#3
From Seafarious's final link, More Better Lies:
Note from John: A few people have inferred from a timestamp on the CIA's website that this logo is relatively new. It is not. I came across it for the first time in 2003 or 2004.
Posted by Snaque Gleans4607 2007-10-23 02:22|| Front Page|| ||Comments Top
ANSWER: It is the belief or attitude that those individuals who are considered members of the elite a select group of people with outstanding personal abilities, intellect, wealth, specialized training or experience, or other distinctive attributes are those whose views on a matter are to be taken the most seriously or carry the most weight; whose views and/or actions are most likely to be constructive to society as a whole; or whose extraordinary skills, abilities or wisdom render them especially fit to govern....or collect and analyze intelligence.
U.S. intelligence in Afghanistan has identified the most dangerous new Taliban leader as 40 year old Siraj Haqqani. His father was a leader in the 1980s fight against the Russians. Haqqani belongs to a Pushtun tribe which lies astride the Afghan-Pakistan border, and has a long tradition of fighting outsiders. Haqqani has a $200,000 price on his head, and runs his Taliban crew more like a gangster, than a religious leader.
Haqqani is the most notable of the "new generation" Taliban leaders. The new, younger, guys are pushing aside the 1980s generation, and advocating greater use of sheer terror, and paying more attention to making money via drug smuggling, kidnapping and whatever brings in cash. As has happened to many revolutionary organizations in the past (like the Irish Republican Army and the Italian Mafia), the Taliban is turning into a purely criminal organization, with less emphasis on the original goals.
#1
the Taliban is turning into a purely criminal organization, with less emphasis on the original goals
This sort of journalistic twaddle gives undue credit and misallocated prestige to the Taliban. What sort of organization were they before realigning on criminal activity? The implication is one of Religious Resistance as opposed to purely terrorist operations that have now diversified into other equally criminal activities.
The only difference is an ostensible shift from committing crimes against humanity over to those of a more pedestrian and financially lucrative sort.
Afghanistans Taliban do not attack outside Afghanistan and were not involved in an attack on former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in Karachi last week, an insurgent commander said on Monday.
"Wudn't us. We got more class dan dat!"
Around 139 people were killed in two blasts that targeted Bhuttos welcome rally on October 18. She later said a brotherly country had warned her that suicide squads from the Taliban, Al Qaeda, Pakistani Taliban and Karachi-based militants were out to get her. She also alluded to enemies in the government that backed militants and were plotting against her.
But a commander of Afghanistans Taliban, Mullah Hayatullah Khan, denied involvement. The Afghan Taliban are not involved in attacks in foreign countries, Khan said via telephone from Quetta an undisclosed location. I want to tell you, we are not involved in the attack on Benazir Bhuttos convoy, he said.
This article starring:
Mullah Hayatullah Khan
Taliban
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
The Afghan Taliban are not involved in attacks in foreign countries,
A group of French intellectuals are demanding that Ayaan Hirsi Ali be given honorary French citizenship and that France provide the former politician with the protection that the Netherlands no longer wants to provide now that she lives in the US.
In a petition in the newspaper Libération the intellectuals express annoyance at the "unacceptable cowardice of a European government." The petition is signed by among others philosophers Bernard-Henri Lévy, Alain Finkielkraut and André Glucksmann. "Europe was the cradle of the Enlightenment tradition," says the declaration, "and Western values must guarantee freedom of expression."
#6
No surprise, they are the Three Non-Stooges of France's public intelligentsia. The rest of Sartre's heirs would no doubt love to see Ali die screaming with sharp things in her head.
Posted by: E. Brown ||
10/23/2007 13:28 Comments ||
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#7
"It's even funnier coming from three Frenchmen!"
How long before its noted that none of them have "French" last names?
#8
Why, you're right, Liberalhawk. They look like Joooos. But they're point about the "unacceptable cowardice of a European government" is nonetheless right on.
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
10/23/2007 17:26 Comments ||
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"I hope that with this apology I will become as insignificant as I should be."
At last! He says something we can all agree with.
We hope so too, but just to be sure, it might help if he were to resign, move out of state, and change his name. Keep on it, Fortney, and never stop striving for insignificance. You can never be too insignificant.
Posted by: Mike ||
10/23/2007 15:17 ||
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#1
I'd make my parents apologize for giving me the faggy name "Fortney".
Wonder if he got his ass kicked regularly back in high school?
#2
He definitely seems to do a lot of overcompensating.
During some committee meeting or other, he was reported as telling a fellow Congressman to "Make me. Do you think you can come over here and make me 'pipe down'?"
#3
He is probably the most unliked Democrat among the Democrats. That gives you some idea of what a piece of maggot larvae he really is.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/23/2007 15:53 Comments ||
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#4
Oh, one other thing about Stark. Go to his congressional website and hit the "Kids" link. There you will read and see his attitude toward military recruitment. He gives you a form you can fill out to "opt-out" from your high school giving the recruiters your name, address and phone number as provided for in the No Child Left Behind legislation. What a dirt-bag.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/23/2007 15:57 Comments ||
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#5
As a vet, I don't accept his apology. It is nothing more than political bullshit to try to cover his sorry ass. He doesn't respect us, he doesn't respect his country's effort in a time of war and he doesn't support his country.
Fuck him and I hope he gets run over by a cement mixer.
LONDON: Despite her all efforts to portray herself as a messiah of democracy, former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto is no Aung Suu Kyi, ex-wife of cricketerturned-politician Imran Khan, Jemima Khan has said.
"This (Benazir) is the woman who was twice dismissed on corruption charges . She went into self-imposed exile while investigations continued into millions she had allegedly stashed away into Swiss bank accounts ($1.5 billion by the reckoning of President Pervez Musharraf s own "National Accountability Bureau" , Jemima wrote in The Telegraph .
Suu Kyi is a pro-democracy activist and leader of the National League for Democracy in Myanmar, and a noted prisoner of conscience and advocate of nonviolent resistance.
Jemima further says that Benazir was able to return to Pakistan because Musharrafs future depends on the grassroots die-hard supporters inherited from her fathers party. As a result, Musharraf, who in his first months in power declared it that his express intention was to wipe out corruption, has dropped all charges against Benazir, she added.
Posted by: john frum ||
10/23/2007 07:05 ||
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#1
Poor Imran Khan has never gotten over Jemima (daughter of British billionaire Sir James Goldsmith) leaving him for Hugh Grant.
Posted by: john frum ||
10/23/2007 7:11 Comments ||
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#2
But, what does Mrs. Butterworth say?
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
10/23/2007 11:36 Comments ||
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#3
Setting the stage for MADONNA = Josephine B. and her Bonaparte, etal. world siblings-kiddies. D *** NGED GLAMAZONS, WHAT WRONG WID AU NATURALE!
Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has said that the three names she sent to President General Pervez Musharraf of people with powerful positions in government who she accused of plotting against her included a close friend of the president.
Asked in an interview on NBC Today whether it was not risky to name a close friend of the president as being someone whos plotting against her, Ms Bhutto said: Well, at that time I did not know whether there would be an assassination attempt that I would survive. And I wanted to leave on record the suspects. I also didnt know that he was a friend of General Musharraf. But I asked myself that even if I knew that he was a friend and I thought of him as a suspect, would I have not written? No, I would have written.
Warning came from Muslim country: Ms Bhutto said a Muslim country friendly to Pakistan gave information to the government and to General Musharraf which he shared with her about suicide bombers plotting an assassination attempt. She said that she knew an assassination attempt would be made against her and that people would be at risk. General Musharraf had asked me to delay my return to Pakistan. And he had very kindly shared with me information that he had received about four possible suicide squads being sent to kill me. But I felt that if I did not return then they would threaten me the next time and the next time. And that the objective was to stop the transition to democracy, not just my return on October 18. So, we took a lot of security precautions. And we were confident about the caution as much as a person can be.
Asked whether she regretted coming back now seeing what had happened, Ms Bhutto replied in the negative. The people who came knew that there would be a risk. They put their lives on the line. And I put my life on the line. And we did it because we believe in a cause. We want to save Pakistan. And we think saving Pakistan comes by saving democracy, she said.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
While this is certainly not proof of any direct complicity upon Musharref's part, it is yet one more example of how he runs with the fox and hunts with the hounds. Only RasPutin is more of a jonesing crack whore when it comes to playing both sides of the street. We'll all please try to ignore the stellar job of this that Bush has been doing of late.
#2
Asked whether she regretted coming back now seeing what had happened, Ms Bhutto replied in the negative. The people who came knew that there would be a risk. They put their lives on the line. And I put my life on the line. And we did it because we believe in a cause. We want to save Pakistan. And we think saving Pakistan comes by saving democracy, she said.
Damn. Just, damn. If I though Pakistan could be savedand, like Iran, I don't think it can in any reasonable time frameI'd have to say that Bhutto would be the one to do it. Realistically speaking, Islamespecially as it manifests in Pakistanis just too inimical to either moderation or actual democracy for there to be much hope.
#3
At this point, I would be remiss if I did not express some genuine admiration for what Benazir is doing. From all outward indications this is an individual who is desperately trying to salvage the last worthwhile shreds of her native country. For her to do thisespecially as a woman in a Muslim majority countryis nothing short of courageous in the extreme.
The US formally handed over 26 Bell-412 helicopters and four completely refurbished Cobra helicopters to the Pakistan Army at a ceremony held here on Monday.
US Ambassador Anne Patterson handed the helicopters over to Defence Secretary Kamran Rasool. Rasool thanked the US government and said
"Pull my other finger...double dog dare ya!"
that the induction of these helicopters into the army would significantly enhance their operational capabilities.
Speaking at the formalising ceremony of the final acceptance and transfer of 25 Bell-412 helicopters to the army at Qasim Airbase, Patterson praised Pakistan Army Aviation and said that the induction of these helicopters would strengthen their efforts to fight extremism and bring peace and stability to the region. She said the day marked a new chapter in Army Aviations history. This event demonstrates the continued commitment of the US to cooperation with Pakistan, Patterson said. Our military assistance programme are for the long term. They are the foundation for cooperation and engagement, and a way to strengthen our bonds as partners and allies.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Selling them ships and spares that we will eventually shoot down, too. Just like we're doing with the saudis. It will be fun...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
10/23/2007 8:47 Comments ||
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A preliminary report about the October 18 bombings in Karachi has been presented to President General Pervez Musharraf on Monday, SANA quoted sources as saying. Musharraf had directed the agencies concerned to submit the report within 48 hours of the incident. The report prepared by 7 intelligence agencies suggests that Benazir Bhutto survived a suicide attack because of the bulletproof truck she was traveling in. It says that the suicide attacker first detonated a grenade then blew himself up, adding that some arrests have also been made in this regard. The report links the Karachi bombings with the attacks in Charsadda and the Tarbela army mess.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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The prime minister and interior minister have rejected the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)s demand for foreign experts to assist in the inquiry into last Thursdays suicide bombings in Karachi, while PPP chief Benazir Bhutto has insisted the government isnt equipped to handle such an investigation.
Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said foreign experts would not be brought into the investigation. I would categorically reject this, he told reporters in Islamabad. We are conducting the investigation in a very objective manner. Our investigation teams and security agencies are competent enough to investigate such incidents. The political parties should have trust and confidence in them.
Prediction: Nothing's going to come of them.
Mr Sherpao said the federal government had directed the Sindh government to intensify the investigation. He said the government had not sought foreign assistance to investigate the suicide attacks on President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Mr Aziz.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz told a group of federal ministers that he was confident that the investigation being carried out by Pakistani law-enforcement agencies would lead to the perpetrators of the crime. He said the agencies had successfully investigated terrorist attacks in the past and arrested those responsible.
This article starring:
Aftab Khan Sherpao
Shaukat Aziz
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Scared what might turn up!!!!
Posted by: Paul ||
10/23/2007 6:16 Comments ||
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The ailing Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) President Qazi Hussain Ahmad and General Secretary Maulana Fazlur Rahman on Monday agreed to convene a MMA supreme council meeting to decide the alliances fate.
Sources within the MMA said Maulana Fazlur Rehman visited the residence of Qazi Hussain Ahmad to inquire after his health and the two leaders decided to convene the MMA supreme council.
Former Jamaat-e-Islami MNA Shabir Ahmad Khan told Daily Times that the meeting lasted for 45 minutes. He said the MMA leaders did not discuss their differences in the meeting, but agreed to convene the supreme council to erase their grievances developed during the last two months. Over the past 6 years, the MMA faced great challenges within the alliance on various issues, such as resignations from the Balochistan Assembly, National Security Council (NSC) and en bloc resignations from the national and NWFP assemblies. But all issues were later resolved amicably through the MMA supreme council, said Shabir Ahmad, who was also present during the meeting.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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A rift has been developed between the locals and Uzbeks in North Waziristan as the locals believe foreign fighters are responsible for the recent killings of villagers, sources told APP on Monday. It has also been learnt that the locals are planning to call a jirga to announce a deadline for the foreigners to leave the area. The locals say they will use arms to flush the foreigners out of the area if they fail to meet the deadline, the sources said.
