After fiddlin' with it for awhile, I've added in a view of Rantburg by the week. Dunno if anyone else will find it of any use, but I've used the proto a few times to try and trace something down. Link's on the right, if you want to try it out...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 07:36 pm ||
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Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appealed to the people for calm Friday after accepting the shock resignation of prominent prayer leader in Isfahan, Ayatollah Jalaledin Taheri. "Without doubt, one of the objectives of our enemies is to provoke clashes among the population, which is why I ask the population in Isfahan to maintain their calm and avoid any slogans during the Friday prayer ceremony," Khamenei said in a letter to Taheri. Gotta watch those slogans. They'll tear you up...
The letter carried on state radio shortly before the weekly prayers nation-wide also said Khamenei had not been expecting Taheri's resignation Tuesday, which came with a fiery attack against the Islamic regime and the "chaotic situation" in the country. "Certainly, I was not expecting this of you," Khamenei wrote. "But I agree with you because I also have been saying for several years that we have to mobilize all possible means to fight poverty and corruption," the supreme leader's letter said. But he doesn't apply any of that to himself, nor to the system that he's helped establish...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 09:28 am ||
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Iranâs foreign ministry denied foreign press reports that four Iranian secret service agents have asked for political asylum in Denmark. Spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said the "tendentious report," carried by TV2 television in Denmark last month, was "completely false" and "aimed at straining ties between Iran and the European Union" just before Copenhagen takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union. The four had diplomatic passports, and have been giving Danish intelligence information regarding links between Iranian groups living in Denmark and the Iranian secret services, said TV2, citing a former Iranian secret service agent living in Denmark under a false name. "Ardeshir, I think this ship might be sinking."
"I believe you might be right, Hamid."
"They say Denmark is nice..."
"I like blondes, too. Shall we decamp?"
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 11:57 am ||
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Six more people have died in clashes between two groups of a southern Sudanese tribe living in Khartoum. The clashes, which first broke out last Saturday, had already resulted in the deaths of three men from the Nuer tribe. Though police managed to rein in the clashes Tuesday, they flared anew Wednesday and raised the death toll to nine. The clashes caused panic among residents of the area, where cars and shops were damaged and looting broke out. A total of 449 people were arrested. The battle stemmed from a quarrel last week between two members of the tribe living as displaced persons outside Khartoum, in which one man broke the other's teeth. The plaintiff, who was apparently unsatisfied with the fine handed down by a tribal tribunal, attacked the defendant shortly after the verdict was delivered. Relatives of the two men joined in the fight, attacking each other with spears, iron bars, knives and canes. I love civil, well reasoned discourse...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 08:50 am ||
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hey! that would make a great slogan....doh!
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/12/2002 17:16 Comments ||
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A splinter of the Sudanese opposition Umma party said it will replace party chairman and former Prime Minister Sadiq el-Mahdi and consider joining the government. The faction, headed by Mubarak el-Mahdi, Sadiq el-Mahdi's cousin, ... — it's a family business, y'know — ...
held a conference to discuss its possible participation in the government and said it will elect a new chairman on Friday. Spokesman Ibrahim el-Zahawai said the time has come to reform and modernize the party, and accused Umma leaders of failing to represent "the party's conscience". He denied any government attempt to split the party into two. Sadiq el-Mahdi's wing of the party issued a statement saying all those attending the Khartoum conference were fired and did not represent Umma. "So there. Pack yer junk and get the hell out!"
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 08:50 am ||
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American citizens may be among those serving as behind-the-scenes advisers to al-Qaida cells operating in the United States. Some of the suspected advisers are believed to be immersed in American life and able to financially direct an attack without directly participating in it. Some may be U.S. citizens. They're known as "traitors," a term which has largely fallen out of use except in political invective...
Al-Qaida manuals recovered in Afghanistan suggest that terror operations have a "senior adviser or wise man" who does not take part in attacks. They're called "controllers." It's a technical term for the "Brains of the Outfit," as opposed to "cannon fodder," which is the guys who actually do the bleeding and exploding...
Some intelligence officials estimate that there may be as many as 5,000 people in the United States with some sort of connection to al-Qaida. That number, larger than other estimates, includes all those in the "realm of suspicion" and those who may know of terrorist activities but not participate in them. The number of hard-core al-Qaida members in the United States who might actually do harm to Americans is in the low hundreds or even less. That sounds like a ballpark estimate, and I suspect their are either fewer in the support network or more in the cannon fodder end of things â the ratios don't seem right.
