[Garowe] The elite Danab Special Forces killed a senior al-Shabaab ...... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa... commander in Somalia over the weekend, officials said, making a significant run in the fight against the forces of Evil who have grounded the country's struggling economy for the last two decades.
Al-Shabaab has been fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia but efforts by multi-agency security teams have managed to stabilize the country, although several villages are still under the control of the holy warriors.
According to reports, an operation in Lower Shabelle left a senior commander of the group dead in what the military referred as to an 'important' milestone in the fight against the group. Several members of the group were also killed, officials said.
The operation took place at Hanti Wadag and the leader identified as Zubeir was killed during the confrontation. Zubeir was the senior security chief of the group, in charge of operations, the government reported without giving finer details.
According to the government, the Danab commandos also destroyed the group's positions in the area, vowing to continue such operations against the al-Shabaab group. The government is still pursuing forces of Evil who may have fled from the scene, authorities revealed.
The Somali National Army has been conducting raids across the country targeting al-Shabaab forces of Evil who control large swathes of rural central and southern regions. The operations in these regions have left thousands of the forces of Evil dead.
According to reports, the government troops with assistance from the US Africa Command and the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) have managed to kill over 4,000 al-Shabaab forces of Evil in the last three years.
[SUDANTRIBUNE] The United Nations ...where theory meets practice and practice loses... World Food Programme (WFP) has managed to bring desperately needed food and nutrition supplies into Darfur, the first WFP-provided assistance to reach the war-wracked region in months. Sounds like the good old days, back in the army. If you had twenty vehicles or whatever, and fifteen of them weren't usable because of missing parts or whatever, you were still considered good to go if the parts were on order.
The agency said unless the people of Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... receive a constant flow of aid via all possible humanitarian corridors from neighbouring nations and across battle lines, the hunger catastrophe will only worsen.
According WFP, two humanitarian convoys crossed the border from Chad into Darfur in late March, carrying food and nutrition assistance for around 250,000 people facing acute hunger in North, West and Central Darfur.
These are the first cross-border convoys of WFP assistance to reach Darfur following lengthy negotiations to reopen these routes after authorities in Port Sudan revoked permissions for humanitarian corridors from Chad in February
The temporary halt of the humanitarian corridor from Chad as well as ongoing fighting, lengthy clearance processes for humanitarian cargo, bureaucratic impediments, and security threats have made it impossible for humanitarians to operate at the scale needed to meet the hunger needs in Sudan, WFP noted.
"We need aid to be consistently reaching war-ravaged communities through every possible route. Hunger in Sudan will only increase as the lean season starts in just a few weeks. I fear that we will see unprecedented levels of starvation and malnutrition sweep across Sudan this lean season," said WFP Representative and Country Director in Sudan, Eddie Rowe.
Last week, 37 trucks carrying 1,300 metric tons of supplies crossed into West Darfur from Adre in Chad and food distributions are underway in West and Central Darfur. The UN food agency, however, said it has no clarity as to when the next aid convoy can travel via this route, which is vital if the humanitarian community stands a chance of preventing widespread starvation in West Darfur.
Last year, WFP supported 1 million people in West and Central Darfur with food transported via Chad’s Adre crossing.
Another 16 trucks with around 580 metric tons of supplies reportedly entered North Darfur from Chad’s Tina border crossing on 23rd March, while six trucks with 260 metric tons of food reached the area from Port Sudan a few days later.
This was the first aid delivery to be transported across conflict lines in six months.
Yet, fierce fighting, lack of security, and lengthy clearances by the warring parties, have led to delays in the distribution of this assistance to people in need.
"WFP and our partners urgently need security guarantees so supplies in North Darfur can be distributed to people who are struggling to find even one basic meal a day. Cross-border operations from Chad to Darfur are critical to reach communities where children are already dying of malnutrition. All corridors to transport food must remain open, particularly the one from Adre in Chad to West Darfur where levels of hunger are alarming," said Rowe.
Last month, WFP’s Executive Director Cindy McCain warned that the war in Sudan risks triggering the world’s worst hunger crisis unless families in Sudan and those who have fled to South Sudan and Chad receive desperately needed food aid.
This, she stressed, requires unfettered access, faster clearance processes, and funds to deliver a humanitarian response that meets the huge needs of civilians impacted by Sudan’s devastating war.
Sudan’s war is driving hunger to record levels, with 18 million people across the country facing acute hunger. In Darfur, 1.7 million people are in emergency levels of hunger.
#2
Sounds like the good old days, back in the army. If you had twenty vehicles or whatever, and fifteen of them weren't usable because of missing parts or whatever, you were still considered good to go if the parts were on order.
