Posted by: Mike ||
05/23/2007 09:21 ||
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#1
Thanks for the post, Mike. The footage is incredible - riveting and intense. It gave me a good insight into what being in a battle is really like, without any bias. Amazing. I thank God everyday for all those who do this.
The Taliban's much-vaunted spring offensive has stalled apparently due to lack of organisation after dozens of middle-ranking commanders were killed by British troops in the past year, according to military sources.
The death last week of the key Taliban leader Mullah Dadullah at the hands of American special forces has harmed the Taliban's morale to the point that local commanders are having to tell their troops to "remain professional" despite the loss.
I'm still ululating over Deadullah's demise.
After suffering more than 1,000 dead in battles with the Parachute Regiment and Royal Marines in the last year, the Taliban fledran away retired to regroup and re-equip last winter.
A spring offensive was ordered by the Taliban leadership based in Quetta, Pakistan, and was meant to be launched in late March. But a lack of mid-level commanders has meant that there has been little co-ordination to bring about the offensive.
"They are getting strategic guidance from Quetta but this is not translating on the ground," a military source said. "It's a bit premature to discuss the Taliban as a spent force. I believe that they are struggling but still maintain a capability to carry out attacks on a daily basis. But I would suggest in the long term the Taliban may just peter out."
That's usually what happens to insurgencies unless they get outside support in the press and world opinion.
Of the five main Taliban leaders who managed to escape in the 2001 fighting only two are at large, including Mullah Omar, the spiritual leader, who is living inside on the Pakistan border.
British commanders are still braced for a possible upsurge in attacks over the summer. An "increase in enemy tempo" is expected and already the number of clashes has risen from five a day to 15, lasting from 10 minutes to 11 hours.
Within Helmand there is a small group of "irreconcilable" Taliban leading a force of about 1,000, which is reinforced by Chechen, Arab and Uzbek fighters. Some are part-time farmers supplementing their income by earning $25 a day by fighting.
I'd offer them $25 a day -- and their lives -- to stop.
After clearing and establishing a foothold in the area the British force has been able to begin rebuilding roads and other projects. They have also dispelled some Taliban propaganda that claimed the British would rape their women and steal their poppy crops.
#1
But you can never kill us all off. If you kill one of our famous Lions of Islam™, ten more will sprout where he falls. We are second only to the mighty Islamic republic, the most powerful force in the galaxy.
Posted by: The Ghost of Mullah Dadullah ||
05/23/2007 10:41 Comments ||
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#7
Remain professional, boys. Now get back out there and give the infidels hell.
Good luck. Love to go with you but I gotta catch a bus back to to Quetta for the early bird special...
#11
"opportunities for advancement abound! Excellent burial options!"
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2007 19:49 Comments ||
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#12
I salute our British comrades for fighting so nobly in Afghan land. And a well deserved hat tip to the Danes too, who are pulling far above their weight. And, to the French Special Forces who have (and maybe still are)here, we are grateful for your efforts and support. This is such cheerful news to see that this load of Pashtun scum is being discombobulated day by day by day. Hoorah to all you brave and hardy souls.
#13
C'mon Talibunnies - there's plenty of talent out there. Try Craigslist, handing out leaflets at moonbat get-togethers, ads in the Guardian on al-Jazeera... I'd bet even Markos (Daily Kos) would help out, for a healthy consulting fee.
Somali transitional federal government has sacked the commander of the first army division after he was accused of involving in the recent violence in the southern port city of Kismayu, local media reports on Tuesday. Colonel Abdirisak Afgadud confirmed the news to the local reporters overnight saying that the government had removed him from the post of being the commander of the first division of the national army. He denied of being involved in Kismayu clashes between rival clans within the government.
Col. Afgadud who is now in Bulo-Gadud village some miles away from Kismayu accepted the government decision and said his dismissal from the army was normal.
The removal of my post in the forces is not related to the allegations of the recent clashes in Kismayu but it is an order from the top government officials, said Afgadud.
Afgadud blamed former defense minister Bare Aden Hirale on the recent violence in Kismayu but his accusation was rejected by the commander of the third division of the army Ismael Khalif Shire. Mr. Khalif said today former defense minister was innocent of the allegation from Afgadud. The dismissal of Afgadud from his post came as tension is high in Kismayu with lack of security after clan militiamen seized control of the city.
German authorities are using scent tracking to keep tabs on possibly violent protesters against next month's Group of Eight summit a tactic that is drawing comparisons with the methods of former East Germany's secret police. They aren't "protestors;" they are rioters and arguably traitors.
They call themselves 'anarchists' but I think we're in violent agreement.
Scent samples have been taken from an undisclosed number of people believed to be a possible danger to the upcoming summit so that police dogs can pick out the perpetrators if there is violence, the Hamburger Morgenpost reported Tuesday. Andreas Christeleit, a spokesman for federal prosecutors, confirmed the report but would give no further details. "This has happened to several suspects," he said. I don't see the need for dogs. Mere humans can pick up their smell for miles.
The use of scent samples was widely known to be practiced in Germany by the East German secret police, the Stasi, who used the technique to track dissidents. Petra Pau, a senior lawmaker with the opposition Left Party, a group that includes "ex-"communists, criticized the practice as "another step away from a democratic state of law toward a preventive security state." Like the one she used to work for.
