More than 170 Taliban and other Islamist fighters have surrendered as part of a government amnesty scheme, vowing to lay down arms and work to rebuild war-ravaged Afghanistan, officials said.
The men travelled from various provinces from across Afghanistan to Kabul for a ceremony at which their surrender was announced by the head of the government's reconciliation commission, Sebghattullah Mujaddadi. They included members of the extremist Hezb-e-Islami faction of wanted warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, an anti-Soviet resistance commander who is part of a bloody anti-government insurgency.
"In the ceremony today 172 brothers who were former Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami surrendered," commission spokesman Sayed Sharif Yousufi told AFP Sunday.
More than 1,000 Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami members have signed up to the amnesty scheme since it was launched less than a year ago, Yousufi said. One of the former fighters, Qazi Joma Khan from the Hezb-e-Islami faction, said the men wanted to help rebuild Afghanistan. "We vow to help ensure security and peace and take part in reconstruction of our country," he said.
"We promise not to stand against the government any more," said ex-Taliban, Mawlawi Abdul Rehman.
"Cross our hearts and hope you die!"
President Hamid Karzai has offered amnesty to members of the Taliban movement, which was in power from 1996 to 2001, and other Islamic militias "whose hands are not stained with innocent people's blood" from the past 25 years of war. Among those who have taken up the offer are former Taliban foreign minister Wakil Ahmad Muttawakil and the Taliban regime's ambassador to Pakistan, Abdul Salam Zaeef.
Taliban rebels fleeing a major battle that left 25 dead in insurgency-hit southern Afghanistan killed a district chief and two policemen, officials said. Elsewhere, two people were killed and three wounded in a bomb blast in a bazaar in the southern city of Kandahar, while a Taliban commander was killed in a clash late Friday with police on the border with Pakistan, police said.
Taliban militants retreating from the battle with police in southern Helmand provinces Sangin district attacked the district headquarters in nearby Musa Qala late Friday, provincial deputy governor Amir Mohammad Akhundzada said. They killed district chief Abdul Qodus and one of his police guards, he said. They also killed a policeman as they stormed through adjoining Nawzad district.
The fierce battle in Sangin on Friday left around 20 Taliban fighters and five policemen dead, Akhundzada said. The interior ministry confirmed the fighting and death tolls, but could not say if fighters retreating from Sangin were responsible. The Musa Qala battle had lasted four hours, Spokesman Yousuf Stanizai said.
In other violence, a remotely detonated roadside bomb killed two people and wounded three others Saturday in a bazaar in the southern capital of Kandahar.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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Someone here was cheering the thought of a unning battle yesterday. I look forward to hearing what happens when the hammer meets the anvil. ;-)
A man considered a mastermind of the USS Cole bombing that killed 17 sailors in a Yemeni port in 2000 was among 23 people who escaped from a Yemen prison last week, Interpol said Sunday. The international police agency issued an ''urgent global security alert'' for those who escaped Friday from the prison via a tunnel. It called the escapees ''dangerous individuals.''
A Yemen security official announced the escape of convicted al-Qaida members Friday but did not provide details. Interpol said in a statement that at least 13 of the 23 escapees were convicted al-Qaida fighters, who escaped via a 140-yard-long tunnel ''dug by the prisoners and co-conspirators outside.''
Yemeni officials confirmed to Interpol that a man considered a mastermind of the Cole attack, identified as Jamal al-Badawi, was among those who escaped. Al-Badawi was among those sentenced to death in September 2004 for plotting the USS Cole attack. Two suicide bombers blew up an explosives-laden boat next to the destroyer as it refueled in the Yemeni port of Aden on Oct. 12, 2000.
Another of the 23 escapees was identified as Fawaz Yahya al-Rabeiee, considered by Interpol to be one of those responsible for a 2002 attack on the French tanker Limburg off Yemen's coast. That attack killed a Bulgarian crew member and spilled 90,000 barrels of oil into the Gulf of Aden.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 10:14 ||
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#1
Is it just me or has anyone noticed these escapes often follow either high-level AQ captures or kills?
This sentence in the QDR made me think of something I thought was just one of my doctor evil ideas to fight terrorist.
SOF tech abilities:PG 43
For direct action, they will possess an expanded organic ability to locate, TAG, and TRACK dangerous individuals and other high-value targets GLOBALLY. (Emphasis mine)
I have seen many rumors and actual articles about RFIDs and sniper gun RFIDs whole new meaning to sting like a bee. Just like naturalist tag and release to find out the migration routes feeding spots ect coupled with a Predator and you got your human intel and he dont even know it.
This is Sci-Fi but I know they could implant a chip into the inner ear or jawbone to catch conversations but I wonder if they could make a power source/transmitter able to transmit at reasonable distance for a decent amount of time?
I guess we will find out on some discovery special in about 30-40yrs.
#2
Just me, but the only "plant" should be a bullet into their skull. Why do we incarcerate these people? We kill roaches don't we?
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 13:04 Comments ||
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#3
You wouldn't be able to power a chip very long, and one that size would most likely be detactable. A RFI tag needs no power supply, it most closely resembles a electronic tuning fork, it vibrates a specific frequency when in a elecronic scanning field. Only works at close range, but could be useful at customs points to look out for "people of interest".
Posted by: Steve ||
02/05/2006 13:07 Comments ||
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#4
perhaps - if we could harness seething....
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 13:43 Comments ||
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#5
Incarcerating them does nothing.
1. Capture
2. Interrogate for intel
3. Bring before a military tribunal
4. Execute
5. Dispose of i/a/w hazardous waste regs
6. Go to 1
You do not have to be a sadist, but Jihadis need to know that capture is a one-way trip to the roach motel. The are broken people and they will kill again if they can. This is the reality.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/05/2006 14:13 Comments ||
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#6
Steve
I was thinking more along the lines of RTLS or GPS-15 type trackers.
I have seen wide life transmitters with GPS tech placed on animals that is rather small they last around a year. The smaller being about the size of my hand a decent doctor could put one in a chest cavity on the backside of a rib or such.
From what I gather a lot of the RTLS range is about the receiving antenna. Blue tooth and WiFi has also come along way I would imagine a couple of egg heads in a room could put something together. All you need is an area location not what side of the room or even what house. Once you get on station you can observer to figure out those details.
Captain
Nobody is saying the end game should be anything short death but these guys should be squeezed for all the intel they are worth. And if we could useem as a decoy to find out the locations of hideouts and meeting spots thats worth more in the long run than punching his card now.
Goes back to the idea that its more important to capture a suicide bomber because if you can catch him and squeeze him for info on his support network bomb maker recruiter ect those peoples capture contribute to the destruction of the roots not just the buds. Its why if you want to kill weeds you dont cut em you pull em.
I think in 30-40yrs when the classification falls off we are going to hear about all kinds of stuff that was done. This is a clandestine and SOF war more than even the cold war was I would guess even by a factor.
#8
This is war not a police investigation. Particularly when we "trust" a foreign government(?) like Yemen to incarcerate these cockroaches, it is much more effective to punch their ticket.
Besides this assclown was already being "held" and presumably being interrogated. You can bet your ass that the harshest treatment from the US was an Indian tickle.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 19:02 Comments ||
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#9
For the record, folks, Jamal al-Badawi was captured in November 2002 or should I say recaptured.
He has more than one escape.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 19:08 Comments ||
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#10
Latest news reports claim the tunnel came up in a Mosque. wann bet the tunnel was dug from the Mosque to the jail?
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/05/2006 20:04 Comments ||
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#11
that tunnel is 125,643rd on the holiest sites of Islam
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 20:13 Comments ||
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#12
now
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 20:13 Comments ||
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#13
Al-Badawi was among those sentenced to death in September 2004 so what year is it now??
While I agree that the intel is good to get, how about planting someone on the inside to get the info. But shortly thereafter get the plant out and kill the detainee. Don't allow them to have time to escape, or risk lives guarding them.
Posted by: Jan ||
02/05/2006 21:12 Comments ||
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Thirteen Al Qaeda militants convicted in the attacks in Yemen on the U.S. Navy destroyer Cole and the French supertanker Limburg were among 23 men who broke out of jail in Sana, the capital, a state-run website said.
The website quoted unnamed sources saying the 13 convicts included top militants Jamal Badawi and Fawaz Rabeie, who managed to flee the prison by digging a 220-foot tunnel.
Rabeie, the leader of the group convicted of bombing the Limburg in 2002, was facing the death penalty. Badawi was serving 15 years in prison for the bombing of the Cole in 2000.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/05/2006 04:03 ||
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#1
It's almost like this was assisted from "inside" again.
Twenty-three Al-Qaeda prisoners escaped from the central prison of the intelligence Friday, government sources said. The September Net website, which belonged to the defense ministry, quoted the sources as saying the inmates escaped on Friday night. They did not elaborate. The prison is located in Heddah in central Sanaa. The sources said the security authorities were investigating the escape.
Different writer, different source, same nutty goodness.
