A former Marine who prosecutors say led the slaying of four unarmed Iraqi insurgents refused to testify Thursday evening against one of the men charged in the shootings.
Jose L. Nazario Jr. appeared at the end of a marathon session in the trial of Sgt. Ryan Weemer, who is accused of killing one of the prisoners the men had captured inside a home in the city of Fallujah on Nov. 9, 2004.
"With all due respect, I will not answer any questions," Nazario repeatedly told a prosecutor, Capt. Nick Gannon.
The judge presiding over Weemer's trial, Lt. Col. Thomas Sanzi, reminded the former Marine that he had an immunity grant and a subpoena directing he testify.
"You have to answer," Sanzi told Nazario, who was acquitted last August of two counts of manslaughter for his role in the incident.
When Nazario still refused, the judge and Gannon gave up.
"It's futile, given his recalcitrance," Gannon said.
The jury that acquitted Nazario said it could not decide the propriety of actions occurring on a foreign battlefield.
Nazario was tried as a civilian in U.S. District Court in Riverside because he was out of the Marine Corps and not subject to being recalled to duty.
Weemer has pleaded not guilty to one count of unpremeditated murder and four counts of dereliction of duty for alleged mistreatment of detainees.
During Nazario's trial, Weemer and Sgt. Jermaine Nelson, who is charged with killing the fourth prisoner, also defied subpoenas and refused to testify.
Thursday was punctuated with continuous legal wrangling and multiple interruptions in witness testimony.
On two occasions, lead defense attorney Paul Hackett asked for a mistrial declaration, contending that the jury had been tainted by hearing statements from prosecutors and witnesses that he argued were overly prejudicial.
On Wednesday, Hackett was accused of doing much the same thing when he asked a government investigator if he was aware that Nazario had been acquitted.
That statement also tainted the jury, prosecutors said.
The judge refused to declare a mistrial.
A key witness appearing Thursday was Cory Carlisle, a member of the squad inside the home when the slayings are alleged to have occurred.
Carlisle said that shortly after hearing a gunshot inside the home, he saw the then-Cpl. Weemer standing near the body of the oldest captive.
"He went for my gun," Carlisle said Weemer told him.
Later that day as they sat inside a Humvee, Carlisle said Weemer expressed remorse and said the prisoners were killed because of a "command from higher up."
Carlisle, like Weemer, was shot and wounded a few days after the incident.
But he said the prisoner shooting was worse than being wounded.
"I often refer to it as 'the worst day of my life,' " Carlisle said, adding he second-guesses himself for not having intervened.
Asked by Gannon if he believed anything warranted the prisoners being shot, Carlisle said no.
"They were unarmed," he said.
Weemer's attorneys say Nazario ordered the shootings and Weemer did so only in self-defense.
Nazario's order to shoot came after he radioed insurgents had been captured and was reportedly told by an unnamed superior to "take care of it" and asked "are they dead yet?"
The trial continues Friday morning and testimony is expected to conclude Friday or Monday.
It takes two-thirds of the jury to convict Weemer on any of the charges he faces.
The Afghan president said Saturday he had ordered a review of a new law that critics say makes it legal for men to rape their wives, responding to criticism from around the world that included sharp comments from President Barack Obama.
The law, signed by President Hamid Karzai last month, is intended to regulate family life inside Afghanistan's Shiite community, which makes up 10 percent to 20 percent of the country's 30 million people. Under one article legislating the frequency of sexual relations between Shiite husbands and wives, husbands have the right to sex every fourth night unless the wife is ill.
The United Nations Development Fund for Women has said the law "legalizes the rape of a wife by her husband."
...
Karzai did not mention the controversial article on Saturday but said at a news conference he had studied the law earlier in the day and that "I don't see any problems with it."
He complained that Western media outlets had mistranslated it. He read an article of the law during the news conference that appears to restrict Shiite women's right to leave their homes, though Karzai underscored a provision that allows women to leave in emergencies.
Still, he said the law should be reviewed in consultation with scholars and religious leaders. "I ordered the justice minister to review the law, and if there is anything that would contravene the country's constitution or Shariah law or the freedom our constitution gives to Afghan women, without any doubt there will be changes in it, and again it will be sent to the parliament of Afghanistan," he said. "Measures will be taken."
Critics have accused Karzai of signing the law to court Shiite votes in the country's August presidential election.
Posted by: ed ||
04/04/2009 15:19 ||
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STRASBOURG, France -- Britain will consider sending extra troops to Afghanistan to help with security during the presidential election in August, a British government official said Friday. The temporary increase in the number of British troops could be in the 'mid to high hundreds,' a government source said.
Britain has more than 8,000 troops in Afghanistan, the second largest foreign contingent after the United States.
The official indicated that Britain had taken no decision on a permanent increase in its troops there despite pleas from US President Barack Obama for Europe to step up its contribution to the war on Taleban insurgents.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will tell other NATO leaders at a summit opening in Strasbourg later Friday that his offer of extra troops depends on other NATO countries doing their bit, the official traveling with Brown said. 'The prime minister will be making clear in the discussions that we would be prepared to offer a temporary increase in our troop numbers for Afghanistan to cover the election period,' said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'This would be subject to appropriate burden-sharing and appropriate contributions from other NATO member states.'
