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Chavez Dead
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
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2 18:21 Marilyn Lover of the Hatfields1778 [1] 
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Page 2: WoT Background
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Page 3: Non-WoT
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2 21:20 USN,Ret. [2]
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4 19:13 Ebbang Uluque6305 []
7 18:57 JosephMendiola []
19 19:53 Barbara [1]
8 16:15 Shipman []
2 08:40 Steve White []
1 05:36 Cheaderhead []
11 19:55 Alanc [1]
1 17:42 Canuckistan sniper []
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Page 4: Opinion
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Page 6: Politix
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2 23:34 Redneck Jim [1]
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1 23:43 Redneck Jim []
Good Morning
Posted by: badanov || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Birthday Gam Shot

Eva Mendes[Filmography](age 39)



Nothing dumb to see here folks, move along.


Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 03/05/2013 0:57 Comments || Top||

#2  Certainly, Gavin Newsom and I can agree on at least one thing.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/05/2013 1:15 Comments || Top||

#3  Besoeker

You were thinking of the former Mrs Newsom, Kimberly Guilfoyle. One can understand the confusion since she was obviously designed by the same intelligence as Eva Mendes.
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 03/05/2013 2:51 Comments || Top||

#4  Two asses in one photo.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble || 03/05/2013 7:13 Comments || Top||

#5  Actually GB, I thought for a split second it was indeed a well tanned Guilfoyle, hence the Newsom comment. As Bob Beckel says, "there is a reason producers of "The Five" have her seated on the end".
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/05/2013 7:21 Comments || Top||

#6  I've always thought Guilfoyle's eyes were a mm or two too far apart.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man || 03/05/2013 20:57 Comments || Top||

#7  she'll have that corrected for the upcoming season
Posted by: Frank G || 03/05/2013 21:02 Comments || Top||


-Obits-
BREAKING: Chavez Dead
On Drudge Report, no details. More to follow.
Posted by: || 03/05/2013 16:57 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Tried like hell to emulated Franco's exit. Guess his cocaine ridden body couldn't make it to > 1 yr of being brain dead.
Posted by: Water Modem || 03/05/2013 17:03 Comments || Top||

#2  Sean Penn mortified.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 03/05/2013 17:03 Comments || Top||

#3  The Wall Street Journal adds that it was due to complications from cancer, and has a nice obituary here.
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/05/2013 17:09 Comments || Top||

#4  I really hope it's open-casket. Just so I can see his glorious face one-more time.

Then promptly imagine in the toilet bowl 5 minutes later.
Posted by: Charles || 03/05/2013 17:09 Comments || Top||

#5  Ghoul Pool gimme - just hope they don't pickle him like Lenin and plaster pictures of his carcass all over the place.
Posted by: Bangkok Billy || 03/05/2013 17:10 Comments || Top||

#6  you can still smell the sulphur
Posted by: Frank G || 03/05/2013 17:14 Comments || Top||

#7  They had to wait until they figured out the succession and get the troops in place.

Maybe the smell got too bad or he was turning funny colors and the buzzards in the yard were a dead give away.
Posted by: Bill Clinton || 03/05/2013 17:15 Comments || Top||

#8  Buzzards? I thought they were grieving family.
Posted by: Charles || 03/05/2013 17:22 Comments || Top||

#9  Bill's right. They ran out of ice.

Bye, bye asshole! Hope you like it warm.
Posted by: Alanc || 03/05/2013 17:24 Comments || Top||

#10  Senn Penn, Harry Belefonte, Susan Seradon, oliver stone and Danny Glover were big fans of Chavez. Maybe they'll go to the funeral and stay there.
Posted by: lord garth || 03/05/2013 17:27 Comments || Top||

#11  Good riddance.
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/05/2013 17:41 Comments || Top||

#12  Made my wine all the sweeter , thanks Hugo !At last he's been expropriated
Posted by: Bubba Thud5705 || 03/05/2013 18:00 Comments || Top||

#13  Venezuelan Army mobilized and deployed.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/05/2013 18:00 Comments || Top||

#14  And this is where I do my happy dance.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 03/05/2013 18:05 Comments || Top||

#15  Hugo is now Hugone. Say hello to Hitler.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 03/05/2013 18:35 Comments || Top||

#16  Goodbye and Good riddance.
Posted by: Redneck Jim || 03/05/2013 18:51 Comments || Top||

#17  Hel just got a little more crowded.
Posted by: charger || 03/05/2013 19:01 Comments || Top||

#18  I mean "hell".

