Saudi Arabia's security forces killed a wanted al-Qaeda leader in a clash in the capital Riyadh early yesterday, the Interior Ministry has announced.
Moroccan national Younis Mohammad Ibrahim al-Hayyari, accused of involvement in a series of recent attacks in the world's biggest oil-exporting nation, died after exchanging fire and hurling hand grenades at police, the ministry said in a statement yesterday.
Mr. al-Hayyari's name was at the top of a list of 36 al-Qaeda suspects Riyadh announced last week. The ministry said he had helped prepare explosives and had played a part in several attacks on targets in Saudi Arabia.
"He was recently nominated by his colleagues to be the leader of strife and corruption in the land, after the death of his predecessors," the statement said.
Interior Minister Prince Nayef said the operation in which Mr. al-Hayyari was killed was the result of extensive surveillance by Saudi security forces.
"What happened today was the result of the effort of the previous period and, God willing, we will reach the rest using the same method," he said after visiting wounded security forces in hospital.
There have been fewer attacks this year, but in June attackers gunned down a senior security officer in Mecca and diplomats say three helicopters were set on fire at a military base north of Riyadh.
Successive leaders of the Saudi wing of al-Qaeda have been killed since 2003 and Saudi officials say their replacements are increasingly inexperienced. But Western counterterrorism experts say al-Qaeda has shown resilience and an ability to regenerate.
Another man was arrested at the scene of yesterday's clash and two others surrendered without a struggle in a simultaneous police raid in the same district of eastern Riyadh.
Prince Nayef described Mr. al-Hayyari as a "dangerous man" but said others on the wanted list were just as dangerous. The three captured men were not on the wanted list, he added without elaborating. Last week, Saudi Arabia issued the new wanted list of al-Qaeda suspects. Most were Saudis but some were from Chad, Yemen, Morocco and Mauritania. Fifteen were believed to be at large inside Saudi Arabia, while 21 were outside the kingdom.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
07/05/2005 16:48 ||
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Moroccan Younes Mohamed Ibrahim Al-Hayari, the former leader of Al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia who was killed yesterday in clashes with Saudi Security forces in Riyadh, remains an enigmatic and controversial figure. According to a Saudi security source who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat on the condition of anonymity said that, "the controversy concerning the real nationality of Al Hayari is irrelevant. What we know for sure is that he was a Moroccan national who entered Saudi with a Bosnian passport, the number of which we know. Moroccan security forces knew him well and we had exchanged information about him in the past."
So there's no real controversy, and even if there was, it'll recede as he decomposes...
Regarding Al-Hayari's ranking in al-Qaeda the source said, "Not only was he a high ranking member, but he was also involved in the planning of operations outside of Saudi Arabia. He also saw himself in the same rank as Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and Abu Anas Al Shamy." The source added that Al Hayari and Al Shamy (who was killed last September in Baghdad by American forces while leading a group of Al Zarqawi's men) were close friends, and that Al Hayari was involved in organizing terrorist activities inside Saudi Arabia as well as linking it to the international Al-Qaeda network.
When asked to describe the differences between Al-Hayari and his predecessor Abdul Aziz Al Muqrin, the security official said "Al Muqrin was a professional fighter, but he was a not a planner or a real leader. Al Hayari on the other hand, was a strategist who planned the hostage operation in Al-Khobar in May 2004. Al Hayari planned that operation after carrying out months of surveillance of the area. In fact, his newborn daughter was born in Sa'ad hospital in Khobar but was registered under the name of another man who is currently in prison." Al Hayari's military ability was displayed on 20 July 2004, when he successfully helped his Al-Qaeda brethren escape the failed operation that took place in the King Fahd district of Riyadh. "During that operation, two members of Al Qaeda's religious committee Eissa Al Awshan and Mejab Al Dausry were killed and this forced Al Hayari to take an active military role, rather than working behind the scenes," the source added.
The source also stated that Al Hayari possessed what he would describe as "chameleon like qualities" and was able to integrate into Saudi society very effectively. "He was a master of disguise, as you can tell by his wanted photo and he was able to mimic the Saudi persona very well. He also spoke in classical Arabic and not in his traditional Moroccan dialect, which made him sound like an Arabic schoolteacher. It seems that he was shocked by his picture appearing on the 36 most-wanted list, and by the fact that he was spotted in east Riyadh". According to the source, Al Hayari was spotted in East Riyadh a while back with fellow terrorist Abdulaziz Al Toweili or "the brother of whoever obeys God" as he was known on fundamentalist web sites. Al Toweili was involved in Al-Qaeda's media activities as he was the editor of 'Jihad Voice', the online journal that is considered the mouthpiece of the Saudi Al Qaeda. He was arrested on May 10, 2005.
With regards to whom security officials consider as the most important suspect on the 36 most wanted list after Al Hayari, the source told Asharq Al-Awsat that "Fahd is the second most important in our opinion", referring to 35-year old Fahd Faraj Mohammed Al-Juwari.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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"Fahd Faraj Mohammed Al-Juwari"
Is that pronounced jew-wa-ree? Lol! That hadta hurt, man.
Radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has appeared in a London court on charges including encouraging the murder of Jews and other non-Muslims. Tuesday had been set for the start of Abu Hamza's trial, but the first session was taken up with legal arguments, which are expected to continue all week. Court orders forbid any reporting of the arguments, which take place without a jury present. Abu Hamza, wearing a blue smock and with neatly trimmed gray hair and beard, was surrounded by four guards as he stood in the dock at the Central Criminal Court. He pleaded innocent to all charges at a hearing in January. "From my point of view and Abu Hamza's point of view, we don't see Muslims as terrorists, we see the Western governments as the real terrorists," the cleric's spokesman, Abu Abdullah, said in a telephone interview. "Blair and Bush have killed more people in Iraq and Afghanistan than Osama bin Laden is accused of killing. Who are the real terrorists?"
Good argument, Einstein. Make sure you use it in court, now...
British prosecutors charged Abu Hamza, Britain's highest-profile Islamic radical, on October 19, pre-empting a U.S. bid to extradite him on terrorism-related charges. Under British law the domestic charges, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, take precedence over the extradition case. The Egyptian-born cleric -- who has one eye and hooks for hands, which he says were lost fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan in the 1980s -- was arrested in May 2004 after U.S. authorities charged him with trying to establish a terrorist training camp in the western U.S. state of Oregon, involvement in hostage-taking in Yemen and funding terrorism training in Afghanistan. The United States plans to resume the extradition case once he is convicted or cleared of the British charges. He faces trial on 15 counts, including nine of soliciting to murder. Most of those counts accuse him of encouraging the murder of non-Muslims but one charges him with soliciting the murder of Jewish people. He also faces four counts of using threatening or abusive language designed to stir racial hatred, one count of possessing threatening or abusive recordings and one count of possessing a document likely to be useful in terrorism -- the "Encyclopedia of the Afghani Jihad."
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 09:31 ||
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I'd just as soon beat this POS to death with a ball-peen hammer. They play our societal rules for all they're worth....
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/05/2005 10:06 Comments ||
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The Egyptian-born cleric -- who has one eye and hooks for hands, which he says were lost fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan in the 1980s...
Yeah riiiiight, Abu, and I got the scar on my cheek is due to being shaved by a sniper's bullet when I was at Khartoum with Gordon. C'mon now, someone chopped em off for base thievery you scally. If he's guilty can we just watch him try to bake a cake on national TV. Better still have him in competition with Stevie Wonder. Shame the Pope's gone too...
Posted by: Howard UK ||
07/05/2005 10:13 Comments ||
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Does anyone have more info about the solicitation for murder, like being recorded ordering to kill so and so, or is more the Friday "kill all the infidel sons of pig and monkeys" sermon? If the latter, why aren't all the mullahs in lockup?
Posted by: ed ||
07/05/2005 10:56 Comments ||
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3954071.stm
I presume that it was a case of the Friday "kill all the infidel sons of pigs and monkeys" sermon I don't think this extremist view is entertained at more mainstream mosques (!). The fact that he ended up spouting his vitriol in the street (after FP mosque was closed) to all and sundry may have helped to land him in hot water.
Posted by: Howard UK ||
07/05/2005 11:11 Comments ||
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Thanks Howard!
