Saudi Defense Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz has dismissed a possible Iranian nuclear attack on Arab Gulf countries, calling Iran "a friendly state." Commenting on Iran's controversial nuclear program and its perception by Gulf Cooperation Council states, Prince Sultan said he does not Iran "will think one day of jeopardizing the security of the peoples of the GCC states."
"Unless you include getting caught in the "crossfire"."
Saudi Arabia is the leader of the council, which also comprises the oil-rich Gulf states of Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and United Arab Emirates.
Asked about Saudi Arabia's role in helping Iraq regain peace and stability, the prince said, "The kingdom's policy is to refrain from interfering in the affairs of others, but we would not hesitate to offer our help in any way if we were asked for it."
"We're from Saud Arabia and we're here to help."
Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 8:59:54 AM ||
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#1
Friendly compared to what? A hungry polar bear with a tooth ache?
#3
Just further evidence that the mask has come off. Expect more of the same, (ie: dropping all pretense as to whose side they are on) in the coming weeks and months.
We called their hand....no need to bluff any longer.
ABU DHABI — The boss of Al Jazeera TV has vowed that his channel would, under no circumstances, bow down to any external pressure and continue to render its duties in the same manner. "We will never be influenced by any criticism whether internal or external. We respect our profession and will never give up on principles and ethics under any circumstances," Waddah Khanfar, Director-General of the Qatar-based channel told Khaleej Times yesterday.
"Please don't kill us!"
The channel was threatened to be closed down by occupation forces after being accused of inciting violence in Iraq. "We are not a political party or a mobilising power. We carry out our duty without any external control. We will listen and respond to criticism; but if it is based on an unprofessional perspective, we will not surrender to it, guided by the ethics of our profession," said Khanfar, who is taking part in a three-day conference on Arab media which began here yesterday.
Professionalism from an Arab broadcaster? What next, charity from an Arab banker?
He said Al Jazeera does not take any instructions from a ministry of information or a ruling regime. "We have been accused of being run by Israel or controlled by the US. We have also been accused of being financially supported by Saddam Hussein," he stated.
#5
Y'know, I've always had this little voice saying that Qatar, which has been very helpful to the US Mil and Al Jizz being owned by one of the Qatari Royals (IIUC) adds up to something. What if Al Jizz is thoroughly compromised by our intel. You pay lip service, being the loudest anti-US voice buys street cred, and you get the juiciest nuggets. Sure, the PR price is high, but maybe the take is higher. Now if our intel is as bad as we all think, this is nutso. But maybe they do have one or two excellent deep-cover opns that really work. The Qatari schizophrenia of being super pro-West, yet harboring Al Jizz has always stuck in my craw. This would explain it. I have nothing but that schizophrenia to suggest this - so it's nutso. I have nothing at all to explain why Al Jizz is tolerated, otherwise, but it's nutso. Yeah. Cool. Heh. Nothing to see here.
#8
Al Jazeera's broadcast of the beheadings pretty much wipes out anything in the plus column with respect to their continuing existence. They could maintain their Arab street credibility without doing so. That they voluntarily pimp and pander to such brutality forces me to dismiss any putative worth they might have or ever had.
#10
As I understand it, there is a rival faction in the Qatari royal family similar to the one in Saudi. One side is very pro-USA and the other (a minor slice) is owner or "patrone" of Al-Jazeera. Of course, there is still the possibility that AJ is a humint asset but it would not be in our interest to start that rumor if it was true. So, .com, the fact that we continue to criticize AJ tells me that possibly it could be true. If we wanted them "off air" all we have to do is let it out somehow with "fake but accurate" documents or whispers that they were on our take!
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
01/10/2005 9:58 Comments ||
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#11
For awhile, it seemed as if the publicized beheadings on Al Jissum begat more more beheadings. For some reason the spate of beheadings has gone away (or is not being publicized). Doubt this is intel organ of US--they seem to be too whacky.
#12
What if Al Jizz is thoroughly compromised by our intel
Don't you see???? Al Jizz is a deep laid plot. By preventing moderate voices of reason to be heard in the Middle East, and whipping up the ignorant masses into a violent frenzy, it makes all Muslims look like they are genetically defective humans incapable of moving beyond barbarism to civilization.
Al Jazeera's sole purpose is to trick Westerners into believing that Islam is not a peaceful religion and that it wants to conquer the world and establish a caliphate. This provides a false pretense for Bush-Hitler (whose strings are controlled by the evil Dick Cheney) to invade and get control of their oil.
Shhh...don't tell, but Al Jazeera is owned and operated by Haliburton. Bwahahahah!
"Salaam aleikum(sp), gentlemen. This is [name of reporter] in Iraq, reporting for al-Jazeera. Today the illegal occupiers" *snap* "are raping" *twang* "and torturing" *sprong* "will someone please take that Zionist harp away? It's exposing us as liars."
Posted by: Steve from Relto ||
01/10/2005 10:28 Comments ||
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Al-Jiz spurts more crap in one sentece than i could ever hope to attain in a lifetime .
Kuwait heightened its security alert to the maximum level on Jan. 7. This is the second increase in the alert level since Dec 31 and it comes in conjunction with the US State Department warning on Dec. 15 of possible Islamic Jihadist attacks. It seems the Islamic militants have created numerous sleeping cells and made Kuwait an operational theatre for Al-Queda just like Saudi Arabia. Al-Queda has infiltrated the Kuwaiti military and even the Government is lenient on the Jihadists, which may be because it is afraid of a popular uprising.
On January 6th Kuwaiti Defense Minister Sheikh Jaber al-Mubarak al-Sabah said that the recent arrests of some military officers, two of whom are to stand trial for planning attacks against U.S. military facilities, have no Al-Qaeda link. A day earlier the Kuwaiti Government denied a report that the Kuwaiti security forces were shot upon in the capital city. However, in December 2004, Osama Bin Laden, in a tape called for attacks on the oil installations in Middle East, which obviously include Kuwait. There are reports in the media that Kuwaiti security forces [are] sympathetic to Islamic militants. As the insurgents are flushed out from the Sunni triangle and Syrians are put on a warning notice not to help the insurgents, the militants may be looking into Kuwait for a safe hidden harbor. Up till now the Kuwaiti Government has dealt with the militants effectively. The numbers of Jihadist attacks are low in Kuwait compared with other countries in the neighborhood. But the large number of US forces and very strategic oil installations make the country a prime target for the Al-Queda.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:03:22 AM ||
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Pfeh. IndiaDaily's grinding hard... Kuwait is just another little Arab Sunni snake pit. If you'd been there, you'd know there almost nothing other than Kuwait City and wasteland. If Al Sabah wants the jihadis controlled - that would not be hard to do. If he doesn't, well the targeting coordinates are damned few.
"United States is trying to avoid that at any cost."
At any cost. Bullshit. Typical "the sky is falling" overstatement. The Sunnis are choosing their own path in the elections. That's part of the democracy thingy. If the other asshole Sunnis wish to pretend that it wasn't by choice, then they will do so, whatever the US does. You do not change the rules to suit any interest group, unless it benefits all equally. This is the Iraqi's decision - and we must back them. If IndiaDaily reported this honestly, why, there'd be a totally different story here. Morons.
The Sana'a Counter-Terrorism Appeal Court decided to postpone the final hearing in the USS Cole bombing case to next Saturday. During the hearing Jan. 8, the court judge Saeed al-Kattaa listened to the argument made by the defendants advocate Abdulkaziz al-Samawi against the allegations of the prosecution. Al-Samawi argued that the trial of the 6 defendants was not performed in accordance with the law. "I confirm that the trial was not carried out according to the law. These defendants were arrested for four years without any legal warrant or investigation, only two weeks before the trial started. The law says that imprisoning people for over 24 hours without interrogation is something illegal," he argued. He added that both "the prosecution and the intelligence should respect law and order," adding that the prosecutor is defending "groundless procedures."
He reiterated that his clients were subject to physical torture and psychological pressure." The preliminary court verdict was based on confessions made by the defendants under threat and pressure; they were even interrogated without any advocacy," he claimed. He said that the prosecution wants to present the defendants as an escape goat [sic], adding that the prosecution influenced the court to the extent that it issued verdicts that it was not convinced with. The prosecutor demanded in the last hearing session that the appeal made by the defendants advocate should not be accepted and that the defendant Fahd al-Qise should be sentenced to death as well as intensifying the jail sentence against Morad al-Sorori and Mamoon Amswah. The Sana'a Counter-Terrorism Court sentenced September 28th Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, held in US custody and Jamal al-Badawi, to death for orchestrating, plotting, preparing and involvement in the bombing of the US warship.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:29:24 AM ||
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Oh, right. Yemen has these special super-duper double-secret laws that have to be invoked when it's their Islamic brothers on trail for killing some measley infidels. It's right there in the Shari'a Code For Sinking Infidel Warships In Port - of course, Allan saw it coming. Anyway, sheesh, what's the big deal, here? They were just infidels. Dismiss the charges, Al Kattaa. It's your job to figure out how.
A cynic might say you'd be hard-pressed to locate evidence of the law in any other circumstance.
I prefer the unmanned drone version used successfully in the past. With the bin Laden piggy bank drying up, there are opportunities... Pay a little for intel, pay a little more for independent verification, put a drone with Mavericks up for the intercept, and fire the law right up their asses if everything matches. Okay, okay, I know that's really easy to say and really serendipitous when it happens. But it can happen. Cuz it did happen. So...
#2
*Shrug* They were imprisoned awaiting trial for either two weeks or four years (I can't translate that particular sentence of the article into sensible prose). They remain imprisoned awaiting final sentencing after having been found guilty. They aren't going anywhere, and they likely aren't enjoying their current abode, so from our perspective what's the difference?
Muslims in Britain must either leave the country or take up jihad, a key Islamic figure has urged. Sheikh Omar Bakir Muhammed, leader of militant group Al-Muhajiroun, told UPI the actions of the British government against Muslims -- anti-terror legislation and indefinite detention of terror suspects -- has broken the covenant of security under which Muslims in Britain previously lived. Muslims are therefore now at war with the government, he said. Al-Muhajiroun, which states as an aim the establishment of an Islamic state in Britain, was officially disbanded in October 2004. Sheikh Omar told UPI the Muslim community would now unite in support of al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden. However at a meeting of some 600 Muslim men, women and children in London Saturday, ostensibly organized by Women's Dawah U.K., the influence of Al-Muhajiroun was clear. All of the speakers, headed by Sheikh Omar, were known members of the group, and a moderate Muslim source told UPI the group was behind the meeting. The attendees shouted "Allahu Akhbar (God is great)" while watching videos of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and U.S. soldiers dying in Iraq, and unanimously pledging allegiance to bin Laden.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 11:52:45 AM ||
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#1
Imagine the uproar if i suggested "Muslims in Britain must either leave the country or take up jihad."
