The Taliban's new top operations officer in southern Afghanistan had been a prisoner at the Guantanamo Bay detention center, the latest example of a freed detainee who took a militant leadership role and a potential complication for the Obama administration's efforts to close the prison. U.S. authorities handed over the detainee to the Afghan government, which in turn released him, according to Pentagon and CIA officials.
Abdullah Ghulam Rasoul, formerly Guantanamo prisoner No. 008, was among 13 Afghan prisoners released to the Afghan government in December 2007. Rasoul is now known as Mullah Abdullah Zakir, a nom de guerre that Pentagon and intelligence officials say is used by a Taliban leader who is in charge of operations against U.S. and Afghan forces in southern Afghanistan.
The officials said Rasoul has joined a growing faction of former Guantanamo prisoners who have rejoined militant groups and taken action against U.S. interests. Pentagon officials have said that as many as 60 former detainees have resurfaced on foreign battlefields.
Pentagon and intelligence officials said Rasoul has emerged as a key militant figure in southern Afghanistan, where violence has been spiking in the last year. Thousands of U.S. troops are preparing to deploy there to fight resurgent Taliban forces. One intelligence official told the Associated Press that Rasoul's stated mission is to counter the U.S. troop surge.
Although the militant detainees who have resurfaced were released under the Bush administration, the revelation underscores the Obama administration's dilemma in moving to close the detention camp at Guantanamo and figuring out what to do with the nearly 250 prisoners who remain there.
In one of his first acts in office, President Barack Obama signed an executive order to close the jail next year. The order also convened a task force that will determine how to handle remaining detainees, who could be transferred to other U.S. detention facilities for trial, transferred to foreign nations for legal proceedings or freed.
More than 800 prisoners have been imprisoned at Guantanamo; only a handful have been charged. About 520 Guantanamo detainees have been released from custody or transferred to prisons elsewhere in the world. A Pentagon tally of the detainees released show that 122 were transferred from Guantanamo in 2007, more than any other year.
The Pentagon's preferred option is to hand them over to their home governments for imprisonment. But the Defense Intelligence Agency's growing list of former prisoners that have rejoined the fight shows that, in some cases, that system does not work. According to the Pentagon, at least 18 former Guantanamo detainees have "returned to the fight" and 43 others are suspected of resuming terrorist activities. The Pentagon has declined to provide a complete list of the former prisoners they suspect are now on the battlefield.
According to case documents assembled by the U.S. military for a 2005 review of Rasoul's combatant status at Guantanamo, the Afghan was captured in 2001 in Konduz.
Armed with a gun and sitting in the car of an alleged Taliban leader, Rasoul insisted to American authorities he was forced to carry the gun by the Taliban. Rasoul told the tribunal in 2005 that in fact he had surrendered with other Taliban members to the Northern Alliance in Konduz on Dec. 12, 2001. Rasoul told the tribunal that he and others were then handed over to the Americans for bounties.
According to the U.S. documents, Rasoul was conscripted into the Taliban in 1995, and was seriously wounded in a bombing in 1997. He returned to the Taliban in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan in 1999.
Rasoul, who hailed from Helmand province in southern Afghanistan_ a Taliban stronghold_ never attended a Taliban or al-Qaida training camp. A key piece of evidence against him was that he was captured with two Casio watches similar to those used in al-Qaida bombings. He said he was holding the watches for a Taliban member who lacked pockets.
He told the tribunal that he intended to return to a peaceful life in Afghanistan. "I want to go back home and join my family and work in my land and help my family," he said, according to a U.S. military transcript of the hearing.
National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair said Tuesday that at least two Saudi detainees also turned up recently as members of al-Qaida in Yemen after they were released from Guantanamo. The Saudis had been handed over by the U.S. to Saudi Arabia, where they were supposedly rehabilitated as part of a Saudi program to reform extremists. The Bush administration's decision to transfer militants to Saudi Arabia for rehabilitation "doesn't inspire confidence," Blair said.
But he told the House Intelligence Committee last month that the prison must be closed because of the damage it has done to America's reputation. It is too powerful a negative symbol to remain open, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#5
He was released on W's watch but it just goes to show that being lenient with these people doesn't work. It's like letting a child molester out of jail, you know good and well he's gonna do it again. Transferring them to other countries for prosecution is a particularly bad idea because the other countries have shown an unfortunate tendency to just release them. I read here a couple of weeks ago where a guy was transferred to Kuwait where they released him. He then proceeded to Iraq where he strapped on a boom vest and took out 13 Iraqi soldiers. The only way to release these guys is with a pair of cement shoes over the Atlantic. Otherwise, Gitmo really is the best solution. To hell with their rights. They are terrorists and illegal enemy combatants. They have no rights.
A Sudanese minister on Tuesday dismissed United Nations warnings that Khartoum's decision to expel aid agencies would put thousands of lives of risk.
"The assessment is not true. There is no evidence to support it on the ground," Ahmed Haroun, the state minister for humanitarian affairs who is wanted as a war crimes suspect, told a press conference.
UN officials say thousands of lives are threatened by the decision to expel 13 international aid agencies and shut three local organisations, and warn that more than a million people will be left without food, water or healthcare. The expelled agencies make up about half the humanitarian aid capacity in conflict-hit Darfur, and Sudan does not have the capacity to make up the shortfall, UN humanitarian chief John Holmes said on Monday.
But Haroun, who is charged by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the western Sudanese region, dismissed the comments. "The UN is not in a position to order or advise Sudan," Haroun said. "They should just deal with the situation on the ground."
A joint UN-Sudanese team will leave on Wednesday for Darfur on a week-long mission for a "real assessment on the ground", he said. And Khartoum has set up four committees to deal with food, water, healthcare and non-food issues.
The expulsions followed an ICC decision last week to issue an arrest warrant for President Omar al-Bashir, who is accused of masterminding a campaign of extermination, rape and pillage during Darfur's six-year conflict.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Sudanese authorities have released opposition leader Hassan al-Turabi nearly two months after he was detained following a call for President Omar al-Bashir to surrender to the International Criminal Court, his family said Monday.
