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Failed Meknes suicide bomber sentenced to life
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
2 00:00 Uncle Phester [4] 
1 00:00 bigjim-ky [2] 
10 00:00 Cruck Smith4712 [4] 
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10 00:00 JosephMendiola [6] 
13 00:00 OldSpook [2] 
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Page 2: WoT Background
1 00:00 trailing wife [4]
7 00:00 Bobby [3]
4 00:00 tu3031 [4]
4 00:00 bruce [9]
8 00:00 crosspatch [3]
5 00:00 Danielle [4]
2 00:00 Mike Kozlowski [2]
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Page 3: Non-WoT
7 00:00 JosephMendiola [4]
13 00:00 Nimble Spemble [4]
4 00:00 Darrell [3]
21 00:00 OldSpook [7]
5 00:00 Grenter, Protector of the Geats [7]
3 00:00 Rambler in California []
7 00:00 JosephMendiola [4]
6 00:00 Hellfish [2]
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Page 4: Opinion
4 00:00 Deadeye Choluck2323 aka Broadhead6 [4]
2 00:00 Rambler in California [2]
52 00:00 Red Dawg [4]
20 00:00 Darrell [5]
5 00:00 swksvolFF [2]
2 00:00 DK70 the Scantily Clad7177 [9]
2 00:00 g(r)omgoru [5]
Page 5: Russia-Former Soviet Union
5 00:00 Bright Pebbles [4]
19 00:00 Iblis [2]
2 00:00 Spot [5]
2 00:00 Jeremiah Pholing7962 [3]
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9 00:00 tu3031 [2]
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Good morning
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Is it Dorothy Week at RB?
Posted by: Frank G || 07/14/2008 8:21 Comments || Top||

#2  I guess this makes me a friend of Dorothy.
Posted by: Excalibur || 07/14/2008 9:52 Comments || Top||

#3  Then we'll have Dorothy Provine?
Posted by: Bobby || 07/14/2008 9:52 Comments || Top||

#4  Today marks the fourth consecutive Dorothy on the front page of the RDS&TP. Is Fred going for the "most consecutive Dorothys" record? Log on tomorrow and find out.
Posted by: Mike || 07/14/2008 10:16 Comments || Top||

#5  dot dot dot
Posted by: no mo uro || 07/14/2008 11:05 Comments || Top||

#6  dot dot dot? Nah its dit dit dit.

ditditdit ditditdah ditdahdit ditdahdit dit dahdit dahditdit dit ditdahdit

dahditdit dahdahdah ditdahdit dahdahdah dah ditditditdit dahditdahdah


:-)
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 14:22 Comments || Top||

#7  Doo Bee Doo Bee Doo . . .
Posted by: Frank Sinatra || 07/14/2008 14:24 Comments || Top||

#8  OS,

You wish.
/Dorothy
Posted by: Rambler in California || 07/14/2008 16:03 Comments || Top||

#9  To BE IS To Do.
Posted by: Descartes || 07/14/2008 20:21 Comments || Top||

#10  HEH!
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 20:44 Comments || Top||

#11  Old Spook:

dahdah ditditdah dahditdahdit dahditdah ditditditditdah dahditdit dahdahdah dahdahdah

ditdahdah ditdahdit

ditdahdit

ditditdah

The world wants to know.....
Posted by: Alaska Paul || 07/14/2008 21:32 Comments || Top||

#12  you mean...

dadah dididah dadidadit dadidah dididididah dadidit dadadah dadadah
dadadida dah didididit dididadadidit
dadadida didadit dadididah dididadadidit
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 21:45 Comments || Top||

#13  I bet I cannot come even close to 10wpm (Used to be able to do 20+ tx & rx, way back when).
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 21:51 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
9 Americans killed in attack in Afghanistan
Updated with a few more details
KABUL, Afghanistan - U.S. troops on Monday reinforced a remote military outpost after well-armed militants got inside and killed nine American soldiers in the deadliest assault on U.S. forces in Afghanistan in three years.
And the inimitable AP spin...
Yesterday's assault has deepened doubts about the U.S. military's ability to contain Islamic militants. Attacks in Afghanistan are becoming more complex, intense and better coordinated than a year ago, U.S. officials say.

Militants with machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars attacked the remote base in the village of Wanat in the mountainous northeastern province of Kunar at about 4:30 a.m. Sunday, with insurgents firing from homes and a mosque.

It was a "concerted attempt" to overrun the small base near the Pakistan border that was built only about three days ago, said an official with NATO's International Security Assistance Force. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information, estimated the attacking force was several hundred.

An unknown number of militants got inside the outpost, the reason the fighters were able to inflict such high casualties, said a second military official who also spoke on condition of anonymity.

After the breach, U.S. troops pushed back against the invading militants, and attack helicopters swooped in. The second official said more than 40 insurgents were killed in the fighting. Fifteen U.S. soldiers also were wounded.
This article starring:
Kunar
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 10:07 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  More...

