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Multiple explosions at TX pipelines near Mexican border
Today's Headlines
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Afghanistan
Coalition kills militant in southern Afghanistan
(KUNA) -- One armed assailant was killed and three more people were arrested during a coalition forces' operation in southern Afghanistan, a statement by the US forces said on Thursday.

The operation was conducted in Tirinkot, capital of the country's southern Uruzgan province, in search of a Taliban commander "responsible for conducting anti-government activities." During the search, the coalition forces came under fire from the compound. In an exchange of fire, one of the assailants was killed while three more people were detained from the site. "Coalition forces remain focused on defeating insurgent networks in Afghanistan," said Capt Vanessa R. Bowman, spokesperson for the US-led coalition troops.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Taliban


Africa North
Algeria/ Striking revelations made by suicide bomber arrested in Lakhdaria
According to avowals made by a suicide bomber who was arrested by security forces before committing his awesome attack in the town of Lakhdaria , east of Algiers, the Al Qaeda north African wing, formerly GSPC, have devised a new strategy aimed at hoodwinking young Algerian women to make them join their ranks through devious means.

He also revealed during a lengthy questioning conducted by the security services of the province of Bouira that mobile phone calls were given to numerous young women by terrorists, posing as would-be lovers, to bamboozle them into joining their fold before using them as suicide bombers. The arrested terrorist said that he had been in constant touch by phone with a 21- year girl named Sabrina living in the town of Lakhdaria with the aim of eventually using her, after a brainwashing period, as suicide bomber. However, the young woman together with another girl of the town were arrested by the security forces before the projected bombing.

The police services had been monitoring for months hundreds of suspected phone calls in order to face up to any untoward contingency. Furthermore, a local drug dealer was also arrested on charges of bringing financial and logistical support to terrorist groups operating in the region as part of the thorough police investigation.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa

#1  you a hooer--now go blow yourself up fer allah--leave the cell phone--take the babbagenoush
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI || 02/15/2008 0:06 Comments || Top||


Algeria/ Female suicide bomber gives herself up to security forces
Security sources told Echorouk newspaper that a young woman named Hanane Kebaili, suspected of belonging to Al Qaeda terror group, had finally gave herself up to security forces in the province of Blida, 50 km west of Algiers.

The same sources indicated that the young woman was believed to be involved in an armed robbery of a jewellers’ shop in the city of Blida during which the owner of the shop was killed by bullets and a large quantity of gold and money was stolen. The armed robbery was carried out, according to the same sources, by a group of terrorists operating in the region of Blida. The young woman told the police investigators that she was in constant touch with a group of still unidentified terrorists who were planning to use her as a suicide bomber against her will.

In a bid to loosen the tightening grip on her, the hounded woman fled Blida to take refuge in a flat in the district of Ain Naadja, on the eastern outskirts of Algiers before deciding to give herself up to the security forces. The investigation is still going on so as to unravel all the intricacies of the affair with the arrest of all those involved notably in the cold-blooded murder of the owner of the jeweller’s shop in the city of Blida.
This article starring:
HANANE KEBAILIal-Qaeda in North Africa
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa

#1  Did she give herself up to them before or after she was arrested??


ok, I'm a pig...
Posted by: Abu do you love || 02/15/2008 21:42 Comments || Top||


Britain
Fifth man convicted in plot to kill British Muslim soldier
A jury convicted a fifth man in the case of a plot to kidnap and kill a British Muslim soldier and supply terrorists in Pakistan with equipment.

Zahoor Iqbal, 30, of Elmbridge Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham, was found guilty at Leicester Crown Court of one count of helping fanatic Parvis Khan to supply equipment to people in Pakistan, near the Afghanistan border, for terrorist activities. He was cleared of a charge of possessing a document or record likely to be useful to a terrorist, namely a computer disc entitled Encyclopaedia Jihad. Another man, Amjad Mahmood, 32, of Jackson Road, Alum Rock, Birmingham, was cleared of a charge of helping supply equipment for terrorist activities.