That's so funny because it's true!
More than once I helped salvage parts from working vehicles to repair parade vehicles.
"These are the first cross-border convoys of WFP assistance to reach Darfur following lengthy negotiations to reopen these routes after authorities in Port Sudan revoked permissions for humanitarian corridors from Chad in February"
Looks like there's a shitload of food, just local politics in the way.
#4
"These are the first cross-border convoys of WFP assistance..." Finally, an admission that the Arab Government that ostensibly rules the Sudan has been blocking aid to its people.
[SUDANTRIBUNE] Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... ese security services conducted a fresh wave of arrests on Sunday, targeting politicians and activists in Sinja, the capital of Sennar State.
The move comes amid tensions between Sudan’s military and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on one side and civilian forces calling for an end to the ongoing conflict. These civilian groups have been actively documenting alleged human rights ...which are often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless... violations, putting pressure for a peaceful resolution.
A member of the Sinja Resistance® Committees informed Sudan Tribune that the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and the General Intelligence Service (GIS) arrested prominent Communist Party member Seif al-Dawla Jadid and Sinja emergency room volunteer Mohammed al-Hadi, known as "Hatab."
Significantly, both Jadid and Hatab were released only a month ago after spending over three months in detention. Their rearrests highlight the ongoing crackdown.
The source further reported that the security forces also detained Mohammed al-Wathiq Mohammed Abdallah, an employee at Sinnar University’s Faculty of Education, along with the brother of journalist Ali al-Arsh (apparently mistaking him), and the father and brother of two other activists.
This follows a wider arrest campaign by Military Intelligence across Sennar State in recent weeks, targeting members of political parties, resistance committees, and even humanitarian aid workers in cities like Dinder, Abu Hajjar, and Sinja.
The source revealed that security forces raided over 25 homes during the latest operation, with fears of an intensification in the coming hours due to the heavy deployment of security personnel. This extensive deployment has also hampered efforts to monitor detainees’ whereabouts.
[SUDANTRIBUNE] The eastern region of al-Jazira State witnessed confrontations between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Sunday, while the Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... ese Air Force launched raids on paramilitary force positions in three areas: south, west, and east of the central Sudan state.
An army source reported progress on the eastern front bordering Gedaref State. On Sunday, their forces captured the town of al-Qalaa al-Bayda in Um al-Qura locality, about 30 kilometres east of the state capital Wad Madani.
Last Thursday, army forces advanced from al-Khayari, separating the Gedaref and al-Jazirah states, and taking control of Um Faksha and Hafira areas deep within the state.
The source indicated violent mostly peacefulfestivities near Shabarqa, about 30 kilometres from Wad Madani.
However, alcohol has never solved anybody's problems. But then, neither has milk... the RSF broadcast video clips of alleged confrontations near al-Faw in Gedaref State, claiming heavy losses inflicted on the army and allied forces. They also released pictures of prisoners, casualties, and a captured tank from the army troops.
RSF commander in al-Jazirah State, Major General Abu Aqla Kikal, denied any army progress and vowed to capture a new area before Eid al-Fitr, within two days.
For their part, the Wad Madani Resistance® Committees reported that Sunday’s festivities resulted in the deaths of two civilians in Sharif Yaqoub village due to flying shrapnel. They urged the area residents to stay away from conflict zones and avoid going outside their homes to watch the fighting.
The RSF paramilitary forces seized control of large parts of al-Jazirah State last December, extending to the outskirts of Sinnar State in the south. However, alcohol has never solved anybody's problems. But then, neither has milk... they failed to control al-Manaqil and al-Qurashi localities in the west.
Also, military sources affiliated with the Sudanese army reported air strikes launched early Sunday morning against RSF positions in al-Jazirah State.
The air attacks targeted RSF forces in several areas in southern al-Jazirah. Also, the Sudanese air force targeted Arab city, west of Wad Madani, and al-Shabarqa, east of the the state capital.
The army appears to be besieging RSF in al-Jazira from three axes: east (Gedaref), south (Sennar), and west (Al-Manaqil).
Regarding the western axis of al-Manaqil, the same military sources confirmed the army’s capture of Medina Arab town, about 15 kilometres west of Wad Madani, after the RSF withdrew from the area following limited festivities.
The fighting is expected to intensify in the coming days.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/09/2024 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. Now up to 100... [Regnum] More than 90 people have died after a fishing boat sank off the coast of Mozambique.agency reported this on April 7.
As Nampula Provincial Secretary of State Jamie Neto said, the homemade boat was not intended to transport people. Neto said that there were about 130 people on the ship, and it was heading to a small island off the coast of Mozambique.