"It was a well-organised attack, it was a ferocious attack," said Captain Mike Finney, a spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force."The troops in the combat outpost fought back hard to make sure the insurgents did not overrun the place."

Hours of fighting, including air strikes, prevented the militants from taking over the base, with rebel casualties in the "high double figures", said Finney.

Between 400 and 500 militants from various anti-government factions including Taliban, Al-Qaeda and the Hezb-i-Islami faction were involved, a senior Afghan defence ministry official said on condition of anonymity.

"They attacked the newly established base there and reached even its walls. At one point they had entered the base," he said, citing information from the ground. I don't know if the soldiers died inside the base or outside but the enemy had reached the walls."

Troops were able to push them back with ground fighting and attack helicopters.

"Reports we got from the area suggest that about 40 enemy were killed and around the same number of them were wounded," he said.

ISAF's Finney said between 100 and 150 Afghan and international troops had moved into the outpost, near the village of Wanat, less than a week earlier.
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 10:15 Comments || Top||

#2  thanks for the details tu3031 - I haven't been able to find that info - where did you see it?

So, if these numbers are even remotely accurate, it was something like a battalion size enemy force against a company size coalition force.
Posted by: Legolas || 07/14/2008 11:23 Comments || Top||

#3  The first stories AP, the details, AFP.
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 11:58 Comments || Top||

#4  near the Pakistan border

Common denominator here!
Posted by: Paul || 07/14/2008 12:43 Comments || Top||

#5  If you look at the story from afar without AP's BS spin ("Yesterday's assault has deepened doubts about the U.S. military's ability to contain Islamic militants"), I would rather doubt they will be able to pull that off again.

We have re-learned some hard COIN lessons in Iraq, and Afghanistan. They pulled it off once, but they will die in large numbers if they try it again.

Posted by: anymouse || 07/14/2008 15:26 Comments || Top||

#6  Any word on what US units were involved? Marines? SOCOM?
Posted by: Clinemble Henbane7713 || 07/14/2008 15:26 Comments || Top||

#7  This outpost is probably on a major strategic artery for the bad guyz and they know it. Once established, it will neutralize much of the enemy activity in a wide area.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/14/2008 16:05 Comments || Top||

#8  It seems that the bad guys had the element of surprise and furthermore that the bad guys had considerable command coordination.

It's good no helicopters were lost.

When the phrase, "remote military outpost" is used, does that mean the main portion of the battalion was 50 miles away (or 100 or 150)?
Posted by: mhw || 07/14/2008 16:08 Comments || Top||

#9  When the phrase, "remote military outpost" is used, does that mean the main portion of the battalion was 50 miles away (or 100 or 150)?

Considering where they are don't exclude distance in elevation too.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 07/14/2008 16:44 Comments || Top||

#10  The most amazing thing to me is that the Talibs were able to approch the outpost at all for a surprise attack. Wasn't there a defensive perimeter set up atound the camp (of course, I don't know the terrain - this might not have been possible for that location). In any case, even if we cannot intrude into the high holy soverign cesspool of Pakland, why isn't everything goatpath-sized and above on the Afganistan side mined to hell and back, with more mines on the mines (again, the terran might make this impossible, but lets do what we can). Any tunnels should be immediately collapsed as well. I will not accept any sob-stories regarding poor civilians having to use them as trade routes, etc.. We know who the enemy is and where they come from; let's just announce that as of some date anyone using that area will automaticaly be considered a hostile. Destroyng the roach nest would definitely be best, but destroying their means of ingress and egress will have to do for now as second best.
Posted by: Cruck Smith4712 || 07/14/2008 18:45 Comments || Top||


Missiles fired from Afghanistan land in Pakistan
At least three missiles fired from Afghanistan landed inside the Pakistani territory, sources said on Sunday. No loss of life or property had been reported, they said. Sources said the missiles had been fired from Afghanistan's Paktika province and landed in an uninhabited area of South Waziristan.
This article starring:
Paktika province
South Waziristan
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Taliban

#1  Perhaps the Afghans are tired of Pakistani invaders?
Posted by: trailing wife || 07/14/2008 8:44 Comments || Top||

#2  Sounds like the Taliban are trying to start a fight between Afghanistan's allies & Pakistan. Don't know why they'd want to do that - they'd be caught in the middle. Looks like they got their training from the Paleostains: Sources said the missiles ... landed in an uninhabited area of South Waziristan.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 07/14/2008 9:44 Comments || Top||

#3  No loss of life or property had been reported, they said.

