#1
It might take several more years, or even decades, to stem the violence, the Marines noted. And few expect the American public and international allies to be that patient.
Long-term prospects for peace also are diminished by passivity and corruption among the Afghans that U.S. troops are trying to help, creating deep frustrations. Ultimately, many service members concluded, the military campaign alone cannot defeat the Taliban insurgency, so the war is not theirs to win.
My educated guess is it would take 30-50 years of military occupation & re-education of the Afghans, PLUS losing a squad a month of US servicemen PLUS X-billion dollars.
Military activity of that duration WOULD defeat the Taliban. Keep killing enough of the die-hards, make sure they die hard, and eventually there would be peace there. There is a similarity between the Indian Wars on the Great Plains and the war in Afghanistan. However, the Indian Wars took place on US territory & were regarded as essential by the electorate of the time.
I really don't think the electorate would stand for an Afghan war of similar duration with the requirements mentioned, especially now that the US economy is moving in reverse.
#2
Capt. Emily Naslund: Its frustrating, getting them to see what is good for them that if they can get rid of the Taliban they can live a better life. You say You need to read and they say "Duhhhh, Allahu Akhbar!"
#3
The mission isn't to turn Afghanistan into Japan. The mission is to prevent Afghanistan from being used as a base for terrorist operations in the future.
Come to think of it, it is also to prevent Pakistan from continuing to be a base for terrorist operations....
Posted by: Mike Ramsey ||
10/17/2010 6:04 Comments ||
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#5
The mission is to prevent Afghanistan from being used as a base for terrorist operations in the future.
Yes, and just how is that going to be accomplished without turning Afghanistan into something resembling a modern nation? Be specific. Cite comparisons.
#6
I really don't think the electorate would stand for an Afghan war of similar duration with the requirements mentioned
We would if it were worth it. But Afghanistan isn't worth it. And the day after we left, they'd still have the same neighbors who would undo it in less than 5 years. The only way to fix Afghanistan is to fix South Asia the same way we fixed Europe. And even EUrope didn't stay fixed.
#7
I think the first thing we should do about our Af/Pak policy is to have one.
Reagan: "Here's my strategy for the Cold War: We win. They lose." (Worked.)
BO: "I'm always worried about using the word 'victory,' because, you know, it invokes this notion of Emperor Hirohito coming down and signing a surrender to MacArthur" (Not so much.)
And then we have the recent Woodward book which pretty directly says that our Af/Pak strategy isn't about Af/Pak: it's about Washington in 2012. We're going to fight long enough to show that BO is a tough guy but then quit so he doesn't look like a war monger.
Or to put it differently: what would BO say if a 19 year-old Marine managed to get through to him on a sat phone and said: "I'm carrying 80 pounds of gear and the Lieutenant just told me to start walking up a path that probably has an IED every 10 yards. Before I take the chance of getting my legs blown off, sir, I want you to tell me why I'm doing this."
Posted by: Matt ||
10/17/2010 9:50 Comments ||
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#8
This war is not about winning and losing. It never has been, at least to the Muslims. To think we can convert the mullah's in Afghan to civilized westerners is not only foolish but stupid, it will never happen. For us to say we can win it we must agree it is not a war with Islam. For if it is a war with Islam it's been going on for a thousand years and will not end in our lifetime. This is a war of containment, just like the crusades. We must see it for what it is, attack the real enemy and not every sand mullah that wants to be a hero. We need to attack the finances, logistical supporters, and leadership-again not some sand mullah but the king of saude, OBL's dad, Iran, etc. We seem to look at Afghanistan like we do football with a start, 911, and an end, ??. We have to get past this. We have to get to total war against the supporters of the jihad and drive Islam back to the middle east and not be afraid to bomb or kill the people and nations that support it.
There ya go AH, specific enough?
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
10/17/2010 10:38 Comments ||
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#9
Afghanistan resides below the soft underbelly of Russia, to the east of Iran, bordering Pakistan, bordered also by China and it is a very important place for India. It is very tactical location. From where, you have the ability to effect regional actors.
It was never meant to be a nation building exercise. This was supposed to put a chain on the region where intelligence was less than 20%.
Had we remand present there after the Soviets pulled out, we would not have this large role now. The taliban was of Pakistan creation and encouraged by the US to defeat the Soviets.
Needless to say, it's all a charlie foxtrot and will not be solved unless Pakistan is on board.
