AUSTRALIAN special forces troops in Afghanistan have been involved in the heaviest fighting since the Vietnam War, with one battle claiming the lives of 150 Taliban and al-Qa'ida fighters.
According to a report in News Limited newspapers today, six Australian soldiers were wounded in the biggest firefight, which lasted nine days in July.
Eleven Australian soldiers have been wounded in Afghanistan during the year-long special forces campaign, several seriously.
The latest battles were part of Operation Perth, which involves search-and-destroy missions in the Chora district, about 40km northwest of the Australian base in Oruzgan province.
More than 100 Diggers from the Special Forces Task Group are believed to have used superior weapons and overwhelming airborne fire support from three US Air Force AC-130 Hercules Spectre gunships during the biggest battle. Australian long-range patrol vehicles used Javelin anti-armour missiles and heavy-calibre machine guns.
The task group includes a commando platoon of 50 men from the Sydney-based 4RAR and 40 SAS soldiers from the unit's No3 squadron.
A Defence Department official last night confirmed 11 members had been injured since September last year. The report said one SAS specialist was shot in the abdomen, a commando had part of his jaw blown off and another was shot in the buttocks.
In one battle, six commandos were wounded by an enemy rocket-propelled grenade, including the company sergeant major, who sustained leg injuries.
"Further details of the special forces task group will be revealed when they return home later this month," the spokeswoman told The Australian.
Several Diggers will be awarded gallantry medals for their actions during the campaign.
#4
Here I've been congratulating the Brits and Canucks on the wonderful job they are doing slaughtering the jihadi nutcases. And, out of sight over the hill, the good ol' Aussies are wiping the deck clean too. There sure are a lot of these useless devils that won't be breeding a new generation. When one of the gunships appears and starts raining hell from the sky it sure brightens your outlook....or ruins your whole friggin' day. Just depends.
#7
All of us have to admit it ... well, okay, some of us ... that NATO, the Canadians, and the Aussies are doing better than expected. Remember all those who said the Western Europeans had gone soft? True, most have but there are still men among the mice, and we're witnessing their exploits almost daily now.
MSM will soon talk of rising death tolls in Afghanistan, but as always, the media will neglect to mention that the Talibunnies make up 90% to 95% of that death toll!
#1
Spray the fields with Round-Up or the equivalent. It kills all green and growing things via absorbtion in to the plant, but breaks down within days to harmless compounds, leaving no residue to poison the ground or the people. The fields can be replanted as soon as the dead plants are removed and stacked on a compost heap, giving work for the erstwhile harvesters. Do this several times during the growing season, and some of the farmers will plant things that will be permitted to live to be harvested. (The Kandahar region apparently used to be famous for their almonds, persimmons and figs, f'r instance).
#3
Works until all the people in the region are thoroughly pissed off at us because we sprayed their meal tickets. Then they learn to shoot down the planes and copters with the Roundup. It goes from bad to worse after that.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/12/2006 16:50 Comments ||
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#4
The problem is not the Afghans growing it, it is the Euros and Americans buying it. We should be doing more to attack the demand side or leave the supply side alone.
#7
The solution to the opium problem in Afghanistan is to produce dirt cheap synthetic heroin, using our excess refinery capacity. That will destroy the industry. Alimentary, my dear Watson. Heh.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/12/2006 17:04 Comments ||
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#8
I...ummmmmm...hear that Mo was a junkie.
It's right there in the Koran! No, right there! See it! No? Well, keep looking cuz it's in there, I'm tellin ya...
#12
tu - napalm isn't EXACTLY a herbicide, but using it on an opium field will guarantee that field won't produce another gram of heroine until some time in the future. Rinse and repeat is a necessity. There are a couple of chemicals that will render the ground sterile for generations.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/12/2006 20:55 Comments ||
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#13
Nimble's got a real good point. The demand for the drugs is the problem. But what's the solution? Singapore, I think, offers one - capital punishment - but I don't imagine that would be found acceptable. Treatment/therapy helps some, but not a lot of others. I kind of like the idea of cutting out all the middle men, having the gov't buy direct from the farmers at farmer price, then giving it away free to anybody who wants it - attrition should reduce demand before long (being a humane sort of person I'd also offer treatment right next door, for those so motivated.)
#14
My main complaint with legalization of illegal drugs is two-fold: idiots giving drugs to children, and bleeding hearts expecting me to pay to support addicts because they're "disabled." Stupid is not disabled - it's just stupid.
I wonder if it has occurred to the US government that it might be cheaper in the long run to buy the heroin from places like this at market prices and just destroy it. I guess they could also give it to drug addicts - I haven't really thought about it - but I don't want to also have to pay for the addicts' medical care, living expenses, etc. I would agree to ONE round of treatment to get them off drugs, then they can suck it up and live in their self-imposed gutter. And no hand-slapping if they're caught committing crimes just because they're addicts. Things are tough all over.
Everybody's got problems. We CHOOSE how we deal with them. And we don't do people any favors by holding their hands, telling them nothing is their fault, and enabling them to remain irresponsible and a blight on the community.
And if anyone is caught giving heroin, cocaine, etc., to children, shoot them on the spot.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/12/2006 22:15 Comments ||
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#15
Barbara,
I said give them the drugs free; I didn't say anything about food or medical care or other support. Just drugs. They'll either die or decide to clean up. I'd offer some help if they make that choice.
I concur completely on summary execution of those addicting the kids.
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Afghan security forces supported by NATO on Monday regained control of a remote southern town after six-day occupation by Taleban militants, police said.
NATO warplanes launched airstrikes in the fighting in Garmser, in volatile Helmand province, that left 20 Taleban fighters dead or wounded, provincial police chief Ghulam Nabi Malakhel said. Only four militant bodies were retrieved as a big group of Taleban took their other dead and wounded away, he said. There were no injuries among the security forces.
Taleban had seized the district headquarters on Sept. 6 after an attack that forced police to flee for the second time in two months.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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In an operation launched by Afghan coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan, a known al-Qaeda facilitator and six other suspected al-Qaeda associates were detained, coalition forces said. The commander of the Hizb-i-Islami militia in Hafezan in the eastern province of Nangarhar, Gulbuddin Hikmatyar, was arrested after credible intelligence led Afghan and coalition forces to his compound, the statement said. No shots were fired and there were no injuries reported.
Hikmatyar, the former prime minister of Afghanistan, announced jihad or holy war against what he called the US invasion of Afghanistan four and half years ago and the joint opposition of the Afghan government by Taliban and al-Qaeda in the fight against coalition forces.
Hek, formerly, the Most Evil Man in the World, is much better off out of circulation. I hope the Afghans hang him, though I suspect they won't.
#2
Awwwwww, that's just too bad, really... that means there's a least one famous french Moderate Muslim convert (who led the "resistance" to the "banning of the veil") who has lost his 20 years pal... No shots fired, huh? That's very strange, unsettling even, I thought he was very, very, very brave... seeing how he dared to face all odds to courageously throw acid on the face and thighs of uppity wimmen he and his ilk judged not modest enough, back in the days. I'm so disappointed.
#5
Remeber when leftists in order to smear the post 9/11 Afghan government told us of pre-taliban Afgahan governement bombing KAbul ? In fact it was Hekmatyar. Once Massood defeated him then teh Pakistanis brought Mullah Omar. Hekmatyar's troops rallied Omar and Hekmatyar became a side note until libertaion of Kabul after 9/11.
BTW, he never did that much against the Soviets, he was busier implementing Arab law in Aghanistan and ambushing Massood's men to do much against the Soviets.
#6
Also one day I had teh surprise to read a post of him in a Pashtoon forum. His english was very poor. The memebers of the forum who were nationalist and pro-Westen (yes, they are few of them) reacted as if the forum had been visited by a snake.
And I wouldn't give an old franc for my spelling - or grammer....
