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Libyan Gaza-bound aid ship heads towards Egypt
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
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Page 2: WoT Background
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Good morning
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Happy Birthday/Daily Gam Shot

Kim Alexis aka SI Swimsuit Model 1980-1989 (age 50)


Women Who Are Bar Coded
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 07/15/2010 0:19 Comments || Top||

#2  Moths done et big holes in that poor gal's bathing suit.
Posted by: Angie Schultz || 07/15/2010 9:23 Comments || Top||

#3  These moths are OCD--the holes have a very regular pattern! It's O.K. with me if they get on with their work.
Posted by: JohnQC || 07/15/2010 16:36 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
The Lives of Soldiers


Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 07/15/2010 10:35 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Tough war (not like any of them aren't). The Canadians saved the life of the village elder's son. He then let them walk over an IED which he knew was there--they lost a soldier. As one of the Canadians said: "You learn to love to hate them." WTF?
Posted by: JohnQC || 07/15/2010 16:11 Comments || Top||


Africa Subsaharan
Christian-Muslim clashes kill eight in Nigeria
Clashes between Christians and Muslims in eastern Nigeria have killed eight people and seriously wounded 40, with six mosques and one church also burnt, police said on Wednesday.

"From reports at our disposal, eight people have been killed and 40 others seriously injured in the violence while six mosques and one church were burnt," Taraba state police commissioner said.

Fighting broke out Tuesday between Muslim and Christian youths in Wukari, a town in the predominantly Christian Taraba state, over the construction of a mosque on the premises of a local police headquarters.

A Christian mob opposed to the mosque razed it. Muslims later responded by attacking a nearby church, leading to the eruption of violent clashes between the two sides.

Police sent in reinforcements and calm was restored by Wednesday. Sectarian clashes occur frequently in Nigeria, particularly in the country's north, with hundreds of people killed in violence this year alone.

The latest clashes come weeks ahead of the one-year anniversary of an uprising by a militant sect in the northern city of Maiduguri.

Nigerian police and troops crushed the uprising by the Boko Haram sect -- which has also been called the Nigerian Taliban -- after four days of street battles that left more than 800 dead. The country's 150 million population is roughly divided in half between Muslims and Christians.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Global Jihad

#1  All this violent in the country today is cause by the youths why? is it ignorant or intentional act. The youths of this country needs to be orientate for this evil attitude otherwise it would be worse than before.may God bring peace to wukari LGA of Taraba state, maiduguri of Borno state and the country at large.
Posted by: Thromolet the Weasel3011 || 07/15/2010 5:19 Comments || Top||

#2  six mosques and one church burnt. About time Christians ceased to allow being slaughtered.

PS: Problem is that if things scale up, Muslims will get jihadist reinforcements from outside Kenya and Christains will not.
Posted by: JFM || 07/15/2010 7:36 Comments || Top||

#3  is it ignorant or intentional act.

I would suggest that violence is always intentional. How can it be otherwise when a bullet is shot from a gun, or a knife is waved about, or a fire is set? But the question must be asked, why do the Christians object to another mosque being built in a mostly Christian community? How have Muslims behaved in the past to trigger such a violent objection to an increase in their presence?

may God bring peace to wukari LGA of Taraba state, maiduguri of Borno state and the country at large.

May God bring peace and freedom to them and to all the world, Thromolet the Weasel3011. This is our prayer every day.
Posted by: trailing wife || 07/15/2010 15:49 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
Tamaulipas: Mexican Army Kills Four
Google Translate with a hat tip to Nota Roja and Blog del Narco for the additional information
Four people died in two confrontations the Mexican Army says was with armed suspects near Reynosa, Tamaulipas Monday morning, according to Mexican press reports.

However, relatives of one of the victims say the victims were innocent and were shot unjustly by the Army in one confrontation.

Among the three dead in the second confrotnation were Jorge Cantu, 30, a professional wrestler, and Octavian Reyes Morales, 30, an employee of PEMEX.

The first confrontation took place in an area west of Reynosa near the US border on calle Granados in the Villa Florida district where an employee of meat distributor Su Carne was shot to death by elements of the Mexican Army.

The second confrontation took place in the Vista Hermosa district when the army fired upon a van carrying three of the victims.

Reports say some witnesses at the scene saw Cantu exit the van with his hands up but was shot by soldiers anyway. Conflicting accounts say Cantu was shot immediately, while others say soldiers tortured Cantu before he was shot.

Cantu's family members attempted to gain possession of the body but were prevented from doing so immediately.

Reports also say that referrals concerning the confrontation were sent to the Secretaria de Defense Nacional (SEDENA) Mexico City. The usual practice is for the military component involved to release the information, unless it is a case SEDENA has an interest in.