Posted by: ed ||
07/05/2005 11:14 Comments ||
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The legal system is not well suited to dealing with a hate spewing mangled old shell of a human being like Abu. Poor bugger sees us all as the real terrorists yet he has no problem living among us and enjoying the benefits of our form of society. Back home his life expectancy would have been reached a long time ago. Funny how those things go. Wonder what mental gymnastics make it possible in his small mind. I hope he gets convicted and then kicks the bucket before the English taxpayers have to spend another Pound on his sorry carcass.
#9
Just shoot the silly bugger and have done with it.
Posted by: Clive Brit ||
07/05/2005 12:29 Comments ||
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Two hands and an eye sounds more like a badly made IED that exploded while he was assembling it...which is generally done far from the battlefield. Or so I've always ybderstood.
#13
I doubnbt he will get a custodial sentence. These charges were brought to keep him from being extradited. Life in prison only means 7 years most of the time anyhow.
A bullet in the head, be done with this pig feces.
#14
I really think Britain should extradite him. They need to fly him to the United States by C-130 (the UK has a couple of squadrons, I believe). The flight should be made "low and slow" at 200 feet/180kt, with Abu Hazma dragging behind on a 500-foot tether. Once he gets to the United States, we can either try him or bury him, depending on how much is left.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2005 21:58 Comments ||
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That's the old meaning of trolling, isn't it, OP? ;-)
#16
Isn't HookBoy wanted for baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad things in Yemen? That is where he needs to go and let the authorities lather 'im up before he becomes sport for crows.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/05/2005 22:13 Comments ||
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Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev said on Tuesday Olympic athletes would be at risk from attacks by his forces if the Russian capital won the right to hold the 2012 Games.
"No one could guarantee the athletes' security, even if our forces conducted extremely careful strikes on Moscow. But there should be no doubt that we have bombed and will bomb Moscow," he said in a statement on a rebel Web site (www.kavkazcenter.com).
Basayev's comments came as campaigning for the right to stage the Games entered its final 24 hours, with officials from the five candidate cities gathered in Singapore to make presentations to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Basayev has a habit of making statements intended to embarrass Russia, and his words will be viewed as a blow by Moscow, already seen as the outsider in the race against New York, London, Paris and Madrid ahead of Wednesday's IOC vote.
"Today the war, which was started by Russia, still continues. Moscow is the capital of a warring state and this city is a zone of legitimate military activities for our mujahideen (holy warriors)," Basayev said.
"The Olympic Games do not interest us much. Our people have other problems. Only Allah knows what will be in 2012, and whether the world will care about sport or whether (Russia) will even exist," Basayev said.
Moscow is to close off the city centre for an open-air party to mark the vote on Wednesday, and a giant screen on Red Square will allow Russians to watch it live. Top politicians and celebrities were scheduled to attend the screening, which will also feature a concert.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
07/05/2005 17:33 ||
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"The Olympic Games do not interest us much. Our people have other problems. Only Allah knows what will be in 2012, and whether the world will care about sport or whether (Russia) will even exist," Basayev said.
Regardless of whether Moscow wins or not, this statement isn't going to win Basayev any fans.
#3
Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev said on Tuesday Olympic athletes would be at risk from attacks by his forces if the Russian capital won the right to hold the 2012 Games.
Basayev wins more international support by going on a charm offensive against Russian prestige and pocketbook.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
07/05/2005 18:00 Comments ||
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Real smart. Piss off the entire world. You might actually get Belgium mad.
Islamofascists don't like sports (especially when it involves scantily clad athletes). Recall how the Taliban used the soccer stadium in Kabul. Murdering women is much more satisfying to these people. And apparently that's what Allah wants them to do.
Rebels killed a policeman and a soldier in Chechnya's lawless south when they ambushed a Russian convoy sent to investigate the killing of a village mayor, police said on Tuesday.
In further proof of the continuing chaos in the Russian region, 1,000 Chechens gathered in Grozny to protest against the seizure by armed men of the chief of their village -- the latest in a string of kidnappings.
"These were bandits who killed our people, and now we are hunting them," a police spokesman said.
He said the convoy of police and soldiers had been travelling to Burgaloi village on Monday to investigate the murder of mayor Abdul-Azim Yangulbayev, when they fell into an ambush.
"A policeman and a serviceman were killed at the scene. One other policeman was seriously injured," he said.
The chaos in Chechnya is largely hidden from outside view, but residents of the village of Serzhen-Yurt, which lies on the road that links Grozny to the badlands of the mountainous south, converged on the capital to demand the release of their mayor.
Residents said Shakhid Shamayev was seized by pro-Moscow Chechen forces -- who are blamed by rights groups for mass kidnappings -- on Saturday.
Witnesses said 1,000 protesters had gathered at the government building in the capital Grozny -- an unusually large protest for Chechnya.
"We all know Shakhid as a very good man, and what they are saying about him, that he helped the rebels, it is not true," said Usrail, 38, a religious leader from the village.
"We will stand here until we know where and in what conditions he is being held," he said by telephone.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
07/05/2005 17:28 ||
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MAKHACHKALA, Russia (AP) - An explosion tore through a police post in the southern Russian region of Dagestan Tuesday, killing at least one officer and wounding three, a regional police spokeswoman said. The blast took place in Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, said Marina Riasulova, a spokeswoman for the regional Interior Ministry.
Dagestan borders Chechnya, where separatist rebels have been fighting Russian forces since 1999, and violence that some believe is connected with the Chechen insurgency is increasing in the republic. Ten police troops died Friday in Makhachkala when their truck was blown up outside a public bathhouse. Earlier Tuesday, engineers defused a powerful explosive device found near a theater in Makhachkala. On Monday, a regional lawmaker was found shot dead in his Mercedes in a western part of the province.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 09:10 ||
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VIENNA, July 5 (Reuters) - Austrian prosecutors have launched an investigation into whether Iran's president-elect was involved in the 1989 assassination of a Kurdish leader in Vienna, the Interior Ministry said on Tuesday. A ministry spokesman confirmed that prosecutors had started a probe by asking the ministry's anti-terrorism task force to investigate the case, but declined to provide any details. "The prosecutor's office has made the request," ministry spokesman Rudolf Gollia said.
Austrian Green Party security spokesman Peter Pilz told a news conference there was "credible evidence" that Iranian President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was involved in the 1989 assassination of Iranian exile Kurdish opposition leader Abdul Rahman Ghassemlou and two other Kurdish politicians in Vienna. "Yesterday the state prosecutor's office asked the Anti-Terrorism Task Force to begin an investigation into the allegations about the 1989 triple murder," Pilz told reporters.
In addition to Ahmadinejad, Pilz said former Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was at the centre of the newly reopened investigation. Pilz said it was up to the prosecutor's office to decide whether to request that Rafsanjani and Ahmadinejad be questioned.
Iranian officials were not immediately available for comment. On Saturday a senior aide to Ahmadinejad in Tehran said Pilz's charges were "not even worth commenting on. It is like the other accusations and there will be more accusations."
Pilz said his accusation was based on information he received from an Iranian journalist living in France who Pilz calls only "Witness D". Pilz gave this information to the Interior Ministry and the Anti-Terrorism Task Force, which then forwarded it to the state prosecutor's office for evaluation. "I cannot personally say whether the allegations of Witness D are true, but I can say that they are credible," Pilz said.
Witness D's information came from one of the alleged gunmen, who contacted Witness D in 2001 but later drowned, Pilz said. One of the reasons that Witness D appeared credible is that he knows details that only someone with access to Austrian investigators' classified files could know, he said. Pilz said Witness D had no ties to any exiled Iranian political groups in France.
Many members of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and its militant wing, the People's Mujahideen Organisation, are based in Paris. Both oppose Iran's Islamic government and are listed by the U.S. State Department as terrorist organisations.
Several former hostages who were held by Iranian militants after the 1979 seizure of the U.S. embassy have accused Ahmadinejad of taking part in the 444-day hostage drama which led Washington to break ties with Tehran. The president-elect's office and several hostage-takers have denied Ahmadinejad helped storm the embassy. Pilz said that Witness D had no information to support the allegations that Ahmadinejad was involved in the U.S. hostage-taking.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 12:21 ||
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Oh, for heavens sake! Can't you guys just leave him alone? He was, after all, the democratically-elected president of the Islamic Republic of Iran! You're gonna convince him there is a vast, right-wing conspiracy!
