[Tolo News] Afghanistan's Caped PresidentHamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use...
flew to Pakistain for a two-day visit on Friday at the personal invitation of Pak President Asif Ali President Ten Percent Zardari ... sticky-fingered husband of the late Benazir Bhutto ...
President Karzai's visit to Pakistain is the first since al-Qaeda leader the late Osama bin Laden ... who walked in the shadow of the Valley of the Shadow of Death and didn't make it out... was killed by US special forces in Abbottabad near Islamabad.
He is expected to have meetings with Pak President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in ... and Pak Premier Yosuf Raza Gilani.
The talks will focus on peace talks with the Taliban, but President Karzai is also expected to discuss trade relations with Pakistain.
Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistain have been strained since the US raid on Bin Laden Compound in May.
After the news emerged that Osama bin Laden was found and killed in Pakistain, the Afghanistan's Caped President reacted by calling on international community to take the war terror beyond Afghan borders.
Both US and Afghan officials have criticised Pakistain for not acting honestly against cut-throats on its soil, something Pak officials have frequently denied.
Pak Prime Minister Yosuf Raza Gilani dismissed all allegations against Pak government and its spy organisation (ISI) and said the murder of al-Qaeda leader on Pak soil was not an evidence of his country's complicity in hiding him.
But top US officials including President Barack B.O. Obama believed that Osama bin Laden could not have lived in comfort near Islamabad for several years without having some sort of support network in Pakistain.
After the raid on Bin Laden compound, some US officials including Senator John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, the Senate's current foreign policy expert, filling the vacated wingtips of Joe Biden... , Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ... sometimes described as the Smartest Woman in the World and at other times as Mrs. Bill, never as Another Henry Kissinger ... and Admiral Mike Mullen visited Islamabad and pushed Pak officials to take more steps against hard boyz on Pak soil.
Pak security forces have launched some operations in the tribal belt, but Pak Taliban and other bully boy groups have also stepped up their attacks against Pak security forces and have even attacked military spots in the country resulting to scores of military and civilian casualties.
Pak Taliban have grabbed credit for most of the attacks and vowed to continue their attacks to avenge Osama bin Laden's death.
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06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[Bangla Daily Star] The main opposition BNP and its key ally Jamaat-e-Islami yesterday called for a countrywide 36-hour hartal ... a peculiarly Bangla combination of a general strike and a riot, used by both major political groups in lieu of actual governance ... from tomorrow dawn, demanding continuation of caretaker government system and protesting at the recommendations of the parliamentary special committee on constitutional amendment.
It is going to be the longest in duration since the Awami League-led grand alliance came to power. The opposition on Sunday enforced a dawn-to-dusk strike on the caretaker system issue.
Release of leaders, now in jail on different charges including crimes against humanity, has been added by Jamaat to the list of demands.
Other two components of BNP-led alliance -- Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP) and Islami Oikya Jote ... a political party in Bangladesh. In the 2001 elections the party won 2 out of 300 elected members in an alliance with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. It has a focus on building an islamic state, and has used the madrassas to gain support... (Aminee) -- will also observe the non-stop shutdown.
BNP Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Jamaat Acting Secretary General ATM Azharul Islam announced the programme from separate pressers held at respective party offices in the city.
Both of them said "the committee's suggestion for dropping 'absolute trust and faith upon almighty Allah' as one of the fundamental principles of the constitution and the government's efforts to break off relations with the Mohammedan world and failure to check price hike of essentials" are also among the reasons behind imposing the strike.
"People will observe the hartal spontaneously like the one on June 5," Alamgir told newsmen. A large number of party leaders, activists, and supporters were present during the press briefing at its Naya Paltan office.
He said, "I know people will suffer from hartal. But the hartal has been called to protect their right to vote. So, I urge all to make it successful."
The special body submitted the recommendations, including scrapping of non-party CG system, before the House on Wednesday.
The same day, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia Three-term PM of Bangla, widow of deceased dictator Ziaur Rahman, head of the Bangla Nationalist Party, an apparent magnet for corruption ... held an emergency meeting with the party policymakers and decided to go for a tougher movement. They also decided to boycott its dialogue with Election Commission scheduled for Monday.
Khaleda, also the opposition leader in parliament, has already said they would not participate in the next parliamentary polls unless held under a CG.
A debate raged over the CG issue after the SC declared illegal the constitutional provision that mandates an elected government to transfer power to an unelected non-partisan caretaker administration.
The interim government's main task is to give all possible aid and assistance to the EC for holding a parliamentary election peacefully and fairly.
The court also observed that the system might be followed to hold two more general polls for the sake of "safety of the state and its people".
