the public school board. Both are publicly funded. The Catholic school board hasn't yet seen this sort of controversy because obviously not many Muslims go to Catholic schools.
At the college level, however, it is possible to see Muslim students at publicly funded, traditionally Catholic institutions. So the college system will always be at the front lines of these type of cultural clashes. In the interest of fairness, equality and what have you, colleges and universities will usually bend over backwards to accomodate students of various religions.
Posted by: Rafael ||
03/24/2006 14:14 Comments ||
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The president of a Cedar Rapids-based Muslim group proposing to build a youth camp here said he hopes to start initial work, including land surveys, early next month. "We hope to start initial work sometime within a few weeks," said Manzoor Ali, president of Muslim Youth Camps of America, or MYCA. "I will be back the first or second week of April to start developing the project plan," Ali said during a telephone interview Thursday.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved and signed a lease of up to 25 years with MYCA. Under the agreement, the Corps can terminate the lease at the end of the five-year period if it determines MYCA has not finished a sufficient level of building or planning by that point. Otherwise, the lease can be renewed for 20 more years.
The camp would host up to 60 campers, about half as many as initially first proposed by MYCA in 1999. "Obviously, we are very happy about that and we appreciate (the) cooperation of the Corps of Engineers," Ali said. "For the last eight years, we've been working together. ... We will follow the lease according to the plan." Ali said he did not know when the camp would open but said he hoped to release more details after the MYCA board meeting in early April. Construction is expected to take place during a five-year period.
MYCA's original proposal called for a 17,500-square-foot lodge, 12 tent camping platforms, 10 cabins and a 75-foot-tall prayer tower. Those plans have since been cut in half and the $934,000 camp would now include a 2,400-square-foot central lodge, five cabins, five tent pads, a central bathroom facility and a trail system. The camp would occupy the former Girl Scout Camp Daybreak on more than 100 acres of land two miles northeast of North Liberty adjacent to Coralville Lake. The Girl Scouts used the area until a 1990 fire destroyed their lodge. The land has remained in federal custody under the U.S. Corps of Engineers.
An Army Corps of Engineers spokesman has said the MYCA has the right to start camping on the site immediately but must receive local, county or state permits before it can build. Although MYCA is a Muslim-based organization, the camp would be open to children of all faiths, representatives from the group have said. Under the lease, non-profit groups can use the federal land intermittently during the non-camping season, with a total of about 1,500 people a year.
Terese Lisenbee, who lives near the proposed camp along Cumberland Ridge Road, said she does not have any problems with the camp as long as it adheres to the size set out in the lease. "The only concern that I think my husband and I have had is once they lease the land ... they'll try to expand it to a larger campus than what the specs were supposed to be," Lisenbee said. "We wanted to keep it more like a camp setting similar to what the (Girl Scout) kids were in."
Questions about sewage and infrastructure improvements on the site remain. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is responsible for issuing a wastewater permit to MYCA. Chuck Corell of the DNR's water quality bureau was out of the office Thursday and unavailable for comment. Johnson County planning and zoning administrator Rick Dvorak also was out of the office Thursday, but assistant administrator RJ Moore said MYCA seems to be meeting prior concerns expressed by the county. "I think Rick feels that they're moving in a direction that the county can feel comfortable with," Moore said.
Huh. Why are all the gov't folks unavailable for comment? I thought they'd be pretty excited about their multiculturalism...
MYCA's proposal attracted national media attention after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Lisenbee said there was some concern initially after she heard the group considered to provide camping for people who came from outside the country. "Well, I can't say that it doesn't enter your mind. That wouldn't be truthful to say," she said. "But somewhat, it's still in the back of your mind." Rick Hollis, who also lives near the proposed camp, said the camp would fit in the neighborhood as long as it stays small. "I don't think it's a good piece of property for a camp, but the Corps should have recognized that a long time ago," Hollis said. "As long as it stays the size they say it will or the Corps says they want them to be, it's something that the neighborhood will live with." Front Page Magazine took a look at some of the fine folks involved with this project: Camp Terror
#3
Ya'll see, these phucktards don't yet know who the enemy is. This calls for some serious lead poisoning finger pointing in Iowa to put an end to this crap.
#5
Ahem, let's not go making threats about bodily harm to folks in the U.S. That could (conceivably) get the 'Burg (and Fred) into some trouble, and we don't want that.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/24/2006 10:46 Comments ||
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#6
Although MYCA is a Muslim-based organization, the camp would be open to children of all faiths, representatives from the group have said.
Sure, how else will the campers earn their raping and beheading badges?
#7
Besides which, we aren't going to get rid of every Muslim in the world, we're only going to defang the dangerous ones. We need to be prepared to live with those who survive in a civilized fashion. We should be constantly sending the message, living in peace can be good, living at war will be hell.
#10
This camp is also not far from the nuclear plant in the outskirts of Cedar Rapids and about 3 1/2 hours from Chicago. A starving student document forger was arrested in CR after having shared an apartment with a 9-1-1 hijacker in Chicago previously, but he apparently chirped. Is there any connection to the group scouting out sites for camps in Oregon?
Hello mullah, hello muttawa
Here I am at, Camp Jihada
Camp is pious, Im just saying
And they say well have some fun once were done praying
I went biking with Ali Balbeks
And his backpack was full of Semtex
You remember Hakeem Heyder
He got lashes for not eating all his dinner
All the Shiites hate the Sunnis
And they both think, the Kurds are loonies
The mullah wants no, Omar Khyams
So he reads to us from something called the Koran
Now I dont want, this should scare ya
But the imams are preaching terror
You remember Jibril Wazi
Now he wants to go and be a kamikaze
Take me home, oh Madaar Pedar
Take me home, I hate Jihada
Dont leave me out in, Sadr City
Where I might get blown to pieces, itty bitty
Take me home, I promise I will be holy
Thinking pure thoughts, only them solely
The imam forbids me to say
Ive been here one whole day
Dearest Pedar, darling Madaar
Hows my precious baraadar?
Let me come home, if you miss me
I would even let Aunt Sophie hug and kiss me
Wait a minute, theyve stopped praying
Try this vest on, the mullahs saying
Seventy virgins, gee thats better
Madaar Pedar, kindly disregard this letter.
#12
Iowa has been hosed up for some time. This is just one more folly in a long line of politically correct abominations. To whit, the current governor, Tom Vilsack, has been actively recruiting illegal Mexican labor for the meat packing plants (they also vote Democrat whether they know it or not) and has signed a deal with Illinois to settle parolees from Joliet in the suburbs of Iowa City. The folks in Iowa City are not too happy about the results of either initiative. My brother, who lives in North Liberty, has been talking about this for some time. While no one (outside of the University) thinks it is a good idea, the politically correct power structure can't bring itself to say no.
My guess is that the camp will experience a series of accidents and fires during the construction phase. Would be jihadis should be aware that most Iowans outside of the PC bastions around the university are armed and can return fire quickly and accurately.
#15
Clever, Zenster. RWV, my experience with Iowa City folks (factory, not university) was that they were very independent yeoman farmer types, exceedingly pro-active, and very clear in their minds what needs to be done and when/how to accomplish it. Whatever tests I needed done on my experimental products during test runs were done and the results handed to me by the time I'd got myself organized to initiate things. A pleasure to work with, once I figured out they meant Hawks, not hawgs. (I still don't know who they are, but it became clear we weren't discussing livestock.) ;-)
#19
If they teach the Koran, it's a madrassa. And if children of other religions are allowed, it's for conversion. I'm sure little Johnny will be REQUIRED to pray 5 times a day and learn the texts, not just encouraged. I'd look into the camp rules before I extended that lease. Dhimmies.
A former Democratic senator and 9/11 commissioner says a recently declassified Iraqi account of a 1995 meeting between Osama bin Laden and a senior Iraqi envoy presents a "significant set of facts," and shows a more detailed collaboration between Iraq and Al Qaeda.
In an interview yesterday, the current president of the New School University, Bob Kerrey, was careful to say that new documents translated last night by ABC News did not prove Saddam Hussein played a role in any way in plotting the attacks of September 11, 2001.
Nonetheless, the former senator from Nebraska said that the new document shows that "Saddam was a significant enemy of the United States." Mr. Kerrey said he believed America's understanding of the deposed tyrant's relationship with Al Qaeda would become much deeper as more captured Iraqi documents and audiotapes are disclosed.
Last night ABC News reported on five recently declassified documents captured in Iraq. One of these was a handwritten account of a February 19, 1995, meeting between an official representative of Iraq and Mr. bin Laden himself, where Mr. bin Laden broached the idea of "carrying out joint operations against foreign forces" in Saudi Arabia. The document, which has no official stamps or markers, reports that when Saddam was informed of the meeting on March 4, 1995 he agreed to broadcast sermons of a radical imam, Suleiman al Ouda, requested by Mr. bin Laden.
The question of future cooperation is left an open question. According to the ABC News translation, the captured document says, "development of the relationship and cooperation between the two parties to be left according to what's open [in the future] based on dialogue and agreement on other ways of cooperation." ABC notes in their report that terrorists, believed to be Al Qaeda, attacked the Saudi National Guard headquarters on November 13, 1995.
The new documents suggest that the 9/11 commission's final conclusion in 2004, that there were no "operational" ties between Iraq and Al Qaeda, may need to be reexamined in light of the recently captured documents.
While the commission detailed some contacts between Iraq and Al Qaeda in the 1990s, in Sudan and Afghanistan, the newly declassified Iraqi documents provide more detail than the commission disclosed in its final conclusions. For example, the fact that Saddam broadcast the sermons of al-Ouda at bin Laden's request was previously unknown, as was a conversation about possible collaboration on attacks against Saudi Arabia.
"This is a very significant set of facts," former 9/11 commissioner, Mr. Kerry said yesterday. "I personally and strongly believe you don't have to prove that Iraq was collaborating against Osama bin Laden on the September 11 attacks to prove he was an enemy and that he would collaborate with people who would do our country harm. This presents facts should not be used to tie Saddam to attacks on September 11. It does tie him into a circle that meant to damage the United States."
Mr. Kerry also answered affirmatively when asked whether or not the release of more of the documents captured in Iraq could possibly shed further light on Iraq's relationship with al Qaeda. The former senator was one of the staunchest supporters of the 1998 Iraq Liberation Act, which made the policy of regime change U.S. law.
However, Mr. Kerry has also been a critic of how the administration has waged the campaign in Baghdad, which he calls the "third Iraq war," meaning that the period between the invasions of 1991 and 2003 was a prolonged military engagement.
The directorate of national intelligence with the U.S. Army foreign military studies office has begun to make over 50,000 boxes of documents and some 3,000 hours of audio tape captured in Iraq available on the Web at http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/products-docex.htm. The release of these files comes after the chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Peter Hoekstra, a Republican from Michigan, threatened to introduce legislation that would force the federal government to make the new information available.
A reporter for the Weekly Standard, Steven Hayes, yesterday said he thought the memorandum of the 1995 meeting demolishes the view of some terrorism experts that bin Laden and Saddam were incapable of cooperating for ideological and doctrinal reasons.
"Clearly from this document bin Laden was willing to work with Saddam to achieve his ends, and clearly from this document Saddam did not immediately reject the idea of working with bin Laden," Mr. Hayes said. "It is possible that documents will emerge later that suggest skepticism on the part of Iraqis to working with bin Laden, but this makes clear that there was a relationship."
