(SomaliNet) Mayor of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia Mohamed Omar Habeb Mohamed Dhere on Saturday accused the Young Islamic Movement known as Al-Shabab of being responsible for the clashes that killed many civilians, local media reported.
Mr. Habeb said the attacks by the Al-Shabab fighters on the positions of the government and the Ethiopian army and that always sparks the fighting. The Ethiopian forces should have the rights to use tanks if they are attacked with guns, said Habeb adding that 90% of the security missions along the Industry Road in Mogadishu were accomplished.
The latest comment came after the spokesman for the Hawiye traditional clan elders blamed the city mayor for crisis in the capital.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Egyptian police arrested 11 members of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood and two Christian activists in separate incidents, a police official said Saturday.
Late on Friday, police stormed an apartment in the Nile Delta province of Mansoura, north of the capital Cairo, and arrested 11 members of the country's largest opposition group as they were holding a meeting. The Brotherhood, which has been banned since 1954, currently holds 88 seats in the 454-member lower house of the parliament.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Home affairs minister put an end to the controversy over the founding-father of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat GSPC. Hassan Hattab case is still in cross-examination, he stated. Home affairs minister Mr. Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni told the press that the GSPC former chief (1999-2003) is involved in many terrorism-related cases.
The primary cross-examinations are taking their due course he added. He explained that Hattab alias Abu Hamza is not runaway as mentioned in the criminal court nonsuits and he is to be tried whenever possible, without giving further details. Zerhouni statements intervene to put an end to the GSPC former chief paradox as he is tried as a runway while everybody knows hes been arrested by security services.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Fourteen Saudi nationals detained in the American Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba have returned home Saturday morning, said an Interior Ministry spokesman. The families of the returned detainees are being informed of their arrival, and arrangements are being made for reunion, said the spokesman, quoted by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
On his part, Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz welcomed the return of the detainees, reiterating the kingdom's commitment to continue to work for the release of all Saudis detained in Guantanamo. He also noted that nationals who had previously been released from the prison were adhering to regulations and instructions. As for the fourteen who had just returned, Prince Nayef said they would be subjected to regulations employed in such cases. He also expressed his satisfaction with the cooperation shown by US authorities in this area.
#5
We should spread the word that they were released after being extremely cooperative with interrogators, and send them on their way with our thanks for all their help.
HT to AOSHQ
A former British soldier has been arrested on suspicion of spying for the Russian intelligence services, it can be disclosed today. Peter Hill, a former Territorial Army trooper in the Royal Armoured Corps, was detained under the Official Secrets Act, for allegedly attempting to sell classified military documents to the Russians. He was arrested following a Metropolitan Police "sting" in which an undercover officer was understood to have posed as a Kremlin agent.
Hill, 23, described as an "opportunist", is understood to have been under surveillance for some time and was arrested in Leeds last Wednesday evening, within minutes of the alleged exchange taking place. It is understood the alleged security breach was from a Government establishment and not from a commercial military supplier or manufacturer. The documents he is alleged to have tried to leak concern sensitive military information.
The former trooper comes from Colne, in Lancashire but lives and works in Skipton, North Yorkshire, where a residential and business premises has been searched as part of the police operation. Hill, who is understood to have recently been working as a bailiff, was questioned at a police station in Leeds.
He was also arrested under the Explosive Substances Act after the discovery of suspicious material during the searches. The material is understood to be related to his service with the Territorials and has nothing to do with his alleged spying.
The Sunday Telegraph can reveal that MI5 now believes there are 30 intelligence officers working "under cover" in the Russian embassy who are trying to steal Britain's military and political secrets.
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/11/2007 11:10 ||
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#1
MI5 now believes there are 30 intelligence officers working "under cover" in the Russian embassy who are trying to steal Britain's military and political secrets.
Wow, it sounds like the Sunday Telegraph is really on the ball. When did this happen? It's shocking news - those Russians, disguising their spies with diplomatic covers?
Karen Jespersen is so new to her job as Denmarks minister of social affairs that she felt compelled to apologize to a visitor that she could not identify the painter of the canvases hanging in her offices, because she still has her predecessors furnishings. It was a rare admission, for Ms. Jespersen does not often apologize. Since her appointment to the post in September, she has emerged as a stalwart defender of a countrys right to require immigrants to accept its basic values and, inevitably, a lightning rod in Europes continuing debate over immigration. And for a onetime student leftist, prominent journalist and former official with the Social Democratic Party, her new role in the conservative government of Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen represents the latest step in a remarkable personal odyssey.