Too bad. Maybe if there was, they might get the message.
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 18:13 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
Ethiopia arrests eight 'bombers'
Ethiopia says it has arrested eight "Eritrean-trained" rebels suspected of carrying out bombings that rocked the capital Addis Ababa and killed eight people earlier this year. A statement by security chiefs late on Saturday said the attacks were sponsored by arch-foe Asmara "and implemented by its stooges in Ethiopia, the self-proclaimed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF)." Simultaneous blasts at two petrol stations killed two people a day after local, regional and federal elections in April, then a bomb tore through a minibus taxi a month later, killing six. The statement by the National Intelligence and Security Service did not say when or where the detainees were arrested, but said three "most wanted" suspects remained at large and urged the public could come forward with information. Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a 1998-2000 border war that killed 70,000 people, and tensions remain high. Officials in Addis Ababa often refer to their counterparts in Amara as terrorists.
This article starring:
Addis Ababa
Asmara
Ethiopia
Ogaden National Liberation Front
Oromo Liberation Front
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:


Africa North
Algeria: Top al-Qaeda leader killed
Looks like it was a tough weekend for al-Qaeda...
Algiers, 14 July (AKI) - The Algerian military has killed a top leader with the Al-Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb, according to a report on Monday in the London-based Arabic-language newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat. The report said that some soliders ambushed a top al-Qaeda leader who was known by his battle name "al-Tuhami". The terrorist was together with other al-Qaeda members in the village of Ain al-Hamra, 70 kilometres east of Algiers. The ambush was carried out by a special platoon in-charge of fighting terrorism.

The al-Qaeda leader was at the Ain al-Hamra village to meet a young man who had offered to provide logistical support for the group.
Set up?
The newspaper report said that once the al-Qaeda leader was surrounded, the soldiers asked him to surrender his weapons. He refused to do so and soldiers shot him dead in an ensuing gun battle.
Will you surrender?
Well I...
BANG

"Mahmoud! Pry his gun outta his cold, dead fingers, wouldja?"
"With pleasure, sir!"

Two people who were with al-Tuhami tried to escape but were also killed by the military.
"Ow!"
"Ow!"
[Thud!]
[Thud!]
"Rosebud!"
"Rosebud!"
[Rattle!]
[Rattle!]
According to the police, the pair were young residents of the village. The clash with the militants caused panic among residents of village who were afraid of being caught in the cross-fire.
This article starring:
Ain al-Hamra
AL TUHAMIal-Qaeda in North Africa
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 14:20 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The gun was behind the toilet.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/14/2008 16:01 Comments || Top||

#2  (Yet another) Top al-Qaeda leader killed

Do I detect the genesis of a drinking game of late? Is everybody a "Top al-Qaeda Leader"?
Posted by: Uncle Phester || 07/14/2008 17:00 Comments || Top||


Failed Meknes suicide bomber sentenced to life
The latest verdict in a Moroccan terrorism case was handed down Thursday (July 11th) -- this time concerning notorious Meknes bomber Hicham Doukkali, the young engineer who attempted to blow himself up with a butane cannister near a bus packed with tourists on August 13th, 2007. He was sentenced to life in prison, while accomplice and fellow engineer Hassan Azougar was given a ten-year prison term.

The pair had been charged with "conspiracy to prepare for and commit acts of terrorism connected with a personal plan with the aim of undermining public order by means of terror, violence and the manufacture, storage and use of explosives to endanger the lives and safety of others".

Investigations after the Doukkali's arrest led to the apprehension of four engineers in Meknes, Salé and Tinjdade: all worked with the failed bomber for the regional tax office. Last June, the case against three of them collapsed.

Moroccans have been closely following the verdicts handed down in terrorism cases, and many have hailed the security policy being pursued by the state. However, they have also called for officials to respect personal freedoms and the law by not mistakenly accusing innocent people. The Interior ministry says that the measures taken by the authorities to tackle terrorism comply with the judicial regulations passed by the legislature and that they are still subject to review by the courts to ensure freedoms will be respected and public order upheld. The Moroccan government has employed a tough security strategy since the suicide bombings in Casablanca on May 16th, 2003. Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa says terrorist forces still pose a significant threat, meaning the government and all sectors of society must remain vigilant.

The government has set about overhauling institutions engaging in the fight against terrorism to make them more efficient. It has also stepped up international co-operation efforts with regard to the campaign against terror. According to officials, information gathered by Moroccan intelligence and shared with foreign security services has made it possible to stop a number of terrorist rings before they were able to strike.

Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi says the government's response to terrorism includes a commitment to development policies to tackle unemployment and underemployment, create the necessary conditions for growth and improve living standards.

Political Science professor Ahmed Belarbi told Magharebia that the Moroccan authorities have succeeded thus far with its security strategy, but says terrorists could still "strike at any moment" no matter how vigilant the authorities are.
This article starring:
Casablanca
Meknes
Salé
Tinjdade
HASAN AZUGARal-Qaeda in North Africa
HICHAM DUKKALIal-Qaeda in North Africa
Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa
Political Science professor Ahmed Belarbi
Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa


Arabia
5th Fleet ORBAT
Posted by: 3dc || 07/14/2008 02:08 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Looks ready to do some serious hurt...
Posted by: Ptah || 07/14/2008 4:34 Comments || Top||

#2  Escalation scenarios are running amok. The Ayatollahs brag both about having mobile missile launch capacity, and their ability to hit targets at long range. That mentality serves only to feed a pretext to the other side. Where there is mobility, targeting has to be over a wide range. In GW1, anti-missile work was search and destroy; that's not easy when the launcher can be parked in a building. Long range capacity manifests civilian targeting.

