Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Happy Birthday/Daily Gam Shot
Brooke Nevin aka Sara in "Infestation (2009)" aka Michelle Fields in "The Comebacks (2007)" aka Sierra Silver in "Archie's Final Project (2009)" aka Addy in "Sherman's Way (2008)" aka Julianne Simms in "" (age 29)
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] Churches, hotels and shopping malls in Kenyan are among social places being provided with blanket security in an effort to prevent a terrorist attack this festive season.
Security services are at an unprecedented state of alert amid reports that Al-Shabaab ... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda... , the Somali terrorist group, has dispatched bomb makers and assassins to eliminate Defence Minister Yusuf Haji and National Assembly Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim.
Interviews with various security officials revealed that a detailed operational plan was sent to commanders of security agencies on Wednesday.
The plan includes a guide to officers on terrorism prevention, detection and how to act in case of an emergency.
New measures have resulted in the security of selected ordinary public places being upgraded, albeit temporarily, to the status known in security parlance as "vital installations."
Normally, vital installations would, among others, include airports, military barracks, cop shoppes and foreign missions in Kenya.
This means the newly upgraded areas will be provided with the same level of security as the sensitive installations.
The new entrants into this category include some churches, hotels, selected entertainment joints, shopping malls as well as some media houses.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Daily Nation (Kenya)] An Ethiopian court said on Wednesday that two Swedish journalists were guilty of supporting a terrorist group, with the prosecution calling for a maximum sentence of 18 years and six months in prison.
That's probably not going to be much fun...
"Guilty as charged, period, unanimous vote. They have shown that they are esteemed journalists, but we cannot conclude that someone with a good reputation doesn't engage in criminal acts," Judge Shemsu Sirgaga told the court. Reporter Martin Schibbye and photographer Johan Persson were jugged in Ethiopia's Ogaden region on July 1 after entering the country from Somalia.
Both the freelancers were also found guilty of entering Ethiopia illegally.
"They have not been able to prove that they did not support terrorism," Shemsu said, speaking in Ethiopia's Amharic language.
Both news hounds appeared expressionless at the verdict, according to an AFP news hound in the court, but it was not clear whether they understood the judge since they had no translator.
So the 'Swedish' 'journalists' came to Ethiopia to report on a rebel group. They don't speak the language but that's okay, you don't need to speak to anyone to report the news.
They had earlier admitted contact with an outlawed rebel group and to entering Ethiopia illegally, but rejected terrorism charges including accusations they received weapons training.
Prosecution lawyers called for a sentence of 13 years for the terrorism charges, and a further five years and six months for entering Ethiopia without permission.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Fighter jets pounded rebel-held southern Somalia killing at least 10 people and wounding several others, the majority reportedly civilians, witnesses and Islamist militia commanders said Wednesday.
Military jets targeted several locations in Hosingow in the Lower Juba region, close to the Kenyan border late Tuesday, local elders said.
"There were at least three military planes that dropped bombs on Hosingow, and one hit a house killing civilians", said Abdi Isak, a witness.
"There were 11 people, most of them civilians, killed in the raid."
"One of the bombs struck near a street where people were running their businesses -- they dropped bombs and went away without knowing who they have killed," Ahmed Yusuf, another witness told Agence La Belle France Presse.
"More than ten have died and 13 others are injured, some of them seriously," he added.
It was not immediately clear where the airplanes were from, but neighboring Kenya has carried out several bombing raids in the region since launching an offensive against the al-Qaeda-linked Shebab rebels two months ago.
The hardline cut-thoats, who control large parts of southern Somalia but are facing increasing pressure from regional armies and government forces, condemned the Arclight airstrikes.
"The cowardly enemy has targeted civilians in Hosingow and killed more than 10 innocent civilians after their military jets bombed houses," regional Shebab official Sheikh Abukar Ali said.
"They have targeted civilian areas and committed crimes, but we will not let them go with the innocent blood of our people they have spilt... They will regret this, the mujahideen fighters will avenge the attack," he added.
The Horn of Africa country has been ravaged by a nearly uninterrupted civil war since the 1991 ouster of president Mohamed Siad Barre sparked vicious bloodletting by rival militias fighting for power.