Ms. Jespersens defenders say that, sooner than most here, she had read Scandinavias discomfort with immigration laws that overburdened schools and social programs, and even threatened law and order. But her opponents cast her as an opportunist. I think that Karen Jespersen chose to leave the Social Democrats when she eyed a chance to gain influence and become a minister in the right-wing government by speaking against the party and the government she was part of, said Henrik Dam Kristensen, a spokesman for the Social Democrats.
Ms. Jespersen disagrees, of course, arguing that her migration from left to right grew primarily out of her concern about the impact of immigration on Denmark. I think immigration is a benefit for society, she said. But you have to be very cautious in dealing with it, to keep your basic values.
Ms. Jespersen is hard to label. At 60, she is a veteran of 1960s counterculture struggles, a womens rights advocate, a skilled politician who has sat in Denmarks Parliament and has been a minister in Social Democratic governments. The conservatives, who are expected to retain power in parliamentary elections on Nov. 13, regard her as someone who lends validity to their restrictive immigration laws. The Social Democrats, while denouncing her, realize that her Saul-to-Paul shift reflects in some way the state of the Danish soul, torn between traditional values of tolerance and fear that unrestrained immigration will somehow tear apart the national fabric.
In 2005, Jyllands-Posten, which by then had hired Mr. Pittelkow as a columnist, published the Muhammad cartoons. In response to the reaction in the Islamic world, Mr. Pittelkow and Ms. Jespersen published a book, titled Islamists and the Naïve, in which they went so far as to assert that some qualities of Islam could also be found in Nazism and Communism. It became a best seller. The book did not equate the movements, she said, but they had in common that one truth was in the world, and that one truth goes deeply into your private life. She added, Not all Muslims are reading the Koran in that sense, but those who interpret it this way are growing fast, in organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah, though I am convinced we can isolate them. She said, I think we are letting down freedom-loving Muslims if we are not fighting the radical Islamists.
In addition to sharply limiting immigration, the current government has enacted laws to prevent honor killings, which still occur in Muslim families. If a teenager is ordered to perform such a killing to avenge the honor of a female relative, she said, parents and even uncles and aunts are held liable. Ms. Jespersen denies that her transformation represents a betrayal of principle. My core values are the same, she said. I thought there was room for my core values in Social Democracy, but I find there is more room among the conservatives.
Fully half of the students of immigrant background in Denmark leave school without a diploma, she said. I was called a right-winger, but I said we are letting children down who have a weak background.
Posted by: ryuge ||
11/11/2007 06:52 ||
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#1
"If a teenager is ordered to perform such a killing to avenge the honor of a female relative, she said, parents and even uncles and aunts are held liable."
Do our conspiracy-to-commit-murder laws adequately cover this in the US?
#2
The Social Democrats, while denouncing her, realize that her Saul-to-Paul shift reflects in some way the state of the Danish soul, torn between traditional values of tolerance and fear that unrestrained immigration will somehow tear apart the national fabric.
Typical fifth columnist parsing of the situation. As if opposition to a Dark Ages rape cult was inconsistent with traditional values of tolerance. Traditional values of tolerance demand we oppose islam. Traditional leftist values of apologetics, alliance with the Enemy and drooling stupidity reach a different conclusion.
#3
The characterization as Saul-to-Paul is revealing. Saul was a tax farmer for the Romans and a persecutor of Christians. Paul was an advocate for allowing Gentiles to be baptized as Christians without first undergoing conversion to Judaism, wrote letters that became part of the Christian bible, and became a saint.
In other words, another Liberal mugged by reality. Easily labelled, as it happens, and no clearly a category of growing concern to the Social Democrats, the EU, and the journalist.
#4
I think that Karen Jespersen chose to leave the Social Democrats when she eyed a chance to gain influence and become a minister in the right-wing government by speaking against the party and the government she was part of, said Henrik Dam Kristensen, a spokesman for the Social Democrats.
Perish the thought thatas an active feministMs. Jespersen might have developed a thorough revulsion for the intensely misogynistic claptrap that is Islam.
Mr. Pittelkow and Ms. Jespersen published a book, titled Islamists and the Naïve, in which they went so far as to assert that some qualities of Islam could also be found in Nazism and Communism.
KAPOW! Right in the kisser.
Not all Muslims are reading the Koran in that sense, but those who interpret it this way are growing fast, in organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah
Smart dame!