Hassan al-Turabi, 76, was freed from prison in Port Sudan and flown to his home in the capital Khartoum in the early hours without explanation, his son Siddig told Reuters.
Sudanese security officers arrested Turabi on Jan. 14, two days after he urged Bashir to surrender to the ICC, saying he thought the head of state was "politically culpable" for the crimes committed in Darfur.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#2
Nah. Effective communication would be, but since we're totally absent from the non-English speaking Muslim world, they're free to tell whatever lies they want. The Muslims in England fully, truly believe with all their hearts that they are unfairly under attack, and that imperialist armies are invading their countries. Why shouldn't they believe this, when nobody is saying otherwise!
#3
These 20 odd demonstrators mouthed it off behind a Police Escort knowing that the locals could not get to them!!!!
They are unemployed leeches who want Sharia law but wont go to a country with Sharia law as they would miss free housing,free education,free healthcare and money for nothing!-Thanks Gordon for encouraging the worlds parasites to reside within the once Great Britain!!!!
Posted by: Dave UK ||
03/11/2009 8:10 Comments ||
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#5
Can you see this kind of behavior happening in San Antonio, for instance? Boston & Berzerkley, yes, but most of the country? The wacko cult from Kansas learned that most of us respect our troops, and a critical mass of us act on that respect.
#9
Actually, Glenmore, I remember what it was like in this country in 1969 when vets came home. People frequently called vets baby killers and murderers and war criminals. I remember when Mayor John Lindsay of New York City spoke to great applause saying that the true heroes of the Viet Nam war were all in Sweeden and Canada.
Oushouted, outnumbered, outdemonstrated, the Lions of Islam are protected by th epolice (the very same they or their brethen gloated over with "run cowards, run dogs"" whe it was backing and was chased by a small group of muslim demonstrators).
#11
Btw, this reaction by the crowd is hardly conceivable in France (though, to be honest, I could see the families of the troops reacting if there was such a demo during an homecoming ceremony); don't know if those people are random civilians, counter-demonstrators, or related to the troops being harassed, but patriotism and any kind of love for the army has been basically stamped out from the french national psyche, over the last 40 years; it is just not done anymore.
#12
Sgt. D. T., I too remember the 1969 reactions. So far I have seen very little of such crappy behavior from people this time - but I could see it changing if A'stan becomes a mess like Vietnam (and I fear it might.)
The southern Russian republic of Chechnya has asked parents of boys born on Prophet Mohammad's birthday to name their children after the Muslim prophet, Russian media reported on Monday. Chechnya's leader Ramzan Kadyrov added that every boy born on March 8 and March 9 will also receive 50,000 roubles ($1,394) -- a hefty sum more than double Russia's average monthly wage.
State television channel Vesti 24 showed rows of newborn babies sleeping in a hospital in Chechnya's capital Grozny who will be named Mohammad on Monday. Earlier, the capital sent fireworks into the early morning skies around a lit-up mosque.
"I ask their parents to name the boys after Mohammad," Interfax news agency quoted former rebel turned Kremlin-loyal leader Kadyrov as saying.
Some analysts say that in return for quelling rebel attacks, the Kremlin has let Kadyrov usher in some Islamic-inspired rules, such as requiring women working in government offices to wear headscarves and long skirts, and imposing periodic alcohol bans.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
And the girls named Aisha and promptly sold married off.
Posted by: ed ||
03/11/2009 0:26 Comments ||
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North Korea Tuesday reopened the border only a day after it virtually detained 620 South Koreans, but uncertainty lingers as the sole military communications line between the two Koreas remains cut off. "Nobody knows when North Korea will ban overland travel again under whatever pretext," a South Korean official said.
They need the cash too much to close it for very long.
Asked if there are grounds for the belief that North Korea would continue to allow South Koreans to travel to the North and if the government has plans to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents, Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyoun merely said, "I think the South and the North should try hard."
Kim added, "We strongly protested to the North, which responded" by letting the South Koreans return home, most from the Kaesong Industrial Complex, where they had been stranded.
Experts warn the South should be wary of letting people travel North until Pyongyang promises to guarantee civilian South Koreans' safety. They said it is irrational for the South to trust previous inter-Korean agreements after that the North on Jan. 30 declared all of them null and void.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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"Welcome hostages!"
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/11/2009 6:22 Comments ||
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The North Korean government daily Rodong Shinmun has embarked on a mission to link the three generations of the "Kim Hyung Jik-Il Sung-Jong Il line," the so-called "Mankyungdae Family," to the goal of a "strong and prosperous state," which is the nation's stated ambition leading up to 2012, the 100th anniversary of Kim Il Sung's birth.
To this end, the paper published an article on the 26th February titled "For a resplendent future." It therein proclaimed that, "The sublime direction and aspiration of the Mankyungdae Revolutionary Family from Kim Hyung Jik to the Great Leader (Kim Il Sung) and onwards to the Dear Leader (Kim Jong Il) was to establish an eternally flourishing strong and prosperous state."
Which means, make way for Kim Jong Un ...
It has been suggested by some that this emphasis on building a strong and prosperous state is actually to further elevate the Kim family bloodline so as to justify a third-generation succession.
The Rodong Shinmun additionally waxed, "We do not know of such zealous and revolutionary patriots as the heroes of Mankyungdae, who have walked solidly the path of history for three generations for the future of a country and a nation. The tradition of the three-generations of Mankyungdae heroes penetrates blood and reaches into our future, which is wed to the prosperous military-first revolution."
Three generations, so that we should be looking for one of the young Kimmie's to step forward.
The newspaper further encouraged the people, "No matter how rough our revolutionary path may be, we must be victorious over all kinds of barriers and trials and work towards the juche revolution to the end."
The Rodong Shinmun, by emphasizing the statement "Let us live not for today, but live for tomorrow and raise this slogan ever higher!" again came to justify the revolutionary from Kim Il Sung to Jong Il by talking of the "Mankyungdae Family" and the far-reaching ideology of Kim Hyong Jik.
Through an editorial on the 16th, it again emphasized the blood of succession, saying, "There is a bright vision in the succession of the Mt. Baekdu Blood."