The official said there was a significant risk that Taleban insurgents would try to disrupt the presidential election, which is scheduled for August 20. 'A democratic Afghanistan and smooth running of the elections is clearly in our interests,' he said. 'A democratic Afghanistan helps stop terrorism on the streets of Britain.'
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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[Beirut Daily Star: Region] The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Friday announced a project to step up help to the troubled Sudanese region of Darfur following last monthŽs expulsion of 13 international aid agencies. The plan envisages ŽŽurgent and continued aid services,ŽŽ help for refugees to go home and rebuilding in the war-torn western region.
More ammo for the widows!
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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[Jerusalem Post Front Page] Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman's diplomatic bombshell Wednesday that Israel was no longer obligated by the Annapolis process, but was committed to the road map, was followed by silence on Thursday as neither Lieberman nor Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's office issued directives to Israeli diplomats about how to explain the new policy abroad.
Egypt, meanwhile, responded negatively to Lieberman's obvious attempt to mend his relations with Cairo, with the Egyptian Foreign Ministry issuing a statement that Egypt "did not need any party to recognize its position or role, especially from those who have previously attacked it."
Lieberman said during his speech at the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday that Egypt was an important country in the Arab world and a key factor in maintaining regional stability. In the past, he had harshly criticized Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for refusing to visit Israel, and once said Israel could attack the Aswan Dam in case of a future war with Egypt.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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Since Annapolis accords were signed between my-parents-can't-spell Rice and Abu Mazen---nobody obliged to them but these two.
[Bangla Daily Star] The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has decided to take statements of ministers and lawmakers who played roles in negotiating with Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) jawans involved in the February 25-26 carnage at Pilkhana BDR headquarters.
"We will soon take statements of the ministers and lawmakers to learn what the mutineers told them at negotiation meetings and over mobile phones," said a top CID official investigating the carnage, seeking anonymity.
Their statements will also help identify those BDR personnel.
Meanwhile, three more BDR jawans yesterday confessed to their involvement in the carnage before Metropolitan Magistrate Zulfikar Hayat. They are Havilder Masud Iqbal, Nayek Abdul Qaiyum and Sepoy Monirul Alam.
Earlier, six BDR members confessed to their involvement in the BDR massacre.
Sources said the investigators might talk to Home Minister Sahara Khatun, State Minister for LGRD Jahangir Kabir Nanok, lawmakers Fazle Nur Tapas, Mirza Azam and Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir.
When contacted for comments, Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Abdul Kahar Akand told The Daily Star that they may talk to the ministers and lawmakers and take their statements, if necessary, to gather information. "It is no secret that they talked to the mutineers--they were quoted in newspapers and shown on television channels," said Akand, the investigation officer of the mutiny case.
Sources said examining call lists of mobile phone operators the CID has already identified a number of BDR jawans who talked to the ministers, lawmakers and a few influential persons.
Earlier, the CID summoned Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdur Razzaq to the CID headquarters and quizzed him for over three hours.
It could not be learnt if the ministers and lawmakers will be summoned too. But CID sources said the investigators have prepared a list of politicians and other influential persons for summoning them for a hearing.
The CID sources said they had been carrying out investigation in coordination with the two committees formed by the government and Bangladesh Army to probe the BDR carnage.
Talking to The Daily Star, ASP Akand said they yesterday interrogated 13 accused BDR jawans and produced eight more jawans arrested by the Rab on Thursday from the BDR headquarters before the court. The court sent them on three-day remand.
Commerce Minister Faruk Khan yesterday said the investigators are gathering information about the involvement of more people. "Fresh evidence and clues are coming out, but those cannot be disclosed now. We hope that the investigation will end very soon," he said while addressing a reception accorded to the successful students of a coaching centre in the city.
The eight BDR members arrested Thursday were taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital early yesterday for treatment. But the cause of their injuries could not be known.
Sources said Lalbagh police took the arrestees to the hospital at about 12:30am and took them back around 3:00am.
Our Rangpur correspondent reports: Rab members arrested retired BDR sepoy Mamunur Rashid at his house in north Munshipara in the town yesterday in connection with the Pilkhana carnage. They recovered a bullet and a set of BDR uniform from him.
Mamunur Rashid was terminated from job last November for violating discipline, Rab sources said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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CARACAS - A Venezuelan ex-defense minister who resigned President Hugo Chavez's government to join the opposition was placed under 'preventive arrest' Friday while he is investigated for alleged corruption, his lawyer said.
Former general Raul Baduel was arrested Thursday and released pending a hearing before a military tribunal that on Friday put him behind bars while prosecutors prepare to officially charge him in about a month, attorney Omar Mora told reporters. 'They can't say 'I'll keep this person in detention because I'll be charging him in 30 days',' he said. 'That goes against every right and legal precept.'
Baduel told reporters his arrest was carried out on Chavez's 'express orders,' and accused the president of using 'the justice system and other public offices like mercenaries to intimidate' members of the opposition.
Baduel was defense minister from 2002 to 2007, after which he resigned and joined the opposition to Chavez's leftist government.
In October Baduel was arrested and accused of withdrawing some 14.4 million dollars of funds belonging to the Armed Forces. Prosecutor Ernesto Cedeno said Monday there was enough information to support the allegations. Baduel had repeatedly stated that the charges amounted to 'political persecution' due to his fierce opposition to Chavez.