Mr. Hayes's story this week makes the case that the Iraqi embassy in Manila was funding and keeping close tabs on the Al Qaeda affiliate in the Philippines, Abu Sayyaf.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:12 ||
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There is also photo where is Dick Ch. shaking his hand with Saddam H. Is this also a evidence?
#3
Saddam couldnt possibly have been cooperating with Binnie, could he? He was a staunch secularist, after all. Osama never would have stood for all those boozy shag parties and pork pies, either.
A US Army dog handler was sentenced to six months in prison for tormenting detainees at Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib jail with his unmuzzled Belgian shepherd, an Army spokeswoman said on Wednesday. Sgt Michael Smith, 24, faced up to 8 1/2 years in prison after he was found guilty on six of 13 counts brought against him. He will also have his rank reduced to private and must pay a total of $2,250 in fines for harassing and threatening inmates in 2003 and 2004, Army spokeswoman Shaunteh Kelly said.
After he serves his 179-day sentence, he will be released from the military with a bad conduct discharge, Kelly said. That is one step above a dishonorable discharge. Photos of inmates being intimidated by dogs and sexually humiliated were broadcast around the world after the abuses became public in 2004, undermining Washington's efforts to win support for its war in Iraq. Several of these photos were introduced as evidence in Smith's trial. Prosecutors said during the trial that Smith took pleasure in forcing detainees to do what he called "the doggie dance" as they squirmed in terror.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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(2006-03-22) Justice Department officials said today they have a new plan to get the so-called 20th hijacker executed, despite a TSA attorneys bungling that may have allowed Zacarias Moussaoui to escape the death penalty under U.S. law.
The novel prosecution approach calls for getting Mr. Moussaoui converted to Christianity, then shipping him to Afghanistan with a Bible verse tattooed on his forehead.
The latest rendition of the death penalty strategy, which lawyers acknowledge faces some significant obstacles, was sparked by news that an Afghani man, Abdul Rahman, faces execution under Muslim Sharia law for becoming a Christian and carrying a Bible.
In the U.S., we cant get a confessed terrorist executed after five years of trying, said an unnamed Justice Department attorney, But when Moussaoui lands in Kabul, hell be lucky to make it through baggage retrieval alive.
A spokesman for Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, said the government has asked him to come to Mr. Moussaouis prison cell to lead him in a 40 Days of Purpose course in hopes that hell hear, and believe, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
NEW DELHI: The government has received 'credible inputs of threats from certain terrorist organisations' to the proposed twin 'National Integration Yatra' by Leader of Opposition L K Advani and BJP president Rajnath Singh from April 6.
Following the receipt of specific intelligence, the Home Ministry has conveyed the threat perception to the party and asked it to ensure at the earliest 'proper bullet-proofing' of the raths (vehicles) proposed to be utilised for the yatra by both the leaders, sources said. This has been done as both the yatras 'would be an attractive target for militants/terrorist groups as well as would be passing through areas affected by naxalism', they said.
The Ministry has also asked Governments of the states through which the yatras would pass to make 'comprehensive security arrangements', they said.
Advani had announced the party's plans to undertake the twin yatra a day after the Varanasi bomb blasts with the objective of 'creating public awareness about the minority appeasement policies of the UPA government and the threat it posed to the nation's unity and integrity'. In a television interview last week, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan had said the Government had received specific intelligence about threats to Advani in Uttar Pradesh during his proposed rath yatra.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/24/2006 14:36 ||
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Naxalism threatens Rath Yatra
Most obscure headline on Rantburg, EVER.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
03/24/2006 16:02 Comments ||
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Can one of our intelligence experts step in here to tell us what it all means? Because, from reading this, I have no friggin idea what it means...
#3
Naxalism - Naxals are marxist terrorists who run around certain Indian states bloewing up things.
Rath - chariot
Yatra - a pilgrimage or procession
LK Advani likes his processions where he stokes Hindu nationalism.
His last yatra was for the construction of a hindu temple at Ayodha. It ended up in the demolition of the unused mosque at the site (built over the site of a temple scared to Hindus), rioting, much death.
BTW, when he was deputy PM, he did nothing to have the temple built.
Advani's stocks are in the dump now. He went to Pakistan (he was born in Karachi, now in Pakistan) and praised MA Jinnah.
That did not go down too well with his supporters.
The recent bombings of Hindu temples and the dhimmitude of the current Indian government -reluctance to arrest minister who called for death of cartoonist, failed attempt at affirmative action for muslims in the army, ongoing attempts at affirmative action quotas for muslims in government jobs, pandering to muslim voters -
have resulted in a growing backlash among the majority population.
Advani sense this backlash and wishes to exploit it, - hence his yatra around India, to whip up support.
His last yatra saw him being the deputy PM. He hopes this one will see him elected as PM.
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 16:44 Comments ||
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btw, Advani is not the Hindu chavanist devil he is frequently portrayed as.
He was born in what is now Pakistan and pines for the old days when hindu and muslim lived togther in Karachi. He proposes a south asian union where the Indi-Pak border would be just a line on a map.
He is an old man.
The young Indians have no memory of life in pre-independence India and their only experience of Pakistan is as a terrorist state.
When they come to power, they will not be as Advani or PM MM Singh (also born in what is now Pakistan). They will not be moved by the fact that Pervez Musharraf was born in Delhi. He will not be a long lost brother to them (as Advani may think).
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 16:55 Comments ||
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#5
Aw John, there you go screwing up a weird story with facts.
#6
And India is a very different place now.
Globalization has changed things forever.
Advani riding a chariot like some hindu god from the Mahabarat is more likely to attract eggs and assorted rotten produce then any loving devotion.
He is probbaly going to be very disppointed.
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 17:19 Comments ||
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#7
He may welcome an attack by marxists that may draw sympathy and media attention.
The alternative for him is far more terrible - apathy and disinterest that sends him (and a lot of the other geriatrics that rule India) where they belong - an old age home.
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 17:26 Comments ||
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Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called for a treaty of peace and friendship with Pakistan. The overture aims at injecting fresh momentum into a flagging peace initiative between the two nuclear powers.
Just before a new bus service got under way between the Indian city of Amritsar and the Pakistani city of Nanakana Sahib, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid out his vision for future relations between the South Asian rivals.
He expressed the hope that the two countries will replace decades of animosity with a "treaty of peace, security and friendship". He also urged Islamabad to reciprocate, saying such a pact could give new substance to a common quest for progress.
The Indian leader reiterated New Delhi's firm commitment to the peace process that began between the neighbors more than two years ago. Tensions have eased since then, but Pakistan accuses India of dragging its feet in solving their core dispute over the Himalayan territory of Kashmir, which both countries claim.
Responding to those accusations, Mr. Singh said he is "not afraid" of finding a practical, pragmatic solution to the Kashmir issue. He wants both countries to work toward making the disputed border "irrelevant - just lines on the map."
The Indian Prime Minister also urged Pakistan not to link normalization of relations on other fronts to the Kashmir issue.
Mr. Singh praised Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's efforts in fighting terror, saying there is a growing recognition in both countries that "terrorism is the enemy of civilized societies." But he urged the Pakistani leader to do even more to clamp down on violent extremism.
Relations between the neighbors have been embittered for years over New Delhi's accusations that Islamabad supports Islamic militant groups waging an insurgency in Indian Kashmir.
Pakistan welcomed the Indian leader's statement, saying it reflected many positive sentiments and underlined the need to solve the Kashmir dispute. A foreign ministry spokesman in Islamabad said both countries need to take "bold steps" to overcome the legacy of the past.
In New Delhi, analysts expressed hope that Mr. Singh's overtures will breathe new life into a peace process that many critics say has been flagging.
The two countries have opened new transport links to ease the situation for divided families in border regions, a ceasefire along the Kashmir border has been holding, and trade ties are improving. But thousands of troops continue to be massed along the frontier in Kashmir, the cause of two wars between the rival nations.
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 14:30 Comments ||
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Is this Indian "nice, nice" going to help set up the unmasking of Perv's duplicity? I kind of like this - setting the stage for UN and western response when Perv screws up as always. India's covering her butt and something's a'brewing and Pakistan is going to be included. yippee!
Speakers at Shaan-e-Mustafa conference on Thursday pledged that religious parties would continue their protest movement against President General Pervez Musharraf and the publication of blasphemous cartoons. Rallies and sit-ins would be staged in Islamabad in this regard, they said. We would oust General Musharraf before the next general elections and our protest movement would continue and the final encounter in this regard would be held in the federal capital, said Qazi Hussain Ahmed, the president of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, while speaking at the conference held under the auspices of the National Consultative Council.
Qazi said that general elections held under General Musharraf would be a farce, therefore the opposition parties would oust Musharraf from both offices before the polls. He said the date for a protest march against General Musharraf would be decided in the MMAs supreme council meeting and other opposition parties would also be consulted.
Dispelling reports of MMAs break-up before the general elections, the MMA president said all efforts of General Musharraf and the government to weaken the six-party religious alliance would be foiled. We will keep the MMA united and would contest general elections from this platform, he maintained. He said that General Musharraf was carrying out military operation in Waziristan on the directives of the US. Anyone who is a friend of Musharraf is also a friend of the US, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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There are 4,680 Madrassas in NWFP out of which only 1,077 have registered. Of the rest, 3,031 have refused to register and. 572 have not responded to the government, the NWFP government executive summary report said.
"But, really, they don't present a real problem..."
The executive summary on NWFP madrassas by the School and Literacy Department stated that 22 percent of religious institutions are registered, 65 per cent are not registered and 12 percent have not even responded to government notices asking them to register.
"Your Corpulence, it's another demand from the gummint that we register!"
"Why tell me about it? Is the trash full?"
The province has 885 Madrassahs for female students as well. There are 183,140 full time enrolled students in these institutions, irrespective of their age group out of which 153,226 are boys and 29,914 girls, the report said. There are 312,794 part time enrolled students in NWFP madrassas including 52,197 girl students. The number of teachers in these schools is 14,486 including 2,697 female teachers. Approximately 71 per cent of madrassas have a boundary wall and proper sanitation facilities and 81 percent have electricity.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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100% have mad Mullahs spewing hatred and violence.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
03/24/2006 8:06 Comments ||
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#4
I want a solution for the Social Security shortfall. Following that, I'd like to meet a 28 year old Swedish nymphomaniac who has recently won the Virginia lottery.
#5
Following that, I'd like to meet a 28 year old Swedish nymphomaniac who has recently won the Virginia lottery.
Ooohhhh... that's poor planning. You want to win the lottery YOURSELF, find a great attorney, THEN meet the 28-year-old-Swedish-nymphomaniac.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 8:42 Comments ||
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#6
It's good to see that I am not the only person who includes "winning the lottery" as part of their retirement plan.
I am planning on this happening about the same time Pakistan becomes a modern, democratic nation...
The Interior Ministry has advised President Pervez Musharraf to deploy army troops against foreign militants hiding in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) only as a last resort and rely on paramilitary forces instead.
Tribal lashkars work so well, after all...
A senior Interior Ministry official told Daily Times that during meetings with the president on FATA, the ministry opposed frequent army operations against militants in the tribal areas. The president was advised that the Frontier Constabulary and Levies should be made responsible for taking action against militants in Waziristan and other troubled tribal areas.
They haven't been tearin' 'em up to date, but I'm sure they will soon.
The ministry called for continuing the dialogue process to find out a political solution to the conflict. It proposed that pro-government tribal elders be encouraged to gain support for the government from tribal people. Sources said the ministry was of the view that there was still room for talks with tribal elders to ask them to expel foreign militants. It said that the process of dialogue through the office of the NWFP governor must be strengthened and leaders of the ruling and opposition parties help overcome the crisis.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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LAHORE: President General Pervez Musharraf has warned terrorists and extremists in Pakistan that they will be eliminated.