In the past, North Korea again mentioned the "Mankyungdae Family" from the perspective of idolizing the family line, claiming "Every generation be faithful to the Leader!"
And finally, Kim Jong Il is said to have evaluated the situation thus, "From early on, teacher Kim Hyung Jik laid out a far-reaching ideology, and he created a song called 'the Green Pine-tree on Mt. Nam,' which conveyed the idea that revolution should be undertaken by every generation in succession. The Great Leader inherited and improved the ideology, and paved the new path of our revolution. And the teaching was ultimately fulfilled by me."
This time, however, with detailed information being released to the outside regarding the "succession system" following the outflow of rumors of Kim's illness, this constant emphasis on the "revolutionary tradition" and the "Mankyungdae Family" in the Rodong Shinmun seems to be targeting international society.
Yoo Ho Yul a professor of North Korean Studies at Korea University agreed with this analysis and further commented, "North Korea cannot delay the succession work any longer, so it is adjusting the overall atmosphere with these moves."
He further added, "The fact that North Korea, which aims to become a strong and prosperous state by 2012, is evoking the vision of the 'Mankyungdae Family' in North Korea's future probably has to do with its goal of setting 2012, Kim Il Sung's 100th birthday, as the year for firmly establishing the successor."
I'm going to lose 50 pounds and have a Hollywood starlet for a wife by 2012 ...
Professor Yoo added, "After the March 8th delegates' election to the SPA, We should closely observe the official position of Jong Woon, the third son of Kim Jong Il. If he is to be the ruler, he will follow Kim Jong Il's past power succession course and lay the foundation for his position."
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I'm slightly ahead of you, lost around 65 pound (Got sick) But no Hollywood Starlet in sight.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/11/2009 6:02 Comments ||
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#2
Is that the third son who was just denied a ceremonial seat in the rubber-stamp assembly?
This is the first time I've ever heard of this progenitor of the Kim Il Sung dynasty. Even the Wiki page - which I'd expect to be vigilantly patrolled by junche fanatics - doesn't have anything much to say about this new patriarch.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
03/11/2009 10:03 Comments ||
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North Korean Premier Kim Yong Il will visit China March 17-21 for talks with Chinese leaders, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Tuesday. The visit will come at a time when North Korea says it is planning to put a satellite into orbit. Some other countries suspect Pyongyang may in fact be preparing to launch a long-range ballistic missile.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Maybe they want their trains back.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/11/2009 5:58 Comments ||
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"How would you like having a couple million of us come to your place for the weekend?"
(AKI) - The Italian government investigated 216 terror threats against Italy last year, concluding that Islamist cells were the "primary threat to the public interest, both inside Italy and abroad," according to a report released on Tuesday. The extent of the terror threat was revealed in an anti-terrorism report presented to the department of information security.
Al-Qaeda's leadership "is still playing a central role" in international terrorism, the report said, adding that investigators were giving priority to probes of jihadist plots. In Italy, Islamist terror cells were "fluid and scattered", tending to coalesce around "charismatic individuals," the report stated.
Prisons are an increasingly important jihadist recruiting ground, where convicted Islamist terrorists are indoctrinating young detainees, the report said. It said the northern region of Lombardy is one of the main strongholds of Islamist radicalism, "where elements already known to the police are being joined by new recruits and gradually replaced."
Another hotspot is the southern Campania region surrounding Naples. "Here, foreign extremists are finding synergies with North African counterfeiters," said the report.
Other sensitive areas include the northern Piemonte, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna regions and the central Tuscany region, the report noted. "The threat to Italy has become a rapidly changing and unpredictable one," it said.
The report stressed the importance of the Internet to Islamist terrorists in Italy and elsewhere. "The Internet has become a primary reference point and source of inspiration for so-called lone terrorists seeking to wage jihad," the report said.
The "multinational" nature of jihadist cells and networks, the increasing number of "home-grown" militants, and the importance of the Internet for radicalising, recruiting and training, characterise Islamist terrorism throughout Europe, the report concluded.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Charles Freeman, the controversial choice to chair the US National Intelligence Council, withdrew from the position on Tuesday, hours after top intelligence officials defended his selection. "It seems you can get away with murder---if your name is Vorkosigan."
"If you really believe this, why are you blocking my way?"
#1
Love your taste in space opera, but I don't see the connection between the quote and the news item. Is Freeman getting married to a recent widow or something?
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
03/11/2009 9:58 Comments ||
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#2
(a) The Vorkosigan Saga is not space opera---it's space ballet.
(b) If you belive, like Chas Freeman, that Israeli Lobby rules Washington to the detriment of USA, and have expressed this opinion in public numerous times---don't go looking for a USG job that affects Israel.
#3
Supposing there were no Jews and no Israel, and no Israel Lobby for him to rant against, would I then be expected to be happy with a NIC chair who cheered on the butchers of Tiananmien square?
#5
I read (and still have) the whole Vorkosegan series, great, whatever you call it.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/11/2009 12:45 Comments ||
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#6
boo hoo-the anti semetic douchenozzle still has his saudi 401k to fall back on--he should be buried UNDER an israeli lobby in a building in dizengoff square intel aviv--symetry would've been nice though--an anti american intelligence assessor to go with an anti american president--what's with this dennis blair--navy guys are such pacifist internationalist weenies--more like tufts diplo grads than hard core patriots--are they still taking it up the bum at sea?
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
03/11/2009 15:14 Comments ||
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#7
The first book has a really good possible rotating title for the front page...
"They think they're the wave of the future, but it's just sludge flowing downhill."
On Sunday, US President Barack Obama suggested to The New York Times that hope in Afghanistan lay in reaching out to the moderate Taliban. For Indias Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), this is their worst nightmare coming true. After handing the moderate Taliban a share of the power in Kabul, say Indian officials, America will pull out troops, allowing the Pakistani army to run Afghanistan on its behalf.
True, the US immediate plans are to boost its presence in Afghanistan by another 17,000 soldiers. But that is being seen as a temporary, Iraq-style surge, aimed at putting in place a suitable government before pulling out the forces.
Top Indian policymakers tell Business Standard that the Obama administrations goal is clear: rather than trying to win the war in Afghanistan, simply aim at bottling terrorism inside the Pakistan-Afghanistan area, and monitor the borders electronically to prevent any leakage of jehadis.
