Afghan and NATO-led troops clashed with Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan on Friday, leaving 10 suspected militants dead, an Afghan army officer said. The militants were killed following the battle in Gereshk district, in Helmand province, where another 20 suspected militants died in clashes and airstrikes on Thursday, said Major General Muhiddin Ghori of the Afghan National Army. A NATO and Afghan army soldier were also wounded during the battle, Ghori said. He did not release the nationality of the wounded NATO soldier.
In the southern Zabul province, militants attacked a police patrol on the main highway linking Kabul to the countrys south, leaving two officers wounded on Thursday, said Ghulam Jailani, a highway police commander in Zabul.
This article starring:
Ghulam Jailani, a highway police commander in Zabul
Major General Muhiddin Ghori of the Afghan National Army
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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Moroccan police have detained 15 radical Islamists on suspicions of plotting terror attacks in the North African country, the justice minister said. "Arrests had been made, according to the information from the Kingdom's public prosecutor. Fifteen detainees are in custody, three of them had been extradited by Libya," Ahmed Bouzouba told Assabah newspaper in an interview published on Friday. "Indeed, these people were arrested as they prepared terrorist attacks," he added, declining to give details because of what he called the secrecy of the ongoing investigation. The minister's top aide confirmed to Reuters Bouzouba's remarks.
Neither Bouzouba nor his aide gave details on the three Moroccans arrested in Libya before their extradition to Rabat. Police sources said dozens of radical Islamists had fled a police crackdown in Morocco in the 1980s and 1990s to settle in Libya.
Last week, Morocco raised the security alert level to the highest rating of "maximum", suggesting an attack was imminent. Morocco's Interior Ministry said it obtained intelligence information on the threat in recent days but gave no details. The region has been on alert since Al Qaeda's affiliate in North Africa, the Al Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb, which is based in Algeria, threatened to escalate its war against "corrupt" governments in the region and their Western allies.
The Al Qaeda affiliate claimed responsibility for attacks in Algeria in the latest four months, including three in Algiers on April 11 when 33 people were killed and another on Wednesday that killed eight soldiers at an army barracks in Lakhdaria, 120 km east of the capital. On April 14, two suicide bombers detonated explosive belts outside US diplomatic facilities on Casablanca, killing only themselves. The Rabat government at the time dismissed local media speculation of a link between attacks in Algiers and the death of the suicide bombers in Casablanca. Five other suicide bombers blew themselves also in Casablanca in April and March, killing only themselves and a police officer.
This article starring:
Ahmed Bouzouba
Al Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa
At least 11 Tesco supermarkets across the UK have been closed by police in a safety alert.
One force said the move was "a precaution".
The company is working with policeOfficers from Hertfordshire, where the firm has its headquarters, said no-one had been hurt.
They said the closures affected stores in Lancashire, Suffolk, Dyfed Powys in Wales, Fife in Scotland, Leicestershire, Humberside, West Mercia, West Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Strathclyde and London.
A Hertfordshire police spokeswoman said: "Police are investigating a series of incidents in a number of locations across the country involving Tesco stores.
"These stores have been temporarily closed as a precaution for public safety."
A spokesman for South Wales police said the Tesco store at Riverside, Port Talbot, had been closed since this afternoon, adding: "Officers will maintain a presence at the site for as long as is necessary."
A Tesco spokeswoman said: "Tesco is working with the police following a series of incidents.
"Police are investigating and so we are unable to comment further."
She added: "As always, at all times customer welfare is our priority."
#1
I never was a big Tesco fan. Make mine Waitrose - better seafood monger and wine selection. Very nice bakery and produce selection. Also, they don't do halal.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 16:12 Comments ||
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#2
First buses and trains. Then an airport. Almost a night club or two. Now supermarkets. I'm starting to see a pattern here.
British police said on Thursday they had released without charge the only woman among the eight suspects held in the case of failed bomb attacks in London and Glasgow last month. The woman was the wife of suspect Mohammed Asha, 26, arrested with him on June 30 while the pair drove on a motorway in northern England, hours after attackers drove a jeep into an airport terminal building in Scotland and set it ablaze.
That attack came 36 hours after the discovery of two cars packed with fuel, gas tanks and nails primed to explode near a crowded nightclub in London. Police think the two incidents were linked. All but one of the suspects are medics from the Middle East or India. One, Iraqi-trained doctor Bilal Abdulla, 27, was charged last week with conspiring to cause explosions.
Indian engineer Kafeel Ahmed, 27, is under police guard badly burned in hospital. Four other suspects, including Ahmed's brother, Sabeel, are held at a central London police station. Another Indian doctor is being questioned by police in Australia.
This article starring:
BILAL ABDULLA
al-Tawhid
KAFIL AHMED
al-Tawhid
MOHAMED ASHA
al-Tawhid
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I'm sure the police will have fun seeing where she goes and who she talks to.
#2
It would be hard to convince me that committed Islamist would treat a woman as a full partner. More than likely she served tea to the conspirators and was held as a material witness. It would be an excellent idea to tap her phones.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 13:24 Comments ||
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Australian federal police charged an Indian doctor with providing support to a terrorist organization Saturday, allegedly linking him to last month's failed British bombings.
An Indian you say! A Hindu? A Sikh? A Christian? A Buddhist?
Muhammad Haneef, 27, is accused of providing a group suspected in the botched attacks with access to his mobile phone SIM card, police said.
NO!!!! None of those faiths!
Mr. Haneef is the second person to be charged in the attacks on London and Glasgow on June 29 and 30. The other is Bilal Abdullah, who is being held in London on charges of conspiring to set off explosions. The specific allegation involves recklessness rather than intention, Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty told reporters. Haneef had been reckless about some of the support he provided to that group, in particular the provision of his SIM card.
British police raised suspicions about Mr. Haneef when they allegedly found his mobile telephone's SIM card in the possession of one of the men accused in the failed car bomb attacks last month.
Hey, people swap SIM cards all the time. What's the big deal? Not like they were exchanging garage door openers or anything.
Media reports later identified the man as Sabeel Ahmed, Mr. Haneef's distant cousin and former lover housemate, who is being questioned by British police over the foiled plot.
Official documents cited by The Australian newspaper on Friday said Mr. Haneef gave the SIM card to Mr. Ahmed before he moved to Australia so that his cousin could take advantage of free minutes left on his mobile phone plan.
Next time get the Family Plan and share those minutes.
Commissioner Keelty confirmed police would oppose bail when Mr. Haneef appears in Brisbane court later in the day. The police chief said Mr. Haneef would be prosecuted in Australia unless British police have any evidence in the U.K. that would sustain an extradition application.
A suspect can only be extradited to another country if that country has enough evidence to charge the person with an offence.
In Britain, the office of the prime minister, the Home Office, the Foreign Office and London's Metropolitan Police all declined to comment on the charges when reached early Saturday.
Police began interrogating Mr. Haneef on Friday afternoon after withdrawing a court application to extend his detention without charge beyond Friday. Under Australia's counter-terror laws, police can only hold a suspect without charge with a court order. Mr. Haneef was charged early Saturday after being questioned in hour-long blocks through Friday afternoon and early Saturday morning, his lawyer Peter Russo told reporters in Brisbane.
Mr. Russo said his client was extremely upset by the charge and would apply for bail.
"You ain't got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! Let me speak to me mouthpiece!"
#1
does anyone (I don't) know anyone who's swapped SIM cards with someone else?? what utter bullshit
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/14/2007 9:32 Comments ||
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#2
... is accused of providing a group suspected in the botched attacks...
Hit him with malpractice as well.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 13:29 Comments ||
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#3
Mr. Wife swapped SIM cards with me, Frank, because his phone has bluetooth capability and mine doesn't. The new car that will someday go to trailing daughter #1 has a bluetooth set-up for hands free talking. One of these years I'll get a new cell phone, but in the meantime I have to be careful not to change anything important. ;-)
#4
Here's hoping that Australia tries and convicts this maggot. Let him rot for the full term down under before they extradite him to Britain where he gets to rinse and repeat his jail sentence.
Gold Coast doctor Mohamed Haneef has been charged with providing support to a terrorist organisation, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a statement today. Police will allege Gold Coast doctor Mohamed Haneef supported a terrorist organisation by "recklessly" giving his mobile phone SIM card to people planning car bomb attacks in the UK. Dr Haneef, an Indian national who worked as a registrar at Gold Coast Hospital, will today face Brisbane Magistrates Court.
"The specific allegation involves recklessness rather than intention,'' Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said today. "The allegation being that he was reckless about some of the support he provided to that group, in particular the provision of his SIM card for the use of the group.'' There is a presumption against bail for people charged with terrorism offences and Mr Keelty confirmed police would oppose bail. The maximum penalty for the terrorism support offence is 15 years jail.
Dr Haneef has been held in custody in Brisbane since his arrest at the city's airport on July 2 in connection with foiled bomb attacks in London and Glasgow. The Gold Coast Hospital doctor is related to two men detained in the UK over the plot, Sabeel and Kafeel Ahmed, who allegedly drove a Jeep Cherokee into Glasgow airport.
Police today had 12 hours to question Dr Haneef before they had to either release him or charge him. He has been held in custody for 12 days, under new Australian anti-terrorism laws. He was arrested at Brisbane airport on July 2 with a one-way ticket to India. Dr Haneef told authorities he was on his way to Bangalore to visit his wife, who had just given birth.
Mazel tov, numbnuts.
Police yesterday withdrew a request for an extension of time to question Dr Haneef, prompting wide speculation he would be released without charge today. Dr Haneef's lawyer Peter Russo told the ABC he had spent all night at federal police headquarters in Brisbane where his client was questioned. He said Dr Haneef had been transferred to the Brisbane watchhouse this morning.
His client is very upset by the news and will apply for bail, Mr Russo said.
Dr Haneef reportedly shared a house in the British city of Liverpool with Kafeel and Sabeel Ahmed for up to two years before Dr Haneef moved to Australia, and remained in contact by phone and online messaging after that. Police have also said they suggest a possible link between Dr Haneef and Mr Abdullah. Australian officials have previously said Dr Haneef was arrested after his mobile phone's SIM card was found in the possession of one of the British suspects, later identified by media reports as Sabeel Ahmed. Official documents cited by The Australian newspaper yesterday said Dr Haneef gave the SIM card to Sabeel Ahmed before he moved to Australia from Britain last year so that his cousin could take advantage of free minutes left on his mobile phone plan.