He's not a Viking, after all.
Posted by: charger || 03/05/2013 19:02 Comments || Top||

#19  Rest in Pieces
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 03/05/2013 19:38 Comments || Top||

#20  Beat me to it, Rex.

BURN IN HELL, Chavez. Hope you're comfy between Adolph and Osama.
Posted by: Barbara || 03/05/2013 19:49 Comments || Top||

#21  I only regret that as I got older, I can't hold as much urine. Where is he going to be buried?
Posted by: Frank G || 03/05/2013 20:02 Comments || Top||

#22  Frank for snark of the day.
Posted by: Water Modem || 03/05/2013 20:36 Comments || Top||

#23  Welcome to Hell, Hugo. Here's your pineapple ....
Posted by: gorb || 03/05/2013 21:00 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
U.S. dismantles Afghan outposts as it pulls back
Late last year, before leaving Forward Operating Base Tillman for the final time, U.S. troops took apart every bit of the remote outpost near the border with Pakistan, from the dirt-packed barricades to the flat-screen TVs in the intelligence center.

Mohibullah Samim, the governor of Paktika province, called it a waste. He said, "I was against dismantling it. It would have been better to hand it over to the Afghan army to keep the border area safe."
It's a border outpost. Build one yourself...
The mountaintop outpost was long a potent symbol of the American war effort, and military commanders were concerned that it would be a prime target for Islamist insurgents to seize after American troops left. But now it is a symbol of the U.S. withdrawal and the debate over how best to provide for the Afghan forces who will soon be fully responsible for defending their country.

As the military coalition begins to bring home most of its troops and tens of billions of dollars in equipment, coalition officials are negotiating with Afghanistan over whether to raze or hand over the many checkpoints, guard towers, isolated outposts and sprawling bases.

In weekly meetings, Afghans have asked the coalition not to demolish any more bases, saying that they could continue to serve as security installations or be converted into facilities the government can't afford to build, such as schools. But while many bases are being handed over, U.S. commanders have told Afghan officials that dozens, including Tillman, would have been too challenging to sustain given Afghanistan's limited capabilities.

For some Afghans, the loss of these outposts highlights the uneasy reality that they will carry on the war against the Taliban with fewer facilities and far less firepower. Afghan soldiers and police have watched as bases are disassembled, no doubt realizing that coalition troops will be the next to go.

Ameen Habibi, a senior Finance Ministry official involved in the talks, said, "Even if these bases are remote, at some point they served a security benefit. They can continue to serve that purpose."

But coalition officials are concerned that Afghans will leave strategic outposts unprotected, and perhaps let them fall into enemy hands. They say they're trying to hand over only the infrastructure that Afghan forces will be able to maintain.

A U.S. official said the Afghans' "instinct was, at the beginning of this, 'Turn over all your facilities to us and anything you don't want, like Humvees or whatever, leave those behind.' And we said that's the wrong approach. If we were to do that you'd spend all your time, energy and money figuring out what to do with this stuff and how to run it and how to maintain it because you don't have the capacity to do that."
Posted by: ryuge || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  If we were to do that you'd spend all your time, energy and money figuring out what to do with this stuff and how to run it and how to maintain it because you don't have the capacity to do that."

Rolex wearing American Yorkshires comes to mind.

Posted by: Besoeker || 03/05/2013 1:25 Comments || Top||

#2  "I was against dismantling it. It would have been better to hand it over to the Afghan army to keep the border area safe.for further hand off to the Taliban."
Posted by: USN,Ret. || 03/05/2013 1:26 Comments || Top||

#3  Mark the locations GPS coordinates and prepare explosives in any 'bunker' type areas that might allow bad guys to hide from bombs. Then let them take it.

I suspect a lot of Aghans are thinking 'good thing we didn't really take sides so now the Taliban won't be pissed at us' when they should be thinking 'if we took sides the Taliban might be gone and the Yankees might be building schools instead of ignoring our begging to convert sand-bag bases into schools. Indecisive, should have learned the lesson from the Vietnamese.
Posted by: rjschwarz || 03/05/2013 14:40 Comments || Top||

#4  Another good reason to leave NOTHING behind is that it minimizes the possibility of some sort of asinine "I got hurt playing in the abandoned outpost" lawsuit...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 03/05/2013 16:36 Comments || Top||

#5  This will not end well for the women of Afghanistan.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 03/05/2013 17:04 Comments || Top||


Africa North
Al-Qaeda confirms Abou Zeid killed in Mali
[VANGUARDNGR] Al-Qaeda's branch in northern Africa on Monday confirmed that one of its big shots, Abdelhamid Abou Zeid, had been killed in northern Mali, a report said.