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/12/2006 6:04 Comments ||
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#8
StrategyPage September 11, 2006: Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the primary Islamic terrorist leader in Afghanistan before the Taliban and al Qaeda showed up, was captured just across the border from his Pakistani hideout. Someone gave him up, as Afghan and U.S. forces surrounded the rural compound where he was staying, and captured Hekmatyar and half a dozen followers without firing a shot. Operating from his base in Pakistan, Hekmatyar's terrorists were responsible for much of the violence in eastern Afghanistan. Hekmatyar never got along well with the Taliban, and has been in exile in Pakistan for over a decade.
Other than this, and it may be from the same Deutsche Presse source, I am not seeing any other confirmations. WaPo has this: The U.S. military also said American and Afghan soldiers arrested eight suspected terrorists belonging to the radical Hezb-e-Islami group of Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and the al-Qaida network of Osama bin Laden.
...
U.S. and Afghan soldiers also arrested two men suspected of being midlevel commanders of the Hezb-e-Islami militant group in the Khost province area of Gorcak, the coalition said in a statement.
One of the men was a suspected bomb-making expert who was allegedly linked to attacks in the Shembawot Bazaar village in Gurbuz district, a May bombing of an Afghan army checkpoint in Khulbesat and the July murder of an Afghan army lieutenant colonel.
Seven militants, including a commander of the Hezb-e-Islami group, were arrested Monday in eastern Nangarhar province, the U.S. military said. No details were available on their identities.
Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 8:11 Comments ||
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#11
I submitted the above article before last night's post by Frank G.
Both have as their ultimate source the Monsters and Critics article above. Hence this should not be considered confirmation of Frank G's post of last night.
#12
48 Hour Rule then, Biff Wellington. Darn it! I was trying to decide between the silver coloratura ululator and the brass contralto one. Still, they both need oiling before use, and now I have a little time while we await confirmation of events.
#14
Not a good period for Iran's strategists: First Hizb'Shaitan squanders all those missiles and now their Afghan asset captured. Time to forgo confrontation temporary and hoodwink the Europeans into a deal!!!
Remember the Hez releasing a cropped photo of an Australian torpedo test and claiming it was their strike on an Israeli ship? The Iranians went one better:
(09-10) 04:00 PDT Washington -- U.S. military intelligence has determined that a video released by the Iranian government purporting to show a test of a new submarine missile is bogus, three Pentagon officials confirmed.
The Iranians released the video Aug. 27, one of a series of steps the Tehran government has taken in recent months to display its military potency in the midst of a confrontation with the United States and other Western nations over its nuclear ambitions.
The test apparently was designed to intimidate Iran's neighbors in the Persian Gulf, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which are U.S. allies and important oil-producing countries, regional experts said. The video showed what appeared to be a successful test of a submarine-fired missile that flies above the water's surface to attack ships.
But U.S. intelligence officers analyzed the plume of smoke from the missile and determined it matched a video of an earlier Chinese test.
"It's the identical launch," a Pentagon official said. "The plume, everything, is the same."
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/12/2006 07:49 ||
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#1
"The plume, everything, is the same."
Such buffoonery!
My guess is this is for home consumption. Our powerful submarine missile forces will destroy the impotent agents of the Great Satan. Or cause them to sprain a gut laughing.
#2
Iran needs to be informed that each one of these false advertising campaigns merely adds another mullah's home address and an additional 100,000 tons of bombs to our laundry list.
#3
Gawd.. at least the Pakistanis buy the Chinese missiles, paint 'em green, name them after some Afghan conqueror and launch the things.
Iranians just copy the video ?
So pathetic...
Posted by: john ||
09/12/2006 16:22 Comments ||
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#4
Well,heck, If the Iranians keep setting up fake but accurate uranium enrichment facilities and missile infrastructure, and we blast them to dust, we just have to tell them that we took their word on their public pronouncements. We was fooled, sorry about that.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/12/2006 17:01 Comments ||
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Yemen dispatched troops yesterday to force the release of four French tourists kidnapped by armed tribesmen on Sunday, a Yemeni official said. "At least 12 military vehicles are on their way to arrest the kidnappers and to free the four tourists," said Naser Al-Khudur, deputy governor of the southeastern province of Shabwa. However, Khudur said negotiations to secure their release were still on track. "We can say there is a new development in the negotiations with the captors, they are young Yemeni men and they will listen to elders and the sheikhs (leaders) of their tribe."
Armed Yemeni tribesmen kidnapped the tourists in the east of the Arab country on Sunday to press for their relatives to be released from jail, Yemeni and French officials said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
The yutes weren't asking for enough $, so the elders are upping the ante, so everyone, including the stupid French 'tourists', are going to make out!
(Nothing scarier than 12 Toyota military pickup trucks with driven elders driving, dust flying, for the jizyah bucks!)
LONDON - British police said on Monday they had charged two men held in a major swoop last week, one of whom was accused of undergoing terrorism training at a camp in southern England. Detectives said Nigel SmithYassin Mutegombwa, 22, had been charged with three counts of receiving training for terrorism at a caravan and camp site in Hampshire and at a farm in Berkshire, west of London, during April and June.
British police said in February they suspected there were terrorism training camps in the country but this is the first time they had provided any details.
Not surprising. There's a lot of quiet, empty places in the countryside, and plenty of folks contributing to the Widows Ammunition Fund.
The charge stated Mutegombwa had received weapons training that he knew or believed that the instruction or training was being provided there wholly or partly for purposes connected with the commission or preparation of acts of terrorism.
Mutegombwa was one of 14 men arrested when officers carried out raids in south London last week. Another of the arrested men was also charged on Monday with procuring funds for terrorism while 10 others are still in custody. Both charged men will appear at Londons Westminster Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
The raid came just three weeks after British police said they had thwarted a suspected plot to bring down U.S.-bound airliners over the Atlantic. However, police said the arrests were not linked to that suspected plot.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
The raid came just three weeks after British police said they had thwarted a suspected plot to bring down U.S.-bound airliners over the Atlantic. However, police said the arrests were not linked to that suspected plot.
Good. That means they're picking up people linked to other plots, too.
The following is a link to Little Green Football's post of the 9/11 video captured by a Seattle couple staying at the hotel across Church Street from the World Trade Center. It was used in the Moussaoui trial and somehow ended up on YouTube.
Posted by: DanNY ||
09/12/2006 08:10 ||
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#1
Wow. This is graphic indeed - you can see where the jumpers hit the ground - *not* a pretty sight. Should be shown on TV - required viewing. Sometimes we need reminders of how horrible it was.
(I'm sure the LLL will see Karl Rove and Cheeney throwing people out the windows)
#4
Each time I see this I feel complete horror. Then I feel pure RAGE against those who did and would do this again. I can't help but wonder what I would have done in there situation. Jump, pray for rescue, or attempt to make it out through the inferno.
Posted by: Charles ||
09/12/2006 22:59 Comments ||
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WASHINGTON - Government attorneys said Monday that US courts have no authority to stop the military from transferring an American citizen to an Iraqi court to face charges he supported terrorists and insurgents. The case is the latest legal challenge to the Bush administrations authority to keep terrorism cases, even those involving US citizens, out of American courts.
Shawqi Omar, a citizen of both Jordan and the United States who once served in the Minnesota National Guard, was captured in Iraq in 2004. He is being held at Camp Bucca, a prison in southern Iraq, where his family says he has not been charged or allowed to speak with a lawyer.
So exactly which uniform was he wearing when he was captured?
His family is demanding that Omar be brought before a US court, where prosecutors would have to show probable cause for detaining him and he could consult with an attorney. The military, which says Omar was harboring insurgents and had bomb-making materials at the time of his arrest, wants to transfer him to an Iraqi court. A judge blocked that transfer in February.
On appeal Monday before the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, government attorneys said American courts dont have jurisdiction because Omar is being held by a multinational force, not the US military. Defense attorneys say that is a legal gimmick.
And it's a damned good gimmick.
A three-judge panel also expressed skepticism, saying the governments theory might allow the military to arrest someone inside the United States and hold him without due process _ all under the guise of a multinational force.
