A holdout juror in the trial of the first Guantanamo Bay detainee has asked to be removed from the panel, signaling a deadlocked jury.
The juror said in a note today that she felt she was being attacked after reaching a conclusion that is not going to change. Twelve anonymous jurors are considering charges against Ahmed Ghailani.
Gen David Petraeus, the senior Nato commander in Afghanistan, has reportedly warned Kabul that Hamid Karzai's latest public criticism of coalition strategy undermined the war against the Taliban.
#1
Karzai's comments come after a recent HUGE heroin bust. Karzai has connections with people who make their money on heroin and opium production. His bread and butter is at risk so he is now going to push for the removal of the troops. The more we attack the heroin trade, the harder he is going to push for us to leave.
NATO has confirmed to this author that it has 130 Generals and Admirals in Afghanistan. For NATO, that amounts to one General for every 1,000 soldiers, a stunningly high number of senior officers.
In contrast, the U.S. military has a total of 650 Generals and Admirals to manage a combat force of 1,420,000. That amounts to one General for every 2,185 soldiers. If NATO were to adopt the American model, it would have no more than 55 Generals in Afghanistan. Even that number is far too high.
Officially, the NATO mission, which operates under the acronym ISAF (International Security Assistance Force), has about 120,000 troops, supported by an additional 20,000 American troops that operate separately.
ISAFs Internet site lists 26 Generals and Admirals in leadership positions; twelve generals in Kabul, an additional six in Regional Commands and eight in Training Command. The balance of 104 Generals and Admirals apparently do not occupy leadership positions or even senior staff positions. It is not clear what they do.
ISAF spokeswoman Navy Lieutenant Nicole R. Schwegman told this author that comparing the current war with other conflicts was like comparing apples to oranges.
She went on to say that: Each conflict presents its own set of challenges and thus requires a different approach to using our leadership. . . . Many of our senior level flags are schooled in more than just warfare.
Almost all have a broad range of experience in many areas of governance and development and many have also served as mentors to the Afghan Army and Police Force while they are building up their capacity.
In short, every flag officer that is here on the ground is helping Afghanistan reach a better and brighter future. ISAF spokesman Lt. Col. John L. Dorrian told this author that General Petraeus believes he had the resources about right now. He also stated that the media environment has changed a great deal in complexity and importance since WWII and, therefore, ISAF devotes more resources to this effort than was done in World War II.
The issues which ISAF does not address are cost/benefit, and necessity. The former requires one to evaluate whether the considerable expenses associated with paying, billeting and providing staff to senior officers is outweighed by any benefits they might provide.
Most American Generals and Admirals have a base pay in excess of $165,000.00 a year. This amount does not include other pay supplements they can obtain. They can also earn extra if deployed to an overseas combat zone.
The latter issue concerns whether 130 Generals and Admirals are needed to oversee a force of only 120,000. Behind both questions is the issue of whether the NATO and Pentagon bureaucracies are simply unloading their surplus Generals and Admirals on Afghanistan. Senior officer assignments are traditionally based more on intra-service politics than on the qualifications of the officer for the position. There is no indication that this tradition has changed regarding ISAF assignments.
The evidence is that at least a percentage of these senior officers may be nothing more than unnecessary baggage sitting in Kabul, having meetings with each other, consuming resources and wasting valuable staff time.
This author previously reported that on August 29, 2010, in a little noticed event, the Pentagon announced that it had removed Colonel Lawrence Sellin, Ph.D., U.S. Army Reserves, from his position at ISAFs International Joint Command (IJC) in Kabul. Colonel Sellin is a veteran who previously served in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
He was removed after he wrote an article for United Press International in which he described the IJC as staffed with out-of-touch senior officers who spend most of their time in endless conferences with each other. Colonel Sellins report and his description of the inner workings of ISAF would be comical if this issue were not so important.
For that matter, what do 780 general officers do? Especially that couldn't be done cheaper & better from somewhere else? Aren't they mainly about organizational capability and logistics? You need a few to schmooze Karzai etc., but beyond that? And don't they all have staffs full of majors busily second-guessing the actions of the soldiers in battle and establishing all sorts of chains of permission?
easy, they are just collecting combat pay. be there from the 30th of the month ending, to the 2nd of the next month, and hey, presto 2 months combat pay. Not a bad little scam, if you can get away with it.
