#5
Iblis, because the bad guys don't wear uniforms, and because it is better(*) for Americans to die than to shoot a noncombatant, we have to be absolutely sure that they are actually bad guys. Apparently shooting at a helicopter is not enough to convince the lawyers of the bad guys' evil intentions.
* - in Obama's and the left's eyes, that is.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
12/02/2009 17:46 Comments ||
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#6
Rambler's right. After all, it could be the ANA firing on what they think is a Taliban helicopter*, so we need to clarify that before we engage.
* - We all know what an extensive air force the Talibunnies got. I hear they got Zeroes and Stukas too!
Posted by: Dar ||
12/02/2009 18:18 Comments ||
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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan Ā Only a handful of the thousands of troops in the U.S. Marines' main base here thought it worth the effort to get out of bed for President Barack Obama's speech on Afghanistan , which began at 5:30 a.m. local time.
In the workout gym Ā one of the few public places with TVs Ā only two Navy Seabee engineers were watching when the speech began, and they were sharply divided on the wisdom of the president's plan.
"I didn't really hear a good reason," said E3 Steven Lewis , 23, of Boise, Idaho . "I think it's all gone on too long. 9/11 happened a long time ago."
Lewis had been riding an exercise bike close to the dusty, 21-inch TV when the speech started and sat through half of it, including the announcement of the size of the buildup, before he got up to leave.
The only one who watched the entire speech was RP2 Michael Vanasselberg , 22, of Bentley, La. , a chaplain's assistant.
"I think he gave a good speech, and I agree with most of the points he made," Vanasselberg said. "You'll never be able to stabilize the security here if you keep trying to do it with the minimal amount of force."
Next door in a weight room, Marine Sgt. Alvaradoj Imael of San Diego was doing abdominal exercises. He said he hadn't needed to watch the speech because the basics had been leaked in advance.
"I think it's way better to bring in more guys," he said. "Maybe we can get it done fast and get it over with and go home."
That was just a hope, though, he said. The reality, many Marines feel, is that it will take longer than the 18 months Obama talked about to make a significant change.
"Most of us, though, believe it will end up like Iraq ," he said. "Pretty much everybody thinks we'll be here like, five years more."
#1
Wter is wet, Grass is green, Terrorists are mouthy.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
12/02/2009 11:44 Comments ||
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#2
Obama won't call it a surge but the Taliban will.
Posted by: lord garth ||
12/02/2009 16:16 Comments ||
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#3
Now if we could just get them to self identify as Islamic Terorist Fighters.
"We call on the Muslim nation...to prepare for Jihad imposed by Allah and terrorize the enemy by preparing the force necessry. This should include a nuclear force."
- Osama bin Laden on May 14, 1998
#4
TOPIX > TALIBAN: SURGE WILL LEAD TO MORE US FATALITIES.
* SAME > [Arrested + extradited back to US] IRANIAN AMERICAN AGENT [arms-techs smuggling] TELLS OF IRANIAN WAR PREPARATIONS, agz the USA. Tehran believed that a war wid the USA is coming, + sought to covertly acquire as much advanced miltechs, etc. as possible to incorporate into Iran's defense???
[Quqnoos] French troops are attempting to bribe Taliban fighters not to attack them in Afghanistan, a local Taliban leader has told Al Jazeera
A confirmation of reports seen here before.
A purported Taliban commander in the Afghan capital, Kabul, said on Monday that his men have been offered gifts and money by the French soldiers in order to persuade the fighters not to engage their forces. "The French in Sorubi [District] tried to send gifts to Taliban fighters and offered them a lot of money in return for not launching attacks targeting the French troops," Al Jazeera quoted a Taliban commander, Saifullah Jalili, as saying. "But Taliban fighters replied by rejecting everything and by strongly demanding the departure of the French troops and all other troops from our country, which they invaded by force," he said.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force [ISAF] has denied Jalili's claims, saying they are Taliban propaganda.
In his interview, Jalili also claimed that local groups being armed by Western forces to confront his fighters were in fact handing over their weapons to the Taliban. "There are many groups that work for the Taliban and also receive weapons from the foreign troops through the government," he said. "They are supposed to fight us, but these groups fulfil their promise of loyalty by bringing the weapons to the Taliban," he said.
The Taliban claim comes only a month after Italian troops in the same area were accused of paying off Taliban fighters to keep the area calm. Despite Italian denials, there were suggestions that French troops deployed in the region had no knowledge of the secret arrangement and an attack last year on them that resulted in the deaths of 10 French soldiers was directly because the payments had been discontinued, the report says.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Je me plierai plus de, je suis franƧais. Ne me blessez pas qu'et je te donnerai un tour sur mon fond.
President Barack Obama is dispatching 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, accelerating a risky and expensive war buildup, even as he assures the nation that U.S. forces will begin coming home in July 2011. The first new Marines will join the fight by Christmas.