"Yeah! You're gonna get it! Any time now..."
I warn those foreign terrorists in Waziristan to leave otherwise well finish them off, he said in a speech to a large crowd at Minar-e-Pakistan on the occasion of Pakistan Day. I also warn those religious extremists who burnt down The Mall on February 14 to refrain from such activities in future as destruction and arson will not be tolerated anymore.
"No more burning down malls, you guys! I mean it this time!"
The president also appealed to the people of NWFP to support the operation against the terrorists. If people stand by the Pakistan Army in Waziristan, I assure them that law and order will be restored in the area, he said. Gen Musharraf also took the opportunity to slam the politicians sitting in London, referring to former prime ministers Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto. I know these people traded congrats when The Mall was looted. These people cannot be friends of Pakistan. I urge you people never allow them to return to the country. Reject them and get them out of politics, he said. The president was confident the troubles in Balochistan would be resolved soon. These two or three Sardars who are fighting against their own people will be sorted out very soon. They are already on the run as they know they have lost support among their own people, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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These two or three Sardars who are fighting against their own people will be sorted out very soon. They are already on the run as they know they have lost support among their own people, he said.
Weren't those the badguy stormtroopers from Dune ?
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
03/24/2006 12:39 Comments ||
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Weren't those the badguy stormtroopers from Dune ?
You're thinking of the Sardaukar. Frank Herbert used a lot of Arab and Islamic symbolism in Dune, modified to fit. I always thought of the Fremen as based on Bedouin tribesmen.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/24/2006 13:59 Comments ||
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#3
Ah yes, Doom, the Dessert Planet, home of the Phoney Maroney.
KATHMANDU - Nepals royalist government put a key opposition leader under police detention on Thursday, after confining him for more than two months in his house, an official said. Madhav Kumar Nepal, general secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal-UML, was taken from his home in a Kathmandu suburb to a police base at Kakani, about 30 kms (20 miles) outside the city. He was under house arrest. Now he has been detained at a security base, a top government official, who did not wish to be named, told Reuters. Nepal had been detained under the Public Security Act, he added.
With any luck, soon he'll be dead.
The CPN-UML is restive Nepals second-biggest party and a key constituent of the seven-party alliance, which is planning a series of anti-king protests next month. There is no rule of law, Amrit Kumar Bohara, a top UML leader, said reacting to the move.
Yup, that's what happens in a civil war, espeically when one side is a bunch of Maoist thugs. At some point the other side has to doff the gloves.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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LAHORE - President Pervez Musharraf Thursday warned foreign Al Qaeda militants to quit Pakistani tribal areas bordering Afghanistan otherwise his forces would kill them. We will never tolerate foreign terrorists and extremists hiding in the tribal region, Musharraf told a rally in the eastern city of Lahore.
These foreign militants are indulging in acts of terrorism not only in Pakistan but elsewhere in the world also, he said. I warn them to leave Pakistan, failing which we will eliminate them, he said.
Proof's in the pudding, Perv.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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And in Arabic, Perv reconfirmed his ongoing support and protection to Al Q.
United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Jan Egeland said that he strongly urges all those engaged in negotiations with non-state armed groups to consult the manual in order to prepare and conduct the dialogue with these groups carefully.
Every day, aid workers in the field are faced with situations that require some form of negotiations. These can include seeking agreements to access people in need, reaching an understanding on how to protect civilians or requesting safe passage and/or security guarantees for humanitarian operations. For humanitarian workers, therefore, negotiating successfully with all actors in situations of crisis or conflict is essential to be able to provide effective and timely humanitarian assistance and protection.
To facilitate a structured approach to humanitarian negotiations, OCHA initiated, with the support of the Swiss Government, a project to develop a practical and user-friendly guide on negotiations with non-state armed groups for humanitarian, development and human rights workers. After research, extensive consultations with members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) and several field visits, OCHA has been able to produce both the manual and a companion set of field guidelines. "We envision that the manual and the companion set of guidelines will become essential guides for humanitarian practitioners in the field," said Egeland.
#4
Step 1. Call for millions in aid money.
Step 2. Move negotiations from fly specked, cholera infested armed group stronghold to neutral venue. Like Paris...or Rome...or Vienna...or Geneva...or...
Step 3. Call caterers.
Step 4. Conferences, conferences, conferences.
Step 5. Condemnation.
Step 6. Condemnation "in no uncertain terms".
Step 7. Deadline.
Step 8. Extend deadline.
Step 9. Extend extended deadline.
Step 10. Strongly worded note.
Step 11. Working Group formed.
Step 12. Working Group forms Study Committee.
Step 13. Study Committee forms Conference Committee.
Step 14. Extend extended extended deadline.
Step 15. Conference Committee forms Study Committee to form Summit Committee.
Step 16. Summit Committee hires Kojo as "consultant".
Step 17. Extend extended extended extended deadline.
Step 18. Call for billions in aid money.
Step 19. Repeat steps 2-18.
Aggressive promotion of international law may generally not be as successful as expected. Many armed groups have not been sensitized to agree with these laws;
Even as military planners look to withdraw significant numbers of American troops from Iraq in the coming year, the Bush administration continues to request hundreds of millions of dollars for large bases there, raising concerns over whether they are intended as permanent sites for U.S. forces.
Questions on Capitol Hill about the future of the bases have been prompted by the new emergency spending bill for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, which overwhelmingly passed the House of Representatives last week with $67.6 billion in funding for the war effort, including the base money.
Although the House approved the measure, lawmakers are demanding that the Pentagon explain its plans for the bases, and they unanimously passed a provision blocking the use of funds for base agreements with the Iraqi government.
"It's the kind of thing that incites terrorism," Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) said of long-term or permanent U.S. bases in countries such as Iraq.
Paul, a critic of the war, is co-sponsoring a bipartisan bill that would make it official policy not to maintain such bases in Iraq. He noted that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden cited U.S. military bases in Saudi Arabia as grounds for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The debate in Congress comes as concerns grow over how long the U.S. intends to keep forces in Iraq, a worry amplified when President Bush earlier this week said that a complete withdrawal of troops from Iraq would not occur during his term.
Long-term U.S. bases in Iraq would also be problematic in the Middle East, where they could lend credence to charges that the U.S. motive for the invasion was to seize land and oil. And they could also feed debate about the appropriate U.S. relationship with Iraq after Baghdad's new government fully assumes control.
State Department and Pentagon officials have insisted that the bases being constructed in Iraq will eventually be handed over to the Iraqi government.
Zalmay Khalilzad, the American ambassador to Baghdad, said on Iraqi television last week that the U.S. had "no goal of establishing permanent bases in Iraq."
And Pentagon spokesman Army Lt. Col. Barry Venable said, "We're building permanent bases in Iraq for Iraqis."
But the seemingly definitive administration statements mask a semantic distinction: Although officials say they are not building permanent U.S. bases, they decline to say whether they will seek a deal with the new Iraqi government to allow long-term troop deployments.
Asked at a congressional hearing last week whether he could "make an unequivocal commitment" that the U.S. officials would not seek to establish permanent bases in Iraq, Army Gen. John P. Abizaid, the commander in charge of all U.S. forces in the Middle East and Central Asia, replied, "The policy on long-term presence in Iraq hasn't been formulated." Venable, the Pentagon spokesman, said it was "premature and speculative" to discuss long-term base agreements before the permanent Iraqi government had been put in place.
All told, the United States has set up 110 forward operating bases in Iraq, and the Pentagon says about 34 of them already have been turned over to the Iraqi government, part of an ongoing effort to gradually strengthen Iraqi security forces.
Bush is under political pressure to reduce the number of U.S. troops before midterm congressional elections, and the Pentagon is expected to decide soon whether the next major deployment will reflect a significant reduction in forces.
But despite the potential force reductions and the base handovers, the spending has continued.
Dov Zakheim, who oversaw the Pentagon's emergency spending requests as the department's budget chief until 2004, said critics might be reading too much into the costly emergency spending, needed to protect U.S. forces from insurgent attacks and provide better conditions for deployed troops.
The spending "doesn't necessarily connote permanence," Zakheim said. "God knows it's a tough enough environment anyway."
The bulk of the Pentagon's emergency spending for military construction over the last three years in Iraq has focused on three or four large-scale air and logistics bases that dot the center of the country.
The administration is seeking $348 million for base construction as part of its 2006 emergency war funding bill. The Senate has not yet acted on the request.
By far the most funding has gone to a mammoth facility north of Baghdad in Balad, which includes an air base and a logistics center. The U.S. Central Command said it intended to use the base as the military's primary hub in the region as it gradually hands off Baghdad airport to civilian authorities.
Through the end last year, the administration spent about $230 million in emergency funds on the Balad base, and its new request includes $17.8 million for new roads that can accommodate hulking military vehicles and a 12.4-mile-long, 13-foot-high security fence.
The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service noted in a report last year that many of the funds already spent, including for the facilities at Balad, suggested a longer-term U.S. presence.
Projects at the base include an $18-million aircraft parking ramp and a $15-million airfield lighting system that has allowed commanders to make Balad a strategic air center for the region; a $2.9-million Special Operations compound, isolated from the rest of the base and complete with landing pads for helicopters and airplanes, where classified payloads can be delivered; and a $7-million mail distribution building.
Other bases also are being developed in ways that could lend them to permanent use.
This year's request also includes $110 million for Tallil air base outside the southeastern city of Nasiriya, a sprawling facility in the shadow of the ruins of the biblical city of Ur. Only $11 million has been spent so far, but the administration's new request appears to envision Tallil as another major transportation hub, with new roads, a new dining hall for 6,000 troops about two Army brigades and a new center to organize and support large supply convoys.
The administration also has spent $50 million for Camp Taji, an Army base north of Baghdad, and $46.3 million on Al Asad air base in the western desert.
These large bases are being built at the same time that hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent on separate bases for the growing Iraqi military. According to the U.S. Central Command and data obtained from the Army Corps of Engineers, for example, about $165 million has been spent to build an Iraqi base near the southern town of Numaniya and more than $150 million for a northern base at the old Iraqi army's Al Kasik facility.
The big numbers have begun to cause consternation in congressional appropriations committees, which are demanding more accountability from Pentagon officials on military construction in the region.
The House Appropriations Committee approved the president's newest funding bill this month with a strongly worded warning. In a report accompanying the legislation, the committee noted that it had already approved about $1.3 billion in emergency spending for war-related construction, but that the recently declared "long war" on terrorism should allow more oversight of plans for bases in the region.
It "has become clear in recent years that these expeditionary operations can result in substantial military construction expenditures of a magnitude normally associated with permanent bases," the committee reported.
Rep. James T. Walsh (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House subcommittee that oversees military construction, said his panel was concerned that money the Pentagon was ostensibly seeking for short-term emergency needs actually was going to projects that were not urgent but long-term in nature.
Walsh pointed to a $167-million request to build a series of roads in Iraq that bypass major cities, a proposal the administration said was needed to decrease the convoys' exposure to roadside bombs, known as improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. Walsh's subcommittee cut the budget for the project to $60 million. He said the project sounded "more like road construction" than it did a strategy to protect troops from IEDs.
