[Al Arabiya Latest] Somalia's hard-line Shabab insurgents Friday said they will send fighters to Yemen to help al-Qaeda there in its fight against government forces, as the Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh appealed for reason from those who joined the terror network.
Sheikh Mukhtar Robow Abu Mansour, a senior official of the Shabab militia that pledges allegiance to al-Qaeda, announced the plan as he presented hundreds of newly-trained fighters in the north of Mogadishu.
"We tell our Muslim brothers in Yemen that we will cross the water between us and reach your place to assist you fight the enemy of Allah," said Robow, to chants of "Allahu Akbar", or Allah is great, by the young fighters.
"Today you see what is happening in Yemen, the enemy of Allah is destroying your Muslim brothers," he added.
"I call upon the young men in Arab lands to join the fight there."
Because Somalia is an Arab country, rather than North African.
/sarc
But I do think sending all those rabid young men off to die by Saudi bullets and Saudi missiles and Saudi white phosphorus is a brilliant idea, if they absolutely refuse to become sensible.
Yemeni forces have been battling al-Qaeda militants in the country and last month launched raids on suspected targets in the central and the Sanaa regions, killing more than 60 of them.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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A cushy Saudi Arabian "rehab" center where terrorists are encouraged to express themselves through crayon drawings, water sports and video games is under scrutiny after one of its graduates re-emerged as a leader in the al Qaeda branch claiming responsibility for trying to blow up an airliner on Christmas.
Said Ali al Shihri -- a former Guantanamo Bay detainee who now heads the terror group al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula -- obviously didn't get to the bottom of his America-hating issues while undergoing the controversial rehab for jihadists. Inmates like Shihri are supposed to while away the days playing ping-pong, PlayStation and soccer in hopes that the peaceful environment will help them cope with their jihadist rages.
Bomb-makers and gunmen participate in art therapy to help them explore their feelings non-violently. In between tasty picnic-style meals of rice and lamb and snacks of Snickers along with dips in the pool, participants practice Arabic calligraphy, produce dizzying Jackson Pollack rip-offs and imagine the aftermath of car bombings in crayon.
Some 1,500 al Qaeda terrorists have "graduated" from the program, including 108 former Guantanamo Bay detainees, the Washington Post reported. "The Saudis talk about a success rate of 80 to 90 percent, but when you look at what those numbers mean in reality, it all falls down. There is no criteria for evaluation," John Horgan, a Department of Homeland Security consultant, told the New York Post.
In 2009, Horgan visited several of the Saudi terrorism rehab centers to report on the programs for Homeland Security. "These guys are not being de-radicalized. They are being encouraged to disassociate from terrorism, but that doesn't mean their fundamental views changed," said Horgan, director of the International Center for the Study of Terrorism at Penn State.
The Saudis launched the programs after the kingdom was rocked by a series of al Qaeda-inspired attacks in 2003 and 2004. But despite the Saudi government's best efforts, which also include setting up graduates with jobs, introductions to potential wives and new cars, many of the terrorists don't seem to be getting the peace message.
"Several 'returnees' from Guantanamo Bay continue to espouse a virulent hatred of the United States and Western society in general," Horgan wrote in a September report. That includes Shihri, who has been busy ignoring the peaceful precepts he was taught in terror rehab and has resumed his hardcore jihadist ways.
Shihri is a top member of the al Qaeda branch in Yemen which claims to have masterminded the failed plot to blow up Flight 253 to Detroit on Christmas Day. He also is suspected of coordinating the 2008 bombing of the US embassy in Yemen, ABC reported. Another former Gitmo detainee, Muhammad al Awfi, who went back to al Qaeda after his release, has ridiculed the Saudi efforts to rehabilitate jihadists as a plan to "drive us away from Islam."