Photos posted at a Mexican blog showed weapons that were presumably seized during the second confrontation including two 5.56mm machine pistols, the Kel Tec PLR-16, was found at the scene.
Posted by: badanov || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Seems with all this near-open warfare going on down there that the Mexican Army would be too busy to go around shooting folks who aren't bad guys.

Oh well, up here the jails are all full of only innocent people. Maybe it's the same down there.
Posted by: Peter || 07/15/2010 2:08 Comments || Top||


Nuevo Leon: Cops Find 14 Dead in Guadalupe
Google Translate. Rewritten for clarity and from various sources
A total of 14 dead were discovered in a mass grave at a junkyard in Guadalupe, Nuevo Leon Wednesday morning, according to Mexican press accounts.

The bodies were found inside eight 200 liter barrels six of them burnt beyond recognition. Police forensic teams are trying to determine if the barrels contain the remains of more than one person.

The discovery was made at the Cranes Monterrey junkyard at 820 Calle Río Escondido in the Industrial La Silla district near the riverbed after an anonymous caller tipped off police.

In a separate news report, the owner admitted that he had been under threat if he tipped off the police to the area, and so he did not inform the police about the mass grave. He insisted he knew nothing about the graves.

A number of area junkyards in the past have been used by criminal gangs as centers for kidnapping operations. Rescue perations involving these areas have been mounted in the past as well.

Mexican Army units along with Monterrey police rapid reaction forces are conducting search of other facilities to find other graves.

Police seized in the find a GMC pickup truck and a Chrysler 300 sedan. Some reports say drug and munitions were found as well, but those reports are unofficial.

Polcie expect to find more bodies as the invest1gation continues.
Posted by: badanov || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:


More Mexican Mayhem
Statistical note: The total dead for northern Mexico is at least 28 dead total, including the mass grave in Monterrey with 14 dead and four killed by the Mexican Army

10 Die in Northern Mexican Drug and Gang Violence

Ten individuals died in gang violence that included three dead Chihuahua state police agents and one dead Coahuila state police agent.
  • A man was found shot to death in his home in Juarez Tuesday afternoon, say Mexican news accounts. Mario Meza Arellano, 37, died when armed suspects stormed his home near the intersection of calles Puerto la Esperanza and Puerto Habana in the Tierra Nueva district. Investigators found 9mm spent cartridge casings at the scene.

  • Three Chihuahua state police agents were shot to death and four others were wounded in a shootout in Juarez Tuesday afternoon, according to Mexican news accounts. The dead are identified as: Judith Muñoz Silva, 25, Ernesto Méndez Delgado, 23, and Omar Vargas Duarte Benito 25, while the injured is surnamed Gonzälez Solís.

    Two agents were shot near the intersection of calles López Mateos and Posada Pompa when they attempted to stop an armed suspect. One agent was killed at the scene, the other later while receiving medical attention.

    Two civilians were shot and wounded in the crossfire. Two more state police were also shot when they attempted to come to the rescue of the first two. One died at the scene

  • Three men were shot to death while playing basketball Tuesday night in Juarez, according to Mexican press accounts. Lauro Menchaca, 48, and Ismael Caldaza, 23, died at the scene at the park on calle Montes Himalaya in the Lomas de San Jose district. Jose Guadalupe Ortega, 37, died later at the hospital Witnesses say an armed suspect shot the trio without saying anything a word.

  • A shootout between Chihuahua state police agents and armed suspects led to the closure of a major shopping mall Wednesday afternoon in Juarez as hundreds of local, state and federal police searched for the gunmen. The initial encounter took place near the intersection of calle Teofilo Borunda and Avenida las Torre when state police agents and armed suspects shot at each other. The subsequent pursuit took the officers to inside the Plaza Mission shopping mall.

    Three female state police agents were shot in the firefight in their official Chevrolet Cheyenne pickup truck.

    Police cordoned off the area and while searching department stores mall goers and employees wee evacuated. Reports are hundreds of police vehicles and activity locked traffic in the area as the search continued.

    It is unknown if any of the armed suspects were arrested, but the mall returned to normal operation after an hour. A subsequent release of a newsletter by mall operators said no shots were fired inside the mall, that police agents searched the stores as a precautionary measure.

  • An unidentified Chihuahua city merchant's son was shot to death Wednesday in Chihuahua, Chihuahua. Armed suspects entered Cooking Accessories Chale store the near the intersection of Avenida Heroico Colegio Militar and calle Sicomoro to ask for the merchant. Unable to make contact they attempted to abduct the son, but a struggle ensued and the young man was shot to death at the scene. Witnesses say the merchant was assault for failing to pay protection money.