Zeid was killed as a result of a French bombing raid in the Ifoghas mountains, a member of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI) who normally writes for jihadist websites told the private Mauritanian news agency Sahara Medias.

He denied claims, however, that another Islamist leader in the region, Mokhtar Belmokhtar, had been killed, saying that Belmokhtar "is in the Gao region, waging the fight against he enemy."
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in North Africa

#1  Too many big shots - pull the Valkyries and use something more fitting like succubi.
Posted by: Water Modem || 03/05/2013 20:58 Comments || Top||


Unrest in Egyptian city draws in the military and raises warning of breakdown of order
[Washington Post] Clashes between protesters and the police in in the restive Egyptian city of Port Said that entered their second day Monday have dragged in the military to a dramatic extent into the nation's turmoil.

At times in the violence, frictions have arisen between the police that were battling protesters and army forces that tried to break up the fighting. Troops in between the two sides were overwhelmed by police tear gas, one army colonel was maimed by live fire, and troops even opened fire over the heads of police, bringing cheers from protesters.

Three coppers and three non-combatants were killed in the fighting, and troops stood by as protesters torched a government complex Monday that contains the city's main police building.

The scenes, following three weeks of strikes and protests in the city, have underlined a scenario that many in Egypt view with a mix of concern and relief -- that the military may move back into politics, prompted by mushrooming protests, a breakdown in law and order and mounting challenges to the Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Some opponents of Morsi have outright called for the military to take power, and even those who say they oppose a military return have used the prospect to pressure Morsi to find some consensus in the country's political crisis.

Prominent opposition leader Mohammed ElBaradei warned of decaying state institutions and rising levels of violence.

"The regime in its current form is unable to manage the country," he wrote on his Twitter account. "There must be a radical review before it is too late."

Unable to halt the violence, both the police and military Monday sought to deny any tensions between them. Meanwhile,
...back at the saloon, Butch got the bill for the damage caused by the fist fight, the mirror broken in the shootout, and drinks for everyone......
there was no official comment from the presidency following one of the worst flare-ups of violence since January.

Unrest also spread in other parts of the country. In the capital, Cairo, protesters blocked the main thoroughfare along the Nile River, and police tried to clear them with volleys of tear gas. Other disgruntled young men set fire to two police cars in two different locations in Cairo, sending police fleeing the vehicles in the middle of traffic.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring

#1  "You know, I'm just sitting in this cell..."

/Hosni
Posted by: Pappy || 03/05/2013 10:27 Comments || Top||

#2  So 250 million for tear gas & rubber bullets?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/05/2013 14:01 Comments || Top||

#3  Well, yes. I'm sure there's Obama contributors worthy U.S. companies that need the business.
Posted by: Pappy || 03/05/2013 15:32 Comments || Top||

#4  Just make sure there's some pork fat mixed with that OC...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 03/05/2013 16:39 Comments || Top||


Politician nephew slain in Sidi Bouzid
[MAGHAREBIA] The 21-year-old nephew of a Tunisian political party leader was found dead of a knife wound at his Sidi Bouzid home on Sunday (March 3rd), Tunisie Numerique reported.

Mohamed Hechmi Hamdi, who heads al-Aridha Chaabia in the Constituent Assembly, denied suggestions that his nephew's death was a political liquidation, Al Chourouk reported.

Following its strong finish in the Tunisia elections and a successful appeal, al-Aridha is now the third-strongest force in the assembly, after the CPR and ruling party Ennahda
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Libya Congress sit-in turns violent
[MAGHAREBIA] Four security officers were maimed while trying to remove ex-revolutionaries from Libya's General National Congress (GNC), AFP reported on Sunday (March 3rd).

The former rebels, including amputees, have been occupying the GNC hall since February 3rd. The sit-in has forced assembly members to meet in a nearby hotel.

The protestors have made various demands, including medical treatment abroad.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Africa Subsaharan
Nigeria: Suspected Boko Haram Members Arrested in Ibadan
[ALLAFRICA] Five suspected members of the dreaded Islamic Sect, Boko Haram
... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
were yesterday tossed in the calaboose
You have the right to remain silent...
in Ibadan by coppers from the Oyo State Police Command.

They were arrested around 12.30 am at Jagan Community in Akinyele Local Government Area of the state. The five suspected Boko Haram members were said to have arrived from Jos on Friday night.