Baduel and Chavez were among the army officers that began the Bolivarian Movement within the Venezuelan military in 1983. Baduel also headed the civilian-military operation that restored Chavez to power after he was briefly ousted in a 47-hour coup in April 2002.
Mora said the case against his client is 'arbitrary' and 'riddled with mistakes.'
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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BEIJING, April 3 KYODO -- All U.S. food aid workers who were in North Korea left by the end of March, in line with an expulsion order Pyongyang issued as it rejected further shipments of food aid from Washington, diplomatic sources said Friday.
The last of the workers from U.S. nongovernmental organizations left the country early this week, the sources said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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U.S. aid workers leave N. Korea after expulsion order
At the double-time and failing to look back I suspect.
The wife and children of the North Korean trade representative in Shanghai have recently defected from the North to the South, it emerged Thursday. The woman, identified only as Ri, arrived in Seoul in early March through the South Korean Embassy in Singapore and is now going though questioning like other North Korean defectors, North Korean sources said.
Ri reportedly sought protection at the embassy in Singapore in January while her husband was in Pyongyang for a meeting. She decided to defect to South Korea after a troubling incident two years ago when a junior official accused her husband of spying, sources said. Her defection route has not been independently confirmed.
The North Korean trade commission in Shanghai was established after Kim Jong-il's visit to China in 2001 and its main task is to take care of North Korean businessmen and restaurants in Shanghai.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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She takes her kids and defects while hubby is back in Pyongyang.
That certainly eliminates him the messy necessity of a divorce....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
04/04/2009 0:57 Comments ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday demanded North Korea halt its "provocative" impending missile launch, in a strongly worded public challenge after North Korea's military said it would attack "major targets" in Japan if Tokyo attempts to shoot down a satellite it intends to launch as soon as this weekend.
At a joint news conference with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, ahead of the 60th anniversary of the NATO summit, Obama said: "We have made very clear to the North Koreans that their missile launch is provocative."
The presidents comments came after Korean People's Army (KPA) issued a statement saying: "If Japan recklessly 'intercepts' the DPRK's (North's) satellite for peaceful purposes, the KPA will mercilessly deal deadly blows not only at the already deployed intercepting means but at major targets."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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Look - they have no major defenders anymore and only a fig leaf from china...
Just destroy the place..
[Iran Press TV Latest] Former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton says that Washington should consider military action against North Korea should its upcoming rocket launch hit Japan.
Bolton, who served as US envoy to the United Nations under former president George W. Bush, said he did not support a pre-emptive strike as it was unclear how serious North Korea's test would be. "But if there is a real possibility of this landing in Japan or in any populated area, then we would have to look at it very carefully," Bolton told AFP.
"The Japanese don't have the luxury of distance to see whether it's a grapefruit or a basketball or whatever," he said, referring to speculation on the size of the North Korean payload.
This is while US defense officials and the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) said on Tuesday that a commercial satellite image of the Musudan-ri missile test site showed a Taepodong-2 missile with a bulb-shaped payload cover, consistent with a satellite payload, rather than a warhead.
Bolton, now a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, has been an outspoken opponent of what he sees as a policy of rewards to North Korea led by State Department negotiators both under Bush and President Barack Obama.
Stephen Bosworth, the Obama administration's envoy to North Korea, on Friday held out hope that Pyongyang would not go ahead with the launch but said that proper 'consequences' would be requited should the launch take place.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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HMMMMMM. well. in retrospect + considering the Tokyo Official's infamous proposition of CHINA TAKING OVER A FAILED AND FAILING NOKOR STATE, we shouldn't be surprised iff its NOKOR that desires war, nor attacks first.
#2
Mr Bolton, respectfully, we ARE a war with North Korea, at this moment, Forgot did you?
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
04/04/2009 14:54 Comments ||
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AT WAR dammit
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
04/04/2009 14:55 Comments ||
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I think we could develop a bulgogi bomb and plaster the towns with freshly cooked beef. The Army would be so busy eating they wouldn't notice our tanks driving around.
[Kyodo: Korea] The Japanese government went on heightened alert on Saturday ahead of North KoreaŽs imminent launch of a communications satellite, which Japan sees as a cover for test-firing a long-range ballistic missile. The Self-Defense Forces have readied themselves to shoot down the launch vehicle if it is seen falling toward Japanese territory. The projectile is expected to fly over northeastern Japan after the launch, which North Korea has said will take place sometime between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. between Saturday and Wednesday.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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The Japanese people appear to be pretty upset over this launch too.
[Al Arabiya Latest] United States President Barack Obama warned Europe on Friday that it should not expect the U.S. to carry the burden of fighting a campaign against global terrorism, stemming from Afghanistan, alone, in a press conference with his French counterpart ahead of a key NATO summit.
The 60th anniversary of the NATO summit came fresh off the heels of the Group of 20 summit in the United Kingdom, where heads of state wrangled over the financial crisis, and was set to be dominated by talks on Afghanistan, Russia and Iran.
As London recovered from days of pro-justice protests, demonstrators in France and Germany, where the NATO leaders were set to meet , vowed to disrupt the summit.
