Two NATO soldiers were killed in bomb blasts in Afghanistan Thursday while scores of insurgents died in new battles as heavy fighting intensified in the country, military officials said.
Several soldiers were also wounded in the two explosions in the south of the country, NATOs International Security Assistance Force said. It did not give the nationalities of its casualties, leaving such announcements for the home nations of the soldiers.
The latest deaths came a day after two British soldiers were killed in the southern province of Helmand, where international soldiers are confronting hardcore Taliban and drugs traffickers who are wreaking havoc in the area.
Also Thursday, more than 20 insurgents were killed in an eight-hour battle in the southern province of Kandahar that erupted after dozens of militants attacked a patrol, a coalition headed by the United States said separately.
The coalition reported earlier Thursday that more than 40 Taliban fighters were killed in a 12-hour battle Wednesday in Kandahars Shah Wali Kot district, where rebels have launched several major ambushes in the past few days.
A small group of rebels ambushed foreign forces and was later reinforced by about 150 insurgents who fired rocket-propelled grenades and used heavy machine guns, the coalition said in a statement.
Most of the rebels were killed by coalition warplanes that pounded their positions in several compounds, it said. Afghanistans defence ministry said meanwhile that dozens of Taliban were killed or wounded in fighting with local and foreign forces in the neighbouring province of Helmand, also on Wednesday.
The ministry did not give an exact figure for the rebel casualties but said the fighting erupted after Taliban militants attacked the soldiers with heavy weapons. Responding to the enemy attack, Afghan and coalition troops chased the enemy and called in air support. Dozens of enemy were killed and wounded, it said in a statement.
The fighting took place in Helmands Sangin district, where 25 rebels were killed earlier the same day, an Afghan army general said on Wednesday. The latest bloodshed in the insurgency-hit southern desert provinces of Kandahar and Helmand took the rebel toll in recent days to close to 400.
NATO leaders, meanwhile, in Ottawa began a meeting Thursday to explore the alliances long term strategic objectives and operations, in the country. Officials said that among the issues to be discussed was the military mission in Afghanistan, where three-fourths of the 50,000 troops deployed hail from NATO member countries.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11126 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
(AKI) - More than 40 suspected Taliban fighters have been killed in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, according to a statement released by the US-led coalition in Afghanistan. They were reportedly killed in a fierce battle on Wednesday near the village of Alekowzi in the district of Shah Wali Kot and none of the coalition troops or Afghan soldiers were injured in the violence.
According to the US military, since 27 August, 200 Taliban fighters have been killed in the region. Reports said that the Taliban claimed to be unaware of any fighting on the ground in the Shah Wali Kot district on Wednesday, but said they had downed an American helicopter in the area. NATO, for its part, denied that a helicopter had been lost.
It's okay if the Talibunnies want to deny their losses. They just have to keep losing.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11137 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Some Talibs have yet to receive Chinese weaponry. The Sinos really stabbed us in the back.
#2
There is having, and then there is using effectively. It sounds like the Taliban are taking the madrassah graduates straight to the border, handing them weapons, and sending them over in groups to be killed. Better weapons won't help them.
Of course, that doesn't ameliorate China's perfidy.
#4
Isn't it ironic, Chinese Arms Sales, that cancelled manufacturing contracts are impersonal business, too? At least you can trust that the bitter pills America gives out are exactly as labelled...
#5
LOL, TW! So true. I'm thinking about that today as I run by Costco to pick up a bag of AMERICAN-made dog food. No lead-based paint Barbies for my lil' girl this Christmas neither.
Posted by: BA ||
09/07/2007 11:13 Comments ||
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#6
Your dog food may say American made but much of the raw stock in it just may come from China.
#7
Skunky Glins is correct. But I'd bet lots of money that with all the recalls lately, Chinese raw materials are being thoroughly tested before being used -- at least by the reputable brands.
(SomaliNet) Fresh clashes erupted near the Mother and Child SOS hospital in north of the Somalia capital Mogadishu on Thursday night between the government troops and the local insurgents. Residents told Somalinet that the fighting began around 10:30pm tonight as explosions and exchange of gunfire could be heard in the area. The latest confrontation came when local insurgents fired rocked propelled grenades into the government position in the former fragrance factory where the soldiers responded with heavy weaponry. There is no immediate casualty from the latest gun battle.
Somalia once had a 'fragrance factory'?
Elsewhere in the capital, explosions and the rattle of the gunfire could be heard but it cannot be verified the exact direction of the incident.
Meanwhile, a bomb was thrown to a hotel in Hamar-Jajab district in east of the capital, which houses some of the delegates of the reconciliation congress that ended in Mogadishu last week. Witnesses told Somalinet that unknown men hurled a grenade bomb into the hotel, which resided by Puntland peace delegates but no casualty was reported. It is the second time that the hotel was attacked. In the nighttime, ambush attacks are targeted on the government positions in the capital, which is still under curfew.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Islamic Courts
#1
but it cannot be verified the exact direction of the incident
Is this because there are so many locations this happens that there is no way to attach a specific incident?
Posted by: Abu you love ||
09/07/2007 14:55 Comments ||
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#2
It's because they're as common as spitting on the street, nobody cares anymore.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/07/2007 19:16 Comments ||
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(SomaliNet) Somalia police spokesman Abdi Wahid Mohamed Hussein said on Wednesday the security forces killed eight of the local insurgents and restored the situation normal after several hours of gun battle inside Mogadishus Bakara market. Mr. Mohamed told the local media that three soldiers were also wounded in the raid which caused business suspension all the day.
This morning, the residents woke up with the sounds of explosions and gunfire when the police with two battlewagons raided a house inside the market where the government said it was a hideout for Islamist leader who wages the war in the capital. Seven civilians were reported died and dozens more wounded in the latest clashes. 35 wounded people were admitted at the Medina hospital, according to the medical sources.
It was the deadliest gun battle since the reconciliation congress ended in Mogadishu last week. The government forces blocked all roads in and out of Bakara market to keep an eye to the movement of the local insurgents.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11131 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic Courts
#1
8 down and ∞ to go
Posted by: Abu you love ||
09/07/2007 15:00 Comments ||
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(Xinhua) -- Fifteen people were killed and scores of others wounded in a suicide bombing attack in eastern Algeria on Thursday, local television reported. The attack took place at the town of Batna, some 450 km east of the capital of Algiers, apparently targeting President Abdelaziz Bouteflika who had planned to visit the region. The bomber who was among the crowd waiting the president detonated the explosives he was carrying before the president arrived, witnesses said. An initial report put the toll at 11 killed.
The president visited the victim in a hospital and condemned the attack during a speech on television shortly after the bombing. He pledged to continue a national reconciliation program which would grant pardon to Islamic extremists who give up violence.
No individuals or groups have claimed responsibility for the bombing at the time being. In July, Algerian Interior Minister Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni vowed to continue to fight rebel militant groups in response to a suicide truck bombing that killed eight soldiers southeast of Algiers. Zerhouni said such attacks would never " undermine the determination of security services to fight these groups."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11130 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa
#1
Oil rich OPEC's Algeria, the forgotten, ongoing, bloody 'jihad', coupled with being a key gateway for jihadist killers into France & the E.U.
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
09/07/2007 18:27 Comments ||
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Sixteen Saudis returned home on Thursday after the United States released them from a prison camp at Guantanamo Bay where foreign terrorism suspects are held. The Saudi state news agency SPA said Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul-Aziz expressed his relief and appreciation for the cooperation shown by the authorities in the United States, hoping this leads to the return of the remaining Saudis.
Saudi public anger over the treatment of Saudi detainees in Guantanamo Bay has been high in the Muslim kingdom, a key US ally. Two Saudis were among three prisoners who hanged themselves at the naval base in June. Washington is reducing the numbers of people detained at Guantanamo Bay to move towards closing the camp, but SPA did not say how many Saudis remain there. Many of the men held at Guantanamo were captured in Afghanistan in the US-led war to oust the Taliban after the Sept. 11 attacks. Many have been held for years, most of them without charge.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11127 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
#1
So they renounced terror to hated kafirs. Guess that warrants are immortal trust.
Almost half of Britains mosques are under the control of a hardline Islamic sect whose leading preacher loathes Western values and has called on Muslims to shed blood for Allah, an investigation by The Times has found.
This article is bone-chilling. The details of the takeover are scary. And at the link you can find links to Mr. ul-Haq's speeches. Why haven't we heard more about him?
Riyadh ul Haq, who supports armed jihad and preaches contempt for Jews, Christians and Hindus, is in line to become the spiritual leader of the Deobandi sect in Britain. The ultra-conservative movement, which gave birth to the Taleban in Afghanistan, now runs more than 600 of Britains 1,350 mosques, according to a police report seen by The Times.
The first in Western Europe, Darul Uloom al-Arabiya al-Islamiya, in Holcombe, near Bury, Greater Manchester, opened in 1975 after receiving financial support from the Saudi Arabian Embassy. Behind its closed doors boys and young men aged from 12 to 23 study GCSE subjects alongside advanced Islamic studies.
Bury acts as the mother madrassa for other Deobandi seminaries in Britain and there was outrage when security officials and counter-terrorism police, acting on intelligence information detained its founder, Yusuf Motala, at Heathrow for seven hours of questioning in 2003. He was not charged with any offence.
The Times investigation casts serious doubts on government statements that foreign preachers are to blame for spreading the creed of radical Islam in Britains mosques and its policy of enouraging the recruitment of more home-grown preachers.
Mr ul Haq, 36, was educated and trained at an Islamic seminary in Britain and is part of a new generation of British imams who share a similar radical agenda. He heaps scorn on any Muslims who say they are proud to be British and argues that friendship with a Jew or a Christian makes a mockery of Allahs religion.
Seventeen of Britains 26 Islamic seminaries are run by Deobandis and they produce 80 per cent of home-trained Muslim clerics. Many had their studies funded by local education authority grants. The sect, which has significant representation on the Muslim Council of Britain, is at its strongest in the towns and cities of the Midlands and northern England.
Figures supplied to The Times by the Lancashire Council of Mosques reveal that 59 of the 75 mosques in five towns Blackburn, Bolton, Preston, Oldham and Burnley are Deobandi-run.
It is not suggested that all British Muslims who worship at Deobandi mosques subscribe to the isolationist message preached by Mr ul Haq, and he himself suggests Muslims should only shed blood overseas.
But while some Deobandi preachers have a more cohesive approach to interfaith relations, Islamic theologians say that such bridge-building efforts do not represent mainstream Deobandi thinking in Britain.
The Times has gained access to numerous talks and sermons delivered in recent years by Mr ul Haq and other graduates of Britains most influential Deobandi seminary near Bury, Greater Manchester.
Intended for a Muslim-only audience, they reveal a deep-rooted hatred of Western society, admiration for the Taleban and a passionate zeal for martyrdom in the way of Allah.
The seminary outlaws art, television, music and chess, demands entire concealment for women and views football as a cancer that has infected our youth.
Mahmood Chandia, a Bury graduate who is now a university lecturer, claims in one sermon that music is a way in which Jews spread the Satanic web to corrupt young Muslims.
Nearly every university in England has a department which is called the music department, and in others, where the Satanic influence is more, they call it the Royal College of Music, he says.