#2
It's not all that surprising the wife would want to be with her family to give birth, especially with a doctor husband working round the clock. It would be interesting to know if she really had been pregnant, though, as claimed.
PORT ST. LUCIE - Erik Botta believes he's done right by his country.
Days after 9/11, as a young Army reservist, he volunteered to go to war. He was soon in Afghanistan. The next year, he was sent out again, this time to Iraq, part of a Special Operations team. In the next two years, he was sent to Iraq again. And again. He thought he was done. But now, the Army wants Sgt. Botta one more time.
The 26-year-old Port St. Lucie man has been ordered to report to Fort Jackson, S.C., on July 15 for his fifth deployment. And that has compelled Botta, a first-generation American who counts himself a quiet patriot, to do something he never thought he'd do: sue the Army.
"I'm proud of my service," he said. "I never wanted it to end like this."
Nearly seven years into his eight-year commitment to the reserves, the personal costs are higher for Botta. He could lose his home. His job at Sikorsky, working on the Black Hawk military helicopter, could be on the line. He's halfway to his electrical engineering degree, planning a career in defense work, but his professors say he'll suffer a significant setback if he is deployed. He doesn't mention the danger another deployment would bring, but his wife and parents do.
"I'm proud of being in the Army," he said. "They taught me responsibility. They taught me maturity. And they gave me a good toolbox of technical skills to work with. I think I'd be more valuable to my country at this point by being here, getting my degree and working at Sikorsky."
In a lawsuit he expects to file this week in federal court in Florida, Botta says he will ask for an exemption or delay so that he can complete his engineering studies. He will also ask the court to prevent the Army from requiring him to report for duty until the legal questions are settled. His attorney, Mark Waple -- a West Point graduate and former military judge advocate who practices in Fayetteville, N.C. -- says Botta's case shows that the Army is inconsistent in its decisions when selecting reservists for involuntary mobilization, over and over.
"This is an arbitrary decision by the Army Human Resources Command with no rational basis," Waple said.
Deployment now would mean that he could no longer afford his house -- his wife would probably have to move in with her parents. Plans to start a family would be on hold. He would probably have to repeat some engineering courses after his return, and he might even lose the job he just landed about a month ago. Previously, he worked at Pratt & Whitney in the Joint Strike Fighter and Raptor engine programs.
"This is no peace protester," Waple said. "I wouldn't have touched this case with a 10-foot pole if it was. He's put the boots on and been in combat."
Although Botta knew there was a risk that he would be called to duty again, he assumed that it was very slight, given his four combat deployments, pursuit of an engineering degree and employment with military contractors, he said. "The world pretty much stopped when I got the notice," said Botta, weighing each word. "I've sacrificed a lot for the military. I didn't want to end with litigation, but I feel I've done my service to my country. I've done what I signed up for in more ways than one."
The Army doesn't agree. It turned down one appeal, with another pending but unofficially denied. Last year, it granted Botta a 287-day delay, pushing his deployment date to this month, after an inquiry by U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.
"This is something we're starting to see more of," Bryan Gulley, Nelson's spokesman, said about repeat deployments. "It's one of the reasons Nelson has been saying we have to stop relying so heavily on the [National] Guard and the Reserve."
Army spokeswoman Maj. Cheryl Phillips issued a statement Friday regarding Botta's case, saying in part that the Army evaluates "each request independently to determine if the mobilization will cause undue hardship for the Soldier or the family. We appreciate the sacrifice our citizen Soldiers and their families make when called to active duty."
The Army has granted 87 percent of delays requested by Soldiers -- most are 90 days or less -- and 54 percent of exemptions, the statement said. It did not comment on Botta's case, but the Army said in a letter sent to him regarding one of his appeals that he did not "meet the requirements for a hardship exemption/discharge."
Botta joined the reserves in 2000 and asked to be activated in 2001 -- "I felt like I had to do something" after 9/11, he said -- and his tours of duty have lasted up to eight months. He left active duty at the end of 2004. Under his current reporting date, he might not even complete the semester; classes end in August. Attorney Waple says the Army has granted an exemption in at least one similar case, in 2005. A 24-year-old North Carolina enlisted Army reservist with two combat tours under his belt -- in Iraq and Kosovo -- was involuntarily mobilized while attending community college in Raleigh, pursuing a degree in chemical engineering. He had completed five of his eight years in the service, Waple said. The man's first appeal was denied, but after Waple filed a second appeal, he was given an exemption and honorably discharged, Waple said.
Botta's case may be even stronger. He has completed more years of service and more combat tours, has a job in the defense industry while pursuing his engineering degree, and was granted a 287-day delay already, Waple noted.
Botta has tried hard to avoid a suit, Waple said, filing every appeal available within the Army's justice system. Botta and his wife have sent letters to everyone from Sen. Nelson to the White House. His professors and employers have sent letters, too, on his behalf. "It's an awkward thing for any serviceman," Waple said. "He has a very strong sense of responsibility and duty to serve."
In his own letters to the Army, Botta notes that he is attending school on the GI Bill, maintaining a 3.9 grade-point average, and is grateful that he can use his Army skills in his work with military contractors.
"If I was to go back to the Army at this juncture in my life, I could very well lose my house and be in considerable debt for years to come," Botta wrote. "I am proud of the fact that I can still continue to serve my country with the knowledge that I have acquired from the U.S. Army."
The Army's response during the appeals, Botta said, has been "minimal communication."
Carlos Botta, his father, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Argentina, said he applauded his son's military service -- until now. "He served in Afghanistan. He served three times in Iraq. The odds are getting slimmer and slimmer for him. He might get hurt. Don't you think he has served the country enough already?"
Botta's wife, Jennifer, who married him between Iraq stints, said she can't face the idea of his returning to combat. Losing their house, painful as that would be, is the least of her worries.
"He's been over there four times. There's only so many times you can go over without something happening . . . ." Her voice trailed off. During his deployments, she said, she would watch television news reports about bombings and then count the hours until he called. "My cellphone was in my hand 24 hours a day," she said. "I never let it go."
For Erik Botta, who keeps his hair military-short, the last few months have played out as a struggle between his battle-hardened loyalty to the Army and an abiding sense of what's right.
"We were in a wartime situation," he said. "I did what they asked me to do. I went over and did it. And then when I was leaving, they told me I could leave. They told me to get on with my life, and I did. Now it seems they've changed their mind."
But he doesn't regret his service -- at all. "I'm proud to be in the Army, and I'm proud -- cheesy as it might sound -- I'm proud to be an American."
#1
Talk to your Donk Congress. They, along with their brethren across the aisle, cut the active duty Army from 750,000 to 480,000 in the 90s. Peace dividend for all sorts of pork ineffectual social programs. They placed DoD in the position that it had to use the reserve and National Guard, who's resources and force structure were also protected Congressional district by Congressional district. Life is tough. It's a lot tougher when you're stupid and keep sending the same rectal orifice back to Congress each election.
#2
Thinking about it more, I believe its time to bring back the old Roman practice of sending pols out with the legions. When a legion got munched in the field, so did the pols. Big motivation to make sure the troops were well trained, equipped, and had good tactical leadership. Rotation every four months, five reps and two Senators. Billeted no higher than battalion with at least two trips out on patrols. Any wimps automatically forfeit their seats and are banned from federal offices, elected or appointed, for twenty years. Time to put quality assurance into the process.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Yeah, dead weight if you piss off those kids trying to keep you alive, so you can posture when you get home."
#3
While I'm happy to sign on to Procopius's idea of "deploying" Congresscritters, the buck on this issue has to stop at G-Dub's desk. In the days after 9-11, I was expecting to hear him call for, if not a full national mobilization, at least an end-strength increase sufficient to recoup the manpower losses resulting from the fact that Billy Jeff's budget surpluses came largely out of DoD's hide. Instead, what we got was "Go Shopping, Or the Terrorists Win".
Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) ||
07/14/2007 10:32 Comments ||
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#4
Someone at DA-MILPERCEN and the Guard bureau has their head up their 4th point of contact.
This clearly calls for an exemption for the good of the service. This guy will stay guard if they let him - and he will have great input with Sikorsky on the very things he did in combat, and on the flip side, he can bring knowledge to his unit from Sikorsky to make his unit better. And int he long run, the Guard and Army will probably get a hell of a good officer if this guy goes that way once he completes his degree. 3.9 GPA in engineering is damn good. Combine that with his combat experience, and you have the makings of a someone the Guard and Army will need as it retools over the next 5 years.
On top of that he has served enough combat tours. IVM is supposed to be used only in dire situations. I cannot see where they can't find another helicopter maint NCO. Go down to Ft Rucker and grab a spare E-6 that has probably done just one.
I think someone at a desk in DC is screwing this up.
#5
You need a STANDING army. The cutback in the 90's was not a good idea considering we knew the need was increasing. Why has congress not increased the army by now? why?
#6
Same reason they haven't passed the Flat Tax, slashed social program spending, and done a thousand other obviously beneficial things: what's good for the country isn't necessarily good for the Congresscritter who would like to retain his cushy public sector job.
#7
"the buck on this issue has to stop at G-Dub's desk"
My late uncle hated Bush for just that reason. As a former WWII vet, he loathed the overuse of troops in combat areas because Dubya refused to expand the military. I sure as blazes couldn't argue with that.
Posted by: E Brown ||
07/14/2007 12:50 Comments ||
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#8
By the WWII standard everyone who volunteered after 9-11 should have deployed continuously for the next 3 years without a break - except for wounds or death.
Terrorism is in part an attempt to criple our economy. So far it has been unsuccessful because we haven't done and general call-up and are continuing to let free market forces control production. In some ways it is awful attractive to contemplate the government bailing GM out of their 40 years of stupidity taking control of their plant and making them manufacture tanks that we don't need.