The Ahmad Zai Wazir tribe from South Waziristan and local Taliban who are supporting the government have announced a one-week deadline for those who fled with foreign militants to come back before a jirga or face action. The deadline was set at a jirga at Rustam Adda in Wana on Monday. Hundred of tribesmen from Ahmadzai tribe and the local Taliban attended the jirga. Elders of the Ahmadzai tribe said stern action would be taken if the tribesmen who fled did not come before the jirga.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
HA! Oh the poor Ghost of Binny will be way extra distresed when he gits wind of this..
0 The sorrow of it all, Yesterday Iraq now this a second flare up 'tween the Talibs vs the Arabs and dem damn fureners, da oozebeckies, da Turkymenstani and da Cheechnicks.
Especially since the Talibs have disavowed the Butto Bomb. heh, it works for us either way, Talibs lying or not. O'Binnie's idea of UNITY amonst ALL the Hate Filled Murderers in a Row is a little weak right now.
it works for us.
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
10/23/2007 4:09 Comments ||
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#2
Oh, boo hoo. The poor old Wazoo tribesmen. They invite foreign Lions of IslamTM in and what happens? They start raping and killing the locals when the action gets a little slow.
Pakistani authorities now suspect that two suicide bombers were involved in a bloody attack on former premier Benazir Bhuttos homecoming convoy, officials said on Monday. Officials had earlier said only one of the two blasts that killed 139 people in Karachi on Thursday was carried out by a suicide attacker, while the other was caused by a grenade hurled by an unknown assailant. We have got another head which we suspect could be of a second suicide bomber, Sindh Home Adviser Wasim Akhtar told AFP. We have suspicions about it and our investigators are making fresh efforts. His face is being reconstructed but so far we have got no substantial clues about those behind the blast, he said. Police at the weekend released a photograph of the other bombers blood-streaked head. Police officials speaking on condition of anonymity also said the second head found at the scene was believed to be that of another suicide bomber. Bhutto had previously claimed that two suicide bombers were involved and has called for international help in the inquiry into the bombing.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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No matter what government is in office, the Pakistan army is ill-suited and perhaps incapable of accomplishing the necessary in the Tribal Areas bordering Afghanistan, according to a report appearing here.
Though they're perfectly suited to palace politics, intrigue and nepotism ...
The analysis by Mark Sappenfield in the Christian Science Monitor quotes Moeed Yusuf of Strategic and Economic Policy Research, Islamabad, as saying, If this continues, the army will tone it down because there will be too many losses. The US must temper its expectations of what Pakistan can do militarily in the war on terror or risk inflaming the situation further, through increased anti-American attitudes or even possible defections from the army.
I rather suspect the White House understands exactly what the Pak army can't do ...
The US correspondent writes that the offensive is almost universally perceived to be an American war contracted out to its Pakistani ally. The army built to counter the massive threat of the Indian military is being asked to fight its own citizens in an unpopular counterinsurgency campaign that it has neither the will nor the skill-set to fight. The Army officers have started realising that this battle is not worth the cost, according to Hassan Abbas of Harvard University. It has had a huge impact on the psychology of the Army.
Yusuf told the Monitor that despite misgivings about the current offensive in the Tribal Areas, the army brass does not dismiss the need for action there. The military is thinking about it very seriously. The threat is an internal one for years to come. Some in the army still believe the militants are a useful and manageable tool.
That's the ISI wing talking.
If the West leaves Afghanistan as many here believe it will they will give Pakistan a means to influence events there. Moreover, the army is hardly designed to take them on in their own territory. Since its inception, the Pakistani army has looked eastward to India, focusing on the plains of Punjab and sands of Sindh, from where any invasion might come. It is not trained to fight the kind of insurgency it is now engaged in.
Nor does it particularly want to. It's amazing how experts and journalists keep glossing over the fact that the ISI created the Taliban.
The article quotes Pakistani diplomat Zamir Akram as telling a recent meeting in Washington, When we hear people in Washington or London say that Pakistan needs to do more, the question is: Do you understand what youre asking us to do? Would you go into Texas or wherever on the border areas and actually kill Americans? For this reason, many experts do not expect the current offensive to continue. If it does, the army will get divided vertically, with officers remaining loyal to headquarters and the rank and file becoming increasingly alienated, according to Ayesha Siddiqa. Cracks are appearing, she adds. She agrees that the way forward is not militarily it is by developing the region economically over the next 15 to 20 years, undercutting the poverty and lack of education that feeds extremism.
Closing the madrassas and shooting the trouble-makers would help.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Funny how they had no problem killing more than a million of their fellow citizens in 1971. And those were unarmed civilians. A few thousand, armed jihadists in open revolt against the Pakistani state should not really worry them.
But they need the jihadists to destabilize India and Afghanistan. All part of the '1000 year war' declared by Benazir's father.
Benazir Bhutto and her interior minister Nasrullah Babar created the Taliban, over the then opposition of the ISI (who backed Hekmatyr).
All talk of invasion of Sindh is just deception. An attempt to deflect American criticism.
India does not want additional tens of millions of rabid Muslim citizens. It will not invade Pakistan.
And in any case, the Pak army cannot withstand a full Indian assault. If the 3 Indian Strike Corps enter Sindh or Punjab, they will overwhelm the Pak opposition.
Posted by: john frum ||
10/23/2007 6:54 Comments ||
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#2
You know more about India/palistan than I but from my readings the problem with Hykamatiar was that he had bombarded Kabul indiacrimantely and also that he had the bad habit to have his ass handled by Massoud. At one point it mlust have been evident even for his more ardent supporters in Pakistan that he was a loser and taht it was time to find another horse. Also AFAIK Hykmatiar was more nationalist and less islamist than Mullah Omar and thus less likely to compromise on the devolution of Afgahan territories after the expiry of the Durand treaty.
#3
I am not confident that the Paki Army can fight anyone who can shoot back.
A friend of mine who was in Somalia said the Paki soldiers were less capable than your average American civilian (with no training what so ever).
Things have only gotten worse since then.
If you remember, in 2001 many Paki officers joined the Taliban to fight the American invasion of Afghanistan. It took only a few weeks to take over the country.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
10/23/2007 13:40 Comments ||
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#4
A Pakistani swat team did a pretty good job clearing out the Red Mosque recently,
but,
- they were the best force that the Paks have
- they had a bunch of fatalies
- the terrorists have quietly retaken the Red Mosque
$60 million will buy a lot of asphalt, but I don't think it'll be enough to pave the entire area.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Some of that's my money and I don't approve.
Posted by: Ulailing Scourge of the Faith3257 ||
10/23/2007 1:37 Comments ||
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#2
Ok, "good money," your mission as soon as you arrive in Pakland is to link up with all the money that has already been sent, ie, "bad money" and follow it. It's an easy mission, we are confident you will succeed.