Another former Bury student, Bradford-based Sheikh Ahmed Ali, hails the 9/11 attacks on America because they acted as a wake-up call to young Muslims. This, he says, taught them that they will never be accepted in Britain and has led them to return to Islam: sisters are wearing hijab . . . the lion is waking up.
Mr ul Haq, the most high-profile of the new generation of Deobandis, runs an Islamic academy in Leicester and is the former imam at the Birmingham Central Mosque. Revered by many young Muslims, he draws on his extensive knowledge of the Koran and the life and sayings of the prophet Muhammed to justify his hostility to the kuffar, or non-Muslims.
One sermon warns believers to protect their faith by distancing themselves from the evil influence of their non-Muslim British neighbours.
We are in a very dangerous position here. We live amongst the kuffar, we work with them, we associate with them, we mix with them and we begin to pick up their habits.
In another talk, delivered a few weeks before 9/11, he praises Muslims who have gained martyrdom in battle and laments that today no one dare utter the J word. The J word has become taboo . .. The J word is jihad in the way of Allah.
The Times has made repeated attempts to get Mr ul Haq to comment on the content of his sermons. However, he declined to respond.
A commentator on religious radicalism in Pakistan, where Deobandis wield significant political influence, told The Times that blind ignorance on the part of the Government in Britain had allowed the Deobandis to become the dominant voice of Islam in Britains mosques.
Khaled Ahmed said: The UK has been ruined by the puritanism of the Deobandis. Youve allowed the takeover of the mosques. You cant run multiculturalism like that, because thats a way of destroying yourself. In Britain, the Deobandi message has become even more extreme than it is in Pakistan. Its mind-boggling.
In some mosques the sect has wrested control from followers of the more moderate majority, the Barelwi movement.
A spokesman for the Department for Communities said: We have a detailed strategy to ensure imams properly represent and connect with mainstream moderate opinion and promote shared values like tolerance and respect for the rule of law. We have never said the challenge from extremism is simply restricted to those coming from overseas.
Posted by: Seafarious ||
09/07/2007 10:49 ||
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Top|| File under: Global Jihad
#1
I'll just note that the first Saudi seminary in England was installed roughly 18 months after the OPEC petrodollars started flowing into Arabia.
The Albion Conclave of Druids was first founded in 1992 and provides a highly respected distance learning course with students both here in the UK, America and Canada. The core aim of the Albion Conclave is to support spiritual maturity, commitment/dedication and fresh insight into Druidic practice as the tradition continues to evolve in the 21st century. The Albion Conclave also seeks to move Pagan spirituality forward from the original influence of the alternative counter culture scene that has championed the Pagan revival since the 1980's and start the important process of moving Druidry away from the fringe back into mainstream society. Exciting recent events see the mother grove of the Albion Conclave, the grove of Alban Eiler forming strong links with the Flag Fen Bronze Age village in Peterborough. The Albion Conclave holds workshops within this sacred ritual site which is best described as living archeology. The Albion Conclave also created the Mistletoe Foundation in 2003 to raise awareness and significance of mistletoe within Druidic spirituality. The blessing of the mistletoe harvest at Tenbry Wells in December has now become part of the Druid festival calendar.
The Conclave Academy internet group has been set up to support students of the Albion Conclave course only http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Conclave_Academy/
For a description of the course run by the Albion Conclave see our Distance Learning page.
#5
Personally, this doesn't worry me, as the pros balance the cons. It's better to be dealing with an honest islamic clergy unfettered by savvy political smooh talkers (though the Beeb et al would still find them), and truly moderate and westernised members of the muslim community will be discouraged from practising their religion and mosque attendance outright when hate preachers predominate. The muslim community are to be presented with a stark choice...
#6
Besoeker, that's all well and good as long as you respect Christians, Jews, Hindus, etc. No need to respect the faithful muslims Deobandis though because they don't seem like the kind to return the favor.
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
09/07/2007 12:10 Comments ||
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#7
Funny, innit, how easily the extremists take over mosques without a fuss? Almost as if those attending don't care, or even prefer extremists.
Naw. Can't be. The majority of Muslims are moderate, right? Clearly they're not responsible for who runs their weekly prayers...
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/07/2007 12:12 Comments ||
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#8
An old employer of mine - mentor, really - told me on more than one occasion: "some people just need killin'."
I think I understand what he meant.
Posted by: Mark Z ||
09/07/2007 12:15 Comments ||
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#9
We are in a very dangerous position here. We live amongst the kuffar, we work with them, we associate with them, we mix with them and we begin to pick up their habits.
Working(full stop) and mixing with us infidels is not the norm for Muslims in the UK!!!!
Posted by: Paul ||
09/07/2007 12:15 Comments ||
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#10
Behind its closed doors boys and young men aged from 12 to 23 study GCSE subjects alongside advanced Islamic studies.
Check their test results. If their students aren't keeping up with the private religious schools of other sects, shut them down. After all, if they want a bad education they can get it for free at the tax-supported community schools.
Not that I expect the British Dept. of Education to have the gumption to so much as inspect.
#12
Funny, innit, how easily the extremists take over mosques without a fuss? Almost as if those attending don't care, or even prefer extremists.
End of story, RC.
Hey, folks, Google the news for "muslims condemn new 9-11 plot" or "muslims condemn german plot" and see if you get even a single hit! Confronted with the gruesome prospect of their co-religionists attempting to make the 9-11 atrocities a "tradition", we get NOT ONE PEEP from the global Muslim community. Do they not make things clear enough for us?
It is not suggested that all British Muslims who worship at Deobandi mosques subscribe to the isolationist message preached by Mr ul Haq, and he himself suggests Muslims should only shed blood overseas.
In light of taqiyya, how does ul Haq's "overseas" exception have the slightest significance? Answer: it doesn't. This bastard means "shed blood everywhere" and he means it.
End the farce now. Islam brings no value to this world. Stop pretending that there is anything worth preserving with respect to Islam. Stop imagining that peaceful reform or moderation will ever happen within Islam.
Islam wants to kill us. Its lunges and feints are not pantomime, they are real. Yet, we continue to pretend that the two of us are playing at charades. One may as well play charades with a serial killer.
#17
The first Deoband seminary in India used the cover of British indulgence of Muslims in exchange for non opposition to colonialism, to revive the Madrasa movement. Jamaat-i-Islami and other jihadi groups are mere variations of the Deoband cult.
#18
Seventeen of Britains 26 Islamic seminaries are run by Deobandis and they produce 80 per cent of home-trained Muslim clerics. Many had their studies funded by local education authority grants.
Russias security forces on Thursday imposed a military lockdown on part of Ingushetia, a Russian province bordering Chechnya, following mounting unrest in the troubled, mostly Muslim area. The federal security service, or FSB, designated the northern outskirts of Karabulak, a town in the centre of Ingushetia, as a zone of counter-terrorism operations, Interfax news agency reported.
RIA Novosti news agency reported that armoured fighting vehicles and troops had been deployed to the area, which has been the scene of repeated violence recently, including the murder of a Russian school teachers family.
An FSB spokesman explained that an insurgent leader and his band were believed to be hiding in northern Karabulak. The underground leader, Magomed Albakov is wanted for murder, attacks on the security forces and terrorism, Interfax reported. The zone of counter-terrorism designation, which has long been imposed on war-torn Chechnya, shifts the emphasis of security measures from regular police duties to military sweeps and offensive operations. There will be thorough searches of all vehicles and their contents, as well as of citizens and personal belongings, the FSB was quoted as saying by Interfax.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11130 views]
Top|| File under: Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/07/2007 8:10 Comments ||
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#3
While the West remains mute, neo-Soviet dtyrant Putin attempts to regain the 'lost' Russian dominated communist empire.
Every time U.S. troops are murdered in Iraq by Iran's terrorist agents, just recall which nation is supplying Iran with enough weaponry to trigger a regional war = Russia!
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
09/07/2007 18:25 Comments ||
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NYT, so if ya don't want to register, I submitted it all.
ULM, Germany, Sept. 6 Legally, his name is as German as they come: Fritz. To his new confidants in the radical Islamic scene and alleged terrorist co-conspirators, he was Abdullah.
Fritz Gelowicz, barely 28 years old, sits in police custody, charged with leading a terrorist plot that, had it succeeded, could have surpassed the London and Madrid bombings in their murderous toll. That he is a German native, born in Munich, and a youthful convert to Islam has only made it harder for his countrymen to grasp the accusation, although his guilt is far from established. Thank you, New York Times...
The picture sketched by legal documents and interviews with intelligence and law enforcement officials is nonetheless of a young man troubled by problems in his parents marriage, quickly embraced by forces that would twist him to their agenda. They made him not only a willing soldier but a capable leader. Ah, a "troubled young man"... A leading mind, the one with initiative, the coordinator, said August Hanning, the state secretary at the German Interior Ministry. He possessed enormous criminal energy. Very cold-blooded and full of hatred. Sounds like the German cops might disagree with the Times...
That hatred, intelligence officials here say, led him on a journey through Saudi Arabia and Syria, and to a terrorist training camp in Pakistan. Ultimately, it took him to a vacation home back in Germany with chemicals to make explosives and military-grade detonators. There, the investigators who had closely tracked his movements say, the authorities finally brought Mr. Gelowicz and two suspects said to be his associates, Daniel Martin Schneider and Adem Yilmaz, to ground.
That Mr. Gelowicz found the Islamic scene in Ulm, on the other hand, may have been the least shocking part of the unfolding tale. This unassuming city on the Danube River, birthplace of Einstein, has for years had a reputation within Germany as the center of a fiery Islamic movement.
Its a combination of coincidence and favorable location that made Ulm attractive to conspirators from the Islamist scene, the mayor of Ulm, Ivo Gönner, said. In a geographic quirk, the city sits on the border between the German states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, with Ulm in the former and the sister town, Neu-Ulm, in the latter. Escaping surveillance by the police from one jurisdiction, Mr. Gönner explained, required simply renting an apartment on the opposite bank of the river. Geez, the mayor sounds real concerned...
The Multi-Kultur-Haus, an Islamic center on the Bavarian side in Neu-Ulm, was the center of the movement that became known in German intelligence circles as the Ulm Scene. Intelligence officials say they know of at least four men who frequented the center, one of them a convert, who traveled to Chechnya. Only one returned; the rest were killed fighting for the jihadist cause against the Russians.
Fritz Gelowicz first found Islam as a teenager. Different sources date his conversion to sometime between the ages of 15 and 18. Investigators say a German friend of Turkish descent named Tolga Dürbin introduced Mr. Gelowicz to a radical form of Islam.
The Frankfurter Allgemeine, a leading German newspaper, reported that Mr. Dürbin was working at the solar energy company run by Mr. Gelowiczs father. Mr. Gelowiczs mother is a doctor, and he has a brother. According to the local newspaper, Südwest Presse, Mr. Gelowicz married in January shortly after the police stormed his apartment where he and his wife were cleaning at the time. At Mr. Gelowiczs fathers company on Thursday, a man asked a reporter to vacate the premises immediately, declining to give his name.
When searching for potential converts, leaders at the Islamic center focused on young people, generally 17 to 28 years old. Investigators said that some were naïve, sheltered youths, and that some had used drugs or were involved in other criminal activities. Many were children from broken marriages, including, investigators say, Mr. Gelowicz, whose parents were said to be separated.