Shihri -- who was released from Guantanamo Bay by President George W. Bush in 2007 -- spent six to ten weeks at the Prince Mohammed bin Nayef Center for Care and Counseling, ABC News reported. "There are guards and gates and barbed wire but it's not quite prison," Christopher Boucek of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, who has visited the center, told ABC. "It's a communal living environment that's more like 'Hogan's Heroes' than 'Escape From Alcatraz.' "
A team of shrinks works with the inmates in managing their emotions, and they are given lessons in Islam from imams, who warn them that jihad is only acceptable when sanctioned by the state. Toward the end of their stint, some inmates are allowed to make unescorted visits to family members.
"Some American officials say it's all about crayons and art therapy, but the things that don't translate are the intense emotional and intellectual strides that are made," Boucek told ABC. "They make intense bonds with the sheiks and doctors they work with. The majority is a religious discussion giving them religious evidence to the contrary of why they think their beliefs are based on Islam."
Yemen's Houthi fighters have expressed readiness to hold peace talks with neighboring Saudi Arabia if Riyadh halts its attacks.
The Houthi fighters also released a statement that says they'll also halt operations against Saudi Arabia if the country ceases its attacks.
"If Saudi aggression stops and there is a real will towards security and stability... then we do not attack anyone that does not attack us," the Houthi fighters said on their website on Thursday.
"We reiterate ... our support for dialogue and a language of understanding to resolve all differences," they added.
According to the Houthis, Saudi Arabia must prove that it wants peace and stability in Yemen, and that it respects the rights of the Yemeni people.
The conflict in northern Yemen began in 2004 between Sana'a and the Houthi fighters. The conflict intensified in August 2009 when the Yemeni army launched Operation Scorched Earth in an attempt to crush the fighters in the northern province of Sa'ada.
The government accuses the fighters of breaking the terms of a ceasefire by taking foreign visitors hostage in 2009.
The Houthis on the other hand accuse the Yemeni government of the violation of their civil rights, their political, economic and religious marginalization as well as large-scale corruption.
Riyadh joined Yemen's offensive against the Houthi fighters in November and vowed to continue its raids.
The fighters accuse Riyadh of targeting civilian areas far from the Saudi-Yemeni border. They say the attacks have so far left scores of civilians dead and thousands of others displaced.
As the Yemeni government does not allow independent media into the conflict zone, there are no clear estimates available as to how many people have been killed since the beginning of the unrest in 2004 or in the recent wave of violence.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Keep bombing them. Talk about it next year. Or the year after that, maybe.
[Al Arabiya Latest] British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called an international meeting on fighting extremism in Yemen for Jan. 28 in London, a statement from his Downing Street office said Friday.
Who asked him?
The meeting, on the same day as a conference on Afghanistan, comes after an alleged bid by a Nigerian man suspected of receiving al-Qaeda training in Yemen to attack a plane as it came in to land in Detroit on Dec. 25.
The bomb attempt was a reminder of United States and Saudi fears that al-Qaeda will exploit instability in the poor Arab country to turn Yemen into a launchpad for more attacks.
"Gordon Brown has invited key international partners to a high-level meeting in order to discuss how best to counter radicalization in Yemen," the statement said. "The prime minister will host the event on 28 January in London."
Downing Street added the meeting would "stand alone" but run "in parallel" with the Afghanistan event, which is expected to be attended by senior ministers or leaders from around 43 nations.
The aims of the meeting will include identifying what the Yemeni government needs to help it fight violent extremism and coordinating assistance for areas most at risk of radicalization, the statement said.
A U.S. military commander said on Friday the United States will more than double its nearly $70 million security assistance program for Yemen, to root out al Qaeda leadership in the country.
"We have, it's well known, about $70 million in security assistance last year. That will more than double this coming year," General David Petraeus, the head of the U.S. Central Command, said at a news conference in Baghdad.
Brown warned earlier that the failed Detroit plane bombing showed that terrorism remains a "very real" global threat as the world enters a new decade eight years after 9/11.