The parliamentary special committee now leaves it to the House to decide whether the CG system will continue or not.
Yesterday, asked about the logic behind the hartal for long 36 hours, Alamgir said the government did not address their demands even after a successful 12-hour hartal. So, they went for a tougher action.
He warned the government of dire consequences if it obstructs their programmes and torture and arrest his party colleagues during the strike.
Addressing the briefing at Jamaat's Moghbazar office, Azharul Islam said most of the 51-point recommendation of the special committee goes against the national interest.
He slammed the special body mainly for suggesting inclusion of secularism as one of the fundamental principles of the charter.
However, facts are stubborn; statistics are more pliable... The Daily Star has got a copy of the committee report on the constitutional amendment.
The House body has proposed to insert secularism as one of the principles in the charter, keeping Islam as the state religion ensuring equal rights also for the Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and people of other religions.
Azharul also said "The government is conspiring to abolish the caretaker government system as they are sure about their defeat in the next election."
Asked about the proposed national budget for the fiscal year 2011-12, BNP leader Alamgir said they are still reviewing it while Jamaat leader Azharul said the budget would not solve the financial woes of the people.
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The United States government has quietly scrapped a popular exchange program for teens from Afghanistan after watching scores of students flee to Canada as refugees rather than return home.
The defections from the State Department's Youth Exchange and Study (YES) initiative have been occurring since 2005, the second year the program was offered. But they reached the breaking point this year when more than half of the 40 Afghans brought in to attend U.S. high schools vanished.
A Toronto Star investigation has tracked a number of those students to refugee shelters in Fort Erie, Ont., high schools in St. Catharines, universities and provincial government jobs in Toronto, apartments in Burnaby, B.C., and elsewhere in Canada. The newest arrivals are collecting welfare as they attend school and work their way through the immigration system.
Partly out of embarrassment and partly out of frustration from seeing federal money go to waste, Washington suspended the YES program this year, denying visa applications for Afghans who were set to arrive in America this fall.
Students accepted into the program, which was created in 2004, are chosen from among more than 5,000 applicants across the country each year. They are the brightest, the most articulate and the ones judged most likely to become the country's future leaders.
That made it a big problem in both Kabul and Washington when they started using their stay in the States as a beachhead for asylum bids in Canada.
CIA director Leon Panetta arrived here Friday on an unannounced visit that marked his first trip to Pakistan since al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in a Navy SEAL raid more than a month ago, U.S. and Pakistani officials said.
Panettas visit comes as the administration seeks to keep its badly bruised relations with Pakistan from deteriorating any further. Who gives a damn? Start off projecting weakness and Panetta will get eaten by the Pakistani wolves.
#2
Panetta Perigrinates to Pakistan to Powwow with Pissed off Potentates...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
06/11/2011 15:29 Comments ||
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#3
Interesting link, Gr(o)m. Of course the modern belief is that the commies were always too weak to be a threat AND were nicer than us right-wingers anyway, so who are we to dispute The Man Who Got Bin Laden.
(While those same commies are building silos for Iranian missiles in our hemisphere...)
#5
We spent away our republic fighting all the proxies of the week and pretending there's no threats from the foreign governments that were ultimately their sponsors. The endgame ain't looking good.
Reported in the illicit publication with an ABC Certificate Al Qalam outlawed terrorist organisation Jaish Muhammad was collecting ushr in South Punjab under the auspices of Al Rehmat Trust also said to be banned. The newspaper informed that ushr a tax on farms legally only collectible by the state - was being collected for past many years and its campaign was at its peak in April.
Jaish warrior released by India
Publication Al Qalam reported that an Indian jail had released Saiful Mulook who was greeted with great fanfare (shaandar) at Bahawalpur, the headquarters of Jaish Muhammad. Saiful was in jail for 5 years. He was feasted at seminary Markaz Usman-o-Ali, the headquarters of Jaish. Those who spoke included Maulana Muhammad Shafiq Abu Jandal.
Tehreek Taliban says it killed Benazir
Reported in Nawa-e-Waqt had Tehreek Taliban Pakistan warning that it would seek revenge from Pakistan for the killing of Osama. It said that it will target the government leaders as well as military hierarchy. It declared that it had earlier killed Benazir Bhutto too as evidence of its ability to kill anyone it liked to kill.
Imran Khan scares off drones
Yes, dear, of course you did. Now eat your nice oatmeal, it will help you grow big and strong.
Quoted in Nawa-e-Waqt Tehreek Insaf leader for Lahore Mahmoodur Rashid said in Lahore that after Imran Khan and his party staged dharna against drones in Peshawar, the Americans had got scared and had given orders not to stage any more drone strikes in Pakistan.