I do have an alternative suggestion though , how about Sheikh Omar Bakir Muhammed gets deported , and takes all his brain-washed retarded , repressed , monkey boy henchmen with him , before he gets in REAL trouble . Any jihad that comes knocking on my door is gonna get a spade in the face , and im a moderate .
#3
You mean he hasn't been visited by the police yet? If any other person living in the UK said this stuff he would get a vist and be under investigation. Oh I see it's only non-muslims that are held to account under the law. Never mind.
#7
Why doesn't Scotland Yard just toss this guy in jail? If he were in the U.S. he would be behind bars by the time his sermon stopped. Will the UK hold him as a unlawful combantant, POW, or just a simple thug criminal? Also do they need to borrow Lindy and the gang to soften him up?
#13
It's almost comical how Muslims seem to universally have a problem with non-Muslim authority.
If y'all don't like it, don't live in a non-Muslim country, IDIOTS. What's more, don't try to change them. Get the hell out. Leave. Go back to where you came from, or whatever. JUST GET OUT!
#14
I am going to bring this up again. If this had been a WASP UK citizen that person would still be down at the police headquarters explaining what they said and meant by the statements. The BBC website would have their picture posted and a long rant about their racist act. What the hell is going on in the UK? This bastard should get the same treatment. You must get a free pass when you shave all your body hair off below you neck.
#16
It's been said already, but I'll say it again:
Put a bullet in Sheikh Omar Bakir Muhammed.
There is no other solution to curing violent jihad and the maggots who extoll it. Kill them now, kill them quickly and kill them DEAD.
Left unattended, this walking piece of human excrement posing as a waste of skin will bring about the death of countless others. Better he dies now before his (other) dreams come true.
Pyongyang, January 7 (KCNA) -- The world revolution started with The Internationale will surely end in victory with "Song of General Kim Jong Il." Dipak Sharma, chairman of the Nepalese Young Poets' Forum, says this in his poem "Brilliant Commander of the Century" praising Kim Jong Il. In the poem he says socialism of the DPRK is an impregnable fortress as it is led by the illustrious commander born of Heaven, though the arrogant imperialists are shouting themselves hoarse about "the end of socialism" while resorting to persistent pressure and blockade. There are many countries in the world and they have huge armies, but no army has such a great commander as the Korean People's Army has, he says, and continues: Even the army, which had once boasted of its invincible might, could not save the party breathing its last and the country collapsing as it was not led by a great brilliant commander. He praises Kim Jong Il as the defender of eternal happiness and peace who clears away the dark clouds of war hanging over the planet and the brilliant commander of the century the mere mention of whose name makes a formidable enemy millions strong tremble.
#3
In the poem he says socialism of the DPRK is an impregnable fortress as it is led by the illustrious commander born of Heaven, though the arrogant imperialists are shouting themselves hoarse about "the end of socialism" while resorting to persistent pressure and blockade.
In blank verse, no doubt. I hope he writes better than the KCNA hack that wrote this drivel...
#11
Brialliant commander kim, cant get out of the shadow of his own warped ego...the left ie socialism has a record...let the great commander always be its reference. hey michael moore have ya got your tickets yet? We should pass a bill, we will trade 10,000 of our elitist socialists including all the known socialist mouthpieces to north korea, for 1,000,000 of the suffering proletariat. Such a deal.
#14
oooops. ima forget share kimmys new invenchen. from same link:
Long-Wave Infrared Ray Radiation Paint Developed
Pyongyang, January 7 (KCNA) -- The Building-materials Institute under the Paektusan Architectural Center of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has succeeded in developing long-wave infrared ray radiation paint efficacious for the treatment of diseases. In an interview with KCNA, director of the institute Ri Tok Ho said the clinical test proves that the paint, made of natural mineral powder and various nontoxic substances abundant in the country, gives no harmful effect to the human body.
It is good for the recovery from fatigue, treatment of diseases and saving of heat energy. It can be coated on concrete wall, wood, iron sheets and stone materials including interior walls of steam bathhouse, physical treatment room and drying room and the floor for heating.
The solid membrane of the painting, with porous sponge structure, absorbs and kills germs and removes various bad smell, thus keeping steam bathhouses hygienic.
The serviceable life of the painting is five years at minimum. The wave band of long-wave infrared ray radiated by the painting is 8-12 micrometers and its radiation rate is 93-95 percent.
The long-wave infrared rays help the sauna bathers perspire without feeling heart suffocation and breathing trouble even under the temperature above 100 degrees centigrade.
It, therefore, is potent for the cure of heart diseases, neuralgia, skin disorders, circulatory sicknesses, women's troubles such as postpartum diseases, sterility and disorders of menstruation, waist pains, bone fracture and other diseases.
Its production cost is very low as it is simple to make.
Pakistan has told Japan that Islamabad was resolved to urge North Korea not to use or spread nuclear technology that it gained from nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, according to Japan's Kyodo News service. Shoichi Nakagawa, Japan's economy, trade and industry minister now visiting Pakistan, told Japanese reporters on Saturday that he wanted to restart yen loans to help peaceful development in Pakistan. Mr Nakagawa met President, Prime Minister and Commerce Minister. In their talks, Pakistani officials told Nakagawa that they were resolved to urge North Korea not to use or spread nuclear technology that it gained from nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, Kyodo said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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âPakistan urging North Korea not to proliferate N-techâ
#3
This is hilarious. The Paks are the all-time liars. Probably what they meant was they were resolved to urge North Korea not to use or spread nuclear technology unless they received their licensing fee (which they know Kimmie can't afford now). They know how those Asians ignore copyrights.
#4
Khan seems to have had a much better plan than bin Laden: proliferate enough nuke tech to as many of the enemies of the Great Satan as possible, and maybe they will gang up on said Satan and bring him down.
North Korea said Saturday it was willing to abandon its nuclear weapons programs, but it demanded a change in American policy as a California congressman critical of the communist state's human rights records visited Pyongyang. The statement, which echoed the North's earlier stance, appeared to be timed for a visit by Rep. Tom Lantos, the ranking Democrat on the House International Relations Committee.
It also came a day after U.S. officials said one of Washington's harshest critics of North Korea, Undersecretary of State John Bolton, will resign his post. "Our consistent stance is to denuclearize the Korean peninsula and resolve the problem through dialogue," said a spokesman of North Korea's Foreign Ministry. "If the United States really wants to resolve the nuclear problem through dialogue, it should show through action that it is giving up a hostile policy aimed at toppling our system, and take the road toward coexistence."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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"If the United States really wants to resolve the nuclear problem through dialogue, it should show through action that it is giving up a hostile policy aimed at toppling our system, and take the road toward coexistence."
There are a lot of similarities between what we face in dealing with Islamic reform and resolving the North Korean crisis.
When one examines the laundry list of unacceptable cultural norms common to many Muslim run countries, it's difficult to envision any middle ground. So they give up terrorism, does that mean we have to allow the continuance of female genital mutilation?
The vast scope of change required to reshape the hostile terrain of Islam's monoculture involves so many deal-breakers that there is little hope for peaceful resolution.
So it is with North Korea. The nation is a poster child for human rights violators. The enormous degree of outright criminal conduct carried out by its government leaves little, if any, room for negotiation. Should they divest themselves of nuclear capability, must we then turn our backs on the institutionalized starvation of their people? How can there be significant reconciliation with such a murderous regime?
Islamic autocracies and North Korea share much in common in that only their complete removal from the political horizon represents the least sort of adequate solution. Settling for anything less essentially constitutes having to countenance the continued mass murder of countless innocents. How is there any middle ground to find amongst such egregious tyranny?
Islamic extremists accused of plotting to kill Iraq's prime minister in Germany are smuggling battle-hardened fighters from Iraq to Europe, raising a potential new terrorist threat on the continent, according to German officials.
Here we go again.
More than 20 alleged supporters of Ansar al-Islam have been arrested in Europe in the past year as authorities move against the group that has links with al-Qaida and Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who's been leading bloody attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq. Ansar al-Islam is suspected of spiriting dozens of fired-up young Muslims to Iraq to join the insurgency, but the latest raids in Germany - the most spectacular yet against the group - heightened concerns that the organization also could pose a menace outside Iraq, too.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: tipper ||
01/10/2005 10:24:24 AM ||
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Ha! Confuseshuz say's, "weakness is never a strength".
Europe's weakness will be a magnet for the Islamist movement. But I'm not sure why the Islamsts are picking Germany. Schroeder may be weak, but the people themselves aren't. I suspect that utlimately they will react more like the US than like France or Spain.
#2
I think they like Germany because historically (the last 15-20 years) so long as they lived and plotted quietly, the police left them undisturbed. Whereas in France they can be arrested and imprisoned for several years before trial just for belonging to the wrong mosque, or because one of the comrades looked cross-eyed at a genderme.
Islamic extremists accused of plotting to kill Iraq's prime minister in Germany are smuggling battle-hardened fighters from Iraq to Europe, raising a potential new terrorist threat on the continent, according to German officials. More than 20 alleged supporters of Ansar al-Islam have been arrested in Europe in the past year as authorities move against the group that has links with al-Qaida and Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who's been leading bloody attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq.
Ansar al-Islam is suspected of spiriting dozens of fired-up young Muslims to Iraq to join the insurgency, but the latest raids in Germany — the most spectacular yet against the group — heightened concerns that the organization also could pose a menace outside Iraq, too. Acting on intelligence suggesting the group planned to attack Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi in Berlin, police on Dec. 3 arrested three Iraqis believed to be Ansar al-Islam members. Arrest warrants for the three plot suspects — identified only as Ata R., Mazen H. and Rafik Y. — were based on wiretaps and intelligence that one of them apparently cased Berlin locales on Allawi's itinerary. But investigators have turned up no weapons or bomb-making materials, and Allawi's name was never mentioned in the men's coded telephone conversations.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Islamic extremists accused of plotting to kill Iraqâs prime minister in Germany are smuggling battle-hardened fighters from Iraq to Europe, raising a potential new terrorist threat on the continent, according to German officials.
#3
... heightened concerns that the organization also could pose a menace outside Iraq, too.