Yet, I am of the belief that the answer is coming and this will soon no longer be a national nightmare.
#10
The problem with ramping up the military effort in Afghanistan is that, unless some ME dynamic changes drastically, it is logistically unsustainable. All the hopes and wishes will not create a deepsea port for Afghanistan. And what we have right now is, from an operational planners perspective, a frickin nightmare waiting to happen.
What if Pakland goes unstable (I mean truly cracks up)? How do we get beans, bullets and fuel to the fight? C-17s? Look at how much it costs (per gallon) to deliver a gallon of JP4, diesel, or gas to the warfighter.
I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but I see a lot more negatives than positives.
#11
This article misses the point entirely. "Winning" and victory (victory of Islamic terrorists) is NOT this administration's goals, never have been, and never will be. The administration "goal" is to begin to extricate itself from Afghanistan as quickly as possible next year. This will be accomplished through cease fires, a truce, negociation, Taliban pay-offs, UN, whatever it takes. Obama has failed and continues to fail in every other aspect of his presidency. This is, quite frankly, all he has left.
#12
I'm as conservative as is possible, West Point '78, ten years as an active duty Infantry Officer, and my thoughts are: 2010 - all of the Afghans that exist are not worth the life of one more US Private.
I'm sorry - but there is no justification to continue throwing blood and treasure into this morass. If you constructed the most optimistic possible scenario - and I mean this literally, no bullshit - it would not be worth the life of one US private.
Declare victory, and get out. Period.
How fast could the US military get out? As a former Division G-3 Plans Officer - the answer is: about the weeks - if anyone cares. And - trust me (really) - if the players are given incentive to expedite, the entire deployed force could be deployed back in three weeks.
I despise Obama. I love America. I love, and am immensely proud of, the US Army. To my bone marrow, I would step outside my normal life profile 100%, to support Obama, if he had the balls to simply stand up, and order an immediate withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Every single US casualty from now on, dies in vain. I hate that this is true. Really. Every day and night. I watch the funeral processions on Youtube - and the videos of routine firefights - from my home in Bangkok - and I cry. I mean really cry - so deep, and so sincerely - and I curse the "popular culture" that has made it possible for US fighting men to sacrifice themselves for nameless mountain ridges, in nameless sectors, of nameless areas, of nameless ares, of remote provinces.
For fucks sake - expend blood and treasure where there is something worth protecting/defending. That defines about 1,000 square meters (US Embassy Compound) of Afghanistan.
I wish it sere otherwise. But - I play the cards as they are dealt.
#13
As former Army I second lone rangers views and feel such melancholy about this it sickens me. I can't watch much news on casualties anymore to avoid setting myself into a PTSD rage. I was having heart palpitations it gets me so wound up and I am young. When I see the protracted slow mo train wreck it, a soldier dies and it is like watching a human sacrifice procession for a bloodthirsty king. Obama is evil incarnate. We need to pack up, come home and unpack.
With one very loud proviso (which the present Administration won't give, but maybe the next one will): You screw with us again, or allow anyone within your borders to screw with us again, we're coming back - from 30,000 feet. And anyone who survives won't like the results.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/17/2010 12:54 Comments ||
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#15
I could not agree with the last two comments more. Afghanistan is backward and tribal because it is surrounded and interspersed with mountain ranges. We are not going to be able to change that geographical fact. We are not going to gain anything by staying there. We need to get out and get out now. The smartest thing the Republicans in Congress could do after Nov 2nd is to push this obvious strategy. If shit happens from there again, we have bombers that can flatten just about anything. Use them as needed.
#16
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the original goal of our intervention in Afghanistan was to get OBL, destroy the ability of al-Qaeda to use Afghanistan as a base for operations, and punish the Taliban for allowing OBL to use Afghanistan.
To borrow a phrase, mission accomplished on everything except OBL's severed head.
Somewhere along the way we got the idea that in order to prevent al-Qaeda from using Afghanistan again as a base of operations, we'd have to engage in 'nation-building'. I think that's where we went wrong.
I greatly appreciate what our military has done in Afghanistan. I appreciate the NATO allies who have actually fought.
But I'm beginning to think that there is no nation to build in Afghanistan.
There might be three or four nations, but they all overlap. There might be some people in that land who see and want a unitary nation, but they're in the minority.
It might be done in time, but that time might best be measured on a geological scale.
