Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Happy Birthday/Daily Gam Shot
Lucy Liu aka O-Ren Ishii in "Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)" aka Lindsey in "Lucky Number Slevin (2006)" aka Alex Munday in "Charlie's Angels (2000)" aka Life Coach in "Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You (2011)" aka Andrea in "The Trouble with Bliss (2011)" aka Dr. Parker in "Detachment (2011)" aka Anne in "The Year of Getting to Know Us (2008)" aka Violet in "Watching the Detectives (2007)" aka Princess Pei Pei in "Shanghai Noon (2000)" (age 43)
[Dawn] Seven Pak workers have been kidnapped in an area troubled by the Taliban near the Afghan capital Kabul, police said Thursday.
The Paks --engineers and workers assigned to a hospital construction project in Pashtun-infested Logar province --were returning to their accommodation after work when they were snatched at gunpoint on Wednesday.
"They were going home from work. Along the road, their minivan was stopped by unknown gunnies, their driver was forced out of the car and all were taken away to an unknown location," Pashtun-infested Logar police chief Ghulam Sakhi Roghliwani said.
"We've launched a search operation. We hope to find them and free them very soon," said Roghliwani.
There was no claim of responsibility for the abduction but police said the kidnapping might have been carried out by "criminal gangs" seeking a ransom.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Tolo News] A 12-member orc group laid down its weapons and surrendered to Afghan forces in northern Balkh province on Wednesday, local officials said.
Now that these men have joined the grinding of the peace processor, security will be improving in Balkh province, officials added.
Local officials said the armed forces of Evil under Sardar Mohammad handed over their weapons to security authorities in Nar-e-Shahi district of Balkh.
More than 150 forces of Evil have been laid down their weapons and surrendered to Afghan cops in the past six months in Balkh province, officials said.
The surrender comes as Afghan and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions... forces conduct clearing operations around the country in advance of handing over responsibility for providing security to local troops.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] At least 11 people have been killed after US liquidation drones launched aerial attacks in southern Somalia near the border with Kenya, Press TV reports.
Somali tribal elders, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Press TV that the remote-controlled aerial vehicles fired several missiles at Bilis Qooqaani town, which is located 448 kilometers (278 miles) southwest of the Somali capital Mogadishu, on Thursday morning.
They added that over 50 people were also injured in the strikes.
Somalia is the sixth country where the United States has used liquidation drones to launch deadly missile strikes. The US military has also used drones in Afghanistan, Pakistain, Libya, Iraq, and Yemen.
On October 28, the United States admitted to flying the terror aircraft from a base in Ethiopia.
"The US has unarmed and unmanned aircraft at a facility there (Ethiopia) to be used only for surveillance as part of a broad, sustained integrated campaign to counter terrorism," said Pentagon front man Captain John Kirby.
The confirmation appeared a day after The Washington Post revealed in a report that the US flies "armed" drones from an airfield in Ethiopia's southern city of Arba Minch.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Terrorizing terrorists and their little playmates. I approve.
[Yemen Post] At least five non-combatants were killed in Thursday morning governmental attacks in Taiz province. All the casualties are civilians and medics in Taiz said that corpse count is expected to rise.
Medics in Taiz Freedom Square told Yemen Post that four of the injured are at death's door as he expected the casualty toll to increase.
The attacks were the first major shelling in Taiz since President-for-Life Saleh ... exemplifying the Arab's propensity to combine brutality with incompetence... signed a power transfer deal that grants him immunity in return for stepping down from power.
Eyewitnesses said that the focus of the attacks were Rowdah, al-Hasb and hay al-Noor areas of Taiz.
Medics in Taiz said that one of the injured is at death's door. "We expect more injuries to reach the medical field hospital. Attacks are in residential areas so those injured don't know how to reach hospitals due to the attacks," a medic in Taiz said.
Opposition parties called on the international community not to observe quietly after President Saleh openly attacks civilians only days after getting immunity. "It's a one sided war by the regime. We call the UN secretary general to interfere and save Taiz from these attacks," said Mohammed al-Sabri, a senior opposition leader.
Protests are expected to take care nationwide condemning the night attack against civilians by the ruling family.
Taiz has seen massive protests daily since January, all calling for a regime fall, making itself the corner stone for change in Yemen.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] A government of unity will be announced in Yemen before Sunday, the opposition said, in line with a peace deal that is to see President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... step down from power.
"There is a deal with the ruling party on the distribution of posts. Forming a cabinet will be very easy," Mohammed Qahtan, front man for the parliamentary opposition coalition, told Agence La Belle France Presse.