The escalation -- to be completed by next summer -- is designed to reverse significant Taliban advances since Obama took office 10 months ago and to fast-track the training of Afghan soldiers and police toward the goal of hastening an eventual U.S. pullout. The size and speed of the troop increase will put a heavy strain on the military, which still maintains a force of more than 100,000 in Iraq and already has 68,000 in Afghanistan. This makes Barack Obama even mote even more a militarist than that warmonger Bush by about 30-40,000 troops.
Most of the new forces will be combat troops. Military officials said the Army brigades most likely to be sent will come from Fort Drum in New York and Fort Campbell in Kentucky. Marines, who will be the vanguard, will most likely come primarily from Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
There will be about 5,000 dedicated trainers in the 30,000, showing the emphasis on preparing Afghans to take over their own security. And the president is making clear to his generals that all troops, even if designated as combat, must consider themselves trainers.
Announcing a start to a U.S. withdrawal by July 2011 does not tie the United States to an "end date" for the war, officials said. They all spoke on condition of anonymity because the speech had not been delivered. Nah, the real deadline is the first Tuesday, November 2012.
#1
ION GUAMPDN FORUMS > [Navy Times} THE UNFUNDED NAVY. Is the USDOD-Navy so $$$ broke its Sailors have to buy their own industrial tools to perform thier work???
#2
I wonder if the leftists in Obama's party realize that 'starting to leave Afghanistan in 2011' may be like 'starting to leave Korea is 1953'.
Posted by: lord garth ||
12/02/2009 7:38 Comments ||
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#3
If I were the Taliban, I would keep up the harassing action, demoralize the troops, play games with civilians to put the US on the defensive, and wait it out till 6-2011.
Between O and the Taliban, our troops should be thoroughly demoralized by that time.
/spit
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/02/2009 9:50 Comments ||
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#4
Here is how the Obama team probably played this out. (1) Troops go in. (2) Jihadi, knowing they have a deadline, bury their weapons and wait it out. Perhaps keeping low scale attacks to keep relevant. (3) Obama claims he pacified the area. Claims victory and pulls out. (4) Jihadi unbury their weapons and take Afghanistan. (5) Loss of Afghanistan is blamed on locals.
Here is how it will really play out. (1) Troops go in. (2) Jihadi bury their weapons and go to Iraq to destabilize there some more as troops are withdrawn from Iraq. (3) Iran is happy.
Be careful Obama. One thing Bush knew was that Iraq is a far more valuable piece in the game. Don't lose it.
#5
General Stanley A. McChrystal: Message to the troops
We have been presented a great opportunity to take the tremendous work of our Coalition force to the next level. The clarity, capability, and commitment outlined in President ObamaĀs address are critical steps toward eliminating an insurgency in Afghanistan and terrorist safe havens that threaten regional and global security.
Each of you can be proud of the effort we have made here Ā not just in bringing the fight to the enemy, but in reshaping that fight to achieve more lasting effects, grow our partnership with Afghan security forces, and strengthen relationships with government officials and the Afghan people. You have performed magnificently, and I believe our renewed Coalition campaign is fortified by the path President Obama has put forward.
Our NATO International Security Assistance Force objective remains clear: We will work toward a transfer of responsibility to Afghan security forces as rapidly as conditions allow. They need our help Ā and we are here for them, for their future, and for the safety and security of coalition nations.
The additional resources called for by President Obama will continue to advance a winning strategy. In recent months we have seen real progress that must be preserved and expanded. The increase of Coalition forces earlier this year in the Helmand River Valley, along with expanded civilian capacity, have improved security and stability. This is also helping to foster essential governance and basic economic development.
We still face many challenges in Afghanistan, but our mission has renewed purpose sustained by one unassailable reality: Neither the international community nor the Afghan people want this country to remain a sanctuary for terror and violence. The price to be paid in this conflict is high. But the stakes are higher.
President ObamaĀs decision is a clear reflection not only of his intended strategy, but of his confidence in the success we can achieve Ā success earned by the competence and courage you display every day in Afghanistan.
I am privileged to be serving with you, and I am confident that our partnership with Afghans will enable real change to Afghanistan, grounded in a secure and stable environment that allows for effective governance, economic independence and the freedom of every Afghan to choose how to live. In doing so, we will preserve for our own Coalition nations the lasting security we seek for the people of Afghanistan.
General Stanley A. McChrystal
Commander, International Security Assistance Force Afghanistan
#6
Don't ever underestimate the rad's inability to control themselves. How are they going to keep the boys in the mountains if they just sit back and do the opium rather than fulfilling their jihad. It's the story of the scorpion and the frog. They too have issues that will suppress the 'smart solution'.
#7
"(1) Troops go in. (2) Jihadi, knowing they have a deadline, bury their weapons and wait it out. Perhaps keeping low scale attacks to keep relevant."