If the fundamental goal is to ensure that Afghanistan never again is used as a base of operations by international terrorist groups for attacks against our country, we can guarantee that with a much smaller military footprint, and at a much lower cost in treasure and blood, then what we have now. But we're not going to turn Afghanistan into a nation any time soon.
What I would do (since one shouldn't criticize without putting forward a solution) --
1) work a deal with Karzai -- we get Bagram and some logistical support to the north, he keeps his head
2) work a deal with Dostum and the other northern tribes to keep a rough peace
3) leave some Green Beret types with the northern tribes to help train and equip their militias so that they can successfully hold off the Pashtuns
4) use the CIA to work with more favorable Pashtun elements so as to hold down the influence of the ISI and the Taliban. That's a tough order and won't be completely successful, but we have to try
5) leave a smallish infantry and support unit at Bagram; enough to hold the place and allow Bagram to host an A10 unit and plenty of UAVs
6) make it really, really clear to the Pashtun leaders -- we don't care what you do amongst yourselves in Pashtunistan, but the moment you allow al Qaeda or anyone else to camp in your zone so that they can train to kill Americans, we send in the A10s, UAVs, etc. Ditto if they go against the northern tribes. We drone-zap and blow up stuff until you get the message.
That's what I would do. I'd measure success as a) no more attacks on the US b) no more American casualties c) Afghanistan off the front pages.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 13:07 Comments ||
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#17
Wrap it in a pretty bow and give it to China for Lebensraum.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
10/17/2010 13:47 Comments ||
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#18
First, decide if you want to win. If so full warfare. No sissified ROEs. War is hell - take off the gloves and kill the enemy. We owe our troops that much or bring them home.
#19
Sun Tzu said that the best way is to win without fighting. The best way to do that is to divide and keep them at each other throats. Reward those who co-operate punish those who don't.
One thing Sun Tzu didn't have was UAV's, the modern day equivalent to the assassins. Keep them employed day and night.
Something serious needs to be worked out about the usual cackle liberal lawyers, sociology professors and Christian ministers who won't be able to sleep at night worrying about the miscreants "Yuman Rites". A series of puzzling "tragic accidents" might help their insomnia problem.
#20
Define "win". What do we want to accomplish? Nation-building - OK, if it happens that would be nice, but beside the point. The way I see it - the Taliban when they ran A-stan, provided aid and support to AQ in their attack on the US. So the reason we are still in A-stan is to kill Taliban. As long as there are Taliban, lets keep killing them.
Posted by: George Glinelet7273 ||
10/17/2010 16:11 Comments ||
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#21
But *they* keep killing us too which is the genesis of the anger and frustration if you've read the other commenters. We could kill them all in a matter of weeks and be home for dinner if we had a sounder strategy and backing from zero or as one put it didn't have "sissified ROEs". COME ON, were like sitting ducks. We don't have to do a a slow bloodletting to kill taliban and though some speed has been picking up, can you say slow and painful as paralyzed molasses. For goodness sake, put the situation out of its misery, or maybe some enjoy tormenting our soldiers with B.S. If so, get some help.
Nation building? That is a joke, bomb them back to the stone age. Heck, then leave behind complimentary soap, deodorant and toilet paper on the way out. Won't fill the gaping morass we keep dumping resources and lives into.
#23
For those who still think Afghanistan is winnable if we just kill enough of them, I'll point out that the Soviets tried that strategy and look where it got them - arguably no more Soviet Union.
What worries me the most is that the West has no strategic interest in Afghanistan, but it will be the place where the will to defend the places where we do have strategic interests was lost.
#24
"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
I thought Ike started this quote but it was Mark Twain. I am certainly not interested in Afghanistan.
I would rather work with those who want to improve themselves and isolate those who wish ill will to others. Otherwise a an eternal conflict.
#25
the problem? Our "ally" Pakistain is supporting, rehabbing, and directing Rube f*ckers against us. I'd suggest some targetted "friendship cleansing" among our "ally" if we want to "win". Cyber-cleansing of ISI tool's retirement funds would help as well. An attitude change (by attrition? OK by me!) among the Paki thieves and backstabbers is the answer
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/17/2010 18:27 Comments ||
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#26
I also want to cash in my "scare quote" deficit against Paul's exclamation point surplus. We're all together, right?
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/17/2010 18:29 Comments ||
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#27
I didn't see Lone Ranger #12. I agree and thank you for your service to our country.