The government is cutting assistance to old age pensioners and the showering these terrorist with taxpayers money. I feel a revolution coming on.
The government will announce today that it will pay millions of pounds in compensation to former Guantánamo Bay detainees following weeks of negotiations between lawyers for the government and the former prisoners.
Ministers appear to have decided on the advice of the security services that they could not afford to risk the exposure of thousands of documents in open court on how the US, with the co-operation of the UK, undertook illegal acts such as extraordinary rendition to interrogate terrorist suspects, including some alleged to have links with the Afghan Taliban.
The high court, according to ITN, has been notified that a settlement had been reached between the lawyers, but the exact amounts may never be known. The government will announce simply that the payments are to be made and that it is in the national interest that the cases are not brought to court so as to protect the security services' methods from scrutiny.
Two independent QCs have been acting as arbiters between the two sides. At least one detainee is understood to be in line for a payout of more than £1m.
Google Translate La Voz de Juarez, a Mexican daily newspaper based in Juarez, Chihuahua, is claiming it has been offline because of the actions of the newly installed Juarez Mayor, according to the Mexican news daily La Polaka.
The website was attacked beginning on Tuesday using a denial of service attack, and has yet to recover.
Paco Ortiz Bello, the director of the newspaper said he blamed current Juarez Mayor Hector Murguia Lardizabal, colloquially known as Teto Murguia, for the attack saying Mugruia has threatened the director for its critical coverage of Murguia in the past.
MurguÃa was mayor of Juarez for the years 2004-2007, an administration that was marked with several arrests of associates of Murguia for drug crimes and for murder. Murguia regained the mayor's office in 2010.
La Polaka has recently recovered from a similar server attack which it also blamed on rogue Chihuahua politicians.
Ortiz Bello said in the report he has been considering a request for political assylum in the United States because of theats to him and his family, presumably because of his critical editorial policies.
* WAFF [paraph]> UNKNOWN [US]HISTORY: NYC'S FAMOUS STATUE OF LIBERTY WAS [originally] DESIGNED, PAID FOR, + ORDERED BY THE OTTOMANS. Ottoman Empire in Turkey, via SoL French Designer-Builder Augustus Bartholdi.
Or at least that is what some TSA official said, and other nearby TSA officials and LEOs did not deny.
Check out this guy's blog. Scroll down and you will find three videos he managed to take as a precaution after he was directed through the full body scanner.
Please consider re-posting this elsewhere to raise awareness of this constitutional assault.
Note: This guy did everything in his power to avoid the scanner, including checking the TSA's website to make sure SAN didn't have one, but when it became apparent that he was going to go through one of the new grope-down searches, he turned on his phone as a precaution.
Basically the TSA's logic goes like this:
1) We posted on our (outdated) website which airports are using the new scanners.
2) Therefore you have been warned, even if the website is wrong.
3) Our website has our security policies on it.
4) Therefore you are informed and have given your undying consent to our polices.
5) That security policy states that once you set foot in security, we own you.
6) Even if the only recourse we both accept is that you don't board your flight, we still have the right to search you to our "heart's" content. Because you might have an incendiary device and are attempting to flee, of course.
7) This applies to your little children and little old ladies in wheelchairs.
8) We will sue you if you don't behave as we dictate, even if we are making it up on the spot out of ignorance.
9) Have a nice day, citizen. Hope you like the beginnings of the new order here, which will only get better.
10) Please don't bother us with The Constitution. We have orders from a higher authority.
#2
Just more Security Theater. Every time the jihadis make another run, the security restrictions tighten. What are they going to do after Mahmoud shows up with an ass-bomb? (don't laugh. it already has been tried, rather unsuccessfully, to whack some Saudi prince)
Posted by: European Conservative ||
11/15/2010 0:33 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Lamp post shortage in 3-2-1...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
11/15/2010 0:42 Comments ||
Top||
#5
How about - nobody in islamic garb flies.
Sounds like a fine first step before this bs.
Then --- Nobody with passports from Islamic nations flies.