An alleged criminal of the city was gunned down in the Beribandh area near Rayerbazar Martyred Intellectuals Memorial under Mohammadpur police station in the small hours yesterday in an encounter between his associates and elite force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB).
And there's only one winner in such an encounter.
RAB recovered a shooter gun, two rounds of live bullet and the shell of a spent bullet from the spot.
Ah, a 'shooter' gun, not a 'shutter' gun. Coincidence or did something happen in the police lock-up?
"Shooter Gun" has been confirmed to be slang for a shotgun of some type. I stil think "shutter gun" is some kind of homemade zipgun
The dead was identified as Jahangir Hossain Dipu (23), son of Mizanur Rahman and a resident of West Shawrapara at Mirpur. He hailed from Kazi Kasba at Munshiganj Thana under Munshiganj district, said Mohammadpur Thana police.
No, I don't know where that is.
According to RAB officials, acting on a tip-off ...
...that would be Insaf the Weasel ...
... a squad of RAB-2 raided Jigatala Market under Hazaribagh police station and arrested the notorious criminal Dipu at around 12.30 p.m. on Tuesday.
"Dipu, eh? What a name for a notorious con. Anyways, youse coming wit us, Dippy or not!"
Following his painfully but efficiently extracted confessional statement on the day, ...
... "oochy! ouchy! stop that!" ...
... the RAB team went out along with Dipu and raided different parts of the city at around 7.30 p.m. ...
... kinda early for the RAB ...
... but failed to recover any arms and nab the alleged criminals accomplices. They came back to the RAB office in a very cross mood at around 11.30 p.m. Following interrogation during the night, ...
"Hokay, Dipu, we ain't so happy with youse." [thunk]
"Youse led us on a wide-goose chase, you know that?" [thunk]
"Youse know what happens when we ain't happy, don't youse?" [thunk]
"Now then, youse gonna tell us where the secret lair is?" [thunk]
"Or do I keep whacking youse with this number 7 here?" [thunk]
... a team of RAB-2 along with Dipu bruised and minus his teeth went out for the Beribandh area around Rayerbazar Martyred Intellectuals Memorial at about 4.30 am yesterday ...
... ah, that's the RAB we know ...
... to recover arms and ammunition and nab Dipus accomplices.
Because Dipu finally talked about the secret lair.
As they reached the area the close associates of Dipu fired at the vehicle of RAB.
"Cheez, it's the RAB! Open random, aimless fire, boys!"
In response, the members of RAB instantly fired back getting down from their transport. At this stage, Dipu was pushed lifelessly from jumped down from the car and tried to flee the scene.
"Feets don't fail me ... [click BANG! BANG!] ...rosebud."
As a result Dipu was caught in a crossfire, receiving five bullets in his body that were fired by his accomplices. Three bullets hit his chest and two his legs.
And another two in the back of the head from the RAB in their transport.
Dipu died on the spot.
"He's dead, Jim"
Of course he did, there wouldn't be a story if he didn't.
But the other unidentified criminals numbering fourteen to fifteen managed to escape from the scene.
"Run away! Run away!" And all without stopping a single bullet from the crack shots of the RAB.
"Vanished into the night they did! And without leaving a trace. Why, it's almost like they weren't even there!"
RAB officials said Dipu was accused in 10 cases.
He had the death sentence on 12 10 systems, he did.
Alamgir Hossain Tipu, brother of Dipu, claimed that his brother was a leather trader of the Hazaribag area admitting that Dipu was accused in a case and detained by police for one and half years. But Tipu denied the charge of murder against his brother.
"Lies! All lies!"
Mizanur Rahman, father of Dipu, talking to The Independent said that the killing of his son in crossfire involving RAB was arranged by their informer Insaf Ali as Dipu had refused to give him Taka five thousand as toll.
"Five thousand Taka! Are youse nuts! I'll take my chances with the RAB!"
Sources said that Dipu was third among five brothers and four sisters. He got married just six months ago.
No problem, Dad, now you just marry the widow and ...
The body of Dipu was sent to the morgue of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) for autopsy.
"Here's another one for the morning watch, Dr. Quincy!"
His body was not handed over to his family till the filing of the report at around 6 pm.
"Criminy, Sam, I'm still dictating! Tell 'em to wait!"
RAB-2 filed two cases against the alleged criminal Dipu with Mohammadpur police station -- a murder and an arms case.
He beat the rap, but not the RAB.
He fought the law, and the law won.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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Dipu's demise near the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial tarnished the meaning of 'intellectual'...raised the meaning of 'dip'.
The jury at the Criminal Court of the Old Bailey, in central London, trying the self-styled Islamic cleric Abu Hamza is spending a third day considering its verdicts. It retired last Wednesday but has not yet returned any verdicts on the 15 charges he faces.
The prosecution alleges that Hamza was a recruiting sergeant for terrorism and murder. Hamza, 47, from west London, faces nine charges under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 alleging that he solicited others at public meetings to murder Jews and other non-Muslims. He also faces four charges under the Public Order Act 1986 of "using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with the intention of stirring up racial hatred''. A further charge alleges Hamza was in possession of video and audio recordings which he intended to distribute to stir up racial hatred. The final charge, under section 58 of the Terrorism Act, accuses him of possession of a document, the "Encyclopaedia Of The Afghani Jihad", which contained information, of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism''. The cleric denies all the charges.
An Italian Catholic priest has been shot dead outside his church in north-east Turkey. Police in the Black Sea port of Trabzon said they were searching for a teenage boy seen fleeing from the scene of the attack on Sunday. It was unclear if the shooting was connected to widespread Muslim outrage over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. Turkish broadcaster NTV identified the priest as Andrea Santore and said he died from a single shot to the chest.
Turkey has seen regular protests in recent days over the Danish caricatures of Muhammad.
Leaders of the overwhelmingly Muslim country have condemned the pictures, but have also called for calm. The Istanbul-based Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who is the spiritual head of the world's Orthodox Christians, and other non-Muslim clerics in Turkey have also criticised the images.
Several Italian newspapers have reprinted the pictures, saying they are defending freedom of expression.
#2
wow - i'm no huge fan of religious figures even though im christened but this is truly appaling, i wonder how much media coverage this will get on say the 10 oclcok news over here tonight , my guess is none or a 20 second peice on it
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark has called on the country "to show our opposition to Islam", regardless of the opprobium such a stance provokes abroad.
Her comments further undermined the image of Denmark as a liberal haven for those seeking a new life in northern Europe. The Danish government has already been accused of fuelling xenophobia by introducing measures which effectively closed the country to asylum seekers.
But in overtly political passages from an official biography published yesterday Queen Margrethe makes comments certain to complicate her nation's relationship with Muslims.
She said: "We are being challenged by Islam these years - globally as well as locally. It is a challenge we have to take seriously. We have let this issue float about for too long because we are tolerant and lazy.
"We have to show our opposition to Islam and we have to, at times, run the risk of having unflattering labels placed on us because there are some things for which we should display no tolerance."
"And when we are tolerant, we must know whether it is because of convenience or conviction."
The Queen, who turns 65 tomorrow and has reigned since 1972, wields no political power but does occasionally comment on political issues.
Denmark has seriously limited immigration in the past three years and the anti-immigrant Danish People's Party, an ally of the centre-Right government, has pushed through laws making it harder to bring in foreign spouses or qualify for asylum.
The queen told her biographer, Annelise Bistrup, apparently referring to Muslim fundamentalists: "There is something impressive about people for whom religion imbues their existence, from dusk to dawn, from cradle to grave."
She said she understood how disaffected young Muslims might find refuge in religion. This tendency should be fought by encouraging Muslims to learn Danish so they could integrate better, she said.
"We should not be content with living next to each other. We should rather live together."
#4
"There is something impressive about people for whom religion imbues their existence, from dusk to dawn, from cradle to grave."
A common misconception, and a dangerous one. It parallels the idea that one is either a teatotaler or a drunk, which is absurd. Likewise, religion can be a very positive force, so long as one doesn't insist on requiring others to also conform to one's own beliefs, either through forced conversion or dhimmitude. Which is the problem with militant Islam today, so ably demonstrated by that obnoxious idiot who posted yesterday -- demanding the imposition of Islam's rules on everybody.
#9
In WWII, when the Germans occupying the country required Jews to wear the yellow star, the king of Denmark began wearing one. Guts appear to be a family tradition. I'm impressed.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 10:46 Comments ||
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#10
AT4353 must be quite some intellect, since s/he is able to see how stupid Dr. Rice really is.
#12
I hope she has good protection around her.
I foresee death threats
I love her backbone
Posted by: Jan ||
02/05/2006 10:58 Comments ||
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#13
What a woman! I am so proud that Aussies are now affiliated with the Danish throne. God save that Queen.
Now if only the house of Windsor could come up with something like that I'd have a reason to be a monarchist.
The Danes truly have spine. They helped out in Afghanistan too, didn't oppose Iraq too much and also printed those cartoons in defence of freedom of speech.
long live Denmark!
And as for the puke in aisle #7, that's the next President of the USA you're talking about. Wash your mouth out.