The suspects, who are being locked away
Book 'im, Mahmoud!
at the Kajorepo Police Station along Ojo-Iwo road, are assisting the police in their investigation on their mission to the state.

A police source who pleaded anonymity said that the suspects needed to be investigated thoroughly before they could be released.He wondered why they would come to the state without any tangible mission.

He however assured that if at the end of the investigation nothing incriminating was found on them, they would be released.

On Friday night, it was learnt that an occupant of a delapidated building in the community simply identified as Kazeem had arrived around 11.30 pm when he discovered that four hefty men were sleeping in his place of abode.

He was said to have immediately alerted leaders of the community, who called the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Kajorepo Police Station.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Boko Haram


Arabia
Suicide Car Bomb Kills Five in South Yemen
Trend Azerbaigan puts the corpse count at 13.
[An Nahar] A suicide boom-mobileing killed five people and maimed at least eight others on Monday when it hit a post run by pro-government forces of Evil in the south Yemen city of Loder, witnesses and medics said.

"Five were killed and more than eight maimed in the kaboom of a boom-mobile driven by a suicide kaboomer targeting a position of the Popular Resistance Committees," said a witness from the militias which have battled al-Qaeda alongside government forces.

A medical source confirmed the corpse count but it was not immediately clear if the casualties were members of the militia or civilians.
A suicide boom-mobileing killed five people and maimed at least eight others on Monday when it hit a post run by pro-government forces of Evil in the south Yemen city of Loder, witnesses and medics said.

"Five were killed and more than eight maimed in the kaboom of a boom-mobile driven by a suicide attacker targeting a position of the Popular Resistance Committees," said a witness from the militias which have battled al-Qaeda alongside government forces.

A medical source confirmed the corpse count but it was not immediately clear if the casualties were members of the militia or civilians.

Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Arabia


Bangladesh
Police out in force as strike cripples Bangladesh
[Dawn] Schools and businesses were shut Monday across Bangladesh on the second day of a general strike as huge numbers of police were deployed to put a halt to the deadliest bout of violence since independence.

Sixty-one people are now known to have died in festivities since Thursday when Islamists erupted in outrage at the sentencing to death of one of their leaders who was convicted of war crimes dating back to the 1971 liberation conflict.

Delwar Hossain Sayeedi
...Islamic orator and politician. He was a former Member of Parliament in the National Assembly of Bangladesh from 1996 to 2008, and is one of the most prominent leaders of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami...
, who is the vice-president of the Jamaat-e-Islami
...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores...
party, was the third Islamist to be sentenced by the domestic tribunal.

Although there were no immediate reports of fresh violence on Monday, police did confirm the death of a man in the southwestern district of Satkhira following festivities on Sunday between border guards and Jamaat supporters.

The latest death brought the overall toll to 77 people since the court handed down its first verdict on January 21, making it the bloodiest round of violence since the country broke free from Pakistain more than four decades.

The verdicts and the ensuing violence prompted Jamaat to call a two-day nationwide strike that began Sunday and has virtually crippled the country.

As well as the closure of shops, schools and government offices, the main road between the capital Dhaka and the second city Chittagong was virtually deserted on Monday as were other inter-city highways.

The numbers of security personnel have been beefed up throughout the country, particularly in Dhaka where around 10,000 coppers and members of the elite Rapid Action Battalion were on duty Monday.

As part of their protests, the Islamists have managed to blockade a highway leading to the popular Cox's Bazar tourist region, where several hundred holidaymakers have been trapped including some foreigners.

District police chief Azad Miah told AFP that while more than 3,000 tourists had been able to leave since Thursday, mostly having flown out of the local airport, around 700 remained stranded.

The government has banned rallies and gatherings in at least four towns in the north to quell violence, police said.

The war crimes trials of a dozen leaders from Jamaat and the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party have opened old wounds and divided the nation, with the opposition accusing the government of staging a witch-hunt.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Islami

#1  There's a moral here.

We have three countries carved out of one colony. Two are moslem, one is any and all forms of religion you can imagine. The two moslem countries are a trainwreck, actually a major fatal plane crash and the vast assortment of religion place is thriving as an emerging economic power. Same basic ethnic groups, same region, same basic problems with resources, agriculture and weather.

SO what's the difference?