NATO supply is our livelihood!
Reported in Jinnah goods transporters of Pakistan complained that after NATO supplies are stopped because of Imran Khans campaign their livelihood will be affected as their trucks will no longer be required to carry goods to Afghanistan for the NATO troops. They said given load-shedding and business decline in Pakistan, NATO supplies were the only support they had.
Hafiz Saeed leads prayer for Osama
Famous jihadi leader Hafiz Saeed was reported by Nawa-e-Waqt as having led the in absentia funeral prayer (namaz janaza) of Osama bin Laden at his Masjid Qadissiya in Lahore. Thousands of people attended the funeral and were crying without restraint (zar-o-qataar). He declared that such funerals will be held in many cities across the country. In Karachi too thousands joined the funeral.
Hafiz Saeed on trade MFN
Quoted in Jinnah famous warrior and head of Jamaatud Dawa, Hafiz Saeed said that Pak-India trade talks were nothing but photo session. He said India was still sitting atop Pakistans water in Kashmir and it was not right on the part of Pakistani government to hold trade talks with India and promise it the most favoured nation (MFN) status.
More wukla persons go berserk
Reported in Jang in the Lahore Sessions Court two wukla or lawyers attacked a 70 year old man and his sons with such savagery that they began to bleed profusely (laho-lohaan). The lawyers were so enraged that they rained fists (mukon ki barish) on the victims and locked them up in a room. They were angered by the case brought by the victims against their clients. Lawyers as a community are said to have become violent.
Mukhtaran Mai is another Raymond Davis
Reported in Jang equating Mukhtaran Mai to a US agent, the PPP MNA from Muzaffargarh Jamshed Dasti with a fake BA degree hailed the Supreme Court rejection of her plea of rape against the powerful Mastoi tribe and said that she was like Raymond Davis, implying that the gang-raped woman was on the payroll of the Americans.
Was Osama hero or villain?
Unpleasantness in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly was reported by Express when ANP leader Ghulam Ahmad Bilour welcomed the death of Osama but Mufti Kifayatullah grieved over it and called Osama a martyr of the Islamic world. After that there was intense quarrel (shadeed jharap) between the ANP and JUI in the house.
PPP disagrees with the Leagues
Reported in Jinnah the PPP was not in favour of going to war with the USA but was in favour of negotiations and talks with the superpower. On the other hand both the Leagues, the PMLN and PMLQ, were in favour of standing up to America and confronting it (kharay ho jona). One PPP leader said we are taking aid from the US, how can we bring down American planes? The PML leader said it was better to die for honour.
Salman Butts version
Quoted in Express Jamaat Islami leader Hafiz Salman Butt said in Lahore that Osama was not in Pakistan but was kept as prisoner by the US in Afghanistan where he was finally killed and then brought to Abbottabad to put the blame on Pakistan. He said it was a mistake to allow American spies to function in Pakistan. The operation was a slap (munh par thappar) on the face of Pakistani agencies.
Veena Maliks romance ends
Reported in Jinnah Pakistani movie star Veena Malik had returned from India after being disappointed with her latest fiancée Ashmeet. Her latest heartbreak took place after Ashmeets family got details of her earlier affairs and informed him about them. It was also said that Ashmeet was upset additionally because of her other relationships in India.
Gujranwala in Islamic rage
Reported in Nawa-e-Waqt after pamphlets containing insults to Islam and its revered personalities were discovered in Gujranwala, the people came out on the roads and began vandalising the city. The police came out in armoured vehicles and used teargas to disperse them. The dispute started when two Christians allegedly threw a letter near a madrassa that if their Christians friends accused of blasphemy were not freed they would attack mosques. The Christians of Gujranwala were under threat of mass killing and the churches were being protected by the police.
Imran as test tube baby
Replying to PMLN leader Ch Nisar Ali Khans allegation that Imran Khan was a political test tube baby, Imran Khan replied (Jinnah) that Nisar was himself among bigger test tube babies suffering from dollar addiction. He said that the Mughal-e-Azam of Raiwind paid only Rs 5 thousand as tax.
Pakistan has won its war with CIA!
At least for the Pakistani definition of winning, like they won against Bangladesh and against India. You go, guys!
Reported in Nawa-e-Waqt famous ISI chief Hameed Gul said that Pakistan had won the first round of its war against the CIA. The war he said had started in 2008 and Pakistans agencies were manfully battling with CIA but needed unity in their ranks.
Throwing Osama into sea was wrong!