Kenyan military officials vowed last week to carry out further air strikes deeper into rebel-held territory, claiming to have already killed several Shebab fighters in earlier raids.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Remember - all the Islamic al-Shabaab members are civilians, honored jihadis, and glorified muslims. No such thing as a "militant".
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/22/2011 13:10 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] Four soldiers were killed in a third day of fighting in Zinjibar between the army and al-Qaeda-linked Islamic fascistitrying to take over the restive southern city, military officials said on Wednesday.
"Four soldiers were killed and at least 20 others were maimed" in the battles to retake full control over Zinjibar from fighters of the al-Qaeda linked Partisans of Sharia (Islamic law) group late Tuesday, they said.
A local official in the adjacent town of Jaar said meanwhile that nearly 10 gunnies were killed in the fighting and that they were buried in the same town.
Yemeni government forces have been backed by tribal fighters and sometimes supported by U.S. drone strikes in their fight against the Partisans of Sharia, which has controlled most of Zinjibar since May.
In Huta, another southern city, an intelligence officer was also rubbed out late on Tuesday, a security official said.
"Masked gunnies suspected of belonging to al-Qaeda opened fire on Colonel Mohammed Saleh al-Taus near his house in Huta killing him immediately," said the official, adding the assailants decamped on their cycle of violence.
Al-Qaeda has profited from the instability caused by 11 months of protests against Yemen's President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... , strengthening its positions across the south of the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Emirates 24/7] British police said on Tuesday they were questioning a Pak man suspected of a terrorism offence after he was placed in long-term storage at Birmingham International Airport in central England.
The 22-year-old, who is studying in Britannia on a student visa, arrived on a flight from Dubai on Monday evening and was jugged after being found in possession of a suspicious document, police said.
He was placed in long-term storage "on suspicion of being in possession of a document likely to be of use to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism (contrary to Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000)", a police statement said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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For a map, click here. Proceso is now backing off its 40 dead claim, now saying social networks include Twitter has stated unconforimed 40 dead, but so far that far higher death toll is not confirmed. This story will be updated throughout the evening. Updating with the newer confirmed death toll.
Mexican press are reporting at least 16 individuals are confirmed dead in multiple firefights and attacks in northern Veracruz state Thursday morning.
Apparently armed suspects exchanged gunfire with Mexican federal security forces after they attacked three passenger buses bound from Tampico, Tamaulipas and Monterrey, Nuevo Leon. Five armed suspects are reportedly dead from those firefights.
Four armed suspects reportedly died in encounters with Mexican security forces in the area two days prior to the passenger bus attacks, while seven others in buses were killed by armed suspects this morning. The bus attacks were in apparent response to federal security forces intervention.
Reports are the fighting between security forces and criminal groups in the area lasted for hours,and ended at about 1300 hrs Thursday afternoon.
The gunfights took place on the Tempoal-Panuco road in northern Veracruz, about 20 kilometers southwest of Tampico, Tamaulipas. That stretch of highway of northern Veracruz stretches from Panuco south for 20 kilometers along Mexico Federal Highway 105.
The victims in the bus attacks were killed in Tantoyuca, Veracruz, about 10 kilometers east of the Tempoal-Panuco road.
Six unidentified armed suspects said to be members of the Los Zetas criminal gangs were killed by Jalisco state police Wednesday morning according to Mexican news accounts.
Six drops of bleach in the gene pool.
A Jalisco state police unit on patrol observed a convoy with several SUVs with armed suspects aboard near the village of Milpillas in Teul de Gonzalez Ortega municipality, and attempted a traffic stop.
The suspects aboard instead fired on the police, which initiated a brief vehicle pursuit. The pursuit ended in Zacatecas state where police return fire struck and killed six suspects. The remaining suspects continued to evade and eventually eluded the pursuit.
Policia Federal units in the area attempted to locate the fleeing suspects by using a Blackhawk UH-60 helicopter, but were unable to locate the convoy.
Among the rifles seized in the aftermath was a Barrett brand 0.50 caliber rifle, which Mexico considers an antiaircraft weapon. But it is more commonly known, in the US at least, as a long range sniper rifle. In fact, at least two Policia Federal observation helicopters were fired on last spring in Jalisco state during the height of a joint Mexican Army/Policia Federal counternarcotics operation.