A general call-up of American men wasn't necessary to take Iraq or Afghanistan. Neither will be necessary to take Iran or Syria. A general call-up would be quite useful for occupying Iraq or Iran but American casualties would skyrocket. Currently most of the casualties for our side are being absorbed by Iraqis. If the surge is successful, the casualty rates for Iraqis themselves will drop and we are a step closer to stable self-governement.
All this while the DOW climbs and without undue inconvenience to Paris Hilton and her adoring fans. Who would have thunk it on the morning of 9-12-01.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 13:13 Comments ||
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#9
Does seem that this fine young man has done his share (and more) for us, doesn't it? I agree with Old Spook, give him an exemption, keep him in the Guard and let him get his degree.
I've said before that Dubya should have asked for a new division of Army and a new brigade for the Marines after 9/11. These things take time, you never build up as quick as you build down, but had he done this we'd have those new units, well trained and set, on line now. Then we'd see if we need another new division.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/14/2007 14:22 Comments ||
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#10
It wasn't Bush who downsized the military. We all know who that was and that coupled with his roving eye (not on the critical mass of known terrorism since 1979) is what has got us where we are today. Bush and Rummy have made their share of mistakes but to somehow give him the boot for not adding a brigade is disingenious at best. It would have taken 5 years to get a brigade operationally fit. I still say the biggest issue with the military operation in Iraq and Afghanistan is RoE and the war being overlawyered. Also, we had the right generals (Franks) for the invasion but then the wrong ones for the post-victory occupation. Now we have a COIN general and team of repute that seem to be making very acute corrections. If we could only get the RoE changed on civilians....
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 16:19 Comments ||
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#11
It was Bush, just not this one. BJ just kept a good thing going. There was nothing wrong with it. But after 9/11, the policy should have been reversed but it wasn't. That's what's this Bush's fault.
#12
OK, this guy has "4 deployments" under his belt, including 2 that lasted less than 30 days. He has only spent 10 nonconsecutive months deployments. He needs a good ass kicking from his chain of command. As they say in my Corps, USMC...U Signed (the) Motherf*cking Contract. Suck it up and deal with it. I know guys that have 4 REAL deployments and 3 purple hearts. Don't hear this crap from them!
#13
OK, this guy has "4 deployments" under his belt, including 2 that lasted less than 30 days. He has only spent 10 nonconsecutive months deployments. He needs a good ass kicking from his chain of command. As they say in my Corps, USMC...U Signed (the) Motherf*cking Contract. Suck it up and deal with it. I know guys that have 4 REAL deployments and 3 purple hearts. Don't hear this crap from them!
#14
Once again Bush is napping while necessity demands more boots and more boot camps.
Either the man's a jerk or he's getting secret messages through his aluminum beanie. He's blown more chances than Linda Lovelace. He had a trunk Congress and he didn't manage to even get his sucessful tax cuts permanent. What a maroon.
Tribal Islamic militants, in a show of force on Friday, paraded alleged drug peddlers through a bazaar near the Pak-Afghan border, officials said. 50 hooded and armed vigilantes, who call themselves the Mujahedeen (holy warriors), also smashed videocassettes they confiscated from local shops and demanded an end to vice and adherence to strict Islamic law. The militants told Muslims in Khar to get ready for jihad because Muslims were facing a critical situation, said witnesses. They released the eight alleged drug traders with a stern warning.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
They released the eight alleged drug traders with a stern warning: Only sell the drugs to infidels and then give us the money!
#2
50 hooded and armed vigilantes, who call themselves the Mujahedeen (holy warriors), also smashed videocassettes they confiscated from local shops and demanded an end to vice and adherence to strict Islamic law.Later that evening they treked back up into the mountains to their team house and drank 3 kegs of Budweiser, ate nearly 40 pizzas, and laughed themselves to sleep.
All major and small business centres in the Bajaur Agency observed Friday as a holiday instead of Sunday after a call from local tribal militants, residents said. The call for observing Friday as a weekly holiday was given on Wednesday at a protest demonstration of pro-Taliban militants in Khar. All shops in Khar, Inayat Kalay and Sadiqabad were closed on Friday, locals told Daily Times. An official confirmed the closure of shops in Khar on Friday. The move, according to observers, is significant towards moving the region one step closer to what the Taliban perceive as Islamic rule.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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The government on Friday moved an army brigade to Tank district, officials said. Tank District Police Officer (DPO) Mumtaz Zarin told Daily Times that the army had been called in to improve security and to stop incursions from the tribal areas. He, however, refused to comment on how many soldiers were being deployed there, but said the army deployment was a gradual process. No operation is being considered at the moment, the DPO added. NWFP Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai ruled out a military operation in the area, saying that the army had been summoned to assist the local administration in maintaining law and order. We were against use of force in Islamabad... how can we agree on an operation in the NWFP?
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Cant help it... I read the headline and think about a circus and a ass-load of clowns stuffing into and piling on top of some old, broken-down jalopy...
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
07/14/2007 0:46 Comments ||
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Assailants in Miranshah killed three pro-government tribal leaders on Friday, while police arrested three suspected suicide bombers and seized a car full of explosives in DI Khan. The assailants shot dead the leaders after spotting them in a Miranshah market, reports said.
Meanwhile, police seized three suspected suicide bombers and a car filled with explosives, officials said. Police arrested Ehsan, Nasir Din and Jamshid from an under-construction house in Dera Ismail Khan, DPO Gul Afzal Afridi said. The car contained seven suicide vests, 100 mortar shells, two rockets and one landmine. SHO Bahwal Khan told APP that two of the alleged bombers are from North Waziristan Agency, while the third belongs to Tank.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Who will be jailed longer - the three 'suspected' bombers or the police who arrested them? (Or am I wrong to compare this to US border patrol?)
The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday directed the government to release on bail the people arrested during the Lal Masjid operation except those involved in serious crimes, submit a detailed report on the total deaths and injuries, and provide treatment to Maulana Abdul Azizs wife Umme Hasaan.
"How many did you shoot, sonny?"
"Eleven, judge!"
"Eh, that ain't that many. You can go."
"Thanks, yer honor! Can I have my guns back?"
A two-member SC bench consisting of Justice Muhammad Nawaz Abbasi and Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar ordered Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Chaudhry Muhammad Ali to ensure the early release on bail of all the persons under Section 188 and immediately lift the curfew in Sector G-6. The bench rejected the preliminary report of the administration regarding the total number of the dead and injured people, as it did not carry the names of the persons.
Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Tariq Khokhar told the court that 102 people including 91 civilians, 10 commandoes and one Rangers official died in the operation. He said that of 629 males arrested during the operation, 386 had been released. He said that 241 men were in the judicial custody, while two others were on physical remand. He said that three women Umme Hasaan and her daughters Tayyaba and Asma were detained under Section 224 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The court also ordered medical treatment for Umme Hasaan on her lawyers request.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Can't think of a more appropriate graphic...
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
07/14/2007 0:50 Comments ||
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Breaking?
US armed forces in Iraq uncovered a field containing 50 Iranian-made rocket launchers, all aimed at a US army base, Israel Radio reported
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/14/2007 19:01 ||
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#1
The ability of our current elected government and administration to ignoreor purposefully disregardIran's consistent murder of American citizens and troops certifies their status as members of the traitor class. Iranmore than any other MME (Muslim Middle East) nationrepresents a clear and present danger to America. Only Saudi Arabia challenges this assertion.
Failure to act upon such obvious facts renders a vast majority of our politicians as friends of the enemy. Elitism has no place in the United States. Either you support the same path that generates wealth for the average citizen or disavow your membership in American society. To deem the "Little People" as worthy of terrorist attack while these insulated and isolated political aristocrats sit in their well-guarded enclaves is pure treason.
#2
I see nothing, I hear nothing, and I know nothing.
Posted by: Sen Harry Reid (D-himmi) ||
07/14/2007 20:27 Comments ||
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#3
Perhaps relocating these launchers to the mall in DC and aiming them at the Capitol would help to clarify things. No, probably not -- some of our most-clueless legislators are away campaigning.
#6
Only Saudi Arabia challenges the assertion
that deems the MME (Muslim Middle East) "Little People" as worthy to live in well-guarded enclaves of pure treason... and to assert otherwise is pure Porcine Crapulence
#8
...which of course *assumes* that we are doing nothing. Or that if large numbers of SOCOM operatives were wreaking havoc in Iran, that we would be making press releases about it.
He wore a pale yellow dress shirt and black-rimmed glasses that lost their tint when he entered the dark lobby of a Baghdad hotel. He drank orange soda and refused a cigarette. His face was tense, but he spoke in a calm, open way about the satisfaction of killing Shiites with his own hands. To save you the trouble, this is a WaPo interview with the guy described above, who wants to kill all the Shiites, because they're "trash". The WaPo headline reads Sunni Insurgent Leader Paints Iran as 'Real Enemy'U.S. Strategy Described as Only Inflaming Iraqi Resistance
Over the course of a 90-minute interview, a leader of an armed Sunni group in western Baghdad described his hatred for Iran and the current Iraqi government, while outlining the dimensions of an armed insurgency that extends well beyond al-Qaeda in Iraq, the organization that U.S. officials routinely identify as their central enemy.
Abu Sarhan, as the 37-year-old insurgent wished to be known, said Iraq's Sunnis are deep into an entrenched and irresolvable civil war against Iranian-backed Shiites. He said the premise of the U.S. military's counterinsurgency strategy -- deploying thousands of soldiers in small outposts in violent neighborhoods -- only inflames the insurgency by getting in the way of their mayhem and prompts attacks against the Americans.
If U.S. forces release Sunni detainees, remove the concrete blast barriers that now cordon off several neighborhoods and improve services in areas neglected by the Shiite-led government, "the attacks will be reduced 95 percent within days," he said. He added that the Americans' insistence on striking Sunni areas "is generating an increasing resistance."
A balding, wiry man who associates said had been an officer in the Fedayeen, the black-clad paramilitary force of the ousted government of Saddam Hussein, Abu Sarhan refused to give his real name. He said he was the "general coordinator" between al-Qaeda in Iraq and the Omar Brigade, an insurgent group founded in July 2005 by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq who was killed by U.S. forces in June 2006.