  • An unidentified female police officer was shot and critically wounded Wednesday afternoon, according to Mexican press reports. The shooting took place at the Delicias station near the intersection of calles Oro y Norzagaray. when the officer was preparing to leave in her gold Ford Explorer.

  • An unidentified Coahuila state police agent was shot with another victim in a confrontation in Torreon Tuesday afternoon, according to Mexican press reports. The assault took place at a junkyard near the intersection of calles Raul Lopez Sanchez and La Union when armed suspects aboard two vehicles entered the yard and threatened six people working there. Two of the employees attempted to flee, but one was shot to death.

    The Coahuila state police agent arrived on the scene during the shooting and was shot and injured by one of the armed suspects. He later died on the way to receiving medical attention.

    The armed suspects managed to flee the area.
Posted by: badanov || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  When did Mexico get rid of their death penalty?
Looks like a pretty stupid now.
Posted by: Jiggs Crusoting5263 || 07/15/2010 2:15 Comments || Top||

#2  Competing with Chicago is going to be tough.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 07/15/2010 4:21 Comments || Top||

#3  Mexico has no death penalty largely because of the Mexican revolution and the fact that they lost about six times the people we did in our own civil war, which was a tremendous shit-fest in itself.

1920 wasn't that long ago, they might not be ready for the death penalty yet.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 07/15/2010 5:08 Comments || Top||

#4  Well, these people don't appear to be dropping over live. There is death penalty, but its the 'other' group competing for power to run the place exercising it.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 07/15/2010 8:23 Comments || Top||

#5  Maybe the French could help out...

Ok, forget I mentioned it.
Posted by: mojo || 07/15/2010 11:01 Comments || Top||


Europe
Turk extradited to Germany over terror links
BERLIN: A Turkish citizen suspected of links to a thwarted plot to murder US soldiers and civilians in Germany has been extradited to face trial, German federal prosecutors said Wednesday. The suspected citizen, identified only as 28-year-old Salih S, is accused of working for the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU) since November 2006, the chief federal prosecutor's office said in a statement. He is believed to have supplied equipment to a member of the so-called Sauerland cell, which in March was convicted of mounting what the court called the biggest terrorist plot in German post-war history. "This included three GPS devices, night-vision goggles and three compass watches as well as other equipment and a bank card belonging to him," the statement said. Salih S was arrested in Turkey in November 2008 but released in February 2009 on bail.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan


Home Front: Politix
Pentagon developing 'emergency plan' in absence of war funds
Posted by: newc || 07/15/2010 11:28 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  ...No real story here, and no offense intended to the poster. There are always contingency plans for dealing with White House/Capitol Hill stupidity and have been at least since I joined the USAF in 1978 - because the services know that no matter how brain-dead the politicians get, they still have to do their job. Ships will sail less to train, planes will fly less to train, fewer people will move from one base to another, but the guys in the field will still have beans and bullets.

A bit oversimplified, but you get the point.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 07/15/2010 12:40 Comments || Top||

#2  Mike, I was going to post about a story of how NASA was going to ask the Russians for plutonium since the US hasn't produced any in a bit and is running out. I was going to toss in that we not only can't fly rockets any more but use Russian and Indian rockets, but now have to rely on other countries for power supplies. Would that have been news worthy?
Posted by: miscellaenous || 07/15/2010 13:17 Comments || Top||

#3  I remember the 70s as well. Congress failed to pass the budget and substituted a continuing resolution for two months running, but always after payday. The command made provision to feed the dependents in the mess halls in Europe because there was no way to buy food without bouncing a check. Finally, in the third month Congress got around to making the rest of the year's funding one single continuing resolution. No need to guess which party ran Congress in that year.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 07/15/2010 13:20 Comments || Top||

#4  That wouldn't be another disaster administration that began with a, "C," would it?
Posted by: miscellaenous || 07/15/2010 13:22 Comments || Top||

#5  Would that have been news worthy?

It isn't War on Terror, nor affecting it, miscellaneous, so therefore I, personally, would not have published it. I hope that helps.

Mike, thank you very much for the background. That helps keep things in perspective.
Posted by: trailing wife || 07/15/2010 16:32 Comments || Top||

#6  Emergency Plan:

Send in the seventh cavalry with promotional sponsor motorcade passing out Red Bull and Monster energy drinks. Who needs money when you can run a military on taurine, ginseng, caffeine and a prayer? If the troops get dirty and cranky, just remind them that folks used to fight with no shoes here in the old U.S. of A.
Posted by: Cloud Banks || 07/15/2010 19:27 Comments || Top||

#7  ...just remind them that folks used to fight with no shoes here in the old U.S. of A.