#28
With one very loud proviso (which the present Administration won't give, but maybe the next one will): You screw with us again, or allow anyone within your borders to screw with us again,
Except they will screw with us again. They already are screwing with us again. There's supposed to be another Faisel the Fizzlebomber on U.S. soil working to assemble another Times Square VBIED, there are supposed to be teams in Europe working to start another Mumbai-style city-wide attack, Al Qaeda in Yemen's Inspire magazine has told eager young jihadis in Dar Al Harb to borrow Daddy's SUV and mow down people in the mall/university parking lot.
This is the kind of war where "declare victory and go home" means we surrendered; they will concentrate on attacking us at home instead of looking up to see if they're about to kiss a UAV missile.
That is what this president will cause, if he gets his way.
#29
Not necessarily, and insofar as a justification to keep sinking blood and treasure into A-stan hole, not enough justification as far as I can tell.
they will concentrate on attacking us at home instead of looking up to see if they're about to kiss a UAV missile.
They've been concentrating. Our presence in Afghan region is not a deterrant to attacks on our homeland. How many homegrown and known foreign attacks here in the US have been foiled within the last decade. And thats not including the unpublicised ones. No, we don't need to stay in Afghanistan to avoid attack, they will attack us either way.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
10/17/2010 19:25 Comments ||
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#31
Looking over the comments it seems to me that a core problem is this: we have two basic weapons: action and the threat of action. But the threat of action is only a weapon if it's credible. A threat by W was a real weapon because no one doubted that the crazy bastard would break some serious furniture, Exhibit A being Saddam's short-drop-sudden-stop adventure.
But a threat by BO, assuming he could even muster the nerve to express a threat clearly, would be a weapon only in the sense of possibly causing some of our enemies to die of laughter. This guy is going to get us all killed.
Posted by: Matt ||
10/17/2010 20:23 Comments ||
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#32
USDOD
versies
* NEWS KERALA/TOPIX > TOP AUSTRALIAN COMMANDER: TALIBAN CAN'T BE DEFEATED MILITARILY [calls for fundamental change in NATO-Pak strategy].
* DAILY TIMES.PK > TALIBAN [still] A THREAT IN FR PESHAWAR DESPITE OPERATION [Pak Army MilOps = PLURAL]. Locals claim the Talibs always come back once the Govt. forces depart.
* PAKISTANI DEFENCE FORUM > 3.0MILYUHN WEAPONS HAVE DISAPPEARED FROM OFFICIAL [Govt] WAREHOUSES IN PUNJAB.
POSTERS = May find some of them but not all of them, LOSS MAY INDIC THAT ELEMENT(S) WIDIN PUNJAB GOVT. ARE A MAJOR COVERT SOURCE FOR THE TALIBS AS PER PROCUREMENT + RESUPPLY OF MILTERR WEAPS???
#33
Agree with most comments...especially LR's. As a bit of background I have almost 28 commissioned years, active and reserve, have unit members in theater as I write. More personally I have a USMC son on his M2nd E tour in theater right now.
If you are going to fight, you fight to win. What needs to happen there is almost certainly beyond the political and national will. I will change LR's comment slightly: If a country does not have the collective will to win a war it is not worth one drop of its sons' and daughters' blood.
#35
Not going to happen. Look at who is in charge. It is time to $%%t or get off the pot. We've come to a hole stan to shit and only farted around, no disrespect to those who've served, I have, if my profane prediclections didn't give it away. But as anymouse says, we're too soft. We may have the will, but the politicians and the liberals don't and affordability is a whole different problem.
#36
Private...If you read the accounts of the Pacific campaigns, and even Korea and we did not play for a tie. We went all in. If America's finest are in harm's way, we owe them no less.
JEDDAH -- A Saudi terror suspect, Jabir bin Jibran bin Ali Al Faifi, who is listed as number 20 on the February 2009 Ministry of Interior list of persons wanted in connection with security issues, has made moves to surrender to the Kingdom's authorities, according to the Ministry of Interior.
He also needs to shorten his name ...
In a statement released on Friday, the ministry said that Al Faifi had gone through the Al Munasaha terrorist rehabilitation programme after returning from Guantanamo Bay before joining up again with extremists in Yemen.
For that alone a competent CIA would have had him whacked ...