#3
ION, NOSI.org > GEOPOLITICS: THE UNITED STATES - THE NEXT FIVE [US] STATES. For US$60Milyuuhn Paki might as well apply to become one - then again, WOT > US OWG versus anti-US OWG!?
#4
$60 million will buy a lot of asphalt, but I don't think it'll be enough to pave the entire area.
Don't need to blacktop the entire area. Can't park on inclines greater than a certain degree. Obviously, terracing is not included in the package. Just do the arable land which should remove the incentive for nearly everyone to stay other than smugglers and other potential landscape enrichers.
#9
Enough of flushing taxpayer money down the Islamic toilet known as Pakistan. We are long overdue to begin our own operations in the frontier areas with, or without, Musharref's permission. Pakistan must be our final lesson in the reliability of Muslim "allies". The farce is over.
#10
ION, NOSI.org > GEOPOLITICS: THE UNITED STATES - THE NEXT FIVE [US] STATES. For US$60Milyuuhn Paki might as well apply to become one - then again, WOT > US OWG versus anti-US OWG!?
WTF does that mean? Geez, for somebody who reads as much as Joseph, he sure is damn lazy about what he writes.
#11
run it through the Joe-Decoder Ring - it says: "Drink More Ovaltine"
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/23/2007 17:23 Comments ||
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#12
Ok, "good money," your mission as soon as you arrive in Pakland is to link up with all the money that has already been sent, ie, "bad money" and follow it. It's an easy mission, we are confident you will succeed.
Snark of the day, Besoeker. And so sad but true.
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
10/23/2007 17:36 Comments ||
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#13
i wish the 60 million too be spent on bombs for the area instead of paving
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
10/23/2007 18:04 Comments ||
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#15
After you've been hanging around here a while you begin to understand Joe's posts...or, at least some of them.
Or he could get off his lazy ass and post like the rest of us do. Sorry, I've been coming here since 2002 or 2003 and I really enjoy the 'Burg, but Joe's *gibberish* is usually found in every thread. It pisses me off to have to scroll past one or more of his crappy attempts. Wake up Joe--if you can read, you post correctly!
(PTI) Pakistan's Supreme Court, hearing the legal challenge to President Pervez Musharraf's re-election in uniform, today said the issue of martial law continued to haunt the country. Justice Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday, a member of the 11-judge bench hearing the matter, said it was not correct to say that martial law had been buried once and for all. "We kept on burying martial law every time but it is still haunting us, it is not easy to bury it," he observed.
It's generals and not justices who have all the guns ...
Justice Syed Jamshed Ali said the army act has been deterrent to efforts to do away with martial law. Aitzaz Ahsan, the counsel for retired judge Wajihuddin Ahmad, who unsuccessfully contested the October 6 presidential poll, said martial law could be buried if the court performed its duty. "This is the right time to bury martial law as an army chief is standing at the exit door of dictatorship. The court has to react courageously," he said.
The apex court, which earlier said it would give its verdict in the matter by the end of this month, later adjourned the hearing till tomorrow.
Justice Javed Iqbal, who heads the 11-member bench, has said that the court will not be deterred by fears of Musharraf imposing martial law in the event of a ruling that goes against him.
The embattled military ruler swept the presidential poll that was boycotted by opposition parties but cannot be sworn in till the apex court decides on his candidature.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
To some, it's just a nasty label, the term "martial law." Over two years after Katrina, most of the citizens of New Orleans continue to embrace law and order and the presence of uniformed troops on patrol.
BAGHDAD Multi-National Division Baghdad Soldiers distributed micro-grants to small business owners in Jamia, a western neighborhood of the Iraqi capital Oct. 17.
The Khadra Neighborhood Advisory Council, along with Company B, 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, distributed micro-grants to 42 business owners of up to $2,500 to start-up, improve or re-open their businesses. The total amount of money distributed was $100,000.
The promise of micro-grant assistance from Coalition Forces and the improved security in Jamia provided by Company B and their Iraqi counterparts, 3rd Battalion, 5th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army, has allowed the shopping area of Shar Ar Rabee to re-open and to begin rebuilding.
Shar Ar Rabee was once a famous shopping area, but violence from the war destroyed the area and prevented local citizens from conducting business.
In the past six weeks, more than 100 businesses have re-opened in Shar Ar Rabee, 50 of those in just in the last two weeks.
#2
It's been learned elsewhere that micro grants and micro loans have a very potent effect on an economy. This is because they have several different effects.
To start with, it creates a new business or refurbishes an existing business. In turn, that new business needs supplies, which stimulates other businesses. It also needs workers, and small businesses usually employ the majority of people in a nation. It also directly and indirectly pumps money into the local and national economy.
#3
All fine and wonderful but none of it forestalls the overarching threat of a nuclear armed Islam. The effectiveness of microgrants will manifest in another decade or two. Nuclear Islam is already here and needs less than a decade to become an insurmountable and lethal threat to the West. Go ahead, keep financing the microgrants which honorably free so many repressed Muslim women from their durance vile. But NOWHERE make the mistake of thinking this is all that's required to subvert Islam's malign and wholly murderous intentions.
#4
Zenster: apples and oranges. The Iraqi people are recovering, and the faster they can have a strong economy, the less terrorism "sells" to them. But nukes are an Iranian cultural prerogative, based on a millennium of paranoia and xenophobia. They think that nukes will give them everything they want instantly.
Ironically, as it was before, the best non-nuclear defense the rest of the ME has to Iran is Iraq. Because Sunni or Shiia, there are a lot of Iraqis who are nationalists and look at Iran with great suspicion. And they will fiercely fight them if they try anything.
And with US guidance and more weapons, the Iraqis will quite possibly kick the Iranians butt. Remember that with all the fighting the Iraqi army has done in Iraq, it is one of the most seasoned armies in the world. And that is a big force multiplier on the battlefield.
Finally, the sooner the Iraqi economy is doing well, the sooner they can buy the weapons they need. With some air force and artillery assets, Iraq is going to have one of the finest militaries in the world.
The Iranians are still green, mostly conscript, poorly trained, incompetently led, and probably far less inclined to be slaughtered like their parents.
#2
FYI the quete referred to in the post was by no other than the Turkish PM, it was his criticism of the previous government meddlign in Iraq, along the lines of...
Why should we worry so much about the 500 PKK members in the Kandil Mountains [in Iriqi Kurdistan] instead of the 5000 of them in eastern Turkey?
Interesitn gthat guy is now thePM and is looking at Iraq. Its NOT the PKK, its the independant and prosperous Kurds that worry the Tusk. They want to stiop that, and in the process seize the oil in Kirkuk if they can.
This isnt about the PKK, its abotu Turkish greed and racism and fear, and the bill for their repression of Kurds inside Turkey finally coming due.