On Thursday, police clashed with hundreds of protesters in Strasbourg, repeatedly firing tear gas and rubber bullets. French police said they had arrested 300 youths during the clashes. Protests were also carried out in Germany but no incidents were reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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US can´t fight terror alone, Obama tells Europe
And, since Europe won't help us, we quit.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
04/04/2009 0:11 Comments ||
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I was wondering if that was the message ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/04/2009 0:15 Comments ||
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Ya ain't gonna get no help from that bunch of pussies, sonny-boy.
In what a federal judge called a betrayal of his country and fellow service members that stretched from San Diego to the Persian Gulf and London by way of Connecticut, a former U.S. sailor was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison.
Hassan Abu-jihaad was a signalman on the guided missile destroyer USS Benfold when his San Diego-based battle group was ordered to the gulf to participate in operations against Iraq, the Taliban and al-Qaida. A jury convicted him in March 2008 of providing terrorist sympathizers who ran a London-based Internet business with classified information on his battle group's movements, which could have made it vulnerable to attack. Abu-jihaad was prosecuted in New Haven federal court because his e-mails were routed through computers in Connecticut. Judge Mark R. Kravitz said Abu-jihaad's actions were a "fundamental betrayal of your county and your oath" that endangered the United States and his shipmates.
Abu-jihaad, 33, a divorced father of two, converted to Islam in 1995 and lived in Phoenix. Prosecutors said Abu-jihaad, which means "father of holy struggle" in Arabic, sent e-mail to two computer experts accused of running Azzam Publications, the al-Qaida-connected Internet business in London in 2000 and 2001.
In arguing for the maximum sentence, Assistant U.S. Attorney William Nardini said Abu-jihaad in e-mails praised the October 2000 terrorist suicide attack on the USS Cole -- in which 17 sailors died -- as effective psychological warfare and a "martyrdom operation." "He believed that dying in a fight against the United States would make him a martyr," Nardini said. "It's a twisted mind-set." Abu-jihaad, who did not address the court at is sentencing, said through his attorney that he maintains his innocence.
Abu-jihaad's actions were revealed when British authorities searched the home of Babar Ahmad, who ran Azzam Publications with Syed Talha Ahsan. The two British citizens were arrested in 2004, and U.S. authorities are trying to extradite them. The case is now before the European Court of Human Rights.
The New Haven jury also convicted Abu-jihaad, born Paul R. Hall, of material support of terrorism, which also carried a maximum sentence of 10 years. Kravitz overturned that conviction last month, citing reasons "largely related to the language" of the applicable federal law.
Nora R. Dannehy, acting U.S. attorney for Connecticut, said Friday that prosecutors had not decided yet whether to appeal Kravitz's decision on the dismissed charge. Dan LaBelle, one of Abu-jihaad's attorneys, immediately filed an appeal after he was sentenced Friday
SWAT: The spokesman of outlawed Tahreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Muslim Khan said the incident of flogging a girl did not take place in Swat.
Talking to media, Muslim Khan said the act is in accordance with shariah but this was not happened in Swat. He said the punishment awarded to woman was just as the woman was loose character but the incident shown in video was another one.
Khan said no one would allow to interfere in shariah and if any man or woman commit sin, we will punish them according to shariah. Peace is directly related with imposition of Islamic laws.
He termed the video played on media yesterday as fake and said we will punish the man who filmed the video whenever we catch him. We could not follow west, he further added.
Posted by: john frum ||
04/04/2009 09:02 ||
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That is took place on the planet at all, in the name of the ROP (spit), is an indictment of all the rest of us...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
04/04/2009 12:09 Comments ||
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All I saw was a bunch of muzzie sickos getting their rocks off whipping some poor girl..
Fits right in with a pedophile top dog prophet.
After video clips of a 17-year-old girl being flogged in public by Taliban fighters in Pakistan's Swat valley were shown on TV, India's Islamic scholars denounced it as "un-Islamic" and "satanic" and condemned it as "gross violation" of Quranic codes.Renowned Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khan spoke out strongly against the incident and added that if anything, the act was absolutely "un-Islamic - even satanic"."This kind of treatment is neither Islamic nor human. In fact, not only is it un-Islamic and inhuman, but also satanic," Khan, who has authored over 200 books on Islam, told IANS."The first thing that should be done is to educate people, develop ethical values, sensitivity towards women and treat them equally. Society can be reformed through education - punishment (of the perpetrators) can never be the starting point for any kind of reform or change," he added.
Similarly, Mushirul Hasan, vice chancellor of the Jamia Millia Islamia university, condemned the incident saying that it was a wrong portrayal of Islam, which preaches exactly opposite of what the Taliban were seen doing to the hapless young girl."I am horrified. This (incident) is a gross violation of Islamic and Quranic injunctions which teaches humanity, love, peace and magnanimity," Hasan told IANS.The dangers of imposing Sharia laws in Pakistan's restive Swat Valley were brought into sharp focus Friday with the airing of a two-minute video showing a 17-year-old screaming, burqa-clad girl being whipped by Taliban fighters for coming "out of her house with another man who was not her husband".The grainy video, shot on a mobile phone, showed the girl face down on the ground. Two men held her arms and feet while a third, a black-turbaned man with a flowing beard, whipped her repeatedly.