Daily Nawa-e-Waqt quoted the authority of Al Azhar in Egypt as saying that throwing the corpse of Osama in the sea was not Islamic even if it was done through Islamic ritual because Osama had not died at sea. The Americans said that the corpse was not accepted by Saudi Arabia and other Islamic states.
Osama not mourned by Islamic world
Daily Jinnah reported that the Islamic world had not reacted with grief on the death of Osama in Abbottabad on 2 May but some jihadi organisations had issued statements of sorrow and protest. Afghanistan said that Pakistan should be the next focus of ant-terrorism war; Iran said that the US should now leave Afghanistan; Saudi Arabia said the death will assist the global effort against terrorism; Yemen said this was the beginning of the end; and Ikhwan said the US should leave Iraq and Afghanistan.
[Dawn] The Chief of PML-N launched a rare direct criticism of the country's powerful army on Friday, accusing it of running a parallel government and meddling in foreign policy.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... 's remarks were likely aimed at capitalizing on popular anger at the army following the US raid that killed the late Osama bin Laden ... who has left the building... last month.
Sharif's comments to news hounds were made at a public memorial for investigative journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad, who was killed May 30 after telling a human rights ...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty... activist that he had been threatened by intelligence agents. The army-run intelligence agencies have denied killing him.
In comments broadcast live on television, Sharif said the army should stop its "dominance of Pakistain's foreign policy" and accused it of running a "parallel government."
Sharif also said that the Supreme Court should take suo motto action against the killing of Saleem Shahzad.
He said there would be no terrorism and extremism in the country if democracy prevails in Pakistain.
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06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] India on Friday said it would press on with attempts to try a Pakistain-born Canadian citizen over the 2008 Mumbai attacks, despite a US jury finding him not guilty of involvement.
"I do not see it as a setback as our case is still under investigation," said the country's internal security secretary, U K Bansal, referring to Tahawwur Hussain Rana's acquittal in a Chicago court.
Rana was accused of allowing his immigration business to be used as cover for his friend David Coleman Headley to scout out potential targets in India's financial and entertainment capital before the attacks.
Headley testified against him but a jury on Thursday found there was insufficient evidence to convict.
Federal Sherlocks are preparing a case against both Rana and Headley, with a view to trying them in India, Bansal told news hounds in New Delhi.
"When the probe is over, we will produce the evidence in the court," he said, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.
A total of 166 people were killed and more than 300 maimed when 10 heavily-armed gunnies belonging to the banned, Pakistain-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) stormed Mumbai on November 26, 2008.
The sole surviving gunman, Pak national Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, was convicted of 'waging war' against India, murder, attempted murder and terrorism offences at a trial in Mumbai last year and sentenced to death.
Two Indian nationals who were on trial alongside him were acquitted of providing information to the attackers about targets, with their defence teams insisting that it was Headley who provided reconnaissance details.
But the trial judge ruled that implicating Headley was not admissible.
Rana still faces up to 30 years in jail, as the Chicago jury convicted him of helping the LeT to plan an attack on a Danish newspaper for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
Headley was locked away in 2009 and has admitted 12 terror charges after prosecutors agreed not seek the death penalty or allow him to be extradited to either India, Pakistain or Denmark to face related charges.
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06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] An investigation into the shooting death of a youngster by Rangers officials in a public park faltered before it could even get under way on Thursday, with the police authorities saying that they were still waiting for a nod from the paramilitary force to arrest the personnel booked for murder.
The family of the young victim, members of civil society and legal experts raised questions over the way the case was being handled and pinned little hope on the investigation.
In the early hours of Thursday, the Boat Basin police started the paperwork but haven't done much else (FIR 227/2011) under Sections 302 (premeditated murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistain Penal Code against Sindh Rangers constables Mohammad Afzal and Shahid Zafar on a complaint of the victim's elder brother, Saalik Shah, a journalist associated with Samaa TV.
However, there's more than one way to stuff a chicken... hours after the two personnel had been booked, the police authorities supervising the investigation into Sarfaraz Shah's murder said bigwigs of Sindh Rangers had told them that both soldiers were in their custody and would be handed over to them only after a departmental inquiry.
"Since Sindh Rangers is a paramilitary institution, there is some internal process or inquiry going on," said DIG Investigation Iftikhar Tarar.
"It may hardly take a week and then they might be handed over to the police for further investigations. In the meantime we are gathering more evidence and facts related to the case."
Similar views were expressed by a front man for Sindh Rangers, though he did not say when the internal inquiry would be completed. He claimed that the police "would have access to keep their investigations simultaneously".
"A high-level inquiry board has been set up by the Rangers DG headed by a brigadier rank officer. Once they complete the inquiry, the suspects would be handed over to the police," the official said.