Behind the actual cannon fodder â usually organized in cells of three to ten â is a network of planning and decision-making controllers, called a "council" or shura. Usually, each controller runs several cells â collectively known as a fiah. The usual means of coordinating is by courier. Kind of like the mafia or professional intel networks, the guy at the front end may not even know who his controller is; disposing of the courier is all it takes to insulate the Important Guy.
A sophisticated network like al-Qaeda or Hezbollah will also have specialized cells that do nothing but finance, for instance, or research, or documents, or provide transportation. And don't forget the ever-popular "Engineers." There might be a half dozen of these type cells to a single cannon fodder cell, all provided with as much plausible deniability as can be arranged, while the controller coordinates their efforts toward the strike that's going to "burn" the cannon fodder. Once the burn's complete, if everything goes right, they can get some more strong backs and weak minds for a new cannon fodder cell and still have the support mechanism in place...
While law enforcement looks broadly for terrorists, some FBI agents are working closely with Treasury agents to conduct a more specialized search for U.S. residents who might be working in an advisory capacity. As part of the effort, federal investigators are conducting extensive checks into the backgrounds of longtime citizens who fall under suspicion, looking for operatives who may not have anything unusual in their immediate histories. This approach is going to cause howls from civil libertarians who demand we commit national suicide to protect the privacy of the members of these networks. The controllers, and their controllers and all the fifth columnists they can round up, are going to be discreetly helping this process along as much as they can without calling attention to themselves.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 09:50 am ||
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More than 200 people were arrested in a state crackdown on phony ID dealers, many of them on New York City streets. Gov. George Pataki's Fraudulent Identification Task Force shut down six fake ID mills and seized more than 2,000 forged documents. The coalition of local, state and federal agencies was created in February to target the illegal manufacture, sale and distribution of forged or fraudulently obtained passports, licenses and other ID. Shucks, I was just talking about how those are an integral part of a terror machine, and he we are rounding them up. Good deal!
Of the 225 defendants arrested since February, more than 140 already have been convicted. One of those arrested was Hassan G. Eldin, an Egyptian national who stayed in the country illegally after his visa expired. Eldin maintained two identities, obtaining drivers' licenses in California and New York, along with Social Security cards in two different names, and two student pilot licenses. If this wasn't the USA, Hassan would be talking to several very large men with moustaches and truncheons right now, 'cause his deniability is not very plausible at all.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 08:50 am ||
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Allowing pilots to carry guns might prevent the government from taking other steps to strengthen airline security, the chairman of American Airlines said Thursday. American Chairman Donald Carty said the time spent drafting rules and training pilots would come at the expense of other, more effective actions to protect passengers. "We have been so engaged and the government has been so engaged in things that I believe are the primary parts of security, in particular protecting the cockpit, in particular marrying government intelligence with airline reservation records," Carty told a National Press Club luncheon. "These are the things that'll keep bad people off our airplanes and keep them out of our cockpits. I'm concerned about a whole bunch of resources being removed from the primary objective of security." No doubt it hurt when he was dropped on his head, but a neurosurgeon can probably dispose of that little old subdural haematoma in jig time...
Meanwhile, the American pilots' union said its members would ask senators to support legislation letting pilots carry guns, a measure the House overwhelmingly approved Wednesday. The opposition to allowing pilots to carry guns as a last resort protection for themselves and their passengers â occasionally including me â seems more hysterical than reasoned. The fact that there are other measures to be taken, f'instance against bombs, doesn't negate the fact that on September 11th of last year guns in the hands of four pilots and four copilots might well have saved 3000 lives. Maybe half would have succeeded and half failed; that still would have saved 1500 lives.
My personal opinion â worth at least every penny you're paying for it! â is that anyone with a handgun permit should be allowed, yea encouraged, to pack his/her/its rod on any flight. It would be a ducky idea to offer them discount fares and free upgrades so they could sit right up front in first-class, where the Bad Guys so love to ride. And non-totin' passengers should be allowed and encouraged to carry with them mace, pepper spray, tranquilizer guns, knives, barbecue forks and large nets, assuming they fit in carry-on luggage. Why? Because sometimes I have to fly places and my carcass might not be much, but it's the only one I've got...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 09:48 am ||
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Archie Bunker had the best idea: issue everyone a rod with their boarding pass. Any hijacker would automatically be outgunned.