"A state that adopts the methods of the East German Stasi, robs itself of every ... legitimacy," she said in a statement. So, that includes Cuba?
That different. She'd explain it to you but it would require multiple polysyallabic words ...
Violence has marred past summits, particularly in 2001 in Genoa, Italy, when police and protesters clashed in the streets for days. German authorities are increasing security before the June 6-8 summit in the northern resort town of Heiligendamm.
Earlier this month, police raided 40 offices and apartments used by left-wing protesters in Berlin, Hamburg and elsewhere, which provoked protests. Prosecutors at the time said they were investigating more than 18 people suspected of organizing what they called a terrorist group that planned to carry out firebombings and other terrorist violent attacks aimed at hindering or stopping the democratically-elected, except Russia world leaders from holding the summit.
Andreas Blechschmidt, whose Rote Flora - or Red Flora - protest organization's building in Hamburg was among those raided, vowed Tuesday not to be deterred. "The countrywide raids from early May served only to intimidate," he said. Police in Berlin are also investigating about a dozen car burnings over the past two weeks. The daily Tageszeitung newspaper said Tuesday it received a letter from the leftist group "mg" - standing literally for "militant group" - claiming responsibility as retaliation for the raids.
Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has also said that anti-globalization activists deemed to be "potentially violent" may be detained for up to two weeks during the summit in so-called "preventative detention."
A $17 million fence has been built around Heiligendamm in an attempt to keep protesters away. Security officials also have also announced tighter border controls. When they're done, can we have the fence? I know where it would come in handy.
#1
hopefully the authorities'll use batons to take samples from the heads and necks of rioters
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2007 10:30 Comments ||
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#2
'anarchists' [...] arguably traitors[...]
Traitors to civilization. Enemies to hemanity in general. If the choice is between a police state and anarchy, go for the police state. The odds are good that you'll live longer. See somalia for my argument.
A pity we cannot force these spoiled brats to live in true anarchy for a couple of daysmonths years. The few suvivors would sing a very different tune.
Posted by: Helmuth, Speaking for N guard ||
05/23/2007 14:02 Comments ||
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Democrats reluctantly gave up their demand for troops withdrawal dates in an Iraq war spending package today, conceding to President Bush on their number one goal in a debate that has roiled Congress for months. The confrontation sparked bitter exchanges between liberals and conservatives, yielding no middle ground where party leaders and Bush could compromise. In the end, Republicans had the ticking clock of troop funding and the presidential veto pen on their side, and Democrats were forced to blink.
War opponents had hoped that Democratic control of Congress would force a swift end to the Iraq conflict. But the package requires Bush to surrender virtually none of his war authority. Instead of withdrawal dates, Democrats accepted a GOP plan to establish 18 benchmarks for the Iraqi government and to require Bush to report on progress starting in late July. If the Iraqis fall short, they could forfeit U.S. reconstruction aid.
The final agreement was hammered out by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and followed extensive consultations with GOP leaders and the White House. Party leaders did secure two other priorities, a long-sought minimum wage increase and $20 billion for domestic projects, both of which Bush had initially resisted. Reid called the benchmark language "extremely weak," but noted that Bush had initially demanded a bill with no strings attached. "For heaven's sake, look where we've come," Reid said. "It's a lot more than the president ever expected he'd have to agree to."
Republicans remained unifed throughout the debate, despite strong public opposition to the war and growing doubts within the party that a military victory in Iraq can be achieved. But GOP reaction was restrained when details of the deal circulated this afternoon. Early in the year, Republicans refused to allow an Iraq debate from even starting, when GOP senators blocked a non-binding resolution opposing Bush's troop escalation plan from coming to the floor. Today, many Republicans are prepared to reassess the entire war effort once the current funding bill expires on Sept. 30.
From the beginning, Democratic leaders knew their options would be limited by the party's slim governing majorities in both chambers. In the 51-49 Senate, Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) was absent following a brain hemorrhage, and independent Sen. Joseph Lieberman (Conn.), a member of the Democratic caucus, backed Bush on the war. Passage of the first spending bill was secured by two Republicans, Sens. Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and Gordon Smith (Ore.).
"Both sides are in a position where neither can do something without the other. That's the reality," said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.).
#2
Nice to see the losers lose, as most of us expected, but that's partial consolation for what remains an infuriatingly passive and inept administration, a pathetic and cowardly GOP, an astonishingly irresponsible and despicable opposition, and a whiny, fickle, and largely uninformed populace. The ratio of baggage to baggage-carrriers may be reaching the breaking point ....
#3
This strategy will buy the Democrats time. Frankly this vote went further than what I thought the Dem's should have done; I would have simply voted "NO" to the funds, and stood before the American people and said I did my best. Wash my hands of it, like Pontius Pilate, and wait for the 'Saturday Night Massacre' coming on election night this year for the 'Coat Tail' Republicans. The other shoe to drop, is coming soon!! Praise be, for the defiance of The 16.
#10
a whiny, fickle, and largely uninformed populace. The ratio of baggage to baggage-carrriers may be reaching the breaking point ....