The jury, which first retired on Wednesday, has failed to reach a verdict on another charge, that Mahmood knew about Khan's plan to film the beheading of the soldier but failed to inform the authorities. The jury was sent home for the weekend and will continue deliberating on Monday. Khan has already admitted four charges linked to the kidnap plot and other offences. Three other men have admitted other related terrorism offences.
This article starring:
AMJAD MAHMUDal-Qaeda in Britain
PARVIS KHANal-Qaeda in Britain
ZAHUR IQBALal-Qaeda in Britain
Posted by: ryuge || 02/15/2008 09:23 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  So when are they going to try them for treason?
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 02/15/2008 10:15 Comments || Top||

#2  Muslims dont believe they are british so send the scum to islamic hellholes with no free healthcare, no free education and no welfare cqs!!!!
Posted by: Paul || 02/15/2008 10:50 Comments || Top||

#3  send the scum to islamic hellholes with no free healthcare, no free education and no welfare cqs!!!!

Sounds like a description of Hell, to me. Go for it, Britain!
Posted by: Old Patriot || 02/15/2008 14:05 Comments || Top||


Europe
Germans arrest alleged al-Qaida suspect
German prosecutors said Friday they arrested a 45-year-old German-Pakistani suspected of providing financial and logistical support to members of al-Qaida in southern Afghanistan.

Federal prosecutors gave the man's name only as Aleem N., an ethnic Pakistani with German citizenship. But he was identified as Aleem Nasir by a relative in a telephone interview from his home in the southwestern German town of Germersheim.

Prosecutors said the arrested man was suspected of making four trips between April 2005 and June 2007 to Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan to deliver at least $5,850 in cash — "and in three cases, binoculars, night-vision goggles and radios — to al-Qaida members in positions of responsibility."

They also said that in the spring of 2006, the suspect recruited another person living in Germany to join al-Qaida. The suspect wrote a recommendation letter that the recruit, who was not identified, used to secure a place in a terrorist training camp in Afghanistan, prosecutors said.

Rheinland-Palatinate police arrested the suspect Thursday, and a federal judge on Friday ordered him to be held for the duration of the investigation. No formal charges have been filed.

Manfred Gnjidic, a lawyer representing Nasir, said his client had been arrested in Pakistan last June and held for two months. He said Nasir was tortured by Pakistan's military intelligence service.

The attorney said Nasir knew German authorities were investigating his activities and was not surprised by his arrest. In September, Nasir told the newsweekly Stern that he had made several trips to Pakistan to buy gems and not to visit terrorist camps. Gnjidic said Nasir had not confessed to any wrongdoing.
Posted by: ed || 02/15/2008 20:23 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:


Discovery of 140 kg of explosives in Turkey
(KUNA) -- Turkish authorities found on Thursday over 140 kilograms of explosives in town of Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey.

Turkish security forces found about 140 kilogram of C-4 explosives in the Kurdish majority city of Hazro, near Diyarbakir town, noting that the explosives were hidden in an agricultural land and was discovered in a combing operation was executed in region, Turkish Chief of Staff said.

The authorities also found grenades and bombs manufacturing materials, adding that explosives experts deactivated the bombs and evacuated the area.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Top Lashker commander killed in Kashmir
Srinagar, Feb 15 (IANS) A top Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, suspected to be involved in the Jan 1 attack on a paramilitary camp in Uttar Pradesh, was killed Friday in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, police officials said. Abdul Rehman was allegedly involved in the attack on the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in which eight people were killed as well as in major terror attacks in south Kashmir. He was killed by security forces early Friday. Police described it as the biggest blow to the LeT in recent times.
Posted by: john frum || 02/15/2008 06:15 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Taiba

#1  Allahu akbar!
Posted by: gorb || 02/15/2008 7:37 Comments || Top||

#2  Looks like the guys they captured in Bangalore spilled the beans.
The UP police killed a couple, now the Kashmiri police are hunting down the rest of the plotters.

Posted by: John Frum || 02/15/2008 12:02 Comments || Top||


Five Maoist rebels killed in an encounter in E. India
(KUNA) -- In a major counter-insurgency success, at least five Maoist rebels were killed by security forces in Jamshedpur district in Eastern Indian state of Jharkhand on Thursday.

Nearly 15 rebels of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist attacked one Karuunum village in Jamshedpur district early today, reported Indo Asian News Service, quoting an official of Jharkhand Police. In the subsequent encounter between the rebels and security forces, five Maoists were killed, the official informed. One Insas, three AK 57 rifles and live cartridges have been recovered from the slain rebels, the official said.

One of the slain Maoists have been identified as "Vikas," who masterminded the attack on Indian Parliamentarian Sunil Mahto last year, the news agency said. Mahato was killed in the attack.

