[FoxNews] Ten years after they found and killed Osama bin Laden, U.S. Navy SEALs are undergoing a major transition to improve leadership and expand their commando capabilities to better battle threats from global powers like China and Russia.
The new plan cuts the number of SEAL platoons by as much as 30% and increases their size to make the teams more lethal and able to counter sophisticated maritime and undersea adversaries. And there will be a new, intensive screening process for the Navy’s elite warriors, to get higher-quality leaders after scandals that rocked the force and involved charges of murder, sexual assault and drug use.
Rear Adm. Hugh Howard, top commander for the SEALs, laid out his plans in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press. He said the Navy’s special operations forces have been focused on counterterrorism operations but now must begin to evolve beyond those missions. For the past two decades, many have been fighting in the deserts of Iraq and mountains of Afghanistan. Now they are focused on going back to sea.
That decision reflects the broader Pentagon strategy to prioritize China and Russia, which are rapidly growing their militaries and trying to expand their influence around the globe. U.S. defense leaders believe that two decades of war against militants and extremists have drained resources, causing America to lose ground against Moscow and Beijing.
The counterterrorism fight had its benefits, allowing the SEALs to sharpen their skills in developing intelligence networks and finding and hitting targets, said Howard, who heads Naval Special Warfare Command, which includes the SEALs and the special warfare combatant-craft crewmen. "Many of these things are transferable, but now we need to put pressure on ourselves to operate against peer threats."
As a result, Howard is adding personnel to the SEAL platoons to beef up capabilities in cyber and electronic warfare and unmanned systems, honing their skills to collect intelligence and deceive and defeat the enemy.
"We are putting pressure on ourselves to evolve and understand our gaps in capability and what our true survivability is against these threats" posed by global competitors, he said.
Adm. Mike Gilday, the chief of naval operations, said the goal is to better integrate the SEALs into the Navy’s missions at sea.
"As the Navy Special Warfare community returns more and more to its maritime roots, their increased integration across the Fleet — above, under, and on the sea — will unequivocally enhance our unique maritime capabilities to help us compete and win against any adversary," Gilday said in a statement to the AP.
Increasing the size of the SEAL platoons will add high-tech capabilities. And decreasing the number of units will allow Howard to rid the force of toxic leaders and be more selective in choosing commanders. That decision is a direct result of the erosion in character that Navy officials have seen within the force.
In recent years, SEALs have been involved in a number of high-profile scandals. One of the most well-known was the arrest of Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher on war crimes charges that included murder of an Islamic State militant captive and attempted murder in the shootings of civilians during a 2017 deployment to Iraq.
Gallagher was acquitted of all charges except one, posing in photos with the dead captive. A jury recommended his rank be reduced, cutting his pension and benefits as he was about to retire. But President Donald Trump intervened and ordered that Gallagher be allowed to retire without losing his SEAL status.
More recently, a SEAL team platoon was pulled out of Iraq in 2019 amid allegations of sexual assault. Members of SEAL Team 10 were involved in cocaine use and tampering with drug tests. And Navy SEAL Adam Matthews was sentenced to a year in military prison for his role in the 2017 hazing-related death of an Army Green Beret in Africa.
Navy leaders also chafed as Navy SEALs broke away from their "quiet professional" ethos, publicizing their participation in the raid into Pakistan that killed bin Laden, the al-Qaida leader responsible for plotting the 9/11 attacks. Two SEALs wrote books about the mission, prompting a rebuke form the Naval Special Warfare commander at the time, Rear Adm. Brian Losey.
#1
Fold them into Marine Recon... but that would upset the bureaucrats that want to split the SOCOM Budget 'pie" into even slices for the Army, Navy and Air Force. Make them Marines by direct transfer or attach them directly like Navy Corpsmen.