If they do that, they allow us to achieve our goals in training up the Afghan forces unmolested. Not to mention physical reconstruction, etc. Nah, that's a pretty questionable strategy. And it was not what AQinIraq did, despite knowing our surge there was not sustainable long term.
#9
"(2) Jihadi bury their weapons and go to Iraq to destabilize there some more as troops are withdrawn from Iraq."
Given the current balance of forces in Iraq, I don't think thats a viable strategy. Also I don't think this jives with the Pashtun makeup of the Taliban - they aint leaving greater Pashtunistan.
#10
What could have possibly come out of this to make you feel less anxious?
The summary is:
He doesn't send as many troops as the general asks for. Instead he simply placates the people that want him to send troops by sending some and asks our allies to pick up the slack. This way, if it doesn't work, his ass has some political cover by being able to blame the generals and our allies by claiming he sent troops but our allies didn't and the generals didn't get the job done with the tools they asked for.
He also sets a kinda-sorta timetable on the operation to soothe the left.
There is nothing in here that indicates a military victory is what he's trying to accomplish. In fact, it's plain as day that political victory is the purpose of this plan.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
12/02/2009 12:21 Comments ||
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#11
Mike - he could have gone with Bidens no increase plan, or with 10,000 to 20,000 (Close to McCrystals high risk option) Instead he went with something pretty close to the McCrystal primary option. The difference from 40000 is probably due to Gates concerns about the footprint, and to Dept of the Army concerns about the stretching of the force. Its too big a number to assuage any of the doves on size grounds alone. It seems to me that its a very serious military commitment, with a very serious strategy accompanying it.
When we discussed this months ago, I dont think this is the level of troops most people here thought BHO would do, and he think at least some other than me agreed that 30,000 would be enough for McCrystal to feel his report had been accepted, in essence.
#12
That Bidens idea sucked or that this is not what some people expected from Obama in no way makes this plan good or any less a political calculation.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
12/02/2009 12:37 Comments ||
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#13
The issue is not having the theater commander feel that his report was accepted.
The issue is winning this conflict, for which the most knowledgeable people in the field believe 30,000 is not sufficient, especially not since Obama has dragged his feet sufficiently long to give the Taliban a huge advantage and to demoralize those looking positively towards us.
#16
in no way makes this plan good or any less a political calculation.
It is the job of the president to get the politics right, Mike N., so that the generals can do the war fighting right. In my opinion, President Obama made the right decision while doing the politics wrong. His open and leisurely consultation process led many here and abroad to conclude he is a ditherer, which reputation will harm him in all his endeavors for the rest of his time in the White House.
#19
so, we'll have 25-30% less the capability we had in Iraq in manpower/equipment/ports of embark and expect to get the job done 50% faster w/a group or natives who are even less literate then the ones in Iraq? This appears sound to some of you on here? I must've woke up in the twilight zone.
Obama may think he has the internal politics right for getting re-elected in a couple yrs but telling the enemy on national t.v. what your general course of action, end-ex & coordinating instructions are w/out a defined (& determined) end state is irrational...sort of like sitting on the report of the guy you hired for 3 months.
#20
It is the job of the president to get the politics right, Mike N., so that the generals can do the war fighting right. In my opinion, President Obama made the right decision while doing the politics wrong
I agree with the first part, but we differ in our view of the later. Yes, getting the politics right is his job, but he did not get the politics right and that will hamper the generals ability to do the warfighting right. What he did was get the politics right for him personally; He did not get the politics right for American generals to be best able to fight the war.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
12/02/2009 15:36 Comments ||
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#21
I don't think President Obama even got the politics right for himself, Mike N. I believe the widespread perception that he chose to dither will impact his effectiveness abroad as well as at home, even when he does make the right decision.
#22
That one we agree with. The delay hurt him a lot. Excepting the dithering, though, it looks like this position was staked out for himself, not the country.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
12/02/2009 15:53 Comments ||
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#23
FWIW, November 2009 was not a particularly successful month for the Taliban. Coalition casualties were down more than 50% from Oct. Remember, we only had about 35k over there late in 2008 and have about 65k there now. Assuming we also move enough UAVs and other stuff there the CI has a good chance to work.
The issue of training Afghans is worrisome however, very worrisome. Karzai is also a worry.
Posted by: lord garth ||
12/02/2009 16:27 Comments ||
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#24
I don't think you can argue he got the politics right. Anything less than getting us out pisses off his moonbat base. And by tacking on the date he's pissed off the right. I do wonder if McChrystal really believes zero is committed or if that is the good General playing politics. Remember, the position of General is highly political. I'd love to know his true, unedited thoughts. Personally, I'd wager, much like the economy, he blew it. He waited too long and by attaching that 'draw down' rider he's given aid and comfort to the Taliban. If they were smart, they'd hunker and wait for that date. Of course, maybe they will be stupid and come out and fight. But I doubt it.