An American virtual cage is already in place to keep the jehadis inside. Senior Indian officials point out that Pakistans immigration network has been entirely computerised with US help. When travellers passports are swiped at immigration, the information goes in real time to US intelligence agencies. The Container Security Initiative allows US Customs to monitor every cargo container that passes through a Pakistani port. It is no accident that, since 9/11, not a single terror attack has reached American soil.
What worries Indian policymakers is that none of this protects India. The MEA has discovered, in its engagement with Pakistan over the 26/11 Mumbai terror strikes, that nobody is really in control in that country. Explains a senior official, Pakistans government was ready to sign or say anything that we wanted them to. But having signed, they are completely unable to deliver.
Even if Islamabad wants to deliver, South Block officials say, the frightening reality is that it cant. The government cannot rely on its police and investigative agencies; the army has discovered over the preceding year that it does not have the capability to control the tribal areas. And now, the recent attack on Sri Lankas cricketers in Lahore heralds a new menace: it is the first time the Lashkar-e-Toiba has struck within Pakistan.
The Lashkar is easily Pakistans most formidable radical group. Musharraf cracked down on the Jaish-e-Mohammad in 2002 and 2003, leading to several foiled attempts on his life. But he dared not confront the Lashkar, with its far better organised military, political, civil and financial structure. After 26/11, General Kayani moved against the Lashkar. But he has quickly discovered that even the Pakistani army is unable to put the Lashkar down.
MEA officials say, The Pakistan army has been badly bloodied in the tribal areas; it is in no state to take on the Lashkar. Today, like a typical military hierarchy in the face of defeat, it has turned inward looking. The Pakistan army does not want to be a part of a big anti-terror push.
To deal with multiple agencies in Pakistan, which are no longer acting in unison, South Block is coming around to the belief that India needs multiple foreign policies. We need a different Pakistan policy for the government; a different Pakistan policy for the army; different policies for the political parties, for business, for civil society.
The unpredictability within Pakistan is multiplied, say Indian officials, by the fragmentation within Pakistans radical fringe. During the anti-Soviet jehad in the 1980s and 1990s, Pakistan dealt with just one jehadi leader, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. In 2005, when negotiating a ceasefire in Waziristan, Pakistan had 17 tribal Shoora (council) chiefs sitting at the table. Now there are dozens of shooras, often with competing demands.
While physically moving out of this snake pit of jehadism, the US will continue to exercise influence by controlling the Pakistan army, as it has for decades, through the flow of arms and grants. In this, the US has little option; the Pakistan army controls a nuclear arsenal.
Posted by: john frum ||
03/11/2009 06:08 ||
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#1
Moderate Taliban is an oxymoron just like Presidential Leadership.
#2
Pakistan will get Afghanistan, if we're lucky. If not, al-Q will get it. As the author notes, the US has not been attacked since 9/11. India should take similar steps to assure it is not attacked in the future.
#3
What worries Indian policymakers is that none of this protects India.
Too bad Zero seems uninterested in furthering, or even maintaining, our good relationship with India. Sharing our immigration and inspection data with India - or better still, exchanging it - would be a fine opportunity all around.
#8
Before Musharaf, Pakistan leaders supported Taliban as part of their Pakistan-in-Depth policy. Under same, Taliban allowed al-Qaeda to run jihad camps in Afghanistan. Hussein O appears to be indulging a return to pre-911 positions.
#9
PAKISTANI DEFENCE FORUM > RUSSIA HAS "CHECHNYA PLY" FOR AFGHANISTAN. Contrary to its anti-US rhetoric, RUSSIA VIEWS ANY US = US-NATO, etc. DEFEAT IN AFGANISTAN AS A DE FACTO CATASTROPHE TO ITS NATIONAL + GEOPOL INTERESTS AS RUSSIA COVERTLY FEARS AN IMMEDIATE SPREAD + EXPANSION OF ISLAMIST-LED/CENTRIC MILITARISM THROUGHOUT CENTRL ASIA + CAUCASIA = RUSSIA'S MUSLIM EAST.
#10
3dc is right, but first Afghanistan and the Jihadis have to overwhelm Pakistan. Then either India or China and in all likelyhood both in kinda cooperation takeover Pakistan and the Ghan.
#11
JM: Contrary to its anti-us rhetoric, russia views any us = us-nato, etc. Defeat in afganistan as a de facto catastrophe to its national + geopol interests as russia covertly fears an immediate spread + expansion of islamist-led/centric militarism throughout centrl asia + caucasia = russia's muslim east.
Joe's right about Russia not wanting Afghanistan to turn Taliban again. The question is what Putin is going to do about it.
AMRITSAR: A group of 35 Hindus, nearly half of them women, from Pakistan have crossed over to India and asked the government to allow them to settle in the country, Indian media reported Monday.
'We were living in Pakistan under extreme fear due to the domination of a strong group of Taliban who are running a parallel government,' Jagdish Sharma, a resident of tribal area near Peshawar in Pakistan, said according to report.
Four families comprising 16 men, 16 women and three children crossed over to India during the last few days through the Attari check post and later went to Delhi where they got a one-year visa and permission to stay in Amritsar.
'We strongly urge the government of India to allow us to stay here in India permanently, since we don't want to move back in that hell where there is no life security,' said Sharma.
Hardwari Lal, resident of Orkzai agency said: 'I was running my grocery shop there which was forcibly taken over by the fundamentalists who also took possession of our entire property.
Posted by: john frum ||
03/11/2009 06:07 ||
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(AKI) - Ajmal Amir Qasab, the only alleged gunmen caught alive after November's deadly terrorist attacks against the city of Mumbai, on Monday appeared before an Indian court for the first time via a video link from his high-security prison cell.
The video conference lasted about 15 minutes, during which the magistrate asked Qasab, a Pakistani national, to identify himself and if he had received the copy of the 11,000-page document detailing charges against him, India's Press Trust of India news agency reported.
The court reportedly rejected a plea from Qasab for an official Urdu translation of the 11,00 page document, which was written in English and the local Marathai language.