World leaders needed to cooperate "urgently" to tighten security at airports and on aircraft following the Dec. 25 attack in which a 23-year-old Nigerian nearly downed a U.S. jet as it prepared to land, he said.
Brown added that Britain had ordered a review of airport security arrangements and promised action "as quickly as possible." This could include the use of full body scanners at airports.
"The new decade is starting as the last began -- with al-Qaeda creating a climate of fear," he said, adding the failed bombing had "exposed an evolving terrorist threat" and highlighted "a major new base for terrorism."
"The failed attack in Detroit on Christmas Day reminds us of a deeper reality: that almost 10 years after Sept. 11 international terrorism is still a very real threat," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
At least he had the sense to ban AbdulMutallab from the UK. Maybe we should ask for a peek at their "no-entry" list.
#2
Brown also went on to add al-Megrahi, still in poor, poor health, will give a keynote speech during the meeting to share his views. The official name for this meeting has not been chosen as of yet but the most likely goes something like, "How to waste valuable time and money" or something like that.
Posted by: Yo Adrian ||
01/02/2010 13:08 Comments ||
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Thousands are expected to line bridges along the Highway of Heroes Sunday for the repatriation of Canada's most recent four fallen soldiers and the Calgary reporter who died alongside them in Afghanistan.
Let all see that their countrymen appreciate them properly.
Michelle Lang, a journalist for the Calgary Herald, was killed by an improvised explosive device along with Sgt. George Miok, Sgt. Kirk Taylor, Cpl. Zachery McCormack and Pte. Garrett William Chidley on Dec. 30.
The plane bearing the bodies of the five will land at CFB Trenton around 2 p.m. Sunday.
Repatriation Officer Captain Wayne Johnston said all of the fallen will be treated the same as they make their final journey home.
"She was in Afghanistan obviously doing the job she loved," Johnston said, speaking of the award-winning journalist who became the first Canadian member of the media to be killed in Afghanistan since the mission began in 2002. "She died with soldiers telling the story about soldiers and the good work they are doing in Afghanistan."
Johnston credits a whole team of military, police and civilians in helping pay the proper respect to Canada's fallen, including those who will stand silently on the bridges along Hwy. 401 Sunday as the procession passes.
"The solace I'm sure that brings those families," Johnston said. "(Sunday) is going to be a very, very cold day, don't think those moms and dads and brothers and sisters don't think, 'My God, those folks came out to bring our boy home.'
"I include all those folks as part of the team."
Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean, Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Walter Natynczyk are expected to be on the tarmac to pay their respects.
After each flag-draped casket is carried off the plane and into a waiting hearse, the convoy will travel west along Hwy. 401 towards Toronto likely between 3:15 and 3:30 p.m.
The procession of five hearses followed by cars carrying the grieving families should come south down the Don Valley Parkway around 4:30 p.m. - depending on traffic and weather - before exiting onto Bloor St. and into the downtown.
Toronto Police said the repatriation will move from Bloor St. across to Sherbourne St., go south to Wellesley St., west to Bay St. and then south to Grovesnor St. before turning into the coroner's office just before Yonge St.
It's estimated the convoy will make the last turn, at the Corner of the Courageous, outside the coroner's office, at Yonge and Grenville Sts., around 5:15 p.m.
Arrival times are approximate. Well-wishers who intend to pay their respects from bridges along Hwy. 401 are advised to dress accordingly in case of delays. Sunday: Cloudy. Periods of snow beginning in the morning. Amount 2 cm. Local blowing snow. Wind northwest 30 km/h gusting to 50. High minus 9C. Wind chill minus 27C in the morning.
Federal government agents are now confirming a second passenger on flight 253 was handcuffed and questioned by investigators after a failed terror attack on the Amsterdam to Detroit flight.
A couple from Monroe County, Kurt and Lori Haskell, who were on the same flight have said they saw a person, other than suspected terrorist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, being arrested.