Verlaine, I hope you are wrong about this. I worry that you might be right. I think the elected officials (mostly demonrats) got so much heat about dragging their feet on military funding that they had to back off. I hear less and less from Harry (We Lost) Reid and Nancy (Burqa) Pelosi; probably due to the outrage expressed. I think they backed off on the immigration bill because so many people raised hell with their elected representatives(?). Most voters, I sense, are fed up with Washington and their shennanigans. Tea Party time?
NEW DELHI - At least three blasts occurred in quick succession on Tuesday in the northern Indian city of Gorakhpur, a police official said. These blasts appeared to have been caused by crude bombs, city police spokesman Avinash Mishra told AFP by telephone.
One of the bombs was reportedly concealed on a bicycle, Mishra said. The first two explosions were in two different marketplaces while the thirdwas next to a newly built hotel in Gorakhpur, a low-income Indian city on the Nepal border. News television networks said three people were slightly injured but there was no official confirmation of the reports.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/23/2007 00:00 ||
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Town has a popular Hindu temple that seems to annoy the Islamists no end. They've threatened bombings before.
Posted by: John Frum ||
05/23/2007 7:13 Comments ||
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#2
Everything annoys the islamists. I think it's time to exile the entire lot to Mars. Freeze-dry 'em for easier shipment.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/23/2007 14:11 Comments ||
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#3
Islamic terrorists continue widening their sphere of chaos & destruction
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
05/23/2007 23:45 Comments ||
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SRINAGAR, India - Five Islamic militants and an Indian soldier were killed in gunbattles in Kashmir, police said on Tuesday as the regions chief minister hailed troops for a commendable counter-insurgency campaign.
The first gunbattle erupted in southern Pulwama district when soldiers raided a civilian house where two militants had taken refuge, police said. One of the slain militants was identified by police as Wasim, a Pakistani national and district commander of the Jaish-e-Mohammed rebel group. He was one of the wanted commanders, a police spokesman said, adding three soldiers and the owner of the house were injured in the fighting.
Indian troops killed three more rebels in two separate skirmishes in neighbouring Shopian and Bijbehara districts on Tuesday, police said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/23/2007 00:00 ||
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"Enta shonek habebe?" the Army company commander says into his cell phone.
"Zhien, zhien."
Twenty to thirty times a day Army Captain Brian Ducote's cell phone rings in his shoulder pocket.
Ducote, the commander of the 1-28 Infantry's Bravo or 'Battle' company answers nearly every call, going through a set of greetings himself so that the Iraqi callers know it is him they are talking to before he hands the phone to an interpreter.
The calls range from tips to complaints to pleas.
This morning it is a call from one of the leaders of a Neighborhood Advisory Council who heard third hand that the body of a woman--assassinated for being Sunni--was in a vacant lot.
The location the council member gave was out of Battle Company's operating area, but Ducote sent a unit to a point to where it could over watch the area and scan for the body.
"It could be a trap. They booby trap the bodies, position a sniper over the body," Ducote said.
"I don't think he's lying, but the people who called his relative are the ones not to trust."
That night the platoon would go back and recover the body. Ducote called the council member.
"I explained to him how I went out of my area, violated rules, risked the lives of U.S. soldiers to recover the body. I went out on a limb for him, now I have a stake in this," Ducote said, thumbing the phone. "This isn't just an Army officers telling them not to go out and seek revenge, I have a place at the table and can use that."
There are few physical front lines in Baghdad. A canal or major road may be the dividing line between Shia and Sunni neighborhoods, but that will not be the place forces clash in massed combat--or anything resembling combat for that matter.
Because the enemy does not wear uniforms and violates the Geneva Conventions by not being under arms while engaging in combatant activities, the coalition forces are rarely the first to strike--allowing the enemy to pick and choose the location he will fight.
There are no front lines, no rear areas, no behind the lines--except for U.S. bases and outposts which are magnets for mortars and rockets. . . .
If the assymetric battlespace works against U.S. equipment, tactics and adherence to the Geneva Conventions--the cellular battlespace plays to the U.S. strengths.
The enemy does not have secure communications and you don't need to know much about the NSA to know that the enemy that talks on cell phones is an enemy that is easy to find. . . .
Go read it all.
Posted by: Mike ||
05/23/2007 15:53 ||
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prolly just a coincidence....uh huh
US forces have killed two gunmen and discovered a large amount of Iranian currency and bomb-making materials in a raid on the Baghdad Shiite neighbourhood of Sadr City on Wednesday.
US troops searched 11 buildings during the raid in search of a cell involved in importing weapons from Iran into Baghdad and southeastern Iraq.
"As they continued to search the buildings, coalition forces found a large quantity of Iranian money, more than 6,000 dollars in US money and improvised explosive device-making materials," said the statement.
During the search US forces came under attack from four gunmen and confirmed killing two of them. Washington has repeatedly accused Iran of funding armed groups in Iraq and trying to distabilise the country, a charge it has denied.
On May 28, the US and Iranian ambassadors to Iraq will meet to discuss their respective policies in the war torn country.
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2007 11:45 ||
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#1
So what? We (policy wise) are not going to do anything? If we find a "suitcase WND" with Ahmadinejad's fingerprints on it...the US is not going to do a thing. He is paralyzed because he's a lame duck, and he and the rest of the trunks have squandered, and pi**ed away the good will of the American people.