The trial in the Mumbai terror attack is set to begin at a higher court on 23 March.
Qasab faces over a dozen charges, including murder, conspiracy to wage a war against the nation, and terrorism.
He is still without a lawyer, but the public prosecutor said he could have a court-appointed one.
Qasab, reportedly told his interrogators he is Pakistani and was recruited and trained for the attack by Pakistan-based banned Kashmiri separatist group Lashkar-e-Toiba.
Indian authorities have blamed LeT for the Mumbai attacks, which which killed over 170 people and injured hundreds in multiple locations in the financial capital.
Pakistan has admitted the attacks were partly planned inside the country, but it and LeT have denied any involvement.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I wouldn't represent him, that's a sure road to starvation, I'd never get another client.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
03/11/2009 5:56 Comments ||
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BAGHDAD, Iraq An Iraqi court sentenced Iraq's former foreign minister, Tariq Aziz, and Ali Hassan al-Majeed, a senior colleague of Saddam Hussein, to 15 years in prison today for their role in what the court deemed a crime against humanity, the killing of 42 merchants in Baghdad in 1992 for profiteering.
The sentence was the first against Aziz, a fluent English speaker who was the public face of Hussein's government before turning himself into U.S. authorities a month after his government fell in April 2003. It comes less than two weeks after the 73-year-old Aziz was acquitted by the same court, Iraq's highest, in another case.
Two of Hussein's half-brothers, Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan and Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, were sentenced to death for their role in the executions.
"Long live Iraq! Long live Iraq! Down with the occupiers!" Sabawi al-Hassan shouted as the verdict was read in the courtroom.
The men were among eight on trial for the killings of the Baghdad traders, accused at the time of racketeering while the country was under devastating U.N. sanctions imposed after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. They were tried in a summary trial, then executed without being given the chance of appeal or defense.
Abed Hammoud, Hussein's secretary, was sentenced to life in prison. Mizban Khidr Hadi, a top Baath Party official, was imprisoned for 15 years. A six-year term was handed down to Ahmad Hussein Khudier, the head of the presidential office. Essam Rasheed Huwaish, then governor of the Central Bank, was acquitted.
Majeed already has three death sentences against him, the first in the case that gave him the moniker by which he is popularly known, "Chemical Ali." In June 2007, a court convicted him of genocide for ordering the deaths of tens of thousands of Kurds in the 1988 Anfal campaign, when Iraqi forces fired poison gas on villages.
Aziz was a well-known figure in Iraq, serving as foreign minister, then deputy prime minister. But he was never thought to wield real power within Hussein's inner circle. His family has complained that he is in poor health, suffering from heart and respiratory problems, along with high blood pressure and diabetes.
The White House on Tuesday dismissed suggestions that two recent bloody attacks in Iraq were a reaction to President Barack Obama's decision to pull out most combat troops by August next year.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said security challenges remained in Iraq, but said US agreements with the Baghdad government would not have been made if they were likely to plunge Iraq back into "danger."
Gibbs was asked whether the two incidents, the latest of which was a suicide bombing on Tuesday that killed 33 people, were an encouragement to those plotting attacks or emboldened those bent on violence.
"No," said Gibbs, adding that he was not aware of any specific intelligence about such a scenario.
"But I know that the president and the team remain committed to ensuring that Iraq is a stable and secure country going forward and that we'll continue to continually evaluate that."
Gibbs also noted the Status of Forces Agreement signed by the previous Bush administration with Iraq, which mandated the complete withdrawal of all American troops by the end of 2011. Obama has said he plans to honor that timetable.
"I don't think that that would be done if it presented a scenario in which the country would fall into further danger," Gibbs said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
As per the HIDDEN IMAM-MAHDI, methinks the US MARINES andor ARMY AIRBORNE = US ELITE FORCES may have another EPIC/HISTORIC BATTLE looming in their future [2010-2012, NLT 2016]???
BELLEAU WOOD, NORMANDY, CHOSIN, IA DRAND, KHE SANH, .........
Lest we fergit, NOSTRADAMUS > NONE SHALL SEE THE POWERS OF ASIA DESTROYED UNTIL SEVEN = THE SEVENTH HOLDS THE LINE.
#3
Gibbs, when questioned whether the simultaneous Iranian nuclear missile launch at Israel, North Korean invasion of South Korea, and China's invasion of Taiwan had anything to do with perceived weakness on the Obama administration's part responded:
"No," said Gibbs, adding that he was not aware of any specific intelligence about such a scenario.
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/11/2009 7:27 Comments ||
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#4
"these are not the droids you're looking for."
"The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded. You will find it a powerful ally."
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
03/11/2009 8:20 Comments ||
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#5
More feable attempts at damage control. Gibbs is such a loser. How much longer till he's under the Greyhound?
#6
"But I know that the democrats president and the team remain committed to ensuring that South Vietnam Iraq is a stable and secure country going forward and that we'll continue to continually evaluate that."
#7
The attacks are not per se due to Obama withdrawals; in part they are just one more test of the new boss's strength, and in part they are the result of his perceived weakness, but they would be happening with or without the withdrawals.
#8
Tell you what. Announce where you're not going to conduct police patrols and operations in a portion of any major city, and let's see what the crime level is in a year.
#10
The BO regime needs to understand that negotiation is perceived as a sign of weakness. Only the defeated ask to negotiate a peace. If you are winning why would you stop short of defeat?
While the Middle Eastern mentality is very primative in some areas, their attitudes toward negotiations make perfect logic to me.
Why would the US after all of the money and blood shed want to negotiate anything with the people that continue to kill our troops and maim our allies?
Posted by: James Carville ||
03/11/2009 10:22 Comments ||
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#11
Not only are the attacks in Iraq Bush's fault, but so is the drop in the stock market since January, and the needless snub of our British allies.
Oh, and the mistranslation on the "reset" button is also Bush's fault, and so is my 5 o'clock shadow.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
03/11/2009 11:44 Comments ||
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#12
I'm thinking Condi Rice would have done better with the Russian reset translation herself than whoever did it.
#15
"Announce where you're not going to conduct police patrols and operations in a portion of any major city, and let's see what the crime level is in a year month."