Hmmm. We have to protect women and children. Ergo enemy life has the moral value of cockroaches; launch capacity has to be terminated by any necessary means.

Truman did the same math in 1945.

The British Navy held the Strait of Hormuz during much of the 18th and 19th centuries. The north bank must be made an American Gibraltar.

Posted by: McZoid || 07/14/2008 4:38 Comments || Top||

#3  A lot of landing craft in that group.
Posted by: DarthVader || 07/14/2008 8:08 Comments || Top||

#4  Bookmarked the blog. Thanks W. Also a Mrs. Davis sighting there in the comments.
Posted by: .5MT || 07/14/2008 8:45 Comments || Top||

#5  I am glad to see the USS Momsen in that number. "Swede" Momsen was a true US Navy hero:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Momsen

He was also shafted by the Roosevelt-era War Department for proving them wrong for fielding a defective torpedo, they refused to admit was defective.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/14/2008 9:42 Comments || Top||

#6  Free Balochistan from the Persians?

I wonder if the Arab World (especially the Emirates and Qatar, etc) would want to add another Arab emirate, sitting in Bandar Abbas and the surrounding region? After all, the area is ethnically Arab.

Start an uprising there, via supply from Afghanistan. Use the Kurds in the north to distract the Mullahs while this is being set up.


Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 10:24 Comments || Top||

#7  Also interesting to see FGS Emden in the order of battle. The original light cruiser SMS Emden had quite a legendary career in the Indian Ocean.
Posted by: Mike || 07/14/2008 10:42 Comments || Top||

#8  Note the 4 US MCM ships. Iranian naval mines are a huge threat, and probably more of a threat than the missiles in terms of shutting down oil traffic in the persian gulf
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 10:49 Comments || Top||

#9  Right, OS. The Iranian response will be against oil production, not a military target. Mines and surface attacks against oil tankers will be their 'revenge' and final peep.
All we need is a president with cojones.
Posted by: wxjames || 07/14/2008 12:04 Comments || Top||

#10  Compare wid WAFF.com Poster Threads > USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN MOVES TO NEAR PAKISTANI COAST, US SPECIAL FORCES PREPARE TO CONDUCT OPERATION INSID + US WOULD INVADE PAKISTAN TO ELIMINATE TERROR CELLS.

Also from WAFF.com >INDIA > MAOISTS HITTING INDIAN ECONOMY [encircling Urban Areas] + INDIA IS FAILING AS A STATE.

*STARS-N-STRIPES [old] > [IIRC] USN CARRIER BATTLE GROUP [USS Ronald Reagan = "Ronnie/Mighty Ron"] MOVES TO NEAR KOREAS/KOREAN COASTS.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 07/14/2008 19:53 Comments || Top||


Bangladesh
4 JMB men get life
A Panchagarh court yesterday sentenced four activists of banned Islamist militant outfit Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) to life imprisonment in a case filed in connection with the August 17, 2005 serial bomb blasts in Panchagarh.

The Court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Amulla Kumar Sarker handed down the verdict after examining records and witnesses depositions. The judge acquitted six accused in the case. The court also fined them Tk 10,000 each, in default to which they are to stay one more year in jail.

The convicts are Tanviruzzaman alias Murad, 21, Azizul Islam alias Majnu, 25, Hafizur Rahman, 25, and Abdul Matin alias Ismail, 25. Murad was awarded another life term imprisonment as the charge of conspiracy to kill judges, filed against him in the same case, was proved.
Oooh. In court, on a charge of conspiracy to kill judges. Not a good thing.
According to the prosecution, the JMB activists exploded bombs at eight places including the Judge Court compound and the entrance to the Collectorate Building in Panchagarh on August 17, 2005. Officer-in-charge of Panchagarh Police Station Ilias Fakir filed a case under Explosive Substances Act the same day. He arrested 15 people in this connection over a period of time. Ilias, also the investigation officer, submitted the charge sheet before the court on November 29, 2005 accusing 11 people.

Since accused Abdul Awal, son-in-law of JMB chief Sheikh Abdur Rahman, was executed, the court framed charges against 10 people on June 30, 2007.
This article starring:
Panchagarh
ABDUL AWALJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
ABDUL MATIN ALIAS ISMAILJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
AZIZUL ISLAM ALIAS MAJNUJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
HAFIZUR RAHMANJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
Judge Amulla Kumar Sarker
Panchagarh Police Station Ilias Fakir
SHEIKH ABDUR RAHMANJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
TANVIRUZZAMAN ALIAS MURADJamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh


Robber killed in gun battle with police
A suspected robber was killed in a gun battle between police and his henchmen at Kundarpara village in Narsingdi's Shibpur upazila early yesterday.
No idea where that is.
The dead was identified as Hainf Mia, 48. Three police and four robbers were injured in the shootout.
This is a 'shootout', not a crossfire ...
Police said they surrounded a band of robbers on information that the thugs were preparing themselves for robbery at the village at about 3:00am.
Was this a Saoodi-style surrounding ...
Sensing danger, ...
Spider-sense tingling and all ...
... the robbers opened fire on the law enforcers, ensuing an hour-long gun battle ...
Local cops have no sense of style like the RAB ...
... during which Hainf died from bullet wounds on the spot.
Which spot?
THAT spot!
Of the injured, SI Aziz and robber Sohrab were admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital in critical condition.
Whoa. An accomplice was actually there?
The other injured, including Officer-in-Charge at Shibpur Police Station Abdul Mannan and SI Ali Nur, were admitted to the local health complex.