Then -- Nobody with the first name of "Mo..." flys.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
11/15/2010 1:51 Comments ||
Top||
#6
Maybe a free beer before boarding to wash down the complementary ham sandwich?
#8
Well you may look for guns and big knives. That has worked pretty well.
Passengers will handle the rest.
If we are to be worried about exploding toothpaste we can as well give up flying (or driving to the airport which is MUCH MORE dangerous, let alone that shower you take before you leave home.
Absolute security doesn't exist. We don't expect it when we drive, so we shouldn't expect it when we fly.
We don't catch terrorist at the gate, we need to catch them well before.
Posted by: European Conservative ||
11/15/2010 6:34 Comments ||
Top||
#9
TSA is more than Security Theatre. It's a big government 'make work' employment program. Here are tens of thousands of people 'earning' a living far above what virtually all of them would ever earn in the real world. Modern WPA or CCC.
#11
Per the video below - the TSA even grope-searching 3-year-old children.
And an interesting tip at the end - when you get your ticket you can ask if your child has been selected for the 'random' search and if so - you can have them 'deselected'.
The problem with the Vietnam war began with the expansion of the draft. It represented the government taking action against individual Americans, and they resented it.
Now the government is being seen to be taking actions against Americans for the first time in this war. As far as I am concerned this has been true since the TSA was started, but a significant number of Americans did not agree until now.
So let's review the bidding. Great Society program passed, check. Money supply exploded to pay for it, check. Tax reduction of prior administration reversed for rich via surtax, check. Military related action affects Americans daily lives, check. President faces primary challenge from own party, check. President withdraws from campaigning, TBD.
#13
Random searching is like trying to solve a crime by going out and picking up 20 random people at the local mall and interrogating them. You only look like your doing something.
No real terrorist is going to go through backscatter with a real gun, knife, or bomb strapped to them. They will conceal - even in a body cavity.
You would think that they would consult with Israel which has been fairly successfully dealing with this kind of threat for decades - without the backscatter, public grope searches, and cavity searching.
But I guess actually solving the problem isn't the goal.....
#14
Went through Denver airport TSA (thousands standing around) and avoided the Orgasmatron. I agree that a good place to start for airport security is looking at the Israeli model.
The latest directive on printer toner packages is a classic case of reactive policy, rather than going on the offensive. Got to go to the source first and deal with it.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
11/15/2010 12:10 Comments ||
Top||
#15
Do I get to choose who pats me down? I might not mind.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
11/15/2010 12:25 Comments ||
Top||
#16
The big lassie with the butch haircut is waiting for you, Deacon, heh.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
11/15/2010 12:31 Comments ||
Top||
#17
Coming soon: Moral outrage from fundamentalist Muslims about it violating the modesty required by their religion, followed by special exemption from both orgasmatron and groping.
#18
Or a boxcutter? To a point random searches work because it increases the odds of getting caught. When searches become likely to certain is when the innovative hiding kicks in.
And the innovation is well documented. Not terrorism, drug running. So yes I comprendo both the reason and reaction. And if the policy is to search then everyone must be open to search: sikh, muslim, amish, glee club, mimes, old white men returning from asia, everyone.
However, being phukingdics puts a checkmark onto the problem side of the chart - kinda like red light cameras. It is fostering conflict/aggrivation. What they should want is cooperation so the next time some TSA leaves their handgun in the bathroom it gets returned.
#19
These are the same guys that are suing the State of Arizona because asking for i d is harassing people.Looking to save money thru budget cuts? Start here.
Posted by: john morrissey ||
11/15/2010 13:32 Comments ||
Top||
#20
#13 You would think that they would consult with Israel which has been fairly successfully dealing with this kind of threat for decades - without the backscatter, public grope searches, and cavity searching.
Yup. A good place to start.
How about stripping nekked and skip all this B.S. Flying naked through the unfriendly skies.
#23
I'd like to see an airline start up that isn't befouled by the TSA. It would just have reasonable security, meaning profiling and a full body scanner for high risks. The only difference would be no lawsuits from terrorist actions. And no disconnected idiots in charge of security.
It would be interesting to see how much business they would take away from our present system.