Earlier this week, Chief Customs and Border Patrol Officer Ron Smith said a second person handcuffed was from a different flight. However, Thursday night Smith confirmed that a passenger from flight 253 was handcuffed, but wasn't arrested or detained. When you cuff someone and take them away, that's an arrest in my book; or a kidnapping. Maybe they didn't book him, but they sure denied him his freedom.
Smith said another report, which he didn't access earlier, shows that a passenger from flight 253 "did have a canine alert to his carry on baggage in the baggage area" of the Customs and Border Patrol facility. That person was handcuffed and "escorted to an interview room where he was interviewed and searched," according to Smith.
Nothing was found during the search and Smith said the man was given an explanation for why he was searched and then allowed to leave the facility with other passengers from flight 253.
Smith said the passenger wouldn't be identified because he was not arrested or detained.
Kurt and Lori Haskell were interviewed by FBI agents earlier in the week after they told WWJ and other media outlets they saw another man help Abdulmutallab board the flight in Amsterdam without a passport.
Officials have said Abdulmutallab had a valid passport. AoS at 10:21 CT: link fixed.
Embattled U.S. Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair, in a letter yesterday to employees of the U.S. Intelligence Community: Al Qaida is diminished as evidenced by the fact they are sending inexperienced individuals without long association with al Qaida, but susceptible to jihadist ideology. Unfortunately, even unsophisticated terrorists can kill many Americans. PDF
TWITTERATI -- @Noozhawk: How can suicide bomber be experienced?
#1
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We have been "diminishing" them ever since Clinton blew up some camels in the desert. All this "diminishing" doesn't seem to be doing much. Maybe it is time to stop "diminishing" them and start slaughtering them.
[The News (Pak) Top Stories] Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer has said the Sharif family was charged with $22 million money laundering in the Hudaibia Paper Mills case.
Talking to The News, the governor said the statement of Ishaq Dar, a close aide of Nawaz Sharif, is on record that the money kept abroad was owned by Nawaz Sharif. He demanded the Sharif family bring that money back. He also called upon the Punjab government to hold local bodies elections in 90 days.
He said Nawaz Sharif was making hue and cry in the press about the Swiss cases (of President Zardari), which could have not been decided even in many years. Taseer claimed that Nawaz had also sought apology from Benazir Bhutto and had admitted that the cases were the result of political victimisation.
He asked Nawaz Sharif how he established the Flag Ship Investment Company in Britain, which was earning billions of pounds. He said it was an irony that the followers of Gen Ziaul Haq were talking of establishing democracy in the country. He said the federal government had played a crucial role in reaching consensus on the new NFC Award which had strengthened the federation. He said the federation had decreased its share and increased the share of provinces and Punjab got more funds as compared to the past.
On the other hand, the governor alleged that the Punjab government had collected only 20 per cent of the targeted taxes. He said the powers of provinces in local bodies' issue was temporary and the provinces were bound to hold elections within 90 days. He said the Pakistan Army had full political support in the ongoing operation against terrorists. He ruled out any clash between the institutions.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV Latest] British hostage Peter Moore, who was kidnapped in Iraq in 2007, has flown home for a reunion with his family as controversy over his ordeal refuses to die down.
Peter Moore, a computer expert, was released unharmed on Wednesday after a two-and-a-half year captivity during which all four of his bodyguards, also Britons, are thought to have been killed.
Moore, who flew from Baghdad via Amman in Jordan, was met by officials before being driven to be reunited with his family off-base.
Relatives of Moore and of the guards captured with him have meanwhile spoken of their anger at the British government's handling of the matter.
The bodies of three bodyguards -- Alec MacLachlan, 30, Jason Swindlehurst, 38, and Jason Creswell, 39 -- were handed over to British officials last year. A fourth bodyguard, Alan McMenemy, 34, is also believed to be dead.