Zarqawi created the Omar Brigade to fight Shiite militias, particularly the Badr Organization, which is loyal to the country's largest Shiite political party, now known as the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council. In Amiriyah, the western Baghdad neighborhood where the Omar Brigade is active, the group is believed to have planted roadside bombs that have killed U.S. troops. Abu Sarhan said he had not personally taken part in those attacks. But he could not say the same for Shiite targets.
"Since the beginning of the occupation until now, I have participated in killing many of the militia members, I say it frankly," he said.
Asked how many, he looked down and paused for several seconds, his hands interlocked on the cafeteria table. "It's hard to count," he said.
An associate of Abu Sarhan's vouched for his leadership credentials. And a college student in Amiriyah, who said he is not an insurgent but that he had met Abu Sarhan briefly about two weeks earlier, said the Sunni insurgent is considered the leader of the Omar Brigade.
Abu Sarhan's views illustrate the deep animosity toward Shiites that fuels so much of the sectarian violence in Iraq. His comments also suggested a more restrained view of the United States, which he considers an occupier but one that should not leave immediately.
"I personally don't have a hatred of the American people, and I respect American civilization," he said. "They have participated in the progress of all the nations of the world. They invented computers. Such people should be respected. But people who are crying over someone who died 1,400 years ago" -- referring to Shiites and their veneration of a leader killed in the 7th century -- "these should be eliminated, to clear the society of them, because they are simply trash."
"The real enemy for the resistance is Iran and those working for Iran," he went on. "Because Iran has a feud which goes back thousands of years with the people of Iraq and the government of Iraq - But we're not crying over something that happened 1,400 years ago, like those trashy Shiites".
This is just page 1 of three, but you get the idea....
Posted by: Bobby ||
07/14/2007 08:26 ||
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#1
Hard to say which is sadder - that Abu believes this dreck, that the Wapo reporters and editors believe this dreck, or that the faithful wapo readers (including those inside the beltway) believe this dreck...
#3
Typical chickenshit journalism. Must be nice to sit in a hotel having a smoke (obviously the reporter is a smoker) and listening to drivel from some guy who is your sworn enemy. This is what I call treason - giving the enemy hospitality without mentioning it to the military. But of course, this is par for the course with WaPo and NYT. Glad to see them both getting financial beatings. Couldn't happen to a nicer group of leaches.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 10:57 Comments ||
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#4
I don't buy it.
Is a set piece for WaPo by some source....
Anybody that was really head of the Omar Brigade would not live long bragging about it. Somebody would over hear him and tell somebody else who would end the story one way or another.
#5
A real journalist just reports. My belief is that this jounalist is attempting to provide information that backs the idea that the US is causing unnecessary violence in Iraq by our presence. The actual idea that is conveyed by this article to any reader who has a combined SAT score above 850 is that we need to kill Abu Sarhan and all his friends post haste as a public service despite that he thought Dallas was a good show and thinks that Orange Julius is a tasty snack.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 12:30 Comments ||
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#6
Agreed, 3dc. Al Qaeda uses the media as the key front in their war with the West. Placing this interview is as important to them as getting a couple of men into commercial jet pilot training. Abu Sarhan wouldn't have made it down the street alive if he'd done such an interview on his own, but after the Washington Post had negotiated with his management? The article says the man is connected: multiple sadistic murderer, officer in Saddam Hussein's Fedayeen... the reporter's translator, with whom his paper (or CNN) likely worked in the Saddam Hussein days, probably set it up.
#7
This story is such BS. All AQ and Iran is trying to do is deflect some of that spot lite we have placed on their coordination of chaos in Iraq. The Radical Sunni and Radical Shia don't attack each other or even suicide bomb each others leadership, they kill each others moderates or fence sitters forcing those left into joining the others radical org. End result is not a war between the two Radical groups but just doing each others dirty work (killing moderates swaying fence sitters) while swelling the ranks out of fear. How many times have you heard of Sadr barley escaping a Suicide bomber from AQ or vice versa? Don't think they know were each other hang out? right, but you do somehow hear of AQ hitting Salvation Council or Political leaders or Sadr just killing random Sunni's not Radical Sunnis just your average market goer.
As far as Iran goes I will believe they are at war with AQ the day we get the report about Iran turning over the near 1/2 of AQ top leadership including Bin Ladens son/heir to the US forces. Ohh AP somehow didn't think to mention that fact about Iran sheltering 1/2 of AQ top leadership in supposedly "house arrest". Yeah that sounds the actions of some real enemies right their risk the American military wrath over some group of guys that are your enemies.
Forget the leaks and the speculation, President George W. Bush is not looking for a way out of the surge and the Iraq war. Forgive the bold. Lots of folks have been believing the rumors
In a session with about ten conservative journalists Friday afternoon, a confident and determined president made it clear that he is going to see the surge through, and will rely on General David Petraeuss advice on how to proceed come September, regardless of the political climate in Washington.
He scoffed at reports to the contrary in the press. When specifically asked about a Washington Post article this week reporting that his administration is looking for a way to draw down, President Bush said dismissively, I didnt read it, and then, there are a lot of talkers in Washington. When it was pointed out that the sources were people in his administration, he repeated, just as dismissively, Thats what I said, there are a lot of talkers. He said that not everyone gets to talk to him: Im not on the phone chatting up with these people writing these articles, ascribing motives to me.
The president made his intentions clear Friday afternoon. Hes not going to abandon the surge, despite all the talk of his administration being willing to move to the Iraq Study Group model of the Iraq war. He views this period as fundamental for deciding whether or not this nation is going to be secure throughout a lot of the 21st century. And therefore when it comes to the war in Iraq, as you know, I made a decision not to leave but to put more in, and I will support our troops and support Gen. Petraeus, his plan.
The ideal world, he adds, is that there would be some bipartisan consensus at some point in time to be there for a while. Can we achieve that? I dont know. Its worth trying. Its worth talking to people about it. But referring back to his statements in support of the surge, he said, with emphasis in his voice, Its very important for you all to understand that thats exactly what I mean.
Pressed on whether the surge can be sustained despite all the difficulties, he said, Thats the challenge, but Im optimistic about it. He said that back in January, I suspect youd be asked the same question, particularly since the outcry was quite significant. But he went with the surge.
How can he possibly do this, he said, characterizing what critics of the war were thinking. Cant he see? Cant he hear? (At one point he acknowledged that these decisions arent easy You dont know what its like to be commander-in-chief until youre commander-in-chief, he said.)
He explained that last fall, if I had been part of this polling, if they had called upstairs and said, do you approve of Iraq I would have been on the 66 percent who said, `No I dont approve. Thats why I made the decision I made. To get in a position where I would be able to say Yes, I approve.
President Bush understands the public frustration with the war: We put highly trained sophisticated military people in harms way and they battle $100 IEDs. He worries about exhaustion as were dealing with these radicals who have a lot of energy and who arent going to be tired. But he said he has tools in the debate, including the bully pulpit and the ability to convince the American people. He wants both to convince them that success is still possible, and remind my fellow citizens of what the consequences of failure will be.
He says he has four audiences when he broadcasts his commitment to the mission in Iraq: the American public; the American military and their families; the Iraqis (because there are a lot of people who doubt Americas resolve); and the enemy (the enemy thinks that we are weak theyre sophisticated people, and they listen to the debate). As for that last audience, I really think the additional forces into Iraq surprised thema lot.
The president said its important to get good news that the media cant downplay or ignore, to get tangible evidence that even the filter cant filter out less violence, less [casualties]. (He jokingly said, referring to a sermon he had heard at Camp David, were good news people in a bad news world.) He noted the importance of the example of Anbar. He said that six months ago al Qaeda was declared the winner as the result of one intelligence report. But not now: Today al Qaeda is the loser, the situation changed dramatically.
He marveled at one of the medias lines of questioning at his Thursday press conference, They asked me yesterday Are you sure its al Qaeda [in Iraq]? Yeah, how do you know? Because they swore allegiance to Osama bin Laden is how I know. Yeah, its al Qaeda. My point though to people is that it is the same crowd that killed 3,000 that is trying to drive us out of Iraq.
Anbar isnt as complicated as the rest of the country since there isnt the element of sectarian conflict that there is in the rest of the country. President Bush talked of a ground-up approach to reconciliation. He said that security is most important, then other initiatives can come up behind, including aggressive use of PRTs [provincial reconstruction teams] to convince local folks that life can progress even though they may have suspicion of the central government. (Local elections is one of the key reforms because of the election boycotts that previously took place in the Sunni areas, he said.)
And when it comes to pouring resources into areas where the insurgency is chased out, If the central government wont do it, we will through PRTs. He said he talked with leaders of some of the PRTs today, and their question was will we have the time? My answer is...I have got to get us in the position so we will have time.
Repeatedly, the president expressed the utmost confidence in Gen. Petraeus. He expects to get a straight report from him in September and for the generals voice to be taken seriously in the debate over the war. The most credible person in the fight at this moment is Gen. David Petraeus, he said. He mused that Petraeus is very effective in explaining the strategy, but that he obviously has other demands on his time in addition to the need to brief Congress and do media interviews.
President Bush rejected the notion that he will be constrained by the availability of troops come next spring and will have to draw down the surge. He said, with a pointed ending to his answer, The key factor that Im confident that David Petraeus is looking at as he comes back is how to achieve the initial objective he set out, which is to provide enough security for the political process to move forward. Im sure that in the bowels of the Pentagon people are looking at troop rotations and troop movements, but that is not the primary objective of our commander on the groundnext question.
Asked specifically if that meant that Petraeus would get the troops to continue past the spring if he needed them, he said, We will work as hard as we can. People said we couldnt find the troops for the last reinforcement as well, but he added that hes mindful of troop rotations and time in theater.
He said, eventually, We need to be in a position that can sustain a long-term troop presence, although that depends on conditions on the ground.
George W. Bush remains committed to his overarching vision of freedom, with which he opened this afternoons discussion: There is such a thing as the universality of freedom. I strongly believe that Muslims desire to be free just like Methodists desire to be free. Some may doubt that, but no one can doubt this presidents resolve in Iraq.