Posted by: Bobby ||
07/05/2005 12:40 Comments ||
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Explosives have been found at a memorial centre for the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia, days before the 10th anniversary of the atrocity. The discovery was made after a tip-off from European Union peacekeepers, a Bosnian Serb police spokesman said. "In the early morning hours we found a certain amount of explosives at two separate locations inside the memorial centre," spokesman Radovan Pejic said. In July 1995, about 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed at Srebrenica. They were separated from their families and massacred, in the worst atrocity in Europe since World War II. Bosnian Serb forces carried out the killings after overrunning the eastern Bosnian town, which the UN had declared a "safe area".
Posted by: Howard UK ||
07/05/2005 07:51 ||
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Explosives have been found at a memorial centre for the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia, days before the 10th anniversary of the atrocity.
Missed the first para by accident - feel free to add.
Posted by: Howard UK ||
07/05/2005 7:54 Comments ||
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You watch this Srebrenica thing is gonna be huge, bigger than Abu Grab.
Oh... that old? Oh, pre digital camera. Okay. Got it.
School teachers in Thailand's troubled southern provinces will be allowed to carry guns, the government has said. The move is one of a series of measures designed to keep education staff from leaving the violence-hit south. Many of the region's teachers are thought to have either stopped working or demanded a transfer from the area. More than 700 people, including at least 24 teachers, have been killed since January 2004 in unrest which the government blames on Islamic militants. Teachers are often targeted as they are seen as symbols of Thailand's Buddhist authorities.
"We have granted special rights for teachers to carry guns," deputy education minister Rung Kaewdaeng told reporters on Tuesday, adding that 2,000 teachers had already requested arms. "They need guns. This is now a necessity as many people have survived attacks because they shot back at the attackers," Mr Rung is quoted as saying by the French news agency AFP.
Damm, someone must have hit him with the clue bat.
They will be provided with cheap or second-hand firearms and flak jackets, he added. In the most violent areas of southern Thailand, teachers are already escorted to school by security personnel.
Education Minister Adisai Bodharamik admitted that teachers there were "fearful and demoralised". "If teachers want to move out from the region, we cannot stop them," Mr Adisai told reporters. He said he had already directed education authorities to approve transfers for more than 2,700 teachers out of the area, to be replaced by volunteers.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 09:05 ||
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I don't think this will help. Instead, the muzzie will only get more guns from dead schoolteachers. Almost all the attacks have been roadside ambushes of lone victims. This won't change that. Much better to go into the mosques and cut off the the heads of the mullahs.
Posted by: ed ||
07/05/2005 11:04 Comments ||
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I wonder, if teachers at Columbine High were packing heat (and had the appropriate training) and this was common knowledge, would Klebold and Harris have been able to pull off their little stunt?
#3
If only wimmin rape teachers had guns when I went to school. :(
Posted by: Red Dog ||
07/05/2005 18:12 Comments ||
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I attended a rather "country" school in Louisiana from 1952 to 1964 - same school. It included, at that time, grades 1-12. There were between 800 and 1200 students, increasing as time passed and the Baby Boom made itself known. I can never remember there being a problem with the students. We did have one incident where a teacher tried to slap a student, and ended up spending his last two weeks on the payroll in the hospital, and once a teacher hit a 12-year-old girl and was almost lynched. You just don't mess with southern farm boys (or girls!).
What the Thais need to do is to train a couple of hundred of their famous "tigers" as teachers, and send THEM south. The mullahs will PLEAD for death!
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2005 22:14 Comments ||
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DAMASCUS: Syrian forces captured two "terrorists" and a security officer was killed in a dawn clash with extremists who included former bodyguards of Saddam Hussein, official media said. The gun battle on Mount Qassioun overlooking the Syrian capital was the second such fire fight with extremists in recent days and comes amid intense U.S. pressure on Syria to stop militants slipping over its border into Iraq.
"The clash took place early yesterday on Mount Qassioun with a group of people wanted for terrorist crimes, some of whom were former bodyguards of Saddam Hussein," the former Iraqi president, the SANA agency said.
"Two terrorists were arrested after the clash," which claimed the life of security forces officer Ahmad Hijazi, it said, adding that two policemen and two other security force officers were wounded.
Quoting an Information Ministry official, SANA said that the two people arrested were a Jordanian named Sharif Ayed Saeed al-Semadi and the wife of his brother Mohammad, who is on the run. Semadi and his brother escaped a Jordanian courthouse where they were being held on trial for murder and armed robbery a year ago and succeeded in fleeing the country, Jordanian police said in a statement carried on the country's official Petra news agency.
Another Family Affair moment
After the SANA report, Manal al-Semadi, the wife of the brother, appeared on the Al-Arabiyya satellite television channel. She said the brothers had been in Iraq before the U.S.-led invasion. They joined the Fedayeen Saddam paramilitary militia which the Iraqi leader formed to fight the invading troops and serve as his bodyguards, she said.
SANA said the clash took place after numerous days of searching by security forces, who were now on the trail of other members of the extremist group. According to the Al-Jazeera satellite channel, two people were killed in the clash, at least one of whom was a member of the group. The new clash came a day after SANA reported two Syrian security personnel and an "Arab extremist" were killed in a fire fight on the Lebanese border, which also saw an unspecified number of militants captured.
That would be the "Tunisian" story
The Semadi brothers were close to the Jund al-Sham (Organization of Soldiers of the Levant) militant group, said Fouad Hussein, a Jordanian expert on Islamic radical groups.
He said they were also part of the network set up in Syria by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the head of Al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq, to help Arab militants cross into Iraq to join the insurgency. The authorities announced last month they had dismantled the, which they said had been plotting attacks against various targets in Damascus. The group first emerged in late March when it claimed a car bombing against an international school in the Gulf emirate of Qatar in which one Briton was killed.
The latest clash comes as U.S. pressure on Syria to seal its borders to insurgents becomes ever more intense. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said last week that Syria must know foreign fighters are being funneled through its territory into Iraq and "at a minimum are tolerating it." The U.S. has also frozen the assets of Interior Minister Ghazi Kanaan and military intelligence chief Rustum Ghazali, accusing them of abetting terrorism. In a sign of the increased diplomatic strains, the U.S. Embassy in Damascus canceled its annual ceremony to mark the July 4 U.S. independence day. A diplomat said that the festivities, to which top Syrian officials are usually invited, had been replaced by voluntary work with non-governmental organizations.
Additional: Wife of one of those who were detained during the Syrian security forces operation against a "terrorist" group Monday near Damascus said the group members were changing their residence place every four days. âThey have been changing their residence place every four days and moving while carrying small arms hidden in a bag or under their clothes,â wife of member of group, Mohammed Said al-Smadei said in a statement aired Tuesday by Syrian TV. She admitted that during their meetings they were planning to âstage terrorist actions and rubbery" and also planned to travel to Iraq.
Syrian security forces arrested Monday two members of the group after a short clash on Qassioun mountain, which is overlooking Damascus. A Syrian officer was killed and four other security personnel injured, according to an official source at the Syrian information ministry. The source noted that initial investigations indicated that some of the group members were working as bodyguards to ousted Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 16:03 ||
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"Two terrorists were arrested after the clash,"
I find it revealing how the Arab official media fall all over themselves to use the word terrorist while the western MSM won't touch it with a ten-foot Saudi.
Armed confrontations took place between the Syrian security forces and an "extremist group" which tried to infiltrate into the Lebanese territories, resulted in killing two Syrian soldiers and the leader of the group who is of a Tunisian nationality called Majdi Bin Muhammad Bin Saeed al-Zreibi ( 26 year old) and the detention of 34 of his supporters of various Arab, but not Syrian, nationalities.
Bagged 34 gunnies? Not bad, if true.
Later, the Syrian authorities said it found in a house used for suspicious objectives on travel passports, identity cards and documents for several persons of Arab nationalities. News reports in Damascus said that Sunday's incident, took place near the Syrian- Lebanese borders in Homs city, 200 km from the capital Damascus.
This incident came after one and a half months from the Syrian authorities announcement of killing two gunmen and detention of a third after he was injured, during clashes that took place in Daf al-Shawk quarters in Damascus.