Rescuers found five survivors; the search and rescue operation continues, but it is complicated by weather conditions. The Nampula provincial secretary of state noted that many children were among the dead. The exact number of victims is being established, and an investigation team is working at the scene. The circumstances of the shipwreck are being determined.
According to Neto, people tried to leave the country, panicked by misinformation about the cholera epidemic. Mozambique has recorded almost 15,000 cases of the disease and 32 deaths since October 2023.
According to Neto, people tried to leave the country, panicked by misinformation about the cholera epidemic. Mozambique has recorded almost 15,000 cases of the disease and 32 deaths since October 2023.
Nampula is the worst-affected region, accounting for a third of all detected cases.
Earlier, IA Regnum reported that as a result of the collapse of a bridge in Baltimore in the eastern United States, according to preliminary information, at least six people working on the structure at that time were killed.
According to the US Coast Guard, the Singapore-flagged cargo ship Dali crashed into the bridge on March 26 at 1:27 local time (8:27 Moscow time). As a result of the bridge collapse, up to 20 people could have fallen into the water.
[Ynet] Israel for the first time, used the C-Dome aerial defense system late on Monday, to intercept a UAV that infiltrated its space near the southern city of Eilat.
The intercepting missile was fired from a Sa'ar 6-class corvette that had just recently become operational in the navy.
The drone was monitored from the naval vessel by the C-Dome system, similar to the Iron Dome missile defense system used on land but made to defend sea faring vessels and infrastructure including offshore gas rigs. When it crossed into Israeli airspace it was successfully shot down. According to the military, no injuries or damage was reported.
#2
The invention of the hedgerow busting plow for the front of WW2 tanks is attributed to Curtis G. Culin, a U.S. Army sergeant who developed the concept in 1944. The plow was designed to help tanks navigate the dense hedgerows of Normandy during the Allied invasion of France.
Yes, necessity is said to be the 'mother of invention.'
#7
Unlike the Iron Dome, which has its own dedicated radar, the C-Dome, according to its developer Rafael, a state-owned defense technology company, is integrated into the ship’s radar to detect incoming targets. C-Dome, Rafael says, ensures “full-circular vessel protection and high kill probability against a full spectrum of modern threats—maritime and coastal.”
"From 2011 to 2021, the United States contributed a total of US$1.6 billion to the Iron Dome defense system, with another US$1 billion approved by the US Congress in 2022."
So it would appear the C-dome is Phase II of a 10 year project.
[GEO.TV] Israeli military has rounded up at least 23 Paleostinians during raids in the Hebron area of occupied West Bank last night, Al Jazeera reported quoting Wafa as saying.
The occupational forces raided other locations too in the West Bank, including Tulkarem where Israeli bulldozers were seen in the streets.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/09/2024 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Hamas
[IsraelTimes] Ali Ahmed Hassin, a Radwan field commander, had been tasked with attacks on Ramim Ridge area in northern Israel amid war; explosive-laden drone hits near Rosh Hanikra
The Israel Defense Forces early Monday eliminated a senior field commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force in southern Lebanon, the military and the terror group said.
Ali Ahmed Hassin, according to the IDF, held a rank equivalent to a brigade commander, and was charged with attacks on northern Israel’s Ramim Ridge, an area that has come under repeated rocket, missile, and explosive-laden drone fire amid the war against the Hamas terror group in the south.
"As part of his role, he was responsible for the planning and execution of terror attacks in the Ramim Ridge area against the Israeli home front," the IDF said.
Hassin was struck in the southern Lebanon town of as-Sultaniyah. According to the IDF, another two Hezbollah operatives under his command were killed in the strike.
Hezbollah announced Hassin’s death, saying he was killed "on the road to Jerusalem," its term for operatives slain in Israeli strikes. The terror group did not refer to him as a commander.
The Radwan force is believed by Israeli officials to be tasked with potentially infiltrating into the country.
Hassin was the fifth Hezbollah officer with a rank equivalent to a brigade commander to be killed by Israel amid the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, according to the IDF. The military has said that more than 30 Hezbollah commanders have been killed in its strikes in the past six months.
Meanwhile, on Monday afternoon, an explosive-laden drone launched by Hezbollah struck an area near Rosh Hanikra. The IDF said the strike caused a small fire in an open area, and that there were no reports of injuries. Hezbollah took responsibility for the attack, claiming to have targeted an Israeli naval base in the area.
Drone infiltration sirens had sounded in several communities in the Western Galilee amid the incident.
Throughout Sunday, Hezbollah continued its attacks on northern Israel, with the IDF saying it targeted sites belonging to the terror group in response.