I give you one guess. If you can't figure out why Bangladesh (or whatever they call that place today) and Pakistanarchy are a mess and India is a burgeoning world economic and political force, you are a complete idiot...I guess that means just about every one at CIA and State? I suppose so.
Posted by: Bill Clinton || 03/05/2013 10:52 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
11 die in Sinaloa state

For a map, click here

A total of 11 individuals were killed in 24 hours in the western Mexican state of Sinaloa, including four municipal police agents among seven found dead in one incident Monday morning, according to Mexican news accounts.

A news account which appeared on the website of El Universal news daily said the seven victims were found aboard a Jeep SUV which had been incinerated near the village of Ojo de Agua in the Aguaverde section of Rosario municipality, in the far south of Sinaloa state.

Four of the victims were local police agents identified as José Guadalupe Toledo Barron, David Vazquez Canizales, Antonio Cardenas Aguiar and Luis Alberto Crespo Peralta. Two of three other victims were civilians identified as Gustavo Salcido Corrales and José Alfredo Lopez Cazarez.

Police found 90 spent cartridge casings at the scene from .45 caliber, 9mm, AR-15 and AK-47 rifles. The victims were reportedly kidnapped Sunday night.

Rosario municipality is about 20 kilometers south of Mexico Federal Highway 40, Mexico's northernmost contiguous east-west highway running coast to coast, from the Sinaloa port city of Mazatlan to northern Tamaulipas state.

According to the news account four other unidentified individuals were murdered in Sinaloa state, two in San Ignacio municipality, which is north of Rosario and two in the community of El Tecomate.

Chris Covert writes Mexican Drug War and national political news for Rantburg.com
Posted by: badanov || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
Islamic teacher gunned down in Dagestan
Unknown assailants gunned down a teacher at an Islamic school in Russia's North Caucasus Republic of Dagestan. The Dagestani Interior Ministry said on March 4 that Magomed Biyarslanov was found dead shot several times in the chest inside his house in the village of Gubden late on March 3.
Posted by: ryuge || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Two killed in clashes following burial of Karachi blast victims
[Dawn] The atmosphere in Pakistain's commercial capital turned tense after mourners buried some of the victims of the previous days bombing that killed 48 people in a Shia-dominated area of Bloody Karachi
...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous...
At least two people were killed and several maimed as festivities broke out in the city's Sohrab Goth area after gunnies opened fired on mourners returning from the funeral procession.

Participants of the funeral procession came under heavy fire near Al-Asif square in Sohrab Goth area, DawnNews reported.

Officials said gunnies shot and killed two people as they were returning from the funeral for victims of the massive bombing.

Police official Qamar Ahmad said some members of the Shia community attending Monday's funeral set fire to buses in the neighborhood.

After the funeral, when they moved through the same area, gunnies opened fire on the group and maimed several protesters.

Dr. Saleem Memon, who works at the hospital where the maimed were taken, said two men died and another 13 were maimed.

Sporadic bursts of gunfire were reported in the Sohrab Goth and near Abbas Town areas following the incidents.

According to reports, four Rangers personnel were also maimed in the festivities.

According to some estimates, up to 30 vehicles, including cars, cycle of violences, and an ambulance were said to have been set on fire.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Jhangvi


Shikarpur shrine blast: Syed Hajan Shah succumbs to injuries
[Dawn] Gaddi Nasheen of Dargah Ghulam Shah Ghazi, Syed Hajan Shah, who was maimed in an attack on the Dargah in the village of Maari near Shikarpur on Feb 25, succumbed to his wounds on Monday, DawnNews reported.

Reports suggest that business and other social activities came to a halt in the town after the news of his death was made public.

Sources said that angry mobs came out on the streets, protesting against the culprits behind the devastating attack that killed at least three and injured dozens on Feb 25.

Syed Hajan Shah among two his children and three women had received serious injuries in the kaboom.

According to DIG Larkana Abdul Khaliq Sheikh, an unidentified man talking on a mobile phone had placed a bag in the Dargah. There was the blast soon after he left the area.

Eyewitnesses said the man had placed the bag in the hall where the Gaddi Nasheen and his followers were sitting and within 15 minutes the blast took place.

Earlier on Feb 20, the motorcade of spiritual leader Syed Ghulam Hussain Shah Buhkari was also attacked near Jacobabad. His grandson Syed Shafique Shah was killed and more than eight people were maimed in the attack.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Jhangvi


Iraq
Gunmen Kill 48 Syrians, 9 Iraqis in Anbar and Maliki Spokesman Says 'War Won't Spread to Iraq'
[An Nahar] Gunmen killed 48 Syrians and nine Iraqis Monday as they ambushed a convoy in western Iraq carrying Syrian soldiers to the border, the premier's front man said, vowing to resist attempts to spread Syria's conflict to its neighbor.