Last week a rival Sinaloa group invaded Zacatecas state to attack police stations and Los Zetas safe houses in and around Zacatecas, the capital of Zacatecas state and Fresnillo, known as Zacatecas' second city. To read the Rantburg report on last week's Sinaloas Cartel sponsored mayhem, click here. Follow link embedded in the story to read other reports about the area.
Zacatecas shares a long and winding border with Jalisco state, which is used by criminal gangs to flee local police. Since the deployment of three additional rifle battalions in Zacatecas, that advantage to criminal gangs seems to have evaporated.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's successor Sonny Boy Kim Jong-un is apparently in control of the country's all-powerful military after his father's death. Kim junior on Monday ordered all troops to stop training and immediately return to their barracks, it emerged Wednesday. It was his first order as his father's successor.
"This shows that Kim Jong-un has gained full control of the military contrary to people's misgivings about his power base," a South Korean government source said Wednesday. "It also suggests that he will soon take command."
Another source said, "It seems Kim Jong-un issued the order almost at the same time as the official announcement of Kim Jong-il's death."
The North Korean military stopped training Monday and frontline units have since been flying flags at half-mast.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Oh, no. Not again...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
12/22/2011 0:01 Comments ||
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The Lil Kim who is aka Kimberly Jones probably has (or is near having) the all time record of NSFW images of her on the internet (including the one hotlinked earlier).
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
12/22/2011 11:44 Comments ||
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#7
Probably the best SFW introduction for Lil' Kim is the video of Lady Marmalade, which was a group effort produced by Missy Elliott, who does not stand for any b.s. It also has Christina Aguilera, Pink, and the lesser known Mya in it, who had real careers and didn't want to blow it.
Then, if you want the decidedly NSFW version of Lil' Kim, check out the video for How Many Licks, which was her in a duet with Sisqo.
Turkish troops killed 21 Kurdish rebels in festivities during the last six days, local security sources said Wednesday.
The festivities were in the area of the Gorese Mountain in the southeast province of Diyarbakir, they said, adding that the military offensive against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels was over.
The ground and air strikes targeted a group of between 50 and 70 PKK members in the area, local media reports said.
The Turkish military launched an operation in northern Iraq in October after a PKK attack killed 24 soldiers in the town of Cukurca near the Iraqi border, the army's biggest loss since 1993. The army then killed 36 Kurdish rebels in Kazan Valley of Hakkari province, near the Iraqi border.
Some media reports in Turkey and abroad, together with the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) have accused Turkey of using chemical weapons against the rebels, but the army denied the allegations. No, no! Certainly not!
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Attorneys told a federal judge Tuesday that a Lebanese immigrant accused of placing a backpack he thought held a bomb near Chicago's Wrigley Field will plead guilty under an agreement worked out with prosecutors -- a deal experts say may reflect the enormous odds the 23-year-old would face at trial.
Sami Samir Hassoun had pleaded not guilty "Wudn't me." to charges that he received a fake bomb he believed was real from undercover FBI agents last year and then dropped it into a trash bin on a busy street near the home of the Chicago Cubs.
At a hearing in Chicago, U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman set a date of Feb. 14 for Hassoun to change his plea. But neither side offered details about exactly what charges he would plead guilty to, and government and defense attorneys declined to comment after the hearing.
Hassoun has a strong incentive to reduce his potential prison time via a plea deal. A conviction on just one of the charges against him -- attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction -- carries a maximum life prison term.
Legal expert Karen Greenberg says suspects in terrorism cases have one overwhelming incentive to cut a plea agreement and to avoid taking the case to a jury: They almost never win at trial.
"And there's a very realistic chance of a very high sentence after trial. You just can't play around," said Greenberg, a director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law School in New York.
According to her center, out of 42 defendants charged with using or attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction since the Sept. 11attacks, there has been just one acquittal; 15 defendants have been convicted, five had the charge dropped and 21 of the cases are still pending.
Another expert says federal authorities also like to avoid a trial when possible, in part from fear that revelations in court could inspire copycats or inadvertently aid would-be beturbanned goons honing their own plots.
"Maybe the same methods can be used again or beturbanned goons can learn from another guy's mistakes," said Michael Fagel, a professor who teaches about homeland security at Northwestern University.
Defense attorneys have described Hassoun as gullible and prone to wild boasts -- but as having no links to bad turbans. They also told news hounds last year they would explore the possibility of using the trial defense that Hassoun was duped by federal agents.
A point of contention in recent filings was a defense request for the government to release the identity of an informant who tipped off authorities about Hassoun. That informant befriended Hassoun while at least two FBI undercover agents also got in touch, posing as co-plotters.
The defense claimed the informant would have been a key figure at trial because they allege he at one point threatened Hassoun not to back out of the plot. Prosecutors say there's no evidence of any such threat and that identifying the confidential source would open him up to reprisals.
While the pressure to cut a plea deal is heaviest on the defense, Greenberg says prosecutors often don't want to see their investigations subject to scrutiny. She said legitimate questions have been raised in this and other cases about whether there was some element of entrapment by federal agents.
The placed in durance vile Hassoun, a one-time bakery worker, did not appear at Tuesday's hearing. He has shown up at earlier hearings -- occasionally lifting his shackled hands to blow kisses to his mother on a spectators' bench.
According to prosecutors, Hassoun waffled about his plans, allegedly talking about profiting monetarily and another time broaching the idea of poisoning Lake Michigan or assassinating then-Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.
While it was harmless, prosecutors have said the device planted by Hassoun near Wrigley Field appeared ominous -- a paint can fitted with blasting caps and a timer.
Hassoun was deadly serious about the plot and it was "not a matter of talk or bravado," prosecutor Joel Hammerman told a judge shortly after Hassoun's arrest last year.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Twenty-five forces of Evil were killed and 17 security officials, including a major, were maimed in a clash in northwest Pakistain's Orakzai Agency ... crawling with holy men, home to Darra Adam Khel, the world's largest illegal arms bazaar. 14 distinct tribes of beturbanned primitives inhabit Orakzai agency's 1500 or so square kilometers... , DawnNews reported on Wednesday.
Government sources said forces of Evil attacked three security check posts in Orakzai's Dabori area, injuring 17 security personnel.
In retaliatory action, security forces attacked myrmidon hideouts using gunship helicopters. Five bad turban hideouts were destroyed in the action which also resulted in the killing of 25 myrmidons.
Orakzai is one of the most lawless areas in Pakistain's northwest tribal region, which is made up of seven districts near the Afghan border.
Security forces launched a major operation in Orakzai in March last year after forces of Evil fled a sweeping offensive in the nearby tribal district of South Wazoo.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] A Lahore High Court division bench on Tuesday issued non-bailable warrants of arrest for three accused involved in attack on Sri Lankan cricket team for not appearing before the court during the last many hearings.
The bench, comprising Justice Sheikh Ahmad Farooq and Kazim Raza Shamsi, also ordered the capital city police officer to arrest accused Qari Muhammad Mushtaq, Amanullah and Ubaidur Rehman and produce them in court.
The bench issued this order on a Punjab government's petition seeking cancellation of bails earlier granted to six accused involved in the attack on Sri Lanka team by different courts.
The court on the last hearing had summoned all the accused, but only three of them -- Mohsin Rashid, Javed Anwar and Abdullah -- had been appearing in the court.
An additional prosecutor general told the court on Tuesday all the six accused were identified during an identification parade and they had also confessed to their crime during investigation. He said a huge quantity of weapons and suicide jackets were also recovered from their possession. He pointed out that the accused were also not appearing before the trial court.
The government had requested the court to cancel the bails granted to the accused persons submitting that bully boyz could not be given the relief of bail under the law.
In the petition, the government took a plea that relief of bail given to the accused would send a wrong message to the Sri Lankan cricket team, which was subjected to the attack and rest of the world. The accused were misusing the concession of bail and it should be taken back, it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] At least eight people have been injured in a kaboom in northwestern Beautiful Downtown Peshawar city of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... province of Pakistain, Press TV reports.
Officials said that a bomb went kaboom! in a car near Nasir Mohmand hospital on Daora road of Sheikhabad area of Peshawar late Wednesday.
Two children were among the injured, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Security forces cordoned off the area and transferred the injured people to a local hospital.
After the blast, four shops caught fire and were completely destroyed. Two buildings were also destroyed while others nearby buildings, three cycle of violences and two cars were also damaged in the blast.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Militants blew up two government schools in Shabqadar area of Charsadda district, bordering Mohmand ... Named for the Mohmand clan of the Sarban Pahstuns, a truculent, quarrelsome lot. In Pakistain, the Mohmands infest their eponymous Agency, metastasizing as far as the plains of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar, Charsadda, and Mardan. Mohmands are also scattered throughout Pakistan in urban areas including Karachi, Lahore, and Quetta. In Afghanistan they are mainly found in Nangarhar and Kunar... tribal region, on Tuesday, police said.
The blasts were so powerful that several houses in the area also developed cracks. Taliban in Mohmand Agency grabbed credit for the attacks.
Police and locals said that faceless myrmidons planted improvised bombs at the buildings of government girls primary schools Matta Mughalkhel and primary school for boys Sa Ghundai at the night between Monday and Tuesday. The explosive devises went off with a big bang, they added.
Three rooms of the girls school and two rooms of boys school were destroyed completely in the blasts. The furniture and record of both the schools were also damaged.
The kabooms were heard in far and wide of the area. The windowpanes of several houses were broken. The blasts also caused cracks in the walls and floor of few houses in the area.
Police reached the site, cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. However, a good lie finds more believers than a bad truth... there was no report of any locked away till late night.
According to our correspondent in Mohmand Agency, local chief of Taliban Umar Khalid`s special secretary Mukarram Khurasani has grabbed credit for the attacks.
"We have destroyed two government schools in a single night to avenge destruction of our houses during the military operation in the region. The present education system is un-Islamic and not acceptable to us," he told journalists by telephone.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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A series of blasts Thursday morning in Baghdad killed at least 18 people and injured dozens more in a coordinated attack designed to wreak havoc across the Iraqi capital.
The blasts were the worst violence to hit the country since a political crisis between Iraqs Sunni and Shiite factions erupted this weekend. The political spat, which pits Iraqs Shiite prime minister against the highest-ranking Sunni political leader, has raised fears that Iraqs sectarian wounds will be reopened.
Iraqi officials said at least nine blasts went off early Thursday morning in neighborhoods around the city.
The worst attack was in the al-Amal neighborhood where seven people were killed in a blast that appeared to target rescuers and officials who came to the scene after a previous explosion. At least four people were killed in one western Baghdad neighborhood when two roadside bombs exploded.
All the information came from police and hospital officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
#7
It's just like downtown Baltimore... In about 9 to 18 months...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
12/22/2011 12:22 Comments ||
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#8
And so it begins...
Tater show up yet with his Madhi Army? Buddy of mine (contractor) just got back and said they've been setting up for a couple months, trying to do so quietly.
NINEWA / Aswat al-Iraq: An Iraqi military force arrested a leader in Hadba' List, security sources said here today. The arrested works as an advisor to Ninewa governor for sports affairs.
The source told Aswat al-Iraq that Younus Rasoul was arrested in his house, without knowing the reasons for such action.
Hadba' List is controlled by the Arabs, affiliate within Iraqiya bloc, has 19 seats out of 37 in the Provincial Council.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] Eight technicians, including five Iranian electrical engineers, have been reportedly kidnapped by unknown armed gunnies in the restive Syrian city of Homs.
In a statement issued by Iran's Embassy in Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... , it was confirmed that the group of engineers was kidnapped en route to the 450-MW power plant they were involved in building in Homs at 6:30 a.m. local time.
The embassy statement further said that it is closely working with relevant Syrian authorities and organizations to determine the fate of the kidnapped Iranian nationals.
On December 15, Iran's Minister of Road and Urban Development Ali Nikzad announced the country's willingness to help fulfill the economic needs of Syria amid the US-led Western economic pressure on Damascus.
Homs has been the scene of recent unrest in Syria that originated in mid-March, with demonstrations being held both against and in favor of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Trampler of Homs... While the West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of violence, Damascus blames ''outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups'' for the unrest that erupted in mid-March, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
In interviews with Israeli news outlets over the past few months, the Syrian opposition members have clearly expressed their vision for the future of Syria and their interest in establishing ties with the Tel Aviv regime.
Armed gangs have recently kidnapped many Syrian civilians and security forces in the city.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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At least 22 people were killed on Wednesday in festivities in the southern Syrian province of Daraa, where the protests against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Supressor of the Damascenes... 's regime erupted in March, a rights group said, as U.N. chief the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... expressed concern ...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended... about the mounting corpse count.
"Twenty-two people -- six deserters, a civilian and 15 members of the armed forces and security forces -- were killed and several dozen civilians were maimed in their homes," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
It said several of the civilians had been seriously maimed "during festivities in which both light and heavy machineguns were used in the town of Dael" in Daraa province.
The Britannia-based rights group also said that "security forces attacked the Omari mosque in Dael."
Earlier, the main opposition grouping the Syrian National Council appealed for an "emergency meeting for the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... to condemn the bloody massacres ... and cooperate with the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... in taking the necessary measures to protect Syrian civilians."
The SNC put the toll over the past 48 hours at 250 dead.
"The secretary general (Ban Ki-moon) remains extremely concerned about the escalating crisis and the mounting corpse count in Syria. As we have said repeatedly, the violence and killings must stop," U.N. front man Martin Nesirky told news hounds.
Nesirky said the U.N. was encouraged by Syria's signature of an accord to let Arab League observers into the country to monitor claims against President Bashir al-Assad's forces.
"Now it is critical for the government of Syria to extend its full cooperation to that mission," the front man added.
The U.N. said last week that more than 5,000 people had been killed in Assad's bloody crackdown on opposition protests, but concerns have been heightened by opposition accounts of more than 200 people killed in the past two days.
The new deaths come as an advance Arab League team prepares to head to Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... on Thursday to prepare the arrival of about 500 observers.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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According to Western intelligence agencies, even though the top brass is still loyal to President Bashar Assad, lower-level officers are deserting in large numbers, and in some cases, whole units have deserted en masse.
The army is considered the main factor safeguarding Assad's regime, after mass protests began in the south in March and spread throughout the country, inspired by the demonstrations elsewhere in the Arab world.
On Tuesday, at least 73 people were killed in Syria in clashes between the army and opposition, most of them in Homs in the west and Idlib in the northwest. The 73 dead added to the 100 who were killed on Monday, among them 14 soldiers ambushed by opposition forces, human rights groups said. The groups added that Assad's forces were transferring wounded opposition activists from hospitals to army bases to prevent them from testifying to Arab League observers expected to arrive under a deal struck on Monday.
A new law imposes the death penalty on anyone "smuggling arms to be used in terrorist activity."
More than 5,000 people have been killed in the unrest in Syria, most of them anti-Assad activists; in recent days dozens have been killed every day, on average. Still, the army has suffered many losses, mainly from ambushes by opposition forces and ex-soldiers. In some remote districts the opposition groups are getting stronger and the army is having problems operating.
The opposition is still weak in the two large cities, Damascus in the south and Aleppo in the north. The Syrian Republican Guard, concentrated mostly in Damascus, is well armed and considered loyal to Assad, making it more difficult to organize demonstrations in the capital. Still, even in Damascus, rockets have been launched at army vehicles.
One of the main worries in the West is the fate of the army's rocket and missiles caches, as well as its chemical weapons. According to several media reports, Hezbollah has transferred several long-range missiles from Syria to Lebanon. At this stage there is no proof that Hezbollah has transferred chemical weapons. Chemical weapons are not easy to maintain and handle, and as far as is known, Hezbollah does not have such expertise.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/22/2011 00:00 ||
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#3
The Russians shed a tear every time a despot loses it. They actually had the nerve yesterday of demanding an investigation of NATO collateral damage in the process of deposing Qaddafi.
However, that being said, the rebels could really set the Russians to thinking if they made them a deal by which they could keep their Syrian port later, if they stopped supporting pencil neck now.
But if they keep backing the loser, they can bid farewell to the Med for the foreseeable future.
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.
[An Nahar] Fighter jets pounded rebel-held southern Somalia killing at least 10 people and wounding several others, the majority reportedly civilians, witnesses and Islamist militia commanders said Wednesday.
Orakzai Agency
Punjab
[Iran Press TV] At least eight people have been injured in a 
Mohmand
Eight technicians, including five Iranian electrical engineers, have been reportedly kidnapped by unknown armed 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