Mr. Gelowicz began to frequent the Multi-Kultur-Haus, which preaches the strict Wahhabi form of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia, far from the norm for the rest of the Muslim community in the area. In Ulm, there are nearly 7,000 Turks and nearly 5,000 people from the former Yugoslavia, Mr. Gönner said. Many of them are Muslims, and they have nothing whatsoever to do with the center.
The leaders of the center exercised a great deal of control over the lives of their young charges. They gave them strict schedules and kept tabs on their movements, going so far as to issue them prepaid cellphones so they could stay in touch with them even if their families opposed it, said the parents of two children who converted to Islam at the center. Inside the center was a large library that included the works of radical preachers, a gym with punching bags, and guest rooms.
For a man said to be a would-be terrorist, Fritz Gelowicz was remarkably well known to the police and intelligence officials long before his arrest this week. On Dec. 11, 2004, the police picked up Mr. Gelowicz and a friend, Atilla Selek, at 1 a.m. for setting a book on fire in front of a store in Ulm. In the car the young men were driving that night, investigators found propaganda material, according to court documents, including a CD with information praising the jihad, Osama bin Laden and one of the perpetrators of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Shortly thereafter, an Iranian-born Kurd with German citizenship named Dana Boluri told investigators that he met Mr. Gelowicz and Mr. Selek in Saudi Arabia during the hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca that all able-bodied Muslims are expected to complete at least once in their lives. He would later take part in the surveillance of the American military barracks in Hanau that refocused investigators attention on Mr. Gelowicz in the months leading up to his arrest in the bombing plot.
In January 2005, the Bavarian authorities began to crack down on activities at the Islamic center. Mr. Gelowicz was detained and questioned after a police raid but was released because there was insufficient evidence that he was involved in criminal activity. The authorities closed the center in December 2005.
In the meantime, Mr. Gelowicz had become a serious pupil. He appears to have traveled to Syria and studied Arabic, according to a certificate from a language school in Damascus included in investigators files. The document said he began his studies on Aug. 8, 2005. It was dated December 2005 and said his course of study would be completed in June 2006.
It is unlikely, however, that he finished those studies, because the intelligence services, Mr. Hanning of the Interior Ministry confirmed, said that he was at a training camp of Islamic Jihad Union, a terrorist splinter group based in Uzbekistan, in March 2006. Mr. Gelowicz was no rank-and-file trainee. German intelligence officials say he was in direct contact with the leadership of the Islamic Jihad Union.
Officials say Mr. Gelowicz returned to Germany, where he led the would-be terrorist cell that planned a series of enormous car bombs intended for targets in his country where there were likely to be many Americans. It is difficult to say how Mr. Gelowicz, after so much police attention, thought he could succeed.
But he was nothing if not determined. He was possessed with the desire to launch an attack, said Mr. Hanning, who added that Mr. Gelowicz was among the roughly 100 to 150 Islamists considered dangerous by the German government and kept under regular surveillance.
The cell tried to avoid detection, investigators said, by using public telephones and Internet cafes rather than their own phones and computers. Instead of sending messages that could be intercepted, they left one another messages saved in the draft folders of e-mail accounts for which multiple members had passwords.
For all their preparations, investigators said, the plot did not succeed. Hundreds of investigators from several jurisdictions and agencies kept them under close watch for several months, and officials said they even swapped diluted hydrogen peroxide for the bomb-ready concentrated solution Mr. Gelowiczs cell was preparing to use.
Posted by: tu3031 ||
09/07/2007 11:28 ||
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[11130 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Europe
(AKI) - France's anti-terrorism forces are on a "total war-footing", following the thwarting in Germany of an alleged al-Qaeda plot this week, a senior French official said Thursday. Foreign ministry spokeswoman, Pascale Andreani, said that the three arrests of suspected terrorists in Germany on Wednesday and a similar operation earlier in the week by authorities in Denmark demonstrated the "efficacy" of cross-border anti-terrorism probes.
The three men arrested in Germany allegedly formed part of an al-Qaeda cell planning attacks on Frankfurt international airport and a major US military base. Andreani stressed that the international community, and in particular European nations, should redouble efforts to cooperate in combating terrorism.
Although France, unlike Britain, has no troops in Iraq and is not one of US president George W. Bush's "war on terror", it says it remains a target for Islamic militants. It supports international military operations in Afghanistan, and cooperates over intelligence with Washington, as well as supporting North African states fighting Islamic extremism. The Algerian militant group GIA was held responsible for a nail bomb attack on a Paris metro in 1995, as well as many attacks on civilian and military targets in Algeria.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11131 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Europe
#1
Pass the cheese!
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
09/07/2007 2:59 Comments ||
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#6
THe war on terror is primarily a war on the propaganda and public image fields and alow me to say that you, the anglosaxons, suck at that and and the Frencha are much better at it.
Unfortunately the French at not at your/our side only Sarkozy, Kouchner and a few others. We can hope he succeeds in debrainwashing the French and put the French propaganda machine on teh die of the good guys.
Then and only then will we be to say that we can't lose.
#7
We appreciate all the French who are on our side, JFM. You're right about the propaganda/public image thingy, too. I look forward to see what President Sarkozy and his team come up with. Certainly it appears your President has already charmed ours. :-)
#8
Seeing as how Algeria just got nailed (no pun intended, JFM) by a suicide bomber, mebets that France is gonna be awfully busy.
And, what's with *not* mentioning the metro Paris car-b-q's back a few years ago, or is the MSM still keeping up the "disgruntled yoots" meme?
Posted by: BA ||
09/07/2007 11:16 Comments ||
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#9
Let's go children of the fatherland,
The day of glory has arrived!
Against us tyranny's
Bloody flag is raised! (repeat)
In the countryside, do you hear
The roaring of these fierce soldiers?
They come right to our arms
To slit the throats of our sons, our friends!
Refrain
Grab your weapons, citizens!
Form your batallions!
Let us march! Let us march!
May impure blood
Water our fields!
Suspected militants blew up a tailors shop on Thursday in northwest Pakistan for making Western clothes, an official said. The pre-dawn blast also damaged two other nearby shops in Kasi, a village in the tribally governed Bajur region, the AP quoted Mohammed Khan, a local government official, as saying. No one was hurt. Khan said militants recently warned the tailor to stop making Western-style clothes, which they view as un-Islamic.
Online reported that a bomb exploded along the roadside in Saliarzai tehsil. No casualties were reported. In Bannu, police and a bomb disposal squad defused three powerful remote-controlled bombs on the Bannu-Miranshah roadside near Masoomabad. Bannu DPO Dar Ali Khattak told APP that the police were probing the matter.
Staff reports add: Swabi police defused a bomb planted at the building of the population welfare office. People found the bomb packed in a ghee tin. They called the bomb disposal squad in Mardan, which defused the bomb. Militants destroyed a narcotics shop with a bomb late on Wednesday in Pusht bazaar of Salarzai tehsil in Bajaur Agency.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
un-Islamic clothes?!
First it's the "un-Islamic" cut...
Where are they reading all these dress-codes in the Koran?
#2
Garment manufacture is about the only thing that Pakis produce that is worthy of importing. Now they only want to sell us burkas and turbans. Not in the market, Muhammed.
#4
I know where the Tailor went wrong. No semen stains on the clothes. After all, we must follow Mohammed's example:
Mohammed's child wife Aiesha said : "I used to wash the traces of Janaba (semen) from the clothes of the Prophet and he used to go for prayers while traces of water were still on it" (water spots were still visible). (Book #4, Hadith #229)
Narrated Sulaiman bin Yasar : I asked Aisha about the clothes soiled with semen. She replied, "I used to wash it off the clothes of Allah's Apostle and he would go for the prayer while water spots were still visible. " (Book #4, Hadith #231)
Narrated 'Amr bin Maimun : I heard Sulaiman bin Yasar talking about the clothes soiled with semen. He said that Aiesha had said, "I used to wash it off the clothes of Allah 's Apostle and he would go for the prayers while water spots were still visible on them. (Book #4, Hadith #232)
Narrated Aiesha : I used to wash the semen off the clothes of the Prophet and even then I used to notice one or more spots on them. (Book #4, Hadith #233)
Fifteen people were injured in an explosion said to be a bomb while they were waiting near the Karachi international airport Thursday. The injured were still being rushed to Jinnah hospital when this report was filed.
A group of men were drinking tea at a New Quetta Rangeen Hotel in Falaknaz Plaza near the Malir Wireless Gate (Shah Faisal Town limits) at 11:00 pm. There were conflicting reports of the incident. People sitting near them told Daily Times from the hospital that a bomb under their bench went off. However, there were separate reports from people who were standing at a distance that a bomb the size of a football was thrown at them from a passing car.
An injured Waqas told Daily Times from Jinnah hospital that his family had been targeted. The police picked up my younger brother Naeem two days ago, he claimed. Two ASIs told us to give them money, otherwise we would face consequences. I was sitting with my friends at the hotel when a car came from the railway tracks side and something was ejected from it. I blacked out, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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A jirga of tribal clerics on Thursday made no headway in gaining the support of pro-Taliban militants for peace in Bajaur Agency as the government announced cash prizes for information leading to the arrest of miscreants. A government official said the clerics jirga had returned after meeting Taliban leaders who reiterated that they were not involved in the subversive activities in the area. The Taliban say they are not involved in any attacks and demanded the government give evidence of its claims, jirga leader Maulana Rashid told Bajaur chief administrator Sharifullah Khan. Khan told the jirga members that the Taliban should stop their activities during Ramazan. He announced Rs 100,000 award for information on the miscreants. Meanwhile, a jirga of the Mehsud tribe held talks with South Waziristan Political Agent Hussainzada Khan in Wana to discuss the release of around 200 soldiers. The jirga later left for Ladah to resume talks with the captors.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Geez, and we thought the UN was a waste of time...
(Xinhua) -- At least 6 people were killed when a security forces gunship helicopter fired at a vehicle in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region on Thursday, a local TV channel DAWN NEWS reported. The vehicle was completely destroyed near Mir Ali in the firing, a major town in North Waziristan. The security forces also fired at two vehicles in the same area on Wednesday, but no one was injured, according to a report of News Network International (NNI) news agency.
Unidentified militants blew up a gate along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, while some other militants also fired nine rockets at the Miranshah Airport, an army camp and a fort of paramilitary forces in North Waziristan on Wednesday night.
The law and order situation in the northwestern tribal areas worsened after local militants scrapped a peace agreement with the government and threatened to launch more attacks on security forces in mid-July. Clashes between militants and security forces occurred on a frequent basis in the area, resulting in heavy casualties.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Must be another US helicopter intruding into Pakistan - it hit what it was aiming at.
#6
Add a collection of bagpipers, and it would be perfect. Oh, and could we send the USMC Band to perform there too?
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
09/07/2007 19:26 Comments ||
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#7
One time on my armored bus ride to BIAP I was riding with about 25 Fijian soldiers who were doing UN security duty in the IZ. They had their iron with them, and while I never felt the slightest bit concerned on those trips, that night I was particularly happy to have those big, tough, friendly folks aboard. I assume the Tongan Marines are similar, and to echo others here, pleez pleez pleez let there be some altercations where bad guys (AQI, Sunnis, Shi'a militia) tussle with them. While the passivity and daintiness of the US forces depressed us full time during my stint, we'd also lament how the South Koreans were idling away up in Irbil, instead of clashing with the dishonorable and inept tough guys of Iraq.