Let me know when they finally drop the "outside Iraq, too" part of this. Islamist terrorism is a threat to our entire world. Most ironic is how the greatest threat of all is to Islam itself. Of course, Muslims somehow refuse to recognize this with all the finesse of those who can ignore a rhinoceros in the living room.
At some point, the non-Muslim world will come to understand that terrorism is not something that can be coexisted with. It will probably require even more horrific atrocities than those that have already happened, but woe upon Islam when the threshhold of tolerance is finally crossed.
#4
These would be the few jihadis who managed to slip out the back door...or the secret tunnel... instead of becoming dead bodies (or bits thereof) like so many of their former colleagues?
#7
This is the sequel to....the US is to blame for turning Iraq into a jihadi training ground where Euro trainees will return to smack us (Euros) down....totally anticipated and true to form.
It's the blame the US banter redux.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 9:18 Comments ||
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#8
The war spreads to Europe because of Europhile apathy after 311. They just would not "give war a chance." Too much oil and arms money to be made by the Euros.
The United Nations overpaid by as much as $5 billion to individuals, companies and Gulf states for losses in Iraq's 1990 invasion and occupation of Kuwait, auditors' documents showed on Sunday. The 19 internal audits of the UN Compensation Commission (UNCC) were posted on its Web site a day before a total of 56 audits were to be made public by an independent panel led by former US Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker. Senior UNCC officials strongly denied any overpayment and dismissed the auditors' conclusions, saying they had exceeded their mandate by delving into legal issues.
Imagine that.
Volcker's panel is investigating the oil-for-food programme that the United Nations operated for Saddam Hussein's Iraq when the country was under international sanctions. The US Congress is probing alleged corruption in the programme. The 19 audits of the Geneva-based UNCC, carried out by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) from July 1997 to December 2004, do not identify any corruption. But the audits raised questions, mainly about evidence in approving awards for damages, and concluded overpayments had been made. Along with exchange rate and other issues, the audits pointed to a total overpayment of some $5 billion, officials said.
How 'bout a look at the 'victims' list.
The UNCC said it had issued the audits after being tipped the Volcker panel was going to make them public without including the UNCC's responses to each audit's findings. "Our goal is to show that the Office of Internal Oversight Services' audits have been easily rebutted," said UNCC deputy executive secretary Mike Raboin. "Since we are not part of oil-for-food, we are at a loss as to why these documents were given to the Volcker committee."
Something about a foul stench emanating from under your door, Mike ...
#3
The United Nations overpaid by as much as $5 billion to individuals, companies and Gulf states for losses in Iraqâs 1990 invasion and occupation of Kuwait, auditorsâ documents showed on Sunday.
#4
how do you smuggle 21B in oil outside of highly monitored things like pipelines and ships
With ships? Load cargo and while enroute, send to different destination with new manifest showing a different port of origin. Yes, it's still Iraqi crude, but as long as the paperwork is okay...
A more extreme method would be selling the ship company (most ships have their own, individual, company for insurance and tax reasons) to a new owner/holding company.
The ship and cargo get new owners, the ship gets renamed, perhaps reflagged and the manifest origin is changed. Sounds extreme, but a VLCC's cargo is worth plenty. There are reports such actions ocurred in the mid 70's.
Internal U.N. audits sent to the director of the Iraq oil-for-food program uncovered extensive mismanagement of multimillion-dollar deals with contractors and fraudulent paperwork by its employees, according to copies of the some of the reports obtained by The Associated Press. An independent panel investigating corruption in the humanitarian program released the 55 internal audits on its Web site Sunday, a day earlier than originally planned after some of the reports were leaked to the media. The panel led by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, who was appointed in April by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan to investigate the growing scandal, was given access to the audits that were conducted throughout the duration of the program, along with other relevant documents.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
Igniting debate is all fine and dandy, but what really matters is what kind of change (if any) will come about as a result?
As long as Goo-fi is still in charge, I'm not convinced anything substantial is going to happen.
#2
Kofi is just the tip of the iceberg, BAR. Too many like the situation as it is for any meaningful change to occur. The best thing to do is let the UN fade slowly into the sunset as real international progress is made through the (expanded) G8 or other group of democracies.
Who does that include? Is it only the West plus Japan? Assuming the bad guys don't just fade away like the UN, will the US still be the only sheriff? Will the nature of the bad guys initiate a sudden western recovery from its half century bout with colonial/success-guilt-paralysis syndrome?
Posted by: Carlos ||
01/10/2005 10:46 Comments ||
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A HARDLINE Indonesian Islamic group has attacked the presence of Australian aid workers in tsunami-devastated Aceh, as Labor raised concerns yesterday about their safety in the troubled province. Habib Rizieq Shihab, head of the Islamic Defender's Front (FPI), said Australian assistance in Aceh could herald the start of an East Timor-style intervention designed to secure independence for the troubled northern province. The Australian Government insisted yesterday it had no interest in any military involvement in Aceh and played down a threat of confrontation with the growing number of Islamist relief workers also flooding into the area. John Howard, in an interview on global news network CNN, ruled out any involvement by Australian troops in peacekeeping or arming troops on the ground. The Prime Minister said Australia was not interested in picking sides on Aceh, but was there "as a friend trying to give practical help". "We're not there in a military role, it's just that our military are there in a humanitarian role," he said. But Mr Shihab told The Australian he feared the presence of hundreds of Australian troops in Aceh would corrupt the province's strict Islamic culture.
Horrors! Oh hold me, Fatima!
Mr Shihab accused Canberra of using the excuse of humanitarian assistance to support a long-term strategy of undermining Indonesian sovereignty. Australia's strategy in Indonesia was best seen by its role in helping East Timor gain independence, he said. "We need to be vigilant. We do not want a second East Timor."
"All those people running around without holy men? What kind of society is that, huh? Then they'll actually elect their leaders, and then where will they be? Riddle me that one!"
He said thousands of his supporters were already in Aceh monitoring the behaviour of foreign troops, including Australians. "Please Australia, move your feet from Indonesia as soon as your humanitarian work is done," he said. "They should not corrupt Islamic sharia law in force in Aceh, because we know that these foreign soldiers like to bring prostitutes with them. Also, these soldiers drink alcohol and in Aceh it is strictly forbidden." The Australian army was enforcing a strict no-alcohol policy for personnel in Aceh to avoid offending devout Muslim communities, a senior military officer said last night.
That automatically make Aceh a hardship post for the Aussies.
Posted by: tipper ||
01/10/2005 10:18:05 AM ||
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#1
Someone needs to put the Indonesian government on notice that they're going to have to choose between Islamofascism or help.
"I was a little surprised to learn that we werenât providing our own security on this occasion and we did raise those concerns with the Government."
Guys, better get on the ball and get this straightened out quick, 'cause if any military personnel are attacked and killed, some people are going to be really, really mad, to say the least. And this also needs to be something that GWB should be looking into with our forces. If no government of any of the stricken countries can provide adequate security, then we need to either set something up promptly or get our personnel out of harm's way.
#2
The words of Downer & Co may seem a little pollyanna, but...
The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Group is just over the horizon. It contains a World of Hurt for anyone stupid enough to mess around with the US forces, and I'm sure, the Aussie forces, as well. I have zero doubt that they have an ROE for this mission and it isn't to lay back and enjoy it. AFAIK, no Navy ships sail outside of US waters without orders, ROE's, and lotsa munitions with delivery systems.
#3
"I think when itâs seen what the humanitarian assistance weâre providing is actually doing for the communities, itâs a little unlikely that Islamic extremists would see advantage in attacking people who are providing that sort of help," Mr Downer said.
I hate to burst this guys bubble, but yeah, Muslims would kill and maim those who have come to help them. They can and do slap away helping hands all the time and they refuse the best help available because they decide that it is some plot or because they fear that western powers will suceed where islamic government has utterly failed.
See Iraq. Where is the only place in the world where peaceful unarmed humanitarian and election workers are targeted for death because they might suceed in helping muslims better than muslims can do for themselves? Iraq. But i'll be willing to bet that soon they will be targeted in all muslim regions and it won't surprise me at all if there are killings in Indonesia first. They will start killing those who are trying to help and they will keep upping the slaughter without any regard for decency, until all the western and therefore the most competant aid workers will be forced to leave and the muslims will get what they want ie only their own crappy incompetant stingy aid orgs will be left. If that happens, they will deserve all the lack and incompetance that they experience.
#5
They can and do slap away helping hands all the time and they refuse the best help available because they decide that it is some plot or because they fear that western powers will suceed where islamic government has utterly failed.
The perfect example of this is that polio outbreak in Nigeria in 2002/2003 and the subsequent brouhaha. The problem? Islamic clerics. Damned idiots.
#6
yes, and the deaths and maimings of ordinary people are on their hands because they fear and yes hate outside help. The bodies pile up and the carnage mounts and the response is either defiance or silence. Some call for even more blood to be spilled in the goal of evicting all those good helpers of other faiths or no faith at all because muslims are absolutely unable to trust or give credit to anyone outside their religion. They would rather kill and suffer themselves than acknowledge their utter failure to resolve their own problems using islam as a resource.
A U.S. helicopter with 10 people on board crashed in a rice paddy as it was trying to land at the Banda Aceh airport Monday while on a tsunami-relief operation, injuring at least two U.S. servicemen, a U.S. military spokesman said. The injured men, along with eight other Navy personnel, were being flown back to their ship in the Lincoln battle group, said Capt. Joe Plenzler, a U.S. military spokesman in Medan, 250 miles southeast of Banda Aceh. The SH60 helicopter crashed in a rice paddy about 500 yards from the airport in Banda Aceh, the main city on Indonesia's tsunami-battered Sumatra island, as it was trying to land, he said. "There was no fire ball but a little smoke. It landed on its side," Plenzler said, adding that the helicopter's propeller was twisted from the impact. U.S. authorities said there was no indication the helicopter had been shot down.
Authorities quickly cordoned off the area and U.S. officials began searching the field around the crash site, apparently for debris. The airport at Banda Aceh "is still functioning and the crash shouldn't effect relief operations," Plenzler said. The helicopter was flying in personnel to the airport from the USS Abraham Lincoln group off the coast of Sumatra, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Black-jacketed volunteers from one of Indonesia's most militant Muslim groups scraped away the clammy mud that clung to the walls and floors of a badly damaged house here on Sunday. They moved the once handsome dining room chairs outside to dry. In a few days, they said, the owner of the house, Azman Ismail, an imam at Banda Aceh's central mosque, would be able to move back in. The men, members of Lasker Mujahedeen, a paramilitary group that has fought Christians elsewhere in Indonesia and has had links to Al Qaeda, are among hundreds of Indonesian Islamic militants who have come to Aceh in the name of helping their fellow Muslims, they say, to offer a dose of Islamic teachings to the already devout Acehnese, and to recruit members.
