#1
"Hamas is the Brotherhood of Palestine - the Palestine branch [of the Brotherhood]. They hold a place at the top of the list of members of the international organization of the banned group [i.e. the Muslim Brotherhood]. This means that this is a worldwide movement that does not recognize national identity, the flag, or the anthem. They do not recognize a homeland that must be defended and for which one must give one's life. The homeland for them includes any plot of land on Earth on which the flag of the Brotherhood may be flown Hamas is the same thing. Whoever does not share their faith is [considered] outside of Islam, and he is treated like one of the infidels
"For Hamas and the Brotherhood, democracy is just dancing with Satan. The people who harbor the most enmity for democracy are those same groups who think that they have a divine mandate to rule and to implement the shari'a they see fit, and not Allah's shari'a. Democracy for them is just a means to take power; afterwards, they whip democracy with lashes and behead it with the sword No one can raise their head and speak up without becoming an infidel who must be punished. Their democracy is worse than dictatorship
[emphasis added]
Liberalhawk, I hope you're reading this and possibly beginning to reconsider your support for American negotiations with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood. They are the enemy.
#3
Unfortunately though, whereas Hamas is a gnat, the Muslim Brotherhood is an elephant. And though the Brotherhood has spun off lots of terrorist factions, the organization itself has not yet joined the fray.
So for the time being it is an unnecessary fight. If needs be, we can pick a fight with them later, but right now we have our hands full.
If they start to be annoying, we can encourage the Egyptian government to crack down on them some more. But we should bide our time.
MORE than 1,500 Nepali women have signed up with private firms to train for a possible career with the British Army after it allowed them to join the Brigade of Gurkhas for the first time in nearly two centuries.
Britain is studying how Nepali women could be recruited for its Gurkha force and authorities took out a newspaper advertisement this month asking women to give "notification of interest".
British officials said practical issues such as recruitment and selection standards needed to be settled and actual recruitment could take time. "I know it is very good for my career," said Bunita Gurung, 19, taking a course in Pokhara in west Nepal. "I want to be a soldier in the British Army." Ms Gurung, a management student, was inspired to look for an army career by her father, a former Gurkha.
Sirjana Rana, 20, also a student, said she would barely get $150 a month after completing her studies. If she joined the British Army, her wages could be ten times higher. "This is the first opportunity and the first is auspicious. I don't want to miss it," she said.
Britain, which recruits 230 Gurkha men a year, has not said how many women it will take. There are about 3,400 Nepalis in the Brigade of Gurkhas, which has fought in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans.
#1
Wimin with Khukris??? Nearly as frightening as the following reported to me yesterday:
The female Apache pilot and fiancee of a local Captain recently phoned her future husband, also a pilot, and reported that she was "very upset." Still distraught and angry the morning after, she informed him that she had "just killed three enemy combatants on her last sortie." Her fiancee attempted to console his Apache bride, only to have her retort, "NO!..... it's not that damn it! The 4th one got away!"
Posted by: John Frum ||
06/27/2007 5:55 Comments ||
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#3
I have a good friend from law school who's an ethnic Gurkha. His wife (also a Gurkha) is a babe, and they have two cute kids. Nice guy, generous, lively sense of humor, one of the best Americans-born-in-the-wrong-place you'd ever meet. Wouldn't hurt a fly.
Give him an assault rifle and tell him to take a ridge line, though, and Mama, look out!
Posted by: Mike ||
06/27/2007 7:09 Comments ||
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#4
GM Fraser, in his memoir about WWII in SE Asia "Quartered Safe Out Here" wrote with affection and respect about the Gurkas. Especially one incident where a company of them charged a grove of trees with a lot of Japanese soldiers holed up in it. He said they charged at a dead run, screaming like maniacs... and just before they hit the trees, about half of them threw away their rifles and went in with their knives, only!
#6
Just like that... dropped their rifles and hit the trees. And when they came out again, there were hardly any Japanese left. Well, left alive, anyway.
#7
The US has been missing an opportunity here. I figure that we could create a "Reservation" for the Aleuts up in the Aleutians, on condition that they lease one of those islands for the US to set up a Gurkha Regiment, somewhat like the French Foreign Legion. The Gurkhas are from a cold, mountainous region, so the Aleutians would be pretty close to what they are used to.
Then we could rent a Caribbean island for several regiments of hot weather Sikhs.
The idea is that we could have a very rapid, faster than the US military, reaction force to send to all sorts of places around the world where we are not particularly thrilled about sending American troops. Since most of the trouble spots are hot weather, we would need more Sikhs, but Ghurkhas would be available for cold region troubles.
We could send them on the endless "humanitarian" and "peacekeeping" missions around the world, with far less trouble than US troops.
#8
OK, but I wouldn't mind them becoming citizens and having their families contribute to our society.
Good people. There's a small Sikh community in our area. Local paper did a story on two teens who are finding their way through their spiritual identity. They have to AFFIRM Sikh beliefs and ASK for baptism when they are ready. Until then, they can (and do) eat meat etc. which is forbidden to Sikhs.
In other words, discipline, hard work, strong families and free choice in belief and action. What's not to like? These teens are blending their culture of origin with customs here quite comfortably, switching among languages, dress and music with ease.
#12
Hey Abdominal, I heard on the radio that there is a new expedition to catch you and take a few measurements and DNA and such. So, lay off the narcotics for a while, and try to take a shower.
In the first of a series of field exercises, Marines of Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force 24 and Peruvian Marines of Batallon Infanteria de Marina 1 arrived motivated and ready to conduct various live fire drills in the mountainous, desert terrain of the Quebrada Inocente training area, June 19.
This training event kicked off the Peruvian field portion of Partnership of the Americas 2007, an annual exercise which promotes regional stability and enhances relationships among nations of the Western Hemisphere. Although Marine mortar sections train regularly with live rounds, here they had what seemed like an endless supply, more than most had ever seen at one time. For many, this was a chance to do the type of training which spurred them to join the Marine Corps in the first place.
This training cycle was like none other that I've experienced. I've never fired so many rounds in my life! said Lance Cpl. Philip T. Brown, an ammunition technician from Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, in Waukegan, Ill. Nothing can come close to the power of 30 high explosive rounds going off at one time.
We covered that hill with shrapnel, continued Brown, a native of Rochester, Minn. The best part was watching the illumination rounds bouncing off the rock, and training with the Peruvians was also a highlight. I had the time of my life already.
It is clear that these Marines love their job, and they were thankful for the chance to practice their skills in a more realistic environment. The excitement was contagious, and as their Peruvian counterparts shared in the action, looks of joy could be seen on their faces. Once the Marines of each nation began opening up to one another, they realized they shared even more than their joy of exploding targets with live ordnance.
The training was realistic, and Marines love realistic training, said Sgt. Baldo Bello, a mortar section leader from Chicago with Weapons Co., 2/24. Even more importantly, as Marines, we often fall into the idea that we are the best, that no others do it as well as we do, and that we have the only right way. Training hand in hand with these guys totally opened my eyes to how different and alike we are.
The Spanish-speaking Marines went out of their way to make sure the Peruvian Marines understood our mortar systems and why we do things the way we do, and everyone learned something, added Bello.
The Peruvian Marine mortarmen fire an average of approximately two rounds per year for training. This was the first chance that many had to see how things would go in a situation where they were required to fire over a longer period of time.
The Peruvian Marine mortarmen fire an average of approximately two rounds per year for training. They explained that until they are in combat, they have virtually no way of actually knowing what a real-life mission is like. This was the first chance that many had to see how things would go in a situation where they were required to fire over a longer period of time.
The Marines from Peru were eager to learn, however, and by the time the mission was over, they had learned a lot. The Marines of SPMAGTF 24 had learned some things about their Peruvian counterparts as well, and felt they were better men for it.
I was impressed with the Peruvians' knowledge of the mortar system, especially after they explained to us how they only get one chance a year to fire live rounds, said Sgt. Timothy Gena of Palos Hills, Ill. They were very eager and helpful on the gun line.