Ms. Jespersen denies that her transformation represents a betrayal of principle. My core values are the same, she said. I thought there was room for my core values in Social Democracy, but I find there is more room among the conservatives.
There can be few more searing indictments of socialistic liberals than the above. I, myself, have experienced this exact same effect. The liberal people I know tend to discriminate against me for my opposition to anti-Americanism and fundamentalist Islam, while the conservative people I know tend to demonstrate respect my continued support of women's choice and tolerance for gays.
All of this points towards how the liberal left increasingly represents a migration towards stateism and all the fascistic oppression that it implies.
By Annie Jacobsen Aviation Nation covers Muslim Security runs, good read for Burgers.
Sources inside American Airlines tell me that the airline has no intention of settling last week's lawsuit filed in U.S. district court. David Al-Watan, Talal Cholagh, Ali Alzerej, Hassan Alzerej, Hussein Alsalih and Mohammad Al-Saedy are seeking "hundreds of thousands of dollars" in damages for racial profiling. Good for them! We would love to seen any lawyer try the race card. Islam isn't a race
This 12-page police report explains why American Airlines should never pay these men a dime. It also explains why several names should be added to the 800,000+ name no-fly list if they haven't been added already. I'll bet you one of Zens wines this was a trial run
Aviation security is a national security issue. There should be a zero tolerance policy in effect for anyone who acts like a bully (Muslim) in airports and on airplanes. Shame on the attorneys who represent people like this and shame on the journalists and news organizations who belittled the female passenger who opted out of having her kids bullied by a drunk actor named Dave Al-Watan. (Each flight attendant interviewed by the police felt the behavior of Al-Watan and his cohorts was belligerent, as did at least one other male passenger interview by police).
The men, it turns out, had been hired by the U.S. Military as "authentic Iraqi" actors in Iraq-war, "role-playing scenarios." I asked a U.S. Federal Air Marshal what this meant: "Most likely these guys were at Ft. Irwin playing terrorists and insurgents," he said.
They should have left their role-playing at the army base. Instead, they tried auditioning for FOX news (see police report page 3). A must read on the behavior of CAIR fascia scum
"We work hard for this country. And we can prove ourselves. We are good people, not bad people&Why are we getting treated like that?" said Dave Alwatan, airline passenger. "So we will sue!"
"As soon as we got on the plane, some of the guys don't speak English, so what they did, they started speaking Arabic," said Alwatan. What you didn't think of yelling FIRE!?
In Chicago, at the Counsel for Islamic Relations, executive director Ahmed Rehab says this incident is alarming and a sign of hysteria. We forget that the Muslim terrorist on 9-11 were speeking Swiss
"Judging people by their language is one step removed from judging people by their race or religion. A step I'll take any day
#8
agreed, Ice. Discovery should be like a trip to a large-handed proctologist for these whiners. CAIR needs a real spanking in court and public opinion awareness as well.
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/11/2007 16:05 Comments ||
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#9
That was certainly an effective image, Frank. Not that I disagree -- CAIR wants to be set down a couple of pegs. Hard. Especially since they do rather go on about being the voice of the Muslim community in this country, which isn't a single community, and for which they -- by membership at any rate -- are not.
Saudi funded which means at least some of their moneys come from terrorist funders. Which begs the question, where are these pricks getting money for their lawyers?
American Airlines isn't going to back down nor should they.
#11
First we had a bunch of Islamists hijacking planes full of civilians and slaming them into Manhatten high rises.
Now we have a bunch of Islamists boarding planes and purposely terrorising civilian passengers.
When is the FAA going to start profiling so that members of this death cult are no longer allowed on planes? When is the FAA going to notify (s)CAIR that no Muslim will be allowed on US planes?
Posted by: Chinesing Dark Lord of the Geats3511 ||
11/11/2007 21:34 Comments ||
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#2
AP is not the only one to say it. Somebody on the 'bunny side is doing a rather remarkable job of motivating them too, since the great majority of those increased attacks end with lots of hassenfeffer. Perhaps that motivational speaker could be lured away to help coach the Pakisan national cricket team instead - everybody would come out ahead that way.
#5
Attacks and US casualties are the highest they've been since the Afghan campaign began, but so are Taliban casualties. Our problem from the beginning was getting the enemy to stand up and fight. We no longer have that problem. And that is a good thing. I look forward to Uncle Sam killing tens of thousands of Taliban in the years ahead.