Police recovered one pipe gun and six sharp weapons from the spot.
Clearly they haven't heard about the British efforts to ban knives ...

This article starring:
Shibpur upazila
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:

#1  From Wikipedia:
Narshingdi (Bengali: নরসিংদী)is a district in central Bangladesh. It is a part of the Dhaka Division, and is the only district in Bangladesh that does not depend solely on agriculture. The district is famous for its textile craft industry.
Also:
Shibpur (Bengali: শিবপুর) is an Upazila of Narsingdi District in the Division of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Posted by: Rambler in California || 07/14/2008 1:52 Comments || Top||

#2  Police recovered one pipe gun

AHAH the infamous Shutter gun is finaly identified.
Posted by: Redneck Jim || 07/14/2008 4:24 Comments || Top||

#3  *shakes head* Nope, not the shutter gun. These are the police, faint and fawning imitators of the unimitable RAB. They are as children, pressing wet noses against the glass case at RAB headquarters, staring with longing at The Shuttergun, nestled in a blanket of velvet cloth, glistening, a prize unobtainable except by the true Elite.

Stand in awe, and despair!
Posted by: Ptah || 07/14/2008 8:23 Comments || Top||

#4  The shuttergun is unknowable. Wave & particle, Firelock & Glock.
Posted by: .5MT || 07/14/2008 9:35 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Two injured in attack on FC van
Unidentified gunmen attacked a police van with grenades and Kalashnikovs and injured two Frontier Constabulary (FC) soldiers on Saturday in lower Dir district. The attackers lobbed grenades at the van. FC soldiers Muhammad Shafi and Qayyum were critically injured. The attack also damaged the police mobile van. Police has registered a case. Meanwhile, two people were killed and another sustained injuries when two feuding parties opened fire on each other in Balambat tehsil's Hajiabad.
This article starring:
lower Dir district
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Taliban


Suicide bomber strikes Shia gathering in DIK
A suicide bomber blew himself up at a Shia gathering in Dera Ismail Khan injuring at least three people, police officials said on Sunday.

The bomber had leapt in front of a car carrying people back from the gathering, in which top Shia leader Allama Sajid Naqvi was also present, said police official Muhammad Qasim Khan.

It appeared that the bomber's explosives had not fully detonated as his body had not been damaged completely, he said.
"Eeeeewww! Gross! Intestines!"
"[Gasp! Groan!]... Excuse me! Would you mind shooing the flies out of my body cavity until I've totally passed on?... [Wince! Whimper!]... As you can see, I no longer have any arms of my own... Really, it won't be long now... I hope... That's a good fellow!"
The attack comes as the latest in a series of violent incidents in Pakistan. The country was rocked by suicide attacks in Islamabad and Karachi last week that had claimed more than 20 lives. On Saturday, a group of militants had attacked a Frontier Constabulary (FC) convoy in the Zargari area of Hangu district, north of Dera Ismail Khan. District Mayor Haji Khan Afzal had said that at least 13 paramilitary forces had died along with at least three militants, making the skirmish one of the deadliest for Pakistan's security forces in recent months. Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik on ruled out a full-fledged military operation in the area in response.
This article starring:
Dera Ismail Khan
Hangu district
Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik
Allama Sajid Naqvi
District Mayor Haji Khan Afzal
police official Muhammad Qasim Khan
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Takfir wal-Hijra


Militants return bodies of 17 troops
Suspected Taliban militants on Sunday handed over the bodies of 17 Frontier Constabulary (FC) troops killed in an ambush in the Hangu district, AFP reported.
If they're handling the bodies of dead troopers, they're not 'suspected' militants, are they?
The dead were part of a convoy heading to a fort outside the Hangu city on Saturday when rebels attacked it with rocket-propelled grenades and assault rifles, officials said.

Hangu Nazim Haji Afzal Khan said
The militants had initially refused to allow security forces to retrieve the bodies but relented after frantic negotiations with a jirga.
the militants had initially refused to allow security forces to retrieve the bodies but relented after frantic negotiations with a jirga. The bodies were taken to a hospital in Hangu, where they will be returned to relatives of the victims, a security official said.

Meanwhile, a curfew remained in force for the fourth consecutive day in Hangu, residents said.

Adviser to Premier on Interior Rehman Malik told Dawn News that the government was facing difficulties in countering extremism but they would be overcome in due course.
Soon as the ISI tells him what to do ...
He said the government was acting against militants in the Tribal Areas on actionable intelligence to avoid any collateral damage.