The groups, including Majelis Mujahedeen Indonesia and Islamic Defenders Front, arrived in the disaster area on Indonesian military transport planes, and on a commercial flight organized by the Indonesian vice president, Jusuf Kalla. The military distributed the protective gloves, rubber boots and the masks they needed to dig bodies out of the rubble, the volunteers said. In the buzz of activity at the airport, and in the ruins of the city, the militants have not tried to hide their identity. Some are camping at the military airport here near where American helicopters land to load relief supplies and distribute them to remote coastal areas. "Islamic law enforcement," is written in English on a sign at the huddle of small igloo tents where some of the Majelis Mujahedeen Indonesia volunteers sleep among the much larger tents of the contingents of foreign military, though not the Americans, who have come to help.
The Americans return at night to the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, which is off the coast. For the moment, the militants say they are willing to tolerate the work of the Americans, whom they usually denounce as infidels and imperialistic occupiers of Muslim nations. "As long as the American soldiers' involvement is for humanitarian reasons, they are welcome," said Imam Salman al-Farisi, the leader of the 80 volunteers of Majelis Mujahedeen Indonesia here. Majelis Mujahedeen is an umbrella organization of militant groups founded by Abu Bakar Bashir, who is on trial, charged with organizing the terror attack in Bali in October 2002. Mr. Bashir is the leader of the terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, which is blamed in the Bali bombings and the attack on the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta in 2003.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:18:40 AM ||
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#1
The military distributed the protective gloves, rubber boots and the masks they needed to dig bodies out of the rubble, the volunteers said.
How appropriate. Hand polish the Imam's property, bring out the dead, and dilute the medicines until all anyone gets is useless magic water.
#3
The eagerness of the Muslim volunteers, though often thinly supplied and equipped, has stood in sharp contrast to the absence of government workers and to the lethargy of some Indonesian soldiers.
Nothing like gaining the sympathies of the population, and at best, more recruits, to lift the spirits of Islamofascists. Government inability to render initial assistance to victims means that fundies can step in and begin the process of verbally haranguing the population into supporting their causes.
Indonesia warned aid workers Sunday that separatist rebels have taken shelter in camps for survivors, while a burst of violence hit Sri Lanka, signaling a potential resurgence of long-simmering rebellions in both tsunami-hit countries that could hamper help for victims of the two-week-old disaster.
I think I might have mentioned before that the important thing isn't whether the people have bread or shelter or schools, but Armed Struggle. Accept no substitutes...
Compounding the misery, tropical downpours complicated relief efforts already slowed by impassable roads and destroyed bridges. Tens of thousands of survivors living in little more than tents and the drenching rain underscored the need to quickly build permanent shelters. Decades-old conflicts in Indonesia and Sri Lanka lay dormant in the first two weeks after the magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami struck, killing more than 150,000 people in Asia and Africa. But now they threaten to re-ignite as aid workers poured into the region with emergency assistance, some traveling to areas where outsiders are almost never allowed.
Abraham Maslow, take a bow!
The workers say they are being cautious but won't let concerns about the rebellions slow the flow of aid. "We don't believe that aid workers are targets," said Joel Boutroue, head of the U.N. relief effort in Indonesia's troubled Aceh province.
"Duck! Here comes another one!"
Ethnic tensions overshadowed U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's tour of devastated areas in Sri Lanka. Hundreds protested in Sri Lanka's Tamil-dominated north after he acceded to a government request not to visit areas under rebel control. "I'm hoping to come back and be able to visit all areas of the country, not only those repaired, but also to celebrate peace," Annan said before heading to the Maldives. "The U.N. is not here to take sides."
"It's not the U.N.'s place to take sides. We never take sides. Unless there's money in it...
A rare burst of violence between Christians and Hindus in eastern Sri Lanka, where a massive aid effort is under way, revived security fears for relief workers there. At least three people were killed and 37 injured.
Tack 'em onto the overall death toll and move on...
The Indonesian government warning offered no details about the infiltration into survivor camps, but was issue came hours after police in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, blamed separatists for a nighttime gunfire close to the main U.N. compound in town. Local military spokesman Ahmad Yani Basuki told the state-run Antara news agency that volunteers must understand that Aceh "is not like other regions in Indonesia Tis is still a conflict-torn region."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
Naww, say it ain't so! There are "separatists" and "rebels" and "militants" and "insurgents" who would dare take advantage of the disaster? What will the MSM do? I guess, they'll have to take the side of the victims of the disaster, y'know, For The Childrenâ¢. They'll figure out how to re-adopt the "bad guys" later, after this passes.
One word to those bad guys, however, you'd be very very smart to make certain you do not hinder, interfere, or worse - act against any of the US or Aussie Military people working there. The Abraham Lincoln will bring down upon you a World of Shit⢠like nothing you have ever known or even dreamed of. What you've faced thus far from the Indo, Sri Lankan, Indian, whatever Gov't, little ones, is mere mother-loving child's play, relatively speaking. Ok, end of PSA.
I think I might have mentioned before that the important thing isnât whether the people have bread or shelter or schools, but Armed Struggleâ¢.
The only struggling that these "rebels" need to be doing is the final contortion in an effort to escape their manacles before a bullet is put into the back of their heads.
#8
Whats the guts with these rebels and other self appointed over zealous representitives of the people of Islam?, if foreign aid is given a kick in the guts by fundamentalists and extremists then they'll need a wave of a hundred metres to clean up the wrath and destruction left from boxing day. There are overseas aid people there not for their wants and needs, they are there just to help THEIR FELLOW BROTHERS AND SISTERS.
A message to these Islamic Defender's Front (FPI)and other clownshoes, the suffering of the people caught in the tsunami has united foreign people overseas with the people from your country in many ways than you could ever imagine.
Be a total dickheads, replace the humanitarian aid with violence and killing and not only will everyone hear you abuse the rest of the world for help later after it is removed from your country, try and bring your infrastructure back to a level where the children aren't dying slowly.
The people I know of The Muslim faith are able to provide for their family, bringing up their kids in a safe environment, free from harm, paying their taxes without having to bear weapons or have weapons bought down on them but they wish at times their home country gave them the same social stability that they get in their second country that they live in.
Sure Amerikkka"s foreign policy is the old good cop bad cop routine and at times John Howard is USA's bitch but who hasnt had a superior power up their ass, just look at other indigenous cultures and their method of confronting/assimilating/using the new technology comesin whatever form or matter.
One more thing, if you have a Coke (Coke cola) machine in your country, the good ol USA has already won the invasion.
Edited for Length
Sri Lanka has suffered the most human fatalities (30,000 plus) and infrastructure and other property damage after Indonesia in the catastrophic Tsunami disaster of December, 26, 2004[...] Independent reports from the Northern and Eastern Provinces indicate that the military infrastructure of the Government as well as the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) has also been seriously damaged by the Tsunami, with the LTTE, which had a stronger and a wider presence than the Government, suffering a much greater damage. It stands to reason that the LTTE's military infrastructure in the North as well as the East must have suffered considerably since the most devastating impact of the Tsunami in Sri Lanka was reportedly in the Tamil areas. However, it has been difficult to quantify the losses suffered by the LTTE and to assess its impact on the LTTE's capability for resuming the insurgency and keeping it sustained. In the absence of reliable information, it is also difficult to estimate what effect the devastation has had on the LTTE's following amongst the people, particularly in the Eastern Province where its hold had been showing signs of weakening since March, 2004. While the LTTE has been more efficient than the Government in documenting the losses suffered by the Tamil civilians and in sharing the information with the international community, it has been playing down the losses suffered by its military infrastructure and giving figures which do not seem to be correct. On the other hand, the Sinhalese media, suspectedly fed disinformation by the military intelligence, has been reporting what appears to be highly exaggerated figures of the losses allegedly suffered by the LTTE.
A website of the LTTE has quoted Soosai as stating as follows on the losses suffered by the LTTE: "In Mullaitivu three of our fighters perished. Major Dharmendra, a fighter who was assigned to provide support to him (Soosai) and a civilian fighter we call "Petrol Iyah," died in the calamity. In Vattuvagal and Chaalai we didn't suffer any losses to personnel. In Vadamaradchy east we lost three fighters manning the forward defence lines. An LTTE woman cadre who had come to Vadamaradchy East on leave died in the flooding. Loss of lives of our cadres was limited to those I have mentioned. We suffered some additional property damage. In Trincomalee and in Batticaloa two observation posts were washed away. The losses are not that significant." However, non-Tamil and non-LTTE sources have been giving differing estimates of the LTTE cadres killed, varying between 1,200 and 5,000. According to them, large quantities of arms, ammunition and explosives stockpiled by the Tigers have been destroyed. Tiger camps at Nagar Kovil in Jaffna, Mahalnadu, Welvetithurai, Thandamanarau, Malati, Mathagal, Mankarni and Sea Tiger camps at Mullaitivu, Nayaru, Chmmaale, Championpaththu and Chalai have been completely destroyed. Four Tiger radar centers positioned along the Mullaitivu coastal belt have been damaged beyond repair. About 200 boats belonging to the Sea Tigers as well as 1,500 boats belonging to fishermen, who are sympathetic to the LTTE, have also been badly damaged. Mystery surrounds the fate of Prabakaran, the leader of the LTTE. While a statement on the disaster attributed to him was disseminated by the LTTE on December 29, 2004, he has neither been seen nor heard since December 26, 2004.
Whatever be the ultimate truth, one thing appears very likely, if not certain. Its military-cum-terrorist machine has been badly damaged by the Tsunami. Similarly, its tax-collection machinery and its usual sources of funds have been damaged. Some of the statements of the LTTE leaders show that they are on the defensive. Even while criticising the Government, they are avoiding unnecessary rhetoric. The Tsunami has been a traumatic shock for the LTTE and its surviving leadership, but there is no evidence so far to indicate demoralisation in the ranks of its survivors or a weakening of their motivation.
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
01/10/2005 2:26:14 AM ||
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#1
The infidels will have to learn to create "smart" tsunamis like "smart" bombs--I'm sure some think the tsunami was a Western plot anyway.