The Appropriations Committee also inserted a ban on spending any of the new money on facilities in Iraq until the U.S. Central Command submitted a master plan for bases in the region. Abizaid, in congressional testimony last week, said such a plan was in the process of getting final Pentagon approval for release to the committee. But he noted: "The master plan is fairly clear on everything except for Iraq and Afghanistan, which I don't have policy guidance for long term."
Without such detail, it might prove impossible for congressional appropriators to get a firm idea of how the administration views the future of the U.S. presence on big bases in Iraq.
In any event, said Zakheim, the former Pentagon budget officer, projects that expand bases' ability to handle American cargo and warplanes will eventually be of use to the Iraqi government.
"Just because the Iraqis don't have an air force now doesn't mean they won't have it several years down the road," he said.
But critics said it was all the more reason for the administration to stop being vague about the future.
"The Iraqis believe we came for their oil and we're going to put bases on top of their oil," said Rep. Tom Allen (D-Maine), a critic of the administration's approach. "As long as the vast majority of Iraqis believe we want to be there indefinitely, those who are opposed to us are going to fight harder and those who are with us are going to be less enthusiastic."
Here are four of the bases in Iraq for which the Bush administration has planned upgrades. Money spent through 2005 was granted through emergency spending bills since 2003:
1. Al Asad air base
By some accounts the second largest military air center in Iraq and the main supply base for troops in Al Anbar Province, which includes the insurgent strongholds of Fallouja and Ramadi. It houses about 17,000 troops, including a large contingent of Marines.
Spending: Unknown*
Bush 2006 request: $46.3 million
2. Balad air base
The U.S. military's main air transportation and supply hub in Iraq, with two giant runways. Also known as Camp Anaconda, it is the largest support base in the country, with about 22,500 troops and several thousand contractors.
Spending: $228.7 million*
Bush 2006 request: $17.8 million.
3. Camp Taji
One of the largest facilities for U.S. ground forces in Iraq, the base also serves as home to about 15,000 Iraqi security forces. It has the largest military shopping center (PX) in the country.
Spending: $49.6 million*
Bush 2006 request: None
4. Tallil air base
An increasingly important air and transportation hub, with a growing population of coalition troops and contractors. It has become a key stopping point for supply convoys moving north from Kuwait and is close to one of the Iraqi army's main training facilities.
Spending: $10.8 million*
Bush 2006 request: $110.3 million
*Through 2005
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:14 ||
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There are times when we display such utter stupidity that I wonder whether we even deserve to win this war, and this is one of them. It's also proof positive that flatheaded, drooling idiocy is not confined completely to the Democratic Party.
U.S. military bases in Iraq are absolutely critical in the event we have to deal forcibly with Iran, Syria, or Saudi Arabia. We now have them-- a vital strategic asset fought for and hard-won. In my view, gaining a ground base from which we could project military power against these loci of Islamist evil was the single biggest reason for invading Iraq in the first place.
And these fuckheads in Congress want to just throw all that away and bug out, because they're afraid our presence will make Islamist fanatics mad at us????????
Fuck it.
Our worthless elected "leaders" aren't up to the task of fighting this war, because the politicians of both parties are too damned eager to go back to 9/10 and just wish it all away; back to the Congressional "business as usual" of passing porkbarrel spending bills to buy the votes of their constituents; back to that endless political game of convincing the next batch of lazy parasites that they're "poor helpless victims" and showering them with "help" from the Federal Government in exchange for votes.
Fuck it. This war is going to have to be fought all over again, from scratch, by another generation of Americans. Because this one doesn't have what it takes.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
03/24/2006 7:09 Comments ||
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Nothing new here.
Still had troops in 'temporary' Quonset Huts in Korea in 1988. Feet dragging by pork barrel politicians who'd rather buy votes at home with earmarks that contributors want [not necessarily the voters] rather than doing existing jobs right.
#4
I'll listen to politicians whining about bases in Iraq when we've removed all our troops from Germany, Korea, and the Balkans. Hell, when we went into the Balkans, the president was telling us the troops would be home by Christmas -- though he didn't say WHICH Christmas...
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 9:06 Comments ||
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DD: There are times when we display such utter stupidity that I wonder whether we even deserve to win this war, and this is one of them. It's also proof positive that flatheaded, drooling idiocy is not confined completely to the Democratic Party.
Among the Republicans quoted, Ron Paul is a longtime isolationist who thinks that we shouldn't have troops overseas, let alone alliances, and James Walsh is a blue stater (although a pretty conservative one).
#6
2015: President Ron Paul closed the last of the US military bases today as he appologized to the assembled UN ambassadors. "We won't be any further problem for you." the president said as he appeared to bend over to tie his shoes.
The United Nations has called on Iraqi authorities to rein in alleged death squads operating within the security forces. The UN human rights office in Iraq said in a report on Thursday that it had received serious allegations about elements in the police and special forces and "their apparent collusion with militias in carrying out human rights violations". Allegations that death squads operate in the country had grown stronger after the discovery by US-led forces and the Iraqi security forces in January of a suspicious group operating within the Iraqi interior ministry, it said. Twenty-two men, dressed as special police commandos, were caught when driving with a man who was allegedly about to be executed, it said. "This reaffirms the urgent need for the government to assert control over the security forces and all armed groups," the UN report said.
I'm against murder and mayhem as much as the next guy, and I'm probably against anarchy more than most. But I'm also not in the least impressed with the UN calling for the Iraqi cops to rein in their kill squads when bombs and massacres are in the news every day. To me, kill squads are an appropriate response to terrorism: find out who the bad guyz are, hunt them down, and kill them without mercy. Talking to them obviously isn't doing any good, and the UN sure as hell isn't sending any trained pacifiers to make things all better. Not responding to terrorism amounts to giving it free reign.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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And when did the UN urge Saddam to rein in 'death squads'?
The intended interior minister in Hamas's government has said he will not order the arrest of fighters carrying out attacks against Israel.
"Feh! What's it to me?"
Saeed Seyam, who was chosen by Hamas to oversee three security services, told Reuters on Thursday that "the file of political detention must be closed".
"We don't believe in punishing people for murder."
"The day will never come when any Palestinian would be arrested because of his political affiliation or because of resisting the occupation ... But the right to defend our people and to confront the aggression is granted and is legitimate."
"And keep in mind, we're the ones defining 'legitimate' here. Accept no substitutes!"
Seyam said he had begun talks with Palestinian security chiefs in the hope of averting fighting within the security services. Most of the 20,000-plus security personnel, who will answer to Seyam, are Fatah members. There were several hundred murders in Gaza and the West Bank last year, according to human rights groups. Seyam said his ministry would continue to co-ordinate day-to-day security issues, such as the number of permits given to Palestinian workers, with Israeli authorities. But Seyam said he did not plan to meet Israelis himself.
"Who? Me? Eeeww! Ucky! No way!"
"Saeed Seyam did not come to the government to revive any security co-operation or to protect the occupation and their settlers," he said. "I came to protect our people and their fighters, to protect their trees, their properties and their capabilities."
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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They really have no idea what they're up against when they form agovernment. Declarations of war, violations of all sorts of crap they must pay attention to now.
JERUSALEM - Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in comments published on Thursday that political rivals must agree to a plan to withdraw from large parts of the West Bank if they want to join a government led by his Kadima party -- widely expected to win elections next week.
Olmerts comments gave the clearest signal yet of how the next Israeli government will look if Kadima wins on Tuesdays vote. Kadima holds a wide lead in opinion polls, but will need help from smaller parties to form a majority coalition government in parliament. The tough conditions he laid out in the Yediot Ahronot daily signaled that Olmert would like to join forces with the dovish Labor and Meretz parties, while he has apparently ruled out an alliance with the hawkish Likud Party.
Olmert also appeared to be sending a tough message to Avigdor Lieberman, leader of an increasingly powerful Russian immigrant party. Lieberman, a hard-line Jewish settler, has not ruled out joining an Olmert-led government.
New polls published Thursday showed Kadima still holds a commanding lead over Labor and Likud, though the centrist party slid slightly in the surveys. Olmert inherited the Kadima leadership after party founder Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke in January.
A central part of Olmerts platform is drawing Israels final borders within four years, if necessary through unilateral West Bank withdrawals. Olmert has said Israels West Bank separation barrier, built to prevent suicide bombers from entering the country, will serve as the basis of the border. He wants to dismantle all settlements on the eastern side of the border, uprooting thousands of Jewish settlers from their homes. I want to emphasize, so that no one doubts it: I intend to implement this plan. Anyone who is not interested in seeing this plan implemented -- will not be in my coalition. I do not intend to compromise on the details of the plan. This is the plan and there is no other, Olmert told Yediot.
Painful for the settlers but necessary for the Israelis to have any viable state.
Veteran politician Shimon Peres, who is running as a Kadima candidate, said Thursday that the party would prefer to reach a negotiated settlement with the Palestinians, but this appears impossible with Hamas in charge. Unilateralism is not our ideology or our first priority, Peres told reporters.
Especially not yours.
Olmert has indicated he will hand over parts of Jerusalem under a final peace deal. In an interview, Kadima candidate Otniel Schneller gave new details about the partys intentions. Schneller listed a number of Arab neighborhoods Kadima is prepared to hand over to the Palestinians. These are villages that were not and never will be part of Jerusalem, he said. He stressed that Israel will not relinquish control of the Old City, home to Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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Engineers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory, using an emerging sensing technology, have developed a suite of sensors for national security applications that can quickly and effectively detect chemical, biological, nuclear and explosive materials.
[..]
The Argonne-developed technology was demonstrated in tests that accomplished three important goals:
Detected and measured poison gas precursors 60 meters away in the Nevada Test Site to an accuracy of 10 parts per million using active sensing. Identified chemicals related to defense applications, including nuclear weapons, from 600 meters away using passive sensing at the Nevada Test Site. Built a system to identify the spectral fingerprints of trace levels of explosives, including DNT, TNT, PETN, RDX and plastics explosives semtex and C-4. Current research involves collecting a database of explosive "fingerprints" and, working with partners Sarnoff Corp., Dartmouth College and Sandia National Laboratory, testing a mail- or cargo-screening system for trace explosives.
[..]
How it works The millimeter/terahertz technology detects the energy levels of a molecule as it rotates. The frequency distribution of this energy provides a unique and reproducible spectral pattern its "fingerprint" that identifies the material. The technology can also be used in its imaging modality ranging from concealed weapons to medical applications such as tumor detection.
Bad news if true, since this indicates that JI, far from having schismed as was believed to be the case post-Bali, was actually just working parallel lines with Azahari and Top running the actual terror operations and Abu Dujana, Zulkarnaean, and Co being hard at work maintaining the organization and strengthening their hold over MILF in Mindanao. Throw that together with the involvement of Binny and KSM's financing operations and it looks like the Bad Guys are making a long-term investment in Mindanao into a kind of Afghanistan East, which is more valuable to them in the long run than any bombings they manage to carry out in Indonesia. One of the most frustrating setbacks for the war on terrorism has been the ability of the Bad Guys to successfully establish rear bases (Waziristan, Mindanao, and until the fall of Shevardnadze parts of Georgia as well) from which to regroup and reorganize.
Regional terrorism network Jemaah Islamiyah, blamed for a series of deadly bombings in Indonesia, has for the past three years been led by a militant named Abu Dujana, according to a senior police officer.
Senior Commissioner Petrus Reinhard Golose, deputy commander of Indonesia's counter-terrorism task force, on Wednesday (22/3/06) said Dujana has been at the helm of the group since April 2003, when he replaced Abu Rusdan.