#14
Let's hope she is the authentic voice of the nation. The Muslims need to learn that if they can't live by the rules of the West they will be forced to leave it and go back to their countries of origin. No one here will cry to see them go, either.
Posted by: mac ||
02/05/2006 13:12 Comments ||
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#15
What's interesting is that the quote is from a year ago or so, cited in a bio that just came out. She's been worried about this issue for longer than the cartoon mess.
#18
The viking blood of Harald Bluetooth runs in her veins. The Danish monarchy runs back over a thousand years. You don't stay in power that long without understanding how the world works and being bold enough to do and say what is necessary. God save Queen Margrethe!
#19
Well the Queen may have backbone, but several thousand (so claimed, no way to tell if it was a couple of hundred) of her subjects do not. I just watched a piece on CNN International showing a march in Denmark where the people were holding candles and Little cards with peace signs and the word SORRY. Also some guy playing guitar on stage (kumbaya?). It made me want to puke. The muzzies sides must be aching because their sides hurt so much from laughing at the sight. What freaking idiots these people are. Their signs should have read Please Kick Me.
Last Friday the CT Blog revealed how a delegation of Danish Muslims, led by Copenhagen imam Abu Laban, toured the Middle East in December and showed fabricated cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed in a very offensive fashion, even though the pictures had never appeared on Jyllands Posten.
Actually, the letter referenced below states that the cartoons were received privately in a response to their original protest. If true, that undercuts CT Blog's assertion that the Danish muslim delegation lied. However, the origin of those cartoons is at present unknown, one way or the other. While deeply offensive, if they were not published they should not have been linked to the newspaper controversy.
The controversy has now exploded in Denmark. Friday night Danish public television, DR, ran two interesting stories about Abu Laban, the man who organized the delegation's trip to the Middle East. While the first profiled him, showing his extensive links to the Egyptian group Gamaa Islamiya, the second showed his double-talk. Abu Laban, in fact, was first shown speaking on Danish television condemning the boycott of Danish good (in English), then shown interviewed on al Jazeera, cheerfully commenting on the effectiveness of the boycott (in Arabic). To see the stories go to DR's website, click on TV Avisen on the right and select the news broadcast from Friday, Feb. 3, at 9 PM (starts at minute 23).
Moreover, Andy Cochran has just made available to me the English translation of the Arabic letter that the Danish Muslim delegation presented during their tour of the Middle East. To see the document, irrefutable proof of the delgation's intent to create animosity, click here: Download danish_letter.pdf
#5
It definitely feels like Christmas at the moment, with the jihadis making laughing stocks of themselves at every available opportunity, but never underestimate the ability of European politicians to turn a silk purse into a steaming pile of caca.
#8
Hey, Truthhascome.com TrulyShitForBrains I couldn't have dreamt of a better, more brain dead issue than this to lance the boil. Were I religious, I would be down on my knees praying for this to get bigger and bigger. It's a dream come true.
#10
Truthascum is just another self-deluded fool of a muslim. You want sharia idiot-stick, move back to that hellhole your parents came from. Lets see if you have the devotion to your cause to do that. Keep pushing, tell all your brothers to keep pushing. Arouse the west and let them see your true nature in all its glory. When the west awakens, when even the folk marxists among us realize the societal stain you represent, then the real response will begin. We in the west, and in civilized society, want to get along. Everywhere in the world the evidence is clear, muslims do not.
#13
If you're correct, CI, all the more reason for the bilious fool to move to Islam's homeland, so he can enjoy the life he finds so desirable for others.
"You will come to see how far the Islamic Brotherhood is wlling to go to silence the mouths of the infidel west. Your cities will be laid to waste by the oncoming storm from the Righteous Brigades of Truth, who will punish you in the name of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in your own cities when you least expect it. We will reign fire and destruction upon you. Your babies will howl in condemnation of your foolishness and your women will be ashamed of you. By this you will know the ascendancy of Islam and will be forced to admit your supreme indequacy, and the supreme greatness of Islam."
Or something of the sort. Mine is a bit too polished, but you get the idea.
#17
Pretty good boilerplate there, ex-lib. Add in some stuff about shaking the ground under the feet of infidels / Jooos (a Friday Fav) and a reference or two to blood and you'll have a real package. I see time slots at Finsbury with your name on them. :)
#18
Someone did a trackback on THC.com yesterday and found it to have an IP address reserved for Saudi Arabia. If so he is clearly a young Muslim who is just trying out his seethe.
If so here is doctinal question for you to chew on THC.com:
If Mohammad said that Jesus was a Great Prophet and Jesus said he was the Son of God, Who is lying?
#19
That IP is one that is often spoofed. No clear proof one way or the other. It's quite possible THC is a Saudi whose English is just awkward. Or a north american teen ... ditto.
#20
Good one, ex-lib. You just need to add a sprinkle of Koranic verses and quotes from the Surah.
Truthhascome is not Islamic, sounds more like a 14yr old sitting in his or her bedroom with not much idea. Otherwise there'd be more detail and authenticity in his/her rants.
#24
I hope it becomes true for Europe: When the people lead, the leaders will follow. I hope that the people are waking up before they lose their continent.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/05/2006 14:18 Comments ||
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#25
I hope that the people are waking up before they lose their continent.
Yup, that would be nice, but I'm not betting on it. I wouldn't be surprized if, say France, ceased to exist as it is right now, in the coming decades, with break up into "leopard spots" of muslim and (nominally, given the continent dechristianization) christians areas. There is a text floating on the french language internet pretending to be an excerpt from a 2050+ or so history book made for the students of the french colony in Argentina, detailing how France was turned into an islamic republic by sheer force of numbers and democracy, without much reaction from its original inhabitants, except white flight. Spooky, and very plausible.
QUETTA: Suspected militant tribesmen blew up a gas well and gas pipeline in Loti gas plant and fired some 200 rockets at paramilitary forces in Dera Bugti on Saturday. Armed tribesmen also fired rockets and 107-type missiles in Sui on Saturday, killing a Difference Service Guard (DSG) and injuring two others.
Dera Bugti District Coordination Officer Abdul Samad Lasi said that well No 10 and a 60-foot gas pipeline were damaged when tribesmen attacked the Loti gas plant. The gas plant produces 35 million cubic feet of gas daily, and well No 10 was producing two million cubic feet of gas a day. Lasi said that tribesmen had installed landmines in many areas, especially around the Loti and Pirkoh gas plants. The water supply to both plants had been destroyed in blasts last month. Now tribesmen were attacking containers supplying water to the plants, he said, adding that if water was not supplied to the plants, they could be closed. He said that armed tribesmen were not allowing the damage to be repaired or the landmines to be cleared.
Lasi said that one Frontier Corps soldier was injured when tribesmen fired 200 rockets and mortars at the main FC base in Dera Bugti before dawn on Saturday. One rocket hit an army officers office, injuring a guard and damaging the structure, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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WANA: Three paramilitary soldiers were killed and one injured on Saturday when suspected militants detonated an explosive device in South Waziristan, AFP reported. The roadside device went off as a convoy of the Frontier Corps was returning to Wana, a security official said. The blast in Zarmilan, 40 kilometres southwest of Wana, killed one soldier at the scene. Three soldiers were wounded, two of whom died later in the hospital.
Meanwhile, troops on Saturday seized a large quantity of arms and ammunition from a truck heading to Datakhel near Miranshah, a military official said. He said the weapons, including rockets, heavy guns, shells, landmines and sleeping bags, were cleverly concealed under timber loaded on the truck.
Staff report adds: Paramilitary soldiers have become prime targets of suspected militants in both North and South Waziristan. The explosion follows an attack on a security check post near the Afghan border late on Friday night.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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MULTAN: One person was killed and 32 injured when the Lahore-bound Karakoram Expr-ess derailed between Klanchwala and Samsatta near Bahawalpur at around 3:15 am on Saturday. Eleven coaches of the train derailed. Of the 32 passengers admitted to Bahawal Victoria Hospital, 15 were discharged and one was stated to be in critical condition. Passengers said they heard a big bang before the derailment in which four coaches overturned, according to railway officials. Hundreds of passengers escaped by breaking windows, they said.
The incident occurred less than a week after four people were killed in a train crash near Jhelum. Minister of State for Railway Ishaq Khakwani told reporters an investigation had been launched and would be finished in two weeks. He did not rule out the possibility of sabotage.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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salt heavily until verified. it's not like any Iraqis have it in for Iran or anything ....
Iraqi police have arrested the fourth-ranking figure in al-Qaeda in Iraq, state television said, while officials are investigating whether the group's leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, has fled to neighbouring Iran. The brief report on Iraqiya television identified the suspect as Mohammed Rabei, also known as Abu Dhar, and said he was No 4 in al-Qaeda. It gave no further details.
Meanwhile, a senior Iraqi security officer said the Iraqi government has been receiving information that al-Zarqawi may have moved to neighbouring Iran after hot pursuit by US and Iraqi forces in western Iraq. The officer said Iraq's intelligence services have received information that the Jordanian-born terrorist was spotted a few weeks ago in areas close to the Himreen Mountains, 120 km south of Kirkuk and near the border with Iran.