HEADQUARTERS
Multi-National Force - Iraq
Baghdad, Iraq
APO AE 09432-1400
7 September 2007
Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, and Civilians of Multi-National Force Iraq:
We are now over two-and-a-half months into the surge of offenseive operations made possible by the surge of forces, and I want to share with you my view of how I think we are doing. This letter is a bit longer than previous ones, since I feel you deserve a detailed description of what I believe we have - and have not - accomplished, as Ambassador Crocker and I finalize the assessment we will provide shortly to Congress.
Up front, my sense is that we haved achieved tactical momentum and wrested the initiative from our enemies in a number of areas of Iraq. The result has been progress in the security arena, although it has, as you know, been uneven. Additionally, as you all appreciate very well, innumerable tasks remain and much hard work lies ahead. We are, in short, a long way from the goal line, but we do have the ball and we are driving down the field.
We face a situation that is exceedingly complex. Al Qaeda, associated insurgent groups, and militia extremists, some supported by Iran, continue to carry out attacks on us, our Iraqi partners, and the Iraqi civilians we seek to secure. We have to contend with the relentless pace of operations, the crushing heat, and the emotions that we all experience during long deployments and tough combat. And we operate against a backdrop of limited Iraqi government capacity, institutions trying to rebuild, and various forms of corruption. All of this takes place in a climate of distrust and fear that stems from the sectarian violence that did so much damage to the fabric of Iraqi society in 2006 and into 2007, not to mention the decades of repression under Saddam's brutal regime. Tragically, sectarian violence continues to cause death and displacement in Baghdad and elsewhere, albeit at considerably reduced levels from 8 months ago, due, in large part, to your hard work and sacrifice together with our Iraqi counterparts.
In spike of these challenges, our operations - particularly the offensive operations we have conducted since mid-June - have helped produce progress in many areas on the ground. In fact, the number of attacks across the country has declined in 8 of the last 11 weeks, reaching during the last week in August a level not seen since June 2006. This trend is not just a result of greater numbers of Coalition and Iraqi Security forces; it also reflects your determination, courage, and skill in conducting conterinsurgency operations. By taking the fight to the enemy, you have killed or captured dozens of leaders and thousands of members of Al Qaeda-Iraq and extremeists militia elements, you have taken many of Al Qaeda's former sanctuaries away from them, and you have dismantled a number of their car bomb and improvised explosive device networks. By living among the population with our Iraqi partners, you have been holding the areas hyou have cleared. By helping Iraqis establish basic services and local governance, you have helped exploit the security gains. And by partnering closely with Iraqi Security Forces, you have been strengthening Iraqi elements that will one day have sole responsibility for protecting their population. Indeed, while Iraqi forces clearly remain a work in progress, Iraqi soldiers and police are very much in the fight, and they continue to sustain losses that are two to three times our losses.
We are also building momentum in an emerging area of considerable importance - local reconciliation. Local Iraqi leaders are coming forward, opposing extremists, and establishing provisional units of neighborhood security volunteers. With growing Government of Iraq support, these volunteers are being integrated into legitimate security institutions to hlep improved local security. While this concept is playing out differently in various areas across Iraq, it is grounded in a desire shared by increasing numbers of Iraqis - to oppose extremist elements and their ideologies. This is very significant because, as many of you know first-hand, extremists cannot survive without the support of the population. The popular rejection of Al Qaeda and its ideology has, for example, helped transform Anbar Province this year from one of the most dangerous areas of Iraq to one of the safest. The popular rejection of extremists has helped the Coalition and Iraqi Forces take away other areas from Al Qaeda as well, and we are seeing a spread of this sentiment in ever-increasing number of Sunni areas. Now, in fact, we are also seeing a desire to reject extremists emerge in many Shi'a areas.
The progress has not, to be sure, been uniform across Baghdad or across Iraq. Accomplishments in some areas - for example, in Ramadi and in Anbar Province - have been greater than any of us might have predicted six months ago. The achievements in some other areas - for example, in some particularly challenging Baghdad neighborhoods and in reducing overall civilian casualties, especially those caused by periodic, barbaric Al Qaeda bombings - have not been as dramatic. However, the overall trajectory has been encouraging, especially when compared to the situation at the height of the sectarian violence in late 2006 and early 2007.
Many of us had hoped this summer would be a time of tangible political progress at the national level as well. One of the justifications for the surge, after all, was that it would help create the space for Iraqi leaders to tackle the tough questions and agree on key pieces of "national reconciliation" legislation. It has not worked out as we had hoped. All participants, Iraqi and coalition alike, are dissatisfied by the halting progress of major legislative initiatives such as the oil framework law, revenue sharing, and de-ba'athification reform. At the same time, however, our appreciation of what this legislation represents for Iraqi leaders has grown. These laws are truly fundamental in nature and will help determine how Iraqis will share power and resources in the new Iraq. While much work remains to be done before these critical issues are resolved, the seriousness with which Iraqi leaders came together at their summit in late August has given hope that they are up to the task before them, even if it is clearly taking more time than we initally expected.
In the coming months, our coalition's countries and all Iraqis will continue to depend on each of you and our Iraqi counterparts to keep the pressure on the extremists, to help improve security and strengthen the rule of law for all Iraqis, to work with the Government of Iraq to integrate local volunteers into local security and national institutions, to assist with the restoration and improvement of basic services, and to continue the development of conditions that foster reconciliation. For our part, Ambassador Crocker and I will continue to do everything in our power to help the Prime Minister and the Government of Iraq achieve the meaningful results that will ensure that your sacrifice and those of your comrades help produce sustainable security for Iraq over the long term. A stable and secure Iraq that denies extremists a safe haven and has a government that is representative of and reponsive to all Iraqis helps protect the vital interests of our coalition countries. A stable and secure Iraq will also benefit Iraq's citizens and Iraq's neighbors alike, bringing calm to a region full of challenges and employing Iraq's human capital and natural resource blessings for the benefit of all.
As I noted at the outset of this letter, over the next few days, Ambassador Crocker and I will share with the U.S. Congress and the American people our assessment of the situation in Iraq. I will also describe the recommendations I have provided to my chain of command. I will go before Congress conscious of the strain on our forces, the sacrifices that you and your families are making, the gains we have made in Iraq, the challenges that remain, and the importance of building on what we and our Iraqi counterparts have fought so hare to achieve.
Thanks once again for what each of you continues to do. Our Nations have asked much of you and your families. It remains the greatest of honors to serve with you.
Sincerely,
ORIGINAL SIGNED
David H. Petreaus
General, United States Army
Commanding
While it is wonderful that the Sunnis almost entirely rejected AlQ; the Shias have not, as far as I know, rejected the Madhi or Badr thug groups
(although there have apparently been some anti Iran rumblings).
It seems to me that until the Shia reject these demons robustly, Iraq will not survive when we leave.
#2
We need to control the borders. Without that, terrorists and militants will continue the fight from Iran and Syria until Iraq collapses. Iraq may need to become a police state in order to remain free. The irony....
#4
RWV, I would respectfully disagree: we will be able to more easily control Iraq's borders that our own, after all our Congress critters don't have to campaign for re-election in Iraq.....
#5
The problem is perception of our will. Rank and file Iraqis are understandably reluctant to back our efforts if they perceive we will be bailing out in a few months and leave them hanging. Again. They remember what happened to the Shia who followed our lead in 1991 only to be slaughtered when we left.
Thank the good folks here at home for all their help convincing the Iraqis that they should work with us - Sen. Schumer, you must sleep well knowing IEDs were not reported because of your statements.
At least 14 people have been killed and nine wounded in a US air strike overnight in the west of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, police have said. Several houses were destroyed in the attack, which took place at about 0300 (2300 GMT) in the Washash neighbourhood of the city's Mansour district.
The US military said it had targeted Shia extremists in "enemy strongholds". Mansour is mostly Sunni, but there is a pocket where there is strong support for Moqtada Sadr's Mehdi Army militia. Making it a stronghold; a lions of Islam den in a field of sheep.
The BBC's Hugh Sykes in Baghdad says US forces have launched several operations against what they call rogue elements of the group in recent weeks. The radical Shia cleric suspended its activities for six months just over a week ago, but there are many dissidents who think they should continue fighting, our correspondents says.
'Extremists'
The US military said Iraqi soldiers and US Special Forces had called in the air strikes in Washash when they came under fire during an operation targeting a number of "Shia extremist militants". It said the militants were responsible for attacking local police, erecting illegal checkpoints, and killing local Sunni Arabs. We Beebites, however, are ever skeptical, ever since Monty.
"When Iraqi and US Special Forces members entered the area, they immediately came under fire from more than a dozen extremists firing from the rooftops of surrounding buildings," a statement said. The soldiers then directed aircraft fire on two buildings where the gunmen were holed up, the military said, adding that the response was both "proportional" and "well-aimed".
But a local resident, Abu Ali Saad, said that everyone in the neighbourhood had been sleeping and that he had heard no exchanges of fire before the US-led troops arrived. The way I sleep, I wouldn't have heard the bombs explode.
"We are a peaceful neighbourhood. There are no militia here," he told the AFP news agency. Somebody arrest that guy; he must be one of them!
"The tanks started firing then the helicopters came. Missiles were fired from the air. Houses were destroyed. A family of five were killed in this house," he said, pointing to the remains of his neighbour's home.
Another local resident, Ammar Assem, said he had been prevented from taking two of his wounded neighbours to hospital. "They fired on my car when I tried to leave the area. I had to go back," he said.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/07/2007 06:51 ||
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#1
Hello, and welcome to BBC 101: Extensive Use of Quotation Marks. I'm your host, Alan Johnston...
#2
At least 14 people have been killed and nine wounded in a US air strike overnight in the west of the Iraqi capital,
Hmmm...how many died in that little fire raid over Hamburg in '43? [We're not even talking Dresden here]
Don't do as I do, do as I say [quintessential motto of the left]. Nannyism, paternalism, all the same sound of those who know better than rest of us.
So since you've given the enemy opposition special dispensation from complying with the Geneva Convention, wearing of identifiable uniform or not using civilians as cover, when's our dispensation coming? I won't be waiting.
#7
Mansour was the upscale residence of the Sunni elite. The Madhi Army have been killing/driving the Sunnis off and selling/renting the abandoned properties to Shiite colonists. It's the largest source of revenue for Sadr and the Madhis. So no sympathy from me.
Posted by: ed ||
09/07/2007 18:34 Comments ||
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#8
"We are a peaceful neighbourhood. There are no militia here,"
Not NOW anyway.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/07/2007 19:05 Comments ||
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Four U.S. Marines were killed in fighting in Anbar province, and three soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in northern Iraq, the military said Friday.
The four Marines assigned to Multi National Force West were killed Thursday while conducting combat operations in Anbar, a predominantly Sunni province west of Baghdad that has seen a recent drop in violence, according to a statement.
Three Task Force Lightning soldiers also were killed Thursday when a bomb exploded near their vehicle in the northern Ninevah province, the military said separately.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/07/2007 06:39 ||
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#1
RIP. We thank you and your families for everything you have done. May your souls rest in peace.