The ambush, a day after a key Syrian opposition group accused Iraq of interfering in Syria, threatens to entangle Iraq in its neighbor's bloody, prolonged civil war -- something Storied Baghdad
...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate...
has sought to avoid.

"This confirms our fears of the attempt of some to move the conflict to Iraq, but we will face these attempts by all sides with all of our power," Ali Mussawi, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's front man, told Agence La Belle France Presse, putting the toll from the ambush at 48 Syrian soldiers and nine Iraqi soldiers killed.

The Syrian soldiers crossed into Iraq from the Yaarubiyeh border crossing, scene of fighting on Saturday between rebels and troops loyal to Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Terror of Aleppo ...
, Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Khalaf al-Dulaimi said.

The soldiers were first transported by Iraqi authorities to Storied Baghdad from the northern Nineveh province, bordering Yaarubiyeh, and were on their way to being handed over to Syrian authorities on the border with western Anbar province when they were ambushed, he added.

Armed men attacked the convoy from two sides with mortar rounds, automatic weapons and mines.

Dulaimi said eight Syrians and four Iraqis were also maimed in the attack, while three vehicles in the convoy were destroyed.

The ambush was "a clear message to all Iraqis that what is happening in Syria today effectively moved to Iraq," political analyst Hamid Fadhel told AFP.

Anbar province's Sunni residents have close tribal, family and trade ties with eastern Syria, with which the province shares a long border.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq

#1  Promises, promises.

AFAIK the Iranian Navy + IRGC Speedboats taint able to fly over Iraq + Syria to get to the Med.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/05/2013 0:43 Comments || Top||

#2  Close deh Ratlines..... no wait...

nvr mnd
Posted by: Shipman || 03/05/2013 16:05 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Hamas on lookout for Israeli spies. Really.
GAZA CITY - Gaza's Hamas rulers say they will begin a new campaign to find Palestinian collaborators with Israel.

Col. Mohammed Lafi of Gaza's Interior Ministry said on Monday that the campaign aims to protect Palestinian groups battling Israel. Lafi says they will also warn other Palestinians of the dangers of spying. Israel security officials have long relied on a network of informants in the Palestinian territories to keep tabs on militants.

Since Hamas seized power in Gaza in 2007, it has taken a tough line on Palestinians accused of collaboration with Israel. Gunmen have killed more than 24 suspected collaborators, and jailed 20 suspects.
Posted by: Steve White || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Some estimates place the number of collaborators at one in five. Keep up the excellent work Col. Lafi.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/05/2013 8:07 Comments || Top||

#2  I would have said one in four, but that counts part-time collaboration.
Posted by: Pappy || 03/05/2013 10:30 Comments || Top||

#3  Colonel Lafi? Colonel "Mahmoud" Lafi? Bwahahahaha!
Posted by: Grunter || 03/05/2013 10:31 Comments || Top||

#4  I'm thinking...one in two.
Posted by: tu3031 || 03/05/2013 19:42 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
Malaysia Attacks Filipino Rebels With Jets and Mortars
Malaysia used airstrikes and mobilized thousands of troops on Tuesday to try to put an end to a monthlong quixotic incursion by a band of gunmen from the Philippines seeking to reclaim part of Borneo Island for a defunct sultanate.

Three F-18 fighter jets and five Hawk ground-attack aircraft bombed and strafed the estimated 200 Filipino gunmen holed up near the small northeastern Malaysian village of Kampung Taduo, Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid of Malaysia said on Tuesday.

The airstrikes were followed by a ground assault that killed an undetermined number of the Filipino gunmen but caused no Malaysian casualties, the defense minister said.

“The armed forces’ operation to defend the nation’s sovereignty has been fruitful,” he told reporters, without providing details on whether all of the gunmen had been captured or killed.

Reports on Malaysia’s state-run news agency, Bernama, showed armored personnel carriers moving through the streets of Sabah State while military helicopters flew overhead. Military roadblocks have been set up around the area to stop the spread of the fighting, and villagers reported that in at least one case they had to remove the corpses of Filipino fighters from the streets of their village.