Maoists are active in 18 of the 24 districts of Jharkhand. But the security forces have achieved success against them in recent past.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:


Firing on election rallies in Pakistan wounds over 10
(KUNA) -- More than 10 persons were wounded Thursday as unknown gunmen opened fire at the election rallies of two leading political parties in Pakistan. In this first incident, unknown armed motorcyclists opened fire at the election rally of Pakistan Muslim League (N), led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in Hafizabad city of Eastern Punjab province, police sources told KUNA.

They said more than six persons were wounded and four of them are said to be in critical condition.

In another incident, said sources further, about five persons were wounded in a similar incident in Mir Pur Khas area of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Meanwhile, a bomb exploded inside the office of PML-N in Naushki town of Southwestern Baluchistan province, said sources.

They said no one was hurt in the explosion but the office furniture was damaged.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Taliban

#1  We Americans think Super Tuesday was exciting, and it only wounded Hillary.
Posted by: Darrell || 02/15/2008 10:13 Comments || Top||


20 more militants surrender to Swat authorities
At least 20 militants including four commanders have surrendered to the security forces in Kabal tehsil of Swat valley on Thursday, sources said. A jirga was held in the tehsil, in which Aman Committee Chairman Sher Khan and security officials participated, the sources said, adding that around 20 militants including four commanders turned themselves in to the security forces and also laid down their weapons. The security forces released the militants after they offered sureties in accordance with the jirga requirements.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Taiba


Foreigners among 7 militants held from Darra
Security forces on Thursday arrested seven suspected militants including four foreigners from Darra Adam Khel and seized a heavy cache of weapons from them, a private television channel reported.

According to the channel, security forces raided Toor Chappar area of Darra Adam Khel and arrested the militants. They also seized a missile barrel launcher gun, an anti-aircraft gun and dozens of shells, pistols and bullets, it said.

Later, forces shifted the arrested militants to an undisclosed location for interrogation. The channel reported that security forces were informed that militants were hiding in Toor Chappar area and planning attacks on the security forces carrying out an operation in the area.

According to the channel, the nationality of the suspected foreign militants could not be confirmed. The channel reported that militants tried to flee but security forces arrested them without allowing them to retaliate.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda


Major among three killed in Bajaur Agency blast
A roadside bomb struck a security vehicle in Mamoond, killing three personnel, including Major Farhan, and wounding two others, sources said on Thursday. The sources said the security personnel were going from the Katkot Fort to Khar when their vehicle was targeted with a remote-controlled bomb on Tarkho Pul (bridge). The funeral prayers of the deceased were offered at Bajaur Scouts headquarters and their bodies were sent to their ancestral villages. No group has accepted responsibility for the attack. Meanwhile, the local Taliban in Bajaur Agency assured a Mamoond tribe jirga that they would suspend their activities during the elections and would not attack security forces on February 17 and 18. According to sources, the Taliban were also willing to hold further negotiations for the restoration of peace in the area.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Taliban


Operation launched to recover envoy Tariq
Unidentified gunmen kidnapped three more people in Khyber Agency where the political administration began a crackdown against tribesmen to rescue Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan Tariq Azizuddin.

The envoy went missing on his way to Afghanistan on Monday, and television reports said local Taliban had abducted him to trade him for their arrested commander Mansoor Dadullah. An official told Daily Times that the political administration arrested 12 men from the Jandakhel sub-tribe in Jamrud subdivision and impounded eight vehicles.

Landi Kotal Assistant Political Agent (APA) Ahmad Khan Aurakzai told Daily Times there was no ‘operation’. Asked which part of the agency was being focused on, he said: “Search is underway all over the Khyber Agency.”

Sources told Daily Times that Overlords of Delgon unidentified men carrying weapons abducted four Khasadar Force (tribal police) personnel and three other men in the Prang Sam area of Jamrud subdivision. They freed the Khasadar Force men after torturing them, sources said, and fled with the others. The Khasadars were on their way to the Torkham border with two Afghans who were to be deported, and a local resident who had to be interrogated.

NWFP Governor Owais Ghani said Tariq Azizuddin had not been taken outside Khyber Agency and would soon be rescued because of “significant information” the government had received. He was talking to reporters after the convocation of the City University on Thursday.

Tribesmen protest: Meanwhile, tribesmen from the Jandakhel tribe blocked the Peshawar-Torkham road to protest against what they called unlawful arrests of men from their tribe under the collective responsibility clause of the Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR). The tribesmen blocked the road at the Kata Pushta area near Prang Sam post. They warned of more protests if the administration did not release their men and stop the operation in their area.