Rusdan was allegedly appointed caretaker leader of Jemaah Islamiyah in October 2002, replacing militant cleric Abu Bakar Baasyir, who co-founded the group with Abdullah Sungkar in Malaysia in 1993. Baasyir was said to have assumed the leadership after Sungkar died in 1999.
Both Rusdan and Baasyir have strongly denied any involvement in terrorism and insisted that Jemaah Islamiyah does not exist.
Golose said Dujana has strong leadership qualities, close links to al Qaeda, speaks Arabic fluently, and received weapons training in Afghanistan, where he met Osama bin Laden.
Dujana was reportedly born in West Java, grew up in Central Java and fled to Malaysia in the 1980s to escape a crackdown on Islamic militants by then president Suharto.
After teaching at the Lukmanul Hakiem Islamic School set up by Jemaah Islamiyahs leadership in Johor Baru, Dujana went to Afghanistan to join the war against the Soviets. He graduated from the Mujahideen Military Academy in 1991 and is said to have studied bomb-making there alongside Jemaah Islamiyahs former operations commander Hambali, who also reputedly headed al Qaedas Southeast Asian wing until his arrest in Thailand in 2003. Hambali is now being held by the US, which has so far refused to hand him over to Indonesia for trial.
Golose said that whenever he had mentioned Dujana's name to Australian authorities they said the militant was too young to be head of Jemaah Islamiyah. Dujanas age has been put at between 34 and 37.
According to Golose, senior Jemaah Islamiyah figures Azahari Husin and Noordin M. Top had reported to Dujana following the August 2003 suicide bombing that killed 12 people at Jakartas JW Marriott Hotel. Azahari was shot dead in November 2005 during a police raid on his East Java hideout, while Noordin remains at large.
Golose said Dujana is a skilled bomber, "more dangerous than Noordin and Azahari and maintains good relations with al Qaeda.
More than 270 people have been arrested in Indonesia on suspicion of involvement in terrorism since 2000. But several key figures have evaded arrest. In addition to Noordin and Dujana, Indonesias most wanted terror suspects include Dulmatin, Umar Patek and Zulkarnaen. All three are accused of involvement in the Bali bombings. Zulkarnaen is believed to have replaced Hambali as Jemaah Islamiyahs operations chief. Dulmatin, an explosives expert, is believed to be in the southern Philippines.
Golose said the arrest of Noordin or one or two other senior radicals would not reduce the threat of terrorism in Indonesia, as Jemaah Islamiyah has trained several new bomb-makers.
He said it was difficult to pinpoint exactly who is in charge of Jemaah Islamiyah because its individual cells operate secretively and often independently of one another, while the group has also been divided by ideological and tactical splits. For example, Noordin has reportedly declared himself leader of Tanzim Qaedat al-Jihad (Jihad Basis Organization), which is viewed as a renegade offshoot of Jemaah Islamiyah.
Golose said Noordin, who has also proclaimed himself to be al Qaeda's Southeast Asian representative, is only a member of Asykari (Jemaah Islamiyahs militant wing or special force) and not part of Markazi (Jemaah Islamiyahs central organization).
The US Federal Bureau of Investigations Rewards for Justice program is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to Dulmatin. The FBI is also offering a $1 million reward for Patek. Indonesias National Police headquarters is offering a Rp1 billion reward for Noordin. Neither the US nor Indonesia are offering a reward for Dujana, who is thought to be in Indonesia. Golose said arresting Dujana is a priority.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 02:58 ||
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Police handed over Thursday a fourth suspect in last year's Bali bombings to the provincial prosecutor's office, which will now prepare the indictment against the accused, an officer said.
The attacks on Oct. 1, 2005, in Jimbaran and Kuta killed 23, including three suicide bombers.
Dwi Widiyanto, alias Wiwid, 34, could face the death penalty if convicted of helping to organize the bombings. The suspect, who was arrested Nov. 30, and his case file were handed over to Agoes Djaja, an official at the prosecutor's office.
Agoes said police also turned over several pieces of evidence, including a motorcycle allegedly used by the suspect and a video camera and computer that Wiwid reportedly used to transfer a video recording by fugitive Malaysian terror suspect Noordin M. Top and the video confessions of the three suicide bombers.
Three other suspects in the bombings -- Abdul Azis, 30, Anif Solchanuddin, 24, and Muhammad Cholili, 28 -- were handed over to prosecutors March 15.
The three suspects turned over earlier in the month told reporters they were prepared to be executed. When reporters attempted to question Wiwid, the suspect remained silent.
"The bombing has already taken place. So, what else?" Wiwid said as quoted by Agoes. "I don't know whether Wiwid's statement constitutes an apology of not," he said.
Wiwid also reportedly told Agoes he was frightened when police began hunting down members of the terrorist network involved in the Kuta and Jimbaran bombings.
Police have said that in addition to sheltering the suspected mastermind behind the bombings, Noordin, Wiwid is also thought to have taken part in meetings to plan the attacks.
Prosecutors now have up to 60 days to complete the indictment against Wiwid.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 02:53 ||
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If the Moderators want to edit this I have no problem. It was mixed in two different articles with other topics.
It was posted by SpaceWar.com
Interview: Viktor Mikhailov Part 1 by Viktor Litovkin
UPI Outside View Commentator Moscow (UPI) Mar 23 -
Viktor Mikhailov is a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the director of the Institute of Strategic Stability of the Russian Federal Agency for Nuclear Power, a chief expert of the Russian Federal Nuclear Center at the Research Institute of Experimental Physics, a holder of the Soviet and Russian Lenin and State awards, and was the nuclear minister from 1992-1998. He discussed his insight into Iran's nuclear capabilities and ambitions with Viktor Litovkin, military commentator for the RIA Novosti news agency. This article is reprinted by permission of RIA Novosti and is the first of two parts.
RIA NOVOSTI: What is your general assessment of Iran's nuclear capability now?
MIKHAILOV: Though I am hardly in a position to judge, I have seen and talked to talented young experts when visiting their nuclear centers. Many of those people had graduated from universities in Western Europe and the United States. Moreover, I just recently made a small inquiry to learn that around 10,000 young specialists are still being trained there. Russia has never trained Iranians, except for Bushehr power plant operators.
The West has helped greatly build Tehran's nuclear industry, a great embarrassment for the Americans nowadays. When they tell me they do not believe Iran really needs a national nuclear power industry, I just ask them: "OK, but were it not you who once said you were going to build 20 NPPs there? Could you then explain why we cannot do now what you thought was quite appropriate for yourselves?"
They won't answer, but the answer is simple enough. A country with a national nuclear power capability sits firmly on the cutting edge of global technology. This means that there will always be jobs at home, and young people will stay at home. A country has no future if its young generation is fleeing abroad.
My assessment of Iran's nuclear level would be straightforward: It is very high. I have seen people working with neutron generators there who could very ably handle the 3D neutron registration software, a very complicated package (they received it from France) which shows a very realistic pattern of neutron flows stemming from a nuclear fission reaction.
In the early 1990s, when I was in Iran for the first time, I saw there the magnificent American Sun 4 and Sun 5 computers, which the United States barred from selling to Russia but sold freely to Iran; and they were working there very effectively. It is true that Iranian girls wear black shawls to conceal their hair but the girls I saw -- who had also graduated from U.S. universities -- were very smart when it came to handling state-of-the-art computers. The Iranians just took the United States by surprise by toppling the shah and starting a new state that would not pander to Washington. In short, it was the United States who built Iran's nuclear work force.
Historically, Persian people have been very intellectual. Of course, Iran saw a major setback in the beginning of the 19th century when Europe took the lead. But they have sent their young people to learn from the West, many are trained in the West now, and, I think, their research capability is very good.
And it has, in fact, very little to do with oil and gas. What the Americans do not like is Iran's national status, its government, its independence, and its reluctance to take orders from U.S. diplomats. This is a separate issue and it has nothing to do with Iran's nuclear program.
Q. Do we need to worry about an Iranian nuclear bomb in the near future?
A. People often ask me this question, which sometimes is formulated somewhat differently: "Do you think they want it or think about it?" I answer, yes, I do; they definitely want it and they clearly think about it, as nuclear weapons have become a critical factor of independence and sovereignty. The U.S. policy is mainly about exporting democracy by making offers one cannot refuse. They are doing this to countries whose history dates back millennia and who have unthinkable contributions to mankind under their belt. What Americans do not know how to do is take into account others' national sensitivities, customs, and traditions. What they are doing is trying to inculcate those countries with American lifestyles -- something that is hardly possible.
Q. Back to Iran. Can it ultimately create a nuclear weapon?
A. Of course, it can. Any highly developed country can do this, it's available on the Internet, if you like. The truth is that one needs much money and time. In the case of Iran, I think, they will do it in five to 10 years. I mean, they will be able to build a basic nuclear weapon. This weapon will not be as modern as Russian or American, but it does not matter -- the Americans are afraid of any, even old, nukes. Washington understands, sure enough, that however hard they try to build a nuclear missile shield, you don't have to deliver a nuke through space where the entire world will see it. There are many other ways, and what they are ultimately afraid of is at least one blast inside the United States. Their people will bury any administration that allows it to happen.
Q. The West does not trust Tehran. Why is Russia selling its nuclear technology to Iran?
A. Russia has never sold any nuclear technology. To tell you more, Russia, since Soviet times, has been constantly on watch for nuclear proliferation.
Proliferation was something only the West, with its century-old free market economy, could engage in. This is just because a free market economy is profit-oriented. If some relevant materials or technologies appeared and was not included in prohibitive lists fast enough -- state authorities were rarely fast enough -- it was sold without ceremony.
Everything the Iranians have today has come from the West. Even our fuel for nuclear power plants will be withdrawn for reprocessing at home and replaced with fresh cells. What President (George W.) Bush is promoting now, as if it were his own brilliant idea, a nuclear fuel leasing system, when a country pays for fuel and we deliver on the conditions of removing fuel wastes. Some Russian experts and I proposed it more than a decade ago. But the Americans did not support us. Their millionaire Alex Copson was in this business then and he wanted to do this, but President Clinton did not allow him to.
Q. Was Copson working with the Department of Energy?
A. He wasn't. Our acquaintance was a coincidence, in fact; he came to me with a project to lease a Pacific atoll and to use it as nuclear dumpsite and production facility for nuclear fuel -- in order to have a dumpsite in a remote ....
Q. And well-guarded, I expect?
A. ... Absolutely -- remote, neutral territory. Well, the point is, we have never sold anything abroad because the Americans were there. They sold, I have already mentioned that, even plutonium, to say nothing of other things. Do you know how Israel and South Africa gained access to nuclear weapons? It's clear they did.
Q.: How?
A.: With help from the United States.
Q.: There is information that the British helped Israel ...
A.: They did, but they were far from alone there. Israelis got a great deal of help from Washington through a British-American company in South Africa.
In (South) Africa, isotopes were separated by filtering uranium hexafluoride through a convergent-divergent nozzle, rather than in a centrifuge or by diffusion. Israelis may have got one or two (nuclear) charges and even tested them.
Later, South Africa had to abandon all those activities. I have been there and I can say the facilities were working very effectively as long as the white minority was in charge. They are not working any longer, small bits may have gone to Israel. Interview : Part 2
Viktor Mikhailov is a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the director of the Institute of Strategic Stability of the Russian Federal Agency for Nuclear Power, a chief expert of the Russian Federal Nuclear Center at the Research Institute of Experimental Physics, a holder of the Soviet and Russian Lenin and State awards, and was the nuclear minister from 1992-1998.