#1
No surprise here - Petraeus' job is to suppor Iraqi democracy and Iraqi dmeocratic governing authority-agenda in Iraq, + US agenda, + destroy any and all violent insurgents, internal and external, in protection and propagation of same. The only way to defeat Dubya's resolve is for Radical Islam-Iran to either kill him or wait until after he formally leaves office come January 2009. IFF RECENT NEWS REPORTS ARE EVEN MARGINALLY ACCURATE, MANY DEDICATED ISLAMISTS + TERRORISTS, ETAL. ARE NOW REALIZING AMER ITSELF MUST BE ATTACKED FROM WITHIN, that Radical islam will lose = never get Amer to leave the ME-Muslim World unless WARFARE, CHAOS, + ANARCHIES BEGIN INSIDE AMERICA, AND AMER FINALLY DESTABILIZED IFF NOT DESTROYED. * E.G. CINDY SHEEHAN > "THE REVOLUTION/WAR IS HERE [IN AMERICA]".
#2
Thank you, Joe -- and also, I was so touched by your words about Lady Bird and her flowers reaching all the way to Guam. I guess I just thought that was a Texas thing for us.....
I thought about your words tonight, as I watched the news coverage, of her arrival for her last appearance at the LBJ library, and her daughter, Lucy, greeting with hugs and tears, those "unknown friends" of her parents, as she called them, who had stood in line, in our Texas heat, for hours, just to be there.
#3
What happened to our President? This interview reflects very strong leadership. This is not the man I've been used to hearing for the last couple years.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
07/14/2007 1:06 Comments ||
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#4
That whore shehan has not even given her Son a grave yet. She is detestable in my eyes.
That is the base of your party, democrats. Think she can keep you safe? at least she cant use her political power to move contracts around.
I would not piss on congress if they are on fire.
I rather drown them.
#7
What happened to our President? This interview reflects very strong leadership. This is not the man I've been used to hearing for the last couple years.
Have you actually been hearing him, or listening to people tell you what he's thinking? I believe he's been very consistent, but he finally lost patience with the folks managing the war and, like a good CEO, finally put a new team (Petraeus) in place.
#9
Did any of the Lady Bird obits mention her stake in Haliburton and Brown & Root as a result? I mean here is a democrat investing in that Bushitler oil grabbing Cheney war machine.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 11:02 Comments ||
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#10
With Bush the method may change but the goal wil not. We need to make sure we elect a successor with the same intestinal fortitude.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 13:18 Comments ||
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Key tribal leaders from the Ubaidi and Anbakia tribes signed a peace agreement, July 10, during a meeting at the Baqouba Government Center to end tribal conflicts that have been occurring for decades and stand together against al-Qaida and other terrorist organizations. The strength of the tribes comes from the sheiks courage, said Col. David W. Sutherland, commander, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.
Sheik Hamed Hazber Hasan Abdal al-Anbak, paramount sheik for the Anbakia tribe, and a key tribal leader from the Ubaidi tribe, have been meeting for the past several months to discuss and work through grievances between their respective tribes. By signing the peace agreement, the tribes agreed to swear by God and his holy book Koran that we will unite in fighting terrorism in our areas.
The commitment of the tribes to sign this treaty signifies that the people of Diyala continue to feel disdain toward the hatred of al-Qaida and other terrorist groups throughout the province, said Sutherland. Just as the people of Buhriz, Tahrir, Mufrik and Khatoon have done, the Ubaidi and Anbakia tribes will show the terrorists that the people control the area because of their strength through unity.
This article starring:
Col. David W. Sutherland, commander, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division
Sheik Hamed Hazber Hasan Abdal al-Anbak
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Okay !! -- Now what are Nancy and Harry gonna do, when Gen Patreaus holds up these signed "peace treaties" in front of Congress? And I can just see, a great PowerPoint presentation, showing the signing!!!
His aides flash more and more and more signings. They are now getting signings. Visual images.
Yea... cause, these signings of a treaty, regardless of the contract, are Iraqis talking and signing with Iraqis. Just what Patraeus knows, Iraqis and Congress need to see.
Call them "peace agreements." They've always been a part of history. Small ones and large ones. Gernomoe even signed one.
And check out the date.... July.... long before the month of September. I predict, there will be more. Patraeus, presenting us with a visual picture of the dominoes falling.
Hehe.... I've envision, Patraeus, with all his military bearing, his confidence and his trust both for his warriors and his warriors for him, appearing before Congress.
A screen writer's dream. He, with his back straight, shoulders back, head up, chin out, a soldier's stance for him, presenting to Congress, number by number, point by point, picture by picture, of the changes in Iraq. Presenting in such a way, there is just silence when he finishes, cause, there is nothing left to say. Our guys are winning.
I read this today in comments at a milblog, "They say that, in wartime, all the real leaders rise to the top and the "peacetime" leaders leave. I've been waiting around for awhile... maybe this war is finally starting to have that effect as well."
#2
I have a comment. If using Google's spell check and you choose EDIT to edit a word, cause your spelling hasn't even been close to the correct spelling, so even Google can't give my spelling a fighting chance with anything near the correct spelling of the word I've chosen to use.
So, it is left, to edit the word. The only way out of that Google edit with what you hope is something closer to the correct spelling so you have some help with the spelling, is to press ENTER and when you do? Your Rantburg comment is posted......
I haven't the vaguest idea how to spell Geronimo.... so I'm letting this comment post solve that mystery!
#3
You can tell the "surge" is working by all the Congressional weenies that want to change direction NOW! My God, Bush is going to win this thing. We can't - we mustn't - we have to stop that NOW. [While our poll numbers are a mandate from the looney left].
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 11:05 Comments ||
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The ringleader of a cell responsible for conducting rocket and improvised explosive device attacks on the people and security forces of North Babil was captured by Task Force Steel near Tunis, July 7. Paratroopers of 3rd Battalion, 509th Airborne, and Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment of the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division conducted an assault named Operation Grenada while simultaneously surrounding the targets house with tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles.
Task Force Steel also captured two other cell members along with a rangefinder used to aim and target rocket attacks, IED materials, two AK-47 assault rifles with 600 rounds of ammunition, and militia propaganda. In addition to the cell leader, cell members, weapons and materials, the Task Force also captured a truck that tested positive for exposure to explosive materials.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
"Floyd Barrow"?
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
07/14/2007 13:03 Comments ||
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Multi-National Division - Baghdad troops detained 31 suspected insurgents at a possible Al Qaeda meeting in the Rashid District, July 11. Soldiers from Company A, 1sy Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, detained the suspects during an evening raid aimed at disrupting a suspected terrorist meeting in the district.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Nah, it was just the monthly meeting of the local Raccoon lodge.
Coalition Forces killed two terrorists and detained 19 suspected terrorists during operations in central and western Iraq Friday targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq senior leaders and their associates. Coalition Forces targeted the leaders of al-Qaeda in Iraq during coordinated raids on several buildings in Tarmiyah. As Coalition Forces entered one of the buildings, two men charged the ground forces and attempted to assault them. Coalition Forces, reacting in self-defense, engaged the two men, killing them. Another man was injured by a ricochet bullet from the engagement and was taken to a military medical facility.
During the raids, Coalition Forces detained six suspected terrorists, including a targeted individual who is an alleged weapons facilitator in Anbar province and closely tied to al-Qaeda in Iraq senior leaders.
A separate raid in Tarmiyah netted two more suspected terrorists tied to the religious emir of al-Qaeda in Iraq. West of Taji, Coalition Forces conducted operations on two buildings in search of a close associate of the al-Qaeda in Iraq emir of Karmah. The ground forces captured eight suspected terrorists, including the targeted individual, who is allegedly involved in conducting terrorist attacks, coordinating suicide operations and importing weapons from abroad.
Coalition Forces raided two buildings in southwestern Baghdad and detained three suspected terrorists allegedly tied to the al-Qaeda in Iraq emir of Baghdad. Were relentlessly targeting the senior leaders of al-Qaeda in Iraq to cripple their network, said Maj. Marc Young, an MNF-I spokesperson. The people of Iraq deserve to live without fear of terrorists murderous attacks.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Another man was injured by a ricochet bullet from the engagement and was taken to a military medical facility.
Just had a brief vision of Jed Clampett sitting on the porch ricochet shooting.
Multi-National Division - Baghdad troops detained more than 100 suspected insurgents and seized more than 200 weapons caches during Operation Dragon Hammer in the Rashid District of the Iraqi capital July 1 -11.
The operation, launched by the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Dragons, 1st Infantry Division, was aimed at rooting out suspected terrorists; interdicting their supplies; and helping the elected Iraqi government secure the southern Baghdad district. Between July 1-11, 101 suspects were detained, including suspected leaders of Al Qaeda in Iraq and rogue elements of Jayesh Al Mahdi. One suspect, believed to be an Al Qaeda cell leader, was killed July 9.
During this time, Dragon Brigade Soldiers located 237 weapons caches which included two intact explosively formed penetrator devices, one complete 120mm mortar system, 37 mortar rounds and various other IED-making materials; and numerous small arms and small arms ammunition On July 11, alone, 11 suspected Al Qaeda members were detained in the Massafee area during a targeted raid. Soldiers from Company B, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, attached to the 4th IBCT, launched the raid to capture suspected terrorists in order to disrupt Al Qaeda activities in the area.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
No terrorists KIA's. They need to get it in geer. :-)
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 13:31 Comments ||
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Multi-National Division-Baghdad attack helicopter crews destroyed a homemade explosive factory and cache July 12 northwest of Baghdad. An AH-64D Apache team from 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, first observed two buildings that appeared to be part of an HME factory during a reconnaissance mission July 5.
An air assault was planned to establish whether the buildings were used to manufacture the explosive, frequently used by terrorists in roadside and car bombs. The air assault, Operation Eagles, launched at approximately 2 a.m. July 12, with two UH-60 Black Hawks from 3rd Spearhead Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, transporting Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 37th Field Artillery Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cav. Div. to the potential HME site.