Rehman announced a compensation of Rs 2 million for the bereaved family of FC district officer Karim Khan and Rs 1 million each for the rest of the bereaved families, APP reported. He told AFP that the government would not release Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud's deputy Rafiuddin, adding that militants had kidnapped 19 government officials to press for his release.
This article starring:
Hangu district
Adviser to Premier on Interior Rehman Malik
BAITULLAH MEHSUDTaliban
Hangu Nazim Haji Afzal Khan
RAFIUDINTaliban
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Taliban


Drone violates Pakistani airspace
A NATO drone violated Pakistani airspace and entered Mohmand Agency on Sunday, the second infiltration by the force in two days. The drone flew over the Marghat and Khozai Banzai areas for 30 minutes before entering the agency from the Nawagai side at around 3pm, witnesses said, adding that it later flew back to Afghanistan through the Wazrichina area.
Smile for the cameras, boys ...
On Saturday, two drones flew over the Soran Dara and Shaikh Baba areas of the agency, but Inter-Survives Public Relations denied the report.
The Ruritanian Air Force is getting frisky ...

This article starring:
Khozai Banzai
Marghat
Mohmand Agency
Nawagai
Shaikh Baba
Soran Dara
Wazrichina
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda

#1  "A NATO drone violated Pakistani airspace and entered Mohmand Agency on Sunday"

Cry me a river.
Posted by: crosspatch || 07/14/2008 3:08 Comments || Top||

#2  They're not seeing the Global Hawk drones flying at 65,000 feet that take photos of every square inch of Pakistan twice a day. Otherwise, they'd be screaming even louder. All we need now is a small JDAM a Global Hawk could carry. More "mysterious explosions"...
Posted by: Old Patriot || 07/14/2008 10:07 Comments || Top||


Iraq
Iraq: 70 Al-Qaeda surrender to US forces

Baghdad, 14 July (AKI ) - Seventy militants, many of whom are reportedly linked to al-Qaeda in Iraq, have surrendered to US forces in the Sunni area of Baiji, west of Baghdad.

According to the Arab newspaper al-Hayat, the militants surrendered in the area of al-Siniya in front of local tribal chiefs.

The US military had presented to Sunni tribes a list of 150 people they were seeking from the local population on charges related to terrorism, murder and kidnappings.

After the mediation of tribal leaders, almost half of those who surrendered agreed to return to their original clans, hand over their arms to the Americans and promise to give up armed conflict if their names were removed from the most wanted list. "Most of the people who were arrested are from al-Qaeda," said an Iraqi police source. "The rest were part of the Rashidin Army and the Islamic Army of Iraq."

The Rashidin Army and the Islamic Army of Iraq are among a number of Islamist insurgent groups formed in Iraq following the 2003 allied invasion.
This article starring:
al-Siniya
Baiji
Posted by: tu3031 || 07/14/2008 14:16 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq

#1  We appreciate your cooperation.
Now stand up against that wall and we will 'process' you.
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 07/14/2008 15:53 Comments || Top||


9 people arrested, ammunition seized in Basra
(VOI) -- Police forces on Saturday arrested nine people wanted for "terror and criminal cases," and seized quantities of ammunition in raid operations throughout Basra, said an authorized source from the province's police. "Forces from Basra police on Saturday conducted raid operations at different places of the province," the source told Aswat al-Iraq -- Voices of Iraq -- (VOI) on condition of anonymity. "The forces arrested nine people wanted for terror and criminal cases," he said. "Five mortar shells and an Austrian made rocket were seized near al-Najeebiya power station (110 km north of Basra)," he added.
This article starring:
al-Najeebiya power station
Basra
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Mahdi Army


4 cops killed, wounded in Falluja blast
(VOI) -- Four police personnel were killed or wounded when an explosive charge targeted their patrol vehicle in Falluja city, Iraqi authorities said. "Two policemen were killed and two others wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near their vehicle in downtown Falluja," Captain Aasif Mohammed al-Aani told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI). The source did not provide further details.
This article starring:
Falluja
Captain Aasif Mohammed al-Aani
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


6 suspected gunmen captured in Dalouiya
(VOI) -- Six suspected gunmen were arrested in a wide-scale operation that stretched from al-Dalouiya district to the Nahr al-Adhim area in Salah al-Din province, according to an interior ministry statement on Sunday.

"A joint force from the Salah al-Din Police Department comprising the Iraqi Special Weapons & Tactics (ISWAT) and anti-riot forces arrested six suspects, detonated two safe havens for terrorists, and seized two motorbikes used to carryout terrorist operations," read the statement received by Aswat al-Iraq -- Voices of Iraq -- (VOI). "Outlines for ways to enter into and exit from target areas, as well as four bags of ammonia used to make improvised explosive devices, were also seized," it added. Dalouiya is a district in Salah al-Din province.
This article starring:
al-Dalouiya district
Nahr al-Adhim
Salah al-Din province
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


3 civilians killed, 1 wounded in Diyala blasts
(VOI) -- Three civilians were killed and another wounded when two improvised explosive devices went off separately in Diala on Sunday, the province's police chief said.