Fixed that for ya', P2k.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
03/11/2009 18:12 Comments ||
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#16
ION GLOBALRESEARCH.CA > THE US CONTINUES ITS MILITARY ENCIRCLEMENT OF RUSSIA [ + other regions = Asia]???
Also from GR > RUSSIA, CHINA CALL FOR RESTRAINT ON THE KOREAN PENINUSLA.
(AKI) - The family of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein has appealed to US president Barack Obama to stop a legal move by Jordanian authorities to prevent the late dictator's eldest daughter, Raghd, from any involvement in political activity in her host country.
"Raghd lives in Amman under the protection of the Jordanian King Abdullah II," a family source told Adnkronos International (AKI). "So the Iraqi government sent its Jordanian counterpart an international arrest warrant to prosecute her under claims that she's supporting factions from the Iraqi resistance."
The source said Amman should continue its hospitality for the family of Raghd, because there was "no proof" to verify the accusations. "It is not obliged to accept the Interpol arrest warrant, particularly because it is certain that Raghd has no relations with the Iraqi armed resistance factions and has not conducted any political activity since arriving in the kingdom (of Jordan).
Raghd and Rana, Saddam's two daughters, have lived with their sons in Amman under the protection of Jordanian authorities, since King Abdullah II decided to accept the family for humanitarian reasons in July 2003.
Raghd was married to Hussein Kamel and Rana was married to his brother, Saddam Kamel. In 1995 Saddam and Hussein and their wives defected and Hussein gave information to the CIA, MI6 and other organisations about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. In 1996 the group returned to Iraq believing they had been pardoned for their actions, but the brothers were killed in a raid on their return after being accused of treason.
In a separate development, Iraqi forces at the weekend arrested seven men accused of trying to revive Saddam Hussein's banned Baath party. Colonel Ali Ismail, head of an Iraqi army brigade in Diyala province, said the men were arrested on Friday in the area northeast of Baghdad. The arrests were made a day after prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shia, called for forgiveness for former Sunni allies of Saddam whose party was made illegal after the 2003 allied invasion that drove him from power.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Raghd
can I buy two vowels, Pat?
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/11/2009 9:50 Comments ||
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#2
Your week end pass is CANCELLED Frank. Koffee in the keyboard on that one!
(AKI) - A Palestinian family has filed a lawsuit seeking more than 200 million dollars in damages from outgoing Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert and other senior officials over Israel's recent offensive in the Gaza Strip. The al-Samouni family filed the lawsuit on behalf of 79 family members - 29 of whom were killed and 45 wounded during Israel's military action - in a court in the town of Nazareth.
The family wants 851 million Israeli Shekels (200 million dollars) from the Israeli government citing "criminal negligence."
The lawsuit is seeking the compensation from outgoing Olmert, defense forces chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi and current defence minister Ehud Barak for damages caused during Israel's three-week offensive against Gaza which ended in January.
However, Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth said the courts have previously rejected similar lawsuits filed by Palestinians demanding compensation for injuries caused by military operations.
"They were sitting at home, in a place meant to provide them with quiet, peace and rest -- far from the firing. There is no disagreement over the fact that this was criminal negligence on the part of the military force, which murdered and injured innocent people who were simply present at their home," said attorney Mohammed Foukara quoted by Yedioth Ahronoth.
Last week a similar claim was made by a family from the Jabaliya refugee camp, after 11 children were killed and five others injured. The family is claiming 43 million dollars in compensation.
The al-Samouni family lived in the Zaytoun suburb, located in east Gaza.
According to the lawsuit, the family's three-storey building was burnt down by a tank shell allegedly fired by IDF forces. Seven family members were killed.
The following day 22 other family members were killed as they were shelled while they gathered in shelter.
The three-week Israeli military offensive on the Hamas-ruled coastal territory began on 27 December and ended on 18 January. Palestinian medical officials said more than 1,330 Palestinians were killed and more than 5,400 others were injured.
Some estimates said that over one-third of those killed in the military offensive were women and children. The military offensive caused widespread damage and destruction in the coastal strip and humanitarian organisations have been working to restore the provision of food and other aid in Gaza.
Thirteen Israelis - including ten soldiers - died during the Israeli military operation.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Thailand's Cabinet approved the purchase Tuesday of a blimp to help survey the country's jihad-infested insurgency-plagued southern provinces.
A government spokesman said 260 million baht ($7.2 million) of a total 350 million baht ($9.7 million) would go for the purchase of the unmanned dirigible from the United States. The remainder would be for surveillance cameras for the aircraft and ground equipment. Deputy government spokesman Suprak Khunha did not give a timeframe for the purchase of the aircraft.
Because airships such as blimps can remain stationary in the air, they are more suitable than other unmanned aerial vehicles or manned aircraft for operations such as counterinsurgency because of their lower operating costs and ability to be deployed for longer uninterrupted periods of time, according to a study by the U.S. Congressional Research Service.
Since 2005, Thailand has taken part in the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School's testing of lighter-than air platforms as part of a program known as the Coalition Operating Area Surveillance and Targeting System, or COASTS. The program is meant to use off-the-shelf technology to provide low-cost capabilities for missions such as border surveillance.
260 million baht for a pile of rubber with holes in it.
Oh, to be a blimp salesman in Thailand.....
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
03/11/2009 8:23 Comments ||
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#3
It's not that bad. The blimp stays a long way off and looks down at an angle, well out of small arms range. Even just a few hundred feet in the air, on a clear day you have a 50 mile observation range.
In Iraq, about every major installation had either a 50' or 100' tower, and they can see bad guys coming from miles away.
#5
The US was testing one of these when I was in South Carolina. The blimp was off the coast of the US, about halfway between the Bahamas and Miami. They caught quite a few drug transfers on tape. Don't know what happened to the program after that.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
03/11/2009 18:19 Comments ||
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#6
they've got one above Ft Huachuca in Sierra Vista, AZ - to spot smugglers: drugs and humans
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/11/2009 18:25 Comments ||
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#7
Thailand to use blimp to survey Muslim insurgency
Since We bought and Paid for them, let's use 'em to line Washington DC. wall to wall! BUT w/ one major difference ....