I'm really happy to have had the chance to train with them, as they were all very easy to get along with, added Gena, a mortar section leader from Weapons Co., 2/24. The mission went very well.
As the day turned into night, illumination rounds were fired into the desert sky. Across the hills could be seen an explosive display of light as Marines fired the M252 81mm mortars off in a rapid succession of blasts, one right after another. It is said that the light from one of the illumination rounds is equal to that of 400 candles, something hard to believe until you witness it.
For the Peruvians, who never fire at night, this was even more exceptional something they had never seen before. Altogether, it was a day and night that everyone who played a part in will remember for a long time.
A court Tuesday backed Turkey's long-held position that the Istanbul-based Orthodox Patriarch is only the head of the city's tiny Greek Orthodox community and not the spiritual leader of the world's 300 million Orthodox Christians.
The decision has no influence on the status of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I outside Turkey, where he is regarded as the so-called "first among equals" of the Orthodox leaders. But it bolsters Turkey's strong resistance to acknowledge a wider role for Bartholomew and his ancient Christian enclave. Turkey has strongly objected to giving concessions to the patriarchate, fearing it could open the doors to similar claims by other minority groups including Kurdish rebels fighting for greater autonomy. Officials in mostly Muslim Turkey also have been suspicious of the patriarchate's close cultural and religious ties to longtime rival Greece.
The court said Turkey could not give "special status" to any minority group. The ruling came as part of an appeals proceeding that upheld Bartholomew's acquittal in a dispute with a Bulgarian priest. "The Patriarchate, which was allowed to remain on Turkish soil, is subject to Turkish laws," the appeals court ruled. "There is no legal basis for the claims that the Patriarchate is ecumenical."
The Patriarchate's spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.
Among Orthodox Christians, Bartholomew's position holds great historical weight. The patriarchate dates from the Byzantine Empire, which collapsed when Ottoman forces conquered Constantinople -- now Istanbul -- in 1453. But he holds no direct sway over the more than a dozen autonomous Orthodox churches in Europe and the Holy Land. Bartholomew's flock includes Istanbul's 3,000 remaining Greek Orthodox and several other congregations scattered around the globe, including the United States.
Turkey maintains tight controls, including rules requiring that patriarchs must be Turkish citizens. This sharply limits the potential pool of candidates to one day succeed Bartholomew. The patriarchate -- backed by the Greece and other Orthodox nations -- also has pressed Turkey to allow the reopening of a seminary that was forced to close more than two decades ago.
Let's take a look at those last two sentences. Only Turks are alllowed to accede to the Patriach position, and all of the Turkish seminaries have been shuttered. Cultural genocide in one generation.
In Athens, the Greek Foreign Ministry said the court decision would not change the Christians' perception of the Patriarch. "The ecumenical dimension of the Patriarchate of Constantinople is based on international treaties, the sacred regulations of Orthodoxy, on history and Church tradition," ministry spokesman George Koumoutsakos said. "But, above all, recognition of the Ecumenical Patriarch as a spiritual leader is -- and has been for centuries -- deeply rooted in the conscience of hundreds of millions of Christians, Orthodox or not, worldwide."
#1
It's time for the Orthodox Patriarchate to go underground. Quietly send potential priests to Greece for training, meet in houses and the back rooms of shops, and give up the perks and perils of government sponsorship they've been beholden to since Constantine. Let the government deal with the shame of being known for treating their Christians as does China.
The Department of Justice has called the Public Prosecutor, the Director of Police and the Oslo Police to an urgent meeting at short notice this week to discuss the ongoing practice of sexual mutilation of girls with immigrant background.
The meeting has been called after public broadcaster NRK TVNews aired shocking reports this weekend, showing that a large number of Norwegian-Somali girls have been sexually mutilated in their parents' homeland over the past three years.
In Norway, sexual mutilation of children has been a crime since January 1996, also if the operation is performed abroad. However, so far no one has been sentenced for such a crime.
Which means a whole lot of people have been actively looking the other way.
Funny how thousands of Norgie pediatricians and gynecologists haven't seen a single case in ten years ...
The aim of the urgent meeting this week is to find out if the police could be able to to do more in order to prevent parents from from sending their children abroad to be sexually mutilated, and prosecute those who do.
Opposition MPs have demanded that health personnel who discover cases where sexual mutilation has been carried out, will have an obligation to submit reports.
But they haven't seen any, aren't you paying attention?
Family Minister Karita Bekkemellem says the Government will soon submit a plan of action on how to prevent the practice.
Boy howdy there you go, a plan of action! Must have been talking to someone over at the World Health Organization.
School vacation has just started in Norway, and the authorities fear that some parents have already planned to have their daughters sexually mutilated while on vacation in their homeland.
"Hokay, sweetie, here's your ticket, Uncle Mahmoud will meet you at the gate in Karachi!"
The police is helpless in the fight against sexual mutilation of children, unless health personnel report cases discovered, says Chief Inspector Finn Abrahamsen of the Oslo Police. Abrahamsen asks school nurses to be more on the offensive, and report to the police when they become concerned.
None of the nurses have seen a case of FGM in ten years either. Nope, not a one, nope, nope ...
A health official said in an interview with NRK Monday that it might be best for the child to NOT report such encroachments. She said it would be very difficult for the child to see parents punished.
The 'health official' who said that should be drummed out of the profession.
Abrahamsen says that with such attitudes the fight against sexual mutilation becomes very difficult.
Bad enough the parents of these kids think it's okay; when the health officials roll over as well it's as good as over.
Posted by: lotp ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Global Jihad
#3
If they're not worried about the huge increase in rape, why should this be a problem? Welcome to cultural relativism at its worst. People migrating to Scandinavia are doing so because it has better cultural values, otherwise they would not be leaving their place of origin. That the Scandinavians cannot admit to themselves how their's is a better society represents a form of cultural suicide.
Into that gaping relativistic void even the most evil filth can step in and commandeer the system. This is happening throughout Europe and it exemplifies a culmination of the "who are we to judge?" mentality. "Judge not, lest ye be judged" is utter bullshit. Every single day, you live or die by your personal judgements. Whether crossing the street, eating food prepared by someone else or letting another person drive the vehicle you are riding in, poor judgement can cost you your life. Abdication of this vital decision-making process surrenders control over your destiny and from that point on you are a leaf in the wind.
An entire generation no longer takes headings from its moral compass. In search of liberation, these listless individuals have voluntarily cut loose from their own societal moorings. Adrift in a flurry of putatively identical cultural frames, they refuse to take their own bearings. Islam is a gale that will scour such philosophical detritus from the empty corridors of Europe's moral vacuum.
#4
Zenster,
right on the spot !
I agree with every single word.
welcome to the new reality in Norwegistan.
Once the Islamic RifRaf reaches a critical percentage of the population, the indigenous Norwegians won't even know what hit them.
I give them exactly one generation time to get their hold on reality or become extinct.
BTW taking into account the ingrained Lemming instincts of northerners, the prognosis is not on the bright side.
The saddest part of it all is that these are the decendents of the Vikings that were once fierce and adventurous peaple feared for their high spirits and courage in battle. Sic Transit Gloria Mundi
Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
06/27/2007 5:05 Comments ||
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#5
"People" are moving to Scandinavia because of the generous welfare payments and low odds of being persecuted for following Old Country cultural norms.
#6
TW,
agreed.
But then when smallpox migrates to a country because of convenient wether patterns you don't waste time saying how shocked you are that people are getting sick. You simply pull up your sleeves and eradicate the plague.
If you don't eradicate a plague in time you will sooner or later wind up dead !
Hasta la vista.
Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
06/27/2007 7:43 Comments ||
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#7
sorry,
should be "weather".
am I getting old or what?
Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
06/27/2007 7:45 Comments ||
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#8
I propose implementing the equivalent 'medical' procedure on the males of the same ethnic background. It would address multiple problems simultaneously: 1) growing unassimilated and unproductive Mooselimb population, 2) unequal treatment of the sexes, and 3) the rape epidemic.
#9
A health official said in an interview with NRK Monday that it might be best for the child to NOT report such encroachments. She said it would be very difficult for the child to see parents punished.
Good Lord! They can't take children away from parents who mutilate them?! What kind of heartless bastards do they have in their "health" service?
Any bets on whether home-schooling your kid would be grounds for removing them?
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
06/27/2007 9:08 Comments ||
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#10
Welfare is to Muslims as Blood is to Ticks!
Posted by: Natural Law ||
06/27/2007 10:13 Comments ||
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#11
They can submit the girls to cheks before they live and another check whne they come back. Do not let the families with "damaged" girls reenter...............although the "leftis" would cry discrimination........
What a imbecilic idea. Sterilise the parents and remove the child from their abuses, but too punish equally innocent children because of their sex is an abomination of an idea.
ht Drudge: more at Linky
Sanctions and diplomacy have failed and it may be too late for internal opposition to oust the Islamist regime, leaving only military intervention to stop Iran's drive to nuclear weapons, the US's former ambassador to the UN, John Bolton, told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
Worse still, according to Ambassador Bolton, the Bush administration does not recognize the urgency of the hour and that the options are now limited to only the possibility of regime change from within or a last-resort military intervention, and it is still clinging to the dangerous and misguided belief that sanctions can be effective.
As a consequence, Bolton said he was "very worried" about the well-being of Israel. If he were in Israel's predicament, he said, "I'd be pushing the US very hard. I am pushing the US [administration] very hard, from the outside, in Washington." Deep Strategic Feedback Wanted:
Posted by: RD ||
06/27/2007 13:17 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
How strange to watch Bolton go from UN heavyweight to a lone voice in the wilderness. It does not bode at all well. If ever there was a time for his sort of unvarnished language, it is now.
#3
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) Apr 25 10:33 AM US/Eastern
Iran's supreme leader said Tuesday that the country is ready to transfer its nuclear technology to other countries . Meanwhile, Tehran threatened to halt all cooperation with the U.N. atomic energy agency if the U.N. Security Council imposes sanctions, warning that it might hide its nuclear program if the West takes any other "harsh measures."
#4
By itself, Iran's threat to proliferate nuclear technology to other Muslim majority countries is enough justification for bombing the crap out of them right now. How brain dead do our leaders have to be in order to ignore this glaring fact?
If that is so, then Srdja Trifkovic's words only ring all the more true:
The elite class has every intention of continuing to fight the war on terrorism without naming the enemy, without revealing his beliefs, without unmasking his intentions, without offending his accomplices, without expelling his fifth columnists, and without ever daring to win. Their crime can and must be stopped. The founders of the United States overthrew the colonial government for offenses far lighter than those of which the traitor class is guilty.
[emphasis added]
The current immigration bill is total confirmation of how out of touch this traitor class is with the average American citizen.
Opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday passionately called on the world to stop Iran's nuclear ambitions in its tracks by imposing sanctions on the Tehran regime.
"I want to call on the world that didn't stop the Holocaust last time to stop any attempt this time and what needs to be done is divest genocide," he said in an address to the Herzliya conference, a yearly get-together of Israel's political and security elite.
Iran says its nuclear program is aimed only at producing energy, but it is widely believed by the West to be developing nuclear weapons.
******
I know that Baker and his happy Diplo Dozen believe they can give the divirgent power centers in Iran a Secrete Wedgie but isn't the Hour for Diplo Wedgies getting rather Late?
Methinks as I Slouch Back in My Armchair that if our gubmint or Israel doesn't act real soon we will all be dumb witnesses to a test shot in Iran ala the Norks, Pakis, and India.
I do recall President Bush saying rather forcefully that Iran's Nuke program will be stopped, the Commander in Chief didn't rule force or any other means to do so, out. Perhaps President Bush should be preparing us [the CITIZENS] for the eventual use of the olde tool, the Military Wedgie.
#8
Bolton is wrong, because regime change is not enough. This is because the typical Iranian on the street *wants* nuclear weapons. Whoever is in charge will be pushed to want them too.
For years now, ever since Iran's nuclear drive became known, I hoped that the US would launch a 24-hour satellite feed to Iran on the horrors of nuclear war. Documentaries, drama, the works. Because *as a people* they missed that lesson in their 20th Century history class.
#9
This is because the typical Iranian on the street *wants* nuclear weapons.
source, Moose? I call bullshit
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/27/2007 19:04 Comments ||
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#10
I hoped that the US would launch a 24-hour satellite feed to Iran on the horrors of nuclear war.
I still maintain that America should produce a well-crafted video production showing a MME (Muslim Middle East) version of "The Day After Tommorow" nuclear holocaust video. Its introduction ought to feature Islamic terrorists enacting nuclear attacks against Western tagets in order to leave no doubt about the plot's causality. After showing vivid simulations of nuclear hits on recognizable MME landmarks, follow up sequences would portray the agonies of infrastructure collapse and massive human dieoffs resulting therefrom. Episodes should contain footage of familiar urban centers undergoing firestorms, fallout and the complete laundry list of nuclear horrors.
We need to air-drop DVDs of this production throughout the MME. Periodic broadcasts of the video should be forcibly piggybacked onto normal commercial broadcast channels like al-Jazeera and al-Manar.
The West must make it unmistakably clear to this world's Muslim population that their clerical elite is sheparding them to their doom. A singular failure of this administration is not following up its laudable pronouncement about "The Axis of Evil" with concomitant propaganda campaigns, the al-Hurrah fiasco notwithstanding.
We have spent many long years dangling carrots in front of Islamic barbarians who are sated only by their bloodlust. It is time to administer the "Big Stick". A "Big Ugly Stick" would be even better. Our failure to do so is guaranteeing the deaths of not just countless Americans but Muslims as well. This neglect of inevitably increased bilateral casualties resulting from current inaction is far more reprehensible than any calumny we might draw through aggressive prosecution right now.
#11
Frank G, the Paks celebrated in the streets when they got the bomb. They wanted it. I don't believe that they understand what it is. They think it's just a big bomb. I don't believe that the Mad Mullahs in Iran understand about radioactive fallout, how it causes cancer and doesn't respect international borders. How could they? All they ever studied in school was the Koran. They need to be stopped. They all hate us anyway so just bomb them and then at least they might respect us. What I don't understand is what Bush is waiting for. He invaded Iraq because they supposedly had WMDs but he won't do squat about Iran. What is he, nuts or something? Lieberman and Bolton understand. The Israelis understand. I would bet that deep in her cold, black heart even Hillary understands. Bush doesn't seem to. Is he really going to leave this problem for her? How does he know it won't be too late by then? How could the "intelligence" community that was so wrong about Iraq know how far along Iran's program is? Why take any chances? More and more he seems about as witless, naive and dangerous as Jimmuh Carter.
#12
How could the "intelligence" community that was so wrong about Iraq know how far along Iran's program is? Why take any chances?
Spot on, EU6305! Excellent questions, all around. Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons will go down in history as the single greatest strategic blunder of the 21st century. The repercussions of a military attack upon Iran can, in no way possible, exceed the blowback of inaction.
With this kind of atitude, we ain't got a change. Of course, there will eventually be troop drawdown, that's a natural phase of battles in wars, but wanting dates and numbers? Too much for me. From The Tank at NRO
Statement of Chairman Lantos at hearing, "Iraq: Is the Escalation Working?"
The recent U.S. troop escalation in Iraq simply is not working. We are now the proverbial man wandering the barren desert desperately in search of an oasis that doesn't exist.
The predicament facing our nation in Iraq became quite clear long before the surge was announced in January. But even after all outside observers pointed out this mirage, the Administration refused to stop what retired General Barry McCaffrey has called "a fool's errand."