Earlier, Rangers DG Major-General Ejaz Chaudary speaking to a select group of journalists offered his condolences to the victim's family and admitted "sheer negligence" on the part of his soldiers.
However, there's more than one way to skin a cat... he did not explain the reasons for not handing over the suspects to the police for a proper investigation.
"I would request you to wait to get our inquiry completed. Once it's over, every fact would be shared with you and the people," he told news hounds of the electronic media.
He said that since Rangers had the responsibility of maintaining peace in the city, they played their due role in their line of duty and "always open fire in self-defence".
He added that this particular incident showed negligence on the part of the six soldiers, who were now under arrest and facing inquiry.
Instead of answering several questions surrounding the brutal act, the briefing of the Rangers DG complicated the situation further with new questions being raised in the media.
The most common of all is about the fewer soldiers named in the FIR despite the fact that the DG himself mentioned six soldiers in relation to this particular incident.
The police authorities had an answer, though without a solid argument.
"Nomination of the suspects in the FIR is not a serious issue. More names can be incorporated in the document once the process starts and facts begin to unfold," asserted DIG Investigations Tarar.
However, denial ain't just a river in Egypt... the victim's elder brother, Saalik Shah who lodged the FIR, wondered the police logic.
"The entire episode took a U-turn only after the footage was broadcast by news channels. Before that we were pleading for justice but in vain.
"I had lodged a complaint against all Rangers officials present there and later seen in the footage but don't know why most of them were not booked," he said.
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06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] On the surface of it the 139th Corps Commanders Conference appeared to be different from its predecessors in that it provided the military's viewpoint on a number of recent controversies.
A lengthy blurb issued by the ISPR went so far as to provide a rare insight into the broad contours of 'renegotiated terms of engagement' with the Americans.
"The participants noted with regret that despite briefing the joint session of the Parliament and deferring the ultimate findings to the commission appointed by the government, some quarters, because of their perceptual biases, were trying to deliberately run down the Armed Forces, and the Army in particular," the statement said.
It cautioned that the campaign against the army would be seen as an attempt to "drive a wedge" between the military, organs of the state and the nation. "Nothing should distract them (the troops) from the job at hand (fighting terrorism)."
The twenty-odd commanders led by their chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani ... four star general, current Chief of Army Staff of the Mighty Pak Army. Kayani is the former Director General of ISI... , who till recently was credited with having bolstered the army's image after his predecessor Gen (retd) Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... 's departure, sent out a clear message: "All of us should take cognizance of this unfortunate trend (of slandering the army) and put an end to it."
Another recent controversy that the blurb addressed was that of the billions of dollars in US military aid. Figures were quoted to prove that the armed forces did not get the bulk of the amount reimbursed by Washington for the expenses incurred for fighting the US-led war against militancy.
"Under the head of Coalition Support Fund (CSF), against a total sum of $13 billion expected from the US, only $8.6 billion have been received by the Government of Pakistain. The government has further made available only $1.4 billion to the Army over last ten years. A relatively smaller amount has gone to Navy and PAF as well.
"The rest, ie approximately $6 billion, have been utilised by the Government of Pakistain for budgetary support, which ultimately means the people of Pakistain."
The military, according to Rooters, also repeated its opposition to missile strike by US drones, saying "these are not acceptable under any circumstances".
The army chief also touched on the impending North Wazoo operation, which the US has been pressuring for, saying he would accept no external pressure on its timing.
"The army was following a well thought-out campaign plan and is under no pressure to carry out operations at a particular time. Future operations, as and when undertaken, will be with political consensus."
But the statement hinted at a possible change of tactics for dealing with the North Waziristan problem. With Gen Kayani calling on rustics to evict foreigners, it appeared that he wanted to utilise the services of loyal tribes to force the foreigners out
instead of pitting the army against the myrmidons.
The COAS reiterated the principle of no-tolerance for terrorism: "It was wrong, in principle, to allow others to use our land for fighting their battles. This must not be allowed. Army in North Waziristan is committed to supporting the people of NWA in
this effort."
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Hi ho, hi ho, it's back to Iraq we go
Iraq will ask the US to keep troops in the country beyond an end-of-2011 pullout deadline, says the nominee to be the next US defence secretary.
Outgoing CIA director Leon Panetta said he had "every confidence that a request like that will be forthcoming".
Mr Panetta was speaking at a US Senate committee considering his nomination.
The US currently has about 47,000 troops in Iraq, none in a combat role. Under a 2008 deal, they are expected to leave by 31 December 2011.