#25
As I see it, this decision is wrong on a strategic level. The assumption that we can begin to draw down forces in 2011 is predicated on the buildup of a trustworthy, competent Afghan military and the cooperation of outlying tribes and villages in the suppression of Taliban forces (as U.S. forces will be concentrated near major population centers). Culturally, the Afghans are closer to the Taliban than to us so the latter part is iffy. And the corrupt and weak central government is unlikely to be able to pick up the slack over the proposed timeline even in the most optimistic scenario. Nation building in Afghanistan has proven chimerical so moving toward a lighter yet still mobile and deadly military footprint weighted toward special forces would have been better.
#26
There are other Islamically oriented weak states which are potential recruitment bases and training grounds for al Qaeda, such as Somalia. Considering the lack of enthusiasm on the part of U.S. allies with regard to sending their *own* troops in significant numbers to support this mission in Afghanistan, can America really afford to maintain this level of military commitment in a country which is not strategically crucial (the proximity to Pakistan notwithstanding)?
#27
a lighter yet still mobile and deadly military footprint weighted toward special forces would have been better.
Doubtful. Think of squeezing a partially-inflated balloon. At best, the Taliban get harassed. At worst, you end up with a lot of dead special forces troops.
#28
Considering the lack of enthusiasm on the part of U.S. allies with regard to sending their *own* troops in significant numbers to support this mission in Afghanistan, can America really afford to maintain this level of military commitment in a country which is not strategically crucial (the proximity to Pakistan notwithstanding)?
1. Europe has always had a "lack of enthusiasm".
2. Apparently America "can afford" domestic spending.
3. Funny you should mention Somalia. IIRC, the US withdrawal from there was mentioned by Al Qaeda. Funny how nobody ever remembers that.
[Bangla Daily Star] Indian police arrested two more Bangladeshi criminals and an Indian -- for giving them shelter -- from a house at Ghapchi under Bongaon Thana in West Bengal on Monday.
The arrestees were identified as Milon alias Tapan alias Mukta, 40, Babu alias Mahfuz, 38, and Zia, 36.
Indian police said Zia is an Indian citizen of Ghapchi under Bongaon Thana while Milon, of Mirpur area in Dhaka, is a leader of Mukta Bahini and Babu is a top cadre of Sahadat Bahini, also of Dhaka.
According to sources, Indian police raided the house around 8:30am on Monday and arrested them after information gleaned from Gono Mukti Fouz chief Aminul Islam Mukul who was arrested on November 21.
The criminals were being quizzed at Bongaon police station and might be produced before court today.
MUKUL SENT TO JAIL
After a five-day remand ended on Friday, Mukul was produced before additional judicial magistrate's court in Bongaon on Saturday.
The court rejected Mukul's bail prayer and ordered to send him to jail for next 14 days.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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[Bangla Daily Star] Operatives of outlawed outfit Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP-ML) kidnapped three people and held them for ransom and having failed to realise the money they killed them and buried the bodies in a graveyard.
Police yesterday recovered the bodies from Taragunia graveyard under Daulatpur upazila in the district.
Police said criminals had abducted them in between November 1 and 10 and then killed them as they failed to pay ransom.
The dead were identified as Mehedi Hasan Sohag, 22, a third year student of Kushtia Islamia College, Jahangir Hossain, 38, an employee of KARITAS in Dhaka and Rassel, a grocer of Jhenidah.
The bodies were recovered following a confessional statement of Rokunuzzaman alias Manik, a top cadre of outlawed Purbo Banglar Communist Party (PBCP-ML) arrested on Monday.
Police quoting the outlaw said a gang led by Manik abducted Mehedi Hasan Sohag from Majampur area in Kushtia on November 1.
They later demanded a ransom of Tk 30 lakh from Sohag's family.
Hasan Arif, father of Sohag and an officer of IFIC Bank of Kushtia branch, filed a general diary (GD) with Kushtia Sadar Police Station on November 2. But police failed to trace the victim.
Besides, separate groups of the same outfit abducted KARITAS employee Jahangir when he came to visit his village home at Sharsha upazila in Jessore on November 4 and Rassel from Bastubhita in Damurhuda upazila under Chuadanga on November 8.
All abductees were confined to a den of PBCP at Taragunia village in Daulatpur upazila of Kushtia.
Police said the outlaws killed the abductees in between November 15 and 20 as their families failed to pay the ransom and dumped the bodies at Taragunia graveyard.
Manik was also involved in the murder of two of his opponent outfit Gono Mukti Fouz cadres on October 22 at Majampur area in Kushtia.
On information, a police team led by Assistant Police Super (ASP-headquarters) Alamgir Hossain yesterday busted the house of one Rokon of Majampur area of the town at about 2.30pm and arrested him.