The government will be announced on Friday or Saturday, he added.
Opposition chief Mohammed Basindawa was charged on Sunday with forming a government tasked with overseeing a 90-day interim period until Saleh's agreed departure in February.
The peace deal, agreed under the auspices of the Gulf Cooperation Council in Riyadh last week, is meant to end 10 months of crisis that has led to violent protests and intense street fighting across Yemen.
In it, the opposition is to evenly share cabinet portfolios with Saleh's ruling party.
According to Qahtan, the posts to fill were handed out by lottery with the opposition ending up with the ministries of interior, finance, cooperation, information and human rights ...which often include carefully measured allowances of freedom at the convenience of the state...
Saleh's ruling party is to keep the ministries of defense, foreign affairs, oil, telecommunications and civil services.
"The forming of a cabinet will be very easy" as the Gulf deal stipulates that each party accept the nominations of the other, Qahtan said.
Another opposition source told AFP the two groups would meet on Saturday to reveal their choices to fill the ministry posts.
The new government will enter office swearing-in to Vice President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi, to whom Saleh transferred effective power in accordance with the Gulf-brokered deal.
Saleh, 69, has ruled Yemen for 33 years and signed a deal mediated by Gulf Cooperation Council states in which he agreed to step down in return for immunity from prosecution for himself and his family.
On Thursday, more than 13 people were killed in festivities between forces loyal to Saleh and dissident rustics in the country's second-largest city Taez.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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North Korea says it is making progress in producing enriched uranium for its light-water nuclear reactor, raising fresh concerns that the controversial project could be used to develop atomic weapons. A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Wednesday that the country's "experimental" uranium enrichment program is "progressing apace."
North Korea unveiled its low-enriched uranium plant a year ago at its atomic complex in Yongbyon, saying it would be used to generate electricity. But some Western observers fear the facility could easily be converted to produce highly-enriched uranium that can be used in nuclear bombs.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday at an aid conference in the South Korean city of Busan that Pyongyang should continue efforts to abandon its nuclear program and improve relations with South Korea. But the North said Wednesday that its right to "peaceful nuclear energy" is a matter of national sovereignty, and that "neither concession nor compromise should be allowed."
Two years ago, North Korea abandoned talks with the U.S., South Korea, Japan, China and Russia aimed at convincing Pyongyang to dismantle its nuclear weapons program in return for economic and diplomatic benefits.
The North has in recent months pressed to resume the talks without preconditions, but Washington and Seoul say Pyongyang must first shut down its uranium enrichment program and take other steps to demonstrate its sincerity.
North Korea already possesses a plutonium-based nuclear stockpile that is estimated to be capable of producing several atomic bombs.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
North Korea, Iran, and Syria. With Pakistan's help.
#2
Remember: the Obamanible refused to support democratic activists in Iran during the 2009 protests, because he claimed that the ayatollahs have legitimate grievances over the "events of 1953." Actually, that year's coup prevented Soviet satellitization of Iran, and undid Soviet manipulation of Iranian politics.
What is BHO? The President of the World's grievance carriers? Kinda un-Constitutional.
[Tolo News] Three Taliban beturbanned goons were killed and 29 others were captured in Afghan forces' operation in the past 24 hours in different parts of the country, Ministry of Interior Affairs said on Thursday.
The operations were launched in Ghazni, Uruzgan, Wardak, Pashtun-infested Logar, Kandahar and Helmand ...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan... provinces to clear insecure areas of bad boys, it said.
During the operations Afghan forces have seized caches of ammunition, the Ministry said.
Afghan and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants... forces recently launched military operations in different parts of the country to clear bad boys.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
What happens to the captured ones? Released in the spring, once the weather warms back up? Surely not the dreaded 'liver failure.'
[Dawn] At least three forces of Evil including an important commander were killed and four others received injuries in a clash between rival armed outfits in Tirah valley of Khyber Agency on Wednesday.
Sources said that members of banned beturbanned goon organization Lashkar-i-Islam and volunteers of Kukikhel tribal lashkar attacked the Maylo base of Tariq Afridi-led Taliban when the latter kidnapped two activists of the former.
They said that both sides used heavy weapons against each other during the festivities, which continued till Wednesday evening.
Local sources said that besides killing three Taliban including one of their important commanders Abu Atif, the Lashkar-i-Islam and Kukikhel volunteers destroyed a hideout of forces of Evil in the area.
Lashkar-i-Islam sources in Bara claimed to have captured at least five Taliban during the clash. They said that their four activists were maimed in the fighting.