#2
I've been scanning the Internet for satellite imagery of the tsunami-damaged areas for the last ten days or so. There is NO imagery available anywhere of the east coast of Sri Lanka. There's imagery of Galle, on the southwest coast, and of Kautara, about 60mi south of Columbo, but NOTHING of the east coast. There are a bunch of "before" shots and some "projections" of damage, but no imagery. Makes you wonder why, doesn't it?
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/10/2005 19:43 Comments ||
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Syrian right activists pleaded Monday with the U.S. military to release 300 Syrian truck drivers held on the border with Iraq for several days.
Wow, what a suprise! Who knew they had rights in Syria?
Lawyer Anwar Bunni, spokesman for Syrian human rights watchdog groups, said in a statement U.S. forces have kept 300 Syrian drivers under "harsh climate conditions" at the border.
Staked out in the sun on a anthill, I hope.
Bunni urged the Syrian and Iraqi authorities to mediate a release as soon as possible and called on international human rights group to intervene to settle the case. Damascus intervened several times in the past to secure the release of Syrian drivers who were held by U.S. forces on suspicion of involvement in terrorist attacks.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 2:52:20 PM ||
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#1
Shoulda turned left at Al-Bequrqi.
Posted by: ed ||
01/10/2005 16:26 Comments ||
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#2
Confiscate the trucks. Tell the drivers to walk home.
#5
Three hundred trucks tried to sneak dates and olive oil across the Iraqi border without the proper paperwork? Who knew smuggling groceries was so profitable?
#6
"Yes, effendi. Dates. Pineapples. Cluster, er...grapes. All in plastique cartons. Papers, effendi? Yes, yes. I just picked them up from my Pakistani...um, business partner."
#7
Lol! What we have here is a clash of civilizations centuries. They've been doing this smuggling shit since before there was hair and now, well, there are these inconvenient non-Arabs who aren't playing the time-honored game. Some people change - and some definitely don't.
Oh, and they've smuggled arms & such in those olive oil and date shipments across all those centuries, as well.
#8
Match each driver with the truck they drove, then inspect every load. When stuff like arms and/or ammo is found, haul up the responsible driver, give him ten lashes, and point him in the direction of Damascus and administer a nice, swift kick in the ass to get him going on his trip home, with a warning never to return, lest he never see the sands of home again.
Iran's president called Sunday for an investigation into journalists' allegations they were tortured into confessing to charges such as insulting sacred beliefs and endangering national security after publishing articles critical of conservatives in the government. About 20 journalists from print, Internet and other media outlets have been detained in Iran since a crackdown on the pro-reform press was launched in September. Several of those journalists told a presidential commission last month that they were tortured. President Mohammad Khatami said Sunday he would meet with the head of the country's judiciary about the allegations. "It's deplorable even if 10 percent of what the Web bloggers allege is true," Khatami said, referring to the writers who kept online journals, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency. "It's against the dignity of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has to be probed." Several detainees, some of whom were barred from meeting their attorneys, confessed to charges that included spreading propaganda against the regime and inciting public unrest. "Confessions were extracted from us under physical and psychological pressures in prison. Apparently we were released but threats against us and even our families have been continued," said Hanif Mazroui, one of the detained bloggers.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
Will they beat to death anyone whose claim they decide to pursue? Just wondering.
#5
So,ETS,how do you feel about hanging teen-age girls,stoneing people,beheading,blowing-up children whose only crime is eating candy,and clitorectomies?It is a straight up question,answer if you dare!(By the way,close your over-coat.Flashing little girls makes you a pervert.)
#7
Bye ETS. Better get ready for school, the short bus should be there soon.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 8:40 Comments ||
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#8
ets, you need two things: an ESL class and a brain transplant. To replace your brain with a mosquito's would raise your IQ considerably.
Posted by: Steve from Relto ||
01/10/2005 10:21 Comments ||
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#9
Com - Looks like the puppet master has gone wireless.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 12:56 Comments ||
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#10
shut up faghety jew or indu cocksucker, abu graeb or guantanamo do not entitle you to even fart. we will get all of you publiced very soon...............
Pakistan Peopleâs Party (PPP) leader Asif Ali Zardari has demanded the government form a parliamentary committee to investigate the recent incidents in Balochistan and a judicial enquiry into the killings in Northern Areas. The PPP leader said in a statement on Monday that the government had failed to improve law and order in Pakistan and only fresh elections could resolve the crises in Balochistan. Zardari said that in a country where judges were kidnapped, the common man could not think of getting justice. He said a gas pipeline was blown up in Sui but the government was doing nothing. Zardari said it seemed the country was facing a civil war-like situation as military operations had become order of the day. The PPP leader also condemned the gang rape of a lady doctor in Balochistan. Zardari ridiculed Information Minister Sheikh Rashidâs claim on peace in Gilgit and said, âPeople are being killed and their properties are being damaged. Is this peace?â He said there should be a judicial enquiry into the Northern Areas unrest and the culprits should be arrested. Zardari expected that the PPP would settle all problems after coming to power.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 11:06:48 PM ||
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A country linked to prophets, historical richness and continuous civilisation dating back thousands of years, Palestine is overwhelmed by a bitter conflict caused by a lengthy Israeli occupation. Check out that sweet "map of Palastine" they have...oh wait thats all of Israel!
...Israeli gangs that led a guerrilla war on Palestinians and Britain, including various terrorist bombings, joined in forming the first Israeli government. Pot, kettle, black?
...The declaration of a state also meant a large-scale ethnic cleansing of thousands of Palestinians. The Israeli move is still considered the roots of the Palestinian refugee problem. Oh, you don't mean that six-at-a-time gangbang invasion fron Egypt, Syria, and Jordan et al?
...Disorganised and with a limited mandate, troops from Egypt, Syria and Jordan entered Palestine to prevent the mass exodus of Palestinians and to counter the Israeli army's violence... Oh THATS what they were trying to do, not drive the new israeli government into the mediteranean sea like they said they were going to do (i guess they were joking at the time)...
The war proved disastrous. Despite the steadfastness of the resistance, nearly one million Palestinians were made homeless, while much of the historical land of Palestine was now part of the new state of Israel. Oh really? And who started it? Oh yea not that simultaneous invasion from six different arab countries, of course not...
...Between the 1948 Nakba (catastrophe) and the current uprising, al-Aqsa Intifada, several major Arab-Israeli wars were fought of which the question of Palestine was a central component. All started by guess who? There's more, but I'm feeling sick just thinking about this gratiuitous load of misinformation...
Forcing naked Iraqi prisoners to pile themselves in human pyramids was not torture, because American cheerleaders do it every year, a court was told today.
Gawd, I love nekkid cheerleaders, all in a pile, with their... ummm... I mean, good point!
A lawyer defending Specialist Charles Graner, who is accused of being a ringleader in the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal, argued that piling naked prisoners in pyramids was a valid form of prisoner control.
I guess you could say that. It wouldn't make any sense, but you could say it. I'd hate to see his weekly staff meetings...
"Don't cheerleaders all over America form pyramids six to eight times a year. Is that torture?" said Guy Womack, Sergeant Graner's lawyer, in opening arguments to the ten-member military jury at the reservist's court martial... Doubtful this will be made into a JAG episode any time soon.
#3
Last I heard, cheerleaders tend to be clothed, more or less. Oh, and volunteers.
But I have to say that, while this was definitely abuse, certainly torment, I wouldn't call it torture. Which wouldn't stop me from voting for a minimum of stripping the man of all rank, condemning him to maximum allowable imprisonment at hard labour, to be followed by a dishonourable discharge, were I on the jury. As I recall, Graner had been dumped from the Armed Forces once, went on to become a prison guard -- where he had a habit of similarly abusing civilian prisoners -- and rejoined as a Reservist. Someone screwed up: with that record he should never have been allowed near Abu Ghraib.
Anyway, it seems to me that keeping each prisoner in a separate cell (and I understand that Abu G. had plenty of those) would function as an adequate method of prisoner control. Admittedly, I've only visited a prison once in my entire life, and never been responsible for controlling large numbers of putatively bad people, but still.
Really, it's a Jewish plot, but I guess that's the same thing...
"What is going on in the world is a battle between 'theocracy' and 'democracy,'" Farrakhan said, in a transcript of a December speech in Newark, NJ posted last week to the NOI web site. "The enemy is plotting, through democracy, to make the whole world submit to so-called democratic values," he claimed, "so that the demons of the West can rule all the darker peoples of the world under 'democracy.'"
Y'see, "democracy" is rule of the people, by the people, presumably for the people. "Theocracy" is rule of the people, by holy men, for holy men. The advantages of theocracy are obvious. Especially if you're a holy man...
"'Democracy' is 'the rule of the people,'" the NOI leader explained. "But what kind of people? It's the very opposite of theocracy. It's the rule of a devil."
See what I mean?
Farrakhan said ill-conceived attempts to foist democracy on Middle Eastern peoples explain why the insurgency in Iraq has proved so resilient. "That's why when you see Muslims in Iraq fire a rocket and it destroys an American tank, they cry out, 'Allah-u-Akbar! God is great!'" he told the Newark crowd.
That's what they say instead of "Holy shit!" It's a cultural thing...
"I do not mind accepting the rulership of intelligent White people if they're intelligent enough to rule," Farrakhan said. "But this madness that's going on in Washington, I cannot let that rule me. I cannot let that determine the future of a people who are hungering to breathe free."
I tend to agree, since they haven't been intelligent enough to hunt down Minister Farakhan and kill him.
#7
This from a black man who embraces Islam - a racist religion which encourages the enslavement of blacks because 'their heart is worse then a donkeys'.
I wonder what his opinion of the Sudan slave trade is....
#11
note that there are seven white stripes upon the black loons neck. The number seven is highly relevant and foretells my coming as the new savior, as I have an IQ of 7...
#13
Louie should know all about the devil, in fact, HE is the devil.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 16:09 Comments ||
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#14
No, Aris, I've known him and his ilk for dangerous demagogues for many years. I live in low budget neighborhoods; I ride the bus--I hear echos of Louis' and brother Jesse's and brother Sharpton's poison.
To stuff the followers of these demagogues in the same room with the Klansmen and Christian Identity types and lock the door makes a pleasant fantasy, but in practice (in prison) the groups seem to just make their rivals stronger.
Posted by: James ||
01/10/2005 16:29 Comments ||
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#15
CrazyFull,
I think Farakhan may be traded for a lame camel and a syphilitic donkey on the Sudanese slave market.