Posted by: Denny Wilson ||
07/12/2002 21:48 Comments ||
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Judicial Magistrate Chaudhry Mohammad Iqbal Chadhar here on Thursday rejected the bail applications of all accused, including Imam of a mosque, involved in the stoning to death case of Chak Jhumra. The judge observed in his order that since in the case a man had been killed, it was beyond the jurisdiction of the court to grant the bail. The prosecution lawyers argued that the bail application should be rejected as the accused had committed a heinous crime by stoning a man to death, which had defamed the country. Noticed that, did they? Guess the first step on the road to civilization is recognizing that you're barbaric...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 12:04 pm ||
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In southern Kashmir, Indian forces early on Thursday gunned down a senior commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba. Sarfaraz Rathore, Lashkar's chief commander of the southern frontier district of Poonch, was iced in a firefight. "Rathore's killing is a major setback to the Lashkar in Poonch, where it is responsible for attacking Indian army camps in the recent past," a police spokesman said. And they nabbed a local commander near Srinagar not long ago, too. Nice shootin', Mukkerjee!
Police in Srinagar said Bilal Ahmed, alias Mehmood Bhai, district commander of Jaish-e-Mohammad, departed the gene pool overnight. The commander was zapped in a three-hour battle near Handwara township. "The encounter erupted when the army intercepted a group of Jaish militants, and asked them to surrender," a police officer said, adding that the rebels instead opened fire, wounding two soldiers. "The army returned fire, killing Bilal." A number of guerillas managed to escape under cover of darkness, the officer said. Too bad. Maybe next time, eh?
In separate incidents in the village of Sogam in the same district, two Indian army soldiers and two snuffies were killed in a clash late on Wednesday. Two other soldiers were injured in the gunbattle.
In Poonch, a soldier and a Bad Guy were killed in a battle early on Thursday. No details available.
Suspected Militants® stormed into a marriage ceremony in northern Baramulla district on Thursday and opened fire at a former rebel now working with security forces, icing him on the spot. Two civilians also sustained injuries of whom one later died in Srinagar's main hospital. What's a few civilian casualties here and there? You can always get more civilians...
In the neighbouring village of Warpora, police said suspected militants shot dead a 23-year-old student on Thursday. "Suspected"? I think when they shoot people they should leave the "suspected" category...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 12:24 pm ||
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Both police and the area feudals have joined hands to manage acquittal of the Meerwala Mastoi clan chief who headed the 'panchayat' that ordered gang-rape of a woman. Faiz Bakhsh Mastoi was being treated like a special guest at the Jatoi police station. SHO Abdul Latif Chandia did not allow to see the chief juror in the lock-up and instead called him to his office. When asked to recall the events, he started a statement in Urdu, though, otherwise he was speaking in Seraiki language. While describing the events, he glanced towards the SHO from time to time to get his approval. So the local coppers have coached him with a story that sounds plausible...
He claimed that he was against the gang-rape verdict and when Tattlas brought their daughter before the gathering, he pleaded pardon for her. Faiz Bakhsh claimed that Farid and others rescued the woman and handed her over to her father. He denied that any incident of gang-rape was happened. "Nope. Nuttin' happened. I'm clean. You guys know I'd never do nuttin' like that. Can I go home now?"
Later, Abdul Khaliq also joined the interview. "All you have learnt is right," he said in a grim voice adding "this was bound by the fates." At this, Faiz Bakhsh admonished him and asked to tell what had 'actually' happened. Khaliq repeated the events like a parrot in the same order as told by the chief juror. Probably in Urdu, as well, since the story was originally concocted in Urdu...
Nazim Nasrullah Jatoi is reportedly making all-out efforts to save Faiz Bakhsh in the wake of the forthcoming general elections for which he will need votes of the Mastoi clan. People said he had recently summoned the witnesses and threatened them not to name Faiz Mastoi as prime abettor in the gang-rape case. Threatening witnesses? No! Never!
Basit Sultan, has reportedly initiated channels with Tattlas to forgive Faiz Bakhsh. Basit Sultan's the nazim's political rival. Might as well pick up a few votes that way...
Meanwhile, an area outlaw, Muneer Mastoi, has been threatening Tattlas with dire consequences if they do not stop pursuing the case. "Police have provided us guard but we cannot sleep at night because of the threats being given by Muneer who is harboured by Faiz Bakhsh," said Hazoor Bakhsh, the elder brother of the gang-rape victim. So they called in the hard boys with guns, just to make sure...