The Tariq Afridi group had forcibly evicted some of the Kukikhel families from their houses in Tirah valley few months ago to establish its bases in the area. Since then, Kukikhel tribe had been at loggerheads with Tariq Afridi group of Taliban. A number of people had been killed from both sides during sporadic festivities between the two sides.
Tariq Afridi group had also grabbed credit for the suicide kaboom on a Friday congregation in Jamrud on August 19 this year that killed at least 54 rustics, mostly Kukikhels.
Taliban said that the attack was a reaction to the formation of a Kukikhel lashkar in Tirah and killing of their two members by the lashkar men.
The Lashkar-i-Islam, having a strong presence in neighbouring Sipah area, was also not happy with the growing influence of Taliban in Tirah valley. The two groups had traded gunfire on a number of occasions besides targeting each other sympathisers with kabooms.
Also, the head of a local peace committee was killed when a time bomb planted at his car went off in Hangu city on Wednesday.
Officials said that Haji Hashim Khan, the head of the peace body, had come to Hangu city from his hometown Darband to appear before a court. A bomb planted at his Land Cruiser went kaboom! near the office of the district coordination officer, killing him on the spot, they added.
They said that his driver Shah Habib and gunman Shah Nawaz were seriously injured in the blast. They were taken to Hangu civil hospital for treatment.
The bomb disposal squad said that about one kilogram explosives were used in the blast. "It was a magnetic devise, fixed with a timer," they added.
Haji Hashim Khan was buried in his ancestral graveyard in Darband area of Hangu in the presence of thousands of people.
The Hangu city police started the paperwork but haven't done much else against unidentified hard boyz and launched investigations.
In is pertinent to mention here that forces of Evil had killed several anti-Taliban politicians in Hangu as they were trying to broker a peace deal between Shia and Sunni sects and restore peace in the area. They include former provincial minister Ghaniur Rehman, district chief of Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... Fida Sadi and former district nazim ...small time big shot, the chief elected official of a local government in Pakistan, such as a district, tehsil, union council, or village council... Khan Afzal.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] A bomb went kaboom! near the office of a regional government official in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar early on Thursday, police officials said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties. A wall of the district coordination officer's building collapsed after the blast, which was heard throughout the city.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Police foiled another terrorist attack on Shia "Imam Bargahs" during Muharram by arresting four suspected cut-throats on Thursday, DawnNews reported.
Talking to media representatives, SP Aslam Khan claimed that the locked away were belonged to banned but still somehow murderously active Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistain (TTP.)
Suicide jackets, hand grenades, pistols and other weapons were recovered from the locked away suspects, said Khan.
It is important to mention that two scouts performing Muharram duty at the Numaish intersection on the city's main M.A. Jinnah Road were killed and another injured in an attack on the first day of the holy month (November 27.)
At least eight people, including a news hound of Waqt television, were maimed and a car, a van and around two dozen cycle of violences were set ablaze by a large number of enraged people who had gathered at the place after the attack.
According to police, the attack took place when participants of a rally held by the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), formerly Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistain (now proscribed), at Regal Chowk had dispersed.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[L.A. Times] Al Qaeda grabbed credit Thursday for the kidnapping of a 70-year-old American aid worker in Pakistain in August, and issued a series of demands for his release.
In a video message posted on bad boy websites, Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri said Warren Weinstein would be released if the United States stopped Arclight airstrikes in Afghanistan, Pakistain, Somalia and Yemen. He also demanded the release of all Al Qaeda and Taliban suspects around the world.
"Just as the Americans detain all whom they suspect of links to Al Qaeda and the Taliban, even remotely, we jugged this man who is neck-deep in American aid to Pakistain since the 1970s," al-Zawahri said, according to a translation provided by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors bad boy messages.
Weinstein was kidnapped by gunnies from his house in the eastern city of Lahore on Aug. 13. Police and U.S. officials have not publicly said who they believed was holding him, but Islamist bad boy groups were the main suspects.
Weinstein, who has a home in Rockville, Maryland, worked in Pakistain for several years and spoke Urdu.
He was the country director in Pakistain for J.E. Austin Associates, a U.S.-based firm that advises a range of Pak business and government sectors. The company has said Weinstein is in poor health and provided a detailed list of medications, many of them for heart problems, that it implored the kidnappers to give him.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Sources told NBC News that Weinstein is in the custody of militants led by Commander Tariq Afridi, operating in the semi-autonomous tribal region of Darra Adamkhel, sited between Peshawar and Kohat.