#17
I have seen "Minister" Farakhan in person give a speech. He's quite a good speaker, and what a spectacle with the bow-tied guards surrounding him! But the loon is appropriate because what he says is really off the wall.
Long article, just a tidbit, EFL, GRTWT: In 2000, the new Army Chief of Staff, General Eric Shinseki, was determined to shake up the Army and suspected that about half of a soldier's training was meaningless and "non-essential." The job of figuring out which half went to Lieutenant Colonel Leonard Wong (retired), a research professor of military strategy at the Army War College. At forty-five, Wong is handsome and voluble, with the air of a man who makes his living prodding the comfortable. Wong found that the problem was not "bogus" training exercises but worthwhile training being handled in such a way as to stifle fresh thinking. The Army had so loaded training schedules with doctrinaire requirements and standardized procedures that unit commanders had no time—or need—to think for themselves. The service was encouraging "reactive instead of proactive thought, compliance instead of creativity, and adherence instead of audacity," Wong wrote in his report. As one captain put it to him, "They're giving me the egg and telling me how to suck it."
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Wong flew to Baghdad last April, a year after the supposed cessation of "major combat operations," to find out how the "reactive" and "compliant" junior officers the Army had trained were performing amid the insurgency. He and an active-duty officer flew to bases all over Iraq, interviewing lieutenants, who lead platoons of about thirty soldiers, and captains, who command companies of one to two hundred. These officers, scrambling to bring order to Mosul, Fallujah, and Baghdad, had been trained and equipped to fight against numbered, mechanized regiments in open-maneuver warfare. They had been taught to avoid fighting in cities at all costs. Few had received pre-deployment training in improvised explosive devices, or I.E.D.s, the insurgents' signature weapon. None had received any but the most rudimentary instruction in the Arabic language or in Iraqi culture. They were perhaps the most isolated occupation force in history; there are no bars or brothels in Baghdad where Americans can relax, no place off the base for Americans to remove their body armor in the presence of locals. Every encounter was potentially hostile. The chronic shortage of troops and shifting phases of fighting and reconstruction forced soldiers into jobs for which they weren't prepared; Wong found field artillerymen, tankers, and engineers serving as infantrymen, while infantrymen were building sewer systems and running town councils. All were working with what Wong calls "a surprising lack of detailed guidance from higher headquarters." In short, the Iraq that Wong found is precisely the kind of unpredictable environment in which a cohort of hidebound and inflexible officers would prove disastrous.
Yet he found the opposite. Platoon and company commanders were exercising their initiative to the point of occasional genius. Whatever else the Iraq war is doing to American power and prestige, it is producing the creative and flexible junior officers that the Army's training could not.
Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 12:45:19 PM ||
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I hope the author was not surprised at the initiative and smarts of the junior officer corps. They have actually done something other than receive military training and are not robots. They are smart and they adapt. The crucible of war forces all to adapt. The smart ones just do it faster.
#2
Today's Lieutenants and Captains are Tomorrows Colonels and Generals. Take note China. How is political hackery and civil suppression training your future military leaders for the battlefield?
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
01/10/2005 13:43 Comments ||
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#3
Bull Poo ALERT!!!
Whatever else the Iraq war is doing to American power and prestige, it is producing the creative and flexible junior officers that the Armyâs training could not.
And pray tell, Mr. Bozo, ...just where did these junior officers acquire the ability to think and act in a creative and flexible manner??
Oh and look how Mr. Bozo's true sympathies are exposed by this statment:
Whatever else the Iraq occupation war is doing to American power and prestige,
Hey BOZO, a better conclusion would read, "despite a lack in specific training for the current conflict such as arabic, IED training etc., the army has a training program that is producing the creative and flexible junior officers who can successfully improvise in any cirucmstances. "
Keep up the good work guys, and don't let this clueless bozo change a thing. Otherwise you'll be training the guys to fight with skills only applicable to the current situation (ie: the last war) and not training them to be able to improvise for ALL conflicts.
#4
I am interested in seeing the political class that arises from this group of junior officers in twenty years. We'll have some incredibly gifted leaders.
#5
What seafarious said. Whichever party can grab the greatest number of these supremely experienced and talented young leaders will likely dominate national politics in years to come.
#6
somehow, I don't think they will be gravitating to the logic of the Michael Moore, Barbara Boxer party. But then, I suspect that will be extinct by then.
#7
Naw, they won't be extinct, they'll go to ground, carefully hoarding a cache of "war atrocity" stories. Us blog historians had best start chronicling the good stories now.
#9
sigh..you are absolutely right, Sea. Pol Pot's killing fields, Stalin's mass graves and 60+ million dead did little to discredit the left's stupid ideas in the 60's. And we even ended up with Kerry coming waaay too close to winning the last election.
#10
2b, I really believe that Bill Clinton was the Democratic Party's high point. Although it looked ugly, GWB did win decisively. And seriously, Kerry, his Party, and their supporters in academia, world politics, and the mainstream media are working as hard as they can to demonstrate their disregard for truth and honor.... not to mention their suicidal willingness to excuse those who wish to kill us all.
Trailing Daughter is in ninth grade. What I hear from her and her friends makes it clear that the idealistic kids in this country (and who isn't at that age?) see the Republican Party as the place where their aspirations for change can be realized. They are the real internet generation, and they get their news from the web. Also, TD and many of her friends moderate sites (much like our own dear Army of Steve, Seafarious, etc), and recognize/handle trollery and similar deviltry. So as they grow up they'll already be immunized against MoveOn/DU/Soros behaviours, which makes them much less likely to accept the ideas/memes/"info" being pushed.
#13
I just finished reading General Tommy Franks' book "American Soldier". It is an excellant book and I highly recommend it. He touches on how the training actually does encourage non-conformative thinking.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 16:03 Comments ||
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#15
Article: They had been taught to avoid fighting in cities at all costs.
This principle is several thousand years old. It doesn't mean don't fight - it means, if possible, fight the enemy in an open area. They were certainly trained for urban operations, which is why their casualties are relatively low. But the principle still stands - urban operations are inevitably high-casualty, unless we adopt rather more draconian tactics - of the kind used during WWII, when perhaps hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed during the liberation of Europe.
Article: None had received any but the most rudimentary instruction in the Arabic language or in Iraqi culture.
How stupid can these reporters get? Rudimentary instruction is how this works. These guys are soldiers, not linguists. Learning anything but the rudiments is a full-time job.
#16
Seafarious, you flatter me beyond all deserving. And I love it!
2b, I'm going to order the barrel-o-tumeric tomorrow.
It just occurred to me that TD and her classmates are going to be able to vote in the next presidential election. The questions asked at that MTV "Meet the Candidates" show are going to be highly amusing... at least for us Rantburger types....
#18
The image that came to me when reading this article was (don't laugh too hard) the Butterball Turkey hotline. At Thanksgiving, Butterball has a free hotline people can call for advice on cooking a good roast turkey & meal. If Butterball can give phone-in advice why couldn't the military?
Have experts of all kinds standing by to answer questions. Have a badly wounded soldier and no medic? Call in on a cell phone and talk to a trauma nurse or doctor. Your vehicle broke down in the middle of nowhere and you don't have any one who knows how to fix it? Call in and get advice from a top mechanic. Could use older or retired folks with tons of experience to do it.
January 9, 2005: For nearly two years, American intelligence units have been collecting information on Baath Party resistance inside, and outside, Iraq. It was this kind of information that led to the capture of Saddam Hussein a year ago. Actually, many intelligence officers were shocked when they saw the news stories detailing how the data on Baath Party officials, and their kinfolk, was collected and organized according to what jobs people had in Baath, or Saddam's government, and who was related to who. Letting the enemy know what you know is something you avoid doing. However, describing Baath as "one big family" had a lot of truth to it. Especially in the Middle East, family ties often reinforce political ones. It was a mistake to let the Baath Party know how well American intelligence had done in sorting out who was who in Saddam's support and security network, although the Baath Party intelligence experts were probably not surprised that the Americans were making lists and cross referencing them. This is basic police intelligence work.
These thousands of intelligence troops have not been idle for the past year, but they have been more circumspect. They have shared information with the Iraqi government, which accounts for the head of Iraqi intelligence recently announcing that the anti-government resistance was being kept going by 40,000 active fighters, and 400,000 supporters. Oddly enough, this matches the number of Baath Party activists and core members of Saddam's secret police and security forces (and their extended families), based on known (and previously published) information on Baath and Saddam's government. For a brief moment a year ago, the news was full of stories of how American intelligence specialists, using pretty standard investigative techniques (and current database and analysis software), picked up the usual suspects, interrogated them (asking seemingly innocuous questions about who was related to who), and assembled the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle which, when finished, said "Saddam is right hereâŠ"
The puzzle of the growing, at least in the number of people killed, anti-government attacks shows a lot of the key people, especially the money guys, operating across the border in Syria. These men can go no where else. Not Iran, because these men have much Shia blood on their hands. Even the most rabidly anti-American Iranian Islamic zealots would not want to be associated with one of Saddam's butchers. North Korea? Possibly. But first you have to get there, and then you have to realize that North Korea is a bit of hell on earth itself, and on the brink of collapse. How about Somalia? Only if you are into the "Mad Max" lifestyle, and American commandoes are just next door. Any other country presents the risk of an international arrest warrant, and a local government eager to enforce it. So Saddam's old cronies sit in Syria, paying off the Syrian Baath Party with stolen Iraqi oil money, and profuse apologies for past feuding and misunderstandings over which nations Baath Party was the senior one.
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Posted by: Steve ||
01/10/2005 9:09:30 AM ||
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#1
About time! Until this job is actually completed the war will not be won. The current situation seems to be pretty much a bloody stalemate with the insurrection blocking any forward progress in a big part of Iraq and tying down a significant number of US ground forces. Both sides will continue to bleed for years unless something changes soon.
IMO the Sunni leadership fence sitters should also be selectively targeted, at least for the arrest and hostage side of it, because they are providing financial and other aid to the insurrection. Until they get the idea that there is a cost to not supporting a new Iraqi government they will continue in the insurrection camp. When the choice is death from the Baathists vs. a stern lecture from the IIG they will of course comply with the Baathists, even if they would rather just get on with normal life.
Posted by: DO ||
01/10/2005 11:08 Comments ||
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#2
May I suggest dead?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
01/10/2005 14:15 Comments ||
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#3
The fuzzy middle will be used for intel gathering and leverage will be required in order to compel them to devulge. In this regard, it will revert to Sunni versus Sunni-Saddam loyalists.