The assault came after weeks of pleas by the Philippine and Malaysian governments for the gunmen to return to the southern Philippines. Malaysian forces tried repeatedly to dislodge the gunmen by force with at least 27 killed in fighting before Tuesday’s major offensive. The current death toll is unclear.
Posted by: tipper || 03/05/2013 13:28 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "Whoops. I think they just said 'no'"
Posted by: Frank G || 03/05/2013 15:22 Comments || Top||

#2  Nice to see that a Muslim country can toss Lawn Darts properly...
Posted by: Steve White || 03/05/2013 16:28 Comments || Top||


Malaysian troops launch attack against sultan's followers
Malaysian troops launched an attack on an armed Filipino group on Tuesday, trying to end a standoff in Sabah after violence in recent days that killed at least 27 people, a Malaysian government official said.

The operation to take over an area occupied by about 180 Filipinos, dozens of them armed, began at 7 a.m., a spokesman for Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said. The government sent seven army battalions to the area in eastern Sabah state on Monday to reinforce police.

Two policemen were killed along with 12 militants when Malaysian security forces tried to tighten a cordon around the armed group on Friday. That triggered more violence over the weekend with six policemen and seven more gunmen killed in another area.

In a statement, Najib said, "After the first attack, I have asserted that the intruders must surrender and if they refuse the authorities of this country will take action. The government has to take the right action in order to preserve the pride and sovereignty of this country."
Posted by: ryuge || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The Milaction repor includes Airpower = Jet Strikes agz the Royal Army of Sulu.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/05/2013 0:39 Comments || Top||


Malaysian-trained MNLF fighters join sultan in Sabah
Malaysian security forces are now facing battle-hardened, Malaysian-trained commanders of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), who know Sabah well.

Hadji Acmad Bayam, former chief propagandist of the MNLF, told this yesterday to the Manila Bulletin, adding that these MNLF forces may have a huge arsena at their disposal, hidden deep in Sabah's rugged terrain. Among the firearms are Belgian-made G1 and FAL, which former Libyan leader Colonel Moammar Gaddafi supplied through Malaysia.

Bayam said Filipinos in Sabah, who are not part of the forces of the Sultanate of Sulu, have already joined the fighting in reaction to what they considered to be Malaysian "atrocities" for killing Imam Maas and his four sons.

He recalled that Malaysia's leadership had even suspected the then chief minister of Sabah, Tun Mustapha, a Tausug from Sulu, of "conspiring" with MNLF Chairman Nur Misuari. He said, "You know, if Mindanao is to Manila, Sabah is to Kuala Lumpur," explaining that Mindanao and Sabah are the "milking cows" of the Philippines and Malaysia, respectively, because of their rich natural resources.

Last Sunday, Abraham J. Idjirani, spokesman of Sultan Kiram III, said 40 people from Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, and Zamboanga Peninsula breached the blockades and reached Lahad Datu, the scene of the standoff that erupted into a firefight. He said there are many others who are now trying to come to Sabah and help the sultan's followers.

Bayam said that he sees no turning back with the situation in Sabah. On the other hand, he said this gives the US an opportunity to correct the "historical error" it committed against the Moro people. He said this was even acknowledged by the administration of then President George Bush in response to a letter from the late Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Chairman Ustadhz Salamat Hashim.

Bayam said, "This is the best time and opportunity. They should seize the fleeting opportunity or lost it forever. As the only leader of the free world, the only guardian of human rights, freedom and democracy, the American government has the opportunity to correct the historical error against the Moro people."

Meanwhile, Sultan Kiram III, feeling abandoned by the Philippines, yesterday said they are now relying on the United Nations, United States, and United Kingdom for help. He said they are no longer waiting for help from the Acquino administration because none will come anyway.

On Aquino's appeal to preserve the lives of the Sultanate of Sulu's followers, the sultan struck a defiant note. He said, "No more. There is no more preservation... it's in the hands of Almighty Allah."
Posted by: ryuge || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  What sayeth ABU SAYAF/ABU SAYYAFF + other newbie foreign militant-terror Boyz to the PHIL???

Region???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/05/2013 18:39 Comments || Top||


Village security man gunned down in southern Thailand
A village security team member was gunned while driving a motorcycle in Narathiwat's Rueso district on Monday morning. The slain man as as Marosi Yaning, a member of the security squad for Ban Paluka Paero in Bacho district.

Marosi heading to Ban Yuelapae on a motorcycle when he was attacked by men hiding in a rubber plantation. Marosi was hit in the chest with a pistol shot and fell to the ground. The attackers then emerged from the road side and one of them fired another shot into his head.
Posted by: ryuge || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Thai Insurgency


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Syria Rebels Overrun Raqa City, Says NGO
[An Nahar] Syrian rebels battling troops loyal to Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Terror of Aleppo ...
overran Raqa on Monday after days of fierce fighting, and were now in "near-total control" of the northern city, a watchdog reported.