The ministry said that the Mohammed bin Nayef Al Munasaha Centre received telephone contact from Al Faifi, in which he 'revealed the conditions that sons of the nation who had been seduced by false calls were living in'.
Al Faifi reportedly 'expressed regret at what he had done' and his 'resolute wish to return to the country and hand himself in to security authorities'.
According to the statement, the Kingdom's security officials have been working with counterparts in Yemen to arrange the return of Al Faifi, who will be permitted to meet with his family as soon as he arrives in the Kingdom.
Just be sure to keep him in isolation for a few days first. The last man to do this ended up in a two-ended pink mist smeared on the floor and ceiling while waiting for his prince to come and take his surrender. Our own pantibomber was apparently using the second generation version.
The Ministry of Interior spokesman said in Friday's statement that the 'tables have turned' on followers of 'deviant ideology' abroad. The ministry reiterated its appeal to all wanted persons to hand themselves in to the authorities, a move that would, it said, be taken into consideration when their cases are reviewed.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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ADEN, Yemen The bodies of three soldiers including an officer killed in a Qaeda-style ambush in south Yemen were recovered on Friday, raising the death toll in the attack to five, a security official said.
We recovered the bodies of three soldiers on Friday morning and identified the officer after we found his rank (on his ID card) in the pocket of his shirt, the official said.
A medical source from a state hospital in the southern port city of Aden confirmed the bodies of three dead soldiers were brought into the morgue at midday on Friday including that of an officer with the rank of major.
This raises to five the death toll from the ambush of a military convoy in Abyan province on Thursday.
Explosives, machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades were used in the ambush the official said, blaming Al-Qaeda for the attack.
Al-Qaeda has returned to Loder, he said, refering to the town where clashes killed 33 people in August, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Three other people including a top policeman, an official from Yemens ruling party, and a soldier were also killed in two other incidents in Abyan on Thursday.
Mudias police chief Abdullah al-Baham was shot dead during clashes between armed demonstrators and security forces trying to disperse them, said a security official who blamed a coalition of autonomist and pro-independence groups dubbed the Southern Movement.
The movement denied its supporters were involved and blamed Al-Qaeda.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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Sixteen individuals were murdered in drug and gang related violence in the Mexican state of Chihuahua including three Juarez police officers killed in three separate crimes Friday and Saturday. For a map, click here
Six members of a family were shot to death late Friday night in Juarez, according to Mexican news reports. The shooting took place at a residence near the corner of calle Porfirio Diaz and Saltillo in the Melchor district, where an armed group burst into a house party and began firing. Four died at the scene while two others died receiving medical attention.
A man was shot to death at a mall in Juarez Friday, according to Mexican news accounts. Arnulfo Ortega was shot near the intersection of Avenida de los Aztecas and Bulevar Zaragoza in the Moderna district.
An unidentified an was shot to death near a S-Mart store in Juarez late Friday night, say Mexican press sources. The victim was driving his Dodge Caravan on Anillo Envolvente in the PRONAF district when he was shot, and then crashed his vehicle. Reports say 9mm and .40 caliber weapons were used in the attack.
A Juarez municipal police sergeant was shot to death in Juarez, according to Mexican news accounts. Sargento Humberto Avila Ortiz was taken from his Acura sedan on his drive home following his shift near the intersection of Avenida Santiago Troncos and Calle Puerto Obaldia and shot by armed suspects.
Four unidentified individuals were murdered in three separate crimes in Juarez Saturday, according to the Mexican daily La Polaka. A man was found shot to death and lying in the street near the intersection of calles Nueva Zelandia and Bulgaria in the Infonavit Aeropuerto district. In a second crime a man was shot more than 100 times with an AK-47 at a residence on the corner of Atlas and 40 Ejidatarios in the Rincones de Salvarcar district. Finally, two women were found dead, hands bound and heads gagged with a plastic bag.
An unidentified man was found shot to death on a remote highway south of Chihuahua, Chihuahua Saturday, say Mexican new reports. The victim was near baseballs fields on the Chihuahua-Carrizalillo highway shot numerous times.
Two Juarez municipal police officers were shot to death in two separate crimes in Juarez Saturday, according to the Mexican daily La Polaka. Rodolfo Jaramillo, 38, was shot near the corner of Calle Sorgo and Avenida de Las Torres. The victim was assigned to the Estacion BabÃcora. A second unidentified police officer was shot at his residence on the corner of Praxedis G. Duran and Francisco Villa in the Constituyentes district in front of two children.