"We are dealing with this information carefully but intelligence services are working on the assumption that he has been planning to move to Iran after being besieged in the areas where he was operating inside Iraq," said the officer, who declined to be identified further because of the sensitivity of the investigation.
#6
There is a lot more Iran then there are Shias to police it. He might figure hiding out with some of the more radical anti-Mullah fanatics in the NW, just as a maybe.
#8
Do a Rantburg search on General Suleimani and you'll see why Zark would flee to Iran.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
02/05/2006 17:35 Comments ||
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#9
Killing shias and then hiding in Iran, nah doesnt wash
Do you think the mullahs really care how many shias are martyred? We're talking about a government that sent waves of kids into minefields.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
02/05/2006 17:45 Comments ||
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#10
For the record, Zarq has been trapsing into and out of Iran since at least the early 2000s.
It's extremely hard to believe that the Moolahs & Co. didn't know of his travels, as he set up camp in SE Afganistan before the US invasion, and he set up camp in NE Iraq up to the camp being bombed in 2003.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 18:53 Comments ||
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#11
Among other things, his alliance with Ansar al-Islam is (or at least was) strong and that group crosses the Iraq-Iran border freely.
#12
Iran knows we would take him if we found him there. Either they are baiting us into a war, using Zaw as bait, or they are dumber than anyone could imagine.
Posted by: 49 pan ||
02/05/2006 21:56 Comments ||
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Iraqi authorities issued arrest warrants for a Sunni Arab member of parliament and his son, accusing them of embezzling millions of dollars meant to protect vulnerable oil pipelines, the head of a government watchdog agency said Sunday.
Meshaan al-Jiburi and his son, Yazin, allegedly pocketed money earmarked for creating a paramilitary force to protect oil pipelines in the north against insurgent attacks, according to Judge Radhi al-Radhi, chairman of the High Commission of Integrity.
The whereabouts of al-Jiburi and his son are unknown, and officials said they may have fled the country. Al-Radhi said Iraqi authorities have asked the Interpol for help in tracking them down.
Al-Radhi told The Associated Press the two allegedly collected government funds after providing lists of fictional recruits and submitting bills for their expenses. He declined to give an exact figure.
"Each time pipelines in the area were attacked, they asked to recruit more guards as well as salary increases for the recruits," al-Radhi said. "It had become apparent that attacks were increasing rather than decreasing."
Insurgent attacks against Iraq's oil industry, the country's lifeline, have been frequent since 2003, crippling reconstruction efforts and stoking popular discontent.
Beside the loss in revenues from oil exports, the disruption reduces the flow of fuel to electric power stations, causing lengthy outages in Baghdad and other cities.
The elder al-Jiburi was elected to parliament in January 2005 and again Dec. 15. He was a candidate for parliament speaker last year but his nomination was vetoed by Shiite lawmakers, who argued he had close links to Saddam Hussein's now-outlawed Baath party.
Iraq's election authorities are expected to ratify the results of the December elections later this week, paving the way for the new 275-seat parliament to hold its first session.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2006 A combined U.S. and Iraqi patrol killed four insurgents yesterday, and in separate incidents Feb. 2, a U.S. team seized a weapons cache west of Fallujah and Multinational Division Baghdad forces detained three suspected terrorists, Multinational Force Iraq officials reported today.
The insurgents were killed after they opened fire on U.S. Marines and Iraqi soldiers patrolling along the Euphrates River south of Hit. The combined patrol was conducting a cache sweep when the insurgents attacked with small-arms fire, officials said. U.S. and Iraq troops returned fire, killing four insurgents and detaining three others for questioning. One of the insurgents killed was wearing a suicide vest.
The patrol was part of Operation Smokewagon, which began Feb. 2. It's a 2nd Brigade, 7th Iraqi Army Division and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) operation.
Posted by: Bobby ||
02/05/2006 11:21 ||
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Iraq's finance minister believes that 40 percent to 50 percent of black-market oil revenues are going to the insurgency, the New York Times reported Saturday. I'm sorry, I just can't go to the NYT anymore.
Ali Allawi said insurgents have infiltrated management at the Baiji oil refinery and are using their positions to divert oil. "It's gone beyond Nigeria levels now where it really threatens national security," Allawi told the Times. "The insurgents are involved at all levels."
Meshaan al-Juburi, a Sunni member of the Iraqi National Assembly, has been charged with stealing millions of dollars that was supposed to be used for pipeline protection, said Radhi Hamza al-Radhi, the chairman of the Commission on Public Integrity. The director of an oil storage facility near Kirkuk was charged Saturday with helping to arrange an attack on the plant. Radhi said armed guards did not prevent an attack on a 60-truck convoy from Baiji to Baghdad.
#4
Gleager Threater2270, I saw this UPI article at the Washington Times website. Feel free to read the original New York Times article, but I won't -- the NYT presses all the wrong buttons for me these days, and I refuse to waste energy getting angry at them. Is that what you were wtf-ing about?
#5
TW: I agree completely. The Slimes has become the house organ for the looniest fringe of the Democratic Party to the point of being anti-American.
It is remarkable that they, as a defendent in the Justice Department's investigation into the leaking of the NSA antiterrorism activities, continuously runs articles that attempt to defend their indefensible position.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 12:45 Comments ||
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BAGHDAD - The bodies of 24 Sunni Arabs found on Friday to the west of Baghdad were killed in cold blood by forces from the Interior Ministry, Secretary General of the Sunni Iraqi National Dialogue Council Khalaf Al Olayan told a press conference on Saturday.
A lot of score-settling going on.
Special forces (maghaweer) from the Interior Ministry raided Al Aqsa mosque in Taji during evening prayers and shot inside the mosque unjustifiably, Al Olayan said. They arrested nine worshippers and took them to an unknown place ... They were found yesterday killed in the Ghazalia region after being tortured together with 15 other bodies, he added.
Al Olayan also urged the government of Prime Minister Ibrahim Al Jaafari to take the necessary measures to stop what he termed the series of brutality and terror.
Sunni Arabs had earlier accused forces from the Interior Ministry of abducting and brutally killing Sunni people, including clerics. The ministry has denied these accusations.
I bet it's true. I also bet no ethnic group has clean hands.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Two Palestinian militants, including a senior Islamic Jihad bomb-maker, have been killed in a missile strike in the Gaza Strip.
Islamic Jihad named the dead bomb-maker as Adnan Bustan.
The group said he had been on his way to launch an attack in retaliation for an Israeli helicopter strike earlier in the day that killed three people.
The Israeli military has made no comment on the second attack, which hit two cars in the east of Gaza city.
Adnan Bustan is believed to have headed Islamic Jihad's engineering and manufacturing unit, which produces rockets and explosives.
The other dead militant was identified as Jihad al-Sawafiri, thought to have been in charge of the militants that launch the rockets.
The BBC's Alan Johnston said two cars were struck - the occupants of the first car survived while the second car appeared to try to be trying to escape when it was hit.
The attacks happened in the Zeitun neighbourhood of Gaza on Sunday evening.
passing out candy and Zam-Zam
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 16:31 Comments ||
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#2
'Jihad named the dead bomb-maker as Adnan Bustan' shoulda been called adnan busted
An Israeli woman slashed to death by Palestinian terrorist on minibus near Petach Tikva east of Tel Aviv Sunday morning. He badly cut five more passengers riding in the bus before he was overcome. The killer is from a village near West Bank town of Nablus. When handcuffed by police he recited Quran passages and refused to answer questions.
A new wave of Palestinian terror is cresting with 12 suicide bombers intercepted in last few days and number of terror alerts rising to 50 a week. Shin Beit director Yuval Diskin released these figures to the government at its weekly Sunday session in Jerusalem.
Acting PM Olmert announced his decision to release tax revenues totaling quarter of a million shekels ($50m) to the Palestinian Authority despite the Hamas election victory. He also welcomed the IAEA resolution referring Irans nuclear violations to the UN Security Council.
Olmert rejected demands for a state panel to investigate police conduct in last week's excessively violent clash at Amona between police and anti-evacuation protesters. More than 200 people were injured, three quarters of them civilians.
#5
We are witnessing a transition that illustrates the west has lost the war of ideas for the hearts and minds of the Muslim public. A thousand year inferiority complex drives an insatiable hunger for standing up to, dominating or humiliating the west. The masked killers who can't be stopped from blowing up innocents - they are Islam's manhood. Iran's president defies the west with logic the west cannot answer - the Hitler didn't kill Jews, but the Jews should be wiped from the map, and Iran will have nukes. What heros - they standup for Islam and they intimidate the west. Now we see the Muslim "street" tell us where they stand. They elect the terrorists Hamas to lead them to peace. Because of cartoons, they threaten to kill, to massacre, for the glory of Allah, not just in Islamic countries, but everywhere there are Muslims.