#1
Operation Lightning Hammer II is a corps-sized operation, consisting of over 14,000 Iraqi Security Forces and 12,000 US troops.
Yep. Time to pull out.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/07/2007 7:00 Comments ||
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#2
A knockout punch? Also, I wonder if the Iraqi divisional commanders were assembled for a one-shot CPX to train them in Corps operations? If so, they will be unique in the region. I'm not sure if even Israel can mount a Corps level operation.
#4
Quite correct. With the redeployment of IA forces from Fallujah, I suspect that any available IA forces are going to be training hard to defend their country against the Iranian military.
Since AAA and air forces would still be under US direction, this means any significant development with IA armor, artillery or infantry could be very important right now. It could signal if the IA is looking for fighting a defensive or offensive campaign.
#6
With the Anbar Awakening to the west, Kurdistan to the north and east and the Surge coming up from the south, the AQ rats are in a trap. Watch the Tikrit, Kirkuk and Mosul areas over the next few weeks. That's where all the action will be with AQ. I love that hammer and anvil move.
#7
The Kurds would probably be able to command such an op - they have very capable and well trained (in western ops and theory) staff officers, as well as the requisite commanders and command structures. From what I hear, they don't have the logistics, but we can do that, and they still need help with intel processing and dissemination, as well as transport (mainly airmobile ops, which nobody else does as well as we do on a large scale).
#8
The Iraqi army is organized into one or two paper Corps, whereas before 2003 they were organized into five paper Corps. However, importantly, we have been drilling and evaluating them on divisional operations for a couple of years now. Except for Israel and maybe Turkey, possibly Egypt, I believe that nobody else in the ME but Iraq has any real divisional command operations. The most they can muster are separate brigades in paper divisions.
Now, although Iraq doesn't currently have a full Corps capability, the US does, and can show the now trained divisional command staffs how Corps operations are performed, with US army/IA blended operations.
This means that they will see it work, and know that Iraqis can do it just as readily as US forces, and are doing it--and can do it again, if the divisional staffers can remember how the US does it.
So at US Corps HQ, every US soldier will have an Iraqi or a few division staff personnel standing next to him, taking copious notes on everything he is doing. For them, it is like a CPX paper drill.
That type of training is priceless. It would be a bargain at $50 billion. Because once Iraq obtains the weapons and upgrades its military, it will be able to run circles around Iran or anybody reliant on separate brigades.
That is why I say that we should be on the lookout for any big changes in Iraq's armor, artillery or infantry units. We are not planning on leaving them until we are confident that they can kick seven bells out of Iran.
#9
This will probably push Iran into wanting to develop the same capabilities, but if they do that, wouldn't the mullocracy be in danger of the army coming back at them? Seems that the liklihood of a military coup goes up because a brigade of well-trained fanatics couldn't defend against a whole unified army. And it would be hard to put together an entire army of fanatics for the protection of the government like the IRG.
Looks like the whitehouse is counting on getting their extension until March, because this kind of thing is going to be huge positive PR with the coming gains and a solid Iraqi army suddenly emerging at the same time. It's going to be hard to stop it now, and harder to stop it in the future.
FALLUJAH -- The last battalion of Iraqi soldiers with 2nd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division, withdrew from the Anbar Province city of Fallujah, Sept. 1, leaving the citys security and stability in the hands of the local police and government. Does this plan sound familiar?
Brig. Gen. Ali al-Hashemi, the brigades commander, said the time had come when Iraqi Police alone could handle law enforcement in the city. I am very confident in the IPs keeping the city safe. Besides, it is their job to work to keep the city safe, al-Hashemi said through an interpreter. Its not the IAs job. The army should not be inside the city. The police should be in the city.
Lt. Col. Daniel T. Thoele, the operations advisor for 2nd Brigade Military Transition Team with Regimental Combat Team 6, spoke well of the departing unit. The 2nd Brigade has been phenomenal, said Thoele. I think today is a historical event because of not only the success of the IA, but the IA working closely with the Iraqi police.
Initially the IA provided security over the city to give the fledgling police force time and breathing space to develop. Now with a strong force, the locals trust the IPs and are cooperating with counterinsurgent activities. (Since) Col. Faisal got here in November, there has been expediential growth with the IPs, both in their numbers and also in their development, Thoele said. The IPs are still having equipment and manning problems, but they are working through it.
Under al-Hashemis guidance, his soldiers routinely respond with, I am Iraqi, whenever asked by civilians whether they are Shiite or Sunni, Thoele said. I am very confident and very happy about everything they did in the city of Fallujah, because I see the result and the city is a lot safer and a lot of progress was made here, al-Hashemi said about his soldiers efforts. We were very successful because all the forces were working together. The IA, IPs and the Marines all worked together as one team. There were three commanders, IA commander, IP commander and a Marine commander. We had a very good understanding of working with each.
The brigade has relocated to northern regions of Anbar to replace Marine units, take over combat outposts and operate patrol bases. They will now refocus outside of the city to protect the highways and countryside to prevent insurgents access to population centers like Fallujah. The 2nd Brigade Headquarters will remain here at the Iraqi Training Center for logistical and the training purposes.
I think its important to understand the IA and IPs have a great relationship and it doesnt matter whether theyre Shiite, Sunni or anything, Thoele said. I dont see the sectarian strike here that you hear about in Baghdad, because here it doesnt matter. Its all Iraqis working together.
#4
With respect to Fallujah, my understanding is that the police are backed up by IA personnel serving with the police on a rotating basis; further, the locals neighborhoods have watchers and the tribes and subtribes have watchers and the mosques have watchers all of whom are anti ALQ.
#5
I also suspect that any IA personnel not essential to ongoing operations are going to be training extra hard, and on a very tight schedule. This Corps operation in the North may very well signal that the IA may soon have to face the Iranian army.
Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Iraqi Army Division captured a known key al-Qaeda in Iraq financier in Nineveh province, and his associate, Sept. 3, during an operation in Mosul.
Both men were positively identified as al-Qaeda in Iraq members by the 2-2-2 IA and one admitted to the arresting Soldiers that he is a key AQI financier and negotiates with families for the release of victims kidnapped by AQI for extortion.
Found in the suspects vehicle were funds totaling over 250 million Iraqi Dinar (in excess of $200,000 USD), as well as multiple IDs and correspondence. The capture of these men by the Iraqi Army, and loss of the financing they provided, will be felt by all those who profit from kidnapping and crimes against the people of Nineveh province, said Lt. Col. Jeff Stewart, executive officer, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. Our brothers in the Iraqi Security Forces have struck a blow directly against the terrorists and criminals who threaten Iraqi citizens and the rule of law.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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Coalition Forces detained and questioned men suspected of working with al-Qaeda-allied Sunni extremists Sept. 4 near al-Taraq, southwest of Baghdad. Soldiers of 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), out of Fort Drum, N.Y., detained five men after they were stopped by concerned local citizens on suspicion of being associated with local al-Qaeda terrorists. The 2-14th Inf. Regt. Golden Dragons also discovered a cache further north, near Radwaniyah containing 40 60mm mortar rounds and two bags of homemade explosive. The mortar rounds were destroyed in a controlled detonation.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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After receiving information about the whereabouts of weapons caches from a concerned local national during operations Sept. 2 and 3, soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army, unearthed three weapons caches in Mukhisa village. The caches were a significant discovery for the 5th Iraqi Army, said Staff Maj. Gen. Abdul Kareem, commander of Iraqi Security Forces in Diyala province. It is a sign of their confidence and abilities; and also shows the people are getting tired of the terrorists.
The caches were all hidden from sight and would have been more difficult to discover without the information from the concerned citizen who provided the intelligence and information. The first cache was hidden in a mud hut which is reported to be used as an al-Qaida operation center. The IA discovered 10 rocket-propelled grenade launchers with 16 additional rounds. The second cache primarily consisted of small-arms munitions buried in a large water container.
Sixty-eight cases of DSHKA machine gun rounds were also discovered, significantly reducing the enemies capabilities to conduct small-arms fire attacks. Also discovered in a 300 gallon water tank, the third cache contained 21 unknown rockets, nine cases of DSHKA ammunition, 6,000 loose PKC rounds and one RPG sight.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
That is enough firepower to really hurt a convoy.
Iraqi Special Operations Forces, with U.S. Special Forces as advisers, while conducting an intelligence-driven operation in the Baghdad area Sept. 6 were engaged by a number of Shia extremist militants. The targeted Shia extremists are part of a terrorist cell operating in the Al Washash region of Baghdad. The cell is responsible for attacking local police and conducting illegal checkpoints to intimidate, extort and murder local citizens. The team also conducts extra judicial killings of Sunnis.
When Iraqi and USSF members entered the area, they immediately came under fire from more than a dozen extremists firing from the rooftops of surrounding buildings. Iraqi and U.S. Forces then responded with well-aimed and suppressive fire. Forces also directed proportional aerial fires onto targeted buildings against positively identified armed gunmen directing small arms fires onto the assault force. A total of four buildings were damaged including two enemy strongholds that sustained major damage and two surrounding buildings that sustained moderate damage. No Iraqi or U.S. forces were injured during defensive maneuver.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I gather no extremists were injured either? Just a friendly firefight.
Coalition forces killed six terrorists and detained 25 suspected terrorists during operations targeting al-Qaeda in Iraqs operational networks in the Tigris River Valley and Kirkuk Thursday.
Coalition forces conducted two raids in and around Tarmiyah targeting senior members of al-Qaeda in Iraqs network in the northern belts around Baghdad. During one raid, three armed men drew their weapons when the ground forces approached them. Responding in self-defense, Coalition forces engaged the three armed men, killing them. As the ground forces continued to secure the area, they observed two men, one who was carrying a rifle, maneuvering into position against them. Coalition forces responded to the hostile threat, engaging and killing both.
During the second raid, a man drew his pistol on Coalition forces, who responded by engaging and killing the armed terrorist. Between the two raids, the ground forces detained seven suspected terrorists.
Farther north, Coalition forces used intelligence gained during operations Aug. 30 to capture a suspected close associate of al-Qaeda in Iraq senior leaders. The ground forces detained six additional suspected terrorists during the operations in Samarra and Tikrit.
Coalition forces captured a suspected member of an al-Qaeda in Iraq cell near Baqubah believed to be responsible for bombing and ambush attacks on Coalition forces and Iraqi civilians. Intelligence reports indicate the cell member helped emplace snipers and illegal checkpoints used to kidnap civilians and hold them for ransom. Nine more individuals were detained for their alleged ties to the terrorist cell.
Iraqi and Coalition forces in Kirkuk detained one suspected terrorist during an operation targeting a car-bombing cell there. We want to cripple the al-Qaeda in Iraq network, so it is unable to plan and execute vicious attacks against the Iraqi people, said Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, MNF-I spokesman. Each operation gives us better information with which to target and attack them.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Each operation gives us better information with which to target and attack them.
This has to be bothering the crap outta al Q. Instead of having safe houses or hideouts, they have big arrows pointing at them as they eat, sleep, and pray. I almost feel sorry for these misguided youths
#2
During the second raid, a man drew his pistol on Coalition forces, who responded by engaging and killing the armed terrorist. Between the two raids, the ground forces detained seven suspected terrorists.