Tariq Azizuddin had gone missing on his way from Peshawar to the Torkham border crossing on Monday when he lost contact with authorities in the Khyber Agency. The Khyber Agency political administration had said it was not informed Azizuddin would travel on the route. Reports said his vehicle was found in Landi Kotal. Geo television reported on Wednesday that local Taliban had claimed they had abducted him and would release him in return for Taliban commander Mullah Mansoor Dadullah.

Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Cheema told reporters on Wednesday that the government had not received any formal information indicating that Taliban had claimed responsibility.
This article starring:
Ahmad Khan Aurakzai
Javed Cheema
MANSUR DADULLAHTaliban
Owais Ghani
Tariq Azizuddin
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Taliban


Iraq
Anthony Cordesman: 10 days visiting the battlefields in Iraq seeing major progress in every area
Synopsis:
No one can spend some 10 days visiting the battlefields in Iraq without seeing major progress in every area. A combination of the surge, improved win and hold tactics, the tribal uprising in Anbar and other provinces, the Sadr ceasefire, and major advances in the use of IS&R have transformed the battle against Al Qaida in Iraq. If the US provides sustained support to the Iraqi government -- in security, governance, and development -- there is now a very real chance that Iraq will emerge as a secure and stable state.

Looking amazingly possitive. Check out the graphics PDF, well worth it. Here
Posted by: Icerigger || 02/15/2008 16:10 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  link doesnt work
Posted by: Pholugum Stalin1270 || 02/15/2008 16:52 Comments || Top||

#2  I found it, and you can try this link

Posted by: Abu do you love || 02/15/2008 17:49 Comments || Top||

#3  Sorry, got to double check those links.
Posted by: Icerigger || 02/15/2008 21:08 Comments || Top||


Roggio Synthesis of Special Groups Reports
Special Groups behind Sadr City bombing
By Bill Roggio

With Muqtada al Sadr's decision to reinstate or drop the self-imposed cease-fire less than nine days away, Multinational Forces Iraq continues to turn up the heat on the Iranian-backed and Sadr-linked Special Groups terror cells. US and Iraqi forces have conducted multiple raids on the terror cells over the past three days throughout central Iraq, continuing the trend that started on Feb. 4. Yesterday's explosion in Sadr City also has been linked to the Special Groups.

Since Feb. 12, Multinational Forces Iraq has reported eight raids on Special Groups cells and their weapons caches. During these raids, which were conducted between Feb. 8 and Feb. 12, thirty-one Special Groups operatives, including three cell leaders, were captured. Fourteen explosively formed penetrators, the powerfully deadly EFPs, were seized along with explosives, bomb making material, and weapons. In the recent actions:

• US troops received a tip from a Sons of Iraq fighter (formerly the Concerned Local Citizens) on the location of a large EFP and weapons cache in the town of Jurf Nadaf on Feb. 8.
• US troops captured a cell leader involved in IED and small-arms attacks on US and Iraqi forces in Hurriya on Feb. 10.
• US soldiers captured 25 Special Groups fighters during a series of operations in the Sabak Sur, a neighborhood in northeast Baghdad, on Feb. 11. This is "an area that has recently emerged as a safe haven for Special Groups," Multinational Forces Iraq reported.
• US troops captured a Special Groups cell leader involved in improvised explosive device (IED), EFP, small arms and rocket attacks in the Rashid district of Baghdad on Feb. 11.
• Iraqi Special Operations Forces captured a Special Groups cell leader responsible for IED, EFP, rocket, and mortar attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces on Feb. 11.
• US soldiers received a tip from an Iraqi on the location of an EFP and explosives cache in Baghdad on Feb. 11.
• Special Forces arrested a security guard of a Sadrist member of parliament in Hillah on Feb. 12.
• Coalition forces detained two Special Groups operatives in the Suwayrah area on Feb. 12.

US and Iraqi efforts to pressure Sadr to extend the cease-fire may be paying off. Sadr has stated he will decide on an extension by Feb. 23, while unnamed sources purportedly close to Sadr claim he will extend the cease-fire despite strong objections from his lieutenants. Sadr instituted the cease-fire after his Mahdi Army attacked Iraqi security forces during a religious festival in Karbala in August 2007.