#5
Waaaaay back before 9-11, I used to say, "Ya know, those basketball guys who change their names to muslim ones? Pay 'em in iranian money and see how they like that!"
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
05/23/2007 13:01 Comments ||
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#6
Imagine my surprise!
(That's a great imagination you've got there, Bub.)
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/23/2007 13:56 Comments ||
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#7
Yeah, this is not news. We were finding Iranian money in large quantities in 2004. And like you said, we are going to nothing about it.
#10
Maybe the Iranian faction backing THIS particular op isn't on speaking terms with the Iranian printing and engraving faction. Ah Iran. So many fissures, so little time. The Chinese symbol for "crisis" comes to mind.
Babel, May 23, (VOI) - Iraqi police forces in Babel province found on Wednesday two bodies believed to belong to two of the kidnapped U.S. soldiers near al-Furat river in al-Musayab region, 50 km northwest of Hilla, a police source said.
"Two bodies in U.S. uniform were found by Babel police forces near al-Furat river. They bore signs of torture," the source, who asked not to be named, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI). "The police handed the bodies to the U.S. army and cordoned off the area," he also said. No comment was available from the U.S. army on the incident.
A police source had said earlier that police forces in Babel province found a body of a U.S. soldier who was kidnapped last week near al-Musayab river. "Babel police forces today found a body, believed to belong to one of the three U.S. soldiers who were kidnapped last week in al-Mahmodiya region, south of Baghdad," the source, who asked not to be named, told the (VOI).
"The body bore a gunshot wound to the head, the hand had a tattoo and he wore U.S. pants," he added. No comment was available from the U.S. army on the incident.
Three U.S. soldiers were kidnapped last week in al-Mahmodiya region, south of Baghdad. The U.S. army launched a wide-scale operation in response to search for them.
Meanwhile, the state-run al-Iraqia satellite television said in breaking news that police forces found the body of one of the kidnapped U.S. soldiers in Mashrooa al-Musayab, south of Baghdad.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
05/23/2007 13:02 Comments ||
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#3
The message to the US soldiers and marines should be very, very clear: never, never surrender to the other side. Go down fighting if you have to. You will die (horribly) if you are captured.
I'm waiting for the people who bitch about Guantanamo to rise up in outrage over this gross and obvious violation of the Geneva convention. I am also waiting until pigs fly.
#4
Those pig will soar with the eagles first, Rambler.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/23/2007 13:59 Comments ||
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#5
We need to retaliate, but not against the Iraqi people. We need to find a group and simply refuse to let them surrender. When the bodies are turned over with 50-100 bulletwounds each, the families will know that we've stopped being nice. Of course, using napalm on one of these "meetings" would also send a loud and clear message. The message needs to be spread, and needs to be consistent - if you fight against us, you're going to die a horrible death. Every a-q, sunni or shia militia, or iranian hired hand needs to get that message, loud and clear.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/23/2007 14:17 Comments ||
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#7
The "Triangle of Death" needs to be made to live up to its name. An area some ten kilometers around the soldiers' abduction point needs to be bulldozed flat, without warning. Film the fleeing families and screaming children. Show it on Iraqi television along with the dead bodies of our soldiers with a warning that this is what happens to any neighborhoods who let the terrorists operate with impunity.
This charade has gone on for too long. We are dealing with people who give a rat's ass about being liberated. They want to live under harsh control, like that which Islam provides inflicts. I say, let's give it to them.
#8
I like that idea: "No Surrender Week". In response to the recent atrocities, coalition forces will refuse to accept any surrender from armed militants for one week. Suck it, rubber pantsed jihadis.
#9
Payback needs to be a bitch. Everytime one of this mouth-breathers asks himself if he should do this, the answer needs to come back with a resounding NO.
#10
Payback needs to be a bitch. Everytime one of this mouth-breather islamics asks himself if he should do this, the answer needs to come back with a resounding NO. God rest our soldiers souls.
#11
rambler don't hold your breathe on pay back is a bitch unless their buddies find the kidnappers first. and if they do what they would like too to them then they would be court martialled by the nuts over here
#12
actually i'm about ready for someone too say hell yeah we want your oil whether or not it is true and tell them go fuck themselves and see what they do about it besides the kurds who seem too have the only intelligence in the entire middle east besides the israelis'
#13
actually i'm about ready for someone too say hell yeah we want your oil whether or not it is true and tell them go fuck themselves and see what they do about it besides the kurds who seem too have the only intelligence in the entire middle east besides the israelis'
Another tough day on the battlefront.
BAGHDAD A homicide bomber wearing an explosive belt blew himself up inside a coffee shop east of Baghdad on Wednesday morning, killing 15 people, police and medical sources said, while the U.S. military said seven soldiers died in attacks. The blast hit a restaurant in Mandali, on the Iranian border 60 miles east of Baghdad. Unusual target location. I suspect there's something more to this story.
Elsewhere across Iraq, roadside bombings and gunbattles killed seven U.S. soldiers and two Marines, the U.S. military said Wednesday.
In the deadliest incident, three Multinational Division-Center soldiers were killed and two wounded when their patrol was hit by a series of roadside bombs Tuesday, the military said in a statement. The statement did not say where the attack, which also wounded an interpreter, happened.