On Friday, a 28-year-old German man was sentenced to more than three years for supporting two terrorist organizations and a foiled terrorist plot.
The ethnic Turk was identified simply as Salih S. during the three-day trial and was found guilty of being a member of the terrorist Islamic Jihad Union (IJU), an offshoot of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. He was accused of aiding in logistics, procuring weapons, and planning attacks against the Pakistani army in Waziristan.
Salih S. was also convicted of being involved with the so-called Sauerland Group, which attempted to attack several U.S. army bases in Germany in 2007. Other members of the group were sentenced earlier this year.
The Turkish-born German said, after the verdict was announced, that he wanted to put everything behind him and vowed to never disappoint his family again.
#2
from a French news service
--
"PARIS - A technical fault has forced France's flagship and only aircraft carrier to return to port less than a day after it set off to fight piracy and terrorism in the Indian Ocean, the navy said Oct. 14.
A spokesman said a problem was found in the insulation of an electrical cabinet in the propulsion system of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle.
Naval spokesman Capt. Hugues d'Argentre said the nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle would be back in its home port of Toulon later in the day and it would take a few days to carry out the necessary repairs.
Posted by: lord garth ||
10/17/2010 1:57 Comments ||
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#3
Oh. Exciting. I thought the propeller fell off again or something noteworthy.
#8
A problem with insulation in an electrical cabinet?
For that, they returned to port?
Wouldn't the US Navy pull out some insulation from stores and fix the problem while underway?
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 11:26 Comments ||
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#9
The De Gaulle is a product of union workmanship and is, what we in the Navy called, a "pier queen". Almost never goes to sea because of problems with the propulsion.
#11
A'stan is probably a good place to base the De Gaulle (can't sink there) - but how do we get it there?
Well, along, long time ago in a country not so far away, the skies opened up and it rained. a lot. and the waters rose. Noah and his henchmen built a big boat and corralled a lot of animals in conditions that drove the evil PETA-types bonkers. when the water receded, the Ark was high centered on a big hill and all the four wheelers never did get it un stuck.
Maybe we could wait for that dreaded gerbil warming to melt the ice caps and use that flood to get the Charlie into A-stan....
#14
"the carrier will recover lost time at sea and its itinerary is not likely to change."
So they turned around for a quick repair since they were so close to port. Sounds reasonable to me since it will not change its arrival time on station.
#15
Uh, uh, AND THE INFAMOUS 1990's FRENCH
"PROPELLER-GATE" GOES ON???
Gut nuthin.
* ION NOT-ELY-N-CRUISER-USS-PITTSBURGH, PAKISTANI DEFENCE FORUM > CHINESE AIRCRAFT CARRIER SUDDENLY CHANGES ITS SPECIFICATIONS.
ARTIC = 65,000-tonne CONVENTIONAL = OIL FIRED PLAN Carrier under construx in Shanghai may be upgraded to a 90,000-tonne NUCLEAR CARRIER, in order to accom the PLAN's new J-15 + J-10C strike aircraft; New PLAN CVN? prob won't be launched until AFTER RUSSIA'S OWN NEW NUKE CARRIER???
Lest we fergit, as far as RISING CHINA is concerned, the ability of the CPLA to overcome the NATURAL + GEOPOL BARRIERS OF THE "FIRST ISLAND CHAIN" IS A MATTER OF CHIN ETHNIC + NATIONAL + COMMIE PRIDE, + may be directly or realistically interpreted as symbolic of CHINA'S SUCCESS, OR ABJECT FAILURE AS A GLOBAL SUPERPOWER, ee POST-US SOLE SUCCESSOR.
Again, Chin sees itself as the World's FUTURE SOLE NUMERO UNO = GLOBAL EL SUPREMO, NOT AS #2, #3, ...@ETC NOR IN JOINT.
CHIN ASIA versus [nuclear]ISLAMIST ASIA.
* Also, SAME/TOPIX > AMERICA'S MILITARY GOING GREEN [USDOD desire to reduce pan-Service Fossil Fuel dependency by Year 2020].
LAHORE: 18 Pakistanis,who were earlier released from different jails in Yemen, arrived in Karachi a private TV channel reported on Saturday. According to the details, the Yemeni authorities had arrested 20 Pakistani fishermen over violation of territorial waters.
That's a long ways to go fishing ...