No, because we wouldn't allow a MNF inside the States.
Deputy Solicitor General Gregory Garre said that wouldnt happen but the judges noted that it could. The judges also seemed wary of saying courts had no jurisdiction over a US citizen being held by his countrys military.
Lets assume he was in Iraq seeking a job, Judge David S. Tatel said. How can it be that the District Court lacks the ability to prohibit his transfer to Iraq?
Because he's in Iraq, a sovereign nations with a legal and judicial system, which is capable of judging the guilt or innocence of a man accused of a crime. The supposition that he can only be tried by Americans is an insult to the Iraqis.
Judge Harry T. Edwards was even more pointed, saying the government was ignoring the Supreme Courts 2004 ruling that an American in Afghanistan could challenge his detention in US courts.
Omar is described in court papers as a relative of former Iraq Al Qaida leader Abu Musab Al Zarqawi. Authorities say Omar also plotted to kidnap foreigners from Baghdad hotels.
Moral of the story: don't take prisoners. Is that what the Court of Appeals wants?
Attorneys for Omars family say he is innocent and likely to be tortured if handed over to the Iraqi government. They say he is a businessman who was seeking reconstruction contracts in Iraq.
Despite their skepticism for the governments argument, the three judges suggested Omars familys attorney, Aziz Huq, might be reading too much into the law. Even if the court sided with Omar, the judges said the military might only be required to release him, not to transfer him to a US court. That wouldnt prevent him from being arrested and charged by Iraqis.
"Here you go, Achmed, he's all yours now!"
"Thank you Tyrone. Would you like the cuffs back?"
Separately, Omar was indicted in Jordan with Zarqawi and 11 others on charges they plotted a chemical attack against Jordans intelligence agency.
Such a good lad.
The court did not rule Monday. Rulings typically take months.
During which Omar sits in a military prison in Iraq. Heh.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Omar was indicted in Jordan with Zarqawi and 11 others
And we all know what 'business' Zarqawi was in in.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/12/2006 6:01 Comments ||
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#2
Having the name 'Omar' seems to be a capital offense in much of Iraq.
#4
The judges also seemed wary of saying courts had no jurisdiction over a US citizen being held by his countrys military.
What the asinine judges are twisting in to a pretzel is that there is now one international law - US law, which extends beyond its borders into other "former" sovereign nations. Something along the lines that 'a Roman citizen is entitled to Roman law, no matter where he is'. Now talk about imperialism, there you go boys and girls. The hand wringing lefty crowd all concerned about evil America brings you all the trapping of Imperial Power. I guess just being the new aristocracy of America is not enough for our jurists. Now they covet power over the world. Power!!!
#5
Why is this even being debated in U.S. Courts? The Multi-national force should just hand him over to the Iraqis (The crime was comitted on Iraqi soil - where he is being held) and tell this panel to go f-k itself.
You are right - These self-appointed Lords of the Realm want imperial power too...
Posted by: bk ||
09/12/2006 12:21 Comments ||
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#7
If we let him go, it would be ironic. Uncle Sam would be protecting terrorists from being arrested and prosecuted by the countries in which they carried out terrorist strike. Sort of like what the Taliban did for al Qaeda all through the 90's and through 9/11.
#8
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the taking up of arms against the US and fighting with a foreign power against the US an automatic renunciation of US citizenship?
A US-based human rights group says the Indian army has admitted to killing militants as a matter of policy. The Human Rights Watch report on the situation in Indian-administered Kashmir also criticises the militants and Pakistan for abetting violence.
The report says the situation in Kashmir has improved over the past two years, but it is still severe. Since 1989 when militancy began in Kashmir, the report says more than 50,000 people have been killed.
Releasing the 156-page report, Everyone Lives in Fear, the Asia Director of Human Rights Watch, Brad Adams, said extrajudicial executions by Indian security forces were common. "Police and army officials have told Human Rights Watch that security forces often execute alleged militants instead of bringing them to trial in the belief that keeping hardcore militants in detention is a security risk," he said. "Most of those summarily executed are falsely reported to have died during armed clashes between the army and the militants," he added.
Four family members were found guilty Tuesday in the first verdict in the prosecution of India's deadliest terror attack, a string of bombings that killed 257 people in Mumbai in 1993.
Brothers Yaqoub, Essa and Yusuf Memon were found guilty of all charges, including conspiracy to commit terrorist acts and waging a war against the country. They could receive the death penalty at sentencing, which was expected Wednesday. Rubeena Memon, the wife of another brother, Suliman, was found guilty of abetting the attack. Three other members of the Indian Muslim family were acquitted.
The powerful bombs detonated over two hours on the afternoon of March 12, 1993, ripping through the country's financial heart, and targeting the Bombay Stock Exchange, Air India offices, hotels and a movie theater, among other locations in India's commercial and entertainment capital. The blasts appeared to be revenge for the demolition of a 16th century mosque in northern India by Hindu nationalists. The mosque's demolition sparked religious riots in many parts of the country that left more than 800 people dead, mostly Muslims.
A total of 123 men and women have been accused of involvement in the bombings, allegedly orchestrated by a brother of the convicted men and an accomplice, both of whom are believed to have fled the country.
The Memon family ran a meat export business and also have real estate holdings. Yaqoub, an accountant, was one of the main financiers of the plot, police said.
The judge has said the verdicts would be handed out in groups, over as long as two months. The accused include gangsters, housewives and a Bollywood movie star. Judge Pramod Kode said the three family members acquitted Tuesday were not entirely innocent. "I have concluded that I will give them the benefit of the doubt. It is not a clean acquittal but it is short of being guilty," he said.
After the verdicts were read, Yaqoub Memon attacked the judge in a fiery outburst laced with expletives. "Innocent people have been made into terrorists," he shouted. He was the only family member held in prison since being arrested in 1994. The others were released on bail.
One of India's lengthiest trials, the prosecution began June 6, 1995, and hearings ended in January 2003 after 686 witnesses gave testimony that filled 13,000 pages. The delay in the judgment was largely over procedural matters.
Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 11:25 ||
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You've held them long enough. Jumped thru all the hoops. Now, put them thru the nearest garbage disposal.
QUETTA: Four towers of a main power transmission line in Bolan district were blown up on Monday, while another blast in Kharan damaged a post office building. Unidentified attackers blew up four power pylons in Abbgum locality, disrupting the supply of electricity to Quetta and several other parts of Balochistan.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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SRINAGAR: Indian soldiers shot and killed three suspected Islamist militants in two separate clashes in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) on Monday, while militants seriously wounded two soldiers and a political activist in another incident and the army seized a large cache of militant weapons, officials said. The army fatally shot two suspected militants who were planning to cross over to the Pakistani portion of Kashmir, said Col Hemant Juneja, an army spokesman. There was no independent confirmation of the army claim.
The soldiers cordoned off Malangam, a mountainous village 125 kilometres north of Srinagar, after suspected insurgents hid there, Juneja told The Associated Press. The two were killed in an exchange of gunfire and the army recovered their bodies in Malangam, he said. At dawn, paramilitary border guards ambushed and killed another suspected militant in Bandipore, area police chief Viplav Kumar said.Around the same time, militants shot and critically wounded an activist of the state's ruling pro-India party, the People's Democratic Party, in Hasanpora.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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Indian-occupied Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has offered a conditional ceasefire in the valley during the upcoming month of Ramazan. "From the government side I will be happy to respond to a ceasefire which should not be limited to the holy month of Ramazan only but can be also extended beyond that period in case militants shun violence," Azad said. India announced a unilateral ceasefire in 2000 on the eve of Ramazan but abandoned it after six months in the absence of similar overtures by rebel groups, including Hizbul Mujahedin.