Read the whole thing (& support independent journalism.)
Posted by: Glenmore || 02/15/2008 09:22 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: IRGC

#1  Lots of good news. And you know it's good news because the MSM isn't reporting it. Thanks Glen.
Posted by: Icerigger || 02/15/2008 16:17 Comments || Top||


Raw Video: Iraqi Civilians Fight Alongside Coalition Troops
Posted by: Icerigger || 02/15/2008 07:38 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency

#1  Are the IA out of uniform?
Posted by: gorb || 02/15/2008 9:37 Comments || Top||

#2  Question: Linked below this video is a two minute film purportedly showing marines shooting unarmed Iraqis. It shows the marines shooting at cars and swearing a lot, but is not particularly clear, except for one Iraqi jumping out of his car and getting behind it. Does anybody know more about this?
Posted by: mom || 02/15/2008 10:25 Comments || Top||

#3  Sorry mom but no. Liveleak may have more information.
Posted by: Icerigger || 02/15/2008 12:15 Comments || Top||


US says 7 militants killed in Iraq raids
Raids on al-Qaida forces in northern Iraq have left seven insurgents dead, the U.S. military said. But local police said Friday that two women and two U.S.-allied fighters were among those killed.
It mayb be they're both right.
The U.S. military said in a statement that one target of the raids late Wednesday and early Thursday was an alleged al-Qaida leader in the Salahuddin province, north of Baghdad. It wasn't clear if he was killed or captured.

According to the military account released Thursday, troops killed two insurgents during a gunbattle in one area, then called in air support, which killed another four fighters. One civilian was wounded and evacuated for further care, while troops detained 15 suspected insurgents.

All those killed were "terrorists associated" with al-Qaida in Iraq, said Lt. Michael Street, a military spokesman.

An Iraqi police officer in the area, however, said a house that was bombed belonged to a Sunni Arab and tribal leader, and that six family members died. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information, said the bombing occurred about 33 miles southwest of Kirkuk and two of the victims were women.

Another two of those killed, he said, were part of an Awakening Council, one of the Sunni groups that last year abandoned their support for al-Qaida and began joining the U.S. in its effort to clear out insurgent forces.

Separately, in an operation Wednesday in southeast Mosul, the U.S. military said it killed an insurgent wearing a suicide belt who shot at troops as they were targeting the building of an alleged al-Qaida supporter.
Posted by: gorb || 02/15/2008 04:53 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Top Islamic Jihad member killed in Gaza blast
Ayman Fayed, a senior member of the al-Quds Brigades – the Islamic Jihad's military wing – was killed Friday evening along with five of his family members in an explosion which took place at the al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.

Palestinian sources reported that seven people were killed in the blast and at least 40 others were injured. According to the report, an Israel Air Force aircraft fired missiles at the home, causing great damage to the building and to nearby businesses. It was also reported that most of the injured, some of whom sustained critical wounds, were civilians and that other people may be trapped under the rubble.

The Hamas police, however, reported that the circumstances of the explosion were unclear. The IDF Spokesperson's Office said that it was unaware of an airstrike in that area.

Health Ministry official Moawiya Hassanain said six people were killed, among them a woman. He said 40 people were wounded, including nine who were in critical condition, and that more casualties were being evacuated from the scene.

The Islamic Jihad said Fayed was among the dead, and that the group would carry out reprisal attacks against Israel.

Witnesses said Fayed's three-story was flattened by the blast, and that six nearby homes were badly damaged.

Witnesses reported seeing fragments of what looked like locally-produced rockets at the scene, suggesting the house may have been used to store arms.
Sounds like one hell of a boom. Paleo QC in action.
Posted by: phil_b || 02/15/2008 15:59 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Ululululululu happy dance here.
Posted by: Eohippus Clavish5190 || 02/15/2008 16:11 Comments || Top||

#2  If you're hanging out with a senior member of the al-Quds Brigades, you're a legitimate target. Period.
Posted by: Darrell || 02/15/2008 16:17 Comments || Top||

#3  Israel routinely targets top militants in airstrikes, but the Israeli military said it had no knowledge of any strike in Bureij.

We'd love to take credit for it, but it just looks like some Brave Jihadi Warrrior fucked up. Again...
Posted by: tu3031 || 02/15/2008 16:35 Comments || Top||

#4  Mother of all Work Accidents.
Posted by: Odysseus || 02/15/2008 18:16 Comments || Top||

#5  Just back from Damascus, was he?
Posted by: Graise the Ruthless9670 || 02/15/2008 19:47 Comments || Top||

#6  happy-dancers, get your chocolate here...

(that's a great way to kick off the weekend!)
Posted by: Querent || 02/15/2008 19:51 Comments || Top||


Militants bomb Gaza YMCA library
Gunmen have attacked the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in Gaza City and blown up its library, burning thousands of books, its director says.