Moore had been working for a US management consultancy firm in Iraq, when he was kidnapped.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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Iraqi officials and relatives of 17 Iraqis who were killed in a crowded Baghdad square in September 2007 in an allegedly unprovoked shooting spree by Blackwater private security guards reacted with fury today to the decision by a US federal judge to dismiss all charges against five of the guards.
A spokesman for the Iraqi government said the collapse of the case in the US courts would lead to an intensified criminal prosecution of Blackwater through the Iraqi legal system. Ali al-Dabbagh said the criminal suit was already well advanced against the firm, which would not be allowed to restart its private military work in the country.
"The government will monitor proceedings against Blackwater in Iraqi courts to prosecute the company and will preserve the rights of Iraqi citizens, of the victims and their families affected by this crime," he said.
Abdul Wahab Abdul Kader, 35, who was shot in the arm, said he was bitterly disappointed. ""I call for the government to stop all foreign security companies working in Iraq. Their work here has been full of dangers for us and has caused real peril."
Haitham Ahmed, whose wife and son were killed, said the dismissal of the case cast doubt on the integrity of the US justice system. He told Associated Press: "The whole thing has been a farce. The rights of our victims and the rights of the innocent people should not be wasted."
The shooting, on 16 September 2007, caused outrage around the world and strained relations between the US and Iraq. A series of congressional hearings was held, and militant groups leapt on the bloodshed as evidence of US brutality. Blackwater was expelled from most of its key contracts in Iraq and forced into a major damage-limitation exercise that included rebranding itself Xe Ltd.
The incident began when a heavily armed Blackwater convoy moved into a busy square in Baghdad, after breaking an order to stay in the US-controlled green zone of the city, prosecutors allege. The five were accused of opening fire with automatic weapons and grenade launchers on unarmed civilians, killing children, women and men attempting to flee in their cars. One victim was alleged to have been shot in the chest while standing with his hands in the air. Defence lawyers said they had been responding to an earlier car bombing and were attacked by Iraqis they believed to be enemy insurgents.
In his 90-page ruling, Judge Ricardo Urbina made no comment on the legality or otherwise of the shooting. He dismissed the case on the grounds that the five had had their constitutional rights violated by the way confession statements they had made had been used by the prosecution. The statements were made when the men were under threat of losing their jobs if they did not cooperate with investigators. The US government had promised that their statements would not be used against them in a criminal case.
Urbina said that despite this immunity deal, the statements had been used, thus tainting the investigation. He said the government's case had been "contradictory, unbelievable and lacking in credibility".
Almost makes you wonder if the prosecution had orders to throw the case any way they could ...
If convicted, the five guards, all of whom were former US military personnel, would have faced a 30-year sentence.
"It feels like the weight of the world has been lifted off his shoulders," said Steven McCool, a lawyer for one of the five, Donald Ball. "Here's a guy that's a decorated war hero who we maintain should never have been charged in the first place."
The legal fate of a sixth guard, Jeremy Ridgeway, is now unclear. He pleaded guilty to killing one Iraqi and wounding another, and gave evidence against his five former Blackwater colleagues.
Xe said that the dismissal of the case meant "we can move forward and continue to assist the US in its mission to help the people of Iraq and Afghanistan find a peaceful, democratic future".
However, relatives have lodged civil charges against the five in the Virginian courts. Tareq Harb, an Iraqi lawyer, said of the US federal court: "They did not call local witnesses, or victims, or officials who responded to the scene. The guards were protected under Bremer's law [US administrator in Iraq before 2004]. There was no due process, or natural justice."
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
FOAD on the complaints. Its a war zone. Stuff happens.
Senior Iranian cleric Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati on Friday called on the judiciary to deal much more strongly with rioters.
"The judiciary system should act with more speed in dealing with rioters [who took part in illegal rallies]," said Ayatollah Jannati, who led the Friday prayers in Tehran.
Jannati's remarks come in the wake of anti-government protests during Ashura ceremonies marking the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (PBUH).