During the interrogation Rokon confessed to his involvement in the abduction and killing of the three persons. He said they buried the victims at Taragunia graveyard.
When contacted ASP Alamgir said the drive was on to arrest other PBCP operatives involved in the incident.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Chechen rebels claimed responsibility Wednesday for last week's Russian train bombing, which killed at least 26 people and injured scores of others, a Web site sympathetic to the militants said.
The claim, posted on the Kavkazcenter.com site, could buttress the suspicions of officials who are tracing the attack to Islamist separatists in Russia's North Caucasus region. It also raises fears of a fresh wave of attacks outside the region after a five-year break -- a renewal of violence that would mirror the growing unrest inside the region.
The separatist statement, issued on behalf of Chechen separatist leader Doku Umarov, claimed Friday's bombing of a Moscow-St. Petersburg express train was carried out on his orders.
"We declare that this operation was prepared and carried out ... pursuant to the order of the Emir of Caucasus Emirate," or Umarov, the statement said.
Posted by: ed ||
12/02/2009 08:57 ||
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#2
The first claim was by a "nationalist group," which'd equate to neo-Nazis. I was surprised Count Doku didn't get there first.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 10:06 Comments ||
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#3
Something for Vlad Putin to sink his teeth into. He really likes his trains. I'd be making certain my personal affairs were in order. Good luck Mr. Umarov.
#4
Also, via ISRAELI MILITARY FORUM > COUNTERRORISM BLOG = CHECHEN MUJAHIDEEN CLAIM SABOTAGE BOMBING OF RUSSIAN NATURAL GAS STORAGE FACILITY
[world's largest "subterranean natural gas sotrage facility"]???
* TOPIX > NORTH CAUCASUS REMAINS RUSSIA'S PERMANENT PROBLEM REGION.
Russia's top investigative body says its chief was injured by a bomb that went off as he and colleagues were scouring the wreckage of a passenger train that derailed due to an earlier blast.
The last three carriages of the Nevsky Express left the tracks late on Friday, killing 26 and injuring dozens more in what officials consider a terrorist bombing.
Russian Railways says a second explosion occurred on Saturday as officials investigated the wreckage site. The federal Investigative Committee said on Tuesday its chief Alexander Bastrykin was hurt in the blast.
A statement on the committee's Web site says the blast was remotely detonated.
Russian news agencies reported that Bastrykin's injury was not serious.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Not really, Grom. The whole operation would require two guys, two or three 15Kg bombs, two or three cell phones, and a pair of binoculars. Put the first bomb directly under the rails on one side, set it off when the train was halfway or two-thirds by the bomb. Rush in, lay the second (and third, if there is one) bomb, pull back and lay low. Wait until the rescue people are thoroughly engaged, set off the second bomb. Pull out of the area, work your way around to either the north or south of the derailment site, and detonate the third bomb (if there is one). It takes planning and intelligence, but not a lot of people. It's also VERY hard to detect or protect against, especially in Russia, where there are miles and miles between settlements in most parts. Consider: Russia is twice the size of the US and Canada combined, with a population of around 250 Million (US, 310m, Canada 140m< total 450 million - almost twice as many). No matter how big a police/military/paramilitary force the Russians have, it's spread VERY thinly.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/02/2009 15:26 Comments ||
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#3
ION BOOMIES BHARAT RAKSHAK > [Brazen] SUSPECTED SUICIDE ATTACK OUTSIDE OF NAVAL HQ IN ISLAMABAD. Heavily-laden Boomer seeminly knowingly, calmly blew himself to smithereenies when checked by HQ security officers.
[Maghrebia] Two Tunisians who arrived in Italy from Guantanamo on Monday (November 30th) will be tried on terrorism charges, AFP quoted Italian judicial sources as saying. Adel Ben Mabrouk, 39, and Mohamed Ben Riadh Nasri, 43, are accused of belonging to an al-Qaeda linked terror group and of recruiting suicide bombers for Afghanistan.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Europe
A domestic Islamic threat is real, and the FBI is unprepared to fight it.
For those of us who have tracked Islamic militancy in Europe, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan's actions are not extraordinary. Since Muslim militants first tried to blow a French high-speed train off its rails in 1995, European intelligence and internal-security services have increasingly monitored European Muslim radicals. Whether it's anti-Muslim bigotry, the large numbers of immigrant and native-born Muslims in Europe, an appreciation of how hard it is to become European, or just an understanding of how dangerous Islamic radicalism is, most Europeans are far less circumspect and politically correct when discussing their Muslim compatriots than are Americans.
A concern for not giving offense to Muslims would never prevent the French internal-security service, the Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire (DST), which deploys a large number of Muslim officers, from aggressively trying to pre-empt terrorism. As Maj. Hasan's case shows, this is not true in the United States. The American military and especially the Federal Bureau of Investigation were in great part inattentive because they were too sensitive.