The Administration wanted to make millions of Americans believe that we should wander further into the desert, investing more and more blood and treasure there. This belief, in turn, would reduce the mounting pressure to seek a safe and wise exit. And so it has - at least for some months.
As a long-time professor of economics, let me tell you: you don't consider sunk costs when making decisions about the future. We need a sober assessment of the troop escalation and the situation in Iraq right now, and we need to stop pretending we can attain plainly delusional goals. We need more wake-up calls like we had on Monday, when veteran Republican Senator Dick Lugar said on the Senate floor that continuing to pursue the surge strategy would actuallydamage our national security interests.
This troop escalation has, in fact, been a categorical and catastrophic failure. The month of May claimed the most U.S. lives in Iraq in more than two-and-a-half years - 127 of our brave servicemen and women were killed. June hasn't been much better, with more than 80 U.S. deaths so far.
According to the widely respected Brookings Institution Iraq Index, the number of daily attacks has increased markedly this year, and the period from March through June has been among the deadliest for Iraqi military personnel and police. Four years into the war, these metrics should bedecreasing, not increasing.
For the people of Iraq, security and stability are elusive mirages, too. Insurgents have resorted to the sickening strategy of suicide bombings - just Monday, four separate attacks killed at least 40 people. One of these bombings killed six Sunni leaders who had joined with U.S. forces in the battle for stability in Iraq.
Many prominent Republicans have already stated that unless they see substantial progress by September, they will support a drawdown of U.S. forces. But with typical obstinacy, the Administration is already feeding out the line that a little more time and a few more troops will turn things around.
Instead of hoping against hope each day that the mirage will suddenly transform into the oasis of a triumphant U.S. victory in Iraq, let's figure out how to make Iraq as stable as possible. Let's figure out how to save the lives of our courageous soldiers still there - the bullets and roadside bombs that they face every day are all too real.
As we know, there is a slew of proposals on the table right now that range from full withdrawal to partial withdrawal to regional redeployment. I would like to come away from this hearing - and I think my fellow members would appreciate this, too - more informed about the real pros and cons of these plans. I would like us to think with sobriety about the safest and most prudent way out of Iraq.
We will discuss several proposals floating around Washington, some of which are emanating from some prominent and respected public figures and military experts.
Two think tanks recently released thoughtful withdrawal proposals that will serve as fodder for today's discussion. The Center for American Progress promotes withdrawing all but 8,000 to 10,000 troops by the end of 2008, with the remaining forces positioned in northern Iraq to prevent and to contain a possible cross-border conflict between the Kurds and Turkey.
The Center for a New American Security suggests slimming down our Iraq force to 60,000 troops by the beginning of 2009. That force would remain for four more years largely to train the Iraqi army and work with Iraqi leaders to fight insurgents. Improving Iraq's own security forces and army is an absolute necessity for the long-term sustainability of Iraq - a notion that the Baker-Hamilton report described in great detail. This is now long overdue.
In fact, most rational exit strategies suggest reducing our forces in Iraq to those needed for training Iraqi security forces, fighting identified terrorist cells in hotspots, protecting our embassy and reconstruction workers, and shielding important Iraqi infrastructure facilities, such as the Baghdad airport.
Some analysts have proposed variations on regional redeployment, in which the lion's share of our troops would withdraw to bases in nearby countries, such as Kuwait. Many of these troops would remain as a quick-reaction force to strike if serious flare-ups occurred in Iraq.
Others have offered a vision that would include the replacement of our troops with an international stabilization force in Iraq, with many of the troops coming from nearby Middle Eastern and North African countries. Unfortunately, precious few nations have expressed any willingness to commit troops to such a mission so this plan appears to be a non-starter.
Given the abject failure of the escalation, we are no longer debating whether to withdraw. We are discussing how to do it, when to do it, and the number of the remaining force in Iraq.
So with our expert witnesses today, I want to discuss what makes the most sense for Iraq, for the region, and for American forces. No more illusions. We must banish the mirages and take a clear-eyed view of where we are and where we go from here.
#1
It's all about WILL. The American leadership is reflecting the American people, and we do not have the WILL to win. Leadership is following, though, and not leading. We SHOULD have the will, and would, if leadership would properly show the people what is at stake, and why we should fight this evil. We will either fight it or fall to it, sooner or later. Now is definitely 'easier' than later. There is really little difference between now and 1938.
#2
What a joke our 'leadership' is. The actual 'surge' just began after months of preparing the battlefield. It took months, nay years, to prepare the 'surge' at Normandy. Although the American lead allied forces secured a beachhead in Normandy, it utterly failed to penetrate deep into the region spending its manpower and effort in a bocage to bocage fight falling way behind anticipated schedule. You could so easily write this same crap at D +30 in 1944.
#4
bin Laden can still pull this one out thanks to his allies in the Democrat party. Reid, Murta, Pelosi and Lantos are going to return Neville Chamberlain to his otherwise deserved obscurity in history. Or perhaps they're just planning to outdo Quisling
#5
He thinks that if we surge and press the enemy harder, that effort should be accompanied by immediately lower US casualties. Makes no sense.
While I'm not much interested in the forecasts of Professors of Economics, I can agree that we should discount the 'sunk costs' and stay the course while Iraq continues to build their military. They simply don't have enough trained soldiers as yet, and to leave early would be disastrous and a true waste of the sunk costs he's discounting.
Osama bin Laden's face and words loomed over the U.S. terrorism trial of former "dirty bomber" suspect Jose Padilla on Tuesday as jurors were shown a 10-year-old videotaped interview of the al Qaeda leader.
Jurors were attentive but poker-faced as they watched the CNN interview on a giant screen in a Miami courtroom. Padilla and two co-defendants are on trial on charges of conspiring to murder, kidnap and maim people overseas and of providing material support for terrorism.
The three defendants are not accused of having any direct connection to bin Laden, and defense lawyers objected vigorously and called the tape inflammatory and irrelevant.
U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke told jurors to ignore it when deciding Padilla's fate since there was no evidence he saw or discussed the interview.
U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke told jurors to ignore it when deciding Padilla's fate since there was no evidence he saw or discussed the interview. She said jurors could consider it as proof of the other defendants' state of mind but reminded them that the charges had nothing to do with September 11.
In the 1997 interview, long before the September 11 attacks made him one of the world's most-hunted men, a gun rests at bin Laden's side as he praises U.S. deaths in Saudi Arabia and Somalia and urges that more U.S. troops be killed.
Prosecutors played the tape as a prelude to airing secretly recorded telephone conversations in which defendants Adham Amin Hassoun and Kifah Wael Jayyousi chuckle as they discuss the interview.
Prosecutors played the tape and the phone conversations as evidence that Hassoun, a Lebanese-born Palestinian, and Jayyousi, a Jordanian-born U.S. citizen, supported violent Islamist groups.
Padilla was arrested at Chicago's O'Hare airport in 2002, declared an "enemy combatant" by President George W. Bush and held without charge in a military jail for 3-1/2 years.
The government said he was plotting to set off a radiological "dirty bomb" in the United States but no mention of that allegation was made when he was transferred into the civilian justice system and added to the Miami case.
The defendants are accused of running a support cell that provided money and recruits for Islamist militants in Chechnya, Bosnia, Afghanistan and elsewhere beginning in the mid-1990s.
On June 15, 2007, Robert Werner addressed The Washington Institute's Policy Forum seminar series. Managing director of Merrill Lynch's Monetary and Financial Control Group since December 2006, he previously served as director of the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and, before that, as director of the department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The following is a rapporteur's summary of his remarks
Now more than ever, the private sector needs to help prevent terrorism financing. Emerging markets in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia present law enforcement authorities and the private sector with new challenges and possibilities in the areas of terrorism financing and money laundering. For those companies that value their reputations and wish to uphold the moral and ethical imperative to prevent the funding of illicit activity, increased cooperation with U.S. government efforts is vital.