He discussed his insight into Iran's nuclear capabilities and ambitions with Viktor Litovkin, military commentator for the RIA Novosti news agency. This article is reprinted by permission of RIA Novosti and is the second of two parts.
RIA NOVOSTI: Why do you think Tehran has rejected the European pleas to leave the International Atomic Energy Agency's seals in place and keep from independent reactor research?
MIKHAILOV: That's because I think it will take Europeans very long before they regain Iran'strust. They had activities there, and one day they ran away, leaving everything behind. Siemens, a respected European, German, corporation, abandoned everything as [the] Americans pressed for it. Tehran, aware that this could happen again at any time, has clearly not treated its talks with the European Trio, or EU3, seriously enough.
Russia is different. They can see how we treat them; they can see that we support nuclear power industries and peaceful nuclear applications; we have proposed a joint venture that will bring profit to them as well as to us. What to us is going to be a good nuclear market, to them is going to be an opportunity to see what a [nuclear enrichment] facility is and how it works. To build all the centrifuges and everything for just one nuclear reactor would be ridiculous. Right now, to build all this would be a waste of money because the return on such investment will come in a hundred years, if ever.
We told the Iranians that enrichment would be on the table as soon as they had plans for at least a dozen nuclear power plants, or NPPs. They asked me whether we could build in Iran something like a facility we had built in China. But China is not Iran -- they have diffusion and other facilities, they really need such things.
Q. Why would Tehran agree to build such a facility together with Russia?
A. I don't think a joint venture is interesting to them commercially right now; it is probably just a way to alleviate nuclear tensions that have been rising around Iran exponentially and to deny the Americans an opportunity to justify a military solution.
You know, the Americans have deployed over 100,000 personnel in neighboring Iraq; they have armor and air support and they have done everything to cross the border if required. ... I think the Iranians understand they need to keep Washington from doing this, at least for this spring. The Americans will hardly go to war in the scorching Iranian summer.
Q. The Americans might well opt for a missile strike instead....
A. Their missiles will come home to roost if they do it. Their task force in Iraq is already struggling, and imagine how dangerous their position will be if the Iranian army also launches an offensive. Iran may receive massive support from the broader Muslim world as well.
A possible option would be to ask Israel to strike [Iran], but they will not achieve anything because they do not know the exact locations and levels of protection. The recent American interest in penetrator munitions that would go off at 100-meter depths is far from accidental. These munitions have yet to be built, though.
In short, a missile strike would do the United States more harm than good. This helps explain their tolerance to our talks with Iran. I think the Iranians will agree to our proposals though the talks will take months, through March and April, at least, to delay Americans beyond the period of [climatic] conditions appropriate for military action.
Any delay is good for Iran. What would also be good for them is an opportunity to see how such facilities work. They will get an insight into our production lines, though, importantly, not into our centrifuge know-how.
Q. What could be Russia's role in helping solve Iran's "nuclear problem?'
A. Primarily, Russia could do it through a joint venture with Iran, providing services to everyone interested in nuclear power development but not interested in handling isotope enrichment.
Another question here is, I think, much more important. Even if there is restraint on military action, Iran may be subject to the so-called economic sanctions. If this country joins in, we will have to withdraw all our workforce from Iran and abandon all we did there, like we did in North Korea in the early 1990s. By then, we had built a research reactor there, thoroughly explored the territory to select a place for a nuclear power plant, and developed a broad personnel training effort.
Just two years after we had abandoned all this, the Americans created the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization with the United States, Japan, South and North Korea -- not Russia, mind you, and said, OK, we are here to build a water-cooled reactor. Now Russia is in the dark as to what is going on there. In fact, we have been thrown out of that market, though no one was ever going to transfer nuclear weapons or technology to North Korea, and no one was going to defy the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
What worries me is that preconditions for the same mistake are building here, in Iran. However, only fools repeat such mistakes; clever people never do that.
Q. How is Russia going to get Iranian guarantees that it will not seek a nuclear weapon?
A. Russia does not want Iran to have nuclear weapons and thinks that Tehran's nuclear desire should be restrained. But the ball is on America's side now; They need to decide whether they like Iran or not, to realize that they are dealing with an ancient historic world power that will not accept pressure and threats. It might take time, but what is needed is negotiations, however lengthy.
Only the United States is in a position to alleviate this tension. Weapons are not going to provide a solution; with weapons, things will be even worse than the current appalling situation in Iraq or Afghanistan. What kind of democracy are you going to get if democracy is exported through use of force?
Q. What if the Iranians reject Russia's offer?
A. They won't. However, I fear the Americans will press for sanctions even if they don't.
Q. But they surely cannot make the entire world impose sanctions if Iran accepts our proposal?
A. I am afraid they could. Remember North Korea. Almost everyone pandered to Washington then, and we did, special thanks to [former Sovet President]Mikhail Gorbachev.
Q. [Russian President Vladimir] Putin will not necessarily do what Mikhail [Gorbachev] broke his back on.
A. He hopefully won't. However, Putin is also in a tight corner, and so is entire Russia. So far we have been picking up great windfalls from high oil and gas prices but let's think what happens if windfalls cease. What we have we clearly will not have forever. I believe in reason. Reason dictates that to start a war now would be a disgrace.
#1
Article: In the early 1990s, when I was in Iran for the first time, I saw there the magnificent American Sun 4 and Sun 5 computers, which the United States barred from selling to Russia but sold freely to Iran; and they were working there very effectively. It is true that Iranian girls wear black shawls to conceal their hair but the girls I saw -- who had also graduated from U.S. universities -- were very smart when it came to handling state-of-the-art computers.
Actually, Iran has been under a comprehensive trade embargo since the Iranian Revolution. Iran might have acquired Suns via third parties. But what would you expect from a Russian apparatchik - the truth?
Article: The U.S. policy is mainly about exporting democracy by making offers one cannot refuse. They are doing this to countries whose history dates back millennia and who have unthinkable contributions to mankind under their belt. What Americans do not know how to do is take into account others' national sensitivities, customs, and traditions. What they are doing is trying to inculcate those countries with American lifestyles -- something that is hardly possible.
And the Russian tradition was to annex them to the Russian empire - vast chunks of the Chinese Far East used to be Chinese territory and the Central Asian civilizations, of course, predate Russia by millenia. There is no BS like Russian BS.
#2
I forgot to mention that Russia added some of stan's to its empire out of Persia's hide. The Russians certainly have an interesting way of showing respect for ancient civilizations - first they annex them, and then they ruthlessly suppress their religion, trying to inculcate them with Communist lifestyles.
#3
The Russians certainly have an interesting way of showing respect for ancient civilizations - first they annex them, and then they ruthlessly suppress their religion, trying to inculcate them with Communist lifestyles.
Right. Just ask the kulaks ... oh, wait, there aren't any more around to ask.
#4
The Shah of Iran never threatened anyone, not even Israel. As for "inculcating" nations with American lifestyles - compared to what, Commies working wid Muslims and Radicals which induced 9-11; or a WOT which is a PC war for control of the world and future OWG, where Socialism, Totalitarianism and OWG is forced upon America or America "volunteers" to submit, where the Left > America can fight and die for a global Empire that it must voluntarily = forcibly, give up = lose later on ergo vote for the Dems in 2006 and 2008. TONY BLAIR > WOT > NOT A WAR BETWEEN CIVILZATIONS SOMUCH AS ABOUT CIVILIZATION. For all of America's appeasin' and concedin', the reward for the American people is to still be gulagged andor genocided as anyone during WW2 except that we're all to sing KUMBAYA and WE ARE THE CHILDREN, etc. as we happily report to our local death camps.
Iran's nuclear program has it in the headlines, and for good reason. The country's leader, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has made numerous comments that indicate he might not be entirely rational (such as denying the Holocaust). The thought of someone like that having the most powerful weapons in human history rightfully worries people. What gets less attention, but is also worthy of note are Iran's other WMD programs.
First, a look at Iran's nuclear program is in order. The Iranian nuclear weapons effort is moving forward, with major research centers in Bushehr, Estegahl, Isfahan, Tehran, Karaj, and Saghand. These centers are protected by the Iranians. Three of these centers (Bushehr, Tehran, and Isfahan) are near airbases that have at least one squadron of fighters. The air base at Bushehr hosts two squadrons of F-4s and a detachment of F-14s. Tehran's air base has a squadron of MiG-29 Fulcrums. Isfahan's air base has a squadron of F-14s and a squadron of F-5s. Estegahl is near Bushehr, and can be protected by the two F-4 squadrons there. Karaj, which is roughly 50 kilometers away from Tehran, can easily be protected by the squadron of Fulcrums at Tehran, while Saghand is in Yazd province (the middle of Iran), and any strike aimed there has to get through Iranian defenses.
However, what has been lost in the shuffle is the fact that Iran is already producing chemical and biological weapons. These are weapons of mass destruction and American policy is very clear: If attacked by chemical or biological weapons, the United States will respond with nuclear weapons. Iran's major chemical weapons production facility is based at Damghan, about 300 kilometers east of Iran. American intelligence agencies estimate that Iran is producing 1,000 tons of chemical weapons a year, including mustard gas, phosgene, and various cyanide agents. These agents are older technology than the sarin nerve gas used in the 1995 Tokyo subway attack, but they can still kill.
Iran is also working on biological weapons as well. Intelligence agencies suspect Iran is working on smallpox, which officially has been eradicated save for samples being kept in the United States and Russia. Smallpox incubates for about 12 days, is highly contagious, and kills anywhere from 20 to 40 percent of its victims. Survivors are often left blind in at least one eye. Its nastiness is compounded by the fact that the last known case was in 1978, and there are very few, if any, physicians who have experience treating the disease.
Iran's other projects in the biological realm are biotoxins. Unlike biological weapons, they do not rely on having the initial victims infect more people. They are more accurately described as delayed-action chemical weapons. Iran is reportedly working on two types of biotoxins: Mycotoxins (fungi) and ricin. The mycotoxins would likely be used against food supplies often to cause economic disruption and liver cancer. Ricin, which was used to lace a letter sent to Senator Bill Frist's office in 2004, is intended to kill victims directly its most famous use being the assassination of Gregory Markov in London in 1978.
Iran's WMD programs are rightly viewed with concern given the theocratic regime's support for terrorists. Earlier this month, improved IEDs en route to insurgents in Iraq were captured at the Iranian border. Iran has also been a sponsor of terrorist groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas, PFLC-GC, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. This is a combination that is extremely dangerous, and this suspected combination was enough to topple Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003. Unlike Saddam Hussein's regime, Iran is open about its desire to acquire weapons of mass destruction and its support for terrorism is also undisputed.
Posted by: ed ||
03/24/2006 08:44 ||
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#1
Title should be: StrategyPage Iran: Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Weapons
Posted by: ed ||
03/24/2006 8:49 Comments ||
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#2
These are weapons of mass destruction and American policy is very clear: If attacked by chemical or biological weapons, the United States will respond with nuclear weapons.
Sadly, we demonstrated this is a toothless threat in 2001.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 9:03 Comments ||
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#3
Yep.
Posted by: ed ||
03/24/2006 9:21 Comments ||
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#4
The real problem [and threat] is not the government. It is the fact that not only can Iranian, etc governments develop these things, but free agents can as well. There's enough knowledge and ability in the American community, that if provoked, could deliver such a weapon to those who theaten us without government action/inaction. You don't think a random 9/11 act could motivate someone who's lost a loved one, to apply his knowledge to payback in millions for that loss?