#25
So, what if I opt out due to concerns about radiation, say I opt out out loud after the TSA agent does just to make sure everyone understands what he said, then when they get me into their back room I just go ahead and drop my pants, in the name of improving the process and to remove any lagging doubt on the part of the screener, of course, will I go to jail?
Just wondering.
Posted by: Kelly ||
11/15/2010 16:25 Comments ||
Top||
#26
You'd let Janet touch your junk? How about Aunt Bea?
Thanks Gorb for that Napolitano moment. I will have a lot of trouble getting that image out of my head.
#27
#17 Coming soon: Moral outrage from fundamentalist Muslims about it violating the modesty required by their religion, followed by special exemption from both orgasmatron and groping.
Posted by Glenmore 2010-11-15 13:07|| 2010-11-15
Done:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/11/hamas-linked-cair-tsa-may-only-search-around-muslim-womens-head-neck.html
snip:The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has issued a travel notice to Muslim airline passengers, warning them that new regulations from the Transportation Security Administration violate certain religious rules.
Oh here's Janet:
http://weaselzippers.us/2010/11/15/dhs-chief-napolitano-about-to-cave-to-cairs-demand-hijab-clad-women-be-exempt-from-full-body-pat-downs/
snip:(CNSNews.com) - When asked today if she will insist that Muslim women wearing hijabs must go through full body pat downs before boarding planes, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano did not say yes or no, but told CNSNews.com there will be adjustments and more to come on the issue.
#28
If Muslim women in hijab are exempt from pat-down/body scan, it seems like a clear case of religious discrimination. Especially if Catholic nuns are not exempt. For that matter, if anyone is not exempt. Any lawyers out there want to start a class action suit based on religious discrimination?
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
11/15/2010 18:43 Comments ||
Top||
#29
The 'pat down' doesn't bother as much as flying Delta coach fare on a 737.
"Organsmatron".....whahahahaa Glenmore did it again.
#30
"Orgasmatron" - wasn't me, Besoeker. I stole it from Alaska Paul who no doubt saw the similarity to that Woody Allen movie gadget (back when Woody Allen was actually funny.)
[Arab News] Foreign powers are funding Orcs and similar vermin and the United States is working to address this problem, the special US point man for Pakistain and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke said here on Sunday.
Talking to journalists at Hotel Sarena where he participated in the Pakistain Development Forum, Holbrooke said: "This is a serious issue and we are working to address it."
The US envoy however, did not name any countries.
Responding to a question, Holbrooke said the United States committed a mistake in abandoning Pakistain and Afghanistan after the Soviet retreat from Afghanistan and it would not repeat the same mistake.
He emphasized that US commitment to this part of the world is long and enduring and would encompass economic development as well.
In reply to another question, the US special envoy said the process of withdrawing combat troops from Afghanistan would begin in July 2011 and would be completed in phases over four years.
He clarified that the withdrawal process is not an exit strategy but rather a transition strategy.
Holbrooke said the demand by the Taleban that President Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai step aside is unacceptable. The US and other countries, including Pakistain, support Karzai and the Taleban will have to live with this reality.
He told a questioner that Pakistain and Afghanistan will have to cooperate to resolve the issue of terrorism.
Holbrooke said he was personally aware of the enormous sacrifices made Pakistain's Army in the war against terror and in difficult terrains in Wazoo, Swat, FATA, Dir and Buner.
Holbrooke said the United States has so far provided about $500 million worth of assistance in the aftermath of the recent devastating floods.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
[Pak Daily Times] Interior Minister Rehman Malik, on Sunday, asked the donor community to write off Pakistain's $55 billion foreign debt as it has already sustained losses worth $140 billion in its war against terrorism.
Addressing the Pakistain Development Forum (PDF), Malik said that Pakistain was committed to combating terrorism and asked the international community to assist the country in its war against terrorism.
Briefing the forum, the minister said Pakistain had sustained losses worth $140 billion in its war against terror, adding that the international community should realise that this war was being fought to protect the world from the ravages of terrorism and to promote global peace.
He stressed on the world community to fulfil its ethical and moral obligations by assisting Pakistain. "Those who cannot fulfil their obligations have no right to say 'do more' either," he declared.