Meanwhile, Srinagar-based news agency CNS quoted unidentified sources as saying that Indian security forces and Islamist separatist groups are expected to observe a ceasefire across Held Kashmir during the holy month of Ramazan. The sources said once India has announced a unilateral ceasefire, the United Jihad Council %u2013 a Pakistan-based organisation representing about 14 militant groups in Kashmir %u2013 would reciprocate the move, announcing its own truce.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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WANA: Police recovered a headless body in South Waziristan on Monday, a day after gunmen shot dead a pro-Afghan elder in the tribal area, security officials said. The body, mutilated beyond recognition, was found in Karwan Manza village, a security official said, requesting anonymity. Late Sunday, unknown gunmen sprayed bullets from a car, killing Malik Mohammad Ali, an elder of the Kakakhel Waziri clan in the region's main city of Wana, a local administration official said. The official, who did not want to be identified, said the slain man had relatives working in Afghanistan, owned a house across the border and maintained good relations with Afghan officials.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
09/12/2006 5:26 Comments ||
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#3
Still doesn't quite beat the NY Post classic:
HEADLESS BODY IN TOPLESS BAR
Posted by: Mike ||
09/12/2006 7:31 Comments ||
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#4
Headless body found in Waziristan
Later head line: Bodyless head found nearby.
Later still head line: Head and body do not match.
(idea from Kim du Toit)
Posted by: N guard ||
09/12/2006 8:20 Comments ||
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(KUNA) -- Two bombs exploded early Monday with a huge bang in two different Pakistani tribal districts, badly damaging five video and music shops, security officials said.
The first explosion took place near vegetable market in Bannu district and the second in Derra Adam Khel tribe, the officials told KUNA. They said the explosions badly damaged the shops and scattered audio and video disks and cassettes everywhere. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the explosions but officials suspected local Taliban militants that believe listening to music is against Islamic teachings.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 7:39 Comments ||
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"No group immediately claimed responsibility for the explosions but officials suspected local Taliban militants that believe listening to music is against Islamic teachings."
Of course. Anything that adds beauty, enjoyment, pleasure, inspiration or meaning to life must be destroyed. Allan demands it.
And the appeal of this gutter filth religion is what again?
There I was at six thousand feet over central Iraq, two hundred eighty knots and we're dropping faster than Paris Hilton's panties. It's a typical September evening in the Persian Gulf; hotter than a rectal thermometer and I'm sweating like a priest at a Cub Scout meeting..
But that's neither here nor there. The night is moonless over Baghdad tonight, and blacker than a Steven King novel. But it's 2004, folks, and I'm sporting the latest in night-combat technology. Namely, hand-me-down night vision goggles (NVGs) thrown out by the fighter boys. Additionally, my 1962 Lockheed C-130E Hercules is equipped with an obsolete, yet, semi-effective missile warning system (MWS). The MWS conveniently makes a nice soothing tone in your headset just before the missile explodes into your airplane. Who says you can't polish a turd? At any rate, the NVGs are illuminating Baghdad International Airport like the Las Vegas Strip during a Mike Tyson fight. These NVGs are the cat's ass. But I've digressed.
The preferred method of approach tonight is the random shallow. This tactical maneuver allows the pilot to ingress the landing zone in an unpredictable manner, thus exploiting the supposedly secured perimeter of the airfield in an attempt to avoid enemy surface-to-air-missiles and small arms fire. Personally, I wouldn't bet my pink ass on that theory but the approach is fun as hell and that's the real reason we fly it.
We get a visual on the runway at three miles out, drop down to one thousand feet above the ground, still maintaining two hundred eighty knots. Now the fun starts. It's pilot appreciation time as I descend the mighty Herk to six hundred feet and smoothly, yet very deliberately, yank into a sixty degree left bank, turning the aircraft ninety degrees offset from runway heading. As soon as we roll out of the turn, I reverse turn to the right a full two hundred seventy degrees in order to roll out aligned with the runway. Some aeronautical genius coined this maneuver the " Ninety/ Two-Seventy." Chopping the power during the turn, I pull back on the yoke just to the point my nether regions start to sag, bleeding off energy in order to configure the pig for landing.
"Flaps Fifty!, Landing Gear Down!, Before Landing Checklist!" I look over at the copilot and he's shaking like a cat shitting on a sheet of ice. Looking further back at the navigator, and even through the NVGs, I can clearly see the wet spot spreading around his crotch. Finally, I glance at my steely-eyed flight engineer. His eyebrows rise in unison as a grin forms on his face. I can tell he's thinking the same thing I am. "Where do we find such fine young men?" "Flaps One Hundred!" I bark at the shaking cat. Now it's all aimpoint and airspeed. Aviation 101, with the exception there's no lights, I'm on NVGs, it's Baghdad, and now tracers are starting to crisscross the black sky.
Naturally, and not at all surprisingly, I grease the Goodyear's on brick-one of runway 33 left, bring the throttles to ground idle and then force the props to full reverse pitch. Tonight, the sound of freedom is my four Hamilton Standard propellers chewing through the thick, putrid, Baghdad air. The huge, one hundred thirty thousand pound, lumbering whisper pig comes to a lurching stop in less than two thousand feet. Let's see a Viper do that! We exit the runway to a welcoming committee of government issued Army grunts. It's time to download their beans and bullets and letters from their sweethearts, look for war booty, and of course, urinate on Saddam's home.
Walking down the crew entry steps with my lowest-bidder, Beretta 92F, 9 millimeter strapped smartly to my side, I look around and thank God, not Allah, I'm an American and I'm on the winning team. Then I thank God I'm not in the Army.
Knowing once again I've cheated death, I ask myself, "What in the hell am I doing in this mess?" Is it Duty, Honor, and Country? You bet your ass. Or could it possibly be for the glory, the swag, and not to mention, chicks dig the Air Medal. There's probably some truth there too. But now is not the time to derive the complexities of the superior, cerebral properties of the human portion of the aviator-man-machine model. It is however, time to get out of this shit-hole . "Hey copilot clean yourself up! And how's 'bout the 'Before Starting Engines Checklist."
God, I love this job! And we love you for doing it Major!
#2
That's a great story! Thanks Besoeker, for finding it. This part made me chuckle, being a 1911-A1 man:
Walking down the crew entry steps with my lowest-bidder, Beretta 92F, 9 millimeter strapped smartly to my side, I look around and thank God, not Allah, I'm an American and I'm on the winning team. Then I thank God I'm not in the Army.
LOL!
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/12/2006 13:32 Comments ||
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#3
I just love it when somebody likes their work, :)
#5
For all who are interested, the airforce equivalent to Bill Mauldin's WWII comic "Willie & Joe", was Bob Stevens' "There I Was..."(flat on my back). Except Stevens stayed in the comic game beyond WWII, into Korea and Vietnam.
His two collections, "There I was..." and "More there I was...", not only contain his comics, but also aircraft spotter profiles and war songs from the period.
Definitely a must have for air force fans. This C-130 pilot story sounds a LOT like many of the stories from 'the good old days'.
#6
But now is not the time to derive the complexities of the superior, cerebral properties of the human portion of the aviator-man-machine model.
Oh yeah...this guy has GOT to be USAF.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
09/12/2006 14:33 Comments ||
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#7
Ditto #6, especially the extremely modest "Naturally, and not at all surprisingly, I grease the Goodyear's on brick-one of runway 33 left..." comment. but God love those guys that do this kind of thing for us (former) ground pounders. And they get paid for that!
This reminds me very little of being at Moffett Field's 50th anniversary air show. As one of the biggest sub-chasing bases on the Pacific west coast, they sent up a P-3 Orion to perform aerobatic maneuvers. Kind of like watching a rhino go through some disco moves.
#10
Gotta love 130 drivers. Of all the AF jockeys these guys are great. Wonderful tale.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 15:24 Comments ||
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#11
Gotta love 130 drivers. Of all the AF jockeys these guys are great.
Yeah. I get to see them showing off every year at a nearby airshow hosted by the RIANG (143 Airlift Squadron at Quonset Point). They were the first to fly the C-130H and J models in combat ops, and they're damn proud to let us know it. I just love to watch those guys showing off for the home crowd.