Background
Although terrorism financing and money laundering are often categorized together, the former is in fact much more difficult to detect. As opposed to laundering -- the process of layering and integrating funds into the financial system -- terrorism financing often involves clean money being used for illicit purposes. In addition, terror financiers transfer funds through increasingly sophisticated means. Beyond using traditional banks and wire transfers, they are now investing in securities and moving money through related transactions.
There is a misconception that terrorists do not require large sums of money to operate. Although the cost of individual attacks is relatively low, the cost to maintain terrorist infrastructure is comparatively high. The focus of efforts to counter terrorism financing should not be preventing individual attacks, but breaking the networks that facilitate them. Even this worthwhile effort can have unintended consequences, however. The offshoots of large, sophisticated terrorist networks remain highly dangerous even when they lack formal connections to said networks.
Posted by: lotp ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Adnan Abbas with his poor English, four young daughters, and little money to speak of shrugs when told that making a new life in the US will be hard.
"I know that a new country, new language, is difficult and that America isn't going to say, 'Welcome, Adnan, here's a million dollars,' " he says. "But life in Iraq? That's impossible. We're one of the luckiest families in the world."
On Tuesday, the Abbas family will take their five small suitcases, close the door on the small flat they've rented for the past year in Amman, Jordan, and start a journey that will eventually taken them to Lansing, Mich. They are in the vanguard of what's likely to become if the history of American wars is anything to go by the latest wave of immigrants to have an impact on the demographics of the US.
In February, the US agreed to accept 7,000 Iraqi refugees this year, a large jump over the fewer than 700 Iraqis accepted by the US in the first three years of the war but a drop in the ocean when measured against the estimated 2 million Iraqis who have fled the country since the war began. About 2,000 of those Iraqis coming this year, say refugee officials, will start their lives anew in Michigan.
For now, the Abbases are among the exceptions that prove the rule. Adnan, a driver in Baghdad for this paper, was witness to the murder of Allan Enwiyah and the kidnapping of reporter Jill Carroll in January 2006.
#1
OK, this may be a humanitarian thingy, but why Lansing? in the middle of the rust belt and there are not a lot of jobs in the state (so sayeth my sister and mom, in the Battle Creek area). It would seem to me that there are other areas with stronger economies that would allow the immigrants to get a better financial foothold than central Michigan. (perhaps its to buy donk votes. nah that couldn't be, could it??)
#2
They're headed to Lansing because Dearborn is already overflowing. I'm totally against this, no matter what they mught have done in behalf of MNF. No More Muzz in US.
#4
I would guess that it's because it's a state capital near the Arab settlement band along Lakes Erie & Huron, Dearborn-Detroit-Toledo-Lorain. I'm not that familiar with Michigan, to be honest. Is there much of an Arab community in Lansing?
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
06/27/2007 8:45 Comments ||
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#5
First big wave of Iraqi refugees heads for the US...
#6
For the moment, the vast majority of Iraqi refugees have yet to register with the UNHCR, the first step in legal immigration to a third country, if they make a convincing case they would face reprisals if they return home.
Should have known....it's the UN at the root of this immigration problem. Their solution to all the world's problems is to export everything, including blame, to the US.
#10
After we abandoned the Vietnamese we took in a lot of refugees. Like any group, there were losers, but there were a lot of good ones too. And, as far as I can tell, they have not formed isolationist communities. Some Vietnamese gangs, yes. Vietnamese churches, yes. But even the gang kids speak English. And it seems their gen 1 & 2 unemployment is lower than average (gen 3, showing up now, not so). If we take Iraqi refugees who were, say, translators for us, I say 'great'. They've already learned English, they've already been exposed to American culture, and they've already shown willingness to take risks and work. Give me more.
#13
Michigan has higher jizya welfare payments than surrounding states. As for Lansing, it's seat of government and a university, both big supporters of any hostile philosophy.
Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds ||
06/27/2007 20:20 Comments ||
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#14
Can't say that Iraqis are doing much to pacify their own country. Over 5,000 South Vietnam soldiers were lost in each month prior to the end of that war. The SVs earned immigration status; Iraqis might not add very much.
#15
Make an exception for the Kurds who courageously volunteered to translate for US troops, all over Iraq. I've met a few, including young women whose families have been killed because of their work.
#17
McZoid: an enormous number of Iraqi civilians have been dying in this war. Also think of every time you've read of a police recruiting drive blown up by a car bomb.
A lot of people here may believe in the Great Ummah United In Hostility To The West, but the terrorists don't seem to.
#18
AS, clearly there's a wide spectrum of helpfulness. But certainly those who helped the most, at the most risk to themselves, are people we should help in return IMO.
DAULAT NAGAR, Pakistan - Nusrat Riaz, a doctor for 17 years, has spent the past three directing a clinic that provides care to thousands of poor patients in this remote, wheat-farming village on the plains of Punjab.
So Riaz was surprised this spring when he learned the government had appointed a monitor to look over his shoulder as he worked. He was even more surprised when he learned the man had no medical background, had no experience supervising doctors and was functionally illiterate.
But when Riaz learned the monitor was a retired Pakistani army officer, it all made sense. "This is part of the militarization of the entire country," said Riaz, 46. "It is very insulting, and it is happening because of the man sitting at the top."
That man, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the president, has been Pakistan's leader for almost eight years. In that time, the nuclear-armed military has quietly exerted its influence over nearly every segment of Pakistani society.
Active-duty or retired officers now occupy most key government jobs, including posts in education, agriculture and medicine that have little to do with defense. The military also dominates the corporate world; it reportedly runs a $20 billion portfolio of businesses from banks to real estate developers to bakeries. And everywhere lurks the hand of the feared military-led intelligence services.
Yet in a country where the military has long been immune from criticism, its extraordinary power is now drawing open contempt from civilians. A campaign against Musharraf that began three months ago, following his suspension of the chief justice, has exploded into a full-fledged movement to oust the armed services from civilian life and send the generals back to their barracks.
They are not expected to go easily, and the wealth and influence they have attained during the Musharraf era helps explain why.
"If the generals don't recede, I fear a civil-military conflict," said Zafarullah Khan, a leading Pakistani lawyer and opposition figure. "Ultimately the question is: Who gets to rule? Sixteen generals or 160 million people? Sooner or later we have to decide that once and for all."
History in Pakistan is on the generals' side. They have ruled the country for more than half of the 60 years since independence. Even when civilians have ostensibly been in charge, they have had to bow to the military just to keep their jobs. Of the nation's past three civilian leaders, two are in exile and one was hanged.
Musharraf's brand of military rule has been different from most. Since coming to power in a bloodless coup in 1999, he has not declared martial law. As army chief, he still wears his uniform, but just as often opts for a business suit or traditional shalwar kameez. For the most part, he eschews grand, strutting military parades. Soldiers are a rare sight on the nation's streets.
Yet the military's imprint is everywhere.
It's by the side of the road, where men in orange jumpsuits labor for a military-run foundation that controls a huge share of the nation's construction industry. It's also present up and down the ranks of the civilian bureaucracy, where government workers answer to retired military men and complain that loyalty is consistently rewarded over hard work or competence. And it's in Riaz's health clinic, where his doctors say they take heat from army inspectors if they spend more than 10 minutes with a patient.
The military's might, Pakistanis say, also comes in much more insidious forms. The calls that wake Khan, the lawyer, in the middle of the night, for instance.
"We've purchased your coffin," a caller once told him at 2:15 a.m. "Get ready for Pakistan's Tiananmen Square," said another.
Khan, a vigorous man whose office in Islamabad is crammed with classic works of history and philosophy, said he is certain that Pakistan's elite, military-run intelligence agencies are behind the calls. And he knows the threats are not idle.
Posted by: John Frum ||
06/27/2007 06:03 ||
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#1
More from the Rantburg archives on the role of the Pak Military in their economy....