Two Task Force-Lightning soldiers were killed in Baghdad Province when an explosion blew up near their vehicle on Tuesday, the military said. Another three soldiers were wounded in the incident.
Two U.S. Marines assigned to Multinational Forces-West were also killed Tuesday in combat operations in the Sunni-dominated Anbar province, the military said.
#3
Every time I see the headline here that a soldier was killed I mourn. May they find rest with the Lord after a job well-done.
Posted by: Charles ||
05/23/2007 10:07 Comments ||
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#4
Any one will do since they will destroy the moon worshipping child rapist from mecca. Suggest you convert now dog and escape the cleansing fires of Einstein.
Posted by: ed ||
05/23/2007 13:09 Comments ||
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#5
Poor Justice. There he goes showing off his ignorance again, as if it were something to be proud of. And he fancies himself an academic! Ah well, two more egregious errors added to his list won't move his mean so much as a per centum. (We won't even address the problems in the English college system suggested by the fact that the poor man doesn't understand the proper useage of quotation marks, or the capitalization of proper nouns. That would be too cruel.)
#8
The troll and its dark age cult are pathetic tools of the western media-industrial complex and its depraved elitism.
They do the heavy lifting, the killing and dying, while the likes of Mike Al-Moor, Rosie Al-Donut, and Noam Chomsky laugh all the way to the bank.
HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) - The half-naked body of one of three missing U.S. soldiers was found on Wednesday in the Euphrates River in the town of Mussayab south of Baghdad, police said. The U.S. military said it was investigating reports that a body had been found in a canal in the area.
Hilla police spokesman Captain Muthanna al-Maamouri said there were bullet wounds to the torso and head of the body, which was wearing U.S. Army-issue pants and boots and had a tattoo on the left arm. Maamouri said the body had been turned over to U.S. forces.
Thousands of U.S. and Iraqi troops having been scouring farmlands through an area south of Baghdad known as the "triangle of death" since an ambush on May 12 in which four U.S soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter were killed. Three soldiers were reported missing after the attack. The al Qaeda-led Islamic State in Iraq has said it abducted them but has given no proof it has them.
A police officer in Mussayab, 60 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, who declined to be named, said the body had been found after a tip-off from residents. "The military is investigating reports of a body of a canal but we have no confirmation yet," a U.S. military official in Baghdad said.
General David Petraeus, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, said last Friday that he believes at least two of the three missing soldiers are still alive. Time to go Roman on these savages.
#2
You said it, AC, my heart goes out to the soldier's family, and I'm saddened over the useless sacrifice of our fine troops over 'BS' of Iraq. We should have just slapped Saddam on the wrists and let him keep the savages of Iraq in line. The remaining 'Deck Of Cards' should be given dead or alive bounties, and the vacated areas of capture should be napalmed or 'Agent Oranged' as an example to all on "Lose a man, lose a land!!"
#3
an area south of Baghdad known as the "triangle of death"
MAKE IT SO.
Level the whole damned area. Let people run from their homes screaming. Film the entire episode and show it on Iraqi television along with the faces and names of the remaining missing soldiers. Demand their immediate release. Make note of how the same thing will happen wherever the next body turns up.
#4
The British, the Turks, the Romans, and all other outsiders cursed with ruling Mesopotamia managed the trick by collective punishment.
This capitalized on the ancient clan structure of that part of the world, which predates Islam by millenia.
The British used house demolition, which incidentally is also how the Israelis learned the technique.
If a house was not readily accessible to demolition teams, or if a village proved exceptionally recalcitrant, the Brits would first drop leaflets giving everyone 24 hours to get out of town. After that, the RAF's rickety biplanes would do their best to flatten the place.
The Turks and the Romans had other, less technologically refined methods, but the objective was the same.
With so many living in rented apartments these days, house demolition may not be quite as effective as it used to be, but Islamos themselves have invented a possible alternative: the "banlieu carbecue" pioneered by French yoots in recent years.
Iraqis invest great status in motor vehicles and they are critically important to insurgent tactics. The mobility the terrorists gain from using them in a mass of civilian traffic is one of the key differences between this war and previous anti-insurgency campaigns.
If an outrage occurs somewhere, and it is obvious that the locals are complicit, every private vehicle within a specified radius should be put to the torch or smashed by armored tracks.
Similarly, if young Abdullah is found dead of JDAM poisoning or 7.62 sniper syndrome, proceed to his ancestral garage, drag out the SUVs, Volvos and Mercedes, and run over them with an M-1.
Media beasts and left devils will howl, but they will howl anyway and anyone who hasn't already drunk the jihadi Kool-Aid will probably applaud the new tactic.
#5
This is very sad, and I agree there should be an appropriate (read dire) response to that. Of course, to be frank, this was to be expected, sadly, bare an immediate rescue immediatly after the abductions, their fate was sealed from the start. I fear the soldiers may have been killed as soon as the heat was on their captors.
My heart goes to their family and their comrades.
#6
No words can express this outrage. However, I remember reading that 3 were missing and the Military said they believed two were still alive. Could this be some sort of "peace" offering to get us to back off? When was this soldier killed? I'm asking because the thought that these...THINGS believe that giving us the dead body of the soldier killed during the assault that they had will stop our pressure is just revolting.