#12
OK, folks, here is a "There I was" aviation story. Actually a flying magazine cartoon:
Picture this: DeHavilland Beaver on skis, flying through the snowy mountains in winter. Pilot up front, passenger in right seat, both in winter coats with fur ruffs on the hoods. Pilot sez to passenger:
And there I was, Captain on a 747 on a nonstop coast-to-coast flight. Plane on autopilot, feet up on the panel, stu in my lap, drink in my hand, and into the cockpit walks the regional director of the FAA.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/12/2006 16:35 Comments ||
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#15
I flew quite a few times in C-130s, when I was in Panama, in Vietnam, in England, and in the States. Combat take-offs were a gut-wrencher. Landed on San Andros Island (owned by Colombia, about 200 miles east of Costa Rica) once to drop off some parts for another C-130 that had made an emergency landing there. The runway is only 2800 feet, and runs uphill/downhill about 7 degrees. I don't think I ever saw the ground from the left window...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/12/2006 21:10 Comments ||
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#16
353rd took me out of Zambo Dec 2001, night combat take off. 200+kts at under 100 ft. Muzzie fireworks in the hills, it was a quiet a show.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 21:44 Comments ||
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#17
Jeez, I really needed this story today. And the comments, too. Really made my day. "Shaking like a cat...." Perfect!
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
09/12/2006 21:46 Comments ||
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#18
I look around and thank God, not Allah, I'm an American and I'm on the winning team. Then I thank God I'm not in the Army.
Don't know whether to pass that to my USAF ret. spouse or my Army colleagues LOL
(KUNA) -- Iraqi police found Monday bodies of four dead civilians South-East of Kirkuk. Iraqi police source told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that a police patrol found the four bodies in Tikrit-Touz road. The four civilians, he added, were driving their car when anonymous gunmen attacked them.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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"What we did was insane and monstrous, we covered entire towns in cluster bombs," the head of an IDF rocket unit in Lebanon said regarding the use of cluster bombs and phosphorous shells during the war.
Quoting his battalion commander, the rocket unit head stated that the IDF fired around 1,800 cluster bombs, containing over 1.2 million cluster bomblets.
In addition, soldiers in IDF artillery units testified that the army used phosphorous shells during the war, widely forbidden by international law. According to their claims, the vast majority of said explosive ordinance was fired in the final 10 days of the war.
The rocket unit commander stated that Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) platforms were heavily used in spite of the fact that they were known to be highly inaccurate.
MLRS is a track or tire carried mobile rocket launching platform, capable of firing a very high volume of mostly unguided munitions. The basic rocket fired by the platform is unguided and imprecise, with a range of about 32 kilometers. The rockets are designed to burst into sub-munitions at a planned altitude in order to blanket enemy army and personnel on the ground with smaller explosive rounds.
The use of such weaponry is controversial mainly due to its inaccuracy and ability to wreak great havoc against indeterminate targets over large areas of territory, with a margin of error of as much as 1,200 meters from the intended target to the area hit.
The cluster rounds which don't detonate on impact, believed by the United Nations to be around 40% of those fired by the IDF in Lebanon, remain on the ground as unexploded munitions, effectively littering the landscape with thousands of land mines which will continue to claim victims long after the war has ended.
Because of their high level of failure to detonate, it is believed that there are around 500,000 unexploded munitions on the ground in Lebanon. To date 12 Lebanese civilians have been killed by these mines since the end of the war.
According to the commander, in order to compensate for the inaccuracy of the rockets and the inability to strike individual targets precisely, units would "flood" the battlefield with munitions, accounting for the littered and explosive landscape of post-war Lebanon.
When his reserve duty came to a close, the commander in question sent a letter to Defense Minister Amir Peretz outlining the use of cluster munitions, a letter which has remained unanswered.
'Excessive injury and unnecessary suffering'
It has come to light that IDF soldiers fired phosphorous rounds in order to cause fires in Lebanon. An artillery commander has admitted to seeing trucks loaded with phosphorous rounds on their way to artillery crews in the north of Israel.
A direct hit from a phosphorous shell typically causes severe burns and a slow, painful death.
International law forbids the use of weapons that cause "excessive injury and unnecessary suffering", and many experts are of the opinion that phosphorous rounds fall directly in that category.
The International Red Cross has determined that international law forbids the use of phosphorous and other types of flammable rounds against personnel, both civilian and military.
IDF: No violation of international law
In response, the IDF Spokesman's Office stated that "International law does not include a sweeping prohibition of the use of cluster bombs. The convention on conventional weaponry does not declare a prohibition on [phosphorous weapons], rather, on principles regulating the use of such weapons.
"For understandable operational reasons, the IDF does not respond to [accounts of] details of weaponry in its possession.
"The IDF makes use only of methods and weaponry which are permissible under international law. Artillery fire in general, including MLRS fire, were used in response solely to firing on the state of Israel."
The Defense Minister's office said it had not received messages regarding cluster bomb fire.
#2
40% duds???? Seems *awfully* high; I could check at Global Security of FAS, but I'm way too lazy and will let military types comment here. Wouldnt bomblets duds be at 5% or so, perhaps 10-15% for earlier gen???
#3
I think this guy has lost his cookies. I wish they had done this. This would have been the proper approach. The next go around, and , there will be one, the only goal should be inflicting maximum damage and death as rapidly as possible. Just was reminded that Pappa Assad, some 20 years ago, killed 20,000 in a local revolt. Everything has been VERY quiet there since. This is the only way to get moonbats attention. They know it themselves. Just follow their lead.
#5
I call bullshit on this entire article. First, the MLRS is pretty darned accurate - within 20 meters of the target. Secondly, most cluster munitions are designed to explode in cascading waves anywhere from 30 seconds after impact to up to 24 hours later. This was to keep US forces from being injured by their own munitions. Thirdly, white phosphorous has NOT been outlawed by "international law", only by a non-government forum that has no enforcement capability and no authority. Someone needs to be quietly removed from his current position and reassigned to counting sand fleas in the Negev.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/12/2006 13:02 Comments ||
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#6
Army Field Manual 6-30: The dud rate for ICM or DPICM rounds is between 2 and 3 percent in ideal conditions. However, there are several important considerations which may increase the dud rate as follows: The ICM or DPICM should not be fired into forests; mountainous areas (slope greater than 60 percent); or rocky, uneven terrain. This type of terrain may increase the dud rate and reduce the effectiveness of the rounds. Also, the effectiveness of ICM and DPICM rounds may decrease if the target area is marshy or covered with deep snow or water.
Haaetz is quoting Arabist UN propaganda, including the lie phosphorous is banned, while making no mention that the muslims are storing and launching rockets from within houses and mosques. Any subsequent damage is the muslims fault and in direct violation Geneva conventions. Waiting for Belgian arrest warrants as I type.
Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 13:07 Comments ||
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#11
A couple of points: either they are not referring to the US's MLRS (which is quite accurate and not a track or tire carried mobile rocket launching platform) or else they are clueless (perhaps both). Also, 1.2 M bomblets from 1800 bombs? That's 666 per bomb - seems very high to me. Finally, what would be the point of a weapon system with a 40% failure rate? Might as well throw rocks. Of course, the source for that figure was the UN...
#12
WP is perfectly legal for use in the Geneva Conventions as smoke generation.
Unless there are recordings of it being requested specifically in an anti-personnel role ("request WP. enemy in the open."), then there is almost no way to prove that its intention was AP.
I might add that the US M16 rifle is prohibited for use as an anti-personnel weapon, as it is a high-velocity rifle, unlike the AK-47. Technically, a prohibited "killing", not a "wounding" weapon.
For this reason, officially, our soldiers do not fire at enemy soldiers with their M16s--they fire at the weapons and equipment the enemy are wearing and carrying, which is legal.