It is the same militant group that kidnapped a Polish engineer, Piotr Stancza on Sept. 28, 2009. Stancza was executed on Feb. 6 after their demands were not met.
Some sources said Weinstein was kidnapped by another group and later sold to Afridi, NBC News reported. He is considered the most ruthless among his militant colleagues and is known for his harsh policies.
#3
Piotr Stanczak was excecuted because he would not convert to Islam. That was the demand that was not met.
I don't think they are going to have more success with Weinstein.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
12/02/2011 9:31 Comments ||
Top||
#4
I'm always amazed how the uber-zealous Muslims are so polite. They make the snipers' jobs so much easier by banging that bullseye on their foreheads.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
12/02/2011 15:11 Comments ||
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[Dawn] A car boomwent kaboom! in a street market in the Iraqi town of Khalis on Thursday, killing 10 people and wounding 25, police and hospital officials said.
Authorities immediately imposed a curfew in Khalis, about 80 kilometres north of Storied Baghdad. ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... "According to the witnesses, there was a parked civilian car boom in the street market and it blew up and led to the deaths of 10 people," said Major Ali al-Temimi of the Khalis police.
The blast underscored Iraq's fragile security as the remaining 13,000 US troops pull out in the next few weeks, nearly nine years after the invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein.
US Vice President Joe Foreign Policy Whiz Kid Biden The former Senator-for-Life from Delaware, an example of the kind of top-notch Washington intellect to be found in the World's Greatest Deliberative Body... is on a visit to Iraq designed to herald a new era in US-Iraqi relations.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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A soldier was killed and another injured when a bomb buried on a rural road in Yala province exploded yesterday morning.
Pvt Kriangkrai Promfai and eight other soldiers were patroling on foot on the road to protect teachers when he stepped on a landmine, which was instantly set off. The explosion threw him into the air, and severed his right leg. Pvt Siam sae Lao was wounded slightly in the blast. The two were taken to the hospital where Pvt Kriangkrai was later pronounced dead.
Police blamed members of the Runda Kumpulan Kecil (RKK) movement in for the blast.
Meanwhile, vendors in Yala say a safety zone in Muang is killing business. The safety zone was introduced after a series of bomb blasts at more than 30 locations in downtown Yala and nearby areas on Oct 25. The explosions killed two and injured many others.
While this story has not been caught by any of the major wires, The Australian's Jerusalem correspondent Sheera Frankel reports something quite disturbing: "All eyes on Israel after second Iranian blast. CLOUDS of smoke billowed above the city of Isfahan - evidence that the latest strike against Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program had hit its target." We will report more if this story is confirmed by any other news agencies because if true it means that at this point things behind the scenes are no longer happening in the shadows.
As a reminder, from Monday: Satellite Image Confirms Iranian Missile Base Was Destroyed
Today's curious news report posted by Iran's semi-official news agency Fars, which was promptly muted, only to be republished by Israel's Haaretz, of a major explosion near the Iranian city of Isfahan, has left many scratching their heads. As Haaretz reports: "Speaking with Fars news agency, Isfahan's deputy mayor confirmed the reports and said the authorities are investigating the matter. However, after the incident was reported in Israel, the report was taken off the Fars website."
Which led many to wonder: is this a real event or merely a provocation designed to make Iranians believe they were attacked? Further complicating matters is the just released news from Washington Post which shows satellite images of the aftermath of another explosion in Iran, this time from two weeks ago at an Iranian missile base.
#4
"Must have been that Bean I ate for dinner" - Homer
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
12/02/2011 13:28 Comments ||
Top||
#5
Grunter: That is a good idea. I suspect the Israelis have planted some kind of EOD sabotage team that is currently operating in Isfahan. If so, that is going to be one nervous city.
Years ago, I knew some EOD types who had an ongoing "game", speculatively picking a random major city around the world, and on paper shutting it down in chaos, for under $500, using only off the shelf chemicals and parts openly sold there.
This was half-serious strategic training, useful both to know how to do this, and how to stop others with training, who also knew how to do this.
They covered the bases, taking out electricity, water, communications, military and intelligence targets, major transportation arteries, etc. All with emplaced explosives, with a high certainty for success.
Islamists think they are hot stuff for making suicide belts, car bombs and IEDs. They have no idea what life would be like if experts decided to play that game.
Posted by: Barbara ||
12/02/2011 14:09 Comments ||
Top||
#7
Islamists think they are hot stuff for making suicide belts, car bombs and IEDs. They have no idea what life would be like if experts decided to play that game.