Yes, fortunately, we had a leader with the stature of George Washington, otherwise it would not have ended very pretty.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 07/15/2010 20:20 Comments || Top||

#8  The reason I brougth it up is that we have lost our ability to have a presense in space, let alone explore. The US has to rely on the Russians and India for getting satellites in space and maintaining the station. Instead we set NASA to make Muslims feel good about themselves. We also are letting China take over manned space exploration and I can guarantee they won't be nice and use it for humanitarian goals except as PR.

Then I caught the story about about NASA not having enough plutonium to create a power source for the Mar's explorer. They have to go to Russia for it and it'd take 5 years if they started up production now. What does this mean about our nuclear arsenal that needs constant maintenance? Due to the current regime's policies, they've squarely kicked the US in the derriere when it comes to defense or self reliance.
Posted by: miscellaneous || 07/15/2010 20:28 Comments || Top||

#9  Why in phuck aren't we producing our own plutonium? What the phuck cheese? What a bunch of twatsickles running our gummint. Wastrel ding dongs.

Upp, my tourettes just subsided. Okay can someone pleae FIRE every last one of these tarded crap crab scratchers?
Posted by: Cloud Banks || 07/15/2010 22:01 Comments || Top||


Home Front: WoT
Judge Refuses to Dismiss Foopy's Case
At the heart of the debate about where and how to prosecute the men accused of being terrorists who have been held at Guantanamo Bay has been the fear among many that the suspects, tried in a civilian court, would benefit from rights and protections they did not deserve.

The detainees, the concern was, would argue that they had been tortured, and that their cases should be dismissed.

One of them, Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, who last year became the first Guantanamo detainee to actually be moved into the civilian court system, has argued that his nearly five years in detention before that had deprived him of a fundamental protection afforded all defendants in a federal court: the right to a speedy trial.

On Tuesday, a federal judge in Manhattan rejected Mr. Ghailani's claim, and cleared the way for federal prosecutors to try him for his suspected role in Al Qaeda's 1998 bombings of embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

The judge's ruling is destined to further shape the debate about whether to try Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and others accused of being 9/11 conspirators, in civilian court.

The debate stems from the government's policy since the Sept. 11 attacks to detain hundreds of terrorism suspects without trials, often for years.

But the judge, Lewis A. Kaplan of Federal District Court in Manhattan, ruled that Mr. Ghailani's extended incarceration had no adverse impact on his ability to defend himself.

"There is no persuasive evidence that the delay in this prosecution has impaired Ghailani's ability to defend himself in any respect or significantly prejudiced him in any other way pertinent to the speedy trial analysis," Judge Kaplan wrote.

And in a nod to the political debate about trying terrorists in civilian courts, the judge noted: "The court understands that there are those who object to alleged terrorists, especially noncitizens, being afforded rights that are enjoyed by U.S. citizens. Their anger at wanton terrorist attacks is understandable. Their conclusion, however, is unacceptable in a country that adheres to the rule of law."

Mr. Ghailani is facing trial on Sept. 27 on charges he conspired in the two American embassy bombings. The authorities have said that he later trained with Al Qaeda and worked as a bodyguard and a document forger for Osama bin Laden.

After Mr. Ghailani was captured six years ago, he was held in secret overseas jails run by the C.I.A., where he was interrogated in the belief he had important intelligence information about Al Qaeda, the judge noted. In 2006, he was transferred to Guantanamo, and last year, the Obama administration ordered him moved into the civilian system, and he was brought to New York.

"The government is entitled to attempt to hold Ghailani accountable in a court of law for his alleged complicity in the murder of 224 people and the injury of more than 1,000 others," Judge Kaplan wrote.

The ruling comes two months after the judge rejected Mr. Ghailani's argument that his case should be dismissed on grounds of "outrageous" government conduct. Mr. Ghailani contends he was subjected to cruel interrogation techniques while in C.I.A. custody.

"The combined effect of the two rulings is to say that there is a way forward through the federal courts," said Karen J. Greenberg, executive director of the Center on Law and Security at the New York University School of Law. "It's the green light," she said.

Of course, lawyers for other detainees, if they are brought into civilian court, would most likely try to distinguish the circumstances of their cases in order to argue, for example, that a detainee was prejudiced by a delay in a way Mr. Ghailani was not.

In his ruling, Judge Kaplan weighed the factors used to assess speedy trial claims, like the length of and reason for a delay, and the prejudice caused to a defendant. While the delay in bringing Mr. Ghailani to trial was long, he said, it "did not materially infringe upon any interest protected by the right to a speedy trial."

Mr. Ghailani's lawyers did not challenge the government's authority to detain him for intelligence gathering. But they said prosecuting him in civilian court so many years later on a 1998 indictment was "perhaps the most egregious violation in the history of speedy-trial jurisprudence."