"It's clear to me that Iraq is considering the possibility of making a request for some kind of [troop] presence to remain there [in Iraq]," Mr Panetta told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.
He said that whether that happened depended on what Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki might ask for. But if Baghdad did make such a request, he added, Washington should say yes. The little heads at the Daily Kos are exploding...
Mr Panetta did not say how many troops would be involved or what they would do. He said there were still some 1,000 al-Qaeda members in Iraq, and the situation remained "fragile".
Are they starting to love their children more than they love death, or is does this kind of thing only appear in English?
A "Hamas commander" drove a beat-up gray van in northern Gaza and theatrically spoke on his walkie-talkie as I sat in the passenger seat.
The van was almost barren, save for the most basic equipment propelling it to move forward over the bumpy roads of an overcrowded refugee camp.
Iyad was not here to show me any militant training camp, or even to assess the damage that had befallen the impoverished Gaza Strip during Israel's devastating war, Operation Cast Lead, which killed and wounded thousands in 2008-09.
Scars of the damage sustained during the three-week onslaught are still visible throughout the Strip. But Iyad was here to show me his latest personal project: a playground for refugee children.
At first glance, the "playground" did not seem impressive at all. All I noticed was a small plot of dirt jammed between two unsightly concrete buildings.
"So, what do you think?" asked Iyad, with a proud smile. His attempt at growing a full beard was not entirely successful, giving him a younger, albeit disheveled appearance.
"It's impressive," I replied, still trying to understand the nature of the accomplishment.
I learned later that the achievement was creating space out of the debris. At one time prior to December 2008, when an Israeli missile decided to drop in, a family had lived in this spot. The house had collapsed, and its residents became mere posters of mourned Palestinian faces adorning the walls of other houses in the neighborhood.
Iyad and few of "Shabab Al-Masjid" -- youth of the mosque -- cleared almost everything, using only their bare hands and other primitive means.
The siege had made it nearly impossible to access modern technology to clear the uncountable tons of concrete scattered in and around Gaza as a result of the war. Cement remains a precious commodity in an area that needs building material above most other resources.
People here somehow remain positive.
"And here will be a soccer field," continued Iyad, who seemed to have no budget whatsoever, except the will of the "shabab."
Predictably, Iyad's residence is located in a refugee camp. What seemed to be a large crack around much of the house was in fact a mark left by an Israeli missile, which blew up most of the house. Iyad's entire family -- his brothers, their wives and about two dozen children -- were watching TV in a room that miraculously managed to stay still as the house imploded. The neighbors rushed looking for dead and survivors, only to find everyone alive and well.
Iyad smiled in wonder.
When the unmanned drone began circling above his head, Iyad knew that the Israelis had located him. So he began running.
"I didn't want them to know where I lived, so I began running without a clear sense of direction," said Iyad, who reiterated that he always prepared himself for such a moment.
"I am not scared of death. Life and death is in God's hand, not some Israeli pilot, but I worried about my family."
Then, Iyad's house came down.
Since then, the house has been rebuilt, although in a haphazard way. New additions to the house stand above the deep cracks. There are no guarantees that the foundation is safe, or if the house is even inhabitable at all. Oblivious to war, death, unarmed drones and shaky foundations, the children are full of life.
Three of the boys in Iyad's household carry the same name. It was the name of Iyad's brother who was killed by an Israeli sniper as he protested the occupation during the First Palestinian Uprising (Intifada) of 1987. It was this very event that changed Iyad's life forever. In a moment, the little boy had become a man, as expected of any "brother of a martyr."
Iyad's niece -- a cute girl in a checkered dress -- was asked to perform her nashid, a song she had learned in the street. She did so with untold enthusiasm. The song referenced paradise and martyrs and "right of return," and of children facing missiles with bare chests.
The crowd clapped, and the girl huddled by my side bashfully. Perhaps she had not expected such a passionate response from her audience. She was five years old.
Iyad, who is now studying at a local Gaza university, already speaks of a Master's degree and a teaching career. He also remains consumed by his playground and the challenges awaiting him and the "youth of the mosque" once the uneven ground is completely flattened.
His nieces and nephews sing for the martyrs, but they are also keen to do their homework. They discuss end-of-year exams with dread and excitement. All the boys are fans of Barcelona, and devotees of a man named Lionel Messi.
"When I grow up, I wanted to study physical education," said one of the boys, a teenager of about 14. "I will specialize in soccer, just like Messi's major at the University of Barcelona," he added excitedly.
I laughed, and so did everyone else.
Ramzy Baroud is an internationally-syndicated columnist and the editor of Palestine Chronicle. His latest book is My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza's Untold Story (Pluto Press, London).