The minister also reminded that safety and security in Pakistain and Afghanistan was linked to international peace and harmony and both the South Asian countries should be strengthened economically.
Inaugurating the forum, Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafiz Sheikh said that Pakistain was passing through a difficult phase as the national economy was faced with a number of challenges. He said although the government was utilising all available resources to expedite and sustain the development process and achieve the Millennium Development Goals, the recent floods and the ongoing war on terrorism had dented the economy.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
#1
Thieves by any name.
Most scams are Pakistan based, used to be Nigerian based, not anymore.
The latest Pakiscam is they call you up and pretend to be a LAW OFFICER,(Official sounding fake title) and you're going to be arrested for refusing to repay a loan, (There's no loan) and if you do not pay IMMEDIATELY the sheriff/Cops/FBI, will be at your door tomorrow.
Your credit will be ruined and (Etc, Etc,) and scare the shit out of you, so you quickly repay this Loan.
Then they vanish.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
11/15/2010 8:19 Comments ||
Top||
#2
R J, I've been getting e-mails telling me the same thing.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
11/15/2010 8:26 Comments ||
Top||
Top IDF officers and Defense Ministry officials claimed Sunday that the arrival of a second squadron of F-35 joint strike fighters was of critTop IDF officers and Defense Ministry officials claimed Sunday that the arrival of a second squadron of F-35 joint strike fighters was of critical importance for the security of the State of Israel.
In an effort to convince the Netanyahu government to impose a three-month moratorium on settlement construction in the West Bank, the Obama administration offered Israel last week a long list of security and diplomatic benefits, including 20 F-35s for free.
Israel signed a contract for 20 F-35s a fifth-generation stealth fighter jet made by Lockheed Martin in early October in a deal valued at $2.75 billion. Under the offer made to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu during his meeting last week with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Israel would receive a second, free squadron of the advanced fighter jet if it agrees to impose a three-month freeze on settlement construction.
The F-35 will be one of the most advanced fighter jets in the world and will enable Israel to phase out some of its older F-15 and F-16 models.
According to the IAF, the plane will significantly boost Israels deterrence in the Middle East and provide it with an edge over adversaries that operate advanced anti-aircraft systems, since it cannot be detected by existing radars.
The offer of a second squadron of F-35s was first made to Israel in early September, in talks which Defense Minister Ehud Barak led in Washington ahead of the expiration of the previous 10- month freeze on settlement construction, in a bid to get Israel to extend the freeze. At the time, Israel rejected the offer.
After the offer in September, the IDF established a team consisting of officers from the air force and the militarys Strategic Planning Division, which analyzed the effect the arrival of an additional squadron of F- 35s would have on Israel and its strategic standing in the Middle East.
This is a very difficult offer to say no to, a senior defense official said on Sunday, amid news that Netanyahu was working to obtain a majority in his cabinet to approve a new moratorium.
It is unclear when the additional squadron would arrive, if Israel accepts the US offer.
Delivery of the squadron Israel ordered last month is scheduled to begin sometime between 2016 and 2017.
Bambi can hold up delivery of the planes at any point in time. This means the Israelis have to play ball on the housing front -- and everything else.
If I were Benji I'd say, "no thanks, I'll wait to see what President Palin offers me."
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/15/2010 9:27 Comments ||
Top||
#3
Giving the US a 90 day moratorium also gets a promise from the US not to demand another moratorium.
The 20 additional F-35s can also be 'traded' for other assets during the pre-delivery period. Such a thing has happened before.
The downside of the 90 day moratorium seems pretty low compared to the upside.
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
11/15/2010 14:24 Comments ||
Top||
#4
If you start with the intrinsic worth of a verbal promise from the great and powerful O any downside, of necessity, would HAVE to be exactly zero.
Posted by: Lurker z ||
11/15/2010 14:57 Comments ||
Top||
#5
Compare wid WAFF > [StrategyPage]THE SAD SAUDI SECRET.
Despite the KSA being Oil-rich + buying up modern US-Western mil equipment, LACK OF COMMAND/PROFESSIONAL INITIATIVE + DECISIONMAKING = e.g. the SAUDI AIR FORCE is almost akin to that famous CPLAAF ACE/CRACK AIR UNIT known as the HAVE-PLANE/JET-WILL-CRASH INDIAN AIR FORCE???