Federal prosecutors disagreed, contending Mr. Ghailani was a "longstanding Al Qaeda terrorist" who was believed to have "actionable intelligence" about terrorist plots. "This was done, simply put, to save lives," wrote the office of Preet Bharara, the United States attorney in Manhattan.

Judge Kaplan noted that the specific interrogation techniques used on Mr. Ghailani in his two years of C.I.A. detention remain classified (he discusses them in a classified supplement to his decision). But those two years of delay, the judge said, "served compelling interests of national security."

"Suffice it to say," the judge added, citing the classified record, "the C.I.A. program was effective in obtaining useful intelligence from Ghailani throughout his time in C.I.A. custody."
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda

#1  Dare I hope that his questioning in secret CIA prisons was unusually painful?
Posted by: Peter || 07/15/2010 2:22 Comments || Top||

#2  Like nuts in a vise painful?
Yeah, me too.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 07/15/2010 4:33 Comments || Top||

#3  For future reference there should be a timetable established for such captives, based solely on the legal environment of "enemy detainee", transitioning to military court conviction and imprisonment.

Of course it would be a lot more complicated than that, but the end result would be a more effective defense against lawfare.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/15/2010 9:00 Comments || Top||

#4  I always find it enraging when lawyers do their best to delay proceedings at every step and then turn around and demand that their clients be released because they didn't get a speedy trial.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 07/15/2010 14:23 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Fighter jets kill 24 Taliban in Orakzai
Fighter jets on Wednesday pounded Taliban hideouts in Orakzai Agency, killing 24 Taliban and injuring another 34, officials said. Political administration officials said the jets pounded Taliban hideouts in Kasha, Srigaray, Khorhi, Mamoonzai and Shakartangi areas of the agency, killing 24 Taliban and injuring another 34. Security sources said five Taliban hideouts were destroyed in the attacks. The officials said security forces and fighter jets had sped up operations against the Taliban in Orakzai and were gaining ground against the Taliban.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: TTP

#1  'mostly civilians'?

Posted by: bigjim-CA || 07/15/2010 5:11 Comments || Top||


Iraq
"We cannot tell you officially but, unofficially, this person probably escaped,"
The man who kidnapped and killed British aid worker Margaret Hassan in Iraq is thought to have escaped, according to a lawyer for her family. Ali Lutfi Jassar al Rawi was jailed for life last year for his role in one of the most high-profile murders since the war in Iraq started in 2003.

Speaking outside an appeal hearing in Baghdad, lawyer Sarmad al Sarraf said the killer had failed to show up at court and his whereabouts were unknown.

"We cannot tell you officially but, unofficially, this person probably escaped," Mr Sarraf said the prison director had told the judge.

Jassar Al Rawi apparently disappeared during a transfer to a Baghdad jail from one in northern Iraq.

A member of the Hassan family's legal team said: "This is a tragedy. How can the state not know where its detainees are?"

Ms Hassan was snatched from her car in October 2004 by men in police uniform as she was being driven to work. The 59-year-old - who led a team in Iraq working to provide essential aid to hospitals and helping to restore vital power and water supplies - was shot a month later.

The killing sparked international revulsion and widespread sympathy within Iraq.

Her body has never been found and the family have been counting on Jassar al Rawi to reveal where it is so she can be given a proper burial.

Lawyers for Jassar al Rawi have claimed an alleged confession was extracted under torture.
This article starring:
Ali Lutfi Jassar al Rawi
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 07/15/2010 11:13 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq

#1  Escaped or Allowed to Escape?
Posted by: miscellaenous || 07/15/2010 13:10 Comments || Top||

#2  Allowed, hell - helped.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 07/15/2010 21:21 Comments || Top||


Iraqis Take Control of Last US Prison in Iraq
The United States has handed over control of its last military prison in Iraq to Iraqi officials.

U.S. military officials transferred control of Camp Cropper, near the international airport outside Baghdad, during a ceremony Thursday. The prison houses about 1,500 detainees. Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and several prominent members of his inner circle had also been kept at Camp Cropper.

A day ahead of transferring control of the prison, the U.S. handed over former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz along with 25 other high profile prisoners to Iraqi authorities. Officials say another 200 prisoners will remain in U.S. custody.

The transfer of the last U.S. military detention facility in Iraq comes as the United States prepares to reduce the number of troops it has in Iraq to about 50,000 by September.

Camp Cropper became a more prominent U.S. military prison following allegations of prisoner abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in 2004.

Earlier this week, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said lessons learned at Abu Ghraib were applied at Camp Cropper. General Ray Odierno said the U.S. had not anticipated a counter-insurgency which would require it to hold a large number of detainees for such an extended period.
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 07/15/2010 11:03 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "Playtime's over, boys."
Posted by: mojo || 07/15/2010 15:56 Comments || Top||


US contractor use in Iraq expected to rise.
Posted by: Besoeker || 07/15/2010 04:47 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  It's a bit of a giggle. The State Department is just beginning to realize how much they have been expecting the US Military to provide support, now they will have to pay (those nasty) Contractors to provide the support.