#5
Knowledge and ability are one thing. Equipment, especially to grow the biologicals, or to produce large quatities of the chemicals, is something else.
#6
Good point TW, but it is becoming less and less true each passing day. In my early years of BioChem we were taught enough and had enough access to labs to create some really nasty, nasty things (in the earliest years, even freshman).
Back then, it was true, you needed the labs to do anything real and the equipment was expensive beyond expensive.
Back then, the PCR manchines were big, booked solid and had waiting lists of weeks/months.
The supplies were very expensive, the gels, the samples, the radioactive markers, etc, etc ...
I've recently seen in a magazine a 'toy' which allows one (this being for children around 8 or so) to do all the steps to sequence DNA, in a easy toy format. Grind, Isolate, Centrifuge, Elctroporesis, sampling, etc ... all in toy format with a few pushes and heavy automation. Now it is very basic, but wow!
Now the PCR machines are smaller than laptops and portable. Kids can sequence DNA at home, etc. Gels and other disposables cost nothing.
The point is, just as miniturization and cost advances in Computer Technology has driven use to the masses the same will be true in Bio / Chem arena. I already see it these days as although in Aerospace / Technology I stay up on the biochem world - and often think of returning becase it is now much easier (for those in CS, it is analogous to having to do things in assembler w/ your own memory management vs. an OO language or higher level IDE dev environment).
Honestly, it is just a matter of time before someone with a bit / enough knowledge finds access to the the right equipment. Seriously, with home sequencing kits now available as toys, well, can't be that long off.
#7
Oh it does take that much to grow the little devils -
Bon Vivant Vichyssoise June/July 1971, New York area
1 dead, 2 criticaly incapacitated, by Type A botulism
involved 6,444 tainted cans (Lots #V-141/USA-71, V-110-USA-71 & 072-V-USA-67)
The Bon Vivant Soup Company was located at 166 Abington Ave in Newark, New Jersey
* Samuel Cochran Jr. victim
* Grace Wallace Cochran victim
* Paul McDonald victim
The real question with Botulism is an effective delivery system.
#8
Part of the problem is too, that the masses are afraid of things they know about or already know to be dangerous. The REAL problem is not delivery mechanisms, or Botulinum, Ricin, etc ... it is the everyday common bug.
For me, the real fear, is the creation of a super-common that is resistance to first-round and last-round treatments and/or resistances to muti prong attacks (such as resistance to division-blocker, wall lysis, growth inhibitors, etc ... as an example (not to give anyone ideas, as this would be hard) but an E-coli with resistance to amoxicillin/penicillin, erythromycin, plus resistance to some of the newer antis would be dangerous ... esp. in a warmer climate in the food chain.
Anyway, it seems a lot of the focus from the Lay side of things is on a specifc bug, Antrhax, SmallPox, etc -- personally, the real risk is from something that has been overclocked so to speak ... something that we are exposed to everyday. Maybe H1N5 kicked up a notch, but to be honest, messing with virus vectors and whatnot is still a lot harder than bacterial.
Watch the news from some nasty new common bug making the killer rounds ... then we are in trouble.
The reason it is so risky is typical human complacency a la the 'oh, that is normal fauna, it is probably something else' time goes by, and too late.
Anyway, I think we are fearing the big bad bugs and ignoring the little ones we think we've conquered already. Big mistake.
#9
I yield me to your expertise, bombay. I am merely the child of a biochemist, and the wife of a (non-practicing) chemical engineer, so my knowledge of such things is, um, atmospheric rather than factual. It sounds like your education was much like that of current computer programming students, who are taught to write viruses senior year so they don't do it accidentally. And admittedly I was thrilled to produce chlorine gas when I poured bleach over the kitty urine... But I never was able to produce enough to be harmful. ;-)
#10
Oh, no, not arguing with you TW, just pointing out that just as in the 60/70s you had to know what you were doing (inside and out, the true depth of knowledge) to build and program a computer ... the same is true for Biochemical 'problems' ... I'd say we are in the waning 70s of computers vs. Biochem.
Soon there will be home kits to test your kids for genetic problems (already are actually).
The technology is advancing and it is only a matter of time before there are the hardware and software knowledge en masse to cause a problem.
Basically, things are becoming automated and easy enough such that someone who knows that a super-bug is x,y,z dangerous or this/that protein will really mess things up, can DO something about it.
Times were that you had to know it was bad and HOW to make it bad or execute to really count ... now you may just have to know it is bad and get a hold the equivalent of a best buy commodity computer to DO something about it.
And yes, it is somewhat like computer viruses ... they taught us how and rely on our ethics to ensure that we don't ... but just look at the modern world, aside from the rarity who has ethics anymore?
What you wrote is conventional wisdom (still) amongst the biochem world. It is partly denial of risk, but also, hey I went through years of this schooling to know this, how could some kid ...
Well, just like viruses now, there are manufacture kits and the script kiddies don't really know how or why stuff works, it just does. Soon the technology will be such that you really don't need to understand protein folding, stoichometric chemistry, enzymatic reatction rates, etc -- just that you mix A, with B and press the button and wham ... jihadi paradise. Most of my peers in Biochem are in complete denail of this.
#12
Yeah, no worries, and you see where I am comming from. It really isn't us Biochem freaks or Chemistry nuts you have to worry about ... it is the meeting of technology with ease of biochem manipulation.
The Jihadis that know so-and-so bug is bad don't give a crap about the implications, much like the MSM ... if they can just release one super-bug and bring Bush down the whole world would be fine ... except of course for all the minor details, but that is for the infidel to deal with, isn't it, because everyone knows biologicals don't attack Muslims!
#14
I have used many a tool like linked ... although to be fair to 3dc, I did not go through it all.
There is good stuff here ...
I will say, for those with a passing interest in Biochem ... don't listen to the media/hype these days. It has nothing to do with the genetic (DNA) code/sequence ... EVERYTHING, and I mean everyting boi-active has to do with 3D shaping / stoichiomestry (the shape of molecules).
Biochem has 'wasted' decades on gene sequence only to find the shape of the resultant protein has if not as much, but MORE to do with boichemical reactivity as DNA code.
Recent science I've read shows that the interface between interstitial activities ... basically cell wall to cell wall is possibly domintated by dendriet/axion type interaction of proteins which may or may not span the entire wall complex.
Think of it, basics of brain activity occur at the most simple level between cell and cell. WOW.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated pursuant to Executive Order 13224 al Manar, a satellite television operation owned or controlled by the Iran-funded Hizballah terrorist network. Additionally designated today were al Nour Radio and the Lebanese Media Group, the parent company to both al Manar and al Nour Radio.
Al Manar and al Nour
Al Manar and al Nour are the media arms of the Hizballah terrorist network and have facilitated Hizballah's activities.
"Any entity maintained by a terrorist group whether masquerading as a charity, a business, or a media outlet is as culpable as the terrorist group itself," said Stuart Levey, Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.
Al Manar has employed multiple Hizballah members. One al Manar employee engaged in pre-operational surveillance for Hizballah operations under cover of employment by al Manar.
Al Manar and al Nour have supported fundraising and recruitment efforts by Hizballah. Al Manar raised funds for Hizballah through advertisements broadcast on the network and an accompanying website that requested donations for the terrorist organization. As recently as late 2005, Hizballah-affiliated charities aired commercials on al Manar, providing contact information and bank account numbers for donations. Moreover, Hizballah Secretary General Nasrallah publicized an invitation for all Lebanese citizens to volunteer for Hizballah military training on al Manar and al Nour.
In addition to supporting Hizballah, al Manar has also provided support to other designated Palestinian terrorist organizations, including the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, notably transferring tens of thousands of dollars for a PIJ-controlled charity. PIJ is listed as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist and a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Government, and is also named on the European Union's list of terrorist entities.
Hizballah Secretary General Hasan Nasrallah, along with Hizballah's Executive Council, managed and oversaw the budgets of al Manar and al Nour.
The Lebanese Media Group
The Lebanese Media Group is the parent company of both al Manar and al Nour. Prominent Hizballah members have been major shareholders of the Lebanese Media Group.
Background on Hizballah
Hizballah is a Lebanon-based terrorist group. Until September 11, 2001, Hizballah was responsible for more American deaths than any other terrorist organization. Hizballah is known or suspected to have been involved in numerous terrorist attacks throughout the world, including the suicide truck bombings of the U.S. Embassy and U.S. Marine Corps barracks in Beirut in 1983 and the U.S. Embassy annex in Beirut in September 1984. Hizballah also executed the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847 en route from Athens to Rome and assumed responsibility for the suicide bombing of the Israeli embassy in Argentina in 1992. It also attacked the Israeli cultural center in Buenos Aires in 1994.
On January 25, 1995, the Annex to Executive Order 12947 listed Hizballah as a Specially Designated Terrorist. The Department of State designated Hizballah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 1997. Additionally, on October 31, 2001, Hizballah was designated as a Specially Designated Global terrorist under Executive Order 13224.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 03:24 ||
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DAMASCUS: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday appointed former culture minister Najah al-Attar as a second vice president, the official news agency SANA reported. Attar is the first woman to hold such a high position in Syria. By appointing her, Assad completes filling the country's two mostly ceremonial posts, which became vacant last year. Assad last month appointed former foreign minister Farouq al-Shara as vice president, replacing Abdel-Halim Khaddam who resigned last year and later defected to France.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/24/2006 00:00 ||
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Oh, okay. All is forgiven.
Posted by: Jans Snomble4884 ||
03/24/2006 1:57 Comments ||
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President Bush says frequently "we are fighting them over there so they won't come over here." "Them" are transnational terrorists and "over there" is Iraq.
The insurgency in Iraq has much to do with al Qaeda's plans for a weapons of mass destruction (WMD) act of terrorism in the United States, but not the way the White House believes. Assuming the Bush administration is successful in midwifing democracy out of a near-civil war situation in Iraq, the WMD threat level will remain unchanged. High, that is.
Paradoxical though this may seem to Washington's armchair strategists, the defeat of the al Qaeda-Sunni insurgency in Iraq would actually heighten, not lessen, the danger of a September 11 CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear) attack. Defeated by the U.S. in Afghanistan and again in Iraq, al Qaeda would have to conclude its strategy of forcing the U.S. into a humiliating, Vietnamlike retreat has failed.
Arabic-speaker Professor Gilles Kepel, one of France's leading experts on al Qaeda, published last week "Al Qaeda dans le Texte," an analysis of the public and (intercepted) private utterances of the two Z's -- Ayman al-Zawahri (Osama bin Laden's No. 2) and Abu Musab Zarqawi, al Qaeda's insurgency honcho in Iraq. Stripped if its complexities, al Qaeda's strategy, Mr. Kepel explains, is to defeat the U.S. in Iraq, use this victory to roll over traditional oil-rich regimes in the Gulf that are security wards of the U.S., and then focus on Israel. But there is now an obstacle even greater than the U.S. -- Iran. Tehran, as seen through Zawahri's geopolitical viewfinder, is already calling the shots in large parts of Iraq. Whether the U.S. stays or leaves Iraq, concludes Zawahri, it's still Iran's ballgame. Which brings al Qaeda back to its WMD-in-America strategy.
"The Race Between Cooperation and Catastrophe," or why "the [nuclear] threat is outrunning our response" is how Sam Nunn, the former senator and co-chairman of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, describes an overarching terrorist construct. The starter's gun for this new race went off at the end of the Cold War. Congress has appropriated almost $12 billion under Nunn-Lugar legislation designed to enhance security in scores of former Soviet and now Russian nuclear weapons and nuclear materials storage sites. Another $20 billion was pledged for the same purpose at a G-8 summit of the major industrialized nations in Canada three years ago -- $1 billion by the U.S. and $1 billion by the other seven per year for 10 years.