#8
This is misleading. There hasn't been a second explosion in Isfahan. The second explosion in the past month has happened at Isfahan. This is a re-report of the earlier Isfahan explosion. Just wanted to clarify that because this report makes it look like a second explosion has happened at Isfahan making a total of three. That is not what has happened here.
The number currently is at two ... over the past month ... that we know of.
[An Nahar] Iran's charge d'affaires in Rome, Mehdi Akouchekian, was on Thursday summoned by Italia's foreign ministry following the "intolerable" attack by protesters on Britannia's embassy in Tehran.
The Italian government expressed its "strong condemnation" of the "violent and intolerable" attack and stressed its "solidarity with the British government," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
"Italia will evaluate, along with other European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... countries, how to react to make sure such an episode will not happen again," it said.
Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said Wednesday that he was considering closing the Italian embassy in Tehran.
"Italia expects from Iran strong and clear guarantees on respecting the fundamental principles of sanctity of diplomatic-consular representatives," the statement said.
Akouchekian expressed Iran's "regret" for the protesters' "unacceptable behavior" and assured Italia that "urgent and necessary measures will be adopted."
He assured the foreign ministry of Iran's "commitment to protect and safeguard the diplomatic and consular offices in Tehran."
Britannia's mission was attacked on Tuesday by protesters angry over new British sanctions against Iran's financial system that followed a recent U.N. report containing evidence that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Back when the British Empire had teeth, they would generally have a violent, non-linear response to provocative attacks and violations of diplomatic missions by foreign powers. Their enemies found this to be very unnerving.
For example, In 1860, during the Second Opium War, two British envoys, a journalist for The Times and their small escort of British and Indian troopers met with the Royal Prince to negotiate. Instead they were confined and tortured, resulting in twenty deaths.
The British High Commissioner to China, Lord Elgin, retaliated by ordering the destruction of the Chinese Old Summer Palace, which was then carried out by French and British troops.
This cut to the bone, because it ignored any efforts by the Chinese nobility to blame it all on unauthorized lesser individuals, and hit them where they hurt.
[An Nahar] Lebanese banks have adopted strict measures to ensure compliance with international sanctions against neighboring Syria and are scrutinizing transfers of existing Syrian clients, banking officials said on Thursday.
"Banks are taking extremely strong precautions to avoid bad surprises regarding people or institutions under sanctions," said one official who works at one of Leb's top banks. "No one wants to expose himself to pressure or problems.
"Banks are running away from anything that has to do with Syria like it's a disease because the U.S. is closely watching."
He requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue and banking secrecy laws.
He told Agence La Belle France Presse that the precautions taken apply to transactions by long-standing Syrian clients as well as new account applicants, many of whom are being turned down.
The measures are in light of U.S., European and Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... sanctions slapped on the Syrian regime over its fierce crackdown against an eight-month revolt that has left thousands dead.
"All accounts held by Syrians are under surveillance so that banks themselves don't end up facing punitive measures," said an official at another top bank who also requested anonymity.
"No transfers from accounts held by Syrian clients are being made in dollars and other transactions need special approval," she added.
The U.S. sanctions adopted last summer have forced Syria to stop all transactions in U.S. dollars, prompting the country to turn to the euro.
Lebanese banking officials said it was clear that many Syrians had taken their money out of the embattled country soon after the revolt broke out mid-March.
According to figures from the Association of Banks in Leb, in March, when the revolt in Syria broke out, there was a net inflow to Lebanese banks of 1.34 billion dollars and in April 1.8 billion dollars.
"There is a consensus in Leb that this was Syrian money," one of the officials said.
Comparatively, before the unrest in January, a net outflow of deposits totaled 1.1 billion dollars, largely because of the collapse of the Lebanese government that month.
Economy Minister Nicolas Nahas told AFP this week that Lebanese banks would have no dealings with the Syrian central bank or any individuals targeted by the sanctions.
Central Bank governor Riad Salameh for his part said Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... has no funds deposited at the Lebanese central bank.
In an unprecedented move, the vaporous Arab League on Sunday approved a raft of sanctions against Syria to pressure Damascus to end its deadly crackdown.
The sanctions include freezing government assets, suspending cooperation with Syria's central bank and halting funding for projects in the country.
Leb's Hizbullah-led government disassociated itself from the vote at the Arab League.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Amnesia Amnesty International and rights activists on Wednesday called on the U.N. Security Council to refer the Syrian government's deadly crackdown on protests to the International Criminal Court ... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ... .
A Syrian activist forced into exile by Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad The Scourge of Hama... 's government said there has to be "regime change" in the country, but with no foreign intervention.