Police had arrested one Fayyaz, the son of Karim Bakhsh, from Dhuni instead of the actual rapist, Fayyaz Mastoi. And on top of it all, the coppers intentionally try to screw up the case so it'll get thrown out.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 12:49 pm ||
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A district judge in Hyderabad (the one in Pakistan, not the one in India) on Thursday granted interim pre-arrest bail to Yamin Rajput, in the rape case of a Kolhi girl, Meeran, for a sum of Rs100,000. The case against Yamin Rajput and unidentified persons was lodged at the Husri police station after Meeran claimed to have been sexually assaulted by Rajput and four others. This is a different case from the Meerwan incident, apparently just a passing grab at some available low-caste babe. The Kohlis are Hindu nomads...
Advocate Abbasi contended before the court that his client had obtained the land of the Zeal Pak Cement Factory on 'Muqatah' basis. He said the land had been encroached upon by nomads, Kolhis, and added that when Rajput, his client, asked them to leave the land, they refused and staged the farce of the rape of Meeran, daughter of Veeho. They made it all up because he demanded they move on...
He said the story of the complaintant was mind-boggling and had been falsified by the report of the physical medical examination of the girl, conducted by a woman medico legal officer of the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences. Ooops. Damn that physical evidence. But it was gathered by a woman, and y'know how they stick up for each other, thick as thieves, so obviously that evidence should be thrown out...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 01:10 pm ||
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Resisting international pressure that he leave office, Yasser Arafat declared Friday he would not step down - but also said he hadn't decided whether to run for office in January elections. Arafat made the comments under calls from the United States for the Palestinians to reform their economic, security and justice systems and replace their leadership with a government "not compromised by terror." In an interview, Arafat said he would not leave office any time soon. "I have been elected by the people. I am not a coward. I'm not ready to betraythe people who elected me," he said. However, in an apparent contradiction, he said no decision had been made on whether he would run for office. "It is not only up to me. It will be up to many people," he said. It's just my opinion, of course, but I think Yasser intends to leave office two or three years after he's dead of old age.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 09:13 am ||
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But he did betray his people -- for example, the idjits holed up in the church in Bethelem. Unless they didn't vote for Yasser? Serves 'em right!
Regards,
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/12/2002 9:56 Comments ||
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A member of the Palestinian naval police was killed early Firday morning, as an undercover Israeli unit carried out an operation to arrest wanted activists near the central Gaza Strip town of Deir El Balah. The target of the operation was apprehended, and four Palestinians were injured by Israeli fire. A statement issued by Palestinian security sources in Gaza said that Khaled Khattab, 25, was killed after the special unit entered a few hundred meters into the western part of the town under the protection of Israeli jeeps and armored vehicles. Israeli tanks and bulldozers rolled into the town from the south as well, shooting at houses there. Tough time to be a Paleostinocop, ain't it?
A Palestinian public security statement said Israeli troops shot and moderately wounded a Palestinian man in the village of Beit Hanoun in the eastern tip of the Gaza Strip on the border with Israel.
The Israeli army uncovered another tunnel used for smuggle weapons across the border from Egypt in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Bulldozers entered Rafah and demolished the house where the tunnel was discovered.
In the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Palestinian medical sources said a 35-year-old Palestinian resident of the village of Hussan near Bethlehem died of wounds he sustained two days ago. Residents said Mahmoud Shousha was in his store in the village when Israeli troops fired at several houses and shops there during an incursion.
Israeli forces arrested more than 20 Palestinians in sweeps throughout the northern West Bank. Nine were detained in Tulkarem, four in Qalqilya, and a number taken out of the Nur A-Shams refugee camp and other villages in the Tulkarem district.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 11:45 am ||
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Immigration officials in West Sumatra province are planning to deport an American who converted Muslims to Christianity. Authorities on May 31 revoked Robert Anthony Adams' business visa to work on a forestry project after he angered the Muslim community of South Pesisir regency by moonlighting as a missionary. After his work visa was revoked, Adams reportedly returned to West Sumatra on a 60-day tourist visa and resumed his efforts to covert Muslims to Christianity. Adams had been working in the province as a coordinator of a forestry project funded by Global Partners, a London-based investment banking firm. The report said he had converted 123 local residents to Christianity. Horrors! Like I say, being a Muslim is like being in the Mafia: you can get in, but you can't get out. Did they chop the converts' heads off? Or just burn their houses down?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 08:46 pm ||
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The bodies of three Filipino fishermen, thought to have been executed, were found on Friday off the southern island of Basilan, a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf bandit group, army and police officials said. The bodies of the three, who had been reported missing on Wednesday, were recovered by local fishermen. One had been beheaded and the other two bore bullet wounds. The bodies were found on and around a small boat in the sea off Basilan, officials said. I still can't quite understand this love they have of cutting people's heads off...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
07/12/2002 08:54 pm ||
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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.