Moreover, President Barack Obama's determined effort not to mention Islam in terrorist discussions--which means that we must not suggest that Maj. Hasan's murderous actions flowed from his faith--will weaken American counterterrorism. Worse, the president's position is an enormous wasted opportunity to advance an all-critical Muslim debate about the nature and legitimacy of jihad.
European counterterrorist officers know well that jihadists can appear, self-generated or tutored by extremist groups, inside Muslim families where parents and siblings lead peaceful lives. Security officials live in fear of the quiet believer who quickly radicalizes, or the secular down-and-out European who enthusiastically converts to a militant creed. Both cases allow little time and often few leads to neutralize a possible lethal explosion of the faith. Facinating article and assessment. Balance at the link.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Algerian detainee Saber Lahmar became one of hundreds of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to be freed for "insufficient evidence" and was transferred to French territory, his lawyer said late Monday.
Lahmar, 39, is the last of five Algerians arrested in Bosnia in late 2001 to be transferred from Guantanamo since a U.S. judge's ordered their release in November 2008 due to insufficient evidence.
Lahmar's attorney Robert Kirsh said that his client's departure from Guantanamo will allow him "to rebuild his life as a free man after nearly eight years of illegal detention."
"Mr Lahmar suffered years of inhumane, isolating imprisonment. He was separated from other human contact until one month after Judge (Richard) Leon ruled that the detention of Mr Lahmar was illegal," Kirsh told AFP.
Kirsh praised French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner as "straight shooters throughout this process."
"We appreciate the opportunities they have given to Saber Lahmar and Lakhdar Boumediene," he said.
Boumediene, one of the five Algerians arrested in Bosnia, was transferred to France and released on May 15.
Hours after the announcement the French foreign ministry issued a statement.
"In deciding to welcome to its soil a second former detainee France is contributing, as are other European and non-European states, to the implementation of the decision of President (Barack) Obama ... to close the Guantanamo detention center," the French foreign ministry said early Tuesday.
"After seven years of incarceration in Guantanamo, Mr Lahmar can finally begin to live a normal life again," it said, adding steps would be taken to help his integration into French society.
The U.S. Justice Department also announced that the United States has transferred two Tunisians held at its Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba to Italy.
Earlier Monday Tunisian nationals Abel Ben Mabrouk bin Hamida Boughanmi and Mohammed Tahir Riyadh Nasseri "were transferred to the government of Italy. Both detainees are the subject of outstanding arrest warrants in Italy and will be prosecuted there," the Justice Department said.
"The United States is grateful to the government of Italy for helping achieve President Obama's directive to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility," it added.
The two, according to prosecutors, were also part of a group that provided logistical support to a militant cell recruiting suicide attackers for operations in countries including Afghanistan.
Obama vowed during his first week in office in January this year that he would close Guantanamo by the end of 2009 but the president recently delayed his promise and it is now expected to close later in 2010.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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[Geo News] As many as 15,577 Cash Cards have been issued to displaced families of Wazirsitan, said an ISPR statement here on Tuesday.
The operation Rah-e-Nijat in South Waziristan Agency continued today. On Jandola Sector, during last 24 hours, security forces cleared Dunai Killi, remaining portion of Janata and recovered huge cache of arms and ammunition.
Security forces conducted patrolling in areas around Bxu, Bakka Khel, Rucha, Bapsa, Sagai and Talib Khel.
On Shakai Sector, security forces carried out consolidation of their positions at Asman Manza, Mola Khan Sarai and Kundi Ghar Sar.
On Razmak Sector, terrorists fired seven rockets at Lakki Ghund, five rockets at Mana Camp and four rockets at Ladha Bridge near Makeen which was responded effectively. Security forces cleared 30 compounds at Kam Narakai and 72 compounds at Mir Khoni and recovered cache of arms.
About operation Rah-e-Rast in Swat and Malakand, security forces carried out search operation in area Gulibagh, Tiligram and apprehended 5 suspects.
A destroyed bridge by the terrorists constructed by Army Engineers has been opened for all kinds of traffic. On a tip off, security forces raided at Sarga Moray near Batkhela, and apprehended 5 terrorists.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: TTP
[Geo News] The security forces arrested 12 militants during a successful raid on a house at Badama area and recovered huge quantity of arms and ammunition from their possession, commandant Kurram Militia Col. Tauseef Ahmed said on Tuesday.
On a tip off about presence of militants at house at village Badama, the security forces conducted a successful raid on a house between Monday and Tuesday night and apprehended 12 militants.
Huge quantity of arms and ammunition including rounds of different bore guns, mortar shells, anti tank mines, artillery shells and four kilogram opium. As many as 29 cottons of cigarettes have also been recovered.
Col Tauseef told reporters that dozens of militants have been arrested and several were killed. The operation against militants will continue till their complete elimination, he added.