Amnesia Amnesty International is pressing for an arms embargo, an asset freezes against Assad and his associates as well as an investigation by the ICC, said a Middle East campaigner for the rights group, Maha Abu Shama.
"It is high time for the U.N. Security council to take action," Shama told news hounds at a briefing also attended by Catherine al-Talli, who was briefly jugged by Syrian authorities in May and has since gone into exile.
The lawyer activist backed the calls for sanctions but said "we want the regime to be changed but with no foreign interference."
The mounting agitation for international action against Syria comes as western nations renew calls for condemnation of the Assad government for the crackdown, which the U.N. says has left more than 3,500 dead.
The U.N. Human Rights Council will hold a special session in Geneva on Friday on the Syria following a request by the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... . U.N. human rights ...which often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless... Sherlocks said in a report released this week that crimes against humanity have been committed in Syria.
Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... foreign ministers are to meet this weekend in Doha and could decide to refer the Syria case to the Security Council. Russia and China vetoed a resolution against Syria last month.
The European powers which proposed the resolution say they are waiting to see how the vaporous Arab League advances with its sanctions clampdown on Syria before deciding on whether to ask again for U.N. action against Syria.
Russia will be the president of the Security Council for December.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Kuwait on Thursday appealed to its nationals to leave Syria and refrain from travelling there because of safety concerns amid a deadly eight-month crackdown on democracy protests.
"The foreign ministry calls on citizens currently present in Syria to leave for their own safety," it said in a statement quoted by the state-run KUNA news agency.
It also called on Kuwaitis to abandon any plans to travel to the Arab state "due to the unstable security situation."
Similar travel alerts have already been issued by Kuwait's neighbors Bahrain, Qatar, Soddy Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The warnings follow attacks on the Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... embassies of Qatar, Soddy Arabia and the UAE in the wake of the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... 's decision to suspend Syria's membership and slap unprecedented sanctions on its regime.
In addition, Soddy Arabia said one of its citizens was killed on November 21 while visiting relatives in the restive city of Homs in central Syria.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... chief Nabil al-Arabi rejected any foreign intervention in Syria on Thursday as he joined European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... talks aimed at ramping up pressure on the regime over its crackdown on dissidents.
"We reject any accusation that the vaporous Arab League is inviting any intervention," Arabi said on arrival for a lunch with EU foreign ministers, who slapped a new round of economic sanctions on Damascus ...Home to a staggering array of terrorist organizations...
"Every decision taken by the Arab League rejects an intervention," he added, days after the pan-Arabic body imposed its own unprecedented sanctions against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Sonny, disguised as Fredo, trying to be Mike... 's regime.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem accused "some League members" this week of "pushing to internationalize the conflict."
EU officials were hoping to join forces with the Arab League in order to pile pressure on Assad.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said she was "very pleased" with the sanctions approved by the League and that Arabi and EU ministers would try to determine "the best and most appropriate ways that we can collaborate."
"We want to work with the Arab League to discuss how they want to go forward and how effective they think their sanctions are going to be," she said.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the Arab League sanctions were "historic" and that the EU would discuss how "we synchronize our measures."
"I think it is very important that our answer to the repression and to the atrocities in Syria is a united answer," he said, adding that Europeans would also keep trying to get a U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria.
EU ministers adopted bans on exporting gas and oil industry equipment to Syria, trading Syrian government bonds and selling software that could be used to monitor Internet and telephone communications, diplomats said.
European governments will also be barred from providing concessional loans to Syria -- credit at lower rates and longer grace periods than those offered by the markets.
The goal is to restrict the regime's access to cash.
The EU also added 12 more individuals and 11 more entities to a blacklist of people and companies hit by assets freezes and travel bans over the regime's crackdown on protesters, diplomats said.
The EU has passed nine rounds of sanctions against Syria, placing 74 people on the list, including Assad, enforcing an arms embargo and banning imports of Syrian crude oil.
The U.N. says the violence has killed more than 4,000 people since mid-March.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] EU foreign ministers piled pressure on Iran over its contested nuclear programme Thursday, slapping sanctions on an extra 180 firms and individuals and threatening to hit out at its vital oil sector.
Expressing "deepening concerns" on the nature of the nuclear programme, the 27 European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... foreign ministers urged the bloc to "extend the scope" of current sanctions in order to strike at Tehran's financial heart.
A statement said the ministers agreed to examine measures in particular affecting the financial system in the transport and energy sector.