At times like this, we must remember and fall back on our lessons. All cultures are equally valauble in our human quilt of many colors, they just are different. We are not better or more civilzed, after all, remember we stole land from the Indians and gave them smallpox. If you show different cultures respect, they will reciprocate. Only then will we be able to join global hands and sing Kumbaya in different languages.
#7
As a practical matter, even if it is Hamas that gets control over the Paleos, at least *someone* will be in control. From the Israelis point of view, dealing with even their hated enemy is preferable to not being able to deal at all.
Of course, if Hamas and Fatah decide to slaughter each other, well, meh...
#8
A new wave of Palestinian terror is cresting with 12 suicide bombers intercepted in last few days and number of terror alerts rising to 50 a week. Shin Beit director Yuval Diskin released these figures to the government at its weekly Sunday session in Jerusalem.
Acting PM Olmert announced his decision to release tax revenues totaling quarter of a million shekels ($50m) to the Palestinian Authority despite the Hamas election victory.
#9
so the money went to Abbas? Or Hamas? Regardless, I'd expect the booty money will not be distributed properly in one or the other's eyes. Civil war in 5...4...
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 14:28 Comments ||
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#10
IIRC, knifing attacks out of the blue on civilians chosen for their vulnerability (children, women,...) were a staple of the mainstream terror attacks in Israel before the suicide belt; this even led to the popularity of krav maga teaching outside of military institution, and its emphasis on counterweapons techniques.
A rambling slasher attacking elderly people, while setting himself in a trance by reciting the ultimate mantra, the learned-by-heart coran ("the recitation" aka the True Words Of God, who speaks 7th century arabic, of course)... islam is just a cult, a gigantic cult, but every element of cultist behavior is there. What a crooked "religion".
#12
islam is just a cult, a gigantic cult, but every element of cultist behavior is there. What a crooked "religion".
Welcome to the club, A5089. I've been saying this for several years now. Also, if you truly read the tenets of Islam, you'll find that quite a few of them are diametrically opposed to what the Jews and most Christians believe. The Ten Commandments have no meaning to Islam, because muhammed (MHBCWARS)says it's all right to lie, cheat, steal, kill, and anything else, if you do it to infidels. The God of Abraham is a loving God, the god of muhammed is a god of hate. It seems the Arabs made up a religion not only to allow them to do all the things they were doing previously, but to COMPEL them to do it, in defiance of the teachings of the Jews and Christians. I can think of no better description of the anti-Christ.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/05/2006 15:28 Comments ||
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#13
Old Patriot : there was an ebook at answering-islam.com, at this url which covered the relationship between the islamic apocalypse and the christian one... it was very troubling, as there was an exact concordance between the two, only mirrored.
Even though I do believe in God, I'm not a good catholic (which is a serious sin, bad for my afterlife perspective, so I'll screw it as I've screwed my earthly life, damn), to say the least, and I do not have the scholarly skills to determine if this was exact or not, but there was a mirror-effect between the mahdi/the antichrist (who are to do the same things), the islamic Jesus/the false prophet, and the dajjal (islamic antichrist)/Jesus.
Check the webpage later to see if it's available again, or if you are interested, (remember, I can't vouch for this, I've only read the summary, browsed through the book, and simply do not have the christian education, much less the muslim one, to decide if this is theologically valid or not), you might want to contact the author at the link given there, or at his blog.
Three people died in Gaza when Israeli armed forces launched a helicopter attack on a building used by the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. Five others were wounded in the attack on Gaza City early on Sunday. Those killed were reported to have been trying to run away flee in a car, the BBC's correspondent Alan Johnston said.
The Israeli military said the attack was designed to stop Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, after a strike which wounded three on Friday. They said the building was used to prepare rocket attacks on Israeli territory. Palestinians said the building was an al-Aqsa sports club and sports training camp.
Sports club in Gaza? What's the sport, grenade-throwing?
Hoot, laddie! 'Tis tossin' the Islamic caber yer referrin' tae! 'Tis just like the Scots caber, only with fins. And a warhead.
An the dancin' roond the auto - that's traditional, like the Hieland Fling dontcha know.
Don't forget the coordinated Seething Team...
The building targeted in the Israeli missile strike belonged to the Fatah Party, run by outgoing Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas, witnesses said. The car was hit moments after Israeli rockets hit the building, forcing people into the street.
Nicely timed.
The BBC's correspondent said a meeting was taking place in the building, when a helicopter was heard moving towards it.
"Aiiieeeee! They're onto us! Run away!"
Four of the wounded were security personnel guarding the Palestinians' Preventive Security headquarters near the sports club al-Aqsa facility, hospital officials said. Dozens of al-Aqsa sports club members and their supporters gathered outside the hospital where the wounded were being treated, some of them having gun sex firing rifles into the air. "God willing, our rockets, our self-sacrificing martyrs and all the means of resistance will chase out the Zionists from every corner of our occupied land," al-Aqsa member Abu Mujahed said, accusing Israel of carrying out a targeted attack.
"But let's not be hasty, we didn't want to martyr ourselves inside the sports club," he added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
The sports club is for training their car swarm team. They've gotten a prime opportunity for practice now.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
02/05/2006 0:06 Comments ||
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#2
the Paleos are big on winter sports, like curling. It comes natural, like their sovereignty over Israel
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 0:55 Comments ||
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#3
Sports club? Cartoon Martyrs Supporting the Rabble of Ramallah Society? BBC needs more details...
#6
Four of the wounded were security personnel guarding the Palestinians' Preventive Security headquarters terrorist's meeting.
AP news says: The three killed were senior field operatives of Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the hospital said. Field operatives plan and carry out rocket attacks and other assaults on Israeli targets.
Posted by: ed ||
02/05/2006 9:19 Comments ||
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#7
These dumb Paleos don't realize that Israel left the buildings wired when they left. They can sit in Tel Aviv and listen to the plans to kill Joooos being discussed. Then, dispatch a chopper to erase the splodydopes.
#8
Salmon, Yellow and Seafoam. An odd combination, but it works.
Posted by: Rantburg Interiors to Go ||
02/05/2006 10:55 Comments ||
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#9
"...accusing Israel of carrying out a targeted attack."
That's a problem for Abu: These targeted attacks garner less and less sympathy and outrage from the EUs and other LLLs each time - not enough mangled baby ducks and fluffy bunnies.
Personally, I'd like to see Israel take these higher up the chain of command. I guess they're waiting for a more successful attack by the Paleos before doing that.
#15
Yup. He who has the press gets the freedom. Start your own blog and see how many stop by to see your musings. No reason Fred has to allow you to peddle them here.
#16
I just took a look in the sinktrap. Mr. Truth must be pretty kinky to imagine that kind of thing would seduce anyone to join his religion. His parents taught him well how to hate, but they neglected to teach him the manners of a guest to his host.
#17
By the way, what happened to your Fatboy Sharon?
Currently, he doesn't seem to be much of a monster. I mean he's turned into a vegetable. Yes! Sure must be smelling very bad. Why don't Bush and Blair go help his family change his diapers. But I pray God doesn't kill him soon. Let the Fat Boy stink up the whole hospital. He needs to be punished in this life before God roasts him in AlJaheem-the living HELL-FIRE! Ha! Ha! Ha! You Suckers!!!
An activist of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement of Hamas named Mustafa Al Aqqad, 19, was kidnapped by unknown gunmen Friday in Khan Yunus city south of Gaza Strip, said eyewitnesses. They said the young man called his family from his mobile shortly before being kidnapped and told them that armed men were chasing him on his way to the mosque.
"Ma, they're after me!"
Tens of his relatives demonstrated near a security complex in the city urging for freeing Aqqad. No party has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping yet. Yusuf Seyyam, a Palestinian security official told a local radio station that he denies Hamas accusation that the Palestinian security authorities were behind the abduction. "The precautionary security is a foundation that serves Palestinians and defends their rights, and could not kidnap and terrorize the citizens," he said.
"No! Certainly not! We are way too weak and underarmed to compete with the hard boyz in Hamas and PIJ, so we don't even try."
Two days ago, a bomb exploded in front of the house of a former security director in the city.
Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine, pledged on Friday to increase missile attacks on southern Israeli cities. Brigades' Spokesperson in Gaza Strip Abu Hamzah said that the brigades will continue resisting the Israeli occupation, calling for combining the efforts of all Palestinian factions to confront the continuous Israeli aggressions against Palestinians in Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He told reporters that future missile launches will cover all Palestinian lands occupied in 1948, noting that the brigades were improving their missiles' range to reach all Israeli settlements built on the 1948 lands. Three Israelis were wounded earlier today in a shelling that targeted the town of Karmei in southern Israel, while Al-Quds Brigades announced responsibility for the operation. The brigades said that the missile strike was in response for the continuous Israeli aggression against the Palestinians, which include arresting Islamic Jihad leaders and assassinating leaders of Al-Quds Brigades and the Palestinian resistance.