That was the attack that had a funny smell to it.
According to Syrian official sources, Daf al-Shawk group belongs to what is called Jund al-Sham organization.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 15:51 ||
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According to Syrian official sources, Daf al-Shawk group belongs to what is called Jund al-Sham organization.
*sigh*
Don't they know the public names of fronts are NOT supposed to include the word "sham"?
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
07/05/2005 16:03 Comments ||
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An armed conflict between partisans of Chouf MP Walid Jumblatt's Progressive Socialist Party and rival Talal Arslan's Lebanese Democratic Party broke out in the town of Hlalieh in Metn, leaving five men wounded, including a sheikh. LDP activists accused PSP member Imad Zeineddine of starting a fist fight with their followers in Hlalieh. When several sheikhs intervened to stop the quarrel, Zeineddine produced a Kalashnikov rifle and shot five people.
"You wanna know how you do it? Here's how, they pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That's the Chicago Beirut way!"
The other side fired back, the LDP said in a statement.
... and a wonderful time was had by all, except for the dead and wounded...
The army intervened and disengaged the combatants, then made several arrests while conducting house-to-house raids. An-Nahar newspaper said police arrested Zeineddine, 51, after he fled Hlalieh to South Lebanon's town of Marjayoun. In a statement, Arslan condemned the incident and described it as a "blatant attempt to stir strife in the mountain." "Hlalieh's conflict aimed at stirring strife in the mountain through the attempt to assassinate our dear friend, Sheikh Moqbel Zeitouni," Arslan said.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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Syrian security forces on Monday announced the arrest of a Jordanian fugitive wanted in the Kingdom on charges of murder, armed robbery and theft, Jordanian official sources said. Clyde Barrow Sharif Smadi was captured following a shootout between Syrian forces and wanted suspects, which led to the arrest of two âterroristsâ and the death of a security officer, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported yesterday. âWe are in constant contact with the security forces and once we receive more information we will inform the public,â head of the Public Security Department Media Office, Major Bashir Daaja, told The Jordan Times.
On June 23, the state prosecution charged Sharif and two of his brothers â Mohammad, who is also on the run and believed to be in Syria and Thaer, who was arrested by the Jordanian authorities â with plotting to commit criminal acts on citizens and their financial assets and possessing an illegal weapon (machinegun) with illicit intent. The prosecution said the defendants have committed several dangerous crimes along with other family members nicknamed the Udwan Mills Gang, because they were captured in a police raid in the Udwan Mills village near the town of Sukhneh.
Mohammad and Sharif have been on the run since escaping from the authorities while being escorted to court from their prison in June 2004, the charge sheet said. The Smadis are also part of a group of 15 men and women described by the authorities as one of the most dangerous criminal gangs to have ever operated in the Kingdom. AFP quoted an Information Ministry official, as saying that Mohammad's wife was also arrested during the clashes.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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Hizbullah has confirmed the death of one of its fighters by the Israeli Army in clashes in the South last week, a killing the Israelis justified as self-defense against an attempted kidnapping operation. Milhem Hassan Salhab, 35, from Sidon was announced "a hero and a martyr" in an official statement released by the Islamic resistance group Sunday night.
I hope his departure from the gene pool was a painful experience...
The statement said: "[Salhab] died during the latest heroic clashes between the Islamic Resistance [Hizbullah's military wing] and the enemy army's elite forces." Reports have circulated since Wednesday detailing the deaths of a Hizbullah fighter and Israeli soldier and the wounding of three others after Hizbullah attacked Israeli positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms with mortars and rocket-propelled grenades.
Last week's clash is the latest encounter between Hizbullah and Israel, with the previous violence dating back to January, and which resulted in the death of one Israeli soldier, a Hizbullah fighter and a United Nations observer. The Hizbullah attack triggered Israeli air and ground retaliations for two days on suspected Hizbullah locations near the Shebaa Farms, an area that has become the focus of Hizbullah attacks on the Israeli forces since Israel withdrew its troops from Southern Lebanon back in May of 2000.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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The World Food Program suspended relief shipments to Somalia after pirates seized a ship carrying aid for tsunami victims, a U.N. spokesman said Tuesday. Somali gunmen boarded the ship on Monday and took the crew of 10 hostage. The ship was carrying about two months worth of food aid for the 28,000 tsunami victims in Somalia. The World Food Program will review the suspension, imposed Monday, after the release of the crew, ship and food aid, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The agency currently has about two weeks worth of food stocks in the country, WFP said in a separate statement.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 21:25 ||
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An Algerian army patrol clashed with members of an Islamic militant group allied with al Qaeda in the desert of northern Mali last week, killing at least 12 people, a senior Malian defence official said on Tuesday.
The gunfight involving members of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) took place north of the desert town of Tessalit, close to the Algerian border, in the early hours of June 30, the official said.
"In the course of the clash, 12 people were killed and a helicopter was shot down," the official in Mali's capital Bamako said on condition of anonymity. It was unclear whether those killed were from the army or the rebel side.
Algerian newspaper El Watan, citing Algerian security sources, said 13 GSPC members were killed and an army helicopter damaged. Algerian authorities declined to comment.
Security sources in Algeria say the group, which is on the U.S. list of terrorist organisations, is on its last legs although small, mobile and well-funded units are still seen as a threat to parts of northern Africa.
A dawn raid on a remote Mauritanian military post on June 4, in which 15 soldiers were killed, raised fears that the group was expanding its operations in the desert region and surprised some observers who believed it had been largely contained.
The attack in Mauritania came as the United States was conducting military training in countries around the Sahara to help stem weapons smuggling and stop militants finding havens in the region.
GSPC deputy head Amari Saifi, who is wanted in Germany for the kidnap of 32 European tourists in the desert in 2003, was sentenced in absence to life in prison in Algiers last month for helping to create a terrorist group.
Algerian authorities say Saifi is in custody at an undisclosed location and under interrogation for other terrorism-related charges, but some local media question whether he really is in detention as he has not been shown in public.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
07/05/2005 17:14 ||
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#1
Are US Special Forces in the area lending assistance to the Algerian army?
A Tunisian appeal court sentenced six men to up to 20 years in prison for recruiting militants andplanning to join insurgents fighting U.S.-led forces in Iraq, lawyers and court officials said on Monday.
The Tunis Appeals Court upheld the conviction of Mohamed Bajouya for recruiting militants and "giving them ideological and military training to carry out terrorist attacks" in Iraq, they said.
Bajouya, 23, was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment, the maximum term for terrorism offences since the government toughened its anti-terrorism law in December 2003, lawyers said.
The court sentenced the other five to between five and 10 years on charges of belonging to a "terrorist group based abroad" and recruiting people to carry out "terrorist attacks outside the country."
Four others were acquitted and released, lawyers and court officials said. The hearing ended in the early hours of Sunday and the details were made public on Monday.
The government named the group as Ansar al Islam which it said had been led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, now al Qaeda's leader in Iraq.
Bajouya and nine other men were arrested last year and sentenced to between 10 and 30 years in prison by a lower court in April this year.
They had appealed against ruling of the lower court, which also sentenced the other three men in absentia to 30 years inprison.
All the defendants denied the charges, saying they confessed earlier under duress while in custody. The authorities dismissed the allegations.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
07/05/2005 17:07 ||
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In the course of the implications of the kidnapping of the chairman of the Egyptian diplomatic mission in Iraq, the Egyptian foreign ministry said it hopes that ambassador Eyhab al-Sharif will be treated as a "nationalist" that supports Arab causes, noting that al-Sharif had chosen to work in Iraq in order to serve the interests of the Iraqi people. Sources in both Cairo and Baghdad confirmed news on the kidnapping of the Egyptian ambassador who submitted his credential as the first Egyptian ambassador to Iraq following the collapse of the former regime. Sharif submitted his credentials to the Iraqi President Jalal al-Talibani by the beginning of June.
News reports quoted witnesses as saying that Sharif was kidnapped as his car stopped to buy a newspaper from one shop in al-Jame'a ( university) area in the west of Baghdad. The witnesses explained that 8 persons rushed towards Sharif and beaten him on the head by a pistol. When the ambassador asked for help, persons in the shop got out, but the gunmen threatened them of using weapons against them and told them "he is an American spy," according to the witnesses.