Footage shows North Carolina sheriff's deputies in tactical gear rush to home of Andrew Brown
Brown was shot in his car in Elizabeth City on April 21; his family finally had access to some footage Monday
An independent autopsy shows that Brown, 42, was shot five times, including once in the back of the head
The pathologist hired by Brown’s family noted four wounds to the right arm and the one to his head
Brown’s son questioned why deputies had to shoot so many times at a man who, he said, posed no threat
That came after new video taken by a neighbor shows a group of cops surround his car following the shooting
Monday saw the fifth night of demonstrations amid calls for the release of bodycam footage of Brown's killing
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump said they saw just 20 seconds of the incident Monday in which Brown had his hands on steering wheel when eight officers opened fire; Crump said Brown had complied with police
Crump added: 'If they thought Andrew Brown Jr did something inappropriately and criminal you all would have seen that video by now. They are trying to hide something. They don't want us to see'
Brown was described by police as a drug dealer dating back to 1988 and was recently selling narcotics
#1
Militarize? Pretty standard looking pickup there.
Everybody talking about police de-escalating and such, but nobody pointing at the media as they, DM especially included, continue to escalate and incite.
Brown’s son questioned why deputies had to shoot so many times at a man who, he said, posed no threat
Would it help you feel better, little man, if the total number of people needed to contain him only fired once each?
[AlAhram] While the official start to the withdrawal of Washington's 2,500 to 3,500 troops and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants... 's 7,000 allied forces is May 1, Gen Austin Miller said the pullout had already begun
The State Department on Tuesday ordered a significant number of its remaining staff at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to leave Afghanistan as the military steps up the pullout of American troops from the country.
The department said it had instructed all personnel to depart unless their jobs require them to be physically located in Afghanistan. The order was not specific as to the number of people affected, but it went well beyond the usual curtailment of staffers for security and safety reasons. Such orders normally apply only to non-essential personnel.
In an updated travel advisory for Afghanistan, the department said it had ordered the departure of all U.S. babus government employees ``whose functions can be performed elsewhere.'' It also said American citizens should not travel to Afghanistan and those there who want to depart ``should leave as soon as possible on available commercial flights.''
The State Department order came just two days after America's top general in Afghanistan said the U.S. military had begun closing down operations in the country and that Afghanistan's security forces had to be ready to take over.
The U.S. military and NATO will be shipping some military equipment out of Afghanistan while deciding what would remain behind with the Afghan Defense and Security Force, he said.
In February last year, the U.S. military began closing its smaller bases. In mid-April, the Biden administration announced that the final phase of the withdrawal would begin May 1 and be completed before Sept. 11.
[ToloNews] The Afghan government has begun talks with at least 13 countries whose nationals are being held in Afghan prisons for membership in ISIS. 408 inmates in total have foreign citizenship, says the Afghan security agency.
Ahmad Zia Saraj, the head of Afghanistan’s intelligence agency—the National Directorate of Security ...the Afghan national intel agency... (NDS)--on Tuesday said that from the figure, 299 of the ISIS inmates are nationals of Pakistain. However,
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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[ToloNews] John Kirby, US Pentagon front man, said that the US will not provide air support to the Afghan cops after the American forces withdraw from the country.
He said that the US will continue its financial cooperation and will provide aid for the repair and maintenance of Afghan aircraft after September.
Afghanistan's Caped PresidentAshraf Ghani ...former chancellor of Kabul University, now president of Afghanistan. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 he was a scholar of political science and anthropology. He worked at the World Bank working on international development assistance. As Finance Minister of Afghanistan between July 2002 and December 2004, he led Afghanistan's attempted economic recovery until the Karzais stole all the money... said that the Afghan National Security and Defense Forces (ANDSF) will not face a shortage of equipment.
"We will continue our financial support. One of the things that we want to look at is their contractual needs, particularly aviation maintenance support," said John Kirby.
He said the Afghan forces must "assume their responsibility" and defend the nation.
"The Afghan National Security and Defense Forces must be ready to assume their responsibility to defend their citizens and their country, our support to the Afghan will be primarily financially-based and certainly we are looking at how we can continue to support in a responsible way some of their contractual requirements," said Kirby.
"You should have complete confidence that the Afghan security and defense forces will be funded, they will not face any shortage of equipment, you saw that one billion dollars worth of military equipment was transfered to the brave and honest members of the Afghan cops," said Ashraf Ghani.