#3
Sooner or later, Israel is going to have to totally clean out Gaza and the West Bank. That means eliminating ALL Arabs living there. It's time to quit playing games with these idiots. They have no intention of ever allowing Israel to live in peace. They sooner they're eliminated from the gene pool, the better. I'm not advocating genocide, but if they don't have the brains to leave, they should suffer the consequences. Israel has put up with this crap for 50+ years. It's time it ended. Eliminating the "palestinians" will eliminate the problem. Nuke weapons and counter-fire capabilities (subs, etc) make for peaceful neighbors - or dead ones.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/05/2006 15:37 Comments ||
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Lebanese demonstrators have set the Danish embassy in Beirut on fire in protest at the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad. Thousands of people attended a rally and clashes broke out with security forces sent to protect the building.
Lebanese leaders condemned the attack and Interior Minister Hassan Sabeh announced his resignation.
The violence came a day after mobs in neighbouring Syria torched the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus.
Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller has called for a calming of tensions. "It is a critical situation and it is very serious," he told Danish public radio. Denmark urged its citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.
The cartoons first appeared in a Danish newspaper in September and caused outrage among Muslims, who consider any images of Muhammad offensive. One of the cartoons shows Muhammad wearing a bomb-shaped turban.
Newspapers across Europe have republished the pictures in recent days, saying they are defending freedom of expression.
Huge crowds attended Sunday's protest in the Christian neighbourhood where the Danish embassy is located.
The protest started out peacefully, but turned violent after Islamic extremists tried to break though security barriers protecting the building.
"We have a right to defend our prophet," one protester told the BBC. "They should have respected our religion," said another.
Some 2,000 riot police and army troops fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd and fired their weapons into the air. But smoke was later seen rising from the building, which also houses commercial offices, after demonstrators broke into it. The building was believed to be unoccupied at the time.
Some protesters threw stones at the security forces and burned Danish flags. A nearby church and other property in the neighbourhood were also attacked. Security officials said at least 18 people were injured, AP news agency reported.
Some Muslim clerics helped to persuade the crowd to disperse as the violence died down, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from the scene.
Lebanon's most prominent Sunni leader, Saad al-Hariri, vowed to track down and prosecute those involved in the attacks.
"We tell our Christian brothers that any stone thrown against a house or a car was an insult to Muslims," he said from Paris.
A DEFIANT Iran today ended snap UN checks of its nuclear sites and said it was resuming uranium enrichment, a day after being reported to the Security Council over suspicions it is building nuclear weapons.
Diplomats warned the response could heighten the dispute over the nuclear ambitions of the world's fourth biggest oil exporter. Tehran insists it needs nuclear technology only to generate electricity. "Iran has stopped all voluntary measures that it undertook in the past two-and-a-half to three years," Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told a news conference. "We have no commitment to the Additional Protocol any more."
"We had two clear options. One was to decide to abandon our nuclear rights, the other to preserve our rights. We chose resistance," Mr Mottaki said.
Iran's main measure was the suspension of uranium enrichment. If enriched to a low level, uranium can be used in power stations. If enriched further to weapons-grade, it can be used in nuclear warheads. Iran signed the Additional Protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 2003, thereby allowing short-notice inspections of its atomic sites.
The International Atomic Energy Agency voted yesterday to report Iran to the Security Council but the top UN body will take no action until an IAEA report on Iran is delivered in March of 2021. The Security Council has the power to impose political and economic sanctions on Iran but there are divisions among its five permanent members - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - about how to deal with Tehran.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov said today he doubted sanctions would have much effect. Russia is helping build Iran's only nuclear power station and Russia's LUKOIL is investing in an Iranian oilfield. Mr Ivanov said IAEA head Mohamed ElBaradei wanted a reply to his questions before the agency's governing board meets again in early March.
European diplomats said the questions related to Iran's attempts to acquire technology that could be used either in a civilian nuclear energy program or to develop atomic weapons. "We do expect Iran to provide answers to these questions - every single one of them," Mr Ivanov told reporters at an annual security conference in Munich.
Mr Ahmadinejad said nothing could deflect Tehran's pursuit of atomic know-how. "Our enemies cannot do a damn thing. We do not need you at all. But you are in need of the Iranian nation," he told a crowd in Tehran earlier today.
"Content yourself with as many resolutions as you like, you cannot prevent the will of the Iranian people," he said.
Iran has warned that any sanctions against it would send oil prices beyond a level industrialised economies could bear. Abdolrahim Moussavi, head of Iran's joint chiefs of staff, warned that any military strike against Iran's atomic facilities would be useless. "We are not seeking a military confrontation, but if that happens we will give the enemy a lesson that will be remembered throughout history," he was quoted as saying by the ISNA students news agency.
He may be right. The 1988 naval battle with the US has gone into the books as one of the key battles establishing US global naval dominance. No reason we can't beat that record this time around.
interesting part:
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a news conference Iran was keeping diplomatic options with Russia open. Mr Asefi said Tehran would have talks with Moscow on February 16, but added that a Russian proposal that Moscow enrich Iran's uranium would have to be "adjusted in the current situation". He said the timing of Iran's resumption of a full atomic fuel cycle remained uncertain.
Puty playing games with us or wishful thinking in Teheran? maybe just a reasonable desire to avoid massive bloodshed of ordinary Iranians. I can get down with that ....
Iran's stock market slumped beneath its key psychological threshold of 10,000 points today, with brokers blaming nerves over the atomic program.
#1
The MMs of Iran are stepping up their game of chicken. I believe that they really do think that they have us intimidated that we (collectively) will do nothing. The public divisions aired in the MSM in the US are sending them strong signals to keep up the play. My pain in my side tells me that we will play this security council thing while preparing for something militarily. Only thing is that anything of any size, like carrier movements, will tip our hand. Wonder how the B-52 deployment is at Diego Garcia. The problem is that we are running out of time. The MMs will give a bomb to a proxy, or they will pubically rattle it around, like Kimmy. The Imams are fomenting instability with Cartoon Madness. Hamas and Hizb'Allah are tooling up for the big showdown with Israel. This is not just accident and coincicence, boys and girls.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/05/2006 15:32 Comments ||
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#2
I fear you're right. But if it comes to a military attack, there are a range of options I suspect.
#4
In terms of resources, the Teddy Roosevelt carrier group is in the gulf, with her 85 aircraft, and the Marines' have an expeditionary strike group in the area. The Ronald Reagan is slowly meandering her way westward .. she's in the Phillipines right now, was in Japan a few days ago ...
#5
actually lotp - IIRC the Reagan was in Brisbane a week ago(?) - we had stories in the SD paper about their shore leave, doing good works for the locals, etc.....If the RR goes into the Sea of India and there's no tsunami crisis.... welllllll, lol
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/05/2006 16:04 Comments ||
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Anyone who thinks that Iran wasn't and hadn't been actively enriching uranium all the while are suffering from a serious intake of yellow cake.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 18:48 Comments ||
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#9
Just for fun, I search the Net with "Iran resumes uranium enrichment" and got over 800.000 answers!
3 of them dated:
Section: World
Published: Thursday, March 11, 2004;
Summary: TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran said Wednesday it would resume uranium enrichment etc. etc...
Section: World
Published: Tuesday, November 16, 2004;
Summary: TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran said Monday that it was suspending uranium enrichment etc. etc...
Section: World
Published: Monday, February 14, 2005;
Summary: TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran rejected a European demand to stop building a heavy water nuclear reactor etc. etc...
As a diplomat would say "As far as I am concerned and all things considered, I think that there is a possibility that Iran is laughing at us.
#12
Whether considering Saddam's seemingly inexplicable recalcitrance, Iran's apparent death wish, the ascendancy of Hamas, widespread governmental condemnation of European free speech throughout the Islamic world, or any of the other myriad of examples that appear here at Rantburg on a daily basis Lee Harris appears ever-more the prophet. If you've not read that piece, do.
#13
I think the intelligence agencies don't have a clue how much U-235 the Iranians have. Them Iranians have had 15 years, since they bought Pakistan's tech in the late 1980's, to build and hide many thousands of centrifuges. The only thing the west may have a clue about is the amount of uranium imports and whether the Iranians have been able to bring their own uranium mines online.
Posted by: ed ||
02/05/2006 20:48 Comments ||
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#14
Don't forget we have over 100,000 American Soldiers in Iraq and Iran could reach them with a truck bomb. A truck nuke, if you will. That may be the retaliation they promise. Then there's always the straights.
#15
They don't have that big a bomb. Iraq is the size of California. How many nukes would it take to pulverize California? I'll enjoy considering that.
#16
There's a wing of B-1s at Diego, plus one or two squadrons of B-52s. There are also twelve hangars that could accommodate B-2s. I have no idea if nukes are stored there or not, but it's not impossible to reach Iran from bases in the US - just tiring. Iran is playing a very dangerous game with a hardnosed president. That could prove suicidal.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/05/2006 23:18 Comments ||
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Maybe the US statement that the Syrian govt would be held responsible got someone's attention - Denmark is an ally in Iraq and attacks on an embassy can be construed as an act of war. Baby Doc Assad is pushing it very very hard and perhaps the generals don't want to give Rummy a legitimate reason to come calling.