Lest you think it is hypocritical, such exceptions by different countries in the Geneva Conventions actually far outnumber the Conventions themselves. In fact, exception effectively negate the Conventions for several countries.
#13
An MLRS rocket carries up to 644 DPICM bomblets, though I think most US stocks are 518 bomblet A1 and A2 extended range models. MLRS comes in tracked (Bradley chassis) or wheeled (HiMARS) form. The 40% failure rate is Arab propaganda. The older bomblets had a 5% failure rate.
Oh, and I would have fired them into all Hezbie controlled towns with the admonishment that next time rockets are fired south, things are going to much worse.
Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 14:23 Comments ||
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#14
The "head of an IDF rocket unit" is either a pussy or an editorial convenience allowing the newspaper to make a point. Given the performance of the IDF and the Israeli government in the Lebanese affair, either is equally likely.
Good. Lesson learned. Start fighting on the same terms as your enemy. This isn't a tea party. Until all who fight Islam remember this one single axiom, we will get precisely nowhere while losing many unnecessary lives.
#16
Not only is Haaretz the lib paper of Israel, Meron Rappaport is one of their most liberal reporters. The article smells like BS from start to finish. Entire towns destroyed by cluster bombs? Nah. Looked pretty selective by all non-muzzie accounts. Too selective if you ask me.
An Israeli military court on Tuesday ordered the release of 18 Hamas lawmakers, including three Cabinet ministers. Also, a spokesman for the outgoing Hamas-led administration said the group is prepared to back peace efforts with Israel as part of the new coalition government being formed by the Palestinians.
The men ordered released will remain behind bars for at least two more days pending an appeal by prosecutors. The court is scheduled to issue a final ruling on Thursday.
The Israeli army arrested more than two dozen Hamas lawmakers since June after militants in Gaza linked to the group attacked a military post, capturing an Israeli soldier. The military court said the lawmakers should be freed on bail while their trials continue.
Posted by: ed ||
09/12/2006 08:25 ||
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#5
"They should begin executing one of these Hamas terrorists each day until they get their soldiers back."
Abductions for trade-bait followed with the threat of execution if demands arent met. It might just work. Then again it's a positively Terroristic approach.
#8
And the brass seems not to be too adverse to surrenderring, IE "too important to sacrifice themselves for the Cause"... and they send their loved ones away in private schools or similar safe havens, not into local suicide missions.
The IDF closed Iba checkpoint, at the entrance to Nablus, on Monday after a young Palestinian warned troops that he was in possession of an explosive device. When troops saw wires protruding from the Palestinian's bag, they called in Border Police bomb sappers to diffuse the device. The Palestinian said that he intended to transport the bomb outside the city.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
imagine! a Paleo unwilling to accept land for peace....
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/12/2006 1:03 Comments ||
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#2
That's two boomers in the last 24 or so hours.
Almost like the Paleos have no concept of peace.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/12/2006 7:31 Comments ||
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#3
This is very strange.
a young Palestinian warned troops that he was in possession of an explosive device
Obviously not a suicide bomber.
The Palestinian said that he intended to transport the bomb outside the city.
I guess that means he was stopped while leaving the city, not entering.
A car bomb exploded in the West Bank Palestinian village of Harres, near Ariel Monday night. A senior Aksa Martyrs Brigades operative confirmed that his group was attempting to carry out an attack in Israel. No one was wounded in the incident.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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A Palestinian youth was killed and his companion was wounded in an explosion in the Palestinian village of Na'ama near Ramallah. An IDF spokesperson said that the explosion occurred as the two were apparently handling an explosives belt, which belonged to one of the youth's father. The father was arrested by IDF troops Monday morning.
"Dad! Can I use your boom belt?"
"Sure, son! Here ya go!"
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#4
I don't know if I see a trend or not, but I understand Israel is trying to take out their top bombmakers, leaving the idiots. Have they taken out enough that it's starting to have the desired effect?
IAF aircraft struck a warehouse containing large stocks of weapons in the Gaza Strip overnight Monday. Palestinians said that the blast destroyed the home of a senior Hamas operative. No one was wounded in the attack, Army Radio reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Weapons Warehouse. Is that like Costco in the Arab world.
Israeli troops in southern Lebanon detained four men yesterday for questioning in what appeared to be the first arrests since a ceasefire ended the war with Hizbullah. An Israeli patrol south of the village of Aita as-Shaab, the scene of heavy clashes during the 34-day conflict, detained the men yesterday afternoon, the Israeli military said. It said the men were armed, though it was not clear if they were members of the Hizbullah militia.
"We still have security responsibility for that area," a spokeswoman said. "There was a patrol south of Aita as-Shaab that identified four armed men. They are being questioned in that location." The military said the men had been detained during a regular patrol.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
So how did Cease Fire do? I hope it had a healthy breakfast and a good nights sleep.
(AKI) - One of two top Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) members hiding in the southern Philippines province of Sulu, was reportedly killed by Filipino security forces, a spokesperson for the Muslim rebel groups in the south told Adnkronos International (AKI) on Monday. Eid Kabalu, spokesperson of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), said that their forces in the town of Jolo, some 590 miles south of Manila, have received information that one of two JI militants was killed in last week's offensive by the Philippine Army and Marines in the nearby town of Patikul. "We have dispatched troops there to look for the remains of the terrorist. It was last week. Although it was not just clear, we are helping the government in confirming it," Kabalu told AKI without naming the slain JI militant.
The MILF, which is currently in peace talks with Manila, has formed an Adhoc Joint Action Group with Manila, to run after terrorists and lawless elements in Southern Philippines. The two Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists are Umar Patek and Dulmatin. Patek is believed to have served as the assistant for the field coordinator of the Bali bombings that killed 202 people in 2002. Dulmatin, an electronics specialist with training in al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan, is a senior figure of JI.
Brig. Gen. Juancho Sabban, who is leading the pursuit operations against foreign terrorists and Abu Sayyaf bandits in Sulu, was quoted by the Philippine Star as saying that they are confirming the reports that Omar Patek died from the wounds he suffered.
Sabban said Patek was wounded when his men attacked a lair of Abu Sayyaf in the outskirts of Luba Hill in the village of Tugas, on September 4. The attack was part of a military wide offensive against Abu Sayyaf and JI, which started on July 31. The aim of the attack is to get Dulmatin, Patek and Abu Sayyaf leaders Khadaffy Janjalani, Isnilon Hapilon and Abu Sulaiman either dead or alive.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 13:01 ||
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#1
Budda-bomp-bomp-bomp, another one bites the dust. . . .
Posted by: Mike ||
09/12/2006 13:20 Comments ||
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#2
If I know Sabban he have no intention to capture anyone alive. KJ and IH are too smart to stay on Jolo with Sabban in charge, bet a steak dinner they are an Basilan with gov Akbar.
Eid Kabalu, MILF, takes his orders from the IOC and is a snake. He is lieing and could not tell the truth if he had to.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 16:15 Comments ||
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#3
have has, sorry
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 16:16 Comments ||
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#4
Locals say they killed him and KJ was there and is wounded.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 21:18 Comments ||
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heh heh
The Republic of Cyprus has stopped a ship full of North Korean weapons systems bound for Syria.
Officials said Greek Cypriot authorities responded to an alert by Interpol to capture a ship bound for Syria from North Korea. They said security agents found a mobile air defense system and components of a missile launcher.
"We will implement the law, nothing more and nothing less," Cypriot Justice Minister Sophocles Sophocleous said on Monday. "And the political position will be expressed by the foreign minister."
At this point, the Foreign Ministry has been examining the issue and maintaining contact with Damascus. This is the first time that the Republic of Cyprus was believed to have seized a suspected weapons ship to Syria.
The ship, named the Panamanian-flagged Grigorio-1, reported a consignment of weather-observation equipment, officials said. But Interpol asserted that the freighter contained North Korean weapons systems and asked Nicosia to detain the ship for inspection.
Officials did not identify the North Korean air defense system. But they reported 18 truck-mounted mobile radar systems and three command vehicles.