#1
....I'd wonder what kind of bird the last chopper out of Kabul will be, but I don't give the Current Administration enough credit to get people out in time.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
04/28/2021 5:59 Comments ||
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#2
Chalk up additional failing grades in history and geopolitics. Perhaps 'fail' was actually the desired end state.
Give it some time. Come back in 1000 years and have another look at Afghanistan. Until then, hold off on the Rule of Law, democracy, COSCO, Target, Six Flags initiatives.
1) we bounce the rubble of Germany and Japan and reduced their populations to the point they knew they lost
2) only then did we try 'nation building'
3) both were imbued with ("racists") Western institutions (read non-Islamic) in the post war governments and society
All of which escaped the attention of our 'best and brightest' trying to imitate their fathers' work.
Now you grasp the concept of 'going Mongol' in such places.
#5
#4 ... why do we have to 'impose civilization'? we should have killed bin laden and forgot it. He killed 3000 americans we should have bombed kabul and islamabad to the tune of 6000 dead.
#7
in retrospect we should have stealthily supported the Soviet U's occupation of Afghanistan
failing that and post 9-11, we should have subsidized Uzbek and Tagik forces to occupy the north of Afghanistan and after having the SpForces chase Al Q out the first time in early 2002, bribed various tribes in the South of Afghanistan to fight each other.
I can't blame the Bush 43 Admin entirely for this as their policy was driven by the best and the brightest in the CIA and the DIA.
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
04/28/2021 9:38 Comments ||
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#8
/\ I can't blame the Bush 43 Admin entirely for this as their policy was driven by the best and the brightest in the CIA and the DIA.
DIA, not so much. The Klingon's backyard is private property. The first word in DIA is 'Defense'... which is an troublesome, acrimonious term of reference to most career Klingons.
#9
To end the Afghan conflict all you had to do was bomb Quetta. I cannot believe for a second that all the bright lads and laddesses in Virginia didn't already know that.
#10
Other than killing bin Laden we had accomplished what we needed to by early mid '02. The rest seems in retrospect to be some sort of demented, expensive apology tour for punishing them in the first place.
I wholeheartedly agree. I believe we've been down the cross-border, insurgent sanctuary road before. Didn't end well there either. Removing 'head of snake' scenario as it were.
A strong diplomatic 'wave off' of kinetic action against Pakistan likely came from the Chinese....(just a guess). We certainly would not have wanted to alienate our Chinese friends.
#12
Some of the folks at Langley probably knew their real target was Quetta. But the wonderful career idiots at Foggy Bottom and in the upper offices in Langley made it their priority to avoid that and make sure they have an endless war for their budgets and power.
Those who took their oath seriously are in the "End it now" fast and hard group. Those who are in it for power, i.e. most of the Swamp, are the ones in power that keep the forever war going because it's great for their class and career.
After all, who needs diplomats of the only thing to negotiate is "surrender or die"? Who needs agents and operatives when you can shortcut the whole process with direct actions.
Posted by: These Forkbeard7574 ||
04/28/2021 11:27 Comments ||
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#13
I just hope the terps and those who helped have a plane ticket in hand and are selling everything now and putting the money in a western bank.
Its going to get ugly. Jimmy Carter ugly.
Posted by: These Forkbeard7574 ||
04/28/2021 14:06 Comments ||
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Remember that time when McCain's Heroes were forming an anti-Assad team, and NATO=USA was going to do air strikes because of a "chemical attack" and then Kerry opened his big mouth about Assad turning in his chemical weapons would prevent that, and Team Assad agreed 15 seconds later, and McCain's Heroes were in the attack, without air support?
[KhaamaPress] 650 US troops are reportedly scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan soon to provide support and protection to the withdrawal process, CNN ...formerly the Cable News Network, now who knows what it might stand for... reported
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved the deployment to facilitate US withdrawal from Afghanistan, President Joe The Big Guy Biden ...46th president of the U.S. We get to suffer the consequences... ordered the U.S pull-out to be completed by September of this year.
The infantry is reported to come from the 75th Ranger Regiment, which already has personnel stationed in the region as part of the special forces unit.
The Rangers will be transported alongside a dedicated aircraft and close air support such as AC-130 gunships to protect them while providing support to the departing troops.