The 1-37th FA Soldiers were inserted near the site and confirmed that the buildings were used to manufacture explosives. The Soldiers also found an anti-aircraft weapon in the buildings and two trailers and eight vehicles at the site. After getting clearance from the ground forces, the Apache helicopter crews fired on the buildings, destroying them and the anti-aircraft weapon system. The Apaches also destroyed the two trailers and fired on the vehicles.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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For a fourth time in two weeks, a large cache of improvised explosive device-making material and mortar rounds was turned over to Coalition Forces by the Neighborhood Watch in Taji, Iraq July 9.
The cache contained more than 20 mortar rounds, multiple makeshift mortar tubes and mortar fuses. Also in the cache were IED timing devices and IED detonation material. This is the fourth time since the establishment of a Coalition outpost in Falahat, a village near Taji, north of the Iraqi capital, that weapons caches have been turned in or identified to Soldiers from Troop D, 1st Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, who man the outpost. Thus far, six caches have been removed from the village, two discovered by Coalition and Iraqi Army troops patrolling the area.
The Neighborhood Watch is made up of a group of 500 local volunteers, tribe members in the Taji area who want reconciliation with the Coalition and the Iraqi government. These volunteers are currently being vetted for possible future selection for training as Iraqi Police or some other organization within the Iraqi Security Forces. This grassroots movement of reconciliation by the volunteers is taking off all around us. The tribes that had once actively or passively supported Al Qaeda in Iraq now want them out, said Lt. Col. Peter Andrysiak, deputy commander of the 1st Ironhorse Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. These volunteers are hopeful that the government of Iraq will see their value and bring them on as part of the legitimate Iraqi Police.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I guess these people actually want to live after all. Qu'elle surprise!
'Makeshift' mortar tubes? They're running low on the real thing? That's going to bring their already-poor accuracy down to Gaza levels (meaning that most of the time they can hit Israel).
#3
I think a lot of Iraqis have decided that helping al-qaida means helping their enemy, Iran. Only members of Sadr's "mahdi militia" want anything to do with Iran. The bitterness of the 1980-88 Iran/Iraq war is still alive and "well" among most Iraqis. I'm sure we'll begin seeing the regular populace of many places ratting on anyone with anything to do with Iran or al-qaida, especially Sadr's "militia". Basra will probably become a flashpoint for the backlash against Sadr and his minions.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/14/2007 15:38 Comments ||
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U.S. Special Forces and Iraqi Security Forces detained an alleged high-level Al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist cell leader July 13 at Baghdad International Airport. The alleged cell leader turned himself in to U.S. Special Forces and Iraqi Security Forces without a struggle and is currently in U.S. custody for questioning.
The alleged cell leader has reportedly targeted Coalition Forces, distributed mortars, organized and ordered vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attacks. He is believed to operate out of the Karh district of Baghdad, along with Mahmudiyah and the Arab Jabour districts. No Iraqi Security or Coalition Forces members were injured during the operations.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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Elements of the 4th Iraqi Army Brigade detained the leader of a terrorist sniper cell in Bayji during an intelligence driven operation in Bayji July 12. The targeted individual is allegedly responsible for leading attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces, including attacks against the joint security site in downtown Bayji. Two other individuals were also detained during the operation. One other member of this cell had been previously captured last month. Iraqi Forces, with U.S. Special Operations Forces as advisors, also confiscated an AK-47 rifle, ammunition and computer equipment. No Iraqi or Coalition Forces were injured during either operation.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
The AK-47 isn't usually thought of as a sniper weapon. The effective range is about 300-400 yards. However, I'd be willing to call anyone shooting at me a sniper.
An Iraqi citizen who has been working with Coalition Forces during the past week led them to two caches in Qarghuli Village, Iraq, a known terrorist safe haven. The local resident accompanied Soldiers of the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment Polar Bears, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) out of Fort Drum, N.Y., on a dismounted patrol in the village July 12 and led them to two caches.
The caches consisted of a rack system, a video camera, a 61mm fuze, a spool of command wire used to make improvised explosive devices, 44 Dragonov sniper rounds and a 155mm round. During the past few days the Iraqi residents have led the Polar Bears to more than 14 caches in the village. The people of Qarghuli Village coming forward to help the Iraqi and Coalition Forces is a positive sign that they are willing to take more responsibility in their own security, said Maj. Kenny Mintz, the 2nd BCT operations officer and native of San Diego. They are taking steps that they have never taken before. The contents of the cache were destroyed during a controlled detonation conducted by members of the explosive ordnance team.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I would think that terrorist safe houses would be closely guarded. I would pay large awards to Iraqi civilians who inform on these. I assume they are paid.
#2
Is anyone tracking and compiling all this recent good news about Iraqi's ratting out the insurgents, finding more weapons and destroying HME factories, etc. Plus getting all the bad boyz and so forth???? Its either MNF propaganda or it is high value progress. I go with progress and think that is why the pols in DC are so nervous. W could pull this off and no one wants to see him succeed.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
07/14/2007 11:19 Comments ||
Top||
Marines from Company I, Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, discovered 500, one hundred-pound bags of ammonium nitrate July 11. Marines stopped two 18-wheel tractor trailers while conducting a vehicle check point north of Karmah. The ammonium nitrate, a common ingredient in improvised explosive devices, was found during a search of the vehicles. Marines are currently conducting operations north of Fallujah and Karmah to search for weapons caches and to deny enemy activities throughout the area.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
#1
Amonium nitrate is a readily available fertilizer, and is usually pelletized which makes a poor yeild in improvized explosives. you need to do some 'processing' to get a decent yeild, and while a powerful explosive when mixed properly it requires an initiator... not quite as easy to get a good boom as you are generally led to believe
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
07/14/2007 1:14 Comments ||
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#2
Yes but Iraq is lousy with detonators and industrial explosives, so an AMNO bomb would be easy to manufacture there. Also with 50K of Ammonium Nitrate, one could make one hell of a bomb - take out everything in a couple of blocks.
#5
Just add 7% fuel oil to the ammonium nitrate prills and you have ANFO, which is up there in explosive energy with TNT. The trick is to be able to bring the volume into a key location past security checkpoints. Do that, and have a booster charge along and you can have one hell of a destructive device.
Thank the Marines for having alert personnel there at the checkpoint to intercept the AN. One spectacular blast, with the resulting "gee whiz" journalistic coverage, and you have an ANFO powered propaganda coup for the enemy and the Dems.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/14/2007 12:20 Comments ||
Top||
#6
Anguper - Ammonium Nitrate Fuel Oil (ANFO). Mixed in a slurry form as Alaska Paul describes it plus a detonator and you have a bomb.
It's what McVeigh used to take down the Murrough (sp?) Building in Oklahoma City.
There have been high-level ammonium-nitrate explosions before that did not have fuel oil mixed with it, but did have initiators, as follows (from Wikipedia),
Morgan, New Jersey, 1918 (Now Sayreville)
On October 4, 1918, the T.A. Gillespie Company Shell Loading Plant explosion occurred leading to many artillery shells being launched into the air, some of which landed on a neighbouring warehouse where 4000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate were stored in barrels. One of the shells caused a large explosion, but the majority of the ammonium nitrate did not detonate.
[edit] Krieweld, Germany, 1921
On July 26, 1921 in this railway town (now in Poland) workers tried to dislodge 30 tonnes of ammonium nitrate which had aggregated in two wagons. When mining explosives were used on solid mass the wagons exploded and killed nineteen people.
[edit] Oppau, Germany, 1921
Another attempt at disagregation of a fertiliser mix with industrial explosives caused the death of 450 people and the destruction of 700 houses on September 21, 1921. The fertiliser was a 50:50 mixture of ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulphate and the factory had used this method of disagregation over 20,000 times without incident. It is thought that, on this occasion, poor mixing had led to certain parts of the mass to contain more ammonium nitrate than others. Only 450 tonnes exploded, out of 4500 tonnes of fertiliser stored in the warehouse.
See also: Oppau explosion
[edit] Nixon, New Jersey, 1924 (Now Edison Township)
A fire and several large explosions destroyed a warehouse containing ammonium nitrate on March 1, 1924. The explosivity of the product was perhaps enhanced, as it had been prepared using nitric acid which had previously been used for the production of TNT.
[edit] Muscle Shoals, Alabama, 1925
On April 4, 1925, and May 3, 1925, two carloads, each containing 220 barrels of ammonium nitrate, were dispatched from Muscle Shoals, Alabama and caught fire in transportation. The barrels had been stored in a warehouse with varying humidity for 6 years, so it is believed that they were ignited by friction with their nitrate-impregnated manilla paper lining. Other shipments were reportedly more successful.
[edit] Rouen, France, 1940
During a bombing raid on June 5, 1940, a bomb exploded in a warehouse containing ammonium nitrate: the fertiliser was dispersed around the crater, but did not explode.
[edit] Miramas, France, 1940
August 5, 1940: 240 tonnes of ammonium nitrate in sacks exploded after being hit by a shell from a nearby fire in a munitions train.
[edit] Tessenderlo, Belgium, 1942
Another attempt to disagregate a pile of 150 tonnes of ammonium nitrate with industrial explosives ended tragically on April 29, 1942: several hundred people were killed.
[edit] Texas City, United States, 1947
Main article: Texas City Disaster
The cargo ship Grandcamp was being loaded on April 16, 1947 when a fire was detected in the hold: at this point, 2600 tonnes of ammonium nitrate in sacks was already aboard. The captain responded by closing the hold and pumping in pressurised steam. One hour later, the ship exploded, killing several hundred people and setting fire to another vessel, the High Flyer, which was moored 250 metres away and which contained 1050 tonnes of sulfur and 960 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. The Grandcamp explosion also created a powerful earthshock and knocked two small planes flying at 1500 feet out of the sky. The High Flyer exploded the next day, after having burned for sixteen hours. 500 tonnes of ammonium nitrate on the quayside also burned, but without exploding, probably due to the fact that it was less tightly packed.
[edit] Brest, France, 1947
The cargo ship Ocean Liberty was loaded with 3300 tonnes of ammonium nitrate and various inflammable products when it caught fire at 12:30 July 28, 1947. The captain ordered the hold to be sealed and pressurised steam was pumped in. As this did not stop the fire, the vessel was towed out of the harbour at 14:00, and exploded at 17:00. The explosion caused 29 deaths and serious damage to the port of Brest.