Salima Khan, a student doing her PhD in Delhi University, said that she literally boiled in anger after seeing the video clip on YouTube, the popular video sharing website and then again on TV."I can't believe how anybody can humiliate and beat up an innocent young girl in the name of religion. And what was her fault - that she was seen with a man who was not her husband! Who in their right state of mind would ever dare to do such a dastardly act?"Such acts just show how Islam has been grossly misinterpreted by a handful of people who are using it as a tool to serve their own cause," Salima said angrily.
On YouTube, the video received thousands of hits overnight and a barrage of comments.
One of the comments read: "These people (Taliban) should be given a taste of their own medicine. They should be whipped in public for maligning the name of Islam and inflicting torture on poor, helpless women".Another comment from an Indian woman read: "Thank God I was born in India and not there (Swat valley). There they treat women like animals - no, even worse. To live a life like that seems like sheer hell."However, the authorities of Darul Uloom, one of the most renowned seminaries in the Deoband town of western Uttar Pradesh, chose to keep mum.
Maulana Abdul Khaleeq Madrasi, pro vice chancellor of the seminary, told IANS: "We cannot give any statement on the matter from the institution as we don't know the details at the moment".India has an estimated 140 million Muslims, the third largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan.
Posted by: john frum ||
04/04/2009 08:58 ||
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[Geo News] Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Friday said public whipping of a girl in Swat does not reflect Islam. Talking to media after visiting the mausoleum of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto here in Garhi Khuda Buksh, Qureshi said tribute will be paid to the leadership of Pakistan People's Party including Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto at the meeting of Central Executive Committee. Denouncing the public flogging of a girl in Swat, he said the act is not in conformity with the teachings of Islam. The Foreign Minister said it is Pakistan's desire that the composite dialogue with India be resumed.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Now stoning...
Posted by: European Conservative ||
04/04/2009 8:59 Comments ||
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[The News (Pak)] Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has said that the Elite Force should be prepared to eliminate terrorism, extremism and militancy and, for this purpose, its training as well as provision of modern weapons should be ensured keeping in view the present situation.
Presiding over a meeting at the Elite Police Training School, Baidian, here on Friday, he said that all possible resources would be provided to the force for curbing heinous crimes, protecting life and property of people and creating a sense of security among them.
The chief minister said the Elite Force was established to eliminate heinous crimes and it should be used only for this purpose, adding that a formal legislation should be introduced in this regard. He issued directions that the Elite Force officials, deployed at various places, should be called back and best training should be provided to those deputed on the security of VIPs and the colour of their uniform should be changed.
Shahbaz said an audit system should be evolved for checking the performance of officials getting training from the Elite Police Training School, which would not only help improve their performance but also remove their shortcomings. He said 500 assistant sub-inspectors, selected by the Punjab Public Service Commission, should be trained at the school after completion of their training at Sihala to further improve their performance.
He said the Elite Police should always remain on high alert to cope with terrorism and they should evolve their own effective intelligence system, maintaining close liaison and consultation with the departments concerned.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
To be trained for counter-terrorism is also to be trained for terrorism, I should think.
[Geo News] Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari has strongly denounced the flogging in public of a young woman in Swat and called for a report from the government and apprehending those involved in the heinous crime. Right. Send the Mighty Pak Army to catch 'em, President Ten Percent.
Spokesperson of the President former Senator Farhatullah Babar said that the President was shocked over this act of barbarism and had asked for a report from the government and local administration. He said that the inhuman and barbaric punishment meted out to the woman had made the heads of the people hang in shame. "For its sheer atrocity the incident will continue to haunt people and the country even in a distant age and clime", the spokesperson said. I doubt it. This is a country where acid attacks are common and male relatives bump off female relatives for showing a bit of cheek.
He said that the perpetrators of the crime had done a great disservice to humanity, religion and morality. "Such barbarism is unpardonable and cannot be tolerated; it will not be." It'll be forgotten in a week.
The spokesperson said that the militants wanted to impose a medieval and obscurantist agenda in the name of religion on the people through gun and bullets but they will not be allowed. They've already been allowed. Remember? The govt turned Swat over to them.
Farhatullah Babar said that those who provide political and moral support to the militants behind one pretext or the other should also pause and reflect as to whether this is what they want the country to degenerate into. They must come out openly in denouncing the incident unequivocally and assist in apprehending and punishing them under the law. Indeed every member of the civil society must raise his or her voice and denounce this monstriety, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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[Geo News] Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday condemned the flogging of a girl in Swat and ordered an inquiry into the incident. Talking to journalists here, Gilani said Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto were the champions of the rights of women and minorities, adding that the government will bring legislation in the parliament for the rights of women. Oh, yeah. That oughta do it.
About the situation in Swat and tribal areas, the prime minister said the government was following a three-pronged strategy i.e. dialogue, development and deterrence. So howzat workin' for yez?
He said the military option is not a permanent solution and is used as deterrence only when the writ of the government is challenged. Like in Swat?
The Prime Minister said Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had a mission for the country's development and socio-economic progress of masses, which was also promoted and forwarded by Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed through her vision. He termed the Charter of Democracy (CoD), signed between Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and PML (N) chief Mian Nawaz Sharif, a blueprint providing the country a way forward for development. No doubt that's the first thing he and President Ten Percent think about when they get up in the morning.