And they are still whining about the present use by our Military of Contractors.

Conflicted?
Posted by: tipover || 07/15/2010 13:15 Comments || Top||

#2  I'd say typical left-wing, but that might be a generalization. I'd stack it along the lines of whining about the military and trying to beat them down while enjoying the freedom it provides. Some thing along the lines of, "biting that which ... frees you." Or in this case allows you to be free. Contradiction I think is part of their contract, so long as it allows them to complain about things they need, yet hate and view as evil...but can't do with out.
Posted by: miscellaenous || 07/15/2010 13:21 Comments || Top||


Sniper kills soldier in Baghdad
BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: An unknown sniper killed on Wednesday a soldier in central Baghdad, according to a security source.

“A sniper shot and killed a soldier in al-Karada region, central Baghdad, on Wednesday afternoon (July 14),” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

“Fierce shootings started after the incident, while security forces cordoned off the whole region,” eyewitnesses said.
Posted by: Steve White || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:


Contractor killed, 3 security elements wounded in Mosul
NINEWA / Aswat al-Iraq: A contractor was killed and three security elements were wounded in a bomb blast in western Mosul, a police source said.

“An improvised explosive device went off on Wednesday (July 14) targeting a vehicle patrol of a security company in western Mosul,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency, noting that a contractor was killed and three security elements were wounded in the attack.
Posted by: Steve White || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


US hands over Tariq Aziz, other detainees: Iraq
The US has handed over 55 former members of Saddam Hussein's inner circle, including the longtime international face of the regime, Tariq Aziz, Iraq's deputy justice minister said Wednesday.

The announcement comes a day before US authorities are to transfer authority of Camp Cropper, the last American-run detention facility to the Iraqi government. Iraq's deputy justice minister Busho Ibrahim told that the handover has taken place over the last three days, starting on Monday.

"As of today, we have received 55 former regime officials, the main one is Tariq Aziz, and the others are the oil and culture ministers," he said, adding that they have also received Saddam's former secretary Abed Hmoud, as well as the former education and trade ministers in Saddam's regime.

The US military confirmed that some detainees had been handed over but did not provide identities. Hussein Rashid Mohammed, former deputy operations director of the Iraqi military, and Sultan Hashim al-Taie, the former defense minister, were not handed over, the Iraqi official said.

As of Thursday, Iraqi security officials will control Camp Cropper, and the US will hand over roughly 1,600 Iraqi prisoners currently in American custody. However, US military officials have said previously that about 200 prisoners will remain in American custody at the request of Iraqi officials.

The handover is part of US plans to draw down to 50,000 troops by the end of August in anticipation of all American forces leaving by the end of next year.

Aziz, the only Christian in Saddam's mainly Sunni regime, became internationally known as the dictator's defender and a fierce American critic as foreign minister after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, which led to the Gulf War, and later as a deputy prime minister who frequently traveled abroad on diplomatic missions.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Baath Party

#1  Aziz is probably only alive because the Americans arrested him before he had a stroke, so he got medical care. Always an also-ran, he is a Chaldean Catholic. Saddam's pet Christian.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 07/15/2010 8:56 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Gaza aid ship docks in Egypt
A Libyan aid ship originally bound for the Gaza Strip has been diverted to a port in Egypt after the Israeli navy warned the vessel against trying to break an Israeli blockade on the Palestinian coastal territory.

An Egyptian official said the Amalthea arrived in El Arish, on Egypt's Mediterranean coast, about 45km south of the border with Gaza, in mid-evening on Wednesday. "Medical supplies and passengers will enter Gaza through the Rafah border [crossing], while food will enter through the Awja border," Captain Gamal Abdel Maqsoud, who is in charge of the port, said. He said Egypt's Red Crescent would be responsible for taking the 2,000 tonnes of food and medicine over both borders and had lorries waiting in El Arish.

Yousseuf Sawani, executive director of the Gaddafi Foundation which chartered the vessel, confirmed earlier that it had decided to divert the ship away from Gaza for safety reasons. "It was unacceptable for us to enter into a confrontation and risk bloodshed," Sawani said. "The aims of Amalthea have been achieved without bloodshed and the result is gains for the Palestinians."

He said earlier on Wednesday that eight Israeli warships had surrounded the Libyan aid ship, preventing it from continuing its journey to Gaza.

Amr el-Kahky, Al Jazeera's correspondent in El Arish, said the Egyptian foreign ministry had officially accepted a request from the ship to dock in El Arish. "Offloading of the ship and loading [the supplies] onto trucks to travel to Gaza is due to take place tomorrow [Thursday]," he said. The Amalthea is carrying 12 crew members and at least nine passengers, including six Libyans and one each from Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria.