There has been no cooperation from India in the nuclear security field, says Matthew Bunn, director of the Atom Project at Harvard. "China," he adds, "has secured one civilian facility."
With more than $30 billion in the button-down-the-nukes kitty, more than half the security work remains to be done. There are 43 countries with more than 100 research reactors or related facilities that store enough highly enriched uranium nuclear materials to make several bombs. Only 20 percent of these sites are properly secured, says Mr. Nunn, and less than a handful meet U.S. Energy Department security standards, says Mr. Bunn. Most countries consider the Energy Department security criteria too demanding.
Rather than try to steal or buy one of thousands of Russian tactical nukes, or nerve gas artillery shells, a WMD terrorist is far more likely to knock off the night watchman, lower the chain-link fence somewhere in Switzerland or Italy and drive off with sufficient materials for a nuclear device. Actually making a nuclear bomb after that is the easy part; the recipe is on the Internet.
Mr. Nunn, chairman of the board of trustees at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, says we appear to have forgotten the "devastating, world-changing impact of a nuclear [terrorist] attack. "If a 10-kiloton nuclear device goes off in Midtown Manhattan on a typical work day, it could kill more than half a million people," he explains. Ten kiloton is a plausible yield "for a crude terrorist bomb," according to Mr. Nunn.
Hauling that volume of explosives would require a freight train 100 cars long. As a nuclear bomb, it could easily fit on the back of a pickup truck.
Another Nunn scenario has a terrorist group with insider help acquiring a radiological source from an industrial or medical facility; say cesium-137 in the form of powdered cesium chloride. Conventional explosives are used to incorporate cesium into a "dirty bomb," then detonated in New York's financial district. A 60-square block area has to be evacuated. Millions flee the city in panic. Only two dozen are killed but billions of dollars of real estate is declared uninhabitable. Cleanup will take years -- and many more billions.
What interests bin Laden and Zawahri beyond casualty lists is collateral damage to civil liberties, privacy and the world economy. America, as they see it, would be knocked off its pinnacle. This would be the shot heard around the world and hundreds of millions of either frightened or jubilant Muslims would flock to the Muslim world's black Jolly Roger of white skull and crossbones.
In a routine exchange of information, Russia's chief intelligence officer in Washington notified his CIA liaison officer that al Qaeda operatives had been scouting nuclear storage sites in Russia. It would be a miracle if nothing had been stolen from Russia's long ill-guarded nuclear weapons storage depots during the collapse of the Soviet Union when anything and everything was for sale. We also know from sketches found in al Qaeda's safe houses in Kabul and Kandahar that bin Laden was interested in nuclear bomb design. Two Pakistani nuclear scientists from A.Q. Khan's stable were in Kandahar when this reporter was there three months before September 11, 2001.
The distance remaining to near-perfect security can be measured by how Mr. Nunn describes the adequacy of the U.S.-Russian response to the terrorist nuclear threat.
On a scale of 1 to 10," says Mr. Nunn, "I would give us about a 3, with the last summit between Presidents Bush and Putin moving us closer to a 4."
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/24/2006 02:45 ||
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I remember big discussions about terrorist nukes some time back, here at Rantburg. As I recall, the consensus was that there is serious equipment needed to construct a real nuclear bomb from scratch (or even just to assemble one from components), and even more serious training and tools for the technicians doing the frequently required maintenance until the thing is used, without which the bomb would become a really pretty paperweight. And, that a more realistic concern would be about the deployment of a dirty nuke/conventional bomb in the center of a major city. But, that the concern was more about the fears of the residents, as the radioactivity shed by such a thing would break down to a reasonable level pretty quickly.
#2
a WMD terrorist is far more likely to knock off the night watchman, lower the chain-link fence somewhere in Switzerland or Italy and drive off with sufficient materials for a nuclear device. Actually making a nuclear bomb after that is the easy part; the recipe is on the Internet.
What rubbish.
Recipe on the internet?
Making an A bomb is not like mixing a cake.
The actual Physics and Engineering required is non trivial and is not available on the net.
Any fool who lowers a chain link fence and tries to load a spent reactor rod from a cooling pool into his truck will die in minutes from radiation poisoning.
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 17:03 Comments ||
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We must remember that countries have failed to get the bomb.
Some tried for decades and gave up.
Governments can buy things that terrorits cannot.
They have vast amounts of money, intelligence operatives that can steal things, ships and plnaes to transport things, they can hire expertise, thye have access to the top scientists at their universities.
Yet countries like Iraq did not find bomb making to be trivial.
Exploding a single atomic bomb could have deterred action during the first gulf war.
How come Iraqi secret service did not pull down a chain link fence, steal the material for a bomb and have their scientists (or maybe street urchins in Baghdad) use the internet recipe to build a few bombs?
Posted by: john ||
03/24/2006 17:08 Comments ||
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Which is why a single nuclear terrorist attack on American soil should get the terror sponsors glassed over in less than 24 hours.
#5
Actually, tw, besides the high-precision shaping of critical mass sub-segments (so that they implode/compress into a very uniform solid) and the almost instantaneous triggering of all the explosive charges that compress them (two incredibly difficult achievements), there is also the "one point safe" level of fusing and triggering a nuclear device.
This requires (as with American nuclear weapons) that there is only a one-in-a-million chance of accidental detonation. Few rough-shod developmental laboratories are able to devise such safe and reliable actuation systems. Lack of that sort of control makes a crude nuclear weapon an equal threat to both attacker and target alike.
Given the propensity that terrorists have for "work related" accidents, some of their first attempts at fabricating nuclear weapons will probably do them more harm than us. All of this points back to how critical it is to contain and secure existing weapons stocks in Russia and elsewhere.
#6
Yet countries like Iraq did not find bomb making to be trivial.
Few rough-shod developmental laboratories are able to devise such safe and reliable actuation systems.
Interesting. I was just reading recently (I can't remember where - here, maybe?) that some scientific types were convinced that Pak and the NKors couldn't have done what they did without significant Chinese help. Here's an article along those same lines.
Wall Street Journal EFL'd.
A statement from Yale University, defending its decision to admit former Taliban spokesman Ramatullah Hashemi, explained that he had "escaped the wreckage of Afghanistan." To anyone who is aware of the Taliban's barbaric treatment of the Afghan people, such words are offensive--as if Mr. Hashemi were not himself part of the wrecking crew. It is even more disturbing to learn that, while Mr. Hashemi sailed through Yale's admissions process, the school turned down the opportunity to enroll women who really did escape the wreckage of Afghanistan.
In 2002, Yale received a letter from Paula Nirschel, the founder of the Initiative to Educate Afghan Women. The purpose of the organization, begun in that year, was to match young women in post-Taliban Afghanistan to U.S. colleges, where they could pursue a degree. Ms. Nirschel asked Yale if it wanted to award a spot in its next entering class to an Afghan woman. Yale declined.
Yale was not alone. Of the more than 2,000 schools contacted by Mrs. Nirschel, only three signed up right away: Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, Notre Dame College in New Hampshire and the University of Montana, Missoula. Four years later, the program enrolls 20 students at 10 universities . . . .
Mrs. Nirschel, it should be noted, had an "in" at Roger Williams. Her husband, Roy, is the president. Mr. Nirschel recalls that after 9/11 his wife mourned not only for the American victims but for the people of Afghanistan, whose brutal regime had helped to sponsor al Qaeda. Mr. Nirschel admits that his first reaction, upon hearing his wife's concern, was to say that they should just give to a charity. But Mrs. Nirschel asked whether he, as university president, could give a scholarship to an Afghan woman instead. He was doubtful at first about the practicality of the idea but eventually agreed. "My wife can be very persuasive," he told us.
Mrs. Nirschel, who has been a homemaker for most of the past three decades, set up the program to find suitable college-ready candidates and pay their travel expenses to the U.S. But the colleges themselves were asked to cover tuition, room and board. Mrs. Nirschel did not want the Initiative to Educate Afghan Women to be treated as a chance to "escape." The program requires that its students return to Afghanistan each summer to work for an organization involved in rebuilding the country. And they must go home at the end of their four years in the U.S. . . .
In contrast to Ramatullah Hashemi, These women require no remedial classes, by the way. They come prepared, many having huddled in basements secretly imbibing what information they could from male relatives or having lived in Pakistani refugee camps to gain access to schools. Not one of them has a GPA below 3.5. . . . .
Rantburgers of a charitable bent should consider hitting the link and making a donation to IEAW.
Posted by: Mike ||
03/24/2006 06:49 ||
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The disgraceful thing is that only ten universities are taking part in the program. So, I just sent my alma mater a challenge: if they take on one of these students, I'm going to donate more money than I can really afford, each year for the next ten years.
If they nix the idea, I'll give some to IEAW instead.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 7:57 Comments ||
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Un-be-fricking-lievable.
My alma mater, which had Internet addresses for every fricking student, faculty, and staff member in 1990, has an invalid email address on its website, and that address is the one for giving to the university. The address for alumni contacts seems to have gone through, though.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
03/24/2006 8:11 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.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has assured Canada that a man facing possible execution for converting to Christianity will not be put to death, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Thursday. 
The visitors of Pravda.Ru website have been deprived of a possibility to access the website and its materials today. The main Russian version of the Pravda.Ru portal has been closed today...
SEOUL: North Korea appears to be signalling a desire to return to stalled six-country talks on its nuclear programmemes and to be interested in breaking the deadlock, South Korea's foreign minister said on Thursday. Ban Ki-moon - a candidate for the post of UN secretary-general - also told Reuters a visit next month by Chinese President Hu Jintao to the United States could help create the right atmosphere for the nuclear talks to resume.
Cartoons legacy hangs over Denmark
Danish 
Speakers at Shaan-e-Mustafa conference on Thursday pledged that religious parties would continue their protest movement against President General Pervez Musharraf and the publication of blasphemous cartoons. Rallies and sit-ins would be staged in Islamabad in this regard, they said. We would oust General Musharraf before the next general elections and our protest movement would continue and the final encounter in this regard would be held in the federal capital, said 
There are 4,680 Madrassas in NWFP out of which only 1,077 have registered. Of the rest, 3,031 have refused to register and. 572 have not responded to the government, the NWFP government executive summary report said.
The Interior Ministry has advised President Pervez Musharraf to deploy army troops against foreign militants hiding in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) only as a last resort and rely on paramilitary forces instead.
LAHORE: President General Pervez Musharraf has warned terrorists and extremists in Pakistan that they will be eliminated.
LAHORE - President Pervez Musharraf Thursday warned foreign Al Qaeda militants to quit Pakistani tribal areas bordering Afghanistan otherwise his forces would kill them. We will never tolerate foreign terrorists and extremists hiding in the tribal region, Musharraf told a rally in the eastern city of Lahore.
The intended interior minister in Hamas's government has said he will not order the arrest of fighters carrying out attacks against Israel.
JERUSALEM - Acting Israeli Prime Minister 
DAMASCUS: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday appointed former culture minister Najah al-Attar as a second vice president, the official news agency SANA reported. Attar is the first woman to hold such a high position in Syria. By appointing her, Assad completes filling the country's two mostly ceremonial posts, which became vacant last year. Assad last month appointed former foreign minister Farouq al-Shara as vice president, replacing Abdel-Halim Khaddam who resigned last year and later defected to France.