NEW DELHI India needs to develop stronger defence capabilities to safeguard its interests as a prominent regional player, Defence Minister A.K. Antony said here yesterday. "With our growing stature, the need of the hour is to develop stronger defence capabilities to safeguard our interests," he said while speaking at the 42nd foundation day celebrations of the think-tank Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA).
"As a prominent regional player, we will be called upon to play an increasingly significant role in ensuring peace and stability in our immediate as well as extended neighbourhood and in the Asian region," he said. "We have to ensure that our security apparatus is well-equipped to deal with various challenges effectively," Antony added.
Noting that the security forces faced "several" challenges, the minister said: "Though traditional threats do exist, there are little chances of a conventional war breaking out.
"However, there may be scattered incidents of localised skirmishes, border incursions, civil strife, maritime or other potential threats," Antony added.
Besides traditional threats, there were also the unconventional threats, he said. "Terrorism with its global networks, financing and support from various quarters is one such challenge.
Increasingly, terrorism is being outsourced to local criminals and miscreants to hide the real source of its origin. Insurgents supported by external forces, propagating extremist ideologies result in irregular, but long-drawn out warfare," the minister said. With technology "changing at an unbelievable speed", Antony said: "The challenge, therefore, to keep pace with these technological changes is more pronounced than ever before.
"The choice before us is clear to either let the events shape us, or enhance our ability to shape the events.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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LAHORE: Pakistan Army has started extensive training exercise at Feroza Field Firing Range near Rahim Yar Khan. The aim of this exercise is to test the fighting mettle of all the major components of Pakistan Army through field firing and inoculation drills.
Wonder if they have any counter-insurgency training planned?
The exercise includes a combined Infantry-Armour assault integrated with massive fire support by artillery both during day and night under simulated battle conditions.
Boy howdy, that'll all come in handy against the Talibunnies in the Northwest Frontier and FATA. Too bad the soldiers aren't going there.
The soldiers of PAF, Artillery, Armour and Baktar Shikan have demonstrated excellent live firepower skills on moving and static targets.
There's some live-fire training available in Wazoo. Who's game?
Major General Shoukat Sultan Khan, General Officer Commanding visited the exercise area and appreciated the resilience and professional standards displayed by all the troops and urged them to continue their training to enhance the battle efficiency of the fighting units.
Posted by: john frum ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Preparing to attack India yet again? Perhaps the fifth time will be the charm. Lots of new weaponry in the Pak arsenal.
Posted by: john frum ||
11/11/2007 6:37 Comments ||
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#2
Meanwhile...
Major, captain taken hostage
Militants took a major, a captain and five soldiers hostage in Kabbal tehsil on Saturday.
A militant commander, Akbar Hussain, who is in charge of the tehsil, said the soldiers were traveling in an army vehicle when they were intercepted at a checkpoint near Kabbal and taken hostage. He said a major, a captain, two lance naiks and three sepoys had been taken hostage.
He said that a secret file and a map marking militants positions had been seized from the soldiers and they had been taken to Imam Dheri, the headquarters of Maulana Fazalullahs movement.
Sources said that the soldiers wearing plain clothes were going from the Chakdarra base camp to Kabbal when the militants signaled them to stop but the driver sped away. However, the vehicle was stopped at the next checkpoint and the soldiers were asked to surrender.
Militant commander of Khwazakhela, Maulana Mohammad Alam, made an announcement in a mosque in Madyan, asking people to grow beards and offer prayers regularly. He asked women to observe proper purdah, warning that otherwise they would be punished.
The sources said the maulana set a three-day deadline for the people to abide by religious laws, after which the militants would punish the violators.
Posted by: john frum ||
11/11/2007 6:42 Comments ||
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#3
Militant commander of Khwazakhela, Maulana Mohammad Alam, made an announcement in a mosque in Madyan, asking people to grow beards and offer prayers regularly. He asked women to observe proper purdah, warning that otherwise they would be punished. The sources said the maulana set a three-day deadline for the people to abide by religious laws, after which the militants would punish the violators
that's a little harsh - most wymyns can't grow a beard in three days
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/11/2007 8:13 Comments ||
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#4
I dunno, FrankG. Maybe Muslim ones can - it would explain the need for the potato sacks they wear.
#7
Ice,
If I recall correctly, there are more Muslims in India than in Pakistan - or any other country except Indonesia. A wide-open conflict between Pakistan and India is likely to become an Indian civil war at the same time. Scary thought - 1970's Lebanon, writ large, with nukes.