* MEMRI > {Net = Online] JIHADISTS DISCUSS US,COALITION AL-UDEID AIR BASE IN QATAR, ASKING [how]"CAN IRAN ATTACK IT?", + do so successfully???
* TOPIX/WORLD NEWS > ISRAEL is planning to deploy its "IRON DOME" BMDS circa 2015, vee threat from IRAN.
A Greek ferry arrived back in port Friday as the owners alleged activists had tried to hijack it in Libya to take aid to Gaza, police said.
Ionian Bridge Shipping Management also denied that British aid workers had been held captive by the crew of the Strofades IV, which was transporting mainly vehicles. Police in the Greek port of Piraeus said the Maltese-flagged vessel had docked at 11:15 am (0915 GMT) with a crew of 16 to 17 passengers, who were all "safe and sound."
The police said they were investigating what had happened, while an Ionian Bridge official, Maria Georgoulia, said a dozen activists had tried to storm the ship in the Libyan port of Derna on Thursday. "They wanted to go to Egypt and then to Gaza," she said. "There is no contract between us and the activists, what they did was illegal."
She said that some 100 militants had gathered on the port at Derna on Wednesday wanting to board the Strofades IV. "We called on the Libyan authorities to help us but finally seven Libyan police stayed on board the ship throughout the voyage without doing anything," Georgoulia added.
She said the crew had given food to the militants, "who put on a whole show on the deck, wearing lifebuoys and pretending to be in danger." Georgoulia denied that the militants had been detained by the crew of the Strofades IV.
Ellie Merton, London liaison for the British group Road to Hope, said Thursday she thought the activists were being held by the ship's Greek captain after a dispute over money. The British Foreign Office said, "We are aware of the incident at Derna Port in Libya and we have been in close contact with the organisers."
One of the Britons on board the Strofades IV was Tauqir Sharif, who was on the Mavi Marmara which was raided by Israeli commandos while en route to Gaza in May, resulting in the deaths of nine activists.
(KUNA) -- Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Fatah agreed on two disputed points; elections and re-activating PLO's role, Hamas's politburo member Mohammad Nazzal said here Sunday.
Nazzal's announcement to the press came at the conclusion of a reconciliation meeting held earlier, which was mainly based on the September 24 meeting and Hamas's remarks on Egyptian proposals.
Hamas' remarks on the proposals revolved around elections, PLO (Paleostinian Liberation Organization) and the security file. "What remained is the security file," Nazzal noted.
Nazzal did not eliminate the possibility of a potential Israeli incursion, or even occupation of the West Bank, attributing that to the fact that Israel is rather conservative over the Fatah-Hamas conciliation meeting.
Hamas's relation with Egypt is relatively improving, as opposed to a tense one in the past, he pointed out, denying that Egypt had no restraints over dialogue between the two factions.
As for statements by Fatah delegation leader, in which he held Hamas accountable for attempting to foil the talks, Nazzal such statements are "reprehensible," as he -- as a delegation leader -- should maintain a positive atmosphere for talks.
"Israel will continue its Judiazation scheme of Jerusalem and it never had to do with the Paleostinian-Paleostinian standoff," he said.
He further said that there was "nothing new" regarding the prisoners' swap deal between Israel and Hamas, which mainly involves Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who is still held by the movement as a bargaining chip since 2006.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
[Iran Press TV] Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem says Israel is showing it lacks the will for peace through its actions in the Paleostinian territories.
"Israel is not a partner for peace. Instead, the policies of colonization [of the Paleostinian territories], Judaizing Jerusalem (Al-Quds) and blockade of the Gazoo Strip continue," Muallem said.
"Israel and those who sponsor it should assume the sole responsibility for the freezing of the peace processor," he added.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Muallem reiterated the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program.
He said Syria was "opposed to the use of nuclear [technology] for military purposes" and that "the Iranians have assured us that their program is civilian."
The top Syrian diplomat also denounced the "dual policy" adopted by the international community regarding the issue.
"Israel has more than 250 nuclear warheads as well as plants that produce nuclear weapons, and the world remains silent," he said.