#3
Iraqi President Talabani Criticizes Assad for Supporting Turkish Military Action
Doesn't really count for a lot since so much of Iraq's government is in bed with Iran and assisting Tehran's meddling. Yes, Assad is a rectal cavity, but it is the Arab propensity for intrigue and treachery that is more pertinent in this situation. These f&cksticks just cannot rise above petty rivalries in order to attain far more important goals. Much like the old Cold War analogy of two idiots in a powder magazine arguing over who has the most matches.
Why should we worry so much about the 500 PKK members in the Kandil Mountains [in Iraqi Kurdistan] instead of the 5000 of them in eastern Turkey?
I'd wager it is because Turkey can, as usual, violently oppress their own Kurdish population but is increasingly vulnerable to an armed and free Kurdish state on their Eastern border.
Baghdad - Iraq agreed Tuesday to help Turkey deal with terrorism by Kurdish rebels, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said after talks with his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan in Baghdad.
'We discussed all issues in fully open talks and reaffirmed the stance that we will jointly fight terrorism and not make our territories into launching pads for armed groups, including the Kurdistan Workers' Party, to poison relations between our countries,' Zebari said.
He was speaking to journalists after his talks with Babacan.
Turkey had threatened to send troops over the border into Iraq to halt cross-border attacks by Kurdish rebels from the separatist group - Kurdistan's Workers's party (PKK).
The talks are part of of a diplomatic effort to forestall threatened Turkish raids in northern Iraq on Kurdish insurgents.
Zebari said the crisis with Ankara would be resolved through dialogue and good neighbourly relations.
He added that Iraq has not received any lists of names of Iraqi officials wanted by Turkey but only a list of wanted PKK leaders. As noted below, Maliki government has very little say about what happens in Kurdistan.
The Turkish minister reaffirmed Turkey's willingness to use diplomacy but said it reserved the right to use other means as well. 'There are several ways of fighting terrorism and we know which decision to make at the right time,' Babacan said.
Babacan is expected to meet Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and other senior officials later Tuesday to discuss ways of ending military activities by the Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.
Talabani and Zebari are Kurds, but they represent Iraq's central government.
Turkey refuses to hold talks with the regional Iraqi Kurdish authority and accuses its leaders, especially the province's president, Masud Barzani, of hindering a potential joint Turkish- Iraqi operation against Kurdish insurgents.
PKK rebels are hiding mainly in the Qandil mountains of northern Iraq controlled by Iraq's Kurdish government. The group has declared its willingness to agree to a ceasefire, according to a statement posted on a Kurdish website on Monday night.
Talabani confirmed the statement and told journalists Monday that the PKK would end fighting with Turkey. But Turkey has in the past viewed similar PKK statements with skepticism.
In another development, a spokesman for the defence forces of Iraq's Kurdish Autonomous Region, said they were independent of the country's defence ministry and only took orders from the provincial leader.
'The defence forces of the province of Kurdistan take orders only from the general command of the defence forces of the province,' the independent news agency Voices of Iraq quoted the spokesman for the troops' general command, Jabar Yawer, as saying Monday evening. Baghdad's writ is not enforceable in Irbil and the Turks won't deal with the province's government.
The command of the Kurdish troops (Peshmerga) consists of eight members led by the provincial president Barzani, Yawer said.
Peshmerga and the Iraqi Ministry of Defence are two independent bodies, which means that coordination should take place between the forces' general commander and the general commander of the Iraqi armed troops, he added. Such 'coordination' would be darn close to a defacto admission of Kurdish independence, something neither Baghdad nor Ankara are willing to grant.
Yawer's statement is the first Kurdish response to a demand by the Iraqi Minister of Defence Abdel-Qadir Muhammad Jasim that multinational forces be responsible for upholding security.
Jasim was quoted as telling a closed parliamentary sitting on Monday that Kurdish Peshmerga should be put under the leadership of the general commander of the Iraqi armed forces temporarily as deploying army units from various provinces to northern Iraq would be difficult without the consent of the US-led multinational troops. I read that as a plea for US political intervention, asking Washington to use its influence to bring the Kurds to heel.
Again, we need to move a battalion up there, even if its just symbolic, so secure the frontier areas, first agains tthe PKK (ahd thus the Turks), and second agasint any Syrian or Iranian influence.
THE former top commander in Iraq - Army Lt.-Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (ret.) - recently called the situation in Iraq "a nightmare with no end in sight." Citing insufficient prewar planning and a strained military, he painted a dismal picture of American prospects there. War critics painted a similar picture when violence in Iraq peaked in '05 and '06 - using terms like "civil war" and "sectarian violence" - as they pushed for a rapid draw-down or immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces. An Iraq "at war with itself" shouldn't be America's problem, they argued. In fact, the existence of a "religious civil war" remains the chief antiwar talking point to this day.
Problem is, the new U.S. strategy has changed the facts on the grounds.
I was in Samarra on Feb. 22, 2005, the day al Qaeda-affiliated insurgents destroyed the dome of the Golden Mosque, and am very familiar with the violence that followed. That event was a catalyst for widespread violence in Iraq. Destroying a Muslim place of worship was indicative of al Qaeda's overall strategy: foment violence, maintain instability, and intimidate the local population. And it worked.
The critics had a point: American soldiers were simply caught in the middle - not permitted to take action to stop the violence, and yet still very much in harm's way. But what the critics failed to see was that it didn't have to be that way - that what the troops lacked was an adaptive strategy that recognized and addressed underlying causes of the violence.
Enter Gen. David Petraeus and a strategy that did just that. (The term "surge" is far too simplistic, as it implies simply throwing more forces at the problem, when Petraeus' changes in tactics are even more important).
The new counterinsurgency approach - namely, to take territory from al Qaeda, hold it, secure it and empower tribal sheiks to work together and rebuild their communities - finally provides an effective "counteroffensive" to the chief tactics of al Qaeda militants and Shiite death squads.
Whereas we used to emphasize overwhelming firepower (even when I was there in 2006), we now emphasize firepower as a last resort. Whereas we used to rush to the scene after the violence occurs, we're now there to repel it or deter it altogether. Casey and Sanchez as Westmoreland. Heh.
This commitment - up and down the chain of command - has made a major impact on the tit-for-tat death toll that was threatening to tear the country apart. Sectarian violence has been severely curtailed.
Since last December, sectarian deaths throughout Iraq have dropped over 50 percent; overall attacks against civilians are down 50 percent. In Baghdad - the focal point of Petraeus' strategy - sectarian deaths are down almost 80 percent in 10 months and large al Qaeda-style truck and suicide bombings have dropped over 50 percent.
Moreover, ordinary Iraqis are providing far more tips and other information. We now get some 23,000 tips a month, four to five times the level of a year before. This measure - which directly correlates to the trust and support of the population - is promising.