Outraged by Tuesday's storming of the British embassy in Tehran, the ministers also said they considered "these actions against the UK as actions against the European Union as a whole".
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on joining the talks that he would urge his counterparts to squeeze Iran for both its nuclear activities and mounting human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. violations.
"I hope we will agree today additional measures that will be an intensification of the economic pressure on Iran, peaceful legitimate economic pressure particularly to increase the isolation of the Iranian financial sector," he saod.
Though German counterpart Guido Westerwelle too favoured moves "to dry up Iran's financial sources", the crisis-hit EU is deeply split over slapping an oil embargo on Iran as well as over calls by some, including Britannia, to agree an assets freeze on Iran's central bank.
The new sanctions follow the publication last month of a new report on Iran's contested nuclear activity by the ineffective International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The punitive measures target both firms and individuals involved in the nuclear programme and those linked to the Islamic Theocratic Republic of Iran Shipping Line (IRISL) and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
Much of the international community fears Iran's nuclear programme masks a drive for a weapons capability, though Tehran says it serves peaceful civilian energy and medical purposes only.
Meanwhile, ...back at the chili cook-off, Chuck and Manuel's rivalry was entering a new and more dangerous phase... EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who leads global talks with Iran on the sensitive nuclear issue, reiterated a plea to Tehran to resume dialogue.
"We have put proposals on the table," she said. "It is for the Iranians to come back and if they don't come back and answer or at least put forward their own proposals, we have to draw conclusions."
Urging the EU "to ratchet up sanctions" in the light of the attacks on the British embassy, Ashton said it was time "to make it clear to Iran that we are very serious".
But that is easier said than done. Britannia, La Belle France, Germany and Sweden favour a bar on buying oil from Iran. However, a woman is only as old as she admits... others led by economically-troubled Spain, Greece and Italia are significantly dependent on Iranian crude.
Oil from Iran in 2010 amounted to 5.8 per cent of total EU imports, making Tehran the bloc's fifth-largest supplier after Russia, Norway, Libya and Soddy Arabia.
Of that total, Spain accounted for 14.6 per cent, Greece for 14.0 and Italia for 13.1 per cent. Cash-strapped Greece led opposition to an oil embargo, with an EU diplomat saying: "Iran sells them on credit which is a considerable advantage these days."
The EU has already frozen the assets of hundreds of Iranian firms and in July last year adopted measures aimed at preventing new investment, technical assistance and technology transfers, particularly those pertaining to producing and refining gas.
Hague reiterated Britannia's angry condemnation of the embassy attack and welcomed moves by La Belle France, Germany and the Netherlands to recall their ambassadors from Iran.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Western sanctions keep patting ducks (little companies & people) on the head and never identify the goose (oil)!
Posted by: American Delight ||
12/02/2011 10:27 Comments ||
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#2
In this instance, it's the companies that matter.
Iran has a large, quasi-governmental charity, the Mostazafen Foundation of Islamic Revolution, that controls a significant number of companies (it's perhaps the biggest holding company in the Middle East). It's also under control of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.
There's enough intel to suggest that the Mostazafen foundation has supplied funds for Iran's nuke program.
[An Nahar] Syria has suspended its participation in the Mediterranean Union in retaliation for punitive measures against its regime by European states, state media said on Thursday.
"Syria is suspending its membership in the Mediterranean Union in response to European measures taken against it," said a statement carried by the official SANA news agency.
Syrian state television ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
meanwhile accused the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... of "taking a series of measures which constitute a flagrant violation of the illusory sovereignty and patent interference in the internal affairs of Syria."
The statement came after EU ministers meeting in Brussels on Thursday said they were targeting Syria's energy and financial for new sanctions.
The 43-nation Mediterranean Union, an initiative of French President Nicolas Sarkozy ...23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. Sarkozy is married to singer-songwriter Carla Bruni, who has a really nice birthday suit... , was inaugurated in 2008 to bolster cooperation between Europe, the Middle East and north Africa.
Launched by La Belle France and Egypt at a Gay Paree summit, the union groups all 27 European Union member states with countries in North Africa, the Balkans, the Arab world and Israel.
Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs... was one of 40 heads of state and government present when the Union was launched amid much fanfare and at the time placed himself firmly at the centre of Middle East peace moves.
However, a clean conscience makes a soft pillow... he has since fallen far from grace and the EU, Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... and United States have all slapped sanctions on his regime over its fierce crackdown on an eight-month revolt.
At least 4,000 civilians have been killed in the violence, the United Nations ...aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society... said in its most recent toll given on Thursday.