The statement strikes me as pro forma: they had to say something, so they said this. Actions speak louder than words: there is no way in a totalitarian state that a group of people can burn a foreign embassy unless Pencilneck wanted it burned.
Syria voiced its regret over attacks against the Danish and Norwegian diplomatic missions in Damascus by angry mobs protesting at cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed as a terrorist.
Crowds stormed the buildings housing two embassies on Saturday, setting fire to both and pillaging the contents of the first-floor office of the Chilean embassy in one of the buildings. "The foreign ministry expresses its regret over the acts of violence which accompanied the protests yesterday, which caused damage to embassies in Damascus," the ministry said in a statement. "We understand the popular anger over the offences against the prophet but it is unacceptable for law and order to be violated in the country."
The ministry's statement echoed comments by the country's top religious leader, grand mufti Sheikh Ahmed Badreddine Hassun. "It is regrettable that certain people have poorly expressed their protest against the publication by European newspapers of images that are offensive to the prophet," he said.
Sheikh Hassun, whose comments were carried by state media, accused "elements who do not believe in dialogue who were introduced among the demonstrators" in Damascus. "We are sad about their actions which harms our dialogue with the Danish and Norwegian people," Sheikh Hassun said.
And we really, really don't want to be invaded, please.
"Hokay, have we said enough? We have? Great, now piss off, infidels."
Incensed Muslims have demonstrated against Danes and other Europeans, burned Danish flags and boycotted the country's products. "Extremism and puritanism have taken hold of the Arab street," said one Syrian intellectual, as fresh riots erupted in Lebanon on Sunday.
Syrian opposition writer Michael Kilo said the publication of the cartoons, some of which depicted the prophet as a knife-wielding bedouin and wearing a time-bomb turban on his head, stirred deep emotions among Muslims. The most radical Islamists "have monopolized the street under the pretext of defending the prophet," Kilo said.
Moderate Islamists and those who support democracy have been "kept away from the scene" by Arab regimes that have clamped down on opposition and free speech, he said. "The Syrian regime forbids meetings between civil society leaders, but allows thousands of people to set fire to the embassy of an innocent country," Kilo added.
Like I was saying ...
Human rights lawyer Anwar Bunni denounced the "barbaric attacks which have nothing to do with the values of Islam and Syria." Bunni accused security forces of letting troublemakers run wild, while Syrian authorities "mobilize hundreds of agents and police officers to prevent five people from holding a press conference or a political meeting."
The US embassy in the Syrian capital closed Sunday, according to an employee, and a French school and French cultural center also shut their doors as a "preventive measure," a source said. However, the French embassy opened, a day after protestors attempted to storm the building but were kept at bay by riot police using tear gas and water cannons.
The French being the only friends they have who can stop an invasion, at least for now ...
The Chilean embassy, located on the first floor in the same building as the Danish mission, was damaged in Saturday's attack. The fire did not appear to touch the Swedish embassy located on the second floor, nor the Danish embassy on the third. Several dozen demonstrators among what state news agency SANA said was a crowd of several thousand, scaled the facade. Some climbed over the balcony of the Chilean embassy, broke in and threw potted plants, furniture and computers out.
#4
Cut off all links. Make it a national crime to do business with any Islamic nation. Refuse to allow any Muslim member currently residing in any European nation to send money home, have visitors from back in the sandbox, or even to write letters. The collapse you hear is every Arab government crumbling. We can live without them, even their oil if we get our sh$$ together, but they cannot live without us beyond a 10th Century existence.
There are no automobiles made in any Islamic nation. Very few household appliances are made in any Islamic nation. The number of actual, accomplished native civil engineers in the sandbox is negligible. They manufacture no modern military weaponry, and have little else that can sustain them. They need our food, our medicine, and our technology. Cut them off and let them collapse into their past/present/future.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/05/2006 23:26 Comments ||
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Don't you just hate these friendly fire incidents?
Sweden's foreign minister Laila Freivalds has spoken to her Syrian counterpart expressing serious concern that the Swedish embassy in Damascus was torched on Saturday as part of the protests over the Danish cartoons. "He sincerely apologised over what had happened and that they couldn't prevent it," said Freivalds to TT. "The explanation is that the intelligence they had did not indicate that this sort of thing could happen - it was exceptional," she added.
yes, of course. what was NORMAL was burning the Danish and Norwegian embassies. If we've told the seethers once, we've told them a thousand times - check your targets before tossing the gasoline!
Syrian foreign minister Faruq al-Shara informed Freivalds that a special committee had been formed to investigate the incident and who was responsible.
Oh man, a committee. The perpetrators are gonna get it now!
Freivalds also inquired about the security of Swedish citizens in Syria. "He assured me that there were no threats directed at Swedes and that they could guarantee that all Swedes could feel safe."
The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not changed its travel recommendations for Syria. "The discussion is still going on, but as things stand now there will be no changes to the advice," said Christian Carlsson at the ministry press office to TT on Sunday morning.
Denmark's government, on the other hand, wants all Danes to leave Syria without delay. The government is said to be considering further political measures, reported the Ritzau news agency. The Norwegian authorities have also told its citizens to leave Syria as a result of the demonstrations in Damascus.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad here Sunday said the enemies could not prevent Iran from making progress. Ahmadinejad made the statement as a reaction to Saturday's decision of the International Atomic Energy Agency on reporting Iran to the United Nations Security Council. "The enemies of the Islamic Republic (of Iran) are furious because the Iranian nation has dared to grow its self-confidence out of their domination sphere.
"The foes cannot do a damn thing. We do not need you (enemies) at all. It is you (enemies), who need the Iranian people."
The president, who talked on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony of a couple of projects at Shahid Babaei Telecommunications Center, noted, "They are going to inspect all our military sites in the name of the agency to become aware of our defensive might, but we will not allow them to do so."
Addressing the UN watchdog IAEA, he said, "You can issue as many resolutions as you like and dream on. But you cannot prevent Iranian nation's progress." He added, "It is you, who have atomic weapons, have poisoned the world atmosphere, and should be disarmed. We do not need atomic weapons.
"The Iranian people are civilized and cultured and have altruistic behavior.
we give to Hamas and Hizboallah alike! We even shelter al Qaeda leaders
"We rely on our unrivaled revolutionary thoughts and logic to play our role on the international scene."
He been taking lessons from the NORKs?
He warned the enemies, "You know very well that you cannot make it. The era of hegemony has come to an end and you must accept the realities."
The IAEA Saturday issued a resolution to report Iran to the UNSC. Of 35 member states of the IAEA's Board of Governors, 27 voted for the resolution, five abstained, and three voted against.
#3
Yessss.. while I think the U.S. may want to avoid another war and fix this through diplomacy, but I promise Israel will not hesitate when the time comes....
ahmadinejad JUST MAY GET HIS REALITY CHECK.. REAL REAL SOON.
#4
He may be right - it is quite possible the West cannot do a damn thing about Iran & nukes. But not because of anything Iran or Ahmadinejad have to offer - but because the West is politically weak and has not the ruthlessness and WILL to do anything.
#5
i get the sad impression the Iranian people lap him up like the Germans did to Adolf hitler before ww2, i wonder if his speeches kind of 'galvinise' the Iranian people like adolfs did the germans.I always thought the way hitler - as much of a wnker he was and his nazi party were - was an incredable public speaker ,even though i havnt got a clue as to what he was saying/shouting in those rallies the way he says it and captures the audiance was amazing, dont get me wrong they were a sick bunch but i feel hitlers speechs and the way he captured the audiance were incredable, my question would be does this new hitler wannabe grab his audiance in the same way???? very worring if so
#7
"The foes cannot do a damn thing...." Save that quote. It will make a great epitaph.
That may have been true when Ahmadinejad was ravaging the US Embassy in 1979, but Carter isn't calling the shots anymore.
#8
Perhaps Bush should send Jimmah to Tehran as a goodwill ambassador to defuse tensions. Sure would be a shame if he couldn't apply the Carter touch before the bombs start falling.
#10
Truer words were only spoken once in recent history, by Baghdad Bob.
Posted by: Captain America ||
02/05/2006 18:57 Comments ||
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#11
I think this moke truly believes he is the Mahdi. Perhaps the West cannot destroy all the Iranian nuclear sites from the air, but I do believe we could "decapitate" (a truly Islamic solution) the Iranian government. It would be interesting to see how the Iranian people would react if they awoke one morning and the theocracy had been vaporized during the night.
#12
The GWOT > the real battlefield is about America and whether America lives or dies, rules or is slave under OWG, as fought battle for OWG is fought in Washington amongst the NPE. RADICAL ISLAM IS JUST A BLOODY, PC "DIVERSION" AGS THE SURVIVAL AND DESTRUCTION OF DEMOCRATIC, FEDERALIST, REPUBLICAN, LIBERTARIAN, PLURALIST, ETC. FREE AMERICA AS WE KNOW IT. THIS IS WHY AMERS MUST NOT BE AFRAID OF EITHER EMPIRE OR NUCLEAR WAR OR UNILATERAL ACTION, BECUZ OUR ENEMIES WANT TO KILL US ONCE AND FOREVER, AND IN ALL LIKELIHOOD WILL SUBORN, REPRESS, AND EXTERMINATE US ANYWAYS NO MATTER HOW MANY CONCESSIONS WE MAKE TO THEM IN THE NAME OF PEACE.