The Prime Minister said Nizam-e-Adl Regulations were in vogue when Swat was a princely state, adding, in 1994 Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed had also approved these regulations. Oh. Well. In that case it's okay. Why'd they stop, by the way?
To a question about restoration of government in Punjab and the PPP's participation, the Prime Minister said the party would decide whether to sit in government or in the opposition. The Prime Minister said the government believes in the politics of reconciliation and the PPP and PML (N) were in unison on the view not to destabilize each other's government. He said the focus should be on national issues such as unemployment, poverty and law and order.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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[ADN Kronos] By Syed Saleem Shahzad - The release of a video showing a 17-year-old girl being brutally flogged in public is a deliberate attempt to sabotage the peace deal signed with the Taliban in Pakistan's troubled northwestern Swat valley, according to North West Frontier Province's information minister, Mian Iftikhar. Which is? The flogging or the video? The video presumably records what took place, right?
The shocking two-minute video shows bearded Islamic militants - one of whom is her brother - holding the girl down as she screams out in pain. It was aired Friday on a Pakistani TV channel talk show and inflamed public opinion in the country. "We were able to acquire peace [in the Swat valley] after a very long time and such media manipulations showing a past event as recent would spoil these efforts and could drag the region once again in turmoil," Iftikhar told reporters. "Yeah. That happened a long time ago. We were all much younger then."
"How long ago?"
"'Bout 24 hours. That's all yesterday's news. Times have changed. It's time to move on."
He claims he personally visited the Swat valley to investigate the case and that the flogging occurred on 3 January, nearly five weeks before the Swat peace deal was signed on 16 February. Local Islamic courts were established a few days later. "So, y'see, you're comparing apples and oranges and stuff."
Iftikhar is the leader of the anti-Taliban secular Pashtun Awami National Party, which was targeted by Islamic militants during a bloody two-year conflict with security forces in the Swat valley which ended in February when they signed a controversial peace deal with the NWFP government.
"Some rules were ignored during the implementation of flogging like, it should be done behind closed doors and not in public."
The Taliban have downplayed the video. "This was an old incident which happened before the Islamic Sharia courts were constituted in the Swat Valley and even before the ceasefire was announced. It was not officially done by the Taliban but some Taliban did that in their private capacity," Taliban spokesperson Haji Muslim Khan told Adnkronos International (AKI).
Khan said the girl's flogging took place while the Taliban was fighting the Pakistani army. "We were not in a position to control each and every event and therefore some lapses happened," he said. "Nevertheless, one thing was confirmed and that is that the girl was wayward and therefore she should be punished."
The flogging occurred after a neighbour reportedly claimed the girl had a relationship with a married man. "Some rules were ignored during the implementation of flogging like, it should be done behind closed doors and not in public," Khan admitted.
Pakistan's chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry has ordered Pakistan's interior secretary and the NWFP government to prepare a report on the incident by by Monday.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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The UN has appointed South African judge and former war crimes prosecutor Richard Goldstone to lead a fact-finding mission to the Gaza Strip. Mr Goldstone will investigate alleged violations of international law during the recent conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants. According to the 'BBC', Martin Uhomoibhi, president of the UN Human Rights Council, said the mission would be independent and impartial. Goldstone will lead a four-member team, which also includes experts from Pakistan, Britain, and Ireland, in investigating "all violations of international humanitarian law" before, during and after the Israeli campaign in Gaza that ended on January 18. "It's in the interest of the victims. It brings acknowledgment of what happened to them. It can assist the healing process," Mr Goldstone said in a very impartial manner.
I see you get a fancy title and a "His Excellency" when you are chair of the UNHRC. Does it come with a sash and sprocket as well?
H.E. Mr. Martin Uhomoibhi,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
President of the UN Human Rights Council
Room A-576
Palais des Nations
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
The bodies of two gay men have been found in Baghdad's Shiite slum of Sadr City after a leading cleric repeatedly condemned homosexuality, an Iraqi police official said Saturday.
The killings come after Shiite cleric Sattar al-Battat repeatedly condemned homosexuality during recent Friday prayers, saying Islam prohibits homosexuality. Homosexual acts are punishable by up to seven years in prison in Iraq.
The two men were believed killed Thursday by relatives who were shamed by their behavior, said the official. Police said they suspected the killings were at the hands of family members because no one has claimed the bodies or called for an investigation.
The killings come weeks after Iraqi police found four bodies in late March buried near Sadr City with the words "pervert" and "puppies" written on their chests, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.
Puppy is a derogatory word used by residents in Sadr City to refer to homosexuals, the official said.
Posted by: ed ||
04/04/2009 15:32 ||
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[Khaleej Times] Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told Iraqis on Friday that Al-Qaeda rebels and Saddam Hussein loyalists had infiltrated a pro-government militia that had helped to tame the country's deadly insurgency.
The premier used an hour-long interview on state-run television to say that rogue elements existed within the Sahwa, also known as the Awakening and Sons of Iraq, and that they would be hunted down and brought to justice.
"Our intelligence reports confirm that Al-Baath and Al-Qaeda have infiltrated Sahwas," Maliki told Al-Iraqiya, referring to executed dictator Saddam's political party and the notorious Islamist extremist group. "It's not a question of Shiite and Sunni conflict. It's a question of an organised armed party that is banned and wants to create problems."