Earlier, US military commanders have asked an aircraft carrier to help protect and provide safety during the US and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... troops’ withdrawal NBC News reported.
The aircraft carrier may be deployed in case the Taliban ...the Pashtun equivalent of men... chooses to launch attacks on NATO troops during the withdrawal process.
According to USNI news the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, Carrier Air Wing 3and IKE’s escorts were operating in the Northern parts of the Arabian Sea to support operations against ISIS as part of inherent resolve.
General Kenneth McKenzie has sent a request to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to keep the carriers in the area instead of carrying operations in other regions.
Lloyd Austin besides approval of aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower warship also approved two B-52 bombers aircraft to carry out Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s in case the Taliban attacks the departing troops.
[Garowe] The outgoing Somalia President Mohammed Abdullahi Farmajo has reportedly withdrawn troops from several parts of Somalia, which are said to be firmly behind the opposition, even as the country struggles to restore order following Sunday's festivities in Mogadishu.
A group of soldiers allied to the opposition team and those loyal to Farmajo engaged in a fierce shootout, leading to the death of at least four people. The opposition team still controls the capital Mogadishu according to reports.
In what seems to be a retreat, Farmajo is said to have recalled troops working in the Gedo region within Jubaland where the politicianship has been wrangling over their presence. Jubaland President Ahmed Islam Mohammed Madobe had often called for the withdrawal of these troops from the region.
Also, their counterparts in Galmadug and Hiraan have also been recalled, and the entire team is said to be headed to Mogadishu. Multiple sources hinted to Garowe Online that the troops are under strict instructions to end the siege in Mogadishu.
Further, sources indicate that the reason Farmajo is attacking the opposite positions so quickly is that he fears more defection from SNA officers which is underway. A number of troops have defected to the opposition.
On Tuesday, Ottoman Turkish-trained Haram'ad police raided the independent radio station 'Mustaqbal ... the Future Movement, political party... media' in Mogadishu for covering the latest festivities in the capital. The troops put the FM radio off-air, confiscate equipment, and beat the editor according to the management.
On the other hand, pro-opposition forces protecting opposition leader Abdirahman Abdishakur, Sadak John, and Yusuf Indha'ade moved out of the Abdikasim area to Sigale village around Dabka junction, where they set up a new base joining Ja'far side who is in control of Howlwadag district.
And on Monday night, troops arrived in the Hodan neighborhood where the chairman of the Wadajir party Abdirahman Abdishakur stays.
Reports say that the forces ordered the residents of the Siigaale neighborhood in Hodan district to vacate their homes.
It is not known why the new troops arrived in the area but reports indicate that the forces loyal to Farmajo want to retake the neighborhoods captured in recent days by pro-opposition forces opposed to Farmajo's illegal term extension.
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Head of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok held Monday a meeting with senior army commanders at the General Command headquarters in Khartoum.
The ministers of cabinet affairs, defense, finance, foreign affairs and communications and information technology attended the meeting, which was the first between Hamdok and leaders of various military units in the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
"This meeting is the beginning of a dialogue that targets developing the military institution in a professional national army all the Sudanese are proud of," Hamdok noted.
He told a presser that his visit to the army commanders "came late" but represents an "extension of the partnership between the military and civilian components in this complex transition."
"The partnership aims at laying the cornerstone for building a firm and stable democratic system."
The December revolution allowed the Sudanese to implement a national project, the PM said, stressing that one of the most important requirements of the transitional phase is building a unified and professional national army.
Hamdok further viewed the partnership between civilians and the military as an "advanced model" that can set an example for the whole of Africa.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Tunisia’s opposition Popular Current called upon President Kais Saeid to announce a roadmap to save the country, stressing that removing the Islamist Ennahda Movement will end the constitutional crisis.
Popular Current Secretary-General, Zouheir Hamdi, remarked that the president has succeeded in disrupting the plans of Ennahda and "its mafia" allies.
Hamdi described Ennahda as the "greatest threat to the country and its strategic interests," blaming the movement for the current situation in Tunisia.