Diplomats expected that the Sharif kidnapping was a message from prevent other Arab states from establishing diplomatic relations with Iraq, especially as Egypt is the largest Arab state which furnishes for a complete diplomatic relations there. So far, no side claimed responsibility for the kidnapping which is considered the first against an ambassador in Iraq since the eruption of the series of kidnapping. UPDATE: On Tuesday, Al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of the Egyptian diplomat, Ihab al-Sherif, in an Internet statement. "We, the al-Qaeda in Iraq, announce that the Egyptian ambassador has been kidnapped by our mujahedeen and he is under their control," said the statement posted on a Web forum used by Islamist groups.
The Iraqi Islamic party condemned the kidnapping incident of the chairman of the Egyptian diplomatic mission to Iraq. The said party, which is considered the main Sunni parties in the country, called on the kidnappers of the Egyptian ambassador, in a statement, to release him immediately.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 15:55 ||
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Why hasn't Mubarak offered a couple of brigades of Egypt's finest to assist the Iraqi government in fighting those who have effectively declared war on Egypt by kidnapping their official representative? Even Egyptian soldiers should be a match for Zarquawi's goons.
THE camp of Japanese troops engaged in a landmark non-combat mission in southern Iraq has been hit by a shell, a defence agency spokesman said today, amid mounting fears of violence against the forces. There were no injuries or damage, the press officer said.
"We found a mark of impact in an empty lot in the encampment," he said, adding that what appeared to be four other marks of impact were spotted outside the camp by an unmanned helicopter. But no shells were found after the attack. The marks were discovered after several large explosions were reportedly heard late yesterday near the camp in Samawah where Japanese soldiers, guarded by Australian troops, have been delivering humanitarian assistance.
"Hey, you hear something?"
The camp has been on heightened alert since June 23 when a vehicle in a Japanese convoy in Samawah was slightly damaged in a roadside explosion in which no one was injured. The Japanese camp has been directly shelled four times since January 11.
Japan, a major US ally in Asia, has deployed 600 troops to the relatively peaceful area on a mission to help rebuild the war-torn country. It is officially pacifist Japan's first military deployment since the end of World War II to a country at war.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 13:32 ||
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#1
All Japanese troops are out on humanitarian missions. If you are shelling the camp, press 1. To snipe at the camp, press 2. For IED strikes, press 3. For VBIED attacks, please hold the line and the next available Aussie SAS will be with you shortly.
#3
Damn, can't find a Janes.... what was that late '50 early '60s remote control anti-sub helicopter that was gonna be all the rage? Lash? Stamps, Not Lamps.... Rash? Leash?
#4
DASH In the early 1960s, the US Navy obtained a small "Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH)" that could fly off a frigate or destroyer to carry homing torpedoes or nuclear depth charges for attacks on enemy submarines that were out of range of the ship's other weapons.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 16:25 Comments ||
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#5
The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force also bought a small batch of 16 DASHes in 1968.
From Steve's link. Name was driving me nutz, there were entire ship programs built around the DASH.
#6
According to sev milblog or boards the CHicoms have allegedly secretly informed Russian contacts that they will attack Japan iff Japan goes nuclear, including options for pre-emptive strike. For one it surreally appears from these blogs/boards the Chicoms are more worried about Japan dev nukes that they are about the Norkies launching one or a few at anybody, even at Beijing!?
Please join Fred, Dan Darling, Steve White, and Seafarious for festivities and frivolity this Saturday, July 9 from 3 p.m. until we're not having fun any more.
We had a great time at Fadó in January but they are televising a England/Ireland rugby match with a large rowdy crowd and a $10 cover. As we'd rather spend our money on beer and vittles, we are moving right next door to the brew pub RFD.
R.F.D.
Chinatown
810 7th St. NW
Washington, DC
202-289-2030
It is Metro accessible at Chinatown/Gallery Place/Arena station on the Red/Yellow/Green lines. Exit at 7th & H.
I'd like to know if you're coming, either in comments or email. Cheers!
#1
Sorry Sea, this isn't going to work out for me this year. My boss in his infinite wisdom has decided that its my turn for weekend batch job babysitting.
Have fun - there is always next time for me!
Snatcher killed in Ctg gunfight
CHITTAGONG, July 4: "An alleged snatcher was killed and two others suffered bullet wounds in a face to face gunfight between the members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and armed snatchers this afternoon at city's Mohora area under Chandgaon police station. The RAB officials recovered arms and ammunition including a China-made pistol, a foreign-made revolver, a Light Gun (LG) and 8 rounds bullet of pistol, revolver and rifle from the detainees after the gunfight.
Armed to the teeth, they was. Not that it did them any good.
The deceased snatcher was identified as Halim while detainees were identified as Zakir, son of Abdus Sobhan, Mohammad Ilias Ali Yousuf, son of Ismail Mistri and Shahid.
Of the detainees, Zakir and Shahid were sent to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for medication. Shahid sustained bullet injuries in his head while Zakir sustained bullet injuries in legs. Attending physicians of the CMCH stated Shahid's condition as critical.
"He's almost dead, Jim"
The RAB officials claimed that a group of armed snatchers including Halim, Zakir, Yousuf and Shahid had been taking preparation to snatch Taka 1.2 million of a businessman at Mohora area near Golap Tea-stall at about 12:45 p.m.
Lying in wait, hoping for a big score, when unbeknownst to them....
Being informed, a team of the RAB-7 went to the said spot in guise of businessmen by a CNG-driven auto-rickshaw. The snatchers cordoned the CNG-driven auto-rickshaw when the RAB officials reached the spot.
"All right, stick em ......hey, youse ain't businessmen! You're RAB!"
At a stage, the armed snatchers attempted to fire aiming the RAB officials.
"Get them, boys! It's our only way out!"
The RAB officials claimed that they had opened fire aiming the armed snatchers to protect themselves from the attackers.
A reasonably believable story
Halim suffered bullet wounds and died on the spot while Zakir and Shahid injured critically.
"Ahhhh.....rosebud!"
Body of the victim was handed over to Chandgaon police station and two separate cases were filed with the respective police station in this connection.
On the other hand, the RAB officials detained two culprits from city's Khatungonj and Siddique Building under Kotwali police station late last night. The detainees were identified as Mohammad Foyez Ullah alias Bahadur (48), son of late Dr. Mohammad Hossain and Roni Pal (26), son of Sadhon Pal. Both the detainees were handed over to the respective police station and separate cases were filed in these connections.
Soon to be appearing in a vacent lot near you. Check your local listings for time and location.
Two bombs went off in Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall of Islamic University
ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY, Kushtia :Two bombs went off in Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall of Islamic University in Kushtia at about 11:30pm on Sunday. The hall sources said the bombs were exploded one after another near the extended part of the hall.
Just another science project gone bad.
The university authorities had forbidden any kind of movement in front of the female students' halls after 10:00am from Monday.
"Keep away from them women, they're libel to go off any time!"
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 10:03 ||
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July 5, 2005: Iraqi terrorists have attacked Arab diplomats before, and experienced a very negative response from the Sunni Arab community (the only base of support the terrorists have in the country). These kidnappings are seen as madness, and the kidnapping of an Egyptian diplomat over the weekend was promptly criticized by Iraqi Sunni Arab groups known to support the terrorists. While some terrorist groups feel that it is possible to scare Arab diplomats out of Iraq, most do not. This is a long shot, because the Sunni Arab terrorists in Iraq really don't have much support, at least at the government level, in other Arab countries. Al Qaeda is opposed to all current Arab governments, but most of their Sunni Arab allies in Iraq are not (they want Saddam, or someone like him, back in charge). It's a strange situation.
Iraqi soldiers are increasingly taking the lead in finding, and seizing, terrorists. West of Baghdad, 600 soldiers, and 250 American troops, raided up terrorist hideouts and arrested over a hundred suspects. With a growing number of Iraqi security personnel in action, and growing anger, against the terrorists, by Sunni Arab Iraqis, more and more of the terrorists are being informed on, and getting arrested or driven from hiding place to hiding place. The terrorist bombing attacks continue, but in a more disorganized manner. There is also a lot less of the threats and assaults by terrorists (against Iraqis supporting the government.) With more Iraqi cops out there, it's easier for civilians to call in help against terrorist pressure.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 09:22 ||
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Better and better. When the Iraqis take over internal security duties completely we can turn our attention to threats bordering on Iraq (hint hint).