Meanwhile in Bajaur Agency, the young nephew of PML-N Bajaur Agency president Haji Rahat Yousaf was shot dead by firing of unknown persons while he was proceeding to home after "Isha" prayer in Khar, headquarters of the agency.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] A teenaged suicide bomber blew himself up, killing ANP lawmaker Shamsher Ali Khan as he was seeing off guests who had come to his house here to offer Eid greetings on Tuesday. Shamsher Khan's two brothers and nine other people were injured.
The man with explosives strapped to his body had walked unchallenged into the Hujra of the MPA's house, witnesses said.
Shamsher Khan died on the spot while his brothers Shaukat Ali Khan and Mohammad Ali Khan were injured. The other injured were identified as Siddiq Akbar, Mohammad Shah, Rehmani Gul, Amjad, Siraj Khan, Mehar Shah, Shujaat Ali and Rozimand.
They were taken to Saidu hospital where condition of some of them was reported to be critical. Shamsher Khan was a seasoned politician and friends and local people affectionately called him as Dr Shamsher. He is the second ANP lawmaker killed by terrorists this year. Earlier, MPA Alamzeb Khan was killed by a roadside bomb blast in Peshawar.
Swat District police officer Qazi Ghulam Farooq and bomb disposal squad personnel reached the place and collected evidence.
According to the bomb disposal squad personnel, the bomber was about 18 years old, who had used nearly 10 kilograms of explosives.
Police found legs and other parts of the bomber's body and whatever was left of the suicide vest.
Some people blamed inadequate security for the attack.
Agencies add: Senior police official Ali Khan said that the politician had been sitting on the lawn in front of his house receiving guests and local constituents when the young man rushed up to him.
'His brother rushed to save the lawmaker but the bomber blew himself up before he could be prevented,' the police official said.
Spin Zada, a doctor at a local government hospital, confirmed that the bodies of Shamsher Khan and the bomber had been brought to the hospital.
Swat was the focus of a fierce military offensive launched earlier this year to rid the one-time tourist paradise of Taliban terrorists.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the attack would not derail the government's efforts against terrorists.
'Such reprehensible acts can never defeat our resolve to root out terrorism and militancy,' he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] At least four suspected militants have been killed and six others injured during clashes with security forces in different parts of Khyber Agency on Tuesday.
According to official sources, security forces destroyed four houses belonging to militant commanders. Sources said that 65 people have been killed in last eight days and more than ninety people have been arrested. A curfew has been imposed in Bara Tehsil.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
the frontier corps seems to be keeping the pressure on across a wide band of NWFP
A SENIOR fighter from the armed wing of the Islamist Hamas movement died today in a tunnel collapse in the central Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian medics and the armed group.
"Yasser Sabri Radi, 37, a field commander in the Qassam Brigades from Nuseirat Camp in central Gaza, was martyred this morning while undertaking a jihad-related task,'' the group said.
The statement did not specify the cause of death, but Palestinian medics said Radi died in a tunnel collapse.
The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas which has ruled the Gaza Strip since June 2007, is believed to use networks of tunnels throughout the territory to hide out, store weapons and launch attacks.
In June 2006, fighters from Hamas and two other armed Palestinian groups tunnelled under the Gaza-Israel border and attacked a military post, killing two Israeli soldiers and capturing a third, who is still being held in Gaza.
Hamas has demanded some 1000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the soldier, Gilad Shalit, who has become a cause celebre in Israel.
I always thought that'd be a bad way to go, after watching The Great Escape. At least he could look forward to the 72 virgins while he was waiting to suffocate.
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/02/2009 6:08 Comments ||
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#2
Improvements in our techniques have led to fewer collapses! (But a higher mortality rate.)
[Ma'an] Ma'an -- Fatah's military wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, accused the Hamas de facto government on Tuesdayof detaining the group's leader in the Gaza Strip, Muhammad Ubeid.
In a statement released Tuesday morning, the military group said, "At one after midnight, the de facto government's security services detained Muhammad Ubeid, the general commander of Al-Aqsa Brigades in the Gaza Strip who is wanted by Israeli occupation forces."
The statement held the de facto government accountable for any danger to Ubeid's life.
In late November the de facto Ministry of the Interior said that it had reached an agreement with armed groups in Gaza to cease cross-border attacks on Israel.
Several groups, including the Al-Aqsa Brigades, denied having entered any agreement.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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[Ma'an] Palestinian Authority security forces seized four Hamas affiliates in the West Bank on Monday, Hamas said in a statement released on Tuesday.
According to the statement, PA forces abudcted four members, including one journalist, from Nablus and Tulkarem.
On Wednesday, The Palestinian Journalists' Association called for the release of 11 Palestinian journalists and members of the media detained in West Bank jails.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Just start suicide booming each other---if Iraqis can, why can't you?