The opposition is proposing a number of suggestions to resolve the political and constitutional crisis that has gripped the country for four months, including holding early elections, overthrowing the government of Hichem Mechichi, amending the constitution and reviewing the electoral law.
Hamdi proposed a roadmap that recommends removing the government and forming a transitional one, stressing that the people are not ready to return to the scenario of previous governments in terms of composition and programs.
The roadmap deals with major issues, such as debt, the central bank law, the relationship with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the trade balance deficit, smuggling and tax evasion.
Hamdi called on Saeid to adopt the roadmap by launching consultations after the departure of Mechichi, and the dissolution of the parliament, whose speaker is Rached Ghannouchi, the leader of the Ennahda Movement.
The consultations would discuss amending the constitution, changing the electoral law and submitting it for a referendum.
Meanwhile, ...back at the laboratory the smoke and fumes had dispersed, to reveal an ominous sight... Ennahda’s Shura Council warned against any action that undermines the values of the 2011 revolution, rejecting "unilateral rule" - a reference to Saied’s speech during the celebration of the 65th anniversary of the formation of the Internal Security Forces.
Saied had said that his constitutional control of the military extended to the internal security forces. The statement was seen as part of a wider power struggle between him, parliament and the prime minister.
The Shura asserted its support to the government, noting that the president’s obstruction of the ministerial reshuffle damaged the cabinet’s work and disrupted the state.
It called on the president and prime minister to take appropriate and practical steps to end the crisis.
The president should put the health and economic crisis at the top of the state's priorities and avoid individual interpretations of the constitution that disrupts the interests of the state and society, according to the council.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Muslim Brotherhood
#1
Unspoken is the fact that Ennahda is the Tunisian arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, and its leader Rachid Ghannouchi (for more than thirty years) is responsible for the political cleavage that exists in Tunisia today.
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor... sent on Monday new positive signals to Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... , offering to improve their relations according to a "positive agenda".
President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important... 's front man and adviser Ibrahim Kalin told Rooters in an interview that Turkey was seeking to improve relations with the Kingdom after the murder of Saudi citizen beloved martyr of journalism Jamal Khashoggi ......who was simultaneously a very well paid Washington Post columnist and a long time propagandist for the Moslem Brotherhood and Al Qaeda — he died while on the Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... i payroll, but previously wrote at the behest of then-Saudi intel chief Prince Turki al-Faisal...... in Istanbul in 2018.
Last year Saudi businessmen endorsed an unofficial boycott of Ottoman Turkish goods in response, which has slashed the value of trade by 98%.
"We will seek ways to repair the relationship with a more positive agenda with Saudi Arabia as well," Kalin said, adding that he hoped the boycott could be lifted.
In a marked change of tone, he welcomed the trial in Saudi Arabia which last year incarcerated Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! eight people for between seven and 20 years for Khashoggi's murder.
"They had a court. Trials have been held," Kalin said. "They made a decision so we respect that decision."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#Breaking| #Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman: #Iran is a neighbor in the region. Our main issue with it is its nuclear program, ballistic missiles program and harmful behavior in the region.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
"Nice doggie!", he said while looking for a rock. Perhaps the Prince would take a sterner position if the US had a more Trumpian outlook on the region.
[NYPOST] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire... ’s leader on Tuesday called on President Joe Biden ...... 46th president of the U.S. We hold these truths to be self-evident. All men and women created ... by the — you know — you know, the thing...... to reverse his declaration on Armenian genocide, saying it will hurt the relationship between the two countries and that the US should "look in the mirror" at how it treated Native Americans.
President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important... , in his first public comments about the 1915 massacre since Biden’s statement on Saturday, said the "wrong step" could harm ties between the US and Turkey.
"The US president has made baseless, unjust and untrue remarks about the sad events that took place in our geography over a century ago," Erdogan said after a cabinet meeting. "I hope the US president will turn back from this wrong step as soon as possible."
Erdogan urged Ottoman Turkish and Armenian historians to form a commission to examine the incident.
Biden, in a statement released Saturday on Armenian Remembrance Day, recognized the mass killings during World War I by Ottoman Turks.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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#1
Not gonna happen. Joe doesn't even know what he declared. It will get said only if they put it in front of him to sign, or put it on his teleprompter. But even then I wonder if he actually knows.