"This is the first bustling provincial capital in Syria where rebels have made such progress. They now have near-total control of Raqa city, except for some regime positions, including the military security and Baath party headquarters," Rami Abdel Rahman, the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.

According to the Observatory, Al-Nusra Front jihadists fought alongside other rebel groups in the battle for the northern city, strategically located on the Euphrates river near the Turkish border.

In Raqa, residents destroyed a statue of Assad's father and predecessor Hafez, according to amateur video footage distributed by activists.

The Observatory reported that a police chief was killed and two security bigshots captured by the rebels.

"Rebels took the state security chief to Turkey," Abdel Rahman said, noting that the road linking Raqa to Turkey, including the border crossing at Tal al-Abyad, was under rebel control.

Raqa was once home to 240,000 residents, but some 800,000 people forced to flee violence in other parts of Syria have sought shelter there ever since the start of the conflict.

In recent weeks, rebel fighters cut off all the army's supply routes leading to the city and escalated their attacks on checkpoints and other regime positions.
Posted by: Fred || 03/05/2013 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


Terror Networks
Call links Benghazi attack to al-Qaida figure
Shortly after the attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi last September, a phone call was placed from the area.

Whoever made the call was excited. "Mabruk, Mabruk!" he repeated, meaning "Congratulations" in Arabic.

Two sources with high-level access to Western intelligence services have told CNN the call was made to a senior figure in al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM. There is no proof that the call was specifically about the attack, in which U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed, but the sources say that is the assumption among those with knowledge of the call.

One of the sources says the phone call was discovered when a Western intelligence service trawled through intercepts of communications made in the wake of the attack. That source told CNN that the call was made specifically to Moktar Belmoktar, leader of an al-Qaida faction based in northern Mali.

CIA officials told CNN they had no comment on whether any call had been intercepted.

If the call was made and subsequently detected, it could fuel an already partisan debate in Washington over the Obama administration's initial public characterization of the Benghazi attack, and what information U.S. intelligence officials had about who was involved.

Critics say initial administration comments did not reflect the true intelligence about the incident, and were an attempt by the administration to avoid tying it to terrorism.
This article starring:
Moktar Belmoktar
Posted by: tipper || 03/05/2013 14:02 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Unless he can more than 2 bars in hell he ain't getting any more calls.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 03/05/2013 17:05 Comments || Top||

#2  How did Al Qaida know about the events of 2009 before our government and military the Apple party on the nasa website thing crazy sound! chat room records doesn't the gov know?!?
Posted by: Marilyn Lover of the Hatfields1778 || 03/05/2013 18:21 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
50[untagged]
5Govt of Pakistan
5Arab Spring
4Jamaat-e-Islami
3Lashkar e-Jhangvi
2al-Qaeda in North Africa
2Govt of Syria
1Thai Insurgency
1al-Qaeda in Arabia
1al-Qaeda in Iraq
1Boko Haram
1Govt of Iran
1Govt of Iraq
1Hamas

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Two weeks of WOT
Tue 2013-03-05
  Chavez Dead
Mon 2013-03-04
  Twenty Islamists Killed in Northeast Nigeria
Sun 2013-03-03
  Jamaat, Shibir stay violent; toll rises to 47
Sat 2013-03-02
  Chad says soldiers in Mali kill al Qaeda's Belmokhtar
Fri 2013-03-01
  Al-Qaeda commander Abu Zeid killed in Mali
Thu 2013-02-28
  Syrian Rebels Say They Killed Hezbollah Deputy Chief
Wed 2013-02-27
  Syria Rebels Push into Police Academy as Jets Strike
Tue 2013-02-26
  Over 50 killed in battle for Syria police academy
Mon 2013-02-25
  Taliban suicide bombers hit Afghan cities, Kabul attack foiled
Sun 2013-02-24
  Karzai orders US special forces out of Afghan province
Sat 2013-02-23
  Syrian Rebels Claim To Seize Nuclear Facility
Fri 2013-02-22
  Boko Haram Denies Ceasefire, Pastes Threat Posters In Borno
Thu 2013-02-21
  Bombing in Indian Hyderabad, at least 11 killed
Wed 2013-02-20
  French nationals kidnapped in northern Cameroon
Tue 2013-02-19
  Mortars land near Syrian presidential palace

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