#12
Thanks TW! We for some reason ended up with the largest collection of troop support videos on the web. Pretty patriotic people here. From liberals to conservatives. But thanks again for the kind words.
(PTI) The Pakistan government has amended the Army Act to empower military courts to try civilians accused of instigating or carrying out acts of terrorism against armed forces, a top official said today. The amendment to the Army Act of 1952 will also allow military courts to take up cases involving persons like tribal militants and to try persons planning to carry out suicide attacks.
Attorney General Malik Qayyum said the offence of terrorism had been added to the Act. "Civilians instigating or carrying out acts of terrorism against armed forces personnel can now be tried by military courts," Qayyum told TV news channels. The amendment will also redefine the role of security agencies by giving them powers of arbitrary detentions, officials had said earlier.
All the necessary components of a police state.
This is the second attempt to bring civilians under the purview of the Army Act since 1977. The Lahore High Court had earlier struck down such an amendment made in the Act by the government of late prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
Though a number of civilians are currently being tried by military courts for their alleged involvement in assassination attempts on President Pervez Musharraf, the new amendment to the Army Act will "broaden the scope" for conviction of civilians by army tribunals, officials said.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
The Pak Praetorian state belongs to the Army anyway. No reason why Pak civilians should not be under its jurisdiction.
Posted by: john frum ||
11/11/2007 6:27 Comments ||
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(PTI) Unveiling a four-point agenda aimed at strengthening cooperation among opposition parties, former premier Nawaz Sharif today asked Pakistan People's Party leader Benazir Bhutto to sever all contacts with President Pervez Musharraf to strengthen their movement against imposition of emergency.
In a letter sent to Bhutto, referred to her plan to organise a "long march" to protest Musharraf's failure to deliver on certain promises made to the Pakistan People's Party and sought details about it. As he was not aware of the nature of these promises, Sharif said he would appreciate it if Bhutto took him "into confidence about the details".
This would help his PML-N decide on whether to support the march planned for November 13 and join hands with the PPP to oppose the emergency imposed last week, Sharif, who was deported in September hours after returning to his home country from a seven-year exile, said.
Sharif also unveiled a four-point agenda aimed at strengthening cooperation among opposition parties and ensuring a transition to civilian democracy. He said Pakistan's constitution should be restored to its status as on October 12, 1999 the date Sharif was removed as premier by Musharraf in a bloodless coup and the emergency and Provisional Constitutional Order issued by the military ruler should be withdrawn.
All political activists, lawyers and judges arrested under the emergency should be released, Sharif said. The curbs on the media should be lifted and the general election should be held under the supervision of a neutral caretaker government, said Sharif.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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The Maldives is seeking Interpols help to arrest 10 of its nationals, wanted in connection with a bomb blast in the capital Male, who have fled to Pakistan, police said Saturday. The calm of the paradise holiday destination was shattered in September when Islamic radicals set off a home-made bomb, wounding 12 foreign tourists. Police arrested six of 16 Maldivians believed to be linked to the attack, but said another 10 escaped to Pakistan. The Attorney Generals office has given us the court order and we have now asked Interpol to issue a red notice, Maldives police spokesman Ahmed Shiyam told AFP in Colombo by telephone. A red notice allows an arrest warrant to be circulated worldwide, with the intent that the person will be extradited, according to Interpols website. Shiyam did not say what charges the suspects might face.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao said on Saturday the imposition of emergency rule and political unrest in the country had not affected the governments commitment to fight terrorism and extremism. We are hunting terrorists with more power after the imposition of emergency rule, the minister told US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W Patterson and Canadian High Commissioner WD Collins at separate meetings with them.
Sherpao said Pakistan would continue collaborating with Canada and the US against human smuggling and terrorism. Efforts are underway to bring peace in Swat and Tribal Areas of the country, he told Patterson. Pakistan, he added, itself was a victim of terrorism.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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President General Pervez Musharraf will repeal the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) before doffing uniform and taking oath of the office of president for a second term, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi told Daily Times on the phone Saturday.
He said that Musharraf would take oath of the presidents office for another term under the Constitution and not the PCO.