President Chauncey Gardiner, indeed.
And if you haven't seen it, go find it and watch the movie "Being There". The US Press has created President Joe Biden in much the same way.
Posted by: These Forkbeard7574 ||
04/28/2021 14:35 Comments ||
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#2
Pres Sockpuppet has started the ball rolling.
(1) Armenian genocide statement. Check
(2) Any crowd outside of Incirlik demanding "US OUT". Check
(3) Maybe leaving. Never happen. The US DoD never leaves anywhere.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
04/28/2021 14:40 Comments ||
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#3
He will on the day the pro-Turkish faction in the State Department wins the bureaucratic war.
Posted by: Tom ||
04/28/2021 15:24 Comments ||
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#4
As much as I enjoy Poke the Erdy:
If you don't like what Biden thinks, wait 24 hours.
#5
Honestly, they need to just pull the nukes out clandestinely, take the classified stuff (still have SIGINT facilities for spying on the Rooskis there) out the same way, evac personnel due to a "bomb threat" then detonate a few well placed demolitions
and we just leave them the burned out remains.
Posted by: These Forkbeard7574 ||
04/28/2021 17:04 Comments ||
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[Rudaw] An area of 260 square kilometers remain uncleared of landmines in the Kurdistan Region, according to an official.
"In the Kurdistan Region, an area of 776 square kilometers was littered with landmines and the remains of war," Jabar Mustafa, the head of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Iraqi Kurdistan Mine Action Agency (IKMAA), said at a presser on Monday.
"From the 90s until now, the Kurdistan Regional Government through Kurdistan’s Mine Action Agency have been able to, with [the help of] international organizations and allies, clean most of the area," said Mustafa, specifying that 516 square kilometers have been cleared since 1991.
If I laid out the math right, that’s roughly 17 sq mi per year over thirty years, with another fifteen years to go. After which, their de-miners can take on the rest of the world — a steady career for those with the nerve for it.
The presser took place at a site where a bomb weighing 500 kilograms exploded by experts this morning in Penjwen’s Gokhlan village, after it was found by a farmer who notified relevant authorities.
In 2020, around 18 people became victims of landmines, Obed Ahmed, the director of technical affairs at the landmine agency, told Rudaw English on Monday.
There are around 3,000 minefields in the Kurdistan Region and landmine victims have added up to 13,456 people since 1991, according to the agency.
Averaging about 450 per year, no doubt in a descending curve, so last year was a good year. Turkey’s orcs do more damage now.
"The reason why they are not cleaned is sometimes because of the geographic location, because now we can say that landmines are more in the mountainous and border regions rather than inhabited areas. The geopolitics of Kurdistan is like that, it becomes harder and harder to clean day by day," said Mustafa.
There are tens of millions of unwent kaboom! landmines and explosive ordinances across the Kurdistan Region’s borders with Iran, more than three decades after the devastating Iran-Iraq war.
The Mine Action Agency, with other NGOs including the UK-based Mines Advisory Group (MAG), has cleared huge swathes of the Kurdistan Region.
A man died in November due to a landmine explosion in Choman district while collecting wood for heat.
A man was also killed in March in the Choman village of Pashkozi after stepping on a landmine while looking for herbs. Just weeks before, a Bradost farmer found a cache filled with more than 300 highly explosive artillery shells said to date from the Iran-Iraq war.
When bad words are all you have left because you chose to miss all the opportunities.
[FREEBEACON] Paleostinian president the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase.... was recently caught badmouthing several countries, including the United States and his Arab neighbors, during a profanity-laced rant that raises new concerns about the 85-year-old leader's deteriorating health.
The Arabic language rant is renewing speculation that Abbas—who is overweight and a heavy cigarette smoker—is in poor mental and physical health as he carries out his 16th year in office. His government is under great strain amid monumental regional shifts that have seen Israel make peace with its traditional Arab foes.
When asked by an unidentified attendee at the Fatah political party's April 19 meeting what his message to China is on the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, Abbas went ballistic.
"Fuck the c—t of China with a shoe!" Abbas screamed, according to an independent Arabic translation of his remarks provided to the Washington Free Beacon. "That good for you?"