Posted by: John Frum ||
06/27/2007 6:13 Comments ||
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#3
So Riaz was surprised this spring when he learned the government had appointed a monitor to look over his shoulder as he worked. He was even more surprised when he learned the man had no medical background, had no experience supervising doctors and was functionally illiterate.
Like he's ever going to be able to read the doctor's handwriting anyway.
But when Riaz learned the monitor was a retired Pakistani army officer...
Ya know, they might consider being more ashamed of this than of anything happening in Kashmir, Afghanistan, or Israel. They might want to even be more ashamed of this than of a woman walking around without a male escort or with her face uncovered...
I mean, seriously -- they have nukes and an officer corps that includes functional illiterates?!
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
06/27/2007 9:12 Comments ||
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#6
Well, considering that Islamic extremism reaches even farther into Pakland society....
#7
I suspect that Perv has long been trying to rearrange the power structure in Pakistan so that at least the monied and professional classes are loyal to the country, not Islamism.
He has probably read a lot about Ataturk, and feels that only when the army is capable of complete rule of the country will anyone else be, via Democracy.
Suicide bombers are presently in Islamabad and could target important personalities, Geo television quoted Interior Ministry Spokesman Brigadier Javed Iqbal Cheema as saying during a news briefing in Islamabad on Tuesday. According to the channel, Cheema said intelligence agencies had reported that suicide bombers had entered the federal capital to target some important people, but didnt include the names of any of the bombers potential targets. He said President Musharraf had approved a four-point strategy to stop Talibanisation and extremism in tribal areas and other parts of NWFP.
Staff Report adds: Cheema said the government would not allow anyone to use Pakistani soil to carry out terrorist activities.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Tribal parliamentarians boycotted a grand tribal jirga that President Gen Pervez Musharraf addressed at Governors House here on Tuesday, in protest at the government ignoring their input on the tribal areas, a senator said. We have boycotted the jirga because our opinion is not sought while devising a policy on peace and development in the tribal areas, Senator Hameedullah Khan told Daily Times.
Ten MNAs and eight senators did not turn up at the jirga, which a senior aide to Governor Ali Jan Orakzai said was attended by 400 tribal elders. Only MNA GG Jamal, a federal minister, attended the jirga, the senator added. Gen Musharraf urged tribal elders to shoulder the responsibility of evicting foreign extremists who have outlived their welcome. They (foreign extremists) are conspiring to wreak havoc in the lives of innocent people in Pakistan and the West. He said the Pak-Afghan jirga would sort out a peaceful solution to Afghanistans problems, adding that the government would compensate the victims of NATO mortar fire in North Waziristan on June 23 in which 10 people were killed.
Also on Tuesday, Gen Musharraf addressed garrison officers at 11 Corps Headquarters, where he reiterated his governments commitment to maintaining law and order at all costs. He said the capability of paramilitary forces, levies and tribal police was being enhanced so they could fight extremism and Talibanisation. The writ of the government will be ensured, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Hey, big boy, is that a mysterious object in your pants, or are you just glad to see me?
Bethlehem Maan The Israeli newspaper, Maariv, reported on Wednesday that Hamas discovered videotapes during the seizure of power in the Gaza Strip that reveal the corruption of the security forces and the sexual deviancy of several Fatah leaders. Oh! Achmed! That goat is hot!!!
Maariv reported that Hamas members discovered dozens of recorded sexual encounters of leading figures, which were being used by the security forces as blackmail. According to Maariv, Fatah ordered the videotapes to be destroyed so they did not fall into the hands of Hamas. So what'll it be tonight, Achmed? "Weekend at Mo Dahlan's"?
Nah, we saw that last night...
Hamas said the videotapes involve several Fatah ministers and prominent leaders. Maariv added that many of the tapes remain in the hands of Hamas. Really? I'da figured they'd want to keep their hands free. At least one of them...
Maariv said that the videotapes show several Fatah leaders committing infidelity. Is it infidelity if it involves barnyard animals?
The videotapes were recorded in several locations including offices, hotels, hospitals and houses. The purpose of the recordings was to recruit agents and collaborators and blackmail Fatah officials. I wonder if they had those thumpy, heavy bass soundtracks?
The paper added that some of the videotapes were recordings of Hamas leaders, one of whom was forced to collaborate with Fatah against Hamas. The tape showed him cheating on his wife. Ewwwwww...I hope it wasn't Warty Nose.
Maariv added that some of the women who appeared in the tapes were imported prostitutes. Maarivs reporter said that he had seen one of the tapes which was recorded in a hospital and involved a doctor with a girl. The reporter said that this type of blackmail is very common. A doctor and a girl? Ain't that original. No pizza delivery guys in Gaza? No TV repairmen?
Maarivs reporter concluded that Hamas are very satisfied by their discovery, which they intend to use to blackmail the Fatah figures recorded on the tapes. Very satisfied? Just don't get them too sticky, guys...
#6
Another huge win-win in the ongoing Palestinian melt-down. If these tossers can sufficiently discredit Abbas' crew then the Terrortories might be forced to consider electing a whole new crew. Either way, it is of vital importance that the mask be ripped from the PA for all time. Hamas has already let their's slip as they violently impose shari'a crapulence in Gaza. The more disarray they are in the less time they have for killing Jews. Of greater importance is how spending more time each other's throats only increases the likelihood that they will ask for Israel's help in pruning out key operatives. None of this takes into account how the top Palestinian brass will be even easier to spot amongst the ever increasing rubble.
A really big win will be when Lebanon finally gets tired of their Islamic crapfest and gives the IDF coordinates for Meshaal's lair.
#8
Nope, sinse, you are not. Most street gangs have more sense of duty, honor, and loyalty than any of the Paleos; the Paleos have a society that looks like something from a zombie movie, where everyone is running around trying to kill each one or eat each others' brains.
#10
TW, when I think of Gaza I see Hobbes silently pointing his finger at the latest good example of his prescience. I am also reminded of Kipling's "The Gods of the Copybook Headings." People just keep having to learn the same hard lessons and some people, like the muzzies, simply never do.
Posted by: Mac ||
06/27/2007 18:35 Comments ||
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#11
I've got a video of Saeb Erekat in drag and a blowup doll. If you don't send me $500 I'll post it. I'm NOT kidding. Don't call the police
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/27/2007 19:41 Comments ||
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#12
I've got a video of Saeb Erekat in drag and a blowup doll. If you don't send me $500 I'll post it. I'm NOT kidding. Don't call the police
Bah! I bid $600.00 but only if I get the exclusive YouTube rights.
The Paleos have a society that looks like something from a zombie movie, where everyone is running around trying to kill each one or eat each others' brains.
Shieldwolf, you're making the dangerous assumption that Palestinians actually have any brains at all. Gaza and the West Bank make "Night of the Living Dead" look like an MBA Master Class tutorial production.
Egyptian analysis of the Palestinian civil war. Excerpt:
Whether the newly-formed Palestinian government in Ramallah will be able to function efficiently and fulfill its obligations and responsibilities according to a political agenda, even if it has one, remains to be seen.
Due to the speed with which the new government was established, it has been dubbed a "knee-jerk" government by some. This followed Hamas' dramatic take-over of Gaza. The fledgeling government has already gained regional and international support and recognition, with the US, EU and Israel all pledging to lift the economic embargo imposed on the Palestinians following Hamas' election victory in 2006.
However, recognition and foreign aid alone won't guarantee success. Salam Fayyad, the Ramallah-based Prime Minister has described his government's mission as "very hard but not impossible." This is a more or less accurate prognosis. Fayyad, a former World Bank official, is a favourite of the US and EU (but not necessarily Israel).
He is not a member of Fatah and doesn't have a power base or a strong following in the Palestinian street. Hence, his ability to effect real change on the ground is very limited. Indeed, the success or failure of the new government, e.g. in maintaining security and reestablishing the rule of law, depends to a very large degree on the extent to which the Fatah movement, the backbone of the PA political and security apparatus in the West Bank, will be willing to cooperate and abide by its decisions.