Egyptian police discovered in a Cairo apartment the body of an Iraqi national believed to have been a former security official of the ousted Iraqi Baath regime. Police sources identified the dead man as Asaad Abdel Hadi Haidar, 55, who had arrived recently in Egypt, where he reportedly intended to settle permanently. They said Haidar was identified in his passport as a merchant, but Iraqi sources in the Egyptian capital told UPI he had been a security officer under Saddam Hussein's regime. Police seized five Egyptians -- a real estate broker, his wife and three accomplices -- suspected of killing Haidar to steal his money. Thousands of Iraqis, including many who worked in the security apparatus of the former Iraqi regime, have flocked to Egypt in recent months, apparently fleeing harassment at home.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 09:17 ||
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Are they fleeing vengeance because they were guilty of Baathist crimes, or are they fleeing terror just because they are Sunni in an Iraq where Shia are taking generic 'payback'?
And was this one killed in a simple robbery, or do the Egyptians have the wrong suspects, and he was killed in a specific 'hit' by a Sadr Brigade road crew?
#2
And was this one killed in a simple robbery
Possibly, just like a fleeing Nazi in South America would have been expected to have a stash of stolen booty, so do Iraqi Baathists. Plus, he wouldn't normally be missed. The Egyptians just got sloppy, a quiet cord around the neck, roll him in a carpet, a short drive into the desert and 2,000 years from now you have a new mummy for egyptoligists to ponder.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 12:21 Comments ||
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Thousands of Iraqis, including many who worked in the security apparatus of the former Iraqi regime, have flocked to Egypt in recent months
Will this affect Egyptian politics in years to comes as much as the fleeing Nazis affected South American politics?
Bahrain's envoy in Iraq was shot and slightly wounded by gunmen who opened fire on his car in Baghdad on Tuesday, the second attack on a senior Arab diplomat in the city in three days. Also a roadside bomb exploded close to a US military patrol in Baghdad, near the Iranian embassy but it was not damaged. Earlier, about four gunmen opened fire on the envoy's car in the capital's upscale Mansour neighbourhood as he was being driven to work, a police source said. The envoy, whose name was given by a Bahrain Foreign Ministry official as Hassan Malalla al-Ansari, was wounded in the right hand by a single bullet.
"The embassy said he was hit by a bullet after he left his house, but it is not clear if he was targeted or if it was a stray bullet," a Foreign Ministry official told Reuters. Police at the scene, where the envoy's white luxury saloon with red diplomatic plates was standing spattered inside with blood, said Ansari appeared to have been driving alone. A least two bullet holes were visible in the car's plastic lights. Scratches on the paintwork indicated that armour plating had deflected other bullets.
Bahrain has close ties to the United States as host to a major US naval base in the Gulf that played a role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Though like most Arab states it is ruled by Sunni Muslims, many of its people are Shi'ites, like the majority of Iraqis and non-Arab Iran.
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
07/05/2005 05:02 ||
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#1
Bahrain has close ties to the United States as host to a major US naval base in the Gulf that played a role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
#2
the envoy's white luxury saloon with red diplomatic plates
He was driving a bar? Or is this another example of the poor writing featured today?
Note the bozos have upped the ante - not satisified with just innocent women and children, they've moved up to diplomats! That's sure to win them some attention!
Posted by: Bobby ||
07/05/2005 8:08 Comments ||
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#3
He was driving a bar?
"Saloon" is Brit speak for a luxury 4-door car, I believe.
Posted by: Steve ||
07/05/2005 8:49 Comments ||
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#5
lol, TW! Call me an optimist, but maybe this is just another sign of their last lashing outs? First, they moved from hitting our boys to targetting civilians. Now, maybe they're trying to draw other countries into the fray? Hopefully, this is another sign of their last gasps!
Posted by: BA ||
07/05/2005 9:27 Comments ||
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#7
I suspect this new fad will backfire. The other Arab countries will not take attacks on their diplomats lightly. O to be a fly on the palace walls this week...
This is something like the forth attack on a high profile Hindu temple within India in the last few years. Like all the other attacks, this one involved a cell of suicide commandos who arrived with AK-47's shooting everything that moved. This time however, it looks like the security forces might have had some warning.
Six heavily armed terrorists today made a vain attempt to storm the Ramjanmabhoomi complex in Ayodhya. They were however, killed before they could make it to the shrine. The attackers came in an ambassador car at around 9.00 am (IST), preceded by an explosive-laden jeep which they rammed into the security barricade to breach the cordon. They then tried to enter the premises by firing indiscriminately from AK 47 and AK 56 rifles. They managed to reach about 150 metres from the makeshift temple, but could not enter it.
While one militant was killed as the bomb blew up, five others were killed in the encounter with security personnel. Also, the helper of the car, in which the terrorists were travelling to the disputed site, was killed in the crossfire. The driver of the vehicle, who had been hired by the militants, has been captured and detained for questioning. The driver has told the police that he was hired for Rs 1300 from Lucknow and was not aware of the motives of the terrorists. Describing the events, Faizabad Commissioner Arun Kumar Sinha said the security personnel engaged the terrorists in a fierce gunbattle. The encounter took place near a room of the Sita Rasoi area of the disputed site in which three security personnel were injured. Officials however, have confirmed that the temple site has not suffered any damage and the entire area has been declared safe.
Intelligence reports so far indicate that Pakistan based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) could be behind the attack. In view of the incident, a red alert has been sounded in state capitals across the country. This is the first terrorist attack on the disputed complex, since the makeshift temple came up after the demolition of Babri mosque 13 years back. This Fedeyeen type of attack is an LeT trademark
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
07/05/2005 04:43 ||
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Intelligence reports so far indicate that Pakistan based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) could be behind the attack.
Clearly an Islamophobic disinformation---Islam is a religion of Peace!
This is sad.There is confusion over accounting for all four. Two dead and two alive(one rescued and one in hands of Afghans) or two dead, one rescued, and one still missing.
American forces have recovered the bodies of two members of a four-man Navy Seal reconnaissance team that was reported missing last week after coming under hostile fire in a mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan, a senior Defense Department official said Monday. The defense official, as well as other Pentagon and military officials in Afghanistan and Washington, declined to provide details of where and how the two bodies had been found, and declined to identify the men publicly until family members have been notified.
News of the deaths, which were first reported by the British Broadcasting Corporation, came as there were conflicting reports about the location of one of the other members of the Special Operations team. The governor of Kunar Province, where the team was when it was reported missing, said Monday that a Seal commando was reported to be alive and in the hands of Afghan villagers. But American officials in Washington said the governor's remarks, which gave rise to hopes that a second member of the team had been found alive, actually referred to the one team member who was rescued Saturday and flown to safety on Sunday, still leaving one member unaccounted for. "What we have here is a time lag in the reporting," a senior defense official said.
The governor, Asadullah Wafa, cautioned that he was still trying to verify the report but indicated that he believed it was separate from the report of the first Seal commando who was rescued. According to the new report, he said that the sailor was being cared for by villagers, and that Afghan soldiers and policemen were trying to reach the remote village to rescue him. "There is a report; we don't know if it is true yet," he said. Let's hope and pray that the governor is right about the fourth Seal being alive and accounted for. Our prayers are with all the men in this operation and their families.More at link
#1
Just got in from working overtime. Again. Missed the fireworks and grill 4th. But worth it. Damn am I tired. But not as tired as those guys, so gotta keep going.
Worked extra hours and extra days (no days off) since the incident to cover things so others could go put effort where needed.
Still, I wish I could have grabbed a rifle and just gone. In one sense, its easier to go and do something, than it is to sit here knowing HOW to do things but being too broken to do them. Even though I can still "work out", I cannot do those things that they do, not anymore, not without becoming a liability.
Off to my soft bed and some "guilt" to go to God with. I hate being very Catholic sometimes, you get guilt for things you know you shouldn't. Makes taking an agency polygraph exam that much more fun every few years. And gnaws at you in times like this when you lose kids, brothers in arms, there's always something I imagine that I mighta done, coulda done - however remote or unlikely. Being realistic, no, I couldn't have done a damn thing more that would have made a difference - I'm not even near the spearholders much anymore, much less the sharp end of the spear. But thats not the kind of drive I have.