This compelled intel will accelerate the network-based investigation, and more speedily roll up the dead ender 8%.
Happy huntin' folks.
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 19:17 Comments ||
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#4
DO points out one of the keys, not yet exploited, to bringing this insurgency under control. It's about realizing how they thin and forgetting what makes sense to a Westerner.
The entire society subscribes to a loyalty pyramid of family, clan, and tribe. There are considerable spices tossed in: flavor of Islam, Iraqi, Arab, Muslim First, et al, b ut they are secondary to that blood and politics trio.
Want to control a family? You take the Patriarch and his top scions.
Want to control a clan? Take the Clan Leader, his top scions, and his council, the Family Patriarchs.
Want to control a tribe? You get the idea.
And tribe is where the action is. The decisions are made here:
Benign Example...
We protect the pipeline where it crosses "our lands" cuz we're being paid by the Coalition to do so, just like Saddam did. The jihadis are threatening one of us? Okay, let them blow it up. It'll only be out of commission a few days, we'll explain we can't be 100% perfect - the infidels will forgive us, and the jihadis will get press coverage. For them, Saddam is little different from the Iraqi Gov't. They expect to wheel 'n deal with it - and receive concessions in their territory.
Malignant Example...
We will support and hide the "fighters". We will help in smuggling in the cash and explosives, taking only our "cut". We will supply them with the hotheads and willing / malleable young men of the tribe. On the surface, despite how common the knowledge is that they are involved, they will take the same approach with the Gov't: cut us some deals and conceed to us control of our traditional territory.
Take the Tribal Leader and his council of Clan Leaders and turn up the heat on the charm. Who they are is no secret, just ask - everyone in a Tribe can fill out your program.
The Brits have tried the soft side of this, using bribery, and had it blow up in their faces, so I believe they have backed off of any large-scale deals.
It is well past time to remove the bad Tribal Leaders and Clan Leaders, but anytime will do better than never. Shake the whole Sunni heirarchy up. Offer the jihadi Tribal Lands to the more moderate / benign Tribes - and back them up militarily. Start a fire in their tent.
#5
Do it the way we did it during the Indian wars. Set tribe against tribe. Pick somee tribes to get privileged status. They only get the privileges, and continue to keep them, if they work against the outlaw tribes.
Posted by: DO ||
01/10/2005 20:32 Comments ||
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Debka article -liberal use of salt and pepper mandated
Moderate Arab leaders aimed a damaging broadside at key US-sponsored election ventures, the more painful for its timing in the month when ballots were scheduled both in the Palestinian Authority and Iraq. It was fired inconspicuously by 21 Arab interior ministers gathered in Tunis last week and acted as a rude snub to the Bush administration's diplomatic efforts to recruit Arab friends for help in bringing reluctant Iraqi Sunni voters to the January 30 poll. Present at the conference from Sunday to Wednesday, January 2-5, in addition to the ministers, were Middle East and Persian Gulf chiefs of intelligence, police and domestic security in the Middle East and Persian Gulf, as well as outside counter-terror experts, including Americans.
DEBKAfile's Washington sources report that, ahead of the event, Saudi and Egyptian governments promised Washington and Baghdad to initiate motions expressly condemning Iraqi terrorism and throwing a supportive mantle over the two January elections. What happened in Tunis left the Americans astonished and outraged by what they saw as a betrayal by their purported Arab friends. The key resolution said: "Arab interior ministers condemned all terrorist acts in Iraq targeting Iraqi security agents and the Iraqi police, as well as businesses and public, economic, humanitarian and religious institutions." There was not a single cross word for the acts of violence against American troops or coalition allies.
This omission went down with Bush administration officials as not far short of a pan-Arab license to kill non-Iraqis, namely Americans and its allied forces. Sunday, January 9, US embassy officials met with Iraqi's supreme Muslim Council to ask them to revoke the order to Sunnis to boycott the election. The clerics offered to grant this wish on condition that the United States set a date for its departure from Iraq. Adding fuel to the fire, Saudi interior minister Prince Nayef called a news conference after the event to pull out the old chestnut of another intractable conflict: "The Palestinians are not engaged in a war of terror," he said, "but self-defense."
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Posted by: Elder of Zion ||
01/10/2005 5:02:01 AM ||
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"Washington sources add that the administration views the performance of its Arab friends at Tunis as one of the most painful contretemps it has suffered in the war on global terror and a grave setback to its aspirations to lead the Middle East to stable democratic government, starting with the Palestinians and moving on to Iraq."
Having gone to significant trouble to lead the Muslim/Arab horse to the waterhole of democracy, I'm sure we'd like very, very much for it to drink. Very much, indeed.
But either it will drink, or it will not.
And if it chooses not to drink, I don't think we will be losing a trememdous amount of sleep over it. In that event we will conclude this little "Muslim Democracy" exercise knowing two things: 1) we did our level best to show them the way, and 2) they, in the end, proved utterly incorrigible.
And in that case, that knowledge would inform our response to any future Muslim terrorist attack: the resulting war would not be a war of liberation and reform-- it will be a war of extermination.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
01/10/2005 9:05 Comments ||
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#2
What happened in Tunis left the Americans astonished and outraged by what they saw as a betrayal by their purported Arab friends. The key resolution said: âArab interior ministers condemned all terrorist acts in Iraq targeting Iraqi security agents and the Iraqi police, as well as businesses and public, economic, humanitarian and religious institutions.â There was not a single cross word for the acts of violence against American troops or coalition allies.
This omission went down with Bush administration officials as not far short of a pan-Arab license to kill non-Iraqis, namely Americans and its allied forces.
What is different about Afghanistan? Democracy seems to be working there with the exception of a few warts occasionally? Our Arab friends(?) better get off the dime. We cannot tolerate the duplicity of these politics. We have put up with duplicitous politics for too long. Arabia and its neighbors are trying to have it both ways--appease--no support the jihadists while at the same time acting like our friends.
#3
Gee - I wonder why the governments of Egypt, Saudi Arabia would be wary of a successful democratic election in Iraq?
Posted by: Carlos ||
01/10/2005 9:39 Comments ||
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#4
The mask comes off. I wouldn't say it's a good thing, but it is a major milestone in the WOT.
I remember in the buildup to the war of Afghanistan and Iraq, a similar even occurred when NPR, BBC and other news networks just chucked most of their pretenses that they cared about the oppressed or the victims of 911 and stripped off the mask of compassion, making it shockingly clear that they would say or do ANYTHING to try to stop the Americans from going to war. Right before the war started, I remember being shocked, like I am in this article, that they were willing to trash the benefits of their long term reputation for the short term gain. But they did.
I think it's a good thing and shows desperation when one side is forced to show their mal intentions. Sort of like when you play Hearts and it becomes clear to the other players that you are going for broke. It instantly changes the strategy of the game.
#6
"Washington sources add that the administration views the performance of its Arab friends at Tunis as one of the most painful contretemps it has suffered in the war on global terror and a grave setback to its aspirations to lead the Middle East to stable democratic government, starting with the Palestinians and moving on to Iraq."
For some reason I cannot dredge up simpathy for the administration.
#7
GWB is known for holding a grudge. And the government budget needs to get closer to being balanced. How much longer d'you suppose Egypt is going to continue being given that $2bil/year payoff money (for having signed that peace treaty with Israel)?
#8
These idiots will go too far. When they do perhaps it will be their own people whom they will fear most. I think at least some of them are smart enough to understand what Dave D. correctly wrote.
#9
As an interesting sideline to the article, I saw today an news item in YNET (sorry, no link, its in hebrew) that there are now voices among egyptian intelectuals that are demanding real democratic elections (with more than one nominee) and similar constitutional changes in Egyptian law. They actually suggested Amr Mussa (head of the arab league) as a competitor candidate for egyptian presidency.
This is said to be the result of seeing that the Democratic elections for the head of the palestinian authority actually worked (there were 8 candidates there).
Could we be seeing the first sprouting dissidents beginning the fight for true democracy in Egypt ??
Should the Saudi Princes begin to worry ??
who knows, Dubia may have been more successful than we may have hoped.
#10
Amr Moussa would just prefer Mubarak's turban to rest on his head. He's no believer in democracy, surely.
But that being said, Dubya is giving hope to a lot of reasonable people throughout Moose limb land (KimmiCommiLand too). And all of the caliph wannabes are starting to sweat...
Among other things, they don't have Syria on one side to support the Sunni Arabs, and Iran on the other to support the Shias, nor do they have a yet third part of the country that wants to go independent.
In that event we will conclude this little "Muslim Democracy" exercise knowing two things: 1) we did our level best to show them the way, and 2) they, in the end, proved utterly incorrigible.
Yes, unfortunately you will conclude *that*, learning (as always) the wrong lesson.
But if your problem is about convincing *Sunnis* to partake in the democratic elections of a Shia-majority country, then the problem has little to do with the concept of "Muslim democracy" and everything to do with the heterogenity of the populations of Iraq.
And if your problem is about neighbouring nations supporting the insurgency of Iraq, then the concept of "Muslim Democracy" has again nothing to do with it: It's the neighbourhood that's the problem -- namely Syria, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
But hey, no need for steenking minds, no need to address the *specific* problems, and ofcourse we can't *ever* admit Bush made a wrong decision, so you can never admit "the choice of Iraq as our target for democratization was bad". You'll just blame it on the Muslim Mind (tm) instead, which will be a good excuse for later as well.
Above all remember: It's never about catastrophic mistakes, because then we'd have the responsibility to think *better* next time. It's always about treating those mooslim savages better than they deserve. Har har.
#16
"What is different about Afghanistan? Democracy seems to be working there with the exception of a few warts occasionally?"
I recall reading somewhere that Afghanistan has a long history of government by tribal council. If so, it may be that with the notion of "government by consent" already thus established, the transition to what is emerging there now comes without much difficulty.
I strongly suspect that it will succeed, too, in Iraq; but we shall see.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
01/10/2005 18:49 Comments ||
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#17
Well, government by semi-consent, anyway. Sort of like ancient Athens, which was a democracy for all the free, adult, male, Athenian citizens who were wealthy enough to take the time to participate in the debates and the votes. I mean, the Afghani tribal councils never included women or children, area residents not members of the tribe, or anybody the chief citizens disliked enough to kill. But other than that, members could make arguments before the senior members, who would then make a decision for the entire tribe. An modern example would be all the women in the woolier parts of Afghanistan who were required to vote by the headman, with strict instructions on who they were to vote for.