Another quick thought, could this be a response to the Kidnapping ring we killed/captured recently?
Posted by: Charles ||
05/23/2007 7:12 Comments ||
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#7
They couldn't get the body out of the area. The river toss is like trying to cover your tracks with a misdirection. Strange we haven't seen much of the other two. If they could, they'd be plastered all over the internet. They're ability to move must be effectively tied for them to be operating like this. If these were normal AQ, they'd already slit their throats, filmed it, and just smuggled the video out. They haven't. Much more going on here and I suspect the Iranians. We must be holding someone they dearly want back.
I'm thinking something like the end of the Spartacus revolt. Crucifixions along each MSR, from Basra to Baghdad.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
05/23/2007 7:55 Comments ||
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#9
There is a mass of people whose rage grows with every atrocity and with every Dark Ages insanity of these people. I used to be a neocon. I still think it was worth a try; the Christian thing to do. But I have changed my mind. At some point there will be a critical mass for addressing this problem abruptly and to the finish. May God help our own traitors when that day comes. Once the local Orc temple has been put to the torch the mob will be looking to deal with the collaborators and they will be closer to hand than the death that will come to the middle east.
#10
Prayers for his family ... and for our troops, serving there so we don't have to fight here. When will this country care more about this war than about American Idol or Paris Hilton? Friends, we are in trouble. I fear for our kids.
#11
I like AC's redux approach: Leave no doubt that if a family has a terrorist, there will be material retribution. If young Abdul, or his body is identified, flatten the vehicles of the family and destroy Abdul's home.
I really don't give a rat's rear-end what anyone in the MSM or the arab street thinks.
My only concern is the mission, and the lives of US soldiers and marines.
#12
Reports of finding the other two bodies are in. God bless these men and their families.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
05/23/2007 12:44 Comments ||
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#13
My heart goes to their family and their comrades.
What A5089, doc and 49 Pan, said. My deepest condolences to these families in their time of loss. How senseless.
I have advocated familial retribution and collective punishment for some time now. Terrorism runs in families and Islam is one massive example of collective punishment (i.e., dhimmitude). We must pay Islam in its own coin. It is the only tender they recognize.
Iraq urged Washington and incoming British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Monday to stand firm against domestic political pressures and maintain troop numbers in Iraq despite ongoing militia and insurgent violence.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said progress was being made in Iraq since the latest security crackdown began in mid-February, but it was important there were no signs of weakness with coalition forces, including those from Australia. He said Brown, who will take over from Tony Blair as prime minister in late June, had been a supporter of the military mission in Iraq and the Iraqi minister did not expect any significant changes under his leadership.
"We hope there wouldn't be any changes, or any dramatic changes. We understand the realities of British politics," Zebari, in Australia for talks with Downer and Prime Minister John Howard, told reporters at a joint news conference with Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer in Canberra. He is in Australia for talks with Downer and Prime Minister John Howard.
"The forthcoming Prime Minister Brown has also been supportive of Iraqi democracy, of the mission, and I believe it's very important there shouldn't be weaknesses within the coalition because these are crucial times."
Australia has about 1,500 troops in and around Iraq and the troop deployment will be a major issue at elections later in the year. The opposition centre-left Labor Party promises to withdraw frontline forces if it wins power.
#2
I'd bet Brown still folds, and even if there's no dramatic withdrawal, what seem to be largely ineffectual approaches will remain the norm in the south. Of course with the UK's very slim presence down there, there may not be much choice. It's more "what you do with the troops" than "not enough troops" - but that later issue becomes the main one at certain levels.
#3
The alternatives to the British and U.S. presence are bad and worse. Al-Sadr is waiting in the wings to have an Shiite-dominated government (with Iran meddling), civil war, or a Taliban-like haven for terrorists. Al-Sadr is betting his allies, the dhemmicrits (or AKA surrendercrats) will have their way.
#4
Verlaine,
You probably have some knowledge of this: when British contingent is totally gone, will control of southern Iraq be ceded to Sadr/iranian elements ? How does this make our supply routes more susceptible to attacks ? I know we devote considerable troops to surveil and cover the supply lines now, but if the regional control is totally in Sadr, et al, hands does this create a much more difficult situation ?
Twenty-five people were killed and as many as 60 were wounded when a car bomb exploded in the commercial district of Amil in Baghdad. The bomb blast in the Shiite-dominated neighbourhood occurred at around 10am on Tuesday. The deadly explosion damaged a nearby medical centre.
Earlier, in the Khadra neighbourhood two policemen from the major crimes unit were killed and a third injured when gunmen in two cars ambushed the car they were travelling in.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz urged EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana Tuesday to renew the EU embargo on the Palestinian unity government, and said that Israel was exercising great restraint in refraining, for the time being, from embarking on an extensive ground operation in Gaza. The two met in Jerusalem to discuss the Kassam rocket attacks and IDF operations against Palestinian targets.
The defense minister went on to say that, while Israel had done everything it could to maintain calm and uphold the cease-fire, it would target Hamas terrorists as long as the Kassam rocket fire continued.