[edit] Red Sea, 1954
A fire was detected on the cargo ship Tirrenia on January 23, 1954, while it was carrying 4000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. Attempts to extinguish the fire with steam were unsuccessful, and the ship was abandoned before it exploded later in the night.
[edit] Roseburg, Oregon, 1959
A truck carrying dynamite and ammonium nitrate caught fire early in the morning of August 7, 1959. When it exploded it killed 14 people and injured 125 more. Several blocks of downtown Roseburg were destroyed. The accident is locally referred to as "The Blast."
[edit] Kansas City, Missouri, 1988
On November 29, 1988, at 4:07 AM two trailers containing approximately 50,000 lbs of ammonium nitrate exploded at a construction site located near the 87th street exit of Highway 71 in Kansas City, Missouri. The explosives were to be used in the blasting of rock while constructing Highway 71. The result of the explosions were the deaths of six firemen from the Kansas City Fire Department's Pumper Companies 30 and 41. Both companies were dispatched after 911 calls indicated that a fire had been set to a pickup truck located near the trailers. The responding companies were warned that there were explosives on-site; however, they were unaware that the trailers were essentially magazines filled with explosives. At 4:07 AM one of the "magazines" caught fire and a catastrophic explosion occurred, killing all six firemen instantlyonly sparing remains were found. A second blast occurred 40 minutes later, although all fire crews had been pulled back at this time. The blasts created two craters, each approximately 100 feet wide and 8 feet deep. The explosions also shattered windows within a 10-mile area and could be heard 40 miles away. It was later determined that the explosions were acts of arson, set by individuals embroiled in a labor dispute with the construction company contracted to build the highway.[1]
[edit] Toulouse, France, 2001
On September 21, 2001, at 10:15 AM, in the AZF (Azote de France) fertiliser factory in Toulouse, France, an explosion occurred in a warehouse where the off-specification granular AN was stored flat, separated by partitions. About 200300 tons is said to be involved in the explosion, resulting in 31 people dead and 2,442 injured, 34 of them seriously. The blast wave shattered windows up to 3 kilometres away and the resulting crater was 10 metres deep and 50 metres wide. The exact cause remains unknown. The material damage was estimated at 2.3 billion euros. [2]
[edit] Barracas, Spain, 2004
A truck carrying 25 tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertilizer exploded half an hour after a traffic accident on March 9, 2004, killing two people and injuring three others. The explosion, which could be heard at a distance of 10 km (6 miles) caused a crater five metres deep.
[edit] Ryongchon, North Korea, 2004
A freight train carrying ammonium nitrate exploded in this important railway town near the Chinese border on April 22, 2004, killing 162 people and injuring over 3000 others. The station was destroyed, as were most buildings within 500 metres, and nearly 8000 homes were destroyed or damaged. Two craters of about ten metres in depth were seen at the site of the explosion. The authorities blamed "human error" for the explosion, although rumours persist that it was in fact an attempt to assassinate the Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, who was due to be passing through the station at the time.
A van filled with ammonium nitrate and fuel oil mixture was detonated next to Sterling Hall. The truck bomb was so powerful, it damaged 26 other buildings. Pieces of the stolen van that contained the ammonium nitrate bomb were found atop an eight-story building three blocks from the blast site. Nearby churches lost their windows. Residents 30 miles away were awakened by the sound.
Despite the late hour, a post-doc was in the lab; that man, physics researcher Robert Fassnacht, was killed in the explosion. The physics department was hit worse than the intended target, the Army Math Research Center. Of those who were responsible, Karleton Armstrong, Dwight Armstrong, David Fine, and Leo Burt; Leo Burt has never been found.
#1
"Hamas clinched the deal with a previously unreported prisoner exchange on the night of Johnstons release. The Army of Islam released 13 Hamas captives and Hamas released four Army of Islam prisoners. One of the released captives was the son of Mahmoud Zahar, the foreign minister in the Hamas government."
Its nice that the BBC was able to participate as a full partner in this swap meet of buttheads.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
07/14/2007 12:49 Comments ||
Top||
#2
The kidnappers expressed bizarre resentment that Johnston, 45, had done nothing to thank them for their hospitality while they held him at gunpoint in a tiny cell.
To put it bluntly, a woman rarely thanks her rapist for his efforts.
Clashes between IDF soldiers and Palestinians continued throughout the West Bank on Friday. Late Friday evening, Palestinians opened fire at IDF soldiers on duty at outposts near Nablus and Jenin. None of the soldiers were hurt and no damage was caused in either incident.
Earlier, IDF soldiers on duty at the Anabta checkpoint east of Tulkarm intercepted a Palestinian gunman who apparently planned to carry out a terror attack against Israeli civilians. The gunman drove up to the checkpoint on Friday afternoon and opened fire at the IDF force manning the crossing. The soldiers fired back and killed him. The gunman was identified as Muhammad Omer Mahmoud Diab, an Islamic Jihad member wanted by Israeli security forces. Diab was affiliated with cells currently operating in Jenin and Tulkarm that have tried to attack both IDF soldiers and Israeli civilian targets.
Soldiers recovered an AK-47 assault rifle and an army vest with matching ammunition clips that Diab had hidden under his clothes. In his vehicle, soldiers found three explosive devices that he had apparently planned to use in a terror attack. Diab's intended target was unknown.
The ammunition was detonated in a controlled explosion by police sappers.
Meanwhile, Givati Brigade soldiers operating in the southern Gaza Strip Friday afternoon opened fire on two armed Palestinians who approached the troops. The soldiers reported that the men had been hit, but Army Radio said that Palestinian sources reported that the gunmen escaped unharmed.
Elsewhere, IDF soldiers on duty at a checkpoint near the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron arrested a Palestinian after he was found to be carrying a 15-cm.-long knife. The man was transferred to security forces for interrogation.
In operations in the West Bank overnight Thursday, the IDF arrested seven Palestinian terror suspects: five in Nablus, one in the Bethlehem area and another near Jenin. During the arrest operation in Nablus, gunmen opened fire on the troops. No casualties or damage were reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
i would have preferred that a couple of rounds of the captured ammo have it's powder charge replaced with C-4 and the clips quietly returned to Gaza. Then when the paleo-scum decide to shoot at someone.. Blam! no ammo, no AK, and no Jihadi...
a win-win-win...
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
07/14/2007 1:19 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Soldiers recovered an AK-47 assault rifle and an army vest with matching ammunition clips that Diab had hidden under his clothes. In his vehicle, soldiers found three explosive devices that he had apparently planned to use in a terror attack. Diab's intended target was unknown.
The ammunition was detonated in a controlled explosion by police sappers.
I like you idea 'Abu do you love.' The person who wrote this article wrote it badly. I'm not aware that AK47 have "stripper" clips but instead have magazines. "AK-47 with matching ammunition clips." I would assume that AK-47s would use the appropriate magazine, i.e. matched to the rifle. The article makes it read like the only ammunition was detonated by police explosive sappers experts. Most likely the whole shebang, ammunition and explosive devices were blown up. The intended targets were Jews most likely.
One of the Palestinian terror operatives who kidnapped Cpl. Gilad Schalit in a cross-border raid near Kerem Shalom last June has been arrested, the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) announced Friday afternoon, lifting a gag order. Muhammad Salameh Abed Zufi, 30, was apprehended in Rafah on June 9.
The Shin Bet said that Zufi, who admitted during his interrogation that he had photographed the Kerem Shalom raid, also said he had involved in a 2002 raid on the "Africa" outpost in the same area on the Gaza border. In that raid, an IDF officer and three Beduin trackers were killed. In addition to the raids on IDF outposts, Zufi was also involved in other attacks that wounded soldiers and launching Kassam rockets at Israel from the Gaza Strip.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
#1
Squeeze him like a lemon, (secretly) execute him, and dishonestly offer to trade him for Schalit...
Three local men were shot dead on Saturday in two separate attacks in Narathiwat and Songkhla provinces. One man was shot dead by an unidentified gunman on a motorcycle in Narathiwat's Rangae district, while two others died In Songkhla's Saba Yoi district.
Damae Jewae was riding his motorcycle to his orchard when he was attacked by the gunman on Saturday morning. Shot in the head and torso, Mr. Damae died at the scene. The victim's body was sent to hospital for an autopsy.
In Songkhla's Saba Yoi district, an unknown number of presumed insurgents killed two local men shortly after midnight Saturday. The two men, Malaseng Hadlo and Muhammad Meesee, were ambushed by unidentified gunmen as they rode a motorcycle home. Police inspecting the crime scene Saturday morning were impeded as spikes had been strewn on road to prevent pursuit. The killings occurred in the so-called red zone area, where insurgents are active, so the responding security team could not travel by foot.
A temporary government worker was shot dead in Songkhla and three villagers were wounded in a bomb blast in Pattani.
Theerayuth Chaiyakwan was shot by a gunman on a motorcycle in Songkhla's Saba Yoi district. He was hit by bullets in the head and the torso and died instantly at the scene. The killing is believed to be the work of terrorist scum presumed insurgents in the district.
In a separate incident, three villagers were wounded in a bombing at a home in Pattani's Yaring district. The remote-controlled bomb was detonated as three villagers were sitting and talking in front of the house. They were rushed to hospital.
The Thai army said on Friday it had detained 342 Muslims, including seven women, in raids in the rebellious far south, one of the largest series of arrests in more than three years of separatist violence. Human rights group criticised the move, saying it exposed detainees to potential abuses by the army, which is operating under martial law that grants soldiers immunity from prosecution. The detainees were taken for questioning to five army camps across the four southern provinces where more than 2,300 people have been killed in a three-year insurgency.
Army spokesman Colonel Acra Tiproch said in a statement the detainees, who can be kept without charge for 28 days under emergency security laws, would be freed if found not to have been involved in the violence. Samples of their DNA would be kept on record. Since taking office last year following a bloodless coup, Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has fought off pressure from Thailand's Buddhist majority to take stronger action in the Muslim, Malay-speaking region, saying he remains committed to a peaceful resolution.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Human rights group criticised the move, saying it exposed detainees to potential abuses by the army, which is operating under martial law that grants soldiers immunity from prosecution.