He (the president) will restore the 1973 Constitution before taking oath and doffing his uniform. This will happen after the court dismisses a stay order against the notification of his re-election and the Election Commission notifies the results of the Oct 6 presidential election, he said. He avoided a comment on the attorney generals statement that the state of emergency would be lifted in a month, saying that the emergency rule would end and the Constitution would be restored after all matters were settled in the restive Swat valley and Tribal Areas. He said he was hopeful that peace would return to the troubled areas soon.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
As I understand it the American Lawyers were supporting the Pakistani Lawyers until the Americans found out the Pakistanis weren't billing anyone for their hours.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
11/11/2007 11:24 Comments ||
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#2
Allan is merciful indeed! Let's go hand out sweets and slaughter some goats.
#3
Mushy: you invoked martial law in face of Islamofascist terror, so why are you targeting seculars? Over a hundred Pak soldiers have surrendered to Taliban, without a fight, since martial law begins.
Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa expressed dismay on Friday at Israeli impugning of the efforts of the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Muhammad Elbaradei, saying that the latter had earned the confidence of innumerable officials worldwide.
"I am surprised and disconcerted by the Israeli attack on Dr. Elbaradei and international organizations that seek to enforce the ban on the spread of nuclear weapons," he told a number of reporters here. He asserted that such nuclear programs, like that of Israel, which are not subject to international monitoring, are a direct cause of instability in many parts of the world.
Moussa underscored the imperative not to have the world tolerate nuclear threats from any quarters, emphasizing that Israel's position on nuclear matters was not clear, though it smacked of negativity at any rate.
With regard to the Iranian nuclear issue, he counseled patience until Elbaradei submitted his report on the subject to the Security Council shortly. There was no reason, he asserted, for anyone to doubt the veracity or neutrality of the IAEA or its director general.
He boosted the notion that the entire Mideast region would be a lot better off without the existence of any militarily-oriented nuclear programs, especially including the Israeli nuclear program.
When asked why the Israeli attack on the person of Elbaradei received wide currency in the world, Moussa said he did not think Israel's attitude toward Elbaradei was championed by too many officials around the world, since most of them realize that the Israeli nuclear program poses as a powder keg in the region.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah met here Saturday to discuss the upcoming US-sponsored Mideast peace conference, with Egypt saying both countries support the meeting.
After the two leaders met, Egypt's presidential spokesman, Suleiman Awaad, said the two countries were backing the conference because it could set the stage for a final agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians. "Egypt and Saudi Arabia have a clear stance, that is to welcome the meeting because it comes after long years of a frozen peace process," Awaad told reporters. Saudi officials did not comment after the meeting.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Many terrible surprises await the IDF should Israel launch a wide-scale operation in the Gaza Strip, a spokesperson for Hamas's military wing warned on Saturday.
In an interview with an Israeli-Arab weekly which was quoted on Army Radio, the spokesperson said that Hamas was eagerly awaiting the incursion, and that the group had yet to take advantage of the full array of their arsenal.
Speaking about the fate of kidnapped IDF soldier Cpl. Gilad Schalit, the spokesperson assured that Hamas has no intention of harming the captive, even if Israel invades the Strip. He added that the group would not offer any more information about the condition of Schalit until Israel answers their demands for a prisoner release.
Meanwhile, the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported on Friday that Israel had informed PA authorities in Ramallah of its intention to send the IDF into the Gaza Strip in order to regain control of the Philadelphi Corridor and put an end to Hamas smuggling of weapons and cash through tunnels from the Egyptian side of the border.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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President Shimon Peres will leave on Sunday for a three-day state visit to Turkey amid growing efforts to bridge the gaps between Israel and the Palestinian Authority ahead of the Annapolis peace summit scheduled for later this month.
Peres will be the guest of Turkish President Abdullah Gul and will become the first Israeli leader to speak in a Muslim parliament after he addresses the Grand National Assembly of Turkey together with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day, both leaders will meet with Gul and sign a memorandum on the establishment of a new industrial zone in the West Bank. The meeting is part of the Ankara Forum that was set up in 2005 to bring together Turkish, Israel and Palestinian industrialists.
In 2006, Turkey signed an agreement to take control of the Erez Industrial Zone in Gaza but with the Hamas takeover of Gaza in June, Ankara has decided to try and establish a joint Israeli-Palestinian industrial zone in the West Bank. Abbas' government is scheduled to announce in Turkey how much land it plans to allocate for the project, which is expected to create jobs for thousands of Palestinians.
Turkish officials said that talks with Peres would focus on the possibility of renewing Israeli negotiations with Syria, the Iranian threat as well as the growing rift between Turkey and the US over an initiative in the Congress to formally recognize the Armenian genocide of 1915.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
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Telex for Miss Condoleezza Rice! Telex for Secretary Rice!