They were detained at the airport by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA). Four of the released Pakistanis hail from Karachi and the remaining are from Peshawar.
Peshawar has a long tradition of fishermen ...
Advocate Nisar Mujahid told that two fishermen are still in prison in Yemen.
While, more than 110 Pakistanis are still languishing in prisons in Yemen, the channel reported.
Fishermen or elk hunters?
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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MINGORA: Two Taliban were killed and another was arrested after a clash with security forces in Matta tehsil of Swat, security sources said on Saturday.
According to military sources, troops surrounded the Asharay village in Matta on a tip off that three suspected Taliban had been trying to enter the area. The men opened fire at the security personnel when they tried to stop their car. However, the security personnel retaliated, as a result of which two Taliban, Rahim Shah and Qamar Ali, were killed and the third terrorist was arrested.
Sources said that the terrorists belonged to Tehreek-e-Taliban Swat. The sources added that a cache of arms had also been recovered from the alleged terrorists.
Also, security forces arrested two Taliban commanders and shifted them to an undisclosed location.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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PESHAWAR: Suspected Taliban blew up another government school in Peshawar on Friday night, police said.
Because kids don't need an education in Pakistain ...
The pre-dawn school attack took place in Badhaber in the outskirt of the city where Taliban detonated an explosive device, destroying two classrooms and furniture.
O brave, brave Lions of Islam, to wage jihad on child-sized furniture!
No loss of life was reported in the attack.
Badhaber Police officer Mukamil Shah told Daily Times that Taliban blew up the school on Friday night. He said a bomb disposal squad defused another six-kilogramme bomb, which had failed to explode. Taliban have destroyed five government schools, including two girls' schools in Badhaber area of the city in the past two months.
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10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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KARACHI: Despite Sindh Home Minister Dr Zulfiqar Ali Mirzas orders to law enforcement agencies to ensure foolproof security, the city echoed with sounds of firing on Saturday as 16 people were gunned down and around two dozen wounded.
Following Awami National Party Sindh President Shahi Syeds announcement to boycott by-polls in Orangi Town today, incidents of violence escalated and exposed the failure of the security agencies in maintaining peace.
Two men were gunned down and another two wounded in Bukhari Colony, the Orangi Town police said. Unidentified men on motorcycles opened fire on a passenger minibus near Bakra Piri. The deceased were said to be Urdu-speaking.
A shop was also attacked by unidentified motorcyclists in Timber Market, the Baldia Town police said. The shop was packed with customers when two unidentified men opened fire on it. Shop owner Waqas Razzak alias Vicky, belonging to the Ghanchi community, was killed and three customers wounded in the incident.
Restaurant owner: A man was killed when a restaurant was attacked near Maskan Chowrangi, the Gulshan-e-Iqbal police said. Unidentified motorcyclists opened fire on Al Sufiyan Zaeqa Hotel, killing restaurant owner Allahdad Hayatullah on the spot, who hailed from Quetta. A man, identified as Azeem Baig, was gunned down in Ghazi Goth. There was a dispute between the Manghopir and Orangi Town police over the jurisdiction.
A man, identified as 24-year-old Ghulam Hussain, was gunned down at Mirza Adam Khan Road, the Garden police said. The victim was said to be Sindhi-speaking.
A man was gunned down and another wounded at the Northern Bypass, the Gulshan-e-Maymar police said. Three unidentified assailants on a motorcycle opened fire on a 22-wheeler truck near the Afghan Camp. As a result, cleaner Bakht Ali was shot in the head and died on the spot, while driver Huzoor Bux was injured.
Another man was gunned down near his residence in Asif Colony, the Pak Colony police said. Labourer Mutalib Qurban Ali was shot dead on his way to work. Separately, five men were killed in Rasheedabad when unidentified motorcyclists attacked a gathering of people sitting outside their houses, the Baldia police said. The victims belonged to the Pakhtun and Hazara communities.
Bullet-riddled body: A mans tortured and bullet-riddled body was also found in Korangi, the Zaman Town police said. The body of Irfan Sheikh was found in the bushes near a graveyard.
Initial investigation suggested that the victim belonged to the Ashok drug peddlers gang and might have been killed by the rival Lasi group. A wounded man and bodies of two others were found near Dhobi Ghat, the Pak Colony police said. The victims were said to be Urdu-speaking.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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That's 'killed' as in 'dead' and 'buried' and 'titz up' and 'gomer' and 'pining for the fjords' ...