Soldiers from Company D, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment attached to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division conducted a search of a University building which houses the Al-Ahad radio station in the al- Baladiat area of the New Baghdad District in eastern Baghdad Sep. 5.
The search was initiated after the unit received a tip from local Iraqis that a criminal militia operative frequented the location. Some media have reported that U.S. forces stormed the headquarters of the al-Ahad radio station and destroyed its furniture and forced the station to stop broadcasting for more than two hours. It was further alleged the Coalition Forces detained all present in the building and confiscated the guards weapons.
Coalition Forces entered the building and sought out the university manager who accompanied the Soldiers throughout the search. No classes were interrupted during the course of the search and no one was detained or injured. The radio station played music throughout the search. One door was broken and a claim form for the damage was given to the university manager. No weapons were confiscated.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11128 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
(Xinhua) - Iraqi security forces in Mosul of northern Nineveh province said Thursday they detained a key suspect for the bombing of Samarra's al-Askari shrine, a provincial police source said. "The suspect, with the name of Aws Tariq al-Abbasi, is a former chief of a security force tasked with protecting al-Askari shrine in Samara," Brigadier Said al-Jubouri, head of the police media office, told Xinhua.
The suspect is accused of collaborating with the gunmen who blew up the mosque in February 2006, which sparked sectarian killing and reprisal attacks between the Shiite and Sunni communities that claimed the lives of dozens of thousands of people, al-Jubouri said. According to him, the security forces arrested the suspect in eastern part of the city of Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad, at about 6:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday.
"Intelligence reports asserted that the suspect had returned from Syria, where he fled to, and security forces arrested him in Mosul."
"Intelligence reports asserted that the suspect had returned from Syria, where he fled to, and security forces arrested him in Mosul," said al-Jubouri.
Al-Askari shrine, one of the most holiest sites for Shiite Muslims, was attacked last year by gunmen believed to be affiliated to the al-Qaida in Iraq network. The bombing destroyed the golden dome of the shrine, but no human casualty reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
A joint Fatah-Islamic Jihad attack against an IDF outpost, apparently an attempted kidnapping, ended with six terrorists dead. No Israelis were wounded.
"I estimate that the terrorists attempted to capture the army position, and possibly to kidnap soldiers and carry out an attack in Kibbutz Kissufim as well." So said IDF Southern Brigade Commander Col. Shlomi Dahan, speaking with Arutz-7's Haggai Huberman.
Dahan spoke after IDF troops succeeded, based on intelligence information procured by the General Security Service, in thwarting a major terrorist offensive in Gaza Thursday afternoon. The incident occurred around 3 PM, when two Arab vehicles, a truck and a jeep, were seen speeding towards an IDF outpost alongside the border fence near Kissufim. The Kissufim Crossing was where the Jews of Gush Katif entered and left Gaza up until the Disengagement just over two years ago. Kibbutz Kissufim, inside Israel's pre-'67 borders, is now the westernmost Jewish civilian presence in the area.
IDF forces identified the vehicles some 300 meters from the fence. Israel Air Force aircraft, which were in the air based on an early warning, attacked the vehicles, causing a great explosion. Several additional explosions then occurred in the jeep, indicating the presence of hundreds of kilograms of explosives.
Two terrorists were killed on the spot, and two others who began to escape were killed from the air. Golani Brigade fighters then entered and began combing the area. Two surviving terrorists opened fire, but the soldiers stormed and killed them. The IDF later reported that some of the dead terrorists were wearing explosives vests, and others had hand grenades and rocket-propelled grenades.
The Al-Quds Brigades (Islamic Jihad) and the Al-Aksa Brigades (Fatah) announced afterwards that the objective was to carry out an attack in the IDF outpost. Arab sources say that a seventh terrorist escaped.
Col. Dahan praised his troops: "The force, under the command of the regiment commander, acted excellently. They responded quickly and correctly, and stormed the terrorists even though they were under fire."
Four Terrorists Killed Elsewhere
In a separate incident earlier Thursday, an IDF officer was lightly wounded and four terrorists were killed during an anti-Kassam rocket operation. The incident took place in the Khan Yunis area as IDF troops sought out Kassam launchers. The officer was wounded when PA terrorists fired an anti-tank missile at an IDF unit in the field, and he was evacuated to Soroka Hospital in Be'er Sheva.
One IDF soldier was lightly wounded when PA terrorists fired eight mortar shells towards Sderot on Thursday evening. He was evacuated to Barzilai Hospital with shrapnel injuries.
In the Shomron (Samaria) terrorist capital Jenin on Thursday morning, Israeli forces apprehended a wanted Islamic Jihad terrorist. He was captured with a Kalachnikov rifle, two grenades and a combat vest on his person. Over 30 explosive devices and other ammunition was found in his car. The Israeli forces were attacked by a mob of Arabs during the course of the arrest. The mob hurled two explosive devices at the Israelis, none of whom were hurt.
IDF soldiers escaped injury Thursday night when Palestinian terrorists set off an explosive device during an IDF patrol near Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem.
A mob of Arabs threw heavy rocks at an Israeli bus late Thursday afternoon near the Arab village of Beit Omar, between Hevron and Gush Etzion. No injuries were reported. Despite increased IDF efforts to arrest the perpetrators of rock attacks, attacks continue throughout Judea and Samaria.
Twenty-four wanted terrorists were arrested by IDF forces over the course of Wednesday and Thursday nights in various Judea/Samaria areas.
#2
The Al-Quds Brigades (Islamic Jihad) and the Al-Aksa Brigades (Fatah) announced afterwards that the objective was to carry out an attack in the IDF outpost. Arab sources say that a seventh terrorist escaped.
Man, I'll bet he gets' lotsa chicks...
Hey, Fatah? Ain't they the folks we send all that money to? Y'know, the good terrorists?
Sounds like that's working out real well...
Palestinian members of the Hamas Executive Force use their batons as they detain a Fatah supporter during clashes at a protest following Muslim prayers in Gaza City, Friday, Sept. 7, 2007. Hamas security forces armed with rifles and clubs beat Fatah supporters trying to hold street prayers to protest the Islamic group's rule in Gaza, witnesses said. Hamas men also accosted at least seven journalists and detained four.
Gaza's favorite crime family in the news...
Gaza Ma'an Ambulance services found the body of 24-year old Tarazan Doghmush in near Gaza Valley in the Nuseirat refugee camp. Tarzan Doghmush is dead! Alert the media!
"Ahhhhhhhhh-ah-ahhhhhhh .... [BANG BANG BANG] ah-ah-ah .. rosebud! [rattle]"
Palestinian medical sources said that Doghmush appeared to have been killed instantly by a single bullet in the head fired at close range. Look how dey massacred mah boy! Well, shot him in da head. But I always wanted ta say that... Masked men were reported to have been abducted by masked men before being killed. Masked men on masked men crime. That sounds...confusing.
"Hey! Grab him!"
"Grab who?"
"The guy in the mask! "
"Not ME you friggin idiot!"
Doghmush's family has been linked to the Army of Islam, the mysterious group that claimed responsibility for kidnapping BBC journalist Alan Johnston, holding him captive for almost 16 weeks. But they "was good people". Right, Alan?
Also Friday, a former member of a feared Fatah security force was found shot dead in Gaza, medics said, and a Fatah official charged Hamas with killing him.
I guess they ain't feared that much...
Tarazan Doghmush was found dead Friday, the morning after he and his brother were kidnapped by unknown assailants, medics said. His brother is currently in intensive care at a Gaza hospital, the medics said. No further information was immediately available about the brother or how he was hurt.
Slip on a bar of soap? Bee sting? Running with scissors?
Doghmush was a member of a Fatah-affiliated force, Preventive Security, before Fatah lost control of Gaza in June. The force was especially hated by Hamas men because of its role in crackdowns against the Islamic organization.
Ah, Ye Olde Payback...
A Fatah official blamed Hamas for Doghmush's death, charging it was part of an arrest campaign against Fatah loyalists since the Hamas victory. The Fatah official spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared retribution from Hamas.
Smart move...
Hamas official Naser Khalifa confirmed Doghmush was killed, but denied his group was responsible. The charge was part of a Fatah smear campaign against Hamas, he said.
#7
They should be wearing masks with crests or heralds on them to prevent friendly mask-on-mask crime. Since they are stuck in the Middle Ages (at best), they should take a leaf out of the history books.
Posted by: Dar ||
09/07/2007 14:22 Comments ||
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#8
Masked men were reported to have been abducted by masked men before being killed.
Wanna leave me out of it? I was never there, I've never been there, I'll never be there.
Granted, me and Tarzan had issues, but...and I've got an alibi.
#9
Reminds me of the baptism sequence from the Godfather where Michael takes control. Michael becomes godfather to his nephew. Meanwhile, his henchmen were assassinating the Don of every rival family.
The black-uniformed raiders roared into this Thai Muslim village, firing assault rifles and hurling grenades from a pickup truck at a group of teenagers relaxing near the mosque. When the attack was over, five of the youths lay dead.
As they have done in the past, authorities initially said the killers were Muslim insurgents terrorizing their own people in their separatist war against the Buddhist-dominated central government. But then the official line on the village raid changed, with senior military commanders shifting suspicion to Buddhist vigilantes and heightening fears that the four-year-old conflict in Thailand's southern Muslim provinces is entering an ominous new phase.
Mohammed Kadir, a local government leader in Kolomudo, told the Associated Press that he doubted the raiders were Muslim insurgents disguised in military garb as authorities claimed in other cases. He instead thought they could have been Buddhist vigilantes in official-looking uniforms or security forces, which long have been accused of torturing and secretly killing insurgent suspects. Three days before the May 31 raid, a bomb in a nearby market killed four Buddhists, including two children. No formal charges have been lodged. Mr. Kadir and police Capt. Somchai Chuaybamrung gave similar accounts of the Kolomudo assault.
Continued on Page 49
#1
"We don't shoot innocent Muslims. We only shoot insurgents," he said. "They deserve to be killed."
heh. works for me
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/07/2007 8:34 Comments ||
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#2
Wow. Classic Associated Press...
firing assault rifles and hurling grenades from a pickup truck at a group of teenagers relaxing near the mosque.
with senior military commanders shifting suspicion to Buddhist vigilantes and heightening fears that the four-year-old conflict in Thailand's southern Muslim provinces is entering an ominous new phase.
Buddhist vigilantes in official-looking uniforms or security forces, which long have been accused of torturing and secretly killing insurgent suspects.
But in several recent cases of violence against Muslims, suspicion has fallen on shadowy Buddhist vigilante groups.
The stated purpose was self-defense, but the result is a region awash with guns and mounting accusations that Thais United, virtually unknown to the Thai public and mentioned only vaguely in the local press, has become a death squad.
Shinnawat, the military commander, said the government will play into the insurgents' hands if it sponsors revenge killings. "If a civil war breaks out, the military will have to use force to stop it and a lot of people will die," he said. "The insurgents will say that the Thai government's hands are full of blood and it has no right to govern the Muslims. Then, it will be justifiable to call for U.N. intervention."
So don't fight back, folks. Continue to roll over and die. It appears that's the AP angle to the story...