A separate attempt to deliver aid relief and medical supplies to Gaza is also currently under way. A convoy of 150 people, including "unionists, journalists and academics", is travelling overland in 25 vehicles from Jordan to the Egyptian Rafah crossing.

These challenges to the blockade come a day after Israel's military admitted mistakes in the May 31 attack on a flotilla of aid vessels trying to breach the blockade. Nine pro-Palestinian activists, eight Turks and a dual US-Turkish citizen, were killed after Israeli soldiers boarded the lead ship Mavi Marmara.

Following an international outcry over the raid, Israel recently eased restrictions on the Gaza Strip, allowing some previously banned items into the territory. But construction materials remain heavily restricted, Gazans have very limited freedom of movement, and Israel still enforces a naval blockade on the territory.
Posted by: Swanimote || 07/15/2010 10:10 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "It was unacceptable for us to enter into a confrontation and risk bloodshed," Sawani said. "The aims of Amalthea have been achieved without bloodshed and the result is gains for the Palestinians."

Turkey, are you listening?
Posted by: gorb || 07/15/2010 11:04 Comments || Top||

#2  news from Israeli mainstream pubs today is that Egypt helped behind the scenes in this particular case
Posted by: lord garth || 07/15/2010 15:11 Comments || Top||


Libyan Gaza-bound aid ship heads towards Egypt
A Libyan-chartered ship carrying aid for Palestinians set a new course for Egypt on Wednesday after Israel's navy warned it away from the blockaded Gaza Strip, an Israeli official said.

The Moldovan-flagged Amalthea was heading to Egypt's El Arish port, trailed by warships, the official said. In Tripoli, the charity behind the mission had no comment. But Al Jazeera satellite channel said the ship had not ruled out reaching Gaza.

A satellite-guided map on MarineTraffic.com showed the Amalthea on a southeasterly approach to El Arish, 33 miles (52 km) away, at speeds from 1.5 to 7.5 knots. Its course also brought it indirectly closer to Gaza, 20 miles (32 km) further east. The ship had earlier been absent from the map, suggesting that its GPS tracker was temporarily obstructed or turned off.

Israel had vowed to turn away or seize the Amalthea - renamed 'Hope' by activists - rather than let it access Gaza, whose Hamas rulers the Jewish state wants isolated.

Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniyeh urged the activists not to let their cargo ship be diverted from Gaza's shore and called in a speech for more pro-Palestinian "freedom flotillas". 'The sea and land convoys must continue', he said. 'We hope we can depend on Islamic nations to help us lift the blockade'.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Hamas

#1  PAKISTANI DEFENCE FORUM > TURKEY TO SET UP AN INDUSTRIAL ZONE IN WEST BANK [Industrial trade relations wid PA in Gaza-WB], + regardless of whether ISRAEL gives its consent or not.

YUH-OH...
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 07/15/2010 3:24 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
Asylum-seeker linked to al-Qa'ida
INDONESIAN authorities believe they have captured a senior Afghan al-Qa'ida-linked figure posing as an asylum-seeker trying to reach Australia. The man, Mohammad Isa, was seized in North Sumatra in April with 10 other illegal immigrants from Afghanistan, and has since been held in the Australian-built Tanjung Pinang immigration detention centre, on Bintan island, near Singapore. He is said to be a medical doctor who speaks eight languages.
It's not nice to snicker, so I shan't. Sincere congratulations to Indonesia for this legitimate coup.
The revelation follows information from the head of Indonesia's international crimes unit, Saud Usman Nasution, that Australian Federal Police were helping the Indonesians to compile a database to cross-check asylum-seeker and terrorist connections.
Building databases is good. Mining the data once it's been assembled is even better. Good move, AFP!
General Nasution said the arrest marked the first time an asylum-seeker had been linked to potential terrorism. He had previously indicated a suspected asylum-seeker was linked to al-Qa'ida, but this is the first time the man's identity has been confirmed.

The provincial head of immigration in North Sumatra, Sahala Pasaribu, told The Australian he had processed the man after his arrest in April. "We learned from Detachment 88 (Indonesia's specialist anti-terror police squad) that at least one mobile phone held by this group of 11 Afghans had been used to contact senior al-Qa'ida figures," he said.
Oooooh, a cell phone! We like those. They lead to other cell phones, you see. which lead to...
Mr Pasaribu's counterpart at the Tanjung Pinang detention centre, Sugiyo, said: "The person you're referring to is still here . . . but we don't have the authority to interrogate him in any context other than that for which he has been detained, which is as an illegal immigrant."