Furious crowds of Lebanese demonstrating against the Prophet Mohammad cartoons on Sunday stormed and set alight the building housing the Danish consulate in Beirut, in clashes that left dozens wounded.
In a vivid repeat of riots in Syria the day earlier that burned the representations of Denmark and Norway, protesters set the building ablaze despite the presence of security forces, sending thick smoke billowing into the sky.
Demonstrators were seen using ladders to enter the building while others hacked at its walls and windows with axes and polls. Some protesters seized fire engines and sprayed their water hoses, leaving the streets soaked.
Anti-riot police with shields, gas masks and helmets took to the streets in a bid to quell the protests. The red and white flag of Denmark was set alight.
The Lebanese press said that Danish diplomats had evacuated the premises Saturday night after the protest in neighbouring Syria, which reflected growing anger across the Islamic world over the cartoons.
The Danish government called on its nationals to leave Lebanon, saying they "should remain indoors until the travel possibilities have been clarified."
Twenty-eight people were wounded in the clashes, some were treated for inhaling teargas and others had sustained fractures, a civil defence medic said.
An AFP journalist on the scene estimated that several thousand people were among the angry crowds, many of whom turned out in response to a call by a group called the "National Movement for the Defence of the Prophet Mohammad."
The protesters also attacked property and shops in the Beirut Christian area of Ashrafiyeh, throwing stones, breaking windows and overturning cars, an AFP journalist said.
There were chaotic scenes as hundreds as protesters marched through the area, knocking down barricades. Stones were thrown at a church as Islamic leaders were seen appealing for calm.
Earlier, police had fired tear gas to prevent protesters from advancing more than 200 metres from the consulate building and holding their demonstration. The good news continues. Let's hope they get emboldened enough to try this in C'hagen, Paris or Berlin.
So, it's a protest against violent cartoons? Or a cartoon protest against violence? Or a violent protest against cartoons? Or...?
/I just love English! No, really. What other language can give you so much ambiguity (intentional or otherwise). It's the perfect language for diplomacy.
#3
Over the years, there have been many examples of art, forms of speech that are deeply offensive to Christians. I haven't seen Christian youth start riots & torch buildings over it. These acts are not spontaneous but organized and use by jihad groups to foment trouble & further their cause. However, to their credit, I need see some Muslim clerics out in front of the crowd in the Christian neighborhood trying to stop them, pushing them back and in one case, it dragging a young man back (it looked like by his ear.)
#6
The sudden appearance of danish flags in Gaza, Lebanon,...'s backalleys for theses retards to burn/abuse is an another telltale sign of the planning behind theses "spontaneous" Peaceful-Protests-by-Pious-Muslim-Masses(tm), don't you think?
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday ordered Irans nuclear organisation to end snap UN checks from Sunday in reaction to the UN nuclear watchdogs decision to report Iran to the UN Security Council. Because of the resolution of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) which reports Iran to the Security Council, the organisation should stop voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol and other cooperation from Sunday, Ahmadinejad said in a letter to the head of Irans Atomic Energy Organisation.
He said that the IAEAs decision to refer Irans case to the Security Council ignored Irans right to process uranium for peaceful means guaranteed under the NPT.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
I look forward to the morning that I wake up, get a cup of coffee, log into rantburg and read this man is dead.
#2
Not one valiant Iranian to resolve Ahmadinejad. The German officer who placed that brief case bomb under the stone table at a Hitler conference had no idea it would be kicked over accidently then placed behind a further stone support, he should have stayed with his device! He gave his life in that failed attempt (by execution)! As events become more critical, Ahmadinejad will be forced into seclusion in fear of his life for national security reasons!
#3
Ahmadinejad is just the mouthpiece. The real enemies are the MMs. They are the ones that need to be taken out as they are the real power base in Iran.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/05/2006 22:27 Comments ||
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The UN nuclear lapwatchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, passed Saturday a resolution reporting Iran to the UN Security Council for its NUCLEAR PROGRAM. The move sets the stage for future action by the world body that could include political and economic sanctions. However, any such move is weeks away, with two permanent UN members, Russia and China, agreeing to referring Irans NUCLEAR DOSSIER only on condition that no council action be taken until March.
The draft resolution included a clause saying that "Recognizing that a solution to the Iranian issue would contribute to global non-proliferation efforts and to realizing the objective of a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction, including their means of delivery." It described Irans case as a "special verification case."
The 2 œ page draft urged Iran to build confidence and resolve international standoff over its nuclear program, which the U.S., backed by Israel and the European Union, claims to be used as a covert to hidden plans to produce nuclear weapons. The draft resolution, submitted by the EU3, is supported by five permanent members of the Security Council -- Russia, China, Britain, France and the United States. But to have the resolution approved by Russia and China, it was amended to include delaying any action by the Security Council against the Islamic Republic until IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei submits a report on Iran's nuclear activities to the board in March.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/05/2006 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.
More than 170 Taliban and other Islamist fighters have surrendered as part of a government amnesty scheme, vowing to lay down arms and work to rebuild war-ravaged Afghanistan, officials said.
Taliban rebels fleeing a major battle that left 25 dead in insurgency-hit southern Afghanistan killed a district chief and two policemen, officials said. Elsewhere, two people were killed and three wounded in a bomb blast in a bazaar in the southern city of Kandahar, while a Taliban commander was killed in a clash late Friday with police on the border with Pakistan, police said.
A man considered a mastermind of the USS Cole bombing that killed 17 sailors in a Yemeni port in 2000 was among 23 people who escaped from a Yemen prison last week, Interpol said Sunday. The international police agency issued an ''urgent global security alert'' for those who escaped Friday from the prison via a tunnel. It called the escapees ''dangerous individuals.''
Thirteen Al Qaeda militants convicted in the attacks in Yemen on the U.S. Navy destroyer Cole and the French supertanker Limburg were among 23 men who broke out of jail in Sana, the capital, a state-run website said.
Twenty-three Al-Qaeda prisoners escaped from the central prison of the intelligence Friday, government sources said. The September Net website, which belonged to the defense ministry, quoted the sources as saying the inmates escaped on Friday night. They did not elaborate. The prison is located in Heddah in central Sanaa. The sources said the security authorities were investigating the escape.
The jury at the Criminal Court of the Old Bailey, in central London, trying the self-styled Islamic cleric 
QUETTA: Suspected militant tribesmen blew up a gas well and gas pipeline in Loti gas plant and fired some 200 rockets at paramilitary forces in 
WANA: Three paramilitary soldiers were killed and one injured on Saturday when suspected militants detonated an explosive device in 
MULTAN: One person was killed and 32 injured when the Lahore-bound Karakoram Expr-ess derailed between Klanchwala and Samsatta near Bahawalpur at around 3:15 am on Saturday. Eleven coaches of the train derailed. Of the 32 passengers admitted to Bahawal Victoria Hospital, 15 were discharged and one was stated to be in critical condition. Passengers said they heard a big bang before the derailment in which four coaches overturned, according to railway officials. Hundreds of passengers escaped by breaking windows, they said.
Iraqi authorities issued arrest warrants for a Sunni Arab member of parliament and his son, accusing them of embezzling millions of dollars meant to protect vulnerable oil pipelines, the head of a government watchdog agency said Sunday.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2006 A combined U.S. and Iraqi patrol killed four insurgents yesterday, and in separate incidents Feb. 2, a U.S. team seized a weapons cache west of Fallujah and Multinational Division Baghdad forces detained three suspected terrorists, Multinational Force Iraq officials reported today.
Three people died in Gaza when Israeli armed forces launched a helicopter attack on a building used by the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. Five others were wounded in the attack on Gaza City early on Sunday. Those killed were reported to have been trying to 
Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine, pledged on Friday to increase missile attacks on southern Israeli cities. Brigades' Spokesperson in Gaza Strip Abu Hamzah said that the brigades will continue resisting the Israeli occupation, calling for combining the efforts of all Palestinian factions to confront the continuous Israeli aggressions against Palestinians in Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He told reporters that future missile launches will cover all Palestinian lands occupied in 1948, noting that the brigades were improving their missiles' range to reach all Israeli settlements built on the 1948 lands. Three Israelis were wounded earlier today in a shelling that targeted the town of Karmei in southern Israel, while Al-Quds Brigades announced responsibility for the operation. The brigades said that the missile strike was in response for the continuous Israeli aggression against the Palestinians, which include arresting Islamic Jihad leaders and assassinating leaders of Al-Quds Brigades and the Palestinian resistance.
A DEFIANT Iran today ended snap UN checks of its nuclear sites and said it was resuming uranium enrichment, a day after being reported to the Security Council over suspicions it is building nuclear weapons.
President 
The UN nuclear 