GAZA, Nov 10 -- The Palestinian mainstream movement of Fatah pledged Saturday that the Palestinian people would keep defying the Israeli occupation authorities until a Palestinian independent state was established.
Marking the third anniversary of the demise of late leader Yasser Arafat, the movement said in a press release: "The Palestinian people realized that they shoulder a great responsibility and will hold high the banner of defiance and struggle till the end of the Israel occupation and the establishment of an independent state. This position runs counter to the expectations of the Israeli enemies when late leader Arafat martyred. Marking the anniversary of the demise of late leader Yasser Arafat reflects the insistence of our people including Fatah movement to realize the goals for which Arafat martyred after three years in siege," the statement issued by Fatah spokesman Ahmed Al-Tayyeb said. "Arafat's martyrdom left huge vacuum in our national life as the Palestinian people used to feel secure during Arafat's lifetime," according to the statement received by KUNA. "Arafat's message to the world on the necessity of Palestinian statehood expressed his allegiance to the homeland," it added.
Meanwhile, Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat accused Israel of manipulating what he termed as "Hamas's coup d'etat in Gaza Strip" in the current peace talks. "Israel manipulated what has happened in the strip as a weapon against us in the peace talks," Palestine radio quoted Erekat as saying Saturday morning.
He also condemned the earlier threats by Hamas Leader Mahmoud Al-Zahhar to take over the West Bank as was the case in Gaza Strip. "The threat reflects the mentality of a junta that seeks nothing but revenge," he highlighted.
"Unlike us here at Fatah, which we are certainly not bloodthirsty dire-revenge-seeking killbots...oh, wait. We are! My bad."
Lebanons presidential election has been postponed from Nov. 12 to Nov. 21 to give rival leaders more time to break a deadlock over a consensus candidate, the parliament speaker said in a statement on Saturday.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/11/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11131 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - The quivering images and militant writings are frightening: an exploding Humvee blankets passing cars with dust; a lab technician makes explosives, step by step; hatred oozes from "A guide to kill Americans in Saudi Arabia." Hello, calling Mr. Bush
Tens of thousands of Web pages are now devoted to terrorist propaganda designed to attract followers. On the surface, the messages and videos reveal little about their creators. But programmers and writers leave digital clues: the greetings and other words they choose, their punctuation and syntax, and the way they code multimedia attachments and Web links.
Researchers at the University of Arizona are developing a tool that uses these clues to automate the analysis of online jihadism. The Dark Web project aims to scour Web sites, forums and chat rooms to find the Internet's most prolific and influential jihadists and learn how they reel in adherents.
Lab director Hsinchun Chen hopes Dark Web will crimp what he calls "al-Qaida University on the Web," the mass of Web sites where potential terrorists learn their trade, from making explosives to planning attacks. Experts said they are not aware of any comparable effort, though some said the project may have only limited applications.
The project in the university's Artificial Intelligence Lab will not identify people outside cyberspace "because that involves civil liberties," Chen said, preferring to let law enforcement and intelligence analysts take over from there. Instead, it will help identify messages with the same author and reveal links that aren't obvious.
"Our tool will help them ID the high-risk, radical Muslim opinion leaders in cyberspace," Chen said.
Chen said a few agencies are on the verge of using some of his team's techniques but he wouldn't name the agencies.
Former FBI counterterror chief Dale Watson, who noted that terrorist Web sites and communications are now analyzed manually, said the ability to sort through so much data electronically "would be a great asset in the fight against terrorism."
#4
The National Intelligence Estimate, an unclassified document available on the DNI website, clearly identifies radical islam and Al Qu'ida as the greatest threat to the US. Along with AQ there is a more generalized assessment of the threat of radical Islamists and Jihadi's.
Given that none of these dangerous people are hidden in a Presbyterian Retreat, and that we have limited resources, it seems reasonable to look among the Muslims first. Of course this is profiling, but the fault for forcing us to do this is those in the Muslim community who do not identify the radicals among them! Fear, or sympathy would seem to be the two motives. Neither reflect well on Muslims. The CAIR crap is just the one-trick playbook of calling anything involving scrutiny of Muslims as racist.
Enough of the BS....
I do not intend to let someone use a WMD on my children, rgrandchildren and my countrymen ... so if I have to profile and be a racist in CAIR's eyes to protect them, so be it! My regard for CAIR's opinion isn't very large to begin with...