A Robust Look Down-Shoot Down capability!
That's right our very best upgraded multiple targeted technology to be used against Pols, Lobbyists, Lawyers, and any other group of sub-humans slopping up our treasure 24/7/365
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
03/11/2009 19:04 Comments ||
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A shoe was recently hurled at Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while he was in the city of Urmia, an Iranian Web site has reported.
The incident in the Iranian city was an apparent imitation of a similar attack on former U.S. president George Bush in Iraq last year.
Urmia News, the Iranian site, reported that Ahmadinejad was in a car en route to an election rally when the shoe was thrown. Ahmadinejad was traveling to a local stadium where he was meant to deliver a speech ahead of upcoming presidential elections.
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According to the report, a hat was also thrown at the Iranian president before his convoy sped away from the scene.
The incident was not reported by Iran's major news outlets. But it has been widely commented upon in the Islamic Republic's blogosphere, which is viewed as one of the most developed in the world. It is one of the key tools for disseminating information that contradicts the position of the regime. The government controls Iran's traditional media.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#5
tu3031 & darrylq hit the nail on the head. I'm irritated hearing about the shoe thrown at this idiot being reported everywhere when hardly anyone took notice of the raping of our country by both houses in DC these past few weeks.
On topic, the real question is 'Did it have his name on it?'. Obviously not. Moot point.
Nothing to see here...move along...
Around 100 inmates rioted in one wing of Lebanon's largest prison on Tuesday to demanded reduced sentences, a security official told Agence France Presse (AFP). "A number of inmates at Rumieh prison began rioting this evening, burning mattresses and other items to press their demands for reduced sentences," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
He said security reinforcements had been sent to the prison eight kilometres (five miles) northeast of the capital Beirut and the rioting died down after about 90 minutes. Five prisoners suffered smoke inhalation, he added.
The same prison was the scene of a mutiny in April last year in which seven warders were held hostage overnight before a peaceful resolution was negotiated. A riot also broke out at the Qubbah prison in the main northern city of Tripoli in January with inmates holding two wardens overnight.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I always figured if prisoners burned their mattresses they are asking to sleep on the floor.
Damascus has reportedly told U.S. Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman that it wants a national unity government following Lebanese elections. Feltman replied: This is a Lebanese issue.
Pan-Arab daily Al Hayat on Tuesday quoted high-ranking political sources as saying that Damascus "took the initiative" to discuss Lebanon during weekend talks with Feltman and fellow envoy Daniel Shapiro.
The sources said Syrian officials conveyed to the U.S. delegation their country's keenness on holding Lebanese parliamentary elections on time. This was okay. But when it came to renewing their call for the establishment of a Lebanese national unity government following the June 7 elections, Feltman allegedly told the Syrian officials: "This is a Lebanese issue."
The sources said the U.S. delegation discussed with Syrian officials the "principles of holding elections without Syrian meddling, not more."
They said Hizbullah and AMAL Movement leaders have recently been emphasizing the formation of a national unity government following Lebanese elections.
On Saturday Feltman and Shapiro held four hours of talks with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem and other officials. "What we did is give the Syrians the opportunity to raise their vision about the bilateral relationship, their concerns, and we were able to do the same," Feltman said following a series of meetings with Lebanese political and religious leaders on Sunday. "Talking to people is not a reward. We talk to people in order to solve a problem," he added.
He also sought to ease Lebanese concerns about a U.S.-Syria rapprochement saying: "There is no contradiction between a strong support to Lebanon and an attempt to solve a problem through dialogue with Syria."
On Saturday, Feltman emerged from the talks with Muallem, saying Syria can be a "constructive" Mideast force. Feltman said he and Shapiro held the "view that Syria can play an important and constructive role in the region," in a conference call with reporters in Washington after with Muallem and other Syrian officials.
"We found a lot of common ground today," Feltman said without elaborating.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
Morons. The Baker precedent clearly establishes the ground-rules for engagement with the Ba'ath Syrians: tacit acknowledgment of the non-existence of a sovereign nation-state between Damascus and the Mediterranean Sea.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
03/11/2009 10:09 Comments ||
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MP Michel Aoun on Monday took a jab at Jeffrey Feltman saying he was "not in mourning" for being snubbed by the top U.S. envoy, who visited Lebanon twice last week but did not include the Free Patriotic Movement leader in talks with the political leadership. "Feltman did not visit me. And I am not in morning," Aoun said, after a weekly meeting of his Change and Reform parliamentary bloc. "I gained an hour of what could have been a waste of my time," he added.
Feltman and fellow envoy Daniel Shapiro were in Lebanon on Friday and again Sunday to reassure leaders of Washington's continued support despite rapprochement with Syria.
Shifting his focus to Lebanon, Aoun slammed the judiciary for becoming politicized and said he did not want a review of recent judicial appointments rather a revamp of the whole system. A reshuffle Friday of top judicial posts, ending a three-year vacuum, sparked controversy after the parliamentary minority voiced reservations over some nominations and slammed the move as "politicized."
"Judicial independence is missing," Aoun said, lamenting that the judiciary "has become subject to partitioning and to the (political) authority."
The way through which the appointments were handled was reminiscent of "the former troika" system, Aoun said. He was referring to the previous system of governance under President Emile Lahoud, late Premier Rafik Hariri and Speaker Nabih Berri, when the three top figures monopolized decision-making.
"As a matter of principle, we reject and oppose the conditions under which the judicial appointments were made," Aoun said.
He explained that the minority's position on the appointments was not a personal attack against the judges. "Regardless of who the judges are, there are ethical standards that must be implemented and this is a matter we will not compromise on."
The judicial appointment that drew the most controversy was that of the Investigative Magistrate into the February 2005 assassination of Rafik Hariri, Judge Saqr Saqr, who was named government delegate to the military tribunal. Al-Akhbar newspaper quoted sources from the opposition as saying Suleiman's appointment of Saqr was a "reward" for his refusal to free the four former security chiefs detained for alleged involvement in the Hariri assassination.