Maliki's comments follow deadly clashes in Baghdad last weekend and come as the former Sunni insurgents turned government and US-funded fighters completed a transfer to Iraqi control. The violence saw two civilians killed and 15 wounded in fighting that followed the arrest of prominent Sahwa leader Adel Mashhadani on suspicion of murder and extortion.
US-backed Iraqi forces and the Sahwa, provoked by Mashhadani's detention, fought sporadic gunbattles in the ancient Baghdad district of Fadel, the worst violence seen in the capital for nearly a year.
Fighters were later ordered by the government to surrender their weapons or face reprisals.
"This is a message sent to the people taking the same path as organised criminals. No one should think that the state is not aware of their contacts," said Maliki of Mashhadani's arrest. "The day will come where everyone will have to face justice."
His speech came hours after sources told AFP that dozens of Sahwa have been arrested.
"The Iraqi security forces, during the last few days, arrested 10 members of the Sahwa in Dora, including a number under the accusation of terrorism," said Mohammad al-Gartani, one of the southwest Baghdad district's Sahwa leaders.
He claimed that the Sahwa, who were formed to help fight Al-Qaeda, were being persecuted. "We are very worried about the future of Sahwa forces, and we don't know where to go, because the government and the American forces are chasing us, and Al-Qaeda is targeting us," Gartani said.
The arrests in Dora, where the Awakening forces number about 2,450, included five Sahwa leaders.
Other commanders on Friday told AFP of further arrests. In the western Baghdad district of Ghazaliyah, former Iraqi army Lieutenant Colonel Raad Ali was one of two Sahwa arrested eight days ago--before Mashhadani's detention. "I was arrested last week under the accusation of terrorism, including killing, kidnapping and planting bombs," Ali told AFP by telephone, after being freed. "During the investigation it was discovered that the information was not true and was given by someone who is wanted. The judge understood the matter and released me immediately," he said.
The US military said earlier this week that 28 people were detained in the weekend clashes, and 14 were later released.
Security has improved dramatically since 2007, when Iraqi and US forces launched offensives against Al-Qaeda militants with the help of the Sahwa. However the government, which on Thursday completed the transfer of the Sahwa from US forces, has said only 20 percent of the total 92,000-strong militia will be employed in the security forces.
Others have been promised government jobs or training, but there are fears that amid high unemployment and a war-battered economy many of the former rebels will have few opportunities.
In a separate incident in Taji, 35 kilometres (22 miles) north of Baghdad, the US military said four alleged Sons of Iraq members were targeted from the air, leaving one dead and two wounded, on Thursday night. The statement said the men had been planting a roadside bomb.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
It would surprise me if some Sahwa were not infiltrated - by Baathists and/or al Qaeda. It would surprise me if some IA units were not too. Or for that matter, infiltrated by Iranian Special Groups.
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] As world leaders wrapped up on Friday an economic summit in London aimed at tackling the global financial crisis, a number of them took the opportunity to touch on another contentious issue by calling Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and urging him to work towards a two-state solution.
Chancellor Angel Merkel phoned the new premier and underlined Germany's commitment to strong relations with Israel, but called on Netanyahu to support the peace process with the Palestinians.
According to the chancellor's spokesman Thomas Steg, Merkel stressed German hope that the new Israeli government will continue to support international efforts and agreements aimed at arriving at a two-state solution.
Her comments were echoed by British Prime Minister Gordan Brown, who also phoned Netanyahu a short time later, AFP reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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#2
Their economies are collapsing. Soon the irate citizenry, following the old European tradition, will be voting fascists into power. But they still find time to address the Jewish Problem. That's dedication for you!
[Iran Press TV Latest] UN Secretary-General renews a call on Sri Lanka's rebel leaders to provide for the trapped civilians in the island's north to leave the conflict area.
Ban Ki-moon in a statement on Friday told the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leaders that the severe restrictions that the rebel group has imposed on the civilians violate the international law on the freedom of movement.
"The secretary-general is deeply distressed by continuing reports from the Vanni region of Sri Lanka that civilians are at extreme risk, with heavy casualties," and the LTTE rebels "are keeping civilians in a very small area of active conflict against their will," the statement said.
"While some have been able to leave or escape, reliable reports indicate that the LTTE have prevented others from leaving, including by firing at them," it added.
"At the same time, the secretary-general again reminds the government of Sri Lanka of its responsibility to protect civilians in war zones, and to avoid the use of heavy weapons in areas where there are civilians, as promised," the statement further said.
The statement also said that the Sri Lankan government should receive and treat displaced people in accordance with international law and "work closely with the United Nations in meeting the protection and physical needs of displaced persons."
Elsewhere, the statement said, "The secretary-general also deplores the forced recruitment of civilians, particularly children" by the rebel group.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] The United States will push for new U.N. sanctions against Iran later this year if President Barack Obama's effort to improve relations fails to stop Tehran from pursuing its nuclear program, U.S. diplomats said late on Thursday.
But plans for a fourth round of international sanctions will remain on hold at least until after Iran's presidential elections in June, diplomats added.
Earlier this week, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Western powers should not rush to impose new sanctions on Iran at a time when Tehran has a good chance to move to normal ties with Washington.
There are hopes in Washington and other Western capitals that a moderate will win the Iranian election and seize upon Obama's recent offer of new diplomatic engagement with the Islamic Republic.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I love hearing about sanctions, isn't that where the ruling classes with hold necessities from the commoners so they don't have to do without?