These are significant and consequential numbers and indicate real successes in stomping out the civil war. But it's not just numbers that make the case that the civil war is ending. Look, too, at what the new strategy lets commanders do in their now-daily discussions with ordinary Iraqis.
Petraeus reports that foreign (non-Iraqi) recruits conduct over 80 percent of al Qaeda's attacks; and therefore, by refocusing local tribal leaders on this fact, American commanders are making a convincing argument to the sheiks: Why launch an indiscriminate reprisal against another sect, ratcheting up the level of violence, when you can simply tell us and Iraqi security forces where the foreign insurgents are and we'll go get them? The numbers say that's exactly what's happening.
Although many hope to convince America otherwise, the Iraq war has fundamentally changed in '07. It's not a civil war anymore. It's the people of Iraq vs. al Qaeda and Iranian proxies, with the U.S.-led Coalition helping the Iraqi people swing their sword of sovereignty.
#1
Gen. Sanchez was talking about the MSM. Which is a nightmare. And has no end in sight.
In Iraq, on the other hand, things are getting alot better. The problem for Al Qaeda is that their template for taking over the world depends on reducing the world to a 7th century Hellhole. Then they look better by comparison.
As soon as people figure that out, the US approach looks alot more attractive. The Iraqis seem to be figuring this out faster than most Muslims.
Killing infidels may be fun, but when you discover someone's defined you as an infidel, this whole Jihad thing loses its attraction.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
10/23/2007 18:55 Comments ||
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#2
If Sanchez and Casey are Westmoreland, then Petraeus is today's Abrams. I hope DC treats today's Abrams better than they treated the original. Adrian Cronauer still wears the patch: "When I left Vietnam, We Were Winning."
SEOUL - South Korea is likely to extend its troop deployment in Iraq through the end of next year, but cut the number of its soldiers in the country to 600 from 1,200, a major daily reported on Monday.
Defence officials had said they were considering removing all South Korean troops from Iraq by the end of this year, ending what was once the third-largest foreign troop deployment in the country.
The Chosun Ilbo newspaper and other local media, citing unnamed officials, said the government will announce its plans this week to extend the mission. Defence Ministry officials would not comment on the reports. South Korea had about 3,600 troops in Iraq at the start the mission in 2004 but has as been rolling back its presence due to public pressure against the deployment.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
FREEREPUBLIC > SOUTH KOREA HAS NEW LONGER RANGE MISSLE. Can hit all of NK plus large part of China [Beijing?]. ION, PAYVAND > IRAN: MILITARY FLEXES NEW MILITARY MUSCLES, including QADR-1 MRBM/IRBM? + 29 new TOR-M1 ADS missles from Russia. FYI, TOR series was intended by Russ to be DUAL-USE -capable, at least by Russ armed forces - its not going to take much for Iran to modify an SAM into a Nuke-WMD capable SSM.
#2
The US should have long since set up business trade offices for Iraqi-CF nations in Iraq, with the sole purpose of getting so much investment and trade going back and forth that those nations had a motive for a continuing military presence.
The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has offered a conditional truce to Turkey as Ankara is preparing for a military action.
The PKK announced on Monday that it is ready to observe a ceasefire if the Turkish army ends attacks on the militants' positions, abandons plans for cross-border raids and 'looks for peace'. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani earlier on Monday predicted that PKK rebels are to offer a ceasefire. Turkey has yet to react to the announcement. At least 12 Turkish troops were killed in fighting with the separatist rebels over the weekend.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Good news - can it ben forced oin the Turks the way they force on on Israel every few years?
#2
I hate to be a cynic but cease-fires offered by terrorist groups are generally a way to get time to rebuild. The turks should accept the ceasefire and the US should smash the PKK in Iraq.
They are not helping anyone. Certainly not the Kurds, Iraqis or Americans. Perhaps if they blew up stuff in Iran or Syria things might be different.
#3
It's close - 2 out of 3 - the Turks could easily "look for peace" (here peace, here peace - be a good boy and come here!), and stay away from the border - BUT militant positions in Turkey seem to be fair game - has CAIR made any claims about the inviolability of mosques in, say, Hoboken? If no, it's only a matter of time.
Jordan and Egypt cautioned Turkey on Monday against unleashing a troop offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq and urged dialogue between the two sides, a reflection of Arab countries' fears of a widening of the Iraq conflict.
Arab governments have been trying to strike a balance amid the mounting crisis between Iraq and Turkey, seeking to avoid openly criticizing Ankara and hoping diplomacy between Turkey, Iraq and the United States would bear fruit.
Arab nations traditionally oppose any foreign incursion into a fellow Arab state, but they also fear that a Turkish military assault into Iraq would add a new dimension of violence to a region already torn by conflicts. They are also concerned that a Turkish incursion could also fuel separatist sentiment among Iraq's Kurds and the threat of Iraq's dismemberment.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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I coulda told ya that, buddy...
Hamas is unnecessarily endangering Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip by generating phony humanitarian crises, head of the Gaza Coordination Liaison Administration (CLA) Col. Nir Press said Monday.
On Sunday night, Gaza's Shifa Hospital claimed that due to tight Israeli restrictions on imports into Gaza, it had run out of anesthetic for surgeries, and as a result had canceled all but the most critical procedures.
In an interview with The Jerusalem Post on Monday, Press dismissed the claims and said that in a meeting he held Sunday afternoon with Palestinian Health Ministry officials he was informed that the hospitals were running "low" on the anesthetic. On Monday morning, less than 24 hours after making the request, Israel transferred 151 nitrous oxide gas balloons to Shifa Hospital. "It is the Palestinians' responsibility to order the supplies," Press said, noting that despite the daily rocket attacks on Israeli towns - on Monday 10 rockets and shells pounded the western Negev - Israel continued to transfer medical goods and supplies into Gaza whenever they were ordered.
Press said that orders were usually placed by the Palestinians days in advance and that Sunday's sudden announcement "was a spin by Hamas and an attempt to put pressure on Israel by creating a humanitarian crisis."
He said that the incident resembled Palestinian claims a few months ago that due to Israeli restrictions on the crossings they ran out of gas needed to operate the Gaza power plant and as a result large parts of the Strip were left without electricity for several days. Also then, Press said, Hamas unnecessarily disrupted Palestinian civilians' lives to try to create an image that a humanitarian crisis was developing in Gaza.
"These are examples of how Hamas wants to create humanitarian crisis," he explained. "They wait until the last moment and then tell us they are running out of supplies so they can create this image of a crisis."