"One IED planted on the main street of al-Wajihiya area, al-Muqdadiya district, (45 km) northeast of Baaquba, killed three civilians," Maj. General Ghanim al-Qurayshi told Aswat al-Iraq -- Voices of Iraq -- (VOI). "Another IED went off in Bazayez, Buhrez district, (5 km) south of Baaquba, went off today, wounding a civilian," Qurayshi said, not giving more details. Diala province extends to the northeast of Baghdad as far as the Iranian border. Its capital is Baaquba, 57 km northeast of Baghdad. It covers an area of 17,685 square kilometers (6,828 sq mi).
This article starring:
al-Muqdadiya district
al-Wajihiya area
Bazayez, Buhrez district
Diala
Maj. General Ghanim al-Qurayshi
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


Iraqi army forces nab 7 wanted persons, seize weapons in Ninewa
(VOI) - Iraqi army troops on Sunday arrested seven wanted individuals during an operation conducted in Ninewa, a security spokesman said.

"A force from the Iraqi army 3rd division conducted a raid-and-search operation in Talafar district, west Mosul,"Brig. Khalid Abdel Sattar, spokesman for Ninewa security operations, told Aswat al-Iraq-Voices of Iraq (VOI). The spokesman noted "the force seized two AK-47 rifles and quantities of ammunitions". Iraqi security forces have been conducting a large-scale military campaign since May 10.
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


Armed attack kills 2, wounds 3 in Salah al-Din
(VOI) -- Two persons were killed and three others wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on a group of youth in Dalouiya district, Iraqi authoritiesaid on Sunday.

"At a late hour on Saturday night, unidentified gunmen attacked a group of young men, who were playing table tennis in downtown Dalouiya," Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed al-Juburi told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI). "Two of the men, including one police lieutenant, were killed, and three others were seriously wounded," al-Juburi noted. The gunmen employed the surrounding thick orchards and fled to an unknown destination, al-Juburi added.
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Israeli settler arrested for launching homemade projectiles at Palestinian village
Ma'an -- Israeli police on Saturday arrested a settler from Yitshar settlement near Nablus, in the northern West Bank. The arrestee is suspected of manufacturing and launching homemade projectiles towards the village of Burin three weeks ago.

Israel Radio reported that Israeli army searched the settlement and found explosives and weapons.

On three separate occasions, militant Israeli settlers were reported to have fired homemade rockets into Palestinian villages in the area.
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  If the government won't respond to the rocket attacks on Israel, it is natural that the people will take things in their own hands.

Israel should manufacture millions of the same kind of rockets the Palestinians are firing and for every one the Palestinians fire, a thousand should fly back to the same area. That would pretty much put an end to the attacks.
Posted by: crosspatch || 07/14/2008 3:12 Comments || Top||

#2  Crosspatch, this is no longer a war for advantage---if it ever was. This is a war to extinction.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 07/14/2008 5:53 Comments || Top||

#3  It never was, from the other side, g(r)omgoru.
Posted by: trailing wife || 07/14/2008 12:45 Comments || Top||

#4  It never was, from the other side

Yes, but now deaf, dumb & blind Am Israel is beggining to get the message.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 07/14/2008 13:03 Comments || Top||

#5  Just 'cause they're Jewish doesn't mean they're smart, g(r)omgoru. :-(
Posted by: trailing wife || 07/14/2008 16:21 Comments || Top||


De facto Gaza police impose ban on public sale of cigarettes
Ma'an - The de facto police in the Gaza strip issued an order on Sunday to prevent the sale of cigarettes in public places especially on crossroads.

In many ares of Palestine on any busy street corner, youths can be found selling small packs of cigarettes, gum or candy, to passersby. The worry, it seems, is for the safety of the children hanging out near high-trafic areas.

Media spokesperson of de facto Hamas police Islam Shahwan said that police will give street vendors selling cigarettes 48 hours to remove their stalls and merchandise or they will be confiscated. He called on the traders to consider the interest of their people.
Gonna cut into the lucrative trade for the tunnel-rats ...
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Hamas

#1  "If you want cigarettes, you should buy them in the store belonging to the Chief of Police."
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 07/14/2008 5:51 Comments || Top||

#2  Sounds like somebody wouldn't pay a bribe.
Posted by: McZoid || 07/14/2008 9:10 Comments || Top||

#3  Not a good idea. Cigarettes are one of the last remaining pleasures of the people in that Hell on Earth, and they will be ready to kill to keep them.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/14/2008 9:56 Comments || Top||

#4  When I quit, it was about six months before I stopped starting all my sentences with "Godammit!"
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 11:55 Comments || Top||

#5  Anybody here remember the cigarette machines that were in restaurants, bars, gas stations, and lots of other places? You have to go to a store here, too.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 07/14/2008 15:34 Comments || Top||

#6  They seem intent on making life as useless and bereft of the smallest pleasure as they can.
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 07/14/2008 16:39 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
One Thai soldier killed, another wounded in bomb attack
One Thai government regional force ranger was
killed and a Royal Thai Army soldier was wounded in a bombing in rural Songkhla Monday morning while they were on duty providing security for teachers. The bomb exploded in Thepha district, killing locally-recruited paramilitary ranger Sulgiblee Salaemae and wounding Pvt. Thammarat Putthakan who is being treated. Both men were patrolling the area to provide security for teachers from Baan Kohlaenang School.