Posted by: No More BS ||
11/11/2007 18:33 Comments ||
Top||
#5
there is a more generalized assessment of the threat of radical Islamists and Jihadi's.
An Iranian agent held by the Americans in Iraq is at the centre of attempts to get five British hostages freed, a senior Iraqi official claimed last week. The five men - four bodyguards and an economics expert working for the US company BearingPoint - were kidnapped from the Iraqi finance ministry in May.
The Iranians have demanded the release of Qais al-Khazaali, a former lieutenant of Moqtadr al-Sadr, the Mahdi Army militia leader and radical cleric, as part of any deal to free the British hostages, the official said. Khazaali is held by US forces after being accused of leading a raid inside a base at Karbala in January in which five US soldiers were killed. The official said the British hostages were kidnapped in a well planned operation as part of attempts to force the Americans to free Khazaali.
Until his arrest, he was one of al-Sadrs senior aides but it is his links to the Iranians that make him key to the hostages release, the official said. Trained in Iran, he is one of the leaders of a military movement that Tehran is setting up in Iraq along the lines of Lebanons Hezbollah, Iraqi sources say. The Revolutionary Guards Al-Quds force is training and funding Shiite cells for the purpose of mounting operations against US and UK forces in the event of an attack on Iran. But the Americans refuse to release him and since then all negotiations have come to an end, the official said.
Gordon Brown asked about the fate of the hostages and attempts to secure their release when he met Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, last month. Maliki sent an emissary to Tehran to ask for assistance in getting the hostages freed. He returned with evidence that they were still alive, the official claimed. UK officials said they were not aware of the evidence but confirmed that Khazaalis release was a key part of the kidnappers demands.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran said last week that it had evidence of an extensive Al-Quds intelligence and military network operating against British troops in southern Iraq. The Al-Quds force was training Shiite militia members in both Iraq and Iran for operations against the British in the event of a US attack on Iran. The network is run by the Al-Quds base at Ahvaz in western Iran and coordinated by the Iranian consulate in Basra. It was originally set up by a member of the Al-Quds force who had spent eight years in Lebanon training and working with Hezbollah.
#1
I wonder what gave the impression Iranians could kidnap British citizens in Iraq and nobody would do anything about it? Ahh, yes, almost thirty years of inaction since Americans were taken hostage and more recent events involving Royal Navy personnel.
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.
Fourteen Saudi nationals detained in the American Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba have returned home Saturday morning, said an Interior Ministry spokesman. The families of the returned detainees are being informed of their arrival, and arrangements are being made for reunion, said the spokesman, quoted by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
Karen Jespersen is so new to her job as Denmarks minister of social affairs that she felt compelled to apologize to a visitor that she could not identify the painter of the canvases hanging in her offices, because she still has her predecessors furnishings. It was a rare admission, for Ms. Jespersen does not often apologize. Since her appointment to the post in September, she has emerged as a stalwart defender of a countrys right to require immigrants to accept its basic values and, inevitably, a lightning rod in Europes continuing debate over immigration. And for a onetime student leftist, prominent journalist and former official with the Social Democratic Party, her new role in the conservative government of Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen represents the latest step in a remarkable personal odyssey.
By Annie Jacobsen
[Press release]
(PTI) Unveiling a four-point agenda aimed at strengthening cooperation among opposition parties, former premier Nawaz Sharif today asked Pakistan People's Party leader Benazir Bhutto to sever all contacts with President Pervez Musharraf to strengthen their movement against imposition of emergency.
The Maldives is seeking Interpols help to arrest 10 of its nationals, wanted in connection with a bomb blast in the capital Male, who have fled to Pakistan, police said Saturday. The calm of the paradise holiday destination was shattered in September when Islamic radicals set off a home-made bomb, wounding 12 foreign tourists. Police arrested six of 16 Maldivians believed to be linked to the attack, but said another 10 escaped to Pakistan. The Attorney Generals office has given us the court order and we have now asked Interpol to issue a red notice, Maldives police spokesman Ahmed Shiyam told AFP in Colombo by telephone. A red notice allows an arrest warrant to be circulated worldwide, with the intent that the person will be extradited, according to Interpols website. Shiyam did not say what charges the suspects might face.
Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa expressed dismay on Friday at Israeli impugning of the efforts of the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Muhammad Elbaradei, saying that the latter had earned the confidence of innumerable officials worldwide.
Many terrible surprises await the IDF should Israel launch a wide-scale operation in the Gaza Strip, a spokesperson for Hamas's military wing warned on Saturday. 