Yehya Shatarat punched his fist into his hand as he watched satellite television pictures of Palestinians in the West Bank voting for a successor to the late Yasser Arafat. "Mahmoud Abbas is definitely the winner and he will destroy us completely because he sold out the Palestinian cause to Israel and America a long time ago," said the 28-year-old refugee, referring to the Palestinian who is expected to easily win the presidential race. Abbas fulfilled Shatarat's prediction, with exit polls showing him winning handily.
Shatarat wasn't the only one in the camps scattered across the Middle East who expressed frustration at having no say in choosing the leaders who will sit down with Israel to decide the fate of Palestinian refugees. Israel flatly rejects allowing hundreds of thousands of refugees and their descendants to return to homes abandoned in the 1948 and 1967 Middle East wars, saying that would destroy the country as a Jewish majority state. A future settlement is likely to be a combination of financial compensation for those barred from returning and resettlement in the West Bank, Gaza or in the West.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
WTOP.
"A future settlement is likely to be a combination of financial compensation for those barred from returning and resettlement in the West Bank, Gaza or in the West."
Or NOT. Make this shit up as you go or just spout from the Paleo Dogma⢠Manual? Wankers.
#3
man...I guessed wrong! I was sure this would be the BBC or NPR. But it was WTOP. Oh well...I guess I was still darn close.
The use of one quote and the phrase "Shatarat wasn't the only one" to imply that one quote out of millions speaks for all, is just so BBC/NPR. But I guess I should have known it wasn't BBC. There weren't any sound effects or smells written in.
#4
I digressed above. I wanted to make the point that the new Palestinian caveat has been established. It is that the elections were not legitimate because not enough people voted...voter disenfranchisment etc. Thus Abbas has no mandate.
Thus, still no leader who can speak for the Palestinian People(TM). Only the high preists in the MSM can do that.
#5
Mojo, after 1948, the Arabs who fled the new Israel were not given permanent refugee status or citizenship in their countries of refuge. Those who weren't forced into UN refugee camps were allowed only temporary housing until their triumphant return. Unfortunately, there has been no return, so these people (and their many decendents) are still in legal limbo. I'm sure that at least some would prefer to give up the Palestinian label, but it isn't an option.
#9
Carry on then, mojo! Yeah, its dreary and cold here in the Midwest, and they are talking about more floods later in the week. California is getting an early taste of life after the globe warms up, and .com is experiencing the first signs of the next ice age out there in Vegas.
And then the Paleo idiots refuse to learn, despite gentle instruction. I guess I'm in a butthead mood, now, too.
#10
There's no if's, and's, or buttheads about it. When the Arabs rejected Partition and fled Israel to make way for the Arab reconquest, they lost all claim to the land or "citizenship" they fled.
"Right of Return" my ass. Israel was created as a state for Jews; Jordan for Arabs. If Jordan doesn't want them they can rot as far as I'm concerned.
#11
"I'm sure that at least some would prefer to give up the Palestinian label, but it isn't an option."
Well it is if you move out of the $%!7 hole that is the middle east. I would have been figuring out my plan of leaving really fast. Those to stupid to do that deserve what pain they suffer. There is zero chance the state of Isreal is going to let any of them back in ever.
Israel expects Mahmoud Abbas to win Sunday's Palestinian presidential election and is ready to open talks with him, offering to free Palestinian prisoners if Abbas cracks down on Palestinian rocket attacks, senior Israeli officials said. Opinion polls showed Abbas with more than double the support of his nearest rival, democracy activist Mustafa Barghouti, but he was struggling to win a clear mandate to push forward with his agenda of resuming peace talks with Israel and reforming the corruption-riddled Palestinian Authority. The Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the first meeting should take place shortly after the election.
To facilitate the elections, Israel also began slowly easing travel restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Saturday, though problems remained and new checkpoints sprouted in some areas, international election observers said. Despite the difficulties, Palestinian election officials said ballot boxes were distributed to more than 1,000 polling stations throughout the West Bank and Gaza for Sunday's vote to replace Yasser Arafat, who died in November, as Palestinian Authority president.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was said to have discussed a proposal to launch a war in the Middle East in an effort to divert attention from an investigation into allegations of bribery and corruption. A former member of Sharon's government said the prime minister met his aides in 2003 and discussed a strategy to foil a police probe into bribery and corruption, an investigation which also involved his sons. Former Deputy Education Minister Zvi Hendel said the war option was discussed by Sharon and his aides as a means to divert attention from the probe as well as persuade Israelis against any change in leadership.
Hendel resigned from the government in June 2004 after he opposed Sharon's plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank. He said the prime minister convened such aides as Dov Weissglass, then chief of staff; Eyal Arad, Sharon's strategic adviser, and Sharon's son, Gilead, to discuss a police recommendation for an indictment. "You have to think of a big move, otherwise we are in trouble," Hendel quoted Weissglass as saying during the meeting that took place at Sharon's ranch.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:06:35 AM ||
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#1
This must be one of those "Secret Plans" that Kerry kept saying Bush had. Must've passed them on to Ariel since November.
Mustafa Barghouti, the main rival to Mahmoud Abbas in Sunday's Palestinian elections claimed that voting irregularities had taken place. He said that the ink used in some polling stations to mark voters' thumbnails could be removed. "Two gross violations have been committed during the electoral process," Barghouti told reporters before casting his ballot at a school in Ramallah. A statement issued by his campaign team said that the indelible ink used to ensure that voters cast their ballot only once could be easily washed off. It added that certain polling stations in the Gaza Strip and three in the West Bank had been affected, shedding doubts on the prospect of transparent and fair elections. "I am demanding that the CEC (central elections commission) investigate these violations," said Barghouti who is around 30 points adrift Abbas in most opinion polls.
I didn't know he was a Democrat...
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Barghouti is a convicted murderer who killed 4 Israeli civilians and a Greek Priest. He is currently in an Israeli jail where he belongs. You can see the facts on a BBC factsheet on the scumbag.
#5
Mustafa, call Boxer and Tubbs. They take these kind of cases on for a box of Kleenex and some Warhol time.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
01/10/2005 9:45 Comments ||
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#6
The fact that Barghouti is running for the Paleo "presidency", yet is sitting in an Israeli prison seems to me to be a bit of an "irregularity" itself....
#7
Where is the reverend, Abu Jesse Jackson Abdul?
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 12:54 Comments ||
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Maybe the Arab Criminal Looney Union (ACLU) will launch an investigation into voter fraud? They are to busy trying to find that one person that waited 10 hours to vote on November 2. Also they are tracking down the Million voter that missed out on the 2000 Florida elections. So far they have contacted a grand total of NADA!
Marwan is the Konvicted Killa who is serving time in Israeli jail. He considered running in this election but was convinced (dunno how) to support Abbas instead. He remains in jail.
Mustafa was the candidate. He kept getting detained by the Israelis for overstaying his Jerusalem permits while on the campaign trail. EoZ or Gromgorru can get you more information...
From Healing Iraq, most of us are familiar with this case
An Army platoon sergeant convicted of ordering soldiers to force Iraqis into the Tigris River was sentenced to six months in prison Saturday but will remain in the service. A six-member military jury took 3 1/2 hours to sentence Army Sgt. 1st Class Tracy Perkins on charges of aggravated assault, assault consummated by battery and obstruction of justice. Perkins, 33, was demoted one rank, to staff sergeant, which brings a reduction in pay. Perkins will spend the next week in the Bell County Jail in Belton until it is determined where he will serve his sentence, said Capt. Rick Henry, chief of administrative law for the Fort Hood-based 4th Infantry Division. Fort Hood has no military jail.
Maximum punishment for the charges on which Perkins was convicted was 11 1/2 years' confinement, loss of all pay, reduction to the rank of private and dishonorable discharge from the service. Prosecutors had asked for five years' imprisonment and a punitive discharge for Perkins, a 14-year Army veteran. "We ask that you send a message, not only to Sergeant Perkins but to any other soldiers or to any other leader, that criminal behavior will not be tolerated on the battlefield," Capt. Megan Shaw, an Army prosecutor, told the trial panel. Lawyers for Perkins declined to comment after the sentencing.
Perkins was acquitted of involuntary manslaughter late Friday after jurors deliberated for 17 hours over two days. That charge was in connection with the death of Zaidoun Hassoun on Jan. 3, 2004, in Samarra, Iraq, where Perkins was serving with the Fort Carson, Colo.-based 3rd Brigade of the 4th Infantry. Zaidoun Hassoun and his cousin Marwan were stopped in their pickup for a curfew violation in Samarra. The men were handcuffed and placed in the back of an armored Bradley Fighting Vehicle before being ordered into the water near a dam on the Tigris River, testimony showed. Perkins' lawyers contended that Zaidoun Hassoun is still alive. An Army intelligence officer testified that a source told him Hassoun was not dead. An Army investigator told jurors that the intelligence officer had only one source and that there had been no subsequent sightings of the Iraqi. During the trial, Marwan Hassoun testified through an interpreter that he tried to save Zaidoun but the current carried his cousin away.
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Posted by: Sherry ||
01/10/2005 12:14:12 AM ||
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A pity. USG still has a lot to learn about keeping faith with men they send in the harms way.
Just three weeks before thousands of Iraqi immigrants in the United States are to cast absentee ballots in their homeland's first national election in more than a generation, efforts to organize the voting here are beset by delays in planning and logistical obstacles. The team hired by Iraq's electoral commission to run the U.S.-based portion of the election, which officials said may draw up to 240,000 voters, is still scrambling to find polling stations and hire personnel. Its campaign to educate people about how and where to register is just getting off the ground. And with only five designated election centers — one in Washington — thousands of Iraqis will have to travel hundreds of miles to reach a polling station.
Once there, they face the daunting task of choosing from among 111 parties on the ballot, including such groups as the Hashemite Iraqi Royal Gathering, the Unified Iraq Coalition, the List of Independents and the Gathering of Democratic Tribes of Iraq. Unfamiliar to most first-generation Iraqi immigrants, these names mean even less to the Iraqi-Americans who have never been to Iraq but are eligible to vote because their fathers were born there. "There is no information available [about] how people can vote or where," said Najmaldin Karim of Silver Spring, president of the Washington Kurdish Institute. "I think the people who are trying to do this are totally ignorant or incompetent or both."
Imam Husham Al Husainy, a Shiite cleric and director of the Karbalaa Islamic Educational Center in Dearