[Tolo News] Head of the High Peace Council Burhanuddin Rabbani ... the legitimate president of Afghanistan... said those who fight under the name of Taliban should renounce violence and accept the government's peace call.
Not just one time, I would call on the anti-government groups tens of times to join the grinding of the peace processor, Rabbani told a news conference.
The council has made very little efforts as part of peace efforts so far and we have some more plans on hand to make it up to our goals, Rabbani said.
"We peacefully call on those fighting under the name of Taliban to come and join the grinding of the peace processor. Even if they shut their doors on us, we would knock it again and again and we will repeatedly invite them for peace," Rabbani said.
At the conference Head of Afghan Clerics Council, slamming bad turban attacks, said suicide kabooms are totally against Islam.
"Afghan holy mans have constantly called on the cut-throats to stop violence. War is not the solution. Suicide attack is prohibited in Islam and we call on them to stop killing their own people," Head of Afghan Clerics Council Qeyamuddin Kashaf said.
"I also want to ask the US if it has come to Afghanistan to kill civilians, he continued, I urge them to stop searching Mohammedans' houses," he further said.
Afghan peace council sees cooperation of holy mans vital to bring peace in the country. The council is expected to send a representative to Organisation of the Islamic Conference in Jeddah.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Asharq al-Aswat] The collection of royal decrees issued by the King of the Arabians, Sheikh of the Burning Sands, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, which coincided with His Majesty's return [from treatment abroad] and recovery, reflect a deep insight, profound wisdom and vision on his part. The decrees addressed fundamental issues relating to the needs of the Saudi youth, the fight against poverty, and public welfare. The decrees promised to support trade unions, create more job opportunities for young Saudis, provide temporary financial aid to young job-seekers, support sports clubs and housing programs, expand social security services, increase the overall living allowance, and bolster Soddy Arabia's scholarship program...
Expect many more Saudi students abroad, until the public school curriculum improvements (math, science, English, computer literacy) are fully implemented against the headwind of teachers unwilling to change, the religious scholars indignant at the idea that change is necessary, and the king's ill health. The FBI, MI-5 (?), etc will no doubt have fun figuring out which of the students are open to new things, and which will suffer Sudden Jihad Syndrome, like that lad in Texas.
These, along with other initiatives, are bound to bring about a genuine improvement in the quality of life of Saudi citizens.
The royal decrees coincided with street celebrations held by Saudis to mark the return of King Abdullah from his auspicious medical trip, accompanied by sincere prayers from millions, wishing for His Majesty's recovery. King Abdullah is extensively loved and appreciated by his citizens, a position he has earned through his honesty, wisdom and earnest endeavors to meet the needs of his citizens. He has focused particularly on combating poverty, and providing Saudi youths with greater access to higher education, in an era where knowledge plays a decisive and pivotal role in determining the status of a society, along the ladder of progress. King Abdullah's actions can be described as steps to "create the future". Only the wise, the loyal, and those with foresight are able to this. Such people are able to strike a balance, and divide their attention between the present and the future.
Indeed, cities, towns and villages all across Soddy Arabia have every right to decorate and prepare themselves, in order to welcome the compassionate king who has kept this country safe in his heart, whilst shrouding it with love, loyalty and devotion. His era is associated with many grand achievements, such as expanding the two Holy Mosques, upgrading holy sites, improving education, enhancing the judiciary system and supporting the poor. Congratulations on the return of our king and blessed be His Majesty, for earning all our love and devotion.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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DAUDI ARABIA'S KING ABDULLAH
versus
JORDAN'S KING ABDULLAH
To wit,
* DAILY STAR [Lebanon] > CALLS FOR CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY IN JORDAN.
[Bangla Daily Star] The Appellate Division yesterday started hearing a long overdue appeal against a High Court verdict that declared fatwa (religious edict) illegal.
Meanwhile, in Pakistan people are getting killed just for suggesting that the practice be examined. Bangladesh was wiser than she knew when she revolted against West Pakistani rule.
The six-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque will continue the hearing today.
On January 1, 2001, the HC declared all punishments imposed in the name of fatwa illegal. The verdict came following a hearing on a suo moto rule issued earlier by the court after a newspaper report on Hilla marriage (marriage with a third person).
Human rights organisations Bangladesh Mahila Gay Pareehad and Ain O Salish Kendra argued against fatwa before the HC.
The same year, Mufti Mohammad Toyeeb and Abul Kalam Azad filed the mentioned appeal against the HC verdict with the SC.
Yesterday, Dr Kamal Hossain placed a submission before the apex court on behalf of the rights organisations saying that misuse of religion has to be stopped and the constitutional and fundamental rights of people have to be upheld.
Creating disputes over religion is not acceptable, he said.
Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... Nazrul Islam, the counsel for Toyeeb and Abul Kalam, told the court that fatwa is a part and parcel of Islam and it has been a long-standing social practice.
Fatwa is based on Allah and the holy Koran, he argued.
The SC on February 14, appointed 10 senior lawyers as amici curiae (friends of court) for their expert opinion on the appeal against the HC verdict.
They are TH Khan, Rafique-ul Huq, Mahmudul Islam, M Zahir, Rokanuddin Mahmud, AF Hasan Arif, MI Farooqui, ABM Nurul Islam, Rabia Bhuiyan and Tania Amir.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] Speculations by political experts suggest Azerbaijan could be the next Mohammedan-majority nation to voice grievances against the US-backed government in Baku.
An article published by the Newsweek on Sunday points out concerns among Western decision-makers on the possible outcome of Arab uprisings in the Middle East, intensified by the prospect that similar unrest could overtake other parts of the globe.
"This is like Eastern Europe in the 1990s...You take the lid off, and you don't know what's going to happen," a senior US intelligence official was cited in "When Strongmen Become Straw Men" as saying.
The article notices how a bronze statue of ousted Egyptian geriatric President Hosni Mubarak is being protected in a park in the middle of Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, whereas the dictator's rule in his homeland was toppled by a popular revolution.
A number of US media reports had earlier pointed to similar issues regarding the popular protests in Azerbaijan, but Azeri authorities have ruled out any analogy between the condition in the crisis-hit Arab nations and the status quo in the former Soviet republic.
Azerbaijan's Yeni Musavat newspaper wrote about recent popular gatherings in villages around the cities of Sabirabad and Saatli in protest at the government's failure to resolve problems caused by a flood in the region nine months ago.
Following the protests, the headquarters of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party in Sabirabad was torched and burned into ashes.
Political analysts described the move as a purposeful act by government agents, aiming to create an air of coercion and intimidation and pave the way to arrest opposition activists and protesters.
Azerbaijan has also been the scene of a series of rallies against the controversial issue of a hijab ban in the country, where nearly 98 percent of the people are Mohammedan.
Azerbaijan's Mohammedans also blame the growing secularism in the country on Tel Aviv and see Israel as being behind anti-Islamic programs during the Shia mourning month of Muharram and the Mohammedan fasting month of Ramadan.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Having screwed up the economy, health care, Iran, Egypt, and Libya, Obama now takes aim at the Korean Peninsula.
WASHINGTON — The US is considering resumption of food aid to North Korea amid fears people there could starve after a harsh winter, top officials said Tuesday.
Special envoy Stephen Bosworth told the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations that the US is assessing the need for assistance after the reclusive Asian nation requested it.
The top US diplomat for East Asia, Kurt Campbell, told lawmakers that no decision has yet been made resuming said, and it would be taken in close coordination with South Korea. Asked whether food aid could ultimately ease economic pressure on the North, effectively allowing it put more resources into its nuclear programs, Campbell said North Korea had historically shown it was willing to allow “enormous suffering” among its people, noting that many starved during the 1990s.
“The choice here is whether these people are allowed to starve. It’s a humanitarian issue not a political one,” he said.
Except that the Norks are using it as a political issue to manipulate us. And once again, it's working.
Bosworth said if US assistance was resumed, effective monitoring would ensure it reached civilians who most needed it — amid concerns food could be diverted to the military.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Well, KIMMIE = LIBYA'S UNCLE MUAMMAR = NOT INTIMIDATED + WILL NOT VOLUNTARILY GIVE UP RULING POWER WIDOUT A FIGHT.
Also read, WIDOUT STARTING A MAJOR WAR.
I don't see Kimmie + Jong-un giving up the whole of the DPRK's Nucprogs - they will want to have at least LIMITED NUCLEAR ARSENAL AS "HEDGE" AGZ THE US-ROK-JAPAN [you know,SSSHHHHH CHINA]; + also are likley to demand GUARANTEED MASSIVE INTERNATIONAL FOOD, OTHER MAJOR ECON ASSISTANCE PER ANNUM FOR NORTH KOREA ET PERPETUUM [read, until further notice = formal DPRK-ROK Reunification].
* ION TOPIX > NORTH KOREA REPEATS THREAT OF MILITARY RESPONSE TO DRILLS. New Mil Incidents + Seas of Nuclear + WMDS Fire.
Again, the DPRK wants to STOP STARVING + MODRNIZE + REUNIFY WID SOUTH KOREA, while RISING CHINA wants "FIRST ISLAND CHAIN" SOLE BASE RIGHTS.
"NONE OF THE ABOVE" IS NOT AN OPTION 2011-2020/2025, espec for HUNGRY NORTH KOREA 2011-2015.
#6
One of the first lessons of my Int'l Eco course was about the fungibility of money and the fact that trying to dictate that aid money only go to the most important projects was nothing but a scam.
Posted by: Alan Cramer ||
03/02/2011 9:02 Comments ||
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#12
Lord protect the United States of America from these naive fools. After 60 years of the same dance, Obumble and his "nuanced sophisticates" are falling for the same tired old BS that Clinton and frankly, most US leaders have fallen for in the past. Essentially we are going to feed the NKPA and self delude thats its humanitarian aid. Jeeez what predictable clowns they are in the WH.
#14
Feed a feral dog from your table and he'll be back for more, first with a pitiful pleading look and then a low threatening growl
Posted by: regular joe ||
03/02/2011 19:14 Comments ||
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#15
Regular Joe that was great. That's what I call a keeper. Its like the man who had a pet poisonous snake. He was bit. Why did you bite me?. Fool; I'm a snake, that's what snakes do.
#18
Fat Bob, if wishes were beggars, horses would fly.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
03/02/2011 22:24 Comments ||
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#19
And if beltway Assholes could fly, all of the Capital would be an airport.
Posted by: Fire and Ice ||
03/02/2011 22:33 Comments ||
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#20
If we can make sure the food gets where it needs to go, why can't the same be said for bullets getting put into Kimmie and his cadre? Why are we acting so helpless? Oh yea, China. Don't want to piss off the little assholes.
Posted by: Fire and Ice ||
03/02/2011 22:40 Comments ||
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The North Korean Army's Guard Command, a military unit tasked with protecting leader Kim Jong-il, is hiding scores of tanks in Pyongyang to quell any popular uprising, Radio Free Asia claimed Tuesday.
The U.S.-funded radio station quoted a defector from Pyongyang as saying, "There is a battalion of about 50 tanks from the Guard Command in the Taedong River area in eastern Pyongyang. They stage a field exercise about once a year."
He said the tanks used to move only at the night to escape public notice. "All are hidden underground. I heard from families of officers of the tank battalion that there are also tanks in an underground near Moranbong," a hill in downtown Pyongyang.
Kim Kwang-jin, another defector who works for the U.S. Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, said there used to be a battalion of tanks in an underground area beneath the Kumsusan Assembly Hall while Kim Il-sung was alive, but he was unsure whether it is still there.
The tanks are ready to move in response to riots or demonstrations, the radio station speculated.
Jong Su-chol (45), a former North Korean Army officer, said, "Major weapons and elite troops of the Guard Command are deployed in Pyongyang. The command is also armed with missiles."
The guard is reportedly so well equipped and trained that it could immediately put down a military coup.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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See also FREEREPUBLIC > KIM JONG-IL ORDERS DOZENS [scores] OFTANKS TO BE DEPLOYED AROUND HIS RESIDENCE IN YOUNGSUNG, PYONGYANG, in response to Mubarak resignation.
* SAME > RUSSIA TO DEPLOY [anti-Naval]CRUISE MISSLES ON KURIL ISLANDS: INTERFAX.
YAKHONTS, + TOR-M2's ADMS.
FREEP POSTER - opined that IHO Russia senses coming war [US-China?]on the Korean Peninsula + is prepping accordingly???
* WORLD NEWS > FOOD FOR THOUGHT FOR NORTH KOREA'S SURVIVAL IS FOOD FOR THOUGHT IN SEOUL.
Youse name the Question(s), the SOKORS have to think about it + any possible consequences for SOUTH KOREA + KOREAN PEOPLE IN GENERAL.
* SAME > [SecDef Gates to West Point MA Army Kay-y-ydets] NEVER FIGHT A LAND WAR IN ASIA.
Methinks Radical Islam + Iran + Kimmie, etal. know that, hence thats precisely what they want the econ-troubled US to do???
Lest we fergit, 1990's CLINTONISM + OWG-NWO > AMERICA'S ENEMIES = D *** NG IT, WE DEMAND OUR GOD-GIVEN SECULAR RIGHT TO BE ATTACKED AND SAVED BY THE USA!
* SAME > DONALD KIRK: JAPAN TO FORCE THE US FROM OKINAWA?
North Korean Mil, Nuclear Threat = "Wild Card" + risk of consequent potens US-vs-China Regional War is causing Japan to rethink its traditional ABSOLUTE NUCLEAR, OTHER MIL, ETC. DEPENDENCE ON THE US FOR ITS NATIONAL, REGIONAL SECURITY.
Again, SOUTH KOREA has a vested interest in CHINA NOT TAKING OVER NORTH KOREA FOR ANY REASON.
DPRK ECON COLLAPSE = CHINA UNILATER TAKING OVER THE NORTH, TEMPORAILY OR PERMANENTLY, + IS UNLIKELY TO GIVE UP OR SHARE UNLESS THE USDOD MOSTLY OR WHOLLY PULLS OUT ITS MILFORS FROM SOUTH KOREA + NE ASIA.
* SAME > [Russ South Kuriles = Japan Northern Territories]ROZOFF: US BACKS JAPAN IN LOOMING CONFRONTATION WID RUSSIA.
Russia had summoned the US Envoy to explain the "why" of the US position on the Russo-Nippon Kuriles sovereignty dispute.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reappeared in public on Sunday after vanishing from view since Feb. 17. Until then he had undertaken 27 of his so-called on-the-spot guidance trips this year, one every 1.92 days on average. Kim was seen again at a concert by an orchestra of the People's Internal Security Forces, escorted by his son and heir Jong-un. The forces are a new guard founded to protect the Kims, experts believe.
"The Kims visited the guard first because they will protect them in an emergency," a North Korean source said. The regime apparently reconfigured the People's Security Guard, the equivalent to South Korea's riot police, into the new guard in April last year, and Kim senior visited them twice in September and November.
Kim disappeared from public view for 50 days when the Iraq War started in 2003 and for about 40 days after the North launched a long-range rocket in July 2006. Last year, he made a total of 161 on-the-spot guidance tours, once per 2.26 days, as if to quell rumors that he is gravely ill.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Kim was seen again at a concert by an orchestra of the People's Internal Security Forces, escorted by his son and heir Jong-un. The forces are a new guard founded to protect the Kims, experts believe.
"Problems" with the old security forces maybe?
What are they gonna do, hit them with their violins...
The two TSA agents and supervisor who completely missed the blades at a security checkpoint "will all be disciplined and undergo remedial training," said spokeswoman Ann Davis.
Eusebio D. Peraltalajara, 45, of Jersey City waltzed past the screeners on his way to a Dominican Republic-bound flight, the sources said.
Once aboard Santiago-bound Flight 837, flight attendant Fausto Penaloda, 40, asked him to stow his luggage in the overhead storage bin.
As Peraltalajara's shoved it into the compartment, Penaloda saw the boxcutters fall out of the bag, according to a police report. And then the fight began, as the joke goes.
More proof that we don't need the TSA. This kind of thing only gets reported if they are caught.
And I know darned well that the line will show up "they were sleeping at their posts", and I know just as well that they were proably wide awake, happy to be doing a job that doesn't need to be done, and keeping their mouths shut about the whole fiasco as long as the paychecks keep rolling in.
I know darned well that some higher-ups are going to get all fussy about the fact that the public has been reminded once again that we don't need the TSA, but is happy to make a big hooplah about how they are going to be retrained and give No-Doz and that the "problem" will go away, and all will go back to normal, with everyone's paychecks rolling in, and that those even higher up will continue to have their cash cow to milk for votes and graft.
#2
I'm not even convinced boxcutters should be banned on flights, especially after 9/11.
The 9/11 attackers used the boxcutters to blackmail the crew into giving them control of the plane, which then became the real terror weapon.
After 9/11 it is clear that giving in to such blackmail would mean certain death for all people on the plane and countless others on the ground. A terrorist threatening a hostage's life with a boxcutter would not have any leverage.
If the terrorists want to attack and kill innocents with knives or blades they can do so on the ground, without being bothered by security checks.
#5
I'm not belittling what these islamofascistic scumbags did with the boxcutters.
My point is that much of the security measures after 9/11 was in fact security theater.
If passengers and crews on the 9/11 planes had known about the attacker's intentions they would not have been able to acquire their real weapons, the planes.
The extortion wouldn't have worked.
Yes, people would have been threatened, injured and killed but it wouldn't have been different from Sudden Jihad Syndrome on the ground, awful, but not something TSA style security could prevent.
IIRC some passengers on United 93 armed themselves with *butter knives* in their desperate attempt to wrest control of the plane from the attackers. Focusing on weapons instead of people is the wrong approach.
We at Rantburg really did see this coming, as of January 21, 2009...
Attorney General Eric Holder left open the certainty possibility Tuesday that the Guantanamo Bay terrorist prison camp might live on beyond President Obama's first term.
Asked in a congressional hearing whether the prison would be closed by November 2012, Holder said: "I don't know.
Sure you do, bubbo...
"We will do all that we can. We have to, obviously, work with Congress. Congress has put barriers in place to what I think is what we should be doing," Holder said. "So we'll have to work through those restrictions and work with our allies to try and come up with a way in which we can do that."
Obama promised during his successful election campaign to close the detention center in Cuba, calling it a recruiting tool for terrorist groups like al Qaeda.
Everything is a recruiting tool for al Qaeda...
He signed an executive order on his second day in the Oval Office that set a one-year timeline for shutting it down.
But both Republicans and even a few sensible, scared Democrats opposed the closure, saying they did not want any terrorist suspects housed in prisons in their home states. Congress prohibited any federal funds being used to pay for the transfer of detainees from Guantanamo to prisons the United States, and the White House has run away pushed the issue to the backburner.
More sterling B+ leadership from the man in the empty suit.
With Republicans now in control of the House, and Democrats showing little interest in losing another national election reopening the debate, Holder conceded under questioning that the prospects for closing Guantanamo have dimmed.
The attorney general said the Justice Department has established a task force to look at each of the 172 detainees being held at the Guantanamo prison to address how they should be dealt with.
Suggestion: shoot #1 through #171, and let #172 go to Yemen to tell everyone what happened.
Holder's comments come just weeks after CIA Director Leon Panetta told a Senate panel that Osama bin Laden would probably be shipped to and held at the Guantanamo Bay facility if he were captured.
That would be done only to make it more convenient for the Center for Constitutional Rights to represent Binny...
Panetta's remarks were widely viewed as a tacit admission that Guantanamo Bay won't be closing.
A rare moment of honesty from a CIA director, for which ...
A CIA spokesman issued a statement immediately after Panetta's testimony emphasizing the agency's support for shutting down the facility.
Just doing as he was ordered to do. Take that Mr. Panetta!
In testimony before the Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies, Holder said the White House has not requested any funding in the 2012 budget for closing Guantanamo Bay.
Nor will they...
Subcommittee Chairman Frank Wolf (R-Va.) sparred with Holder over why the administration wants to close the prison. Holder argued the position long held by Obama: that the alleged torture and abuse committed against prisoners under President George W. Bush has been used as a way for al Qaeda to recruit potential terrorists to wage war against the United States.
"I start my day at 8:30 every morning with a briefing about the threat stream for the past 24 hours," said Holder. "It's a compilation of all that the intelligence community has found ... and you see -- not every day, but I think on a fairly consistent basis -- indications that the existence of Guantanamo is something that al Qaeda uses in its recruiting efforts. It is simply a fact."
Again, everything is a recruiting tool for terrorists. It's their world view. That's something Holder should understand.
Wolf objected, saying that the first bombing of the World Trade Center and the bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania, both carried out by al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists, occurred before Guantanamo began imprisoning combatants in the war on terrorism.
Wolf stressed that the White House should listen to the sentiments of lawmakers and stop carrying on with its own agenda. "Even in the previous Congress there was no will, which was a Democratic Congress, to really close Guantanamo," said Wolf.
Even Democrats know how to count to 50% plus one...
Wolf was one of the dozens of lawmakers last Congress who put forward bills to prohibit any of the detainees in Guantanamo coming to their own states.
Recent concerns have arisen among lawmakers that the Justice Department may be trying to reopen the Thomson maximum-security prison in Illinois in an attempt to ready it for Guantanamo inmates. But Holder assured the House panel that the plan to reopen the Thompson prison was solely geared toward easing the rampant overcrowding at some of the country's other prisons, without spending more money to build a new facility.
"There are no present intentions," Holder said. "We have these congressional restrictions with regard to the movement of people from Guantanamo to any facilities within the United States."
You won't mind then if we codify a restriction into the law...
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/02/2011 11:33 ||
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It'll stay open as long as the lease, which is "in perpetuity".
As long as we keep sending those $4000 checks that Fidel refuses to cash.
#3
Guantanamo likely isn't useful for the CIA, who I believe prefer to do their questioning with a good deal fewer rules... and a great deal less oversight by the questionee's lawyer.
[Geo News] PML-N Chief Mian Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... Tuesday demanded that murders accused who had been nabbed should be brought to book.
Addressing consultative meeting of party workers hailing from Bloody Karachi division here also demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident of May 12, 2007.
Nawaz saud that peace in Bloody Karachi was vital for economic progress of the country.
He urged Sindhi people to stand up for crusade against poverty and unemployment from the country. "I promise that I will not take rest until and unless every citizen of the country gets rights," he assured them.
He lauded civil society for participating in the movement for judiciary's restoration, adding that restoration of judiciary was not less than a miracle in the history of Pakistain.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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#6
This was such a farce in the first place. This was like making Jeffrey Dahmer/John Wayne Gacy a teacher or principle in an elementary or middle school.
[Arab News] : Iraq's prime minister called for new provincial elections Monday following anti-government protests that killed 14 people last week in a demonstration of the simmering anger many Iraqis feel at a government they say fails to provide basic services.
Nuri Al-Maliki told a news conference he would ask the Parliament to pass a law allowing for the early elections for the councils that rule Iraq's 18 provinces and said the move was a response to the people's demands for change. Elections for control of Iraq's provinces are held every four years.
The last ones were held in 2009 and moving them forward would require parliamentary approval. The decision already has the support of the Parliament speaker, Osama Al-Nujaifi, who said Sunday that he was also proposing such a move.
But its unclear whether there would be enough support within the Parliament to hold the vote early and if so, how quickly a legislative body that took months to pass the last election law would act.
Having just secured a second term as prime minister, Al-Maliki is under intense pressure to show he's addressing the demands of a population angry with a lack of government services, a scarcity of jobs and rampant corruption.
Thousands of Iraqis protested in at least twelve cities on Friday, many in demonstrations that turned violent, as protesters clashed with authorities, set fire to government buildings and toppled concrete barriers.
Al-Maliki said the decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting Sunday "to discuss people's demands calling for reforms." He did not specify how quickly the provincial elections should be held. Al-Maliki also called on parliament to dissolve many local city councils in towns and districts where members are appointed and not elected.
The prime minister also raised the specter that the upcoming Arab League summit slated to take place at the end of March in Storied Baghdad for the first time in years could be delayed. But he said he was optimistic the summit would still be held and that the vaporous Arab League is insisting on holding it in Iraq.
He cautioned, however, that Arab League foreign ministers would meet later this week, and could decide to change the date.
"A decision might be taken" to delay the summit, Al-Maliki said, adding that Iraq wouldn't object to a postponement of one or two months. Before turmoil began rippling through the Middle East starting with the overthrow of the Tunisian government, the biggest concern over the Arab Summit was whether Storied Baghdad would be safe enough for such a stream of high-profile visitors.
Alluding to the violence taking place in Libya and the problems sweeping almost every other Middle Eastern country, Al-Maliki said Storied Baghdad is safe to receive guests. "We could say that Iraq is the one of the most secure countries at this current time," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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[Straits Times] FOLLOWING on the success in fighting terrorism with its Densus 88 anti-terrorism unit, the National Police is planning to form another group assigned specifically to handle riots. They're thinking of calling the the "riot squad."
National Police chief Gen Timur Pradopo said the members of the new detachment would be stationed at province-level police headquarters.
'I think this is the answer to settle problems, such as those in Temanggung and Cikeusik,' Timur said at the National Police headquarters on Tuesday, as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.
Gen Timur was referring to attacks and vandalism of three churches and one Christian school in Temanggung in Central Java and the mob lynching of three Ahmadis in Cikeusik, Banten, last month.