Eissa Saba said 14 men overpowered the centre's two security guards before placing bombs in the library and main office. The latter did not explode.

The YMCA in Gaza City is open to Palestinians from all communities.

Gaza, which is controlled by the Islamist group Hamas, is home to 3,500 Christians, mostly Greek Orthodox.

Some have spoken of intimidation, but correspondents say Hamas itself has not shown hostility towards Christians since it ousted its Fatah party rivals from the territory in June.

Mr Saba said it was too soon to speculate about who had been behind the attack on the YMCA. There has so far been no claim of responsibility.
Posted by: 3dc || 02/15/2008 09:25 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under: Hamas

#1  "books and learnin' is fer infidels! Burn it!"
Posted by: Frank G || 02/15/2008 9:31 Comments || Top||

#2  ...but not the kurans, Frank. That would be nasty.

Looks like yet another overreaction by our knee-jerk media, after all:

1) If what the books say agrees with kuran, then they are redundant & unnecessary.
2) If they contradict the kuran, then they are heretical & deserve to be burnt.

Who are we to criticize, when thousands of books are burnt every day, by capitalist publishing companies who would rather burn surplus than give them away?
Posted by: Admiral Allan Ackbar || 02/15/2008 9:48 Comments || Top||

#3  I'm just amazed that there still is a YMCA in Gaza.

"too soon to speculate about who had been behind the attack"
I speculate that it wasn't Opus Dei.
Posted by: Darrell || 02/15/2008 10:16 Comments || Top||

#4  Knights of Columbus, no doubt
Posted by: Frank G || 02/15/2008 10:23 Comments || Top||

#5  Tom Cruise and the ghost of Elron.
Posted by: Seafarious || 02/15/2008 10:26 Comments || Top||

#6  Rambo in DVDs only
primus -- quintus decimus
I thru XV

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Gaza City residents discovered that Sly Stone wasn't a Paleo and that his movie series only went up to Rambo IV.
Posted by: RD || 02/15/2008 12:50 Comments || Top||

#7  They were singing as the bombs went off:

"It's fun to slay at the Y-M-C-A! It's fun to slay at the Y-M-C-A! . . ."
Posted by: Mike || 02/15/2008 14:30 Comments || Top||

#8  Must have been the Village People then!

And how would any "We'll pimp our grandmother for access" correspondents know hostility toward Christians? Have they ever interviewed any without their Ham-ass minders around?
Posted by: CrazyFool || 02/15/2008 14:58 Comments || Top||

#9  blown up its library, burning thousands of books

"If it accords with the Quran it is unnecessary and can be burned. If it doesn't accord with the Quran it is heresy and must be burned."
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 02/15/2008 15:11 Comments || Top||

#10  I lost my virginity at a YMCA (at least 100 times).
Posted by: IP 727 || 02/15/2008 21:57 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
'Qaeda men plotted to kill Arroyo'
Philippines security officials said on Thursday they had uncovered a plot by militants linked to the Al Qaeda network to assassinate President Gloria Arroyo and target foreign embassies here.

Her security chief, Brigadier General Romeo Prestoza, said Arroyo had been informed of the threat, which forced her to cancel a scheduled trip Friday to the northern resort city of Baguio. The announcement came a day ahead of a major rally by Arroyo’s political opponents to demand her resignation over allegations of corruption linking the first family. Security forces in the Philippines were placed on full alert, with Prestoza saying the plot was hatched by “extremists Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and the Abu Sayyaf,” referring to Muslim militant groups with reported links to Al Qaeda.

Foreign embassies: “It is not just the president, there are other targets,” he told reporters. “A number of embassies in Manila have also been targeted for attack,” Prestoza said, without naming the embassies. “The only event we have cancelled is the President’s trip to the Philippine Military Academy in Baguio as it is wide open and difficult to secure.”

He said the plan did not appear to be connected to the opposition rally at the Makati business district in Manila, planned for Friday. National police chief Avelino Razon said a letter had reached them, outlining the plot against Arroyo, adding that Muslim extremists appeared to be behind it. He said the letter “appeared to know her (Arroyo’s) schedule,” but he did not specify where it had come from. The police later released a statement saying it had recovered several documents from “a parking lot somewhere in the Metro Manila area,” which detailed the schedule and movements of Arroyo and other figures.