ISLAMABAD The alleged master trainer of suicide bombers, Qari Hussain Mehsud, is reported to have been killed in the October 4 US drone attack in Mir Ali town of North Waziristan. However, Tehrik-i-Taleban Pakistan contradicted reports about Qari Hussains death and described it as part of a campaign to demoralise its fighters.
I realize it was a drone-zap, but I'd like to see a severed head ...
Qari Hussain is alive and healthy and will soon contact the media, one of his associates told Dawn on phone.
According to one report, Qari Hussain was injured in the attack on a house in Mir Ali in which eight foreigners, including German militants, were killed. According to intelligence sources, those killed included Qari Hussain, known as Ustad-i-Fedayeen (teacher of suicide bomber), and his two guards.
They said that Qari Hussain, who was sleeping in the house at the time, was severely injured and taken to Miram Shah where doctors amputated one of his legs and he died there.
So my prayer for sepsis was answered!
Qari Hussain was cousin of TTP chief Hakimullah Mehsud. In the past also there have been reports of his death but he re-surfaced to continue his terror activities.
Definitely need the severed head ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
They said that Qari Hussain, who was sleeping in the house at the time, was severely injured and taken to Miram Shah where doctors amputated one of his legs and he died there.
#2
another one of those foot-amputating doctors Obama's always talking about
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/17/2010 10:49 Comments ||
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Yesterday we saw claims of his demise, then counterclaims that he was there, but just bruised. Today's claims indicate some rather severe bruising. I guess we still need a head on a stick.
SALAH AL-DIN / Aswat al-Iraq: Four persons of the same family, including two children, were wounded in an improvised explosive device blast in Balad district, south of Tikrit city, on Saturday, a local police source said.
An IED went off as a civilian pick-up truck boarding four persons of the same family in the village of Tal al-Dhahab, east of Yathrib area, Balad, (75 km) south of Tikrit, leaving them seriously wounded, the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
The explosion, which wounded two children, also caused severe damage to the vehicle, he added, not giving more information about the incident.
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BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: two members of al-Ahar (Liberals) bloc of Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) attached to their vehicle went off in eastern Baghdad on Saturday, an Iraqi police source said.
An IED attached to the vehicle of a member of al-Ahrar bloc, an offshoot of the Sadrist Movement, went off on Falastine street, near the Turkmen Club in eastern Baghdad, the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
The explosion left the vehicle driver and another passenger severely wounded, he said, adding the two were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
He did not give further details.
He will say no more ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/17/2010 00:00 ||
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In Narathiwat province, a security volunteer was killed and another seriously wounded last night when three gunmen in a pickup truck opened fire at a security checkpoint near Wat Cholchalermkhet in Sungai Kolok town at 6:30 PM.
Police found the body of Hanif Ali, 24, in front of the checkpoint bunker while Hapisi Awae, 28, was taken to the hospital. The two men were manning the checkpoint while three other volunteers went to pray. The gunmen also stole three rifles from the checkpoint before fleeing.
In related news, terrorists suspected insurgents burned a traditional Ko Rae boat replica to lure Thai security officials to inspect the scene, before triggering a hidden bomb at Wasukri Beach in Pattani on Friday night. Two soldiers were wounded.
A study by Deep South Watch showed that some 4,390 people have been killed and 7,139 injured in 10,284 violent incidents in the far South over the past six years. Deep South Watch director Srisompob Jitpiromsri said about 60 per cent of the injured were Thai Buddhists and 32 per cent were Thai Muslims. Thirty-eight per cent of those killed were Thai Buddhists and about 60 per cent were Thai Muslims.
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.
"Time. It will take some time."
JEDDAH -- A Saudi terror suspect, 
ADEN, Yemen The bodies of three soldiers including an officer killed in a Qaeda-style ambush in south Yemen were recovered on Friday, raising the death toll in the attack to five, a security official said.
On Friday, a 28-year-old German man was sentenced to more than three years for supporting two terrorist organizations and a foiled terrorist plot. 
MINGORA: Two Taliban were killed and another was arrested after a clash with security forces in Matta tehsil of Swat, security sources said on Saturday.
In Narathiwat province, a security volunteer was killed and another seriously wounded last night when three gunmen in a pickup truck opened fire at a security checkpoint near Wat Cholchalermkhet in Sungai Kolok town at 6:30 PM. 