The Tanjung Pinang centre is where the 78 Tamils from the Oceanic Viking were processed last year, before being transferred for resettlement to third countries, including Australia.

Mr Pasaribu said Detachment 88 agents had visited his office, in the port city of Tanjung Balai in North Sumatra, to investigate the al-Qa'ida connection. Tanjung Balai is at the heart of the people-smuggling business in Indonesia as home to undocumented foreign workers as well as asylum-seekers trying to reach Australia using local agents. Indonesian practice is to detain anyone unable to prove they have legitimate documentation, but once asylum-seekers have registered with the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees they are often allowed to live in the community, with assistance from the International Organisation for Migration.
Posted by: Fred || 07/15/2010 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda

#1  Illegal immigrants is a big concern in Australia more and more boats arrive every week and the problem is not being solved very well in the Political arena.

I have always suspected that terrorists are amongst these asylum seekers.

The asylum seekers pass a lot of countries that would be a safe haven for them and instead choose to risk their lives and go all the way to Australia.
Posted by: Oztralian || 07/15/2010 19:37 Comments || Top||

#2  Turning boatloads of asylum seekers around isn't easy, says Opposition
Posted by: Oztralian || 07/15/2010 19:43 Comments || Top||

#3  Subcontract to Kim Jong Il.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble || 07/15/2010 20:06 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
At least 20 killed in bombings in Iran
Twin bombings killed at least 20 people outside a mosque in southeastern Iran on Thursday — including members of the powerful Revolutionary Guard — in attacks that came less than a month after Iran hanged the leader of a militant insurgent group in the region.

Iran's official IRNA news agency quoted the deputy governor of the Sistan-Baluchistan province, Jalal Sayyah, as saying the explosions struck in a crowd of Shiite worshippers near the main mosque in the provincial capital of Zahedan.

The deputy interior minister in charge of security, Ali Abdollahi, told the semiofficial Fars news agency that members of the Revolutionary Guard — the country's most powerful military force — were killed in the blasts, which appeared to be the work of suicide bombers.

At least 20 people were killed in the blasts, the head of the province's medical emergency department, Fariborz Rashedi, told IRNA.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombings, but the Sistan-Baluchistan province is home to the Jundallah insurgency, a Sunni group that has claimed responsibility for attacks that have killed scores in recent years, including five senior Revolutionary Guard commanders last year.

Jundallah says it is fighting for the rights of the Sunni Baluch minority in Shiite-dominated Iran.

In June, Iran hanged the group's leader, Abdulhamid Rigi, in Zahedan after he was found guilty of carrying out attacks against civilians, armed robbery, and engaging in a disinformation campaign against Iran.

His younger brother, Abdulhamid, was executed in May in Iran after being captured in Pakistan in 2008 and extradited to Iran.

The group gained attention six years ago after it launched a campaign of sporadic kidnappings and bombings that killed dozens. The group claims minority Sunni tribes in southeastern Iran suffer discrimination at the hands of Iran's Shiite leadership.
Posted by: tipper || 07/15/2010 16:18 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Per haaretz.com:

01:57 Sunni rebel group Jundollah claims responsibility for suicide bombings in Iran (Reuters)

Posted by: Uncle Phester || 07/15/2010 19:45 Comments || Top||

#2  see: reap/sow
Posted by: Frank G || 07/15/2010 19:58 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
52[untagged]
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1Global Jihad
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1al-Qaeda in Iraq
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1Iraqi Baath Party
1Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
1TTP

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Two weeks of WOT
Thu 2010-07-15
  Libyan Gaza-bound aid ship heads towards Egypt
Wed 2010-07-14
  Al-Qaida militants raid Yemen intelligence HQ
Tue 2010-07-13
  ICC charges Sudan president with genocide
Mon 2010-07-12
  'Somalia link' as lethal Uganda blasts target World Cup
Sun 2010-07-11
  Hizbies deny selling out Taliban
Sat 2010-07-10
  65 killed in twin suicide attacks in Mohmand Agency
Fri 2010-07-09
  Fifteen killed in Baghdad on last day of Shia holiday
Thu 2010-07-08
  Afghanistan: Mullah Omar's arrest 'unlikely'
Wed 2010-07-07
  Pakistan Arrests Taliban Chief Mullah Omar: Reports
Tue 2010-07-06
  The United States of America vs. The State of Arizona; and Janice K. Brewer
Mon 2010-07-05
  Bangla Jamaat rampage
Sun 2010-07-04
  Ayatollah Fudlullah dies at 75
Sat 2010-07-03
  Obama signs toughest-ever US sanctions on Iran
Fri 2010-07-02
  37 people killed in bomb blasts at Pakistan shrine
Thu 2010-07-01
  Protests rock Bangla capital

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