Armed forces chief General Hermogenes Esperon said news of the plan “had become the basis for putting the armed forces of the Philippines in full state of preparedness.” He said elements composed of militants from Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah were also planning to hit “high-value targets” around Manila. Both groups, which have been blamed for the worst terrorist attacks in the Philippines in recent years, are known to operate on the southern island of Mindanao. They are, however, known to field “cells” responsible for bombings around Manila in the past.

Earlier Thursday, army spokesman Captain Carlo Ferrer cited intelligence reports that elements from the communist New People’s Army (NPA) rebel group may infiltrate the ranks of protesters Friday and instigate violence.
This article starring:
Avelino Razon
Carlo Ferrer
Gloria Arroyo
Hermogenes Esperon
New People’s Army
Romeo Prestoza
Abu Sayyaf
Jemaah Islamiyah
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Abu Sayyaf

#1  G - L - O - R - I - A!!!

Hey, if the muzzies want her dead she must be doing something right.
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 || 02/15/2008 11:37 Comments || Top||

#2  Oh come on, that name's an open invitation for snark, Woman+Arroyo=Huge crack.

(Fortunately I'm above taking cracks at that low a level.)
Posted by: Redneck Jim || 02/15/2008 12:11 Comments || Top||

#3  Compare wid DRUDGEREPORT > PUTIN on HILLARY? > "TO BE A HEAD OF STATE ONE MUST FIRST HAVE A HEAD".

Ouch - D *** NG IT, ANOTHER BARBECUE BITES THE DUST???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 02/15/2008 21:56 Comments || Top||

#4  ION, KOMMERSANT/RIAN [paraph] > US FORCES RUSSIA TO RE-AIM ITS STRATEGIC MISSLES AT EUROPE [US DEFENSE SHIELD IN EURO].

See also RIAN > RUSSIAN AIR FORCE TO BEGIN DRILLS IN "NORTHERN LATITUDES", + TOPIX > RUSSIA'S LAVROV:KOSOVO INDEPENDENCE MEANS THE "END OF EUROPE".
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 02/15/2008 22:01 Comments || Top||


Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka slays 50 rebels
Sri Lankan troops have killed at least 50 Tamil Tiger rebels in fighting in the island’s north, the military said on Thursday.

Fighting between the military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has intensified since the government scrapped a 6-year-old ceasefire pact last month. The government says the rebels had used the truce to re-arm. Sri Lankan forces are trying to drive the rebels from their northern stronghold and bring an end to a 25-year civil war, but analysts say neither side is winning and predict the fighting will grind on.

On Wednesday, troops killed 50 rebel fighters in a series of clashes in the northern districts of Vavuniya and Polonaruwa and the northwestern district of Mannar, the military said.

Casualties: The military had earlier said a rebel mine blast in Vavuniya on Wednesday killed two soldiers and wounded six, while six more soldiers were wounded in fighting elsewhere. “The pressure we are applying will be continued,” said military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara. “Our operations against them will continue to impose maximum casualties to LTTE and regain LTTE-held areas.”

The rebels were not available for comment and analysts say both sides tend to inflate enemy casualty figures in the absence of independent accounts of the fighting. Buoyed by battlefield victories in the east, where it has captured swathes of rebel-held terrain, the government is now seeking to overrun the separatist Tigers’ northern stronghold and has vowed to defeat them militarily. But the Tigers continue to mount deadly suicide attacks and roadside bombings, which are increasingly scattered with some in the capital Colombo.
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1 
Sri Lanka troops: "Hey, do you 50 guys know how to push up daisies?"
LTTE terrorists : "Eh? We don't understand."
Sri Lanka troops: [Blam! x 50]
LTTE terrorists : "Oh, that's what you mean! Pretty funny!"
Posted by: gorb || 02/15/2008 9:53 Comments || Top||