Muallem also underlined that Damascus pays due regard to Leb, and that Saudi-Syrian cooperation is in line with Leb's stability.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
Israel really just wants to be left alone.
Palestine wants to wipe Israel off the map.
The remaining Arab countries want to use Palestine as a diversion for their own populations.
Posted by: Kelly ||
11/15/2010 16:10 Comments ||
Top||
[Iran Press TV] Israel has refused to supply fuel to the Gazoo Strip's main electricity plant as power outages have intensified in the besieged coastal sliver. There have been up to twelve hours of power outages in Gazoo.
Gazoo's main power plant has two turbine generators and only one of them works due to fuel shortages, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Israel refuses to allow diesel into Gazoo, which has been under an all-out Israeli blockade since 2007.
Gazooks use small electricity generators to meet their electricity needs. At least 15 people have been killed since last year using the dangerous generators, which produce a lot of noise and are unsafe for children.
According to Gazoo Energy Authority, Tel Aviv frequently shuts Gazoo borders and Israeli courts have reduced the regular fuel quota entering the Gazoo Strip for no given reason. No reason at all. It's a complete mystery. What could it be? No one has any idea!
In the first week of February, only 1,600 cubic meters of fuel entered Gazoo instead of 2,200 cubic meters.
The Gazoo Energy Authority has appealed on several occasions to international and humanitarian organizations, as well as to Arab states and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, to make every effort to raise Gazoo's electricity generation capacity to the required level.
In late 2008, European parliamentarians urged the European Union to put pressure on Israel to resume fuel shipment to Gazoo's sole power plant after Tel Aviv stopped the shipment.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
[Arab News] A senior Fatah official on Sunday blamed the Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, movement for the failure of second round of national reconciliation dialogue which was held in the Syrian capital of Damascus last week.
Jamal Mhaisen, a member of Fatah's Central Committee, said that "Hamas is not interested in accomplishing reconciliation" to end to end the power struggle between the two rival movements which followed the violent takeover of Gazoo Strip on June 2007.
Mhaisen said that in the talks, Hamas sought to keep its "illegal" security services in Gazoo Strip and joining the Paleostinian Authority (PA) security services as part of the reconciliation deal.
The Fatah official accused Hamas of stepping back from the understandings reached in the first round of talks in Damascus.
Representatives of the two parties met in Damascus on Wednesday in yet another attempt to solve the crisis, but failed to reach agreement over the main sticking point: Security.
In late September, the two movements reached a paper of "understandings" in a meeting held in Damascus related to the restructuring of Paleostine Liberation Organization (PLO) and general elections.
The two movements confirmed that another round of talks will be held after Eid Al-Adha.
Hamas officials earlier announced that they were looking to form a security committee which will be tasked with reforming the security forces of the PA. However, The infamous However... Paleostinian President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas earlier said that the issue of security can never be shared between Hamas and Fatah, and it must be independent and has one leadership.
Hamas and Fatah have been engaged in a sour power struggle since the Islamic movement swept its secular rival Fatah in legislative elections in 2006.
Last year, Egypt suspended its mediation role, and ties between Cairo and Hamas have deteriorated after Hamas rejected the Egyptian-drafted proposal, raising reservations involving security and elections.
For its part, Hamas claimed that its rival Fatah attempted to block the reconciliation by keeping restrictions on the security services.
It added that Fatah "suspended discussions on the security issue" and that is why the dialogue has been postponed.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
#1
ION HAMAS, DEUTCH WELLE > NEW ISRAELI-EGYPTIAN BORDER BARRIER HAS MORE THAN ONE PURPOSE.
* ISRAEL as a country will be almost entirely fenced in.
Which IMO would add to the desire of many Israelis for Israel to join NATO + EU + propos Mediterranean Union, etc. for security purposes.
* Cut down on illegal or covert arms smuggling by HAMAS, etal. into both Egypt + Israel via Sinai. HAMAS = MUTUAL ENEMY both Egypt + Israel due to being founded in the Muslim Brotherhood.
* Reduction on ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION, MILTERR INFILTRATION.
[Iran Press TV] A top commander of Iran's Islamic theocracy Guards Corps (IRGC) says the United States is unsuccessfully seeking to establish a secular system in the country.