Is there any way we can arrange for these bleeding heart types to do some extensive bleeding far away from the nearest available transfusion? The detainees in question are potentially involved in the beheading and murder of Buddhists, fer cripes sake! What is it about martial law that makes it so objectionable? The terrorists operate entirely outside of the legal system. Does anyone really think that conventional law enforcement methods will achieve much more than they already have to date?
Samples of their DNA would be kept on record.
Hokay, let's make one thing perfectly clear. Someone in Thailand has finally purchased one helluva bigger clue than most Western anti-terrorist efforts. Terrorism runs in the family and gathering DNA is a principal method of drawing connectivity charts.
Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has fought off pressure from Thailand's Buddhist majority to take stronger action in the Muslim, Malay-speaking region, saying he remains committed to a peaceful resolution.
Get rid of this chump. How do you obtain any "peaceful resolution" with a group that has ZERO intention of peaceful coexistence?
#4
Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont (appointed by General Sonthi Boonratklin, who is a Muslem) has fought off pressure from Thailand's Buddhist majority to take stronger action in the Muslim, Malay-speaking region
Separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas in green striped camouflage assaulted a mock government fort with gunfire, rockets and pipe bombs in an early morning drill Friday at a secret location in rebel-held territory in northern Sri Lanka.
Rebels escorted reporters along back roads to a training base at a secret location to demonstrate that they are still a powerful military force, despite the governments announcement a day earlier that it had wrested control of eastern Sri Lanka for the first time in 13 years.
The rebels said they have simply switched from conventional warfare to guerrilla tactics in the east, and they still maintain a large swath of territory in the north that they run as a virtual state. Gaining territory is not victory, it is a false hope. We will again come out and attack (the government), said Lt. Col. V Nishaanthan, the offensive and defensive training master who led the drills Friday.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Shouldn't Tiger try to win the British Open first?
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
07/14/2007 0:29 Comments ||
Top||
#2
well, they are just about out of the pennant race...
maybe if they practiced fielding, batting, and pitching, it would lead to more success.
oh wait... Tamil tigers... are they a farm team for Detroit?
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
07/14/2007 1:22 Comments ||
Top||
#3
Tigers hold military drills to show strength
What, De Walt, Porter Cable, Black & Decker? Inquiring minds want to know!
Five Katyusha rockets landed in the plains of Arqa and Beit Hadara in the north Lebanon's Akkar province between 7 and 8 am Friday, the state-run National News Agency ( NNA) reported. It said another three Katyushas crashed two hours later in the Minieh and Deir Emar neighborhoods also up North, setting a civilian car on fire. Shortly afterwards, three other projectiles smashed almost simultaneously into different regions of north Lebanon, including Arqa plains and Qaabrine near the highway linking Lebanon with Syria, according to NNA.
It said the Katyushas were fired from the northern Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared, where Lebanese troops engaged in one of the heaviest gunbattles with Fatah al-Islam militants. Future TV said 15 Fatah al-Islam terrorists were also killed Friday when they tried to attack a Lebanese army position outside Nahr al-Bared.
Fighting between the army and Islamist militants has killed 214 people since May 20. A soldier wounded in ferocious fighting on Thursday died of his wounds, bringing the military's death toll for that day to seven. The military, concerned about being sucked into a war of attrition, has stepped up pressure on the coastal camp to force the militants to surrender. But the well-trained and well-armed militants, some of whom fought in Iraq or trained to go to fight there, have so far rejected all calls to lay down their arms.
Witnesses said the army was bombarding the largely destroyed camp with artillery and tanks. Militants were responding with sniper and rocket fire. At least three soldiers were wounded. Black and grey smoke billowed from the camp's battered buildings, most of which have been reduced to rubble.
Thursday's fighting was the most ferocious since the Lebanese defense minister declared on June 21 that all major combat operations had ceased at Nahr al-Bared. A 1969 Arab agreement banned Lebanese security forces from entering Palestinian camps. The agreement was annulled by the Lebanese parliament in the mid-1980s but the accord effectively stayed in place. The violence has further undermined stability in Lebanon, where a paralyzing 8-month political crisis has been compounded by bombings in and around Beirut. The country has yet to recover from last year's war between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/14/2007 00:00 ||
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[3 views]
Top|| File under: Fatah al-Islam
#1
The Lebanese government needs to drop a few dozen canisters of napalm on Nahr al-Barad, and see what cooks off. This playing at war, instead of waging it with all your might, costs unnecessary lives and injuries. Screw the paleostains - level the place and barbecue the rats left behind.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/14/2007 15:56 Comments ||
Top||
Osama bin Laden delivers a 50-second speech on martyrdom in a video intercepted July 14 on its way to Islamist Web sites. The video appears to have been made in the last four weeks from older video clips, said Octavia Nasr, a CNN Arab affairs editor. The video is 40 minutes long and also includes a speech by former al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in 2006.
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 and NATO-led troops clashed with Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan on Friday, leaving 10 suspected militants dead, an Afghan army officer said. The militants were killed following the battle in Gereshk district, in Helmand province, where another 20 suspected militants died in clashes and airstrikes on Thursday, said 
Moroccan police have detained 15 radical Islamists on suspicions of plotting terror attacks in the North African country, the justice minister said. "Arrests had been made, according to the information from the Kingdom's public prosecutor. Fifteen detainees are in custody, three of them had been extradited by Libya," 
British police said on Thursday they had released without charge the only woman among the eight suspects held in the case of failed bomb attacks in London and Glasgow last month. The woman was the wife of suspect 
Tribal Islamic militants, in a show of force on Friday, paraded alleged drug peddlers through a bazaar near the Pak-Afghan border, officials said. 50 hooded and armed vigilantes, who call themselves the Mujahedeen (holy warriors), also smashed videocassettes they confiscated from local shops and demanded an end to vice and adherence to strict Islamic law. The militants told Muslims in Khar to get ready for jihad because Muslims were facing a critical situation, said witnesses. They released the eight alleged drug traders with a stern warning.
All major and small business centres in the Bajaur Agency observed Friday as a holiday instead of Sunday after a call from local tribal militants, residents said. The call for observing Friday as a weekly holiday was given on Wednesday at a protest demonstration of pro-Taliban militants in Khar. All shops in Khar, Inayat Kalay and Sadiqabad were closed on Friday, locals told Daily Times. An official confirmed the closure of shops in Khar on Friday. The move, according to observers, is significant towards moving the region one step closer to what the Taliban perceive as Islamic rule.
The government on Friday moved an army brigade to Tank district, officials said. Tank District Police Officer (DPO) Mumtaz Zarin told Daily Times that the army had been called in to improve security and to stop incursions from the tribal areas. He, however, refused to comment on how many soldiers were being deployed there, but said the army deployment was a gradual process. No operation is being considered at the moment, the DPO added. NWFP Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai ruled out a military operation in the area, saying that the army had been summoned to assist the local administration in maintaining law and order. We were against use of force in Islamabad... how can we agree on an operation in the NWFP?
Assailants in Miranshah killed three pro-government tribal leaders on Friday, while police arrested three suspected suicide bombers and seized a car full of explosives in DI Khan. The assailants shot dead the leaders after spotting them in a Miranshah market, reports said. 
The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday directed the government to release on bail the people arrested during the Lal Masjid operation except those involved in serious crimes, submit a detailed report on the total deaths and injuries, and provide treatment to Maulana Abdul Azizs wife Umme Hasaan.
The ringleader of a cell responsible for conducting rocket and improvised explosive device attacks on the people and security forces of North Babil was captured by Task Force Steel near Tunis, July 7. Paratroopers of 3rd Battalion, 509th Airborne, and Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment of the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division conducted an assault named Operation Grenada while simultaneously surrounding the targets house with tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles.
Multi-National Division-Baghdad attack helicopter crews destroyed a homemade explosive factory and cache July 12 northwest of Baghdad. An AH-64D Apache team from 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, first observed two buildings that appeared to be part of an HME factory during a reconnaissance mission July 5.
U.S. Special Forces and Iraqi Security Forces detained an alleged high-level Al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist cell leader July 13 at Baghdad International Airport. The alleged cell leader turned himself in to U.S. Special Forces and Iraqi Security Forces without a struggle and is currently in U.S. custody for questioning. 
Elements of the 4th Iraqi Army Brigade detained the leader of a terrorist sniper cell in Bayji during an intelligence driven operation in Bayji July 12. The targeted individual is allegedly responsible for leading attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces, including attacks against the joint security site in downtown Bayji. Two other individuals were also detained during the operation. One other member of this cell had been previously captured last month. Iraqi Forces, with U.S. Special Operations Forces as advisors, also confiscated an AK-47 rifle, ammunition and computer equipment. No Iraqi or Coalition Forces were injured during either operation.
The Thai army said on Friday it had detained 342 Muslims, including seven women, in raids in the rebellious far south, one of the largest series of arrests in more than three years of separatist violence. Human rights group criticised the move, saying it exposed detainees to potential abuses by the army, which is operating under martial law that grants soldiers immunity from prosecution. The detainees were taken for questioning to five army camps across the four southern provinces where more than 2,300 people have been killed in a three-year insurgency. 
Separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas in green striped camouflage assaulted a mock government fort with gunfire, rockets and pipe bombs in an early morning drill Friday at a secret location in rebel-held territory in northern Sri Lanka. 
Five Katyusha rockets landed in the plains of Arqa and Beit Hadara in the north Lebanon's Akkar province between 7 and 8 am Friday, the state-run National News Agency ( NNA) reported. It said another three Katyushas crashed two hours later in the Minieh and Deir Emar neighborhoods also up North, setting a civilian car on fire. Shortly afterwards, three other projectiles smashed almost simultaneously into different regions of north Lebanon, including Arqa plains and Qaabrine near the highway linking Lebanon with Syria, according to NNA.
Osama bin Laden delivers a 50-second speech on martyrdom in a video intercepted July 14 on its way to Islamist Web sites. The video appears to have been made in the last four weeks from older video clips, said Octavia Nasr, a CNN Arab affairs editor. The video is 40 minutes long and also includes a speech by former al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in 2006.