The ship did not contain any missiles, officials said. They said the vessel carried irrigation pipes as well as components that could be part of a missile launcher.
Officials said Damascus had asked Nicosia to release the seized shipment. They said the ship's manifest does not identify Syria as the consignee.
NATO, which administers a program to halt suspected weapons of mass destruction shipments, has denied participation in the Cypriot operation. NATO has sought partners in Operation Active Endeavor, designed to monitor the Mediterranean for Al Qaida as well as WMD suppliers.
On Monday, NATO hosted the seven-member Mediterranean Dialogue in London in an effort to increase military and security relations. NATO officials, in a conference co-sponsored by the Royal United Services Institute, urged Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia to cooperate with each other and the Western alliance in combating Al Qaida-aligned groups and their sponsors.
The Grigorio-1 was tracked by Interpol for several months, officials said. They said the ship was seized on Sept. 5 when it sailed near Larnaca for refueling.
Officials said Grigorio-1 left North Korea for the Middle East and stopped at several ports. They said the last leg of the journey began from Egypt's Port Said toward the Syrian port of Latakia.
hmmmmm - wonder how they knew the ship was loaded with toys for Assad (and Hezbs, I assume)?
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/12/2006 15:24 ||
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#1
It's not like North Korea is exporting luxury footwear these days.
Read "Deep Black" by William Burrows. NPIC (National Photo Interpretation Center) has specialists in what they call "crateology". It is a skill acquired by seasoned satellite photo-interpreters that allows them to make extremely educated guesses about what is inside of large packing crates. This served us well during the Cuban missile crisis and continues to be of use.
Why we aren't stopping and searching every single boat bigger than a canoe that leaves North Korean waters is beyond me.
#2
Officials said Damascus had asked Nicosia to release the seized shipment. They said the ship's manifest does not identify Syria as the consignee.
"It's not for us, honest."
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
09/12/2006 15:54 Comments ||
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#3
Why we aren't stopping and searching every single boat bigger than a canoe that leaves North Korean waters is beyond me.
Maybe we already know what is being shipped and which ones to nab? If we stop every one, they'll just look for alternative shipping methods. Just a guess.
#4
If we stop every one, they'll just look for alternative shipping methods.
Unfortunately, they're already doing this. Our good friend and ally RasPutin is allowing North Korean transshipments destined for the Middle East to refuel at Russian airstrips.
#6
Officials said Damascus had asked Nicosia to release the seized shipment. They said the ship's manifest does not identify Syria as the consignee.
Why, if they are not a consignee would they ask Nicosia anything?
#8
Believe it or not, North Korea does in fact engage in legitimate international trade. I got a brochure full of NK trading companies offering all sorts of goods at a trade show in China a while back.
#18
6 - I've done my share of both crateology and craterology. I prefer the latter, because it means we did something. I'm sure a lot of Israeli PIs were looking for craters in Hezbuttland, and wished there were more of them, and in the right places.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/12/2006 21:27 Comments ||
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I've done my share of both crateology and craterology.
THE US embassy in the Syrian capital came under attack today, an embassy guard said, as blasts and heavy gunfire were heard from the diplomatic quarter of Damascus. The guard, contacted by telephone, confirmed the mission was under attack. This is not the right time, he said, declining to answer questions.
The explosions in the Ain Remmeneh district of Damascus where the US and several other foreign missions are located sent black smoke into the air. The whole district was cordoned off by Syrian security forces, witnesses said.
The Associated Press reported that, according to witnesses, gunmen had blown up a car outside the US embassy and exchanged fire with Syrian guards.
#2
The whole district was cordoned off by Syrian security forces, witnesses said.
Before or after the attack started?
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
09/12/2006 5:20 Comments ||
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#3
Robert, Robert....
How cynical!
But, just so you know, the radio here just said the Syrians killed three attackers and wounded a fourth, and I think one of the security guards (Syrian?) were killed.
I know. Hard to believe....
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/12/2006 5:58 Comments ||
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#4
But, just so you know, the radio here just said the Syrians killed three attackers and wounded a fourth, and I think one of the security guards (Syrian?) were killed.
Once they go boom, they're no longer useful to Assad. Their deaths were a given.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/12/2006 7:33 Comments ||
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#9
Witnesses also said the gunmen tried to throw hand grenades into the embassy compound, shouting Allahu snackbar! or God ima hungry! It was not clear if any of the grenades made it over the walls, which are about 8 feet high.
#17
You're hungry, .com? It's been close to six months since I had anything on that list, and it's another three months until the next chance.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/12/2006 11:12 Comments ||
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#18
Oh, and I'll have some of those biscuits with butter and honey instead of gravy (Yankee style, that is), two eggs -- cooks choice, homefries, and a cup of tea, if you're serving up to all comers, .com. Yum! Thanks muchly! ;-)
#38
Or do we use it as a reason to sever diplomatic relations with a state sponsor of terrorism, evacutate all Ameircans via the Sixth Fleet and let pencilneck worry about what we do next?
A New York Police Department detective has broken his silence about the connection between Rabbi Meir Kahanes murderer and the terrorists who destroyed the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center.
Political activist Rabbi Meir Kahane was murdered by an Egyptian-born al-Qaeda terrorist after he delivered a speech at a Manhattan event in 1990 -- but because no one actually saw al-Sayed Nuseir pull the trigger, he was acquitted of the crime and was instead convicted on a lesser charge of possession of an illegal weapon. Three years later, Kahanes murderer helped lead the terror cell which attacked the World Trade Center in 1993.
Rabbi Meir Kahane was murdered by an Egyptian-born al-Qaeda terrorist ... three years later, Kahanes murderer helped lead the terror cell which attacked the World Trade Center in 1993.
At the time, the theory that Kahanes murder had been part of a terror conspiracy was discounted by federal investigators. But Detective John Molelli knew better, having been the first to find and examine the papers in Nuseir's rented house in Cliffside New Jersey .
Molleli found and closely examined boxes of notebooks and other papers written in Arabic, complete with diagrams that revealed the existence of a terrorist cell operating in the New Jersey New York area. The papers included plans to attack a number of targets in New York City, including the World Trade Center. Police found photos of the Twin Towers, the Empire State Building and the Washington Monument. They found manuals on how to make bombs. They also found written materials promoting terror attacks on American soil.
He broke his silence about the evidence he found and its link to the World Trade Center attacks this year, the fifth since the Twin Towers were completely destroyed in a terror attack that rocked the world.
According to a program broadcast on Israels Channel 2 TV, the evidence was ignored because Kahane was the victim in the case. Kahane was considered a troublemaker who promoted an unpopular view that Arabs who lived in Israeli territory should be encouraged to move out of the country.
The evidence was quickly removed to the offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and was largely ignored until the 1993 terror attack on the Twin Towers. Six people died and 100 were injured in the bombing. In the wake of the attack, the boxes that Molelli had discovered in Nuseir's rented house and which had been confiscated by the FBI were finally opened and closely examined, and the Arabic was translated.
Nuseir was later convicted as a co-conspirator of Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman for the 1993 bombing, as well as conspiracy to attack New York landmarks and assassinate U.S. politicians.
Nuseir was later convicted as a co-conspirator of Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman for the 1993 bombing, as well as conspiracy to attack New York landmarks and assassinate U.S. politicians.
Both men were sentenced to life in prison without parole, plus 15 years. It was only after that trial that Nuseir was also convicted of murdering Kahane as part of the seditious conspiracy.
Nuseir continued to manage the affairs of the al-Qaeda terror cell that continued to operate in the U.S. and on September 11, 2001 succeeded in completing the job it attempted in 1993 -- the destruction of the World Trade Center.
#1
According to a program broadcast on Israels Channel 2 TV, the evidence was ignored because Kahane was the victim in the case. Kahane was considered a troublemaker who promoted an unpopular view that Arabs who lived in Israeli territory should be encouraged to move out of the country.