While Israel was preventing the transfer of raw materials into Gaza - such as pipes that could be used to manufacture Kassam rockets - Press said that any order of medical supplies or food was immediately processed. He said that the CLA also allowed a number of Palestinians to cross from the Gaza Strip into Israel for medical treatment daily.
#3
Israel needs to let the Paleo authorities know that their supplies need to be ordered through other suppliers. Let the Egyptians take up the slack. Why supply the person that kills you?
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/23/2007 15:33 Comments ||
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Usual qualifications
DEBKAfile discloses developing Bush-Putin deal to Irans detriment. A US concession on Europe-based missile shield - in return for Russian withdrawal of nuclear aid to Iran and backing for tough sanctions
Its outline surfaced Tuesday, Oct. 23, in Prague when US secretary of defense Robert Gates proposed a possible delay in activating the planned missile interceptor base in Poland and the radar site in the Czech Republic until an Iranian threat was definitely proved. In Washington US President George Bush opened the door to accepting Vladimir Putins offer of the use of the Azerbaijan base. Moscows proposed quid pro quo is to be its withdrawal of nuclear aid to Iran and backing for tough sanctions.
DEBKAfiles military sources add: If this deal goes through, it could lead to Russias tacit acceptance of eventual US military strikes against Irans nuclear and strategic sites. The Islamic Republics strategic options would shrink dramatically between abandoning its nuclear ambitions or else facing crippling penalties.
#2
At least the first part makes logical sense, at least for the Russians. Their #1 priority is to stop threats against Russia, and they see threats everywhere; which is an enlightened paranoia I think the US can appreciate. And since the threat to Europe and US assets there is exclusively Iranian, it makes sense.
That is, by taking away Iran's nuclear, Iran doesn't threaten Europe, so Europe doesn't need to do anything that Russia would see as threatening.
So if Russia doesn't get paid a little for giving Iran nukes, it can save a lot by not having to pay a lot to menace Europe.
Posted by: R. Reagan ||
10/23/2007 16:59 Comments ||
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#5
A satalite in GSO near Iran would probably serve the star wars system better anyway as it would have few or zero foreign political strings. If we put it up without fanfair the Russians and others woudl know what it was for (probably) but it wouldn't be in there face so they might not bitch.
#6
Dump Iran, my a**. They want money and don't care who they get it from. And if they can get it from someone who hates America, so much the better.
I know the Russians don't like us being more powerful than they are (and I don't give a sh*t) and they don't like any country that appears to like us (ditto).
But before they hand over some nukes to Iran, they may want to consider that the Iranian gummint is islamonazi and the Chechyans rebels are islamonazis.
Just sayin....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/23/2007 17:18 Comments ||
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#7
Except this is a DEBKA report, which means that it is fantasy. Don't even waste your time pondering "what if" it were true. Someone made it up the other night over a few beers. Remember all the DEBKA exclusives that had us ready to attack Iran any minute ... twice this spring?
You need to take them with more than a grain of salt, if they publish it, you can be assured that is NOT what is going to happen.
#8
Except what's to keep Russia honest after the U.S. takes the first step?
Le bingo, trailing wife. Regardless of the article's veracity, any such talks with Putin would represent nothing more than us foolishly tipping our strategic hand to Russia in exchange for empty promises that would just as quickly be circumvented through covert activities.
Russia and China will do nearly anythingshort of conspicuously delivering nuclear weapons into Islamic handsto break American military hegemony. There is no gesture of good will or cooperative stance we can take that will not be turned against us. Islam should have already taught us this lesson in spades but Washington is simply stuck on stupid "can't we all just get along?"
#9
We should have the graphic on this article that is normally used for Cindy Sheehan where the pathetic old women's libber is standing there topless and saying "Pay attention to me!" Except in this case it would apply to Putin instead of Sheehan. Heck, maybe the guy just wants us to pay a little more attention to him. You know, as if he's important.
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305 ||
10/23/2007 18:11 Comments ||
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#11
Article does NOT mention iff the Euros=NATO will be precluded from dev their own TMD/THAAD, or buy outside e.g. Japan, andor Israel's ARROW system.
#12
GUAM PDN > BUSH TOUTS EUROPEAN MISSLE DEFENSE PLAN. Russ Lavrov told Japan's FM Komure that NORTH KOREA presents a fundamental threat, BUT IRAN DOES NOT. Russ would not conside the NOKORS as such unless NK already has weapons grade nucmats andor per se working nuclear bomb devices which is NOT controlled by either China or Russia, enuff to threaten Moscow = major Russ cities/milbases. Lavrov's comments is contrary to what Russ claimed on the Net a few years back.
#13
"Article does NOT mention iff the Euros=NATO will be precluded from dev their own TMD/THAAD"
Of course it doesn't because this article isn't real. It is a fabrication. The entire thing doesn't exist. I have never, ever, ever, ever seen a "DEBKA Exclusive" turn out to be true. If nobody has it but DEBKA, then it is false. EVERY time.
#14
Don't know who is more clever in this - Bush or Putin. The issue of overriding importance to the Bush Admin, perhaps even surpassing Iraq, is Iran and its nuclear follies. If the Iran problem is not solved in the next year, then it promises to get much more serious before it is addressed many years down the line. If Bush is able to secure Russian support for tough sanctions and even more importantly, support or at least acquiessence in a possible strike should sanctions fail, then he has achieved much. Putin has invested a lot lately in oppositon to the missle defense system deployment in Eastern Europe, and stopping or significantly delaying deployment is a huge victory for him, and he probably is not enthralled by the idea of a nuclear iran either. Were both posturing?
Posted by: High Brow ||
10/23/2007 23:38 Comments ||
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MOSCOW/OSLO, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Russian oil firm LUKOIL said on Monday it would soon have to stop work at the Anaran oil project in Iran because U.S. sanctions meant it could not invest more than $20 million in the huge development. "We have discovered the largest deposit in Iran but cannot work there because there is a U.S. State Department ban on foreign investments of third countries for over $20 million," Interfax quoted LUKOIL Vice-President Leonid Fedun as saying.
There's the chili-induced heartburn again ...
The company said later in a statement it had not yet stopped work but would be forced to do so as soon as its investments reached the level of $20 million.
Norway's StatoilHydro has a 75 percent interest and LUKOIL holds 25 percent in the Anaran block, where oil was found at the Azar field in 2005. The companies have said the field's estimated reserves were 2 billion barrels of oil.
StatoilHydro said it was still considering plans for developing the Iranian field and that no new decisions had been made regarding the project. "We have looked at the development plan (for Anaran), and we are still looking," StatoilHydro spokeswoman Kjersti Morstoel told Reuters. "There are no new decisions (on that project)." StatoilHydro became the project's main shareholder after Norway's Statoil completed its takeover of oil and gas operations from its peer Norsk Hydro on Oct.1.