"The judiciary's most important qualities are integrity and competence," Aoun said, disclosing that his bloc was preparing a draft law under which Parliament would ensure judicial independence. Under the bill, the Supreme Judicial Council will become the "highest elected authority and will have command of decision-making." Aoun said what he was proposing was "a new judicial system altogether."
On the much anticipated elections, Aoun warned that "registrars in some provinces, such as the Shouf-Alley, have been falsifying identity cards." He urged Interior Minister Ziad Baroud to put an end to the practice saying "we are ready to help the judiciary uncover the offenders."
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Hizbullah's official in south Lebanon Sheikh Nabil Qaouq said on Friday that his party is working for partnership in the country while the March 14 forces are giving the Lebanese two choices -- either hegemony or obstruction.
"The resistance does not fear new regional and international conditions... We will not wait for outside interferences ... We call for consensus and national partnership with which to safeguard Lebanon's identity and stability," Qaouq said during a graduation ceremony organized by Jihad al-Binaa construction company. "The program of the pro-government forces in the country is aimed at giving two choices to the Lebanese: Either hegemony or obstruction. In return, the opposition gives two choices to the Lebanese: Either consensus or consensus," Qaouq stressed.
He said no matter who wins the June 7 legislative elections, there should always be national partnership. "No matter who the winner in the parliamentary elections is, Lebanon is bound to be in agreement and national partnership," Qaouq said.
"This is the only solution for a way out of the current political crisis. Any other talk about obstruction, domination and hegemony has no chance" to succeed because "we have already turned the chapter on American and other embassies' guardianship," the Hizbullah official added.
Meanwhile, Hizbullah and Amal Movement leaderships in Mount Lebanon and the North also stressed in a joint statement their commitment to partnership.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Iran and Syria have until next week to explain to a United Nations sanctions committee how they were involved with a ship detained off Cyprus in January found to be loaded with explosives believed to be bound for Gaza.
The ambassadors of France and Britain described the episode at a Security Council meeting held Tuesday in New York as a "gross violation" of existing resolutions banning Iranian arms exports. "The United Kingdom looks forward to the committee receiving explanations from Iran and Syria as to why the shipment was permitted by Iran as the reported state of origin and as to the involvement of Syria as the reported state of destination," said British envoy John Sawers.
Both countries are required to respond within ten working days, according to a statement from Japanese ambassador Yukio Takasu, who chairs the Security Council committee set up in 2006 to oversee Iran sanctions. The committee determined February 6 that Iran was in violation of existing sanctions but has not taken any punitive action.
Both French ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert and US envoy Susan Rice invited Iran to use the opportunity to engage in diplomatic negotiations on its nuclear and other arms programs. "The United States will not waver in its determination to ensure that Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons but the United States also sees an opportunity - a chance for the Iranian government to demonstrate that it is willing to unclench its fist and begin a serious, responsible discussion about a range of issues," Rice said in her formal remarks.
She added that President Obama, who had his first formal meeting Tuesday in Washington with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, was engaged in a comprehensive review of US policy on Iran.
Neither Iran nor Syria sent representatives to speak at Tuesday's meeting. Both have denied allegations from Washington that the munitions were intended for delivery to Hamas.
Syria sent a delegation to Cyprus in late February to pressure officials there into handing over the cargo from the ship, according to an Associated Press report that cited unnamed government officials from an undisclosed Middle Eastern country. The AP said Cypriot officials denied any formal negotiations with the Syrians over the cargo.
Diplomats in New York have told The Jerusalem Post that Cyprus has been eager to cooperate with its European Union allies on the issue, but the island nation has not yet taken any steps to destroy the cargo offloaded from the Cypriot-flagged ship Monchegorsk. The ship docked Jan 29 in Cyprus after being turned away from an Egyptian port.
The British have offered help to dispose of the munitions "in whatever way we can."
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
"explosives", ya say? Shocked... shocked!
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/11/2009 8:03 Comments ||
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#2
dispose of the munitions "in whatever way we can."
I suggest they deliver them to their intended destination for disposal by detonation there.
Iran has dismissed the remarks of an Iraqi official who said that Baghdad had serious problems with Tehran in the demarcation of their land and maritime borders.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/11/2009 00:00 ||
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Pulitzer Prize-winning U.S. author Alice Walker says a catastrophe has befallen the Gaza Strip and that she hopes she and others can make President Barack Obama more aware of it. Hamas showed her the Greenhouses and told her the Zionists destroyed them and Alice believed them
Walker, best known for her novel The Color Purple, toured Gaza this week, including an area destroyed in Israel's recent war on the territory's Islamic militant Hamas rulers.
Several neighborhoods along Gaza's border with Israel were leveled by the Israel Defense Forces during the three-week offensive, which ended Jan. 18. Israel says Hamas is to blame for the destruction because its fighters used civilians as shields and operated from crowded areas. About 15,000 houses were destroyed or damaged, displacing thousands of Gazans.
#1
All righty, then - another moonbat writer whose books I shall never open again - right up there with Jane Smiley, Margaret Atwood and Antonia Fraser.
Pity about Jane, though - MOO was a hoot - but I make the sacrifice cheerfully.
BTW, if any Rantburgundians are in the fair city of Austin, Texas this coming Sunday, I will be doing a talk at the old German Free School
at 3:00 about the local history that I worked into the Adelsverein Trilogy. Come on down, y'all! They've promised punch and cookies afterwards!
#6
I don't get it. Bush is out of office so she can't blame it on him. Why is she doing this? She gonna write a best seller about the poor Gazans? Or is she just nuts?
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.
(AKI) - The Italian government investigated 216 terror threats against Italy last year, concluding that Islamist cells were the "primary threat to the public interest, both inside Italy and abroad," according to a report released on Tuesday. The extent of the terror threat was revealed in an anti-terrorism report presented to the department of information security.
BAGHDAD, Iraq An Iraqi court sentenced Iraq's former foreign minister, Tariq Aziz, and Ali Hassan al-Majeed, a senior colleague of Saddam Hussein, to 15 years in prison today for their role in what the court deemed a crime against humanity, the killing of 42 merchants in Baghdad in 1992 for profiteering.
Thailand's Cabinet approved the purchase Tuesday of a blimp to help survey the country's 