As opposed to the huge warm welcome Jews get in all of the other Middle Eastern countries.
I swear, this PC bullshit is going to be the death of us. These maggots off a Jewish activist and go on to plot devastating attacks against the United States. But we keep it all on the QT because no one wants to stir up trouble against the most violent and non-integrating portion of our population?
#2
I'd be careful about venerating Kahane. Israel and the US consider his surviving organizations, both Kach and Kahane Chai, to be terrorist. They've been illegal in Israel since '94. That's when Baruch Goldstein opened fire at a Hebron mosque. Goldstein was Kach.
Shooting Kahane dead in NY was a crime and, apparently, a terrorist conspiracy. Doesn't make him a good guy.
Posted by: Baba Tutu ||
09/12/2006 2:46 Comments ||
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#3
I know that Kahane was not the most perfect ADL representative. But the lack of response is still disturbing.
#4
Say what you will about Kahane, the fact remains he was 100% correct regarding Islamists in general, and Palestinians in particular. If more people had listened to him when he was alive, the world might be a better place today.
#5
This is about as much news as there being a connection between Ulysses Grant and the Civil War. I've known this for about six years; it was part of the HBO movie Path to Paradise.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
09/12/2006 5:15 Comments ||
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#6
The evidence was quickly removed to the offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and was largely ignored until the 1993
Sorry Lois, no scoop there. Try and find something meaty.
#7
Say what you will about Kahane, the fact remains he was 100% correct regarding Islamists in general, and Palestinians in particular. If more people had listened to him when he was alive, the world might be a better place today.
#8
The 2 counterterror guys from the Clinton administration wrote about this in "The Age of Sacred Terror"...they basically say it was the opening shot in AQ's war agnst the US
Osama bin Laden's deputy warned that Persian Gulf countries and Israel would be al-Qaida's next targets, according to a new videotape aired by Arab broadcaster Al-Jazeera on Monday, the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Ayman al-Zawahri accused the governments of Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia of supporting Israel's war against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
You should not waste your time in reinforcing your troops in Iraq and Afghanistan because they are doomed to defeat and are already all but defeated...
Addressing the West, the al-Qaida No. 2 said: "You should not waste your time in reinforcing your troops in Iraq and Afghanistan because they are doomed to defeat and are already all but defeated. Instead, you have to reinforce your troops in two regions. First is the Gulf, where you will be thrown out after you are defeated in Iraq, at which point your economic ruin will be achieved. The second is Israel, because the jihad reinforcements are getting closer to it."
He also condemned the U.N. peacekeeping force now deploying in Lebanon under terms set out in a cease-fire resolution. "What is so terrible in this resolution ... is that it approves the existence of the Jewish state and isolates our mujahedeen in Palestine from Muslims in Lebanon," he said in excerpts of the video aired on Al-Jazeera television. "This is consecrated by the presence of international troops who are hostile to Islam. Anyone who accepts this resolution means that he accepts all these catastrophes."
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
09/12/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
See also WND.com [World Net Daily]. Zawey has affirmed, as others have, AGAIN, that the WOT > WAR FOR THE WORLD + WAR TO DESTROY THE USA-WEST + WAR TO DESTROY DEMOCRACY + WAR TO THE DEATH + NEW ATTACKS AGAINST AMERICA ARE INEVITABLE. SURRENDER, OR BE DESTROYED - NOT EVEN FRANCE [IN LR] IS TO BE SPARED.
#9
al-Qaida's becoming moderate---focusing on destruction of Israel rather than global caliphate.
Not so much "becoming moderate", gromgoru, as being forced to recalibrate their goals so that they're more in line with their actual capabilities. It's hard to go global when your head office is in a cave and you're afraid to even use the phone.
This doesn't even take into account the "outsourcing factor" in how al Qaeda's sworn enemy, Iran, is actually doing most of the heavy lifting when it comes to Israel.
#3
I'm really enjoying these vintage beauties. Absolutely gorgeous and totally sexy, yet they still manage to maintain a certain level of "class". There's nothing trashy about these gals! (Britney Spears, are you listening?)
I also think the daily photos are encouraging and affirming, unlike our modern trashy stuff, which is just money and unfriendly and/or ugly and ruinous to boot.
No doubt these babes brought .com back. : ) ! Love ya, .com. And I'm depressed today, so cheer me up on "He's a dog . . ." rant.
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AUSTRALIAN special forces troops in Afghanistan have been involved in the heaviest fighting since the Vietnam War, with one battle claiming the lives of 150 Taliban and al-Qa'ida fighters.
In an operation launched by Afghan coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan, a known al-Qaeda facilitator and six other suspected al-Qaeda associates were detained, coalition forces said. The commander of the 
(09-10) 04:00 PDT Washington -- U.S. military intelligence has determined that a video released by the Iranian government purporting to show a test of a new submarine missile is bogus, three Pentagon officials confirmed.
Yemen dispatched troops yesterday to force the release of four French tourists kidnapped by armed tribesmen on Sunday, a Yemeni official said. "At least 12 military vehicles are on their way to arrest the kidnappers and to free the four tourists," said Naser Al-Khudur, deputy governor of the southeastern province of Shabwa. However, Khudur said negotiations to secure their release were still on track. "We can say there is a new development in the negotiations with the captors, they are young Yemeni men and they will listen to elders and the sheikhs (leaders) of their tribe."
LONDON - British police said on Monday they had charged two men held in a major swoop last week, one of whom was accused of undergoing terrorism training at a camp in southern England. Detectives said 
WASHINGTON - Government attorneys said Monday that US courts have no authority to stop the military from transferring an American citizen to an Iraqi court to face charges he supported terrorists and insurgents. The case is the latest legal challenge to the Bush administrations authority to keep terrorism cases, even those involving US citizens, out of American courts.
QUETTA: Four towers of a main power transmission line in Bolan district were blown up on Monday, while another blast in Kharan damaged a post office building. Unidentified attackers blew up four power pylons in Abbgum locality, disrupting the supply of electricity to Quetta and several other parts of Balochistan.
SRINAGAR: Indian soldiers shot and killed three suspected Islamist militants in two separate clashes in Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) on Monday, while militants seriously wounded two soldiers and a political activist in another incident and the army seized a large cache of militant weapons, officials said. The army fatally shot two suspected militants who were planning to cross over to the Pakistani portion of Kashmir, said Col Hemant Juneja, an army spokesman. There was no independent confirmation of the army claim.
WANA: Police recovered a headless body in South Waziristan on Monday, a day after gunmen shot dead a pro-Afghan elder in the tribal area, security officials said. The body, mutilated beyond recognition, was found in Karwan Manza village, a security official said, requesting anonymity. Late Sunday, unknown gunmen sprayed bullets from a car, killing Malik Mohammad Ali, an elder of the Kakakhel Waziri clan in the region's main city of Wana, a local administration official said. The official, who did not want to be identified, said the slain man had relatives working in Afghanistan, owned a house across the border and maintained good relations with Afghan officials.
(KUNA) -- Two bombs exploded early Monday with a huge bang in two different Pakistani tribal districts, badly damaging five video and music shops, security officials said.
A Palestinian youth was killed and his companion was wounded in an explosion in the Palestinian village of Na'ama near Ramallah. An IDF spokesperson said that the explosion occurred as the two were apparently handling an explosives belt, which belonged to one of the youth's father. The father was arrested by IDF troops Monday morning.
Israeli troops in southern Lebanon detained four men yesterday for questioning in what appeared to be the first arrests since a ceasefire ended the war with Hizbullah. An Israeli patrol south of the village of Aita as-Shaab, the scene of heavy clashes during the 34-day conflict, detained the men yesterday afternoon, the Israeli military said. It said the men were armed, though it was not clear if they were members of the Hizbullah militia. 
Osama bin Laden's deputy warned that Persian Gulf countries and Israel would be al-Qaida's next targets, according to a new videotape aired by Arab broadcaster Al-Jazeera on Monday, the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. 