Great plan jackasses, it always worked so well in the past.
#2
Sanctions have only worked when stringently enforced. Iran has a rich primary network, Russia, China, etc, as well as an ample underground network of suppliers. Finally, the loophole of "dual use" technology has never been closed. Crunch time approaches ...
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] The seizure of explosives from a Cypriot-flagged Iranian ship believed to be bound for Gaza has "no legal basis," Iran complained in a letter to the UN Security Council released Friday. The letter from Iran's UN ambassador Mohammad Khazaee said that the complaint was in response to "certain allegations against Iran concerning the Cypriot-flagged vessel M/V Monchegorsk."
Last month, a United Nations sanctions committee demanded an explanation from Iran and Syria as to how they were involved with the ship. At a Security Council meeting in New York, the ambassadors of France and Britain described the episode as a "gross violation" of existing resolutions banning Iranian arms exports due to its controversial nuclear program. British envoy John Sawers said the UK looked 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.
"Despite some politically-motivated allegations made by certain media and others about the cargo of the M/V Monchegorsk vessel, we wish to stress that the consignment of the said ship falls within the framework of normal trade transactions, and any allegations to the contrary are baseless," the Iranian letter stated.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2009 00:00 ||
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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.
STRASBOURG, France -- Britain will consider sending extra troops to Afghanistan to help with security during the presidential election in August, a British government official said Friday. The temporary increase in the number of British troops could be in the 'mid to high hundreds,' a government source said.
[Beirut Daily Star: Region] The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) Friday announced a project to step up help to the troubled Sudanese region of Darfur following last monthŽs expulsion of 13 international aid agencies. The plan envisages ŽŽurgent and continued aid services,ŽŽ help for refugees to go home and rebuilding in the war-torn western region.
CARACAS - A Venezuelan ex-defense minister who resigned President Hugo Chavez's government to join the opposition was placed under 'preventive arrest' Friday while he is investigated for alleged corruption, his lawyer said.
[Al Arabiya Latest] U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday demanded North Korea halt its "provocative" impending missile launch, in a strongly worded public challenge after North Korea's military said it would attack "major targets" in Japan if Tokyo attempts to shoot down a satellite it intends to launch as soon as this weekend.
[Iran Press TV Latest] Former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton says that Washington should consider military action against North Korea should its upcoming rocket launch hit Japan. 
[Al Arabiya Latest] United States President Barack Obama warned Europe on Friday that it should not expect the U.S. to carry the burden of fighting a campaign against global terrorism, stemming from Afghanistan, alone, in a press conference with his French counterpart ahead of a key NATO summit.
In what a federal judge called a betrayal of his country and fellow service members that stretched from San Diego to the Persian Gulf and London by way of Connecticut, a former U.S. sailor was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison.
SWAT: The spokesman of outlawed Tahreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Muslim Khan said the incident of flogging a girl did not take place in Swat.
[Geo News] Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Friday said public whipping of a girl in Swat does not reflect Islam. Talking to media after visiting the mausoleum of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto here in Garhi Khuda Buksh, Qureshi said tribute will be paid to the leadership of Pakistan People's Party including Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto at the meeting of Central Executive Committee. Denouncing the public flogging of a girl in Swat, he said the act is not in conformity with the teachings of Islam. The Foreign Minister said it is Pakistan's desire that the composite dialogue with India be resumed.
[The News (Pak)] Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has said that the Elite Force should be prepared to eliminate terrorism, extremism and militancy and, for this purpose, its training as well as provision of modern weapons should be ensured keeping in view the present situation.
[Geo News] Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari has strongly denounced the flogging in public of a young woman in Swat and called for a report from the government and apprehending those involved in the heinous crime. 
[Geo News] Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday condemned the flogging of a girl in Swat and ordered an inquiry into the incident. Talking to journalists here, Gilani said Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto were the champions of the rights of women and minorities, adding that the government will bring legislation in the parliament for the rights of women. 
[ADN Kronos] By Syed Saleem Shahzad - The release of a video showing a 17-year-old girl being brutally flogged in public is a deliberate attempt to sabotage the peace deal signed with the Taliban in Pakistan's troubled northwestern Swat valley, according to North West Frontier Province's information minister, Mian Iftikhar.
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] As world leaders wrapped up on Friday an economic summit in London aimed at tackling the global financial crisis, a number of them took the opportunity to touch on another contentious issue by calling Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and urging him to work towards a two-state solution. 
[Iran Press TV Latest] UN Secretary-General renews a call on Sri Lanka's rebel leaders to provide for the trapped civilians in the island's north to leave the conflict area. 
[Al Arabiya Latest] The United States will push for new U.N. sanctions against Iran later this year if President Barack Obama's effort to improve relations fails to stop Tehran from pursuing its nuclear program, U.S. diplomats said late on Thursday.
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] The seizure of explosives from a Cypriot-flagged Iranian ship believed to be bound for Gaza has "no legal basis," Iran complained in a letter to the UN Security Council released Friday. The letter from Iran's UN ambassador Mohammad Khazaee said that the complaint was in response to "certain allegations against Iran concerning the Cypriot-flagged vessel M/V Monchegorsk." 