Terror Networks
Hezbollah appoints successor to slain commander
Okay. Who's our next contestant, Johnny...
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon's Hezbollah has appointed a successor to its senior guerrilla commander Imad Moughniyah who was assassinated in Syria this week, a Lebanese security source said on Friday.
Hmmmmmmm...that didn't take long. It's almost like...they knew it was coming.
The source said the appointment was made hours after the announcement of Moughniyah's death in a car bomb in Damascus on Tuesday. He did not identify the successor who would now command Hezbollah's formidable and well-armed guerrilla army.
Ah, a "mystery man"...
A joint investigation into the bombing by Syrians, Iranians and Hezbollah was well under way and suspects had been arrested in the Syrian capital, the source said.
Imad Moughniyah has been shot blown up...
Hezbollah and its main backer Iran have accused Israel of killing Moughniyah, who was among the United States' most wanted men. The Israeli government has denied any links, though its Mossad spy service had been hunting him for two decades.
Screw em. Let em figure it out on their own...
"A successor to Imad Moughniyah has been appointed, which is natural," said the source, who requested anonymity. "That's how Hezbollah works, they move quickly to choose successors of fallen leaders." The source said the successor was not one of the two names being circulated in the Israeli media.
So don't blow them up, hokay?
An Iranian Arabic television station released mobile phone footage of the scene minutes after the blast that killed Moughniyah, chief of the forces of a group that fought a 34-day war against Israel in 2006. It showed the car on fire and people running past it.The source said the investigation showed Moughniyah was killed by a car bomb parked close to his car. It was detonated remotely as he walked past after leaving a building he had been visiting. Early reports said the bomb had been placed inside Moughniyah's car.
Did you hear that, Imad?
Hear wh...

The suspects arrested were mostly Palestinians residing in Syria, the Lebanese source said.
Man, talk about your "usual suspects". They can't do any better then that?
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki agreed with Syrian officials during a visit to Damascus on Thursday to set up a joint team to investigate the killing, Mottaki's deputy Alireza Sheik-Attar said on Friday.
Nice hat trick. Hurt the the Syrians, Iran, and Hezbollah all at the same time.
Posted by: tu3031 || 02/15/2008 13:37 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  those'll be big shoes to fill, fortunately they found them, a couple blocks apart, unfortunately Imad's feet were still in em
Posted by: Frank G || 02/15/2008 14:29 Comments || Top||

#2  If they named a dead man, they'll have saved everybody some time and effort.
Posted by: Darrell || 02/15/2008 15:08 Comments || Top||

#3  "A joint investigation into the bombing by Syrians, Iranians and Hezbollah"
Sounds like a TV series: Jihadi CSI -- Lieutenant Dinnerjacket and his two stooges apply Islamic science to identify a murder without recourse to the scientific method or cause and effect.
Posted by: Darrell || 02/15/2008 15:16 Comments || Top||

#4  1, 2, 3..
Not it!
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/15/2008 15:39 Comments || Top||

#5 
Posted by: gorb || 02/15/2008 16:04 Comments || Top||

#6  those'll be big shoes to fill, fortunately they found them, a couple blocks apart, unfortunately Imad's feet were still in em

nice snark..as per usual Frank!
Posted by: RD || 02/15/2008 23:40 Comments || Top||


Good morning..
Posted by: Fred || 02/15/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Uhhh. Is Martha for Hyer??
Posted by: anymouse || 02/15/2008 1:45 Comments || Top||

#2  The Rantburg Defender-Scimitar & Times-Picayune: Hyer standards.
Posted by: Mike || 02/15/2008 6:26 Comments || Top||

#3  Reminds me of how TW looked when she did the tarantella.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble || 02/15/2008 9:14 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
66[untagged]
5Taliban
5Govt of Syria
2Govt of Pakistan
2Jamaat-e-Islami
2Lashkar e-Taiba
2al-Qaeda in North Africa
2Hamas
2Hezbollah
2Iraqi Insurgency
1al-Qaeda
1Abu Sayyaf
1IRGC
1Muslim Brotherhood
1al-Qaeda in Iraq

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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.
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In no particular order...
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Two weeks of WOT
Fri 2008-02-15
  Multiple explosions at TX pipelines near Mexican border
Thu 2008-02-14
  Muslim group 'planned mass murder'
Wed 2008-02-13
  Mugniyeh rots
Tue 2008-02-12
  Mansour Dadullah in custody in Pak
Mon 2008-02-11
  UN offices attacked in Mogadishu
Sun 2008-02-10
  UK Oil Rig Evacuated After Bomb Alert
Sat 2008-02-09
  Sudan planes, militia attack Darfur towns-witnesses
Fri 2008-02-08
  Israel may target Hamas heads
Thu 2008-02-07
  WMD Documents Found in NYC Apartment of Iraq Translator
Wed 2008-02-06
  Baitullah declares hudna
Tue 2008-02-05
  Nine dead as Israel strikes Gaza after suicide kaboom
Mon 2008-02-04
  Woman killed, one critically hurt in Dimona suicide attack
Sun 2008-02-03
  Baitullah offers conditional talks
Sat 2008-02-02
  British bishop gets police protection after Islamist death threats
Fri 2008-02-01
  Yemen: Al-Qaeda fighting rebels 'at government's request'

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