LUKOIL, in which U.S. ConocoPhillips owns 20 percent, last year sold 22 percent of its refined products in the United States, where it owns around 2,000 retail stations. On Monday LUKOIL's stock closed down 2.6 percent, in line with other Russian oil stocks, which fell on the back of weaker oil prices.
The U.S. Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 calls for sanctions against any person or company making investments of $20 million or more in Iran in any 12-month period that enhance Iran's ability to develop its petroleum resources. To date no sanctions have been imposed.
"When it comes to StatoilHydro's current activities in Iran, we will complete our contract obligations in the different projects but we will take all relevant issues into consideration before making any new investment decisions," Morstoel said.
In addition to the Anaran block, StatoilHydro is also engaged in developing the huge South Pars gas field in the Iranian part of the Gulf.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
PAYVAND.com has couple of article(s) on Iran's + World oil production * Year 2015 > World oil export countries may begin to stop exporting and begin importing as prices rise simul; + 2030 > Global oil production may decline by 1/2 by this time. Global Oil Reserves estim at 1.255 gigabarrels = enuff for 42 years at current consumption rates - by 2030 may see drop from 81M barrels now to 39M barrels at that time.
#2
ALso from STARS-N-STRIPES > OP-Ed - BALANCE HOLDS AS CHINA AND ASIA RISES. World power in near future to be divided between USA, EUROPE, + ASIAN BIG THREE [China, India, Japan]. Russia is weirdly and mysteriously nowhere, unless Russ is considered as part of Europe???
In a especially candid interview on CNN yesterday, March 14 leader Walid Jumblatt called Hezbollah's presence an indirect occupation of Lebanon by Syria and Iran. "Our opponents have a private army in Lebanon, private security, they have weapons provided by the Syrian regime and Tehran, while we have international solutions, we are not asking for military help, we are not asking for military bases, they already have military bases in Lebanon - an Iranian and Syrian military base, and they are behind the assassinations."
"The Syrians don't need to have their military or intelligence in Lebanon as long as they have their unofficial brigade in Lebanon - Hezbollah. This alliance between Iran, Syria and Lebanon (Hezbollah) has been an indirect occupation."
On Thursday, the pro-Syrian Lebanese newspaper As Safir reported that Washington had lodged an official request with the Beirut government for the creation of US army bases in Lebanon. Although the Lebanese government denied the information the same day, Hezbollah continued to warn against any such alleged plans. On Sunday, Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem said the creation of US military bases in Lebanon would be considered a "hostile act."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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Former President Amin Gemayel held a surprise meeting with rival opposition leader Gen. Michel Aoun aimed at bringing the viewpoints closer toward reaching consensus on a presidential candidate.
The talks between the supreme leader of the Phalange Party and the chief of the Free Patriotic Movement late Sunday were held at the house of a "common friend" in Mtaileb.
The daily An Nahar on Monday, citing Phalange Party sources, said the Gemayel-Aoun talks were bound to reflect positively on the Christian status. It said the two-hour talks were also aimed at facilitating the Bkirki initiative and the committee that was formed to follow-up on meetings held by the Maronite Church in an effort to reach consensus on a presidential candidate.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Do it fast, suckers. They're winnowing out your numbers faster than the devil can get his shoes on. While you're at it, why not seek to forge an alliance with all non-Muslim factions in order that some sort of united front is established against Islam's predations?
#2
Can you imagine it's crunch Time and they still dither./
The Lebs are Hooked on Grudges, it's a Terminal Sport.. the Games typically run generational, it goes on and on and on for the ages.
Bring out the ARTY and begin Bore sighting across the GREENLINE....
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
10/23/2007 4:21 Comments ||
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#3
An alliance with all anti-syrian factions is what is needed - including the Hariris Sunnis, Jumblatts Druze, and maybe any Shia who have the sense to breakaway.
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday postponed a parliamentary session to elect a new president until Nov. 12 to give rival factions time to agree on a compromise candidate, a statement said.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/23/2007 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Afghanistans Taliban do not attack outside Afghanistan and were not involved in an attack on former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in Karachi last week, an insurgent commander said on Monday. 
Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has said that the three names she sent to President General Pervez Musharraf of people with powerful positions in government who she accused of plotting against her included a close friend of the president.
The prime minister and interior minister have rejected the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)s demand for foreign experts to assist in the inquiry into last Thursdays suicide bombings in Karachi, while PPP chief Benazir Bhutto has insisted the government isnt equipped to handle such an investigation.
The ailing Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) President Qazi Hussain Ahmad and General Secretary Maulana Fazlur Rahman on Monday agreed to convene a MMA supreme council meeting to decide the alliances fate. 
Pakistani authorities now suspect that two suicide bombers were involved in a bloody attack on former premier Benazir Bhuttos homecoming convoy, officials said on Monday. Officials had earlier said only one of the two blasts that killed 139 people in Karachi on Thursday was carried out by a suicide attacker, while the other was caused by a grenade hurled by an unknown assailant. We have got another head which we suspect could be of a second suicide bomber, Sindh Home Adviser Wasim Akhtar told AFP. We have suspicions about it and our investigators are making fresh efforts. His face is being reconstructed but so far we have got no substantial clues about those behind the blast, he said. Police at the weekend released a photograph of the other bombers blood-streaked head. Police officials speaking on condition of anonymity also said the second head found at the scene was believed to be that of another suicide bomber. Bhutto had previously claimed that two suicide bombers were involved and has called for international help in the inquiry into the bombing.
No matter what government is in office, the Pakistan army is ill-suited and perhaps incapable of accomplishing the necessary in the Tribal Areas bordering Afghanistan, according to a report appearing here.
The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has offered a conditional truce to Turkey as Ankara is preparing for a military action. 
MOSCOW/OSLO, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Russian oil firm LUKOIL said on Monday it would soon have to stop work at the Anaran oil project in Iran because U.S. sanctions meant it could not invest more than $20 million in the huge development. "We have discovered the largest deposit in Iran but cannot work there because there is a U.S. State Department ban on foreign investments of third countries for over $20 million," Interfax quoted LUKOIL Vice-President Leonid Fedun as saying.
In a especially candid interview on CNN yesterday, March 14 leader Walid Jumblatt called Hezbollah's presence an indirect occupation of Lebanon by Syria and Iran. "Our opponents have a private army in Lebanon, private security, they have weapons provided by the Syrian regime and Tehran, while we have international solutions, we are not asking for military help, we are not asking for military bases, they already have military bases in Lebanon - an Iranian and Syrian military base, and they are behind the assassinations." 
Former President Amin Gemayel held a surprise meeting with rival opposition leader Gen. Michel Aoun aimed at bringing the viewpoints closer toward reaching consensus on a presidential candidate.