"The American currents trying to bring to power a secular system in Iran have failed," IRGC Deputy Commander Brigadier General Yadollah Javani was quoted by IRNA as saying on Sunday.
Many experts believe Islam is the only option left which can attract people across the globe, the top commander underlined.
He said the growing number of converts to Islam indicate a change taking place in the world following the Islamic theocracy in Iran.
"Today, good and evil are pit against one another and what has made the situation all the more significant is the growing power of the good front led by the Islamic Theocratic Republic [of Iran] and the evil front's fear of collapse," the Iranian general added.
The general said the West's Iranophobia and Islamophobia campaigns were launched in the form of soft war.
"In the US strategy, Iran is regarded as the number one threat which definitely does not mean [posing the threat of] geographical occupation, but that Islamic theocracy has instilled a sense of awakening and independence in world countries, and the achievements of the Islamic Theocratic Republic [of Iran] in all fields, especially the scientific field, have won the trust of other nations," General Javani underscored.
He said the strategy adopted by the White House and the "hegemonic front" in dealing with Iran includes five phases: dialog and diplomacy, triggering chaos and instability in the country, sanctions, soft war and finally the threat of military action.
This strategy, he added, pursues a whole range of objectives, from changing Iran's behavior to toppling the Iranian establishment.
"The enemies of the Islamic Theocratic Republic [of Iran] have come to the conclusion that a strong opposition [front] should be formed inside the country ... so that it will be powerful enough to challenge the Islamic Theocratic Republic," he added.
He said hegemonic powers hatched a complicated plot to make out that the June 12, 2009 presidential elections in Iran were rigged and in this was make Iranians lose trust in the establishment and create a "popular base for opposition."
Javani added that the guidelines offered by Leader of the Islamic theocracy, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and the people's presence on the scene had helped foil enemy plots.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
[An Nahar] Head of Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Raad on Sunday warned of a "painful" response if "we were stabbed in the back."
"Beware, beware of betraying our march," Raad said during a Hizbullah ceremony in south Leb.
"Beware of stabbing us in the back. We are capable of responding in a much painful way," he warned.
"No international resolutions, no U.N. Charters, no principles or ethics or human values deter the enemy from any aggression on Leb," he stressed.
"The only thing that would stop the enemy ... is the readiness of the Resistance That'd be the Hezbullies, natch... which awaits the joyful moment when the enemy commits any folly against Leb," Raad thought.
"We have given efforts to reach a compromise a chance so that Leb's stability is maintained and on the basis that the Resistance That'd be the Hezbullies, natch... won't be nailed down or accused" in the liquidation of former PM Rafik Hariri, he added.
"We hope these efforts would produce positive results to spare Leb Sunni-Shiite strife or a confrontation between the Resistance That'd be the Hezbullies, natch... and what others want," Raad said.
"Yet, our options are clear and decisive in the event of miscalculations of others, and we hope they will not fall into this big mistake," Raad warned.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
[An Nahar] Former Prime Minister Fouad Saniora hit back at accusations made by Hizbullah MP Nawaf Moussawi, denying he had wanted to prolong the 2006 Israeli war on Leb.
Saniora, in a late-night statement issued by his office, said his government had rejected a U.S.-French proposal back then that suggested the deployment of a multinational force without mention to Shebaa Farms or the seven-point cease-fire plan crafted by the Saniora Cabinet.
Instead, Saniora said, the Lebanese government insisted on a comprehensive cease-fire deal that includes an Israeli withdrawal behind the Lebanese border and the deployment of both the Lebanese army and the peacekeeping forces.
On Saturday, Moussawi said the French were the ones who informed Hizbullah that the Saniora government does not want the war to stop unless it includes an end to Hizbullah presence south of the Litani.
He pointed out that the French statements were recorded and can be found in Government files.
Saniora challenged Moussawi to present these documents.
"Why doesn't he reveal the name of this (French) official who gave him this information and why not inform the public of the statements recorded verbatim as he says?" Saniora said, addressing Mousswi.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/15/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
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.
A Greek ferry arrived back in port Friday as the owners alleged activists had tried to hijack it in Libya to take aid to Gaza, police said.