Gen Timur said the squad will be tasked to find breakthroughs and innovations in controlling riots in the field.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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The Mustaqbal ... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri... parliamentary bloc on Tuesday stressed that Hizbullah's arsenal of weapons "has proved, on more than one occasion, to be illegitimate and pointed at the chests of the Lebanese."
In a statement issued after its weekly meeting in Qureitem under ex-PM Fouad Saniora, the bloc added that the Shiite party's arms have become a means to "influence citizens' political opinions."
"They are also being employed in regional conflicts and disputes," Mustaqbal said.
The bloc stressed its "constitutional right to opposition and the practice of democracy in the face of attempts aimed at terrorization, intimidation and distortion of facts," reiterating its warning against "resorting to unilateral or vengeful behaviors."
Mustaqbal MPs underlined that they "will not be lenient in defending democracy, freedom of opinion and the rights of the Lebanese in the face of any attempt aimed at power monopolization, hegemony or obstruction of justice."
The bloc stressed that the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Leb probing the 2005 murder of ex-PM Rafik Hariri was "the only relevant side entitled to work on unveiling the truth and fulfilling justice."
It reiterated that "the tribunal is not meant for vengeance or reprisal, but rather for achieving justice."
On Sunday, the March 14 Those are the good guys, insofar as Leb has good guys... forces officially announced their refusal to take part in the country's new government.
The March 14 forces "reject to legitimize the coup ... and reject to turn into observers who cannot prevent violations," the coalition said in a statement recited by Saniora after an extraordinary meeting for its 60 MPs at the Bristol Hotel in Beirut.
On January 12, Hizbullah and its allies toppled Saad Hariri's cabinet in a long-running feud over the U.N.-backed STL.
Hizbullah-backed Najib Miqati was then appointed to form a new government, which Hariri's alliance has refused to join and has labeled "Hizbullah's government".
Hariri has refused to join Miqati's government without guarantees that his cabinet would see the tribunal through.
Hizbullah meanwhile is demanding Leb end all cooperation with the court, which it says is a U.S.-Israeli conspiracy.
While Hariri and his allies won Leb's last parliamentary election in 2009, shifting alliances today have positioned the Hizbullah-led camp as the majority after Druze leader Walid Wally Jumblat ... Druze politician, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, who's been on every side in Leb at least four times. He'll sell you his friends for a dollar, but family comes higher because of shipping and handling... moved closer to the Shiite party.
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03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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Premier-designate Najib Miqati's circles accused Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri of holding Miqati responsible for his alliance's boycott of the new cabinet at a time when Hariri had already made up his mind not to participate in the government.
The circles drew question marks over Hariri's speech on Monday in which he said March 14 Those are the good guys, insofar as Leb has good guys... waited for answers from Miqati for a month over its demands on the international tribunal and arms.
Miqati informed both the March 8 and 14 forces and the media since the first day of his nomination that he wouldn't make prior commitments to any team. "This is unconstitutional," the circles told As Safir daily in remarks published Tuesday.
They slammed Hariri for his blistering attack on Hizbullah's arms, saying the campaign against the group's weapons was aimed at torpedoing national dialogue sessions and resorting to the street.
The caretaker premier accused Hizbullah of using its arms in the past three years to influence political bickering in its favor.
Despite Hariri's speech, Miqati still holds onto his policy of extended hand to consolidate national unity and stability, the circles said.
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03/02/2011 00:00 ||
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The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the First Amendment protects a fringe religious group that protested at the funeral of a U.S. Marine killed in Iraq.
The court, on an 8-1 vote Scalia being the only justice to rule in favor of decency, something to which we do not have a right., ruled that the soldier's father couldn't sue Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., for celebrating his son's death with vulgar funeral pickets and an online attack.
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.
The two TSA agents and supervisor who completely missed the blades at a security checkpoint "will all be disciplined and undergo remedial training," said spokeswoman Ann Davis. 
Nawaz Sharif
This is the first time that the United Nations General Assembly has ever suspended anyone from the Human Rights Council.
[Straits Times] FOLLOWING on the success in fighting terrorism with its Densus 88 anti-terrorism unit, the National Police is planning to form another group assigned specifically to handle riots.
Hizbullah's arsenal of weapons
The March 14 forces "reject to legitimize the coup ... and reject to turn into observers who cannot prevent violations," the coalition said in a statement recited by Saniora after an extraordinary meeting for its 60 MPs at the Bristol Hotel in Beirut.
Najib Miqati