[Iran Press TV Latest] Iran says two high-profile members of a Reformist political front, the Islamic Revolution Mujahedeen Organization, have reportedly left the country to seek asylum in Sweden and the United States.
According to a report published by Fars News Agency on Tuesday, Mohammad Ali Tofiqi -- a member of the central committee at the Iranian Reformist political organization -- has been granted asylum alongside his family in the Scandinavian country of Sweden.
The report added that another member of the political front Ebrahim Mehtari has also moved to seek political asylum in the US.
The public relations of the Islamic Revolution Mujahedeen Organization, however, said in a Tuesday statement that the named individuals had no longer any connection with the political front.
The statement stressed that Tofiqi resigned in August and that the organization had no information about him and was not responsible for his current activities.
It added that Mehtari had never been an active member of the political front nor had any direct relations with the organization.
Fars News Agency described Mehtari, 27, as the person responsible for making public certain details about claims of rape and torture against protesters detained during the post-vote demonstrations.
Following the circulation of the data, leading opposition figure and former presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi called for official investigations into claims that post-vote detainees had been sexually assaulted in Iranian jails.
However, a judiciary panel responsible for looking into the matter dismissed the allegation, saying, "The panel concludes that there is no proof that people who Karroubi claimed of being raped, have been sexually assaulted."
The asylum-seeking report comes as earlier in August in a follow-up to the post-election trials of protestors detained in the unrest, Iran's Revolution Court accused the Islamic Revolution Mujahedeen Organization of "lying" and spreading "rumors of fraud in the election."
Citing examples of illegal activities carried out by the political front in the country's post-vote frenzy, the Revolution Court called for the Islamic Revolution Mujahedeen Organization to be dissolved.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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Iran's long-delayed first nuclear power plant has been tested successfully, a senior Iranian nuclear official announced on Monday. "A 250 bar (atmospheric) pressure test has been successfully carried out at the Bushehr nuclear plant," Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Director Ali Akbar Salehi said at a press conference with visiting Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko in Tehran.
In February, tests were carried out at the power plant using "dummy" fuel rods loaded with lead in place of enriched uranium to simulate nuclear fuel.
But the Russian energy minister refused to say when the nuclear power plant would become operational. "There is no need to make another (start date) promise," IRNA quoted Shmatko as saying. "We have been working on this power plant jointly with a sense of responsibility, and the plant will be fully operational in a short time," he added.
The comments come after some reports suggested that the Russians would again postpone the start-up of the Bushehr power plant.
Western corporations began the construction of the Bushehr facility in the 1970s. However, following the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, the Western companies reneged on their commitments and pulled out of the project due to political pressure from Washington. Iran then turned to Russia to complete the project. In 1992, Tehran and Moscow signed a deal to complete the construction of the nuclear power plant.
The Bushehr plant was originally scheduled to be completed in 1999, but its start-up has been repeatedly delayed. Moscow said earlier this year that the plant would come online before the Iranian New Year, which occurs on March 21, 2010.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/02/2009 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Quqnoos] French troops are attempting to bribe Taliban fighters not to attack them in Afghanistan, a local Taliban leader has told Al Jazeera
Chechen rebels claimed responsibility Wednesday for last week's Russian train bombing, which killed at least 26 people and injured scores of others, a Web site sympathetic to the militants said.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Algerian detainee Saber Lahmar became one of hundreds of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to be freed for "insufficient evidence" and was transferred to French territory, his lawyer said late Monday.
[Geo News] As many as 15,577 Cash Cards have been issued to displaced families of Wazirsitan, said an ISPR statement here on Tuesday.
[Geo News] The security forces arrested 12 militants during a successful raid on a house at Badama area and recovered huge quantity of arms and ammunition from their possession, commandant Kurram Militia Col. Tauseef Ahmed said on Tuesday.
[Dawn] A teenaged suicide bomber blew himself up, killing ANP lawmaker Shamsher Ali Khan as he was seeing off guests who had come to his house here to offer Eid greetings on Tuesday. Shamsher Khan's two brothers and nine other people were injured. 
[Dawn] At least four suspected militants have been killed and six others injured during clashes with security forces in different parts of Khyber Agency on Tuesday. 
A SENIOR fighter from the armed wing of the Islamist Hamas movement died today in a tunnel collapse in the central Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian medics and the armed group.
[Ma'an] Ma'an -- Fatah's military wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, accused the Hamas de facto government on Tuesdayof detaining the group's leader in the Gaza Strip, Muhammad Ubeid.
Iran's long-delayed first nuclear power plant has been tested successfully, a senior Iranian nuclear official announced on Monday. "A 250 bar (atmospheric) pressure test has been successfully carried out at the Bushehr nuclear plant," Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Director Ali Akbar Salehi said at a press conference with visiting Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko in Tehran. 
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