#1
Three of the boys in Iyad's household carry the same name. It was the name of Iyad's brother who was killed by an Israeli sniper as he protested the occupation during the First Palestinian Uprising (Intifada) of 1987
"This is my brother Darrell, my other brother Darrell, and my other brother Darrell"
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/11/2011 9:43 Comments ||
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The Islamic group is weighing a new strategy of not directly participating in future governments even if it wins elections, a move aimed at avoiding isolation by world community and allowing for continued economic aid.
Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, officials told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named the idea has gained favor in recent closed meetings of the secretive movement's leadership in the West Bank, Gazoo, Egypt and Syria, and that it helped enable last month's reconciliation agreement with the rival Fatah group of Paleostinian President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
So are they going to be the loyal opposition or the power behind the throne?
'Jerusalem Post' obtains report submitted to UNSC detailing Iran's arms smuggling to Hamas, Taliban; reveals regime's clandestine missile tests.
Iran has been caught red-handed in 10 different attempts in recent years to transfer weaponry to Islamic fascistithroughout the Middle East, including a recent case, in April, when a shipment of advanced missiles was caught en-route to Taliban forces in Afghanistan, according to a United Nations ...boodling on the grand scale... report obtained Thursday by The Jerusalem Post.
The report was submitted three weeks ago to the Security Council by a UN group of experts that monitors compliance with UN sanctions imposed on Iran. The report was leaked to the Internet and obtained by a number of leading Israeli defense analysts.
The report documents all 10 cases of arms smuggling, including the case of the Victoria cargo ship, which was stopped by the Israel Navy earlier this year carrying arms for Hamas. In the most recent case cited, British forces in Afghanistan found a weapons shipment of advanced Iranian-made anti-ship missiles and 122 mm. rockets en route to Taliban forces in Afghanistan.
In March, Turkish authorities stopped an Iranian cargo plane bound for Syria. At the time, Turkey tried to downplay the news, but the UN report reveals that authorities discovered dozens of AK-47 assault rifles and close to 2,000 mortar shells. The report confirms that the arms originated in Iran and were supplied by the Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The report further reveals that Iran test fired two of its most advanced long-range missiles -- the Shihab 3 and the Sajil -- in February.
The tests were not reported at the time by the Iranians, or by the United States or Israel, both of which track such missile launches.
Tal Inbar, head of the Space Research Center at the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies, analyzed the UN report and said the missile tests were significant since Iran was making efforts to hide its ballistic missile program, something that raises suspicions about the nature of the program and its connection to the Islamic Theocratic Republic's illicit nuclear drive.
"For a number of years, they have been trying to display shorter-range rockets like the Qiyam and the Fateh 110," Inbar said. "In the most recent military parade, they did not even did not even show the Shihab."
The report, which also discusses the regular exchange of ballistic missile technology between Iran and North Korea, said financial sanctions appeared to be having an effect on Tehran, as demonstrated by "the range of measures taken by Iran to circumvent them."
"These measures are expensive and time-consuming to set up and administer. They include arrangements to enable sanctioned Iranian banks to maintain access to the international financial sector through normal business conducted by non-sanctioned Iranian banks," the report said. "Nevertheless, despite financial restrictions, Iran appears able to continue to pay for procurement from abroad for its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile programs."
Iran has been caught red-handed in 10 different attempts in recent years to transfer weaponry to Islamic fascistithroughout the Middle East, including a recent case, in April, when a shipment of advanced missiles was caught en-route to Taliban forces in Afghanistan, according to a United Nations ...aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society... report obtained Thursday by The Jerusalem Post.
The report was submitted three weeks ago to the Security Council by a UN group of experts that monitors compliance with UN sanctions imposed on Iran. The report was leaked to the Internet and obtained by a number of leading Israeli defense analysts.
The report documents all 10 cases of arms smuggling, including the case of the Victoria cargo ship, which was stopped by the Israel Navy earlier this year carrying arms for Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,. In the most recent case cited, British forces in Afghanistan found a weapons shipment of advanced Iranian-made anti-ship missiles and 122 mm. rockets en route to Taliban forces in Afghanistan.
Continued on Page 49
[An Nahar] Hizbullah on Friday strongly denied No, no! Certainly not! media reports accusing the Shiite party of being involved in the ongoing festivities in Syria, describing them as "rumors aimed at inciting sectarian tensions."
"Lately, some Arab and Israeli media outlets and a number of websites have been circulating rumors accusing Hizbullah of being involved in the military confrontations taking place in some Syrian regions," said Hizbullah in a statement.
Those media outlets, according to the statement, have also reported that Hizbullah members were killed in festivities between Syrian security forces and protesters.