Not to mention being too old. But, hell of it is, even 40 is too old for that stuff, and 40 ain't old for most any other occupation (outside of professional sports, etc). And 40 was in the rear view quite a while back. My body lets me know I cannot do these things even though my ego still says I should be out there trying. The lament we all face eventually. Like that new Toby Keith song: I Aint as Good as I Once Was [but I'm as good, once, as I ever was].
(Thats my ego talking the part in brackets)
Time to talk to an old friend who always makes me come to my senses, reminds me I am who I am, and the world doesnt revolve around me to the point where I can change it, and that doing what I can so that others can do their stuff is what my duty is now. And thats how I make a difference, now.
Still, the old wardog hears battle and wants to leave the tent.
Enough of the tired old guy laments and melancholy.
#2
OS,
You did what you could, and even God asks no more from men than that. Would that the rest of us did as much. Thanks--a lot.
Posted by: mac ||
07/05/2005 5:49 Comments ||
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OS,
Ditto what Mac said.
Thanks.
p.s. being on the same side of the divide as you I often get the same feelings. Nothing wrong there.
Posted by: DanNY ||
07/05/2005 6:12 Comments ||
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#4
Same here, OS. I content myself with helping Sgt. Hank Harvey return to a normal life. He's doing fine now. I certainly hope the Governer of the Province is correct and the last SEAL is OK.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
07/05/2005 7:45 Comments ||
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#5
Contimplate on what you can do,Good Sir,do not dwell on what you can't.Guilt and self -recriminations do you no good and is a dis-service to those who you seek to help.
Have a cold beer,a hot shower,a good meal and call your Friend.
May God Bless the Souls of these Good men,I pray asking Jesus to lay a comforting hand on the shoulders of the Families of these good soldiers.
#6
A ray of hope:
The BBC has backed away from its report that the last team member has also been found dead. It had no comment on the revision, but simply reverted to yesterday's story with the addition of some hand-wringing over civilian deaths in the bombing of a terrorist hideout.
#7
OS--Like raptor said, find solace in what you can do, not guilt in what you can't! Remember, this is a TEAM effort. Take pride in knowing and doing your role in that team.
And I thank you for it!
Posted by: Dar ||
07/05/2005 8:36 Comments ||
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#8
Old Spook, because of what you've done, you now do what you and few others can do, which supports the youngsters doing what must be done. I envy you that -- all most of us can do to help is hope and pray that your efforts here, and theirs over there, pay off quickly and successfully. Be at peace, old wardog -- because you guard the tent, your pack can range as far as the hunt takes them.
Thank you for stopping in to share with us what you can. It helps... a lot.
#9
Ditto to all above, OS! Thank you for your work. Do not re-live what you cannot change, or cannot do. Just know that God knows your heart, where our boyz are and they are covered in prayers. At the least, 2 of them are now home in a much better place. God only expects your best, and I believe wholeheartedly that you have given that, my fine sir!
Posted by: BA ||
07/05/2005 9:24 Comments ||
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#10
OS, better that you can be of direct service for them even now, that just wish like most of us.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
07/05/2005 10:12 Comments ||
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#11
My condolences to the families of these extraordinary men. My words can't begin to express the admiration and appreciation for the risks they take to safeguard those in the US, as well as the saner parts of this world. Let us pray for the safe return of the final team member.
Now, hunt down and kill every last Taliban/Paki mercenary/AQ in the area. No prisoners. Better that the Pakistani and Arab sponsors and prospective recruits know they sent a few hundred terrorists into Afghanistan and none came back.
Posted by: ed ||
07/05/2005 11:47 Comments ||
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#12
I had a wonderful 4th with my wife, kids and in-laws. But the thought of these guys, and all of our fighting men and women, along with their families, was never far from my mind. My pleasure was intermixed with guilt. OS, you DO do things, things that make a difference, and that is so much more than the rest of us can say. Yet we go on with our normal lives, while these brave souls guard the front lines. My words can never tell the appreciation that I feel for them, all of them, OS included.
#14
No time to talk of retirement or rest, etc. now - the Lefties are trying to implode, governmentize, and socialize America by any each every and all means necessary, and Dubya is trying to implode them in return. The Failed Left has no qualms about being both for and against all sides at once iff it means they, Russia-China, and Socialist/Communist OWG and World Order prevail and rule - Let no American and Patriot ever give up the Fight! Its not being labeled Socialism or Communism anymore, but USA-specific National, Community, and Personal, etc. Security and Safety - ITS NOT "STATE/COUNTY-SPECIFIC" OR "STATE/COUNTY-WIDE", BUT "NATIONAL", NATION-WIDE", and "INTERNATIONAL", "OUT-OF-STATE", or "OVERSEAS", etc. The GOP-Right must be careful because the DemLeft has no qualms duping or hiding behind these populist precepts/skirts of the GOP, behind anyone andor anything. Even on FOXNEWS, pro-Dem commentators increasingly differentiate between GOP-DEM "Conservatives" against "Liberals", which is why the same supp or demand Dubya appoint a "Liberal" to replace O'Connor on the SCOTUS.
#15
I have also been thinking about these brave men since this series of incidents started. The Taliban, Al Q and Co are shooting their wad now Afghanistan and Iraq in order to bloody our noses enough that we as a nation will lose the will to fight. They have more than willing friends in the Senate helping them. And I MEAN HELPING THEM.
We can support our troops in many ways---letters, packages, etc. We also need to support them by bringing the wrath of the public against the 5th columnists that are trying to destroy the effort of the US to eliminate terrorists before they start their mischief here again.
We have an external war and we have an internal war. We need to keep the moonbats at bay or at least shamed off the stage so the military can do their jobs without being distracted.
This means emails, telephone calls, letters, etc need to be addressed to members of congress to get them off their collective asses to act.
I was spending my 4th of July on a gravel spit camping on Kachemak Bay in Alaska with friends and family. We hoisted the colors on a line secured to a tall tree. It was a beautiful sight, and we mentioned to the children there that we are enjoying our holiday here in this beautiful land because others are out in very nasty places doing dirty work to keep us safe. Makes one extremely humble to know what many did in sacrifice to bring us this far safely.
We are entering the phase of the battle for the soul of the nation. For the honor of the memory of the troops that gave the ultimate sacrifice recently, as well as the many that have gone before, we must win this domestic war or we all (including the moonbats) will perish.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
07/05/2005 22:06 Comments ||
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#16
Well said, indeed, AP. The external threat can kill some of us, but not overthrow reason and resolve. The internal threat is the one that can lead to utter defeat.
#17
Time to rest. This time I may get 6+ hours. But tomoorrow is the last day of this for me. They don't want us "old guys" burning out on them. Back to the standard 10 hour (9+1 hour lunch) workday, and really looking forward to a full nights sleep and 2 days off this weekend.
Good words. Thanks all. Hopefully my head will be rested enough to post a bit more. SO amny issues these days, with the Supreme Court, Kennedy's meltdown with Rummy, Pelosi seeing God, and the usual assortment of anti-war nut jobs, etc.
Keep praying if you pray - these guys need every edge they can get, real (for us believers) or percieved (for the agnostics in the crowd).
Muzaffar Iqbal, 11, shudders to think of the last one year he spent with gun-toting Lashkar-e-Taiba militants in the Pir Panjal mountains of Jammu and Kashmir. He is just one of the hundreds of children who have fallen prey to insurgency in the state. Iqbal was found by the army in an encounter that lasted four days amidst rain and finished with the killing of seven guerrillas, reports Grassroots Features. A trooper spotted someone behind the bushes and called out. To his surprise, out came Iqbal, hands raised and trembling. Abdul Ghani, 13, was rescued by Gujjar community men from guerrillas during the armyâs âSarp Vinashâ operation in Surankote area in the beginning of 2003. The Gujjar boy from Pagai village at the foothills of the Pir Panjal range, which extends from the Line of Control (LoC) to northeast Jammu, had been trained in warfare by the separatists. An official said children are used as informers by the militants because the security forces are less likely to be suspicious of them. Many teenagers, after their escape from guerrillas, have admitted they had thrown grenades in crowded markets. Perhaps that explains the accuracy problems with grenade throwing that Kashmir Jihadis are renowned forâŠ
Mohammad Altaf, 13, who remained with the militants for more than a year, said, âI and five children worked day and night. We prepared food for the militants, washed utensils. Besides, we were trained in arms and sent to get weapons from hideouts.â Several children have died along the LoC, which divides India and Pakistan, while bringing weapons for the militants. In August 2002, a 10-year-old boy was shot dead by the security forces along the LoC in the Mendhar sector. He was carrying arms from Nikiyal area of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
07/05/2005 00:41 ||
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A Jordanian man accused of plotting an attack against the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad in August 2003, pleaded not guilty to the charges at the State Security Court (SSC) on Monday. Muamar Ahmad Jugheiber is charged, along with fugitive Abu Mussab Zarqawi, with plotting subversive acts that led to the death of individuals. The Aug. 7 attack left 17 people dead, including, five Iraqi policemen, and dozens more injured, and caused financial losses estimated at JD181,126, according to the charge sheet.