Unfortunately, experience shows that Fatah, particularly its largely undisciplined and numerous militias and gangs, has a record of refusing to acknowledge the authority of previous Palestinian governments whether in Ramallah or in Gaza. The organisation may prove to be even more at odds with a government led by a "Western-oriented' prime minister who believes that all militia men and security agencies ought to be answerable to his office.
#1
The organisation may prove to be even more at odds with a government led by a "Western-oriented' prime minister who believes that all militia men and security agencies ought to be answerable to his office.
They have to have freedom! Freedom to take Dire Revenge™ and freedom to attack the Joooos, and freedom to follow the Koran.
Freedom to have anarchy and chaos.
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/27/2007 7:38 Comments ||
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#2
".... and reestablishing the rule of law...."
This is, I think, the seminal illusion (dare I say hallucination) of all of the non-Muslim participants in this farce.
There never was a rule of law there and until everyone admits that we're dealing with people posessing the ethos of dark age barbarians the sooner a realistic solution might be found short of glassing the whole sewer over.
A high-ranking defense official confirmed Tuesday that an audio tape of the voice of kidnapped IDF. Cpl. Gilad Shalit released Monday was an authentic recording, according to a report on Voice of Israel government radio.
The unnamed official also said the tape, posted on an Internet website frequently used by terrorists, appears to have been recently recorded, sparking hope that Shalit is still alive.
The unnamed official also said the tape, posted on an Internet website frequently used by terrorists, appears to have been recently recorded, sparking hope that Shalit is still alive.
Shalits father, Noam, also confirmed that his sons voice was on the recording, as did the soldiers mother after hearing the tape on Israels Channel 2 television Monday night.
Although the tape was released by the Hamas-linked Popular Resistance Committees terror group, there remain conflicting reports about who is actually in control of Shalits fate.
Damascus-based Hamas political bureau chief and arch-terrorist Khaled Mashaal has denied knowledge of Shalits whereabouts, according to a report by the Jerusalem Post. Mashaal also said he does not have the power to force the soldiers captors to release him, despite the fact that it was a team of Hamas terrorists who kidnapped Shalit.
It is also not clear what options, if any, still exist for Israeli forces to rescue Shalit, whether his location has really been identified and whether an attempt might still be made. A spokeswoman for the Defense Minister told Arutz-7 Tuesday morning that the defense establishment is continuing to "invest numerous efforts to return the kidnapped soldiers," but added that "Due to the sensitivity of the matter, we cannot publicly discuss the answers to the questions you have raised."
The captive IDF soldier was grabbed a year ago during an infiltration raid near the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Gaza. A team of terrorists from three Hamas-linked organizations carried out the sophisticated attack.
The operatives, who also killed two soldiers and wounded four others, included members of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), the Izz el-Din al-Kassam (considered to be the military wing of Hamas), and the Army of Islam, a shadowy group that has also claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) journalist Alan Johnston. The Scottish nationals whereabouts are also unknown, but his captors recently released a video of Johnston draped in a suicide bomb vest, claiming that it was rigged to explode if there was any attempt to forcibly release him.
Despite the lack of concrete evidence on Shalits current condition, former Israeli Prisoners of War told reporters Monday that the release of the Shalit tape is the first positive sign that the 20-year-old IDF officer is still alive.
#1
The Scottish nationals whereabouts are also unknown, but his captors recently released a video of Johnston draped in a suicide bomb vest, claiming that it was rigged to explode if there was any attempt to forcibly release him.
Johnston must be so ashamed. Everyone knows that real Scotsmen don't wear bomb vests. They only wear bomb kilts.
General Amos Yadlin, Chief of Military Intelligence told participants at a Jewish Agency conference in Jerusalem Tuesday that Israel should not withdraw from Judea and Samaria. Nor should it fear a nuclear threat from Iran. The head of Israel's Military Intelligence Division addressed a wide range of security-related issues, among them the controversial subjects of Israeli withdrawal from parts of Judea and Samaria, and the possible need for a military response to a nuclear threat from Iran.
Hamas does not want peace with Israel. It is continuing its terrorist activities, and moderate Palestinians are unable to do anything about [the situation], even though they want peace.
Yadlin warned that a unilateral withdrawal from Palestinian Authority-controlled areas of Judea and Samaria would be tantamount to inviting Hamas to re-enact its takeover of Gaza.
Hamas does not want peace with Israel, he pointed out. It is continuing its terrorist activities, and moderate Palestinians are unable to do anything about [the situation], even though they want peace.
Yadlin added that he does not believe a political agreement with the PA is in Israels best interest. If Israel withdraws from the West Bank, he warned, what happened in Gaza will happen there.
The military intelligence chief was more positive on the subject of concerns that war may break out in the north this summer. The intelligence chief also spoke about the threat of war with Syrian and/or another possible conflict with Hizbullah this summer on Israel's northern border. Yadlin admitted that Syria is indeed readying itself for war, but added that it does not appear to be committed to carrying out an attack on Israel.
He also said Hizbullah is unlikely to launch a conflict from southern Lebanon, primarily because it is involved in recruiting and training new members from Iran. A more serious threat, said Yadlin, is the prospect of an Islamic Republic armed with an atomic bomb. He noted, however, that it will take Iran at least ten years to complete its attempts to build a nuclear weapon. Iran is trying to prevent any control over its nuclear development activities, he said, but noted that the growing threat to Israel is now becoming a threat to Arab nations in the region, who are beginning to understand that Iran is dangerous to them as well.
Yadlin was upbeat about Israels ability to deal with the threat of terrorism, be it local or international. Today, Israel is prospering, and terrorism has very little influence over our everyday life. IDF and General Security Service (Shin Bet) officers arrest terrorists every night, he emphasized. The peace treaty with Israel has survived and is stable, an important issue for Israel.
And as far as the threat from Iran, said Yadlin, We will do whatever is necessary to neutralize the Iranian threat. Israel is strong enough to handle any danger.
Indonesian Muslim hardliners demanded on Tuesday the government disband an American trained special anti-terror unit, saying it was a tool of the United States to fight Islam. Indonesia has been hit by a spate of deadly bombings in recent years mostly blamed on Islamic militants from the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant group. Hundreds of Muslim militants allegedly linked to JI have been arrested since the 2002 nightclub bombings in the resort island of Bali that killed 202 people mostly foreigners.
In the latest anti-terror crackdown this month, Detachment 88, a police unit funded and trained by the United States and Australia, arrested two top leaders, including the head of its military wing, Abu Dujana. An umbrella group representing various Indonesian Muslim organisations said Detachment 88 was an American tool to stigmatise Islam. We call on the Indonesian government to stop cooperation with the United States and its allies in the global war on terror, Kholil Ridwan, a spokesman for the Islamic Community Forum, told a news conference. The United States war on terror, with the help of its sheriff, Australia, and deputy sheriff, Singapore, is a war against Islam, Ridwan said.
Indonesia is a key regional ally in the US-led war on terror and looks to America for trade and investment. But many of President George W Bushs policies, especially in the Middle East, are unpopular in the worlds most populous Muslim country.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Arresting terror leaders = war on Islam.
Blowing up teenagers in nightclubs = God's natural plan.
#2
Hardliners demand Indonesia disband anti-terror unit
YJCMTSU! File under: BGO (Blinding Glimps of the Obvious)
Indonesian Muslim hardliners demanded on Tuesday the government disband an American trained special anti-terror unit, saying it was a tool of the United States to fight Islam.
See: Stopped clock ... right time. Blind pig ... acorn. Stupid half-blind fuckwit ... pisses in pot.
Indonesia is a key regional ally in the US-led war on terror and looks to America for trade and investment.
Anyone else spot the problem here? It took Indonesia's far less restrained police and security apparatus how long to catch Noordin Topp, almost five years? We've yet to see if he's even going to get more than a time outa slap on the wrista spankingprobationtime servedearly release a token jail sentence. After the farce with Abu Bakr Bashir, I'm not holding my breath.