The party accused certain media outlets of "fabricating names of alleged (Hizbullah) deaders."
It said the aforementioned media reports were "part of the same conspiracy targeting Syria and the resistance movements" in the region.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Thursday's meeting between Syrian President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad One of the last of the old-fashioned hereditary iron-fisted fascist dictators. Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor... and Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Wally Jumblat ... Druze politician, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, who's been on every side in Leb at least four times. He'll sell you his friends for a dollar, but family comes higher because of shipping and handling... did not focus on the issue of Leb's cabinet formation process, but rather at the possibility of tasking the Druze leader with "mediating between Syria and Turkey," whose once warm relations have grown colder over Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... ' violent crackdown on protesters, MTV reported Friday.
Meanwhile, ...back at the game, the Babe was wondering why the baseball kept getting bigger and bigger. Finally it hit him... OTV reported that Assad told Jumblat that "Syria has overcome the dangerous phase and that it has started to contain the situation caused by the conspiracy plotted by some major world powers and Arab states."
He also told him that there is a "plot to separate him from Hizbullah," but stressed that "the relation with the Resistance That'd be the Hezbullies, natch... stems from a deeply-rooted conviction and that he will hold on to it until the end," according to OTV.
The TV network also reported that Jumblat has dispatched envoys to meet with President Michel Suleiman, Premier-designate Najib Miqati and Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, a member of AMAL, a not very subtle Hizbullah sock puppet... , with the aim of briefing them on his meeting with Assad.
On Thursday, Jumblat held talks with Assad in Damascus, in the presence of caretaker Public Works and Transport Minister Ghazi Aridi.
During the meeting, Jumblat "voiced his hope that Syria will be able to overcome this critical period in its history through endorsing the reforms launched by President Assad," according to a statement issued by the PSP following the Druze leader's return to Beirut.
For his part, Assad hoped during the talks that the Lebanese would succeed in overcoming their disputes and form a new government soon "for the country's greater good," Syria's state-run news agency ...and if you can't believe the state-run news agency who can you believe?... SANA reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates piled pressure on Syrian President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad One of the last of the old-fashioned hereditary iron-fisted fascist dictators. Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor... on Friday, saying his very legitimacy was on the line after the "slaughter of innocent lives".
"The slaughter of innocent lives in Syria should be a problem and concern for everybody," Gates said after a speech in Brussels.
"And whether Assad still has the legitimacy to govern in his own country after this kind of a slaughter I think is a question everybody has to consider," he said.
Referring to the wave of revolts against dictators across the Arab world, Gates added: "There clearly is a dividing line in the Middle East between the rulers who are prepared to slaughter their own people to stay in power and those who are prepared to transition (out of power)."
The United States threw its weight Wednesday behind a U.N. Security Council resolution proposed by Britannia and La Belle France that condemns Syria for its brutal crackdown on opposition protesters.
But Russia, one of five veto-wielding members of the council, said Thursday it was opposed to any resolution on Syria.
Assad's regime has come under mounting international pressure over accusations of massacres of pro-democracy protesters and rights activists.
His army launched Friday a crackdown on what the regime described as "armed gangs" in the flashpoint town of Jisr al-Shughur, where authorities say 120 police and troops were massacred earlier in the week.
Opposition activists and various witnesses, however, say the deaths resulted from a mutiny by troops who refused orders to crack down on protesters.
Pro-democracy activists vowed more countrywide protests on Friday.
Anti-government demonstrations erupted in March and more than 1,100 civilians, including dozens of children, have been killed in the ensuing crackdown, human rights ...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you... groups say.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/11/2011 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
I guess the slaughter in Syria has not yet risen to the level in Libya, before the Progressives decided to save lives with bombs.
I suppose we're seeing another picture of the value of oil. If only our lawn mowers could be solar- powered!
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/11/2011 9:28 Comments ||
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#2
This seems slightly hypocritical to me.
Pencilneck's family has been killing Lebanese and subjugating them to the rule of Hezbollah for the last two decades but now that they've massacred _Syrians_ as well, they're illegitimate.
He isn't any more illegitimate than he was this time last year. The establishment just can't pretend to ignore it at the moment.
#3
Pencilneck's family has been killing Lebanese and subjugating them to the rule of Hezbollah for the last two decades but now that they've massacred _Syrians_ as well
Ah, Thing, Assads been massacring Syrians since 1971.
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President Asif Ali 
Hillary Clinton
Khaleda Zia
Nawaz Sharif
Pervez 
Wazoo
North Korea
President-for-Life Bashir 
Walid 
Najib Miqati
al-Assad