#3
The terrorism has been escalating for 4 years now and the gubmint sits on its hands. Why be surprised when the Buddhists start vigilante groups ? The Buddhists get it. I'm waiting for the European Christians to get it.
#5
Gen. Phitak said trained members return to their villages to set up patrols>>...set up drop zones, receive re-supply drops, conduct long-range reconnaissance patrols, set up raids and ambushes, train Civilian Irregular Defense Group members. It's all good.
#7
When the Columbian government was seen as ineffective, compromised, or otherwise disinterested in the consequences of FARC, it generated a similar response. It's why most countries would rather see their own population sacrificed to the thugs, murderers and terrorists, than acknowledge the right of the people to bear arms. The enemy at least, even by its destructive actions, acknowledges the authority of the state.
#8
It's gotta be pretty damn bad when the Buddhists start whacking people. I guess they got tired of having their daughters' throats slit on the way to the (blowed up, burned out) school, huh?
Last part of this post updates yesterday's.
A villager and a police officer were killed and two soldiers were severely wounded in two separate bomb attacks in the violence-ridden southern provinces on Thursday.
Suemae Yoonu, 38, was killed in a bombing in a rubber plantation in Narathiwat's Sukhirin district. He lost his arms and died on the way to hospital. The remote-controlled bomb, weighing about five kilogrammes, was detonated when he was at work tapping rubber in the plantation. The bomb, hidden underground, was connected to a coconut shell latex collection container.
In a separate incident, three security personnel were seriously wounded in Yala when they were inspecting a bomb site. The first bomb exploded at an intersection in Krongpenang sub-district but no one was wounded. Police officers and military personnel rushed to the scene to collect evidence and were caught by the second bomb blast which instantly cut off the right leg of Pol. Senior Sgt-Maj. Nirand Kunprach. Sergeant-Major Nirand died in hospital shortly afterward.
Two soldiers were also seriously injured. They were rushed to hospital. Suspected terrorists insurgents detonated the first remote-controlled bomb to entrap the officials,who responded to the incident, and the terrorists insurgents laying in ambush activated the second bomb by cellphone signal.
Lebanon's judicial authorities charged six Palestinians on Thursday for their alleged involvement in an attack on a U.N. peacekeeping vehicle in south Lebanon last July, judicial sources said. They were charged with conducting terrorist activities and attempting to kill U.N. peacekeepers. Three of the Palestinians were charged in absentia, while the other three have been arrested, the sources said.
Last July a small bomb went off near a U.N. military police observation post involving the Tanzanian contingent. The explosion caused limited damage to a U.N. four-wheel drive vehicle. A car bomb killed six members of UNIFIL's Spanish battalion in the south in June. No one has yet been charged with that attack. But the Spanish government said it suspected it was the work of al Qaeda-inspired Islamist militants.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has grown to 13,300 troops and naval personnel from 31 countries under a U.N. Security Council resolution that halted last year's conflict between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11137 views]
Top|| File under: Usbat al-Ansar
(Xinhua) -- The Lebanese army on Thursday continued to hunt down Fatah al-Islam militants in northern Lebanon, killing one and capturing five, the local Naharnet news website reported. It said one militant was killed and three others were arrested following clashes in Abdeh north of the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared in northern Lebanon. Another two Fatah al-Islam militants were captured after a chase in Wadi Jamous, also in northern Lebanon, said the report.
On Thursday, Lebanese troops also began erecting barbed wire around the Nahr al-Bared camp to prevent anyone from leaving or entering, it added.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11127 views]
Top|| File under: Fatah al-Islam
#2
"Lebanese army hunts down remnants of Fatah al-Islam, killing one"
It's a start....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/07/2007 15:55 Comments ||
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#3
Fred - not complaining, but I think the best possible photograph for this and similar articles would be a dead moose. I tried to find one I could download, but was unsuccessful.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/07/2007 17:08 Comments ||
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According to a Western diplomat in Damascus, IAF planes which had allegedly infiltrated into Syrian airspace overnight Wednesday were most likely positioned in the area to take photographs, Israel Radio reported on Thursday night. After Syrian aerial defense systems identified the jets, the pilots were forced to throw bombs and fuel tanks out of the planes, said the official. The IDF spokesperson declined to comment, saying that the army does not respond "to such reports."
Residents of the Abyad area, the location in northern Syria where the IAF was reported to have flown over the previous night, claimed to have found several fuel tanks that the Israeli pilots had allegedly thrown out of their planes.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/07/2007 00:00 ||
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[11127 views]
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#1
Just tossed them out a window, I suppose.
Posted by: Scott R. ||
09/07/2007 0:55 Comments ||
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#2
Fuel tanks? I'd have thought those would be rather more securely attached than even Israeli superhero strength --however much aided by the adrenaline of panic -- could quickly detach. But then, I'm not very good at things mechanical, so it's likely I'm missing a critical factor.
#3
TW, additional fuel tanks are carried externally on underwing pylons. Also known as "drop tanks". Can be ejected in combat to improve manuverability.
Posted by: Steve ||
09/07/2007 7:33 Comments ||
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#4
Also, recce planes generally do not carry bombs. They might have a few defensive missiles, but not bombs.
1) Loiter time. For monitoring a larger area or/and over a longer period of time. Tough over a defended place like Syria without Stealth technology though.
2) They were on their way BACK from someplace on the opposite side of Syria from them, and they had needed the extra fuel load to get there and back.
ABC News has obtained a transcript of the latest taped message from Osama bin Laden. Sources tell ABC News the tape is approximately 30 minutes long, and does not contain overt threats to the United States. They also say references to the Iraq war indicate the tape was made in 2007.
According to the transcript, bin Laden opens with "praise to Allah" and his "law of retaliation" -- "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth and the killer is killed." He says President Bush's words echo "neoconservatives like Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Richard Perle." From here on it sounds like a Democratic Underground post
Bin Laden also spoke to the ongoing situation in Iraq throughout the tape.
"People of America: the world is following your news in regards to your invasion of Iraq, for people have recently come to know that, after several years of tragedies of this war, the vast majority of you want it stopped. Thus, you elected the Democratic Party for this purpose, but the Democrats haven't made a move worth mentioning. On the contrary, they continue to agree to the spending of tens of billions to continue the killing and war there." See?
The transcript indicates that bin Laden refers to a statement from a U.S. soldier in Iraq, from an interview taped by a British journalist. Quotes from the interview aired in a July report on ABC News.
"It would benefit you to listen to the poignant messages of your soldiers in Iraq, who are paying -- with their blood, nerves and scattered limbs -- the price for these sorts of irresponsible statements," the transcript says.
"Among them is the eloquent message of Joshua which he sent by way of the media, in which he wipes the tears from his eyes and describes American politicians in harsh terms and invites them to join him there for a few days," the statement continues. Binny must have cable television in his cave
According to the transcript, bin Laden says there are two ways to end the war:
"The first is from our side, and it is to continue to escalate the killing and fighting against you."
The second is to do away with the American democratic system of government. "It has now become clear to you and the entire world the impotence of the democratic system and how it plays with the interests of the peoples and their blood by sacrificing soldiers and populations to achieve the interests of the major corporations."
The rambling transcript also mentions French President Sarkozy, which suggests the tape was made after Sarkozy's election in May. Bin Laden goes on to call Noam Chomsky "among one of the most capable of those from your own side," and mentions global warming and "the Kyoto accord."
He also speaks to recent issues grabbing headlines in the United States, referring to "the reeling of many of you under the burden of interest-related debts, insane taxes and real estate mortgages; global warming and its woes..." Anyone here think the real Binny really would care about sub-prime mortgages? Me neither...
"To conclude," bin Laden says, "I invite you to embrace Islam." He goes on to say: "There are no taxes in Islam, but rather there is a limited Zakaat [alms] totaling 2.5 percent." "Vote for Binny in 2008, a real tax cutter!"
#5
My guess is the transcript is a fake. Someone played a game on ABC. Binny praising a Jew named Chomsky? Talking about why Islam is better because of taxes?
#6
Want a Friday afternoon laugh? Go read that transcript! We are doomed, I tell you, doomed, doomed, doomed. And he keeps talking about Rumsfeld. I think the Democrats wrote it for him.
#9
Great comment from Captain's Quarter's commenters:
Posted by RD | September 7, 2007 3:15 PM
Osama must have signed that stop the war petition and now he's getting e-mails from Dean and McMahon. I think that's word for word what their last e-mails to me said./s
#10
The Ghost of Osama tape is right out of the dailykos/al-Rooters playbook. Photoshopped scam du jour. abc should be explaining this tripe to a Grand Jury.
#12
I was watching my local news for the weather report and didn't change soon enough and saw the first part of CBS News. They've accepted it as Absolutely 100% Genuine. Oh I hope it's a scam and they are caught with their pants down again!
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
09/07/2007 18:58 Comments ||
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#13
Scrappleface: Bush Mulls Bin Laden Offer To Convert To Islam
Just hours after the release of al Qaeda leader Usama bin Ladens latest video message inviting all Americans to convert to Islam, U.S. President George said he would seriously consider the offer, because it sure would simplify the war in Iraq.
If I convert to Islam and order all of our troops to do the same, said Mr. Bush, we can stay in Iraq indefinitely, drop the restrictive rules of engagement, save a lot of money by using cheap, unguided bombs, clear neighborhoods flat out, blow up mosques with impunity and still go to heaven not to mention that Id get more favorable coverage from the U.S. news media.
The president added that he might convert to Islam just to find out what its like to be a man who wears a dress and a bonnet and dyes his hair like a girl.
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/07/2007 18:59 Comments ||
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#17
"Escalate the killing and fighting against you....Doing away with the American democratic system of government" > Moud = Radical Iran and Terror suggroups doing the first, anti-Amer Amerikan Pols, Activists, and anti-US Pan-Globalists doing the second. *'TIS CLEAR [again] that the WOT > WAR FOR AMER SURVIVAL, EXISTENCE, + IDENTITY, ETC, WILFULLY BUT CORRECTLY INTENDED AND PREMISED AS WAR TO THE DEATH REGARDLESS OF TIME AND REALITY.
INDIANA JONES AND LAST CRUSADE > "War/Race against EVIL - in this sort of race, theres no silver cup or prize for coming in second". NO GLORY OR JUSTICE OR GOODNESS, ONLY DEATH, DARKNESS AND SLAVERY.
#18
Mark Twain said that: "The secret source of Humor itself is not joy but sorrow."
If I convert to Islam and order all of our troops to do the same, said Mr. Bush, we can stay in Iraq indefinitely, drop the restrictive rules of engagement, save a lot of money by using cheap, unguided bombs, clear neighborhoods flat out, blow up mosques with impunity and still go to heaven not to mention that Id get more favorable coverage from the U.S. news media.
Saddest/Funniest of all is how the above is actually true. As a Muslim, Bush could commit every atrocity in the book and still have the press on his side. While I'm sure none of this escaped the folks at Scrappleface, it is still poignant commentary on just how skewed this entire situation is.
This is the only part that concerns me:
The video appeared to have been recently made, since bin Laden refers to the Democratic Party's congressional victory in last fall's election and to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was elected in May.
If voice print analysis shows that this really is bin Laden making reference to such recent events, then the turd is still alive and we need to change that, STAT.
Osama bin Laden will release a new video in the coming days ahead of the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in what would be the first new images of the terror mastermind in nearly three years, al-Qaida's media arm announced Thursday.