Police used tear gas to disperse the protesters who used the religious ceremony to chant slogans against top government officials, vandalize public property, and set fire to trashcans.
Seven people were confirmed dead during the unrest. Confirming the deaths, Deputy Police Chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said the force had not used violence against protesters, rejecting any involvement in the killings.
The Guardian Council secretary said the Iranian people respect the laws and guidelines set by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei "because they want to restore peace in the country."
"However, the Islamic establishment in Iran will not tolerate any attempt to undermine Islam."
Ayatollah Jannati called for the immediate arrest and trial of rioters. He said the rioters are clear examples of those who deserve the harshest punishment for desecrating Islamic beliefs.
He added that US plots against the Islamic Republic over the past 30 years were aimed at undermining Islam and the revolution.
He said the recent unrest was part of a plot hatched by Iran's enemy and stressed that all such efforts were doomed to failure.
Ayatollah Jannati said that the Iranian nation has proved that it will strongly stand against any effort to harm the Islamic Revolution.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi said on Friday Iran was in "serious crisis" and offered a five-point initiative to end the political gridlock in the Islamic republic.
"Arresting or killing Mousavi, Karoubi ... will not calm the situation. I am not afraid to die for people's demands ... Iran is in serious crisis ... Harsh remarks ... will create internal uprising ... the election law should be changed ... political prisoners should be freed," Jaras website quoted a statement issued by Mousavi as saying.
In his first statement posted since deadly clashes last week, Mousavi also offered an initiative, outlined in five points, to the hardline conservatives in the government to resolve the worst internal crisis in the Islamic Republic's 30-year history.
He called on the government to be accountable to the people, the parliament and the judiciary, and to work in accordance with the law. He also called for a new election law that guarantees fair and just competition between candidates, and demanded the release of all the people arrested following the disputed June, 2010 election.
In his initiative, Miousavi also called for respecting freedom of expression and of the press by allowing newspapers that have been closed down to return to work and recognizing people's right to organize peaceful and legal demonstrations.
Anti-government protests erupted in Iran after its disputed June 12 presidential election, which secured President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election. Opposition leaders say the presidential vote was rigged. The government denies this.
The hardline authorities have intensified their crackdown on the opposition since Sunday, when eight people -- including a nephew of Mousavi -- were killed in fiery protests on the day of the Shiite Muslim ritual of Ashura.
Hardline leaders have accused opposition leaders of fomenting unrest and called for them to be punished. A representative of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that opposition leaders were "enemies of God" who should be executed.
Authorities have arrested at least 20 pro-reform figures, including three senior advisers to Mousavi, his brother-in-law and a sister of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi.
Iran's police chief has warned Mousavi's supporters they will face harsh treatment unless they halt their "illegal" rallies.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/02/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Molotov Cocktails and raids on Police Armorys.
Find out Police home addresses. Hit their families while they are at work.
Ambush Police vehicles, make it hard and fast. Assign part of the hit team to kill their wounded.
Kidnap their children.
The Regime lives and shops and goes to school just like the rest of society. Watch their homes, find out their patterns, who are their drivers, make a file on the whole household and their servants. Intell is the key to successful Ops.
There are thousands of weak points.
Pick your targets.
Posted by: Ho Chi Check6120 ||
01/02/2010 7:20 Comments ||
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#2
Iran needs its regular army and police to turn against the bullies in the Revolutary guards and Basj militias!
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
A cushy Saudi Arabian "rehab" center where terrorists are encouraged to express themselves through crayon drawings, water sports and video games is under scrutiny after one of its graduates re-emerged as a leader in the al Qaeda branch claiming responsibility for trying to blow up an airliner on Christmas. 
[Al Arabiya Latest] British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called an international meeting on fighting extremism in Yemen for Jan. 28 in London, a statement from his Downing Street office said Friday.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi said on Friday Iran was in "serious crisis" and offered a five-point initiative to end the political gridlock in the Islamic republic. 