After pausing for a few seconds, Abbas continued yelling: "And Russia, America, and all the Arabs. What's wrong with you? All of you go to hell!"
The rant raises new questions about Abbas's health ahead of Paleostinian elections scheduled for late May. The president's age and deteriorating health have been a much-discussed topic in the Israeli and Arab media for years, and it still remains unclear who is poised to succeed him. Peace talks between Israel and the Paleostinians have been mostly dormant in the wake of Israel's landmark peace agreements with leading Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Jonathan Schanzer, a Middle East expert and vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said Abbas is under "immense pressure" and may be reaching his breaking point. Israel's newfound peace with Abbas's traditional Arab allies also could be fueling his anger.
"Abbas has been under immense pressure to hold elections after being marginalized for the last four years by former president Donald Trump ...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons...... and a number of Arab states," Schanzer said. "He has felt alienated. Now he is boxed in. He is lashing out."
The leaked audio of Abbas was posted on social media by the Paleostinian-American pro-democracy advocate Fadi Elsalameen, a frequent critic of Abbas and his ruling regime. Elsalameen recently faced death threats from Abbas-backed snuffies due to his efforts to reform the Paleostinian government.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Palestinian Authority
#1
Sorry, man. The thrill is gone. After a half century, we're just not that in to you anymore. Monumental regional shifts and all that. Plus, let's be honest: no one really cared about the Paleostinians except as a way to annoy the Israelis.
#2
At what point do you look around and realize your a failed state that has only failed to collapse entirely because you are propped up by the good graces of your stated enemy.
Someone should give him a plane ticket to Somalia so he can see the future of his people if they don't clean it up.
[AlAhram] Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... on Tuesday renewed a call for a prisoner exchange with the United States as the longtime foes continue talks with world powers over a possible U.S. return to Tehran's 2015 nuclear accord with world powers.
The powers sought on Tuesday to speed up efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back into compliance with the agreement, as the United States reassured its Gulf Arab allies on the status of the talks in Vienna.
'We want the release of all those held unjustly in U.S. jails over sanctions. Iran is pursuing this due to humanitarian and moral considerations but this will depend on action by the American side,' government front man Ali Rabiei said.
'Iran has announced its readiness for this but announcing the names of prisoners may be detrimental to them. We will announce details after efforts are finalised,' Rabiei told a news conference carried live on a government website.
He gave no details of any prisoner exchanges that might be in the works, but said there were more Iranians in U.S. jails than Americans held in Iran. The Islamic Theocratic Republic, which is holding a handful of Iranian-Americans, has been accused by rights activists of arresting dual nationals to try to extract concessions from other countries. Iran has repeatedly dismissed the charge.
Among the few recent exchanges, Iran in late 2019 released a Princeton University graduate student who had been held for three years on spying charges, while the United States freed an Iranian stem-cell researcher who faced charges of violating U.S. sanctions against Tehran.
Coinciding with the scrapping of the sanctions under the 2015 nuclear deal, Tehran released five Americans including a Washington Post news hound as part of a prisoner swap with the United States.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/28/2021 00:00 ||
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#1
We will trade you one producing oil facility left in operation per release...
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Iran's government said Tuesday an investigation had been ordered into leaked audio of Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif ...Persian foreign minister, Mouthpiece of Mullahs, good friend of John Kerry and similar exemplars of Merkin values... bemoaning the military's influence, after its emergence stirred controversy ahead of presidential elections.
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.
...former chancellor of Kabul University, now president of Afghanistan. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 he was a scholar of political science and anthropology. He worked at the World Bank working on international development assistance. As Finance Minister of Afghanistan between July 2002 and December 2004, he led Afghanistan's attempted economic recovery until the Karzais stole all the money...
...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
...... 46th president of the U.S. 
[Rudaw] An area of 260 square kilometers remain uncleared of landmines in the Kurdistan Region, according to an official.
[FREEBEACON] Paleostinian president 
...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons......
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for 
...Persian foreign minister, Mouthpiece of Mullahs, good friend of John Kerry and similar exemplars of Merkin values...