Analysts noted that al-Qaida tends to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary with a slew of messages, and the Department of Homeland Security said it had no credible information warning of an imminent threat to the United States.
Still, bin Laden's appearance would be significant. The al-Qaida leader has not appeared in new video footage since October 2004, and he has not put out a new audiotape in more than a year, his longest period without a message.
One difference in his appearance was immediately obvious. The announcement had a still photo from the coming video, showing bin Laden addressing the camera, his beard fully black. In his past videos, bin Laden's beard was almost entirely gray with dark streaks.
Bin Laden's beard appears to have been dyed, a popular practice among Arab leaders, said Rita Katz, director of the SITE Institute, a Washington-based group that monitors terror messages.
"I think it works for their (al-Qaida's) benefit that he looks young, he looks healthy," Katz said.
The announcement and photo appeared in a banner advertisement on an Islamic militant Web site where al-Qaida's media arm, Al-Sahab, frequently posts messages.
"Soon, God willing, a videotape from the lion sheik Osama bin Laden, God preserve him," the advertisement read, signed by Al-Sahab. Such announcements are usually put out one to three days before the video is posted on the Web.
IntelCenter, which monitors Islamic Web sites and analyzes terror threats, said the video was expected within the next 72 hours, before the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 suicide hijacker attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The anniversary has always been a major media event for al-Qaida a chance for it to drum up support among extremists, tout itself as the leading militant group and show off its continued survival.
"They've always gone out of their way to commemorate it," said Ben Venzke, chief executive officer of IntelCenter, which is based in Alexandria, Va. "Historically the anniversary of 9-11 has never been drawn to attacks. It's drawn to video releases."
But the fact that bin Laden is delivering the message is significant, he said. Whether the message will indicate a potential attack will depend on what bin Laden says.
Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said he could not confirm the existence of a tape, "and there is no credible information at this time warning of an imminent threat to the homeland." But he said increased activity overseas and recent arrests of militants in Germany reinforce the department's assessment that the country is currently in a period of increased risk.
If bin Laden does appear in new footage, it would be the first images of him since an Oct. 29, 2004 videotape, just before the U.S. presidential elections. In that appearance three years ago, he said America could avoid another 9-11 style attack if it stopped threatening Muslims.
The new video would also end the longest period bin Laden has gone without releasing a message. His last audiotape was on July 1, 2006, in which he welcomed new leader of al-Qaida in Iraq succeeding the slain Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Bin Laden went silent for a similar long stretch before from Dec. 28, 2004 to Jan. 19, 2006. That absence sparked widespread speculation he was ill, wounded or possibly dead.
There has been little such speculation since then. U.S. officials have repeatedly said over the past year they believe the al-Qaida leader is alive. He is thought to be hiding in the tribal regions of western Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan.
During bin Laden's silence, his deputy Egyptian-born Ayman al-Zawahri has been frequently issuing videos and audiotapes.
Al-Zawahri appeared in a 2006 video marking the 9-11 anniversary. An anniversary video in 2003 showed footage of bin Laden and al-Zawahri walking through mountain paths, with voice-over messages from both leaders.
Now has anybody heard of the $700 million "osama put" that has allegedly been wagered on global indices?
Someone placed a bet and if the global markets fall by 30% or more before Sept 30 expiry, that person (or state) will make a LOT of cash. If markets don't fall they will lose a lot of moolah.
Binny laden bet on the options markets before 9/11 so it could be similar. Or not. Or could be a state-based actor: russia? china? norks?
Well, have read a little more and think it's possible the ol' "bin laden put" story is a hoax.
I think it went round the email and was picked up by the TV news where I saw it. Think it most likely just mischievous spam that made it into the Mainstream Media.
Oh well, 9/11 might be important date for Binny Laden but he can laugh it up in his cave because the free world also remembers....
And Laden has now become a laughing stock.
Anybody see the Chaser boy's prank at APEC on the news? Julian Morrow was dressed up as Binny Laden... as a joke, he is now a parody figure
#6
The pic looks photo-shopped. Everything can be faked these days. He has already had internal bleeding from kidney failure, and the same blood infection that killed Christopher Reeve. I doubt that he is alive.
#7
He has already had internal bleeding from kidney failure, and the same blood infection that killed Christopher Reeve.
Oh, McZoid, you're such an optimist!
Posted by: Mike ||
09/07/2007 6:16 Comments ||
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#8
The picture looks unhealthy, to me. The beard is black and neatly trimmed, but the face looks very drawn -- compare the nose particularly to previous photos.
Glad you're back, anon1! Lots of new Rantburgers have joined the conversation since last you posted, a very good thing, I think. :-D
#15
He appears to be wearing the same clothes, three years later. If he knew he was on the way out, he probably made a lot of video. Maybe even wheeled in the make-up team for the '07 realease.
"OK Osama, let's try it with the black beard"
#16
"Popcorn time - new bin Laden video to hit theatres everywhere"
I'll lay in extra supplies and crank up the industrial-strength poppers.... :-D
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/07/2007 10:33 Comments ||
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#17
Regarding the Bin Laden bet:
If the Market doesn't fall he doesn't lose alot of money. If they are very "out of the money" they aren't worth very much. It's not much different than buying a lottery ticket.
Al
P.S. They need to get a better Photoshop guy for Bin Ladin's beard.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
09/07/2007 10:57 Comments ||
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#18
Frozen Al,
If you read the forum post, it's a way to raise money by selling unlikely puts to raise liquidity. Some counter-party, perhaps the bank that owns the fund selling the puts has picked them up.
#21
If bin Laden does not make specific real-time verbal reference to current events that authenticate via acoustic voice analysis then the sucker is wormfood.
Our security agencies had damn well better do overlay comparisons with all previous speech segments to determine if this is just recycled audio track. If it is they'd also damned well better publicize the shit out of it so this world finally begins to doubt bin Laden's continued existence.
This is a propaganda war and the West still acts like it's policing a bar room brawl.
It quoted a terrorism expert as saying al-Qaeda might be trying to plug the leak of the video. The expert said the US was unlikely to have the technology or desire to cause the closures.
The White House has the tape and is studying it...
#30
I looked at the two photos. I don't believe the two photos are of the same individual, even if the one on the right had supposedly been taken when Bin Laden was in his 40s. The nose is different (the one in the portrait on the left is crooked, obviously been broken; the nose is wider), the eyebrows are different (the ones on the left are relatively flat, the ones on the right are arched), and the cheekbones, eyes, forehead and hair are all different. Some things change when one gets older, but unless bin Laden has undergone some radical facial reconstruction, these two photographs are of two different people.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/07/2007 17:26 Comments ||
Top||
The video appeared to have been recently made, since bin Laden refers to the Democratic Party's congressional victory in last fall's election and to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was elected in May.
That being the case, it is high time the NSA or someone does voice track analysis on this to determine its authenticity. If this maggot is still alive, we need to find him.
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(AKI) - More than 40 suspected Taliban fighters have been killed in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, according to a statement released by the US-led coalition in Afghanistan. They were reportedly killed in a fierce battle on Wednesday near the village of Alekowzi in the district of Shah Wali Kot and none of the coalition troops or Afghan soldiers were injured in the violence. 
(SomaliNet) Fresh clashes erupted near the Mother and Child SOS hospital in north of the Somalia capital Mogadishu on Thursday night between the government troops and the local insurgents. Residents told Somalinet that the fighting began around 10:30pm tonight as explosions and exchange of gunfire could be heard in the area. The latest confrontation came when local insurgents fired rocked propelled grenades into the government position in the former fragrance factory where the soldiers responded with heavy weaponry. There is no immediate casualty from the latest gun battle. 
(SomaliNet) Somalia police spokesman Abdi Wahid Mohamed Hussein said on Wednesday the security forces killed eight of the local insurgents and restored the situation normal after several hours of gun battle inside Mogadishus Bakara market. Mr. Mohamed told the local media that three soldiers were also wounded in the raid which caused business suspension all the day. 
(Xinhua) -- Fifteen people were killed and scores of others wounded in a suicide bombing attack in eastern Algeria on Thursday, local television reported. The attack took place at the town of Batna, some 450 km east of the capital of Algiers, apparently targeting President Abdelaziz Bouteflika who had planned to visit the region. The bomber who was among the crowd waiting the president detonated the explosives he was carrying before the president arrived, witnesses said. An initial report put the toll at 11 killed. 
Russias security forces on Thursday imposed a military lockdown on part of Ingushetia, a Russian province bordering Chechnya, following mounting unrest in the troubled, mostly Muslim area. The federal security service, or FSB, designated the northern outskirts of Karabulak, a town in the centre of Ingushetia, as a zone of counter-terrorism operations, Interfax news agency reported.
(AKI) - France's anti-terrorism forces are on a "total war-footing", following the thwarting in Germany of an alleged al-Qaeda plot this week, a senior French official said Thursday. Foreign ministry spokeswoman, Pascale Andreani, said that the three arrests of suspected terrorists in Germany on Wednesday and a similar operation earlier in the week by authorities in Denmark demonstrated the "efficacy" of cross-border anti-terrorism probes.
Suspected militants blew up a tailors shop on Thursday in northwest Pakistan for making Western clothes, an official said. The pre-dawn blast also damaged two other nearby shops in Kasi, a village in the tribally governed Bajur region, the AP quoted Mohammed Khan, a local government official, as saying. No one was hurt. Khan said militants recently warned the tailor to stop making Western-style clothes, which they view as un-Islamic.
(Xinhua) -- At least 6 people were killed when a security forces gunship helicopter fired at a vehicle in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region on Thursday, a local TV channel DAWN NEWS reported. The vehicle was completely destroyed near Mir Ali in the firing, a major town in North Waziristan. The security forces also fired at two vehicles in the same area on Wednesday, but no one was injured, according to a report of News Network International (NNI) news agency. 
Four U.S. Marines were killed in fighting in Anbar province, and three soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in northern Iraq, the military said Friday. 
FALLUJAH -- The last battalion of Iraqi soldiers with 2nd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Army Division, withdrew from the Anbar Province city of Fallujah, Sept. 1, leaving the citys security and stability in the hands of the local police and government. 
(Xinhua) - Iraqi security forces in Mosul of northern Nineveh province said Thursday they detained a key suspect for the bombing of Samarra's al-Askari shrine, a provincial police source said. "The suspect, with the name of Aws Tariq al-Abbasi, is a former chief of a security force tasked with protecting al-Askari shrine in Samara," Brigadier Said al-Jubouri, head of the police media office, told Xinhua. 
A joint Fatah-Islamic Jihad attack against an IDF outpost, apparently an attempted kidnapping, ended with six terrorists dead. No Israelis were wounded.
(Xinhua) -- The Lebanese army on Thursday continued to hunt down Fatah al-Islam militants in northern Lebanon, killing one and capturing five, the local Naharnet news website reported. It said one militant was killed and three others were arrested following clashes in Abdeh north of the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared in northern Lebanon. Another two Fatah al-Islam militants were captured after a chase in Wadi Jamous, also in northern Lebanon, said the report. 
Osama bin Laden will release a new video in the coming days ahead of the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in what would be the first new images of the terror mastermind in nearly three years, al-Qaida's media arm announced Thursday. 