Meanwhile, in Narathiwat, a bomb exploded on a road in Cho Ai Rong district before military soldiers, riding motorcycles, arrived at the site of the bombing. No one was wounded in the incident. Police conducted searches near the bomb site and found an underground hiding place and illegal drugs at the house. The owner was detained for questioning.

Pattani, Zone 1 Education Area Office director Somnuek Meesaeng said officials beefed up security at the school and escorted teachers, who were travelling to school after 13 schools in Nongjik district reopened on Monday after the schools closed following an attack on a military truck, which was busing students to school on July 7.
Posted by: ryuge || 07/14/2008 05:22 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Thai Insurgency


Philippine gov't forces kill 4 rebels
(Xinhua) -- Philippine government troops killed at least four left-wing rebels and injured three others in a fighting Saturday in the southern province of Agusan del Sur, said the official Philippines News Agency on Sunday.

The report quoted a military spokesman as saying the government troops repulsed what could have been a raid by the New People's Army (NPA) guerrillas on a military detachment. "Our territorial forces gallantly defended their camp and showed how they employed tactics that repulsed the attacking NPA column which scampered to the nearby mountainous and forested area," the report quoted Armand Rico, a spokesman of Mindanao-based Eastern Command of the military, as saying.
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  And to think, this is where my job in the civiian sector got outsourced to (Philippines).
Posted by: OldSpook || 07/14/2008 0:09 Comments || Top||

#2  balikatan works
Posted by: Muggsy Whusons7575 || 07/14/2008 1:05 Comments || Top||


Sri Lanka
33 killed in fresh Lankan fighting
New fighting in Sri Lanka's civil war killed 31 Tamil Tiger rebels and two government soldiers, the military said yesterday.

In the worst clash Saturday, 18 rebels and a soldier were killed in Mannar district, a military official said on condition of anonymity, citing government rules. Seven rebels and a soldier were killed in Vavuniya while six guerrillas died in Welioya, he said. It said 26 rebels were also wounded in the clashes that killed two government soldiers and wounded seven more.

The air force was called in to bomb suspected Tiger positions in the Wanni, the ministry said. For their part, the Tigers said the aerial attack destroyed livestock and wounded a 20-year-old woman. There was no immediate word from the Tigers about ground clashes.

Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan could not immediately be reached for comment, and it was not possible to verify the military's claims because reporters are barred from the war zone.

The government has intensified its campaign against the rebels' de facto state in the north after promising to crush them by the end of this year. However, army commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka recently said it might take another year to significantly weaken the rebels.

The latest figure given by the ministry raises the number of rebels killed by government forces to 4,907 since January, while 437 soldiers have died in the same period.
Posted by: Fred || 07/14/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:



Who's in the News
40[untagged]
6Iraqi Insurgency
4Govt of Pakistan
4Taliban
4Hezbollah
3Hamas
2Palestinian Authority
2Jamaat-e-Islami
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1Takfir wal-Hijra
1al-Qaeda in Iraq
1Thai Insurgency
1al-Qaeda in North Africa
1Govt of Sudan
1al-Qaeda
1Jaish-ul-Islami Pakistan
1Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh
1Mahdi Army

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Two weeks of WOT
Mon 2008-07-14
  Failed Meknes suicide bomber sentenced to life
Sun 2008-07-13
  Nine US soldier among scores who die in wave of attacks in Afghanistan
Sat 2008-07-12
  Leb Forms New Cabinet, Hezbollah Keeps Veto Power
Fri 2008-07-11
  Petraeus takes command of CENTCOM
Thu 2008-07-10
  3 dead and 32 wounded in Leb fighting
Wed 2008-07-09
  Turkey: 3 turbans, 3 cops killed in shootout outside U.S. consulate
Tue 2008-07-08
  One killed, scores injured in series of blasts in Karachi
Mon 2008-07-07
  Suicide bomber kills 41 at Indian embassy in Kabul, 141 injured
Sun 2008-07-06
  Maliki: government has defeated terrorism
Sat 2008-07-05
  2 Pakistanis detained in S Korean bust on 'Taliban' drug ring
Fri 2008-07-04
  Norway: "Osama" bomb threat forced offshore platform evacuation
Thu 2008-07-03
  Bulldozer Attacker's Dad: Is My Son a Dog? He's not a Terrorist
Wed 2008-07-02
  Many hurt, 7 killed in Jerusalem bulldozer attack
Tue 2008-07-01
  'MMA no more an electoral alliance'
Mon 2008-06-30
  Ahmadinejad target of 'Rome X-ray plot', diplomat says


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