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos telephoned his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Mottaki on Monday asking Tehran to use its influence to help find about the causes of an explosion in south Lebanon which killed six Spanish and Colombian soldiers. Today, Hezbollah has acted on the request and launched its own investigation into the bombing attack that targeted U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, a Hezbollah source said on Tuesday. "We are carrying out our own investigations and are ready to share (the findings) with UNIFIL (the United Nations Interim Force) if necessary," the source said.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
They have been looking into this already because they expected at least 50 and possibly 80 dead UNIFIL. Something went horribly wrong. They are determined to do better next time.
#4
telephoned his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Mottaki on Monday asking Tehran to use its influence to help find about the causes of an explosion
While I can understand why the Spanish think the Iranians might know something about this incident, isn't this sort of like Elliot Ness calling up Al Capone to ask if he's heard anything about bootlegging in Chicago? What are the Iranians going to say, "Oh yeah, that was us, our bad"?
A Muslim Sunni preacher deported from Britain to Lebanon in 2005 has claimed Syria and not al-Qaeda is behind the latest violence in Lebanon, accusing Damascus of masterminding attacks carried out by the Palestinian militant group, Fatah al-Islam. "One can accuse Fatah al-Islam of having created the space into which extremists can infiltrate Lebanon. But it is wrong to say that this group is linked to al-Qaeda," Omar Bakri Mohammad said in an interview published by Rome-based daily La Repubblica on Tuesday. "Fatah al-Islam is a creature of Syria. The violence in Lebanon depends on Syria and not al-Qaeda," added Bakri who in the past has praised Osama bin-Laden and the 11 September 2001 attacks against the United States.
Bakri said he "did not know" whether Damascus was behind an attack that killed six Spanish soldiers serving with the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. But he added, that "the hidden hands behind the massacre of Marjayoun (where the Spaniards were killed) are the same as those that have planted the bombs in Lebanon".
Posted by: Fred ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
For an analysis of serial killing, let's check with Hannibal Lector.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
06/27/2007 1:09 Comments ||
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#2
Translation, Islamic terrorist aren't the problem, Muslim terrorist nations are. Right.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday reiterated American support for Fuad Siniora after meeting the Lebanese prime minister in Paris during two-day European visit.
"Not only he is a very good administrator, he is a very good leader," Rice said of Siniora aboard an airplane as she was returning Washington.
"He has run his country through extraordinary difficult times since last July and continues to do that," Rice said of the Lebanese leader. "We will help in any way that we can," she added.
Washington has been praising Siniora, in the face of a threat of violence and intimidation, for having stuck fast to the principles of political reform, democracy and sovereignty in the country.
The U.S. Congress approved in late May a budget request of 770 million dollars in aid for Lebanon, with 280 million dollars of that earmarked for military assistance to Lebanon. @
Posted by: lotp ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
President George W. Bush would be forced to sanction oil and gas companies doing business with Iran under legislation that cleared a first hurdle on Tuesday by winning overwhelming approval from a congressional committee.
The bill was approved 37 to 1 by the House of Representatives International Relations Committee.
It also would eliminate some tax breaks for companies investing in Iran, decrease U.S. contributions to the World Bank if the bank invests in Iran and bar a nuclear cooperation agreement with Russia if Moscow continues to assist Tehran's nuclear program.
To become U.S. law, the measure still must be approved by the full House and also by the U.S. Senate.
more at link
Posted by: lotp ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
Iran? I thought they were working on sanctions for Iraq policy?
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/27/2007 13:42 Comments ||
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Egypt and Jordan were informed Tuesday that Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad disapproves of their moderate stance towards Israel and holds them accountable for helping the Zionist regime oppress the Palestinian people [sic].
They are guilty, he said, of betrayal.
Posted by: lotp ||
06/27/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
This is pretty much final notice to whatever "moderate" Muslims there are that they'd better begin killing their jihadist clerical elite or be swept up in the coming firestorm.
#2
The firestorm is inevitable.
It will happen irrespective of what the "moderate" Muslims say or do.
The writing is on the wall "Mene Mene Tekel Ufarsin"
Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
06/27/2007 5:13 Comments ||
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#3
It will happen irrespective of what the "moderate" Muslims say or do.
I'd like to think that this is only because, to date, whatever "moderate" Muslims may exist essentially are doing nothing. If they have any numbers at all, they'd better start rallying around the flag and stringing up some jihadis before they get mistaken for the usual Islamist trash. If they don't have any numbers, then the whole argument is moot. Conversion away from Islam or atheism would seem to be their only alternatives.
#6
meanwhile, irans economy is in shambles as the kleptocrat mullahs get ready to assume control of almost everything....wont that be nice! lets see how they cope with function having so long been tied up in form...
lol this achtune guy is a boob of the highest order, a grand larcinist one day, a petty thief the next, an idealogue lost, wandering about with his own crippled intellect.
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.
In the first of a series of field exercises, Marines of Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force 24 and Peruvian Marines of Batallon Infanteria de Marina 1 arrived motivated and ready to conduct various live fire drills in the mountainous, desert terrain of the Quebrada Inocente training area, June 19.
A court Tuesday backed Turkey's long-held position that the Istanbul-based Orthodox Patriarch is only the head of the city's tiny Greek Orthodox community and not the spiritual leader of the world's 300 million Orthodox Christians.
The Department of Justice has called the Public Prosecutor, the Director of Police and the Oslo Police to an urgent meeting at short notice this week to discuss the ongoing practice of sexual mutilation of girls with immigrant background.
Osama bin Laden's face and words loomed over the U.S. terrorism trial of former "dirty bomber" suspect Jose Padilla on Tuesday as jurors were shown a 10-year-old videotaped interview of the al Qaeda leader.
Tribal parliamentarians boycotted a grand tribal jirga that President Gen Pervez Musharraf addressed at Governors House here on Tuesday, in protest at the government ignoring their input on the tribal areas, a senator said. We have boycotted the jirga because our opinion is not sought while devising a policy on peace and development in the tribal areas, Senator Hameedullah Khan told Daily Times. 
A high-ranking defense official confirmed Tuesday that an audio tape of the voice of kidnapped IDF. Cpl. Gilad Shalit released Monday was an authentic recording, according to a report on Voice of Israel government radio. 
Indonesian Muslim hardliners demanded on Tuesday the government disband an American trained special anti-terror unit, saying it was a tool of the United States to fight Islam. Indonesia has been hit by a spate of deadly bombings in recent years mostly blamed on Islamic militants from the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant group. Hundreds of Muslim militants allegedly linked to JI have been arrested since the 2002 nightclub bombings in the resort island of Bali that killed 202 people mostly foreigners. 
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos telephoned his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Mottaki on Monday asking Tehran to use its influence to help find about the causes of an explosion in south Lebanon which killed six Spanish and Colombian soldiers. Today, Hezbollah has acted on the request and launched its own investigation into the bombing attack that targeted U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, a Hezbollah source said on Tuesday. "We are carrying out our own investigations and are ready to share (the findings) with UNIFIL (the United Nations Interim Force) if necessary," the source said.
A Muslim Sunni preacher deported from Britain to Lebanon in 2005 has claimed Syria and not al-Qaeda is behind the latest violence in Lebanon, accusing Damascus of masterminding attacks carried out by the Palestinian militant group, Fatah al-Islam. "One can accuse Fatah al-Islam of having created the space into which extremists can infiltrate Lebanon. But it is wrong to say that this group is linked to al-Qaeda," Omar Bakri Mohammad said in an interview published by Rome-based daily La Repubblica on Tuesday. "Fatah al-Islam is a creature of Syria. The violence in Lebanon depends on Syria and not al-Qaeda," added Bakri who in the past has praised Osama bin-Laden and the 11 September 2001 attacks against the United States.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday reiterated American support for Fuad Siniora after meeting the Lebanese prime minister in Paris during two-day European visit. 