"Today, when Hamas is a member of the unity government and is the one leading the violence and backing the bombardments, we do not intend to stop. We will stop only when the rockets stop, and if they do not stop we will not stop. We are entrusted with protecting our citizens and our children," he said.
Peretz gave the EU foreign policy chief a firsthand account of the harsh daily reality that reigns in the bombarded town of Sderot. "My family and I live in [Sderot] and [contend with] trying sensations all year round," he said. "As a peaceful man I tell you- you should make it clear to the international community that it must retract the goodwill it displayed during the unity government's inception. The unity government has no control over the anarchy in the Gaza Strip and it lends legitimacy to murderous acts perpetrated within the PA and the continued bombardment of Israel."
Solana responded to Peretz's statements by saying that the international community condemned the Kassam attacks. "I visited Sderot yesterday and I am aware of what is happening there," the EU foreign policy chief said. "We are living in a time of heightening violence, not only in the PA but also in Lebanon and in other places. We wish very much to help calm the situation." He maintained, however, that Israel must favor the diplomatic path in attempting to arrive at a solution.
#2
It is noteworthy to recall that Solana has always been a man of the left. He is the Spanish answer to Chamberlain excepting the fact that his agenda is that of the farleft.
#3
I think it's about time for Israel to level Ramallah, starting on the outside and working in. Use aircraft, tanks, rockets, artillery, whatever will work. Crush the city and its inhabitants. Then tell them, "This is what was happening in Sderot. If it happens anywhere else, all of the West Bank and Gaza will receive the same fate." It's the only answer the arabs understand. We in the west need to make sure it becomes the only answer our surrenderist leftist government also understands.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/23/2007 14:28 Comments ||
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#4
Now OP, what'll happed to Israel were we to this tomorrow?
Two men were killed by suspected Islamic rebels in separate drive-by shootings and seven security officials were injured Wednesday, in bomb attacks in Thailand's restive south, police said. A 48-year-old Buddhist man was gunned down by militants while driving a motorcycle in Yala, one of three Muslim-majority southern provinces bordering Malaysia, they said.
In neighboring Pattani province, a 40-year-old Buddhist man on a motorcycle was shot dead by insurgents in a separate drive-by shooting. Also in Yala, a soldier was seriously wounded when a roadside bomb went off, and six border patrol policemen were hurt in another roadside explosion in front of a school.
#1
We need to get a JSOTF in Thailand to help them with this issue before it becomes uncontrollable. Good lord if the Phillipines can get an upper hand on the muzzies with a little help I'm sure the Thais could.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
05/23/2007 12:29 Comments ||
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A bomb blast in strife-torn southern Thailand has hurt 12 people, including an Australian photographer, the first foreign journalist to fall victim to separatist violence in the country.
Bangkok-based Time magazine photographer Philip Blenkinsop told The Australian yesterday he had a lucky escape after a roadside bomb detonated outside a village in Yala province. "I've just had a brief flying lesson," he said. "My ear hurts and I look like I've been hit in the face with a porcupine but I don't think its anything serious."
Mr Blenkinsop said he was accompanying a group of police, rescue workers and local reporters to a site near Maung village, where a Thai health worker had earlier been shot dead execution-style by suspected Islamic rebels. The victim, named as Pratep Srimai, 44, had been shot in the head and his body dumped on a motorcycle sidecar, which had been set alight.
Police believe the insurgents had buried a 10kg bomb near the motorbike, set with a timer, in the hope of killing security forces arriving to investigate Pratep's death. "We were about 4m away (from the body), then everything went white and I thought, 'This is it'," Mr Blenkinsop, 42, said. "It blew me off my feet. Thank god there were no nails in it, or shrapnel. Other people were closer but I got the worst of it. It's sod's law."
Mr Blenkinsop was one of several rushed to the Yala hospital after the blast, but all had minor injuries and were released shortly after.
Posted one about this late yesterday, but this article has some different quotes and details - and a picture of the photographer's face (yesterday's had a video of the actual blast).
#1
"I've just had a brief flying lesson," he said. "My ear hurts and I look like I've been hit in the face with a porcupine but I don't think its anything serious."
There's that aussie humor shining through the dark clouds. Gotta love it.
BEIRUT/TYRE: The representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Lebanon said Wednesday that the PLO would not object if the Lebanese Army decided to send troops into the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp "to crush Islamist extremists entrenched there." "This is a Lebanese decision," Abbas Zaki said following a meeting with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir in Bkirki.
"We have repeatedly declared that we supported Lebanon's sovereignty and endorse any decisions Lebanese authorities made," Zaki said.
Also on Wednesday, Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyya asked Lebanon to help resolve a humanitarian crisis facing Palestinian refugees following three days of fighting with Islamists. Haniyya, of the Islamist group Hamas, called Lebanese President Emile Lahoud, Premier Fouad Siniora and Speaker Nabih Berri to express solidarity with Lebanese security after the raid against Fatah al-Islam.
"Prime Minister Haniyya confirmed the Palestinian position that we stand by the protection of Lebanon's security and law, and confirmed the need to protect Palestinian people in this refugee camp," his office said in a statement. He conveyed the "need to resolve the humanitarian issues after the clashes" and "we [the leaders] agreed to pursue this issue to find a quick solution to this crisis," the statement added.