On Sunday morning, a barrage of rockets was fired from Lebanon at the Golan Heights and Manara area, and in the evening, a rocket fired at the northern city of Safed was successfully intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system, the IDF said. There were other attacks on army bases and communities in northern Israel throughout the day.
The IDF said Sunday evening that its fighter jets carried out strikes on Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon’s Kafr Kila, as well as a rocket launcher in the town of Yaroun.
Earlier Sunday, the IDF said fighter jets carried out strikes on a military compound belonging to the Radwan force in southern Lebanon’s Khiam. The compound included seven buildings used by the terror group, according to the IDF.
The IDF said it also struck a Hezbollah command center in Toura.
Since October 8, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there. Some 3,100 rockets, missiles, and drones have been launched from Lebanon at northern Israel since the beginning of the war. Another 35 have been fired from Syria, according to the IDF.
Some 4,700 Hezbollah positions have been hit by the IDF amid the war, according to the military.
So far, the skirmishes on the border have resulted in eight civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 10 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.
Hezbollah has named 273 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 53 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and at least 60 civilians, three of whom were journalists, have been killed.
[NAHARNET] The Lebanese Forces A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb... ’ coordinator in Jbeil, Pascal Sleiman, was killed during the attempt to steal his car Sunday in the Jbeil district, the Lebanese Army announced on Monday, after the man’s reported abduction raised tensions in the country and prompted protesters to block the vital Jbeil highway.
"The army’s Intelligence Directorate has managed to arrest most of the Syrian members of the gang that carried out the abduction operation," the army said in a statement.
"During their interrogation, it turned out that the abductee was killed by them during their attempt to steal his car in the Jbeil region and that they transferred his body to Syria," the army added.
"The Army Command is coordinating with Syrian authorities over the body’s handover and the investigations are continuing under the supervision of the public prosecution," the army said.
In earlier statements, the army had announced the arrest of five Syrian suspects.
All busiesses were closed in the city of Jbeil on Monday in protest at Sleiman's abduction.
Sleiman’s phone was reportedly found in the town of Thoum in Batroun after he was kidnapped and his car stolen while his kidnappers' car was found Monday in Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... by army intelligence agents.
Political and religious leaders in lebanon condemned the incident, while Grand Jaafarite Mufti Sheikh Ahmed Qabalan warned against "political exploitation" and "sectarian mobilization."
Pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar newspaper had reported Monday, based on information it received from sources in the Lebanese Forces, that the party "is keen on civil peace" and is against throwing accusations against any party before the army's investigation ends.
The daily said a car with a foreign license plate and with four gunnies inside it had intercepted Suleiman’s car as he returned from a funeral in the town of al-Kharbeh, between the town of Lehfed and the Mayfouq-Haqel road.
"An audio recording was circulated of Suleiman talking to someone when the button men intercepted his car," al-Akhbar said. Suleiman is heard asking them not to kill him before the call was cut off, the reports said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/09/2024 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Hezbollah
[NAHARNET] An Iranian general killed in a strike in Syria's capital was a member of Hezbollah's Shoura Council, the powerful Lebanese group's decision-making body, a source close to the movement said.
The April 1 air strike leveled the Iranian embassy's consular annex in Damascus, killing seven Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members, including two generals.
One of them was Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior commander in the Quds Force, the Guards' foreign operations arm.
Zahedi was the only non-Lebanese on Hezbollah's eight-member Shoura Council, the equivalent of the powerful Shiite Moslem movement's political bureau, led by secretary general Sayyed His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah ...The satrap of the Medes and the Persians in Leb... , the source said, requesting anonymity because the matter is sensitive.
In a speech Monday, Nasrallah paid homage to Zahedi and his colleagues killed in the strike, which Tehran and Damascus have blamed on Israel.
In a previous speech, Nasrallah said his group "owed a lot" to the senior Iranian official.
Zahedi "lived with us for long years, away from the spotlight, and provided important services to the resistance in Leb ...an Iranian satrapy currently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... and the whole region," Nasrallah said Friday during a televised address.
Zahedi, 63, had held a succession of commands in a Guards career spanning more than 40 years, and was the most important Iranian military official killed since a United States missile strike at Baghdad airport in 2020 killed General Qasem Soleimani, who headed the Quds Force.
Tehran has promised to respond to the strike, which killed 16 people including two civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitor of Syria's years-long civil war.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/09/2024 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
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.
...... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa...
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
[Regnum] More than 90 people have died after a fishing boat sank off the coast of 
...an Iranian satrapy currently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else? It is the home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