The European ministers said in a statement released at their Brussels meeting that they had decided to implement "further restrictive measures targeting the regime's ability to conduct its brutal repression."
The sanctions target "the energy, financial, banking and trade sectors and include the listing of additional individuals and entities that are involved in the violence or directly supporting the regime."
Diplomats said the measures include bans on exporting gas and oil industry equipment to Syria, trading Syrian government bonds and selling software that could be used to monitor Internet and telephone communications.
The EU has passed nine rounds of sanctions against Syria, placing 74 people on the list, including Assad, enforcing an arms embargo and banning imports of Syrian crude oil.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Washington on Thursday placed economic sanctions on a senior Syrian general and a financier uncle of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Lord of the Baath... , adding new pressure on the regime over its bloody political crackdown.
The Treasury Department added Mohammed Makhlouf, Assad's maternal uncle and the father of already-sanctioned telecoms magnate Rami Makhlouf, and 4th armored division General Aus Aslan, to its growing list of Syrian figures and organizations that Americans are banned from doing business with.
The Treasury called Makhlouf, 79, someone "whom Assad used to make and move money" and an important Assad economic advisor.
"Makhlouf ensured that assets in nearly all sectors were controlled by businessmen who were willing to act as proxies for the Assad regime in return for profits," it said.
"In addition, he served as President Assad's primary economic advisor and final decision maker on capital allocation decisions for Syrian regime investments in private banks in Syria."
Also listed in the new sanctions were a defense ministry business -- the Military Housing Establishment, and the government-controlled Real Estate Bank, the country's second largest bank.
The Military Housing Establishment "provides funding to the regime", the Treasury said, while the bank is "responsible for administering the Government of Syria's borrowings."
The move came as both the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... nations also stepped up sanctions pressure on the Assad regime for its heavy-handed eight-month crackdown on political protesters which has left more than 3,500 dead.
"It has never been more critical to escalate pressure on the Syrian government to immediately cease all violence against its own people and isolate the regime from the international financial system," said Treasury under secretary David Cohen in a statement.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Eek. I'll bet that inexperienced 79 year old Makhlouf is just shaking in his boots right now. Maybe he can have one of his grandsons take care of any business paperwork for him.
[An Nahar] The brother of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Despoiler of Deraa... , several ministers and telecom magnate Rami Makhlouf are on a list of 17 senior figures to be targeted by Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... sanctions, officials said Thursday.
Under the economic measures agreed this week by the 22-member organization, they would be banned from travelling in the region and have any assets in Arab countries frozen, if the list is confirmed at a meeting on Saturday.
Ministers from Qatar, Egypt, Algeria, Oman and Sudan are to meet in Doha on Saturday. Other countries have been invited, but Iraq has already said it will boycott the vaporous Arab League measures.
The list comprises Maher Assad, the brother of the president, his cousin Makhlouf, as well as Defense Minister General Daood Rajha, Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim al-Shaar and other military and intelligence figures.
In an unprecedented move, the pan-Arab bloc on Sunday approved a raft of sanctions against Syria to pressure Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... to end its deadly crackdown against an uprising.
The sanctions also include freezing government assets, suspending cooperation with Syria's central bank and halting funding for projects in the country.
In its most recent toll issued early in November, the United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... estimated that more than 3,500 people have been killed in the violence that has shaken Syria since mid-March.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2011 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.
[Dawn] Seven Pak workers have been kidnapped in an area troubled by the Taliban near the Afghan capital Kabul, police said Thursday.
A 12-member
[Iran Press TV] At least 11 people have been killed after US 
[Yemen Post] At least five 
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
North Korea says it is making progress in producing enriched uranium for its light-water nuclear reactor, raising fresh concerns that the controversial project could be used to develop atomic weapons. A North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Wednesday that the country's "experimental" uranium enrichment program is "progressing apace." 
[Tolo News] Three Taliban 
[Dawn] A bomb 
Police foiled another terrorist attack on Shia "Imam Bargahs" during Muharram by arresting four suspected 
[L.A. Times] Al Qaeda 
"According to the witnesses, there was a parked civilian 
Iran's charge d'affaires in Rome, Mehdi Akouchekian, was on Thursday summoned by 
[An Nahar] Lebanese banks have adopted strict measures to ensure compliance with international sanctions against neighboring Syria and are scrutinizing transfers of existing Syrian clients, banking officials said on Thursday.
International Criminal Court
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[Dawn] EU foreign ministers piled pressure on Iran over its contested nuclear programme Thursday, slapping sanctions on an extra 180 firms and individuals and threatening to hit out at its vital oil sector.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