Translation: The PLO and Hamas don't like getting caught in the crossfire. Plus, they don't like the way the Lebanese army has been eyeing them.
Zaki had visited the Grand Serail on Wednesday - the third consecutive day he has done so - to discuss the conflict in the North with Siniora. Sources close to Siniora quoted the premier as saying on Wednesday that all attempts to stoke tensions between the Lebanese and the Palestinians "will fail." Sources added that Siniora was "totally aware" of the fact that Palestinians living in Lebanon "had no connections whatsoever with terrorist groups such as Fatah al-Islam."
"OK, we've rented rooms to them, but we really didn't want too."
Siniora took a phone call Wednesday from Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema, who expressed his government's support for the Siniora government and the army in their fight against "terrorism." Siniora is expected to hold a news conference on Thursday at noon at the Grand Serail to comment on the developing security situation and to mark the 2000 withdrawal of Israel from South Lebanon. Liberation Day falls on Friday, May 25.
Separately, the special envoy of the UN secretary general to Lebanon, Geir Pedersen, visited Zaki at the PLO headquarters in Beirut. Zaki and Pedersen discussed the fighting at Nahr al-Bared and the living conditions in general of Palestinians in Lebanon. French Ambassador Bernard Emie also met with Zaki on Wednesday to thank him for the efforts of the PLO and the Fatah Movement to evacuate five French nationals inside the Nahr al-Bared camp when clashes erupted.
In other developments, the commander of Fatah in Lebanon, Brigadier Sultan Abu al-Aynayn, dismissed on Wednesday media reports that he planned to send fighters to the Nahr al-Bared camp to fight Fatah al-Islam. "We did not sent any fighters and we are not planning to do so since the suppression of Fatah al-Islam is not the responsibility of Fatah solely," Abu al-Aynayn said at a news conference held at the Rashidieh refugee camp near Tyre.
Various Palestinian factions "ought to reach a common" agreement about Fatah al-Islam, "and Fatah will decide on its future action accordingly," he said.
More Red on Red violence expected. Popcorn futures up sharply
The Fatah commander said that organizations like Fatah al-Islam constituted "a real threat to Palestinians more than the Lebanese" and said Fatah al-Islam had a "clear-cut agenda targeted against Palestinians."
Cutting into their action
Abu al-Aynayn called on the leaders of various Palestinian factions in Lebanon "to put their words into action" in order to "find proper and effective means to abolish Fatah al-Islam terrorists." - With AFP
Posted by: Steve ||
05/23/2007 18:10 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11153 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
"WhoTF asked the PLO? This is Lebanon, dammit. Your opinion as a parasite refugee 'organization' is not asked for nor necessary. STFU"
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2007 19:48 Comments ||
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#2
These various cross-negotiations have all the legitimacy of a Mafia round table.
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
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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
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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.
The Taliban's much-vaunted spring offensive has stalled apparently due to lack of organisation after dozens of middle-ranking commanders were killed by British troops in the past year, according to military sources.
Somali transitional federal government has sacked the commander of the first army division after he was accused of involving in the recent violence in the southern port city of Kismayu, local media reports on Tuesday. Colonel Abdirisak Afgadud confirmed the news to the local reporters overnight saying that the government had removed him from the post of being the commander of the first division of the national army. He denied of being involved in Kismayu clashes between rival clans within the government.
German authorities are using scent tracking to keep tabs on possibly violent protesters against next month's Group of Eight summit a tactic that is drawing comparisons with the methods of former East Germany's secret police.
Democrats reluctantly gave up their demand for troops withdrawal dates in an Iraq war spending package today, conceding to President Bush on their number one goal in a debate that has roiled Congress for months. The confrontation sparked bitter exchanges between liberals and conservatives, yielding no middle ground where party leaders and Bush could compromise. In the end, Republicans had the ticking clock of troop funding and the presidential veto pen on their side, and Democrats were forced to blink.
NEW DELHI - At least three blasts occurred in quick succession on Tuesday in the northern Indian city of Gorakhpur, a police official said. These blasts appeared to have been caused by crude bombs, city police spokesman Avinash Mishra told AFP by telephone.
SRINAGAR, India - Five Islamic militants and an Indian soldier were killed in gunbattles in Kashmir, police said on Tuesday as the regions chief minister hailed troops for a commendable counter-insurgency campaign.
HILLA, Iraq (Reuters) - The half-naked body of one of three missing U.S. soldiers was found on Wednesday in the Euphrates River in the town of Mussayab south of Baghdad, police said. The U.S. military said it was investigating reports that a body had been found in a canal in the area.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz urged EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana Tuesday to renew the EU embargo on the Palestinian unity government, and said that Israel was exercising great restraint in refraining, for the time being, from embarking on an extensive ground operation in Gaza. The two met in Jerusalem to discuss the Kassam rocket attacks and IDF operations against Palestinian targets.
Solana responded to Peretz's statements by saying that the international community condemned the Kassam attacks. "I visited Sderot yesterday and I am aware of what is happening there," the EU foreign policy chief said. "We are living in a time of heightening violence, not only in the PA but also in Lebanon and in other places. We wish very much to help calm the situation." He maintained, however, that Israel must favor the diplomatic path in attempting to arrive at a solution.