During Monday's session, Jugheiber's defence lawyer Fathi Daradkeh informed the court that his client was detained for six months for interrogation purposes by the security forces. âMy client's long detention period is in violation of his rights and the law and I hope the court will take this into consideration,â Daradkeh told the tribunal.
Presiding Judge Fawaz Bqour said the court would consider the defence's charges when it issues a verdict in the case. Judge Bqour adjourned the session until July 11 to start hearing the prosecution witnesses. Jugheiber and Zarqawi were sentenced to death in absentia by the SSC in April 2004 for plotting the assassination of US diplomat Laurance Foley outside his Amman home on Oct. 28, 2002. Jugheiber was arrested in Iraq in May 2004 by US forces and handed over to the Jordanian authorities. He is currently standing trial in the Foley case on charges of subversive acts which led to the death of an individual.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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#1
Presiding Judge Fawaz Bqour said the court During Monday's session, Jugheiber's defence lawyer Fathi Daradkeh informed the court that his client was detained for six months for interrogation purposes by the security forces. âMy client's long detention period is in violation of his rights and the law and I hope the court will take this into consideration,â Daradkeh told the tribunal.
given the recent
When they hang him, they'll give him credit for time served on his death certificate.
Posted by: Red Dog ||
07/05/2005 10:26 Comments ||
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Three Egyptians, one of them still a fugitive, went on trial on Saturday charged with involvement in bombings in October at Egyptian Red Sea tourist resorts which killed 34 people. Mohamed Sabah and Mohamed Abdullah Rabaa both pleaded not guilty to charges that they were involved in the attacks in the Sinai Peninsula resorts which were popular with Israelis. Mohamed Ahmed Saleh Fulayfel, the third suspect, was being tried in absentia in the emergency state security court in Ismailia, 115 km (70 miles) northeast of Cairo.
I still haven't figured out for sure if this was an al-Qaeda operation or if they were free-lancers. I suspect they're wannabes...
Sabah and Rabaa were arrested two months after the attacks on the Taba Hilton hotel on Egypt's border with Israel and on two beach resorts further south popular with foreign backpackers. Israeli officials say 12 Israelis were among the dead. Prosecutor Ashraf al-Esmawy said the charges included pre-meditated murder, resisting the authorities with force and destroying private and public property and vehicles.
"Bailiff! Get my book! I'm gonna throw it at 'em!"
Sabah and Rabaa told the court that they had been subjected to torture during their detention.
My heart bleeds for them.
A government-financed rights body said in May that torture was commonplace in Egyptian detention facilities and listed at least nine deaths. The Egyptian authorities says any cases of torture are isolated and that it prosecutes torturers.
"Oh, yeah? When was the last one?"
"1242 A.D."
Judge Ahmed Mohamed al-Khashab ordered an official medical examination to see if the two suspects had been tortured. He said the next hearing would take place on July 24. Defense lawyer Ahmed Seif al-Islam, who said he had met the defendants for the first time on Saturday, had requested an adjournment to study the case files. Egypt's official MENA news agency said the bomb suspects made detonators, including one using a mobile phone, and obtained explosives from old anti-tank mines found in the desert in Sinai which had been left over from wars in the area.
That's why I think they're free lancers. I also think they were tortured, but don't really care.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 00:00 ||
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Iraq's prime minister announced a new phase in anti-insurgency operations, as troops seized more than 100 suspects around Baghdad airport and hunted the kidnappers of Egypt's envoy in the capital. Hundreds of troops from Iraq's new army, backed by U.S. soldiers, mounted a dawn raid around Baghdad airport, rounding up more than 100 suspects, some of them Egyptians and other foreigners, the U.S. military said in a statement.
There was no mention of any link to the missing diplomat; 48 hours on, fellow Egyptian officials said there had been no word from the kidnappers, who grabbed him after he stepped out of his car on Saturday to buy a paper at a roadside newsstand. "No one has contacted us yet," an Egyptian diplomat said. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abu al-Gheit appealed to Sherif's captors not to harm him. In what may be a hopeful sign, a hard-line Sunni Arab cleric, Harith al-Dhari, condemned all kidnappings, calling them "a bad phenomenon that emerged after the occupation of Iraq by America and its allies." Dhari heads the Association of Muslim Scholars which is believed to have contacts with some insurgent groups.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2005 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.
Moroccan 
Radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has appeared in a London court on charges including encouraging the murder of Jews and other non-Muslims. Tuesday had been set for the start of Abu Hamza's trial, but the first session was taken up with legal arguments, which are expected to continue all week. Court orders forbid any reporting of the arguments, which take place without a jury present. Abu Hamza, wearing a blue smock and with neatly trimmed gray hair and beard, was surrounded by four guards as he stood in the dock at the Central Criminal Court. He pleaded innocent to all charges at a hearing in January. "From my point of view and Abu Hamza's point of view, we don't see Muslims as terrorists, we see the Western governments as the real terrorists," the cleric's spokesman, Abu Abdullah, said in a telephone interview. "Blair and Bush have killed more people in Iraq and Afghanistan than Osama bin Laden is accused of killing. Who are the real terrorists?"
VIENNA, July 5 (Reuters) - Austrian prosecutors have launched an investigation into whether Iran's president-elect was involved in the 1989 assassination of a Kurdish leader in Vienna, the Interior Ministry said on Tuesday. A ministry spokesman confirmed that prosecutors had started a probe by asking the ministry's anti-terrorism task force to investigate the case, but declined to provide any details. "The prosecutor's office has made the request," ministry spokesman Rudolf Gollia said.
found at a memorial centre for the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia, days before the 10th anniversary of the atrocity. The discovery was made after a tip-off from European Union peacekeepers, a Bosnian Serb police spokesman said. "In the early morning hours we found a certain amount of explosives at two separate locations inside the memorial centre," spokesman Radovan Pejic said. In July 1995, about 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed at Srebrenica. They were separated from their families and massacred, in the worst atrocity in Europe since World War II. Bosnian Serb forces carried out the killings after overrunning the eastern Bosnian town, which the UN had declared a "safe area".
An armed conflict between partisans of Chouf MP 
Syrian security forces on Monday announced the arrest of a Jordanian fugitive wanted in the Kingdom on charges of murder, armed robbery and theft, Jordanian official sources said. 
Snatcher killed in Ctg gunfight
Egyptian police discovered in a Cairo apartment the body of an Iraqi national believed to have been a former security official of the ousted Iraqi Baath regime. Police sources identified the dead man as Asaad Abdel Hadi Haidar, 55, who had arrived recently in Egypt, where he reportedly intended to settle permanently. They said Haidar was identified in his passport as a merchant, but Iraqi sources in the Egyptian capital told UPI he had been a security officer under Saddam Hussein's regime. Police seized five Egyptians -- a real estate broker, his wife and three accomplices -- suspected of killing Haidar to steal his money. Thousands of Iraqis, including many who worked in the security apparatus of the former Iraqi regime, have flocked to Egypt in recent months, apparently fleeing harassment at home.
A Jordanian man accused of plotting an attack against the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad in August 2003, pleaded not guilty to the charges at the State Security Court (SSC) on Monday. 
Three Egyptians, one of them still a fugitive, went on trial on Saturday charged with involvement in bombings in October at Egyptian Red Sea tourist resorts which killed 34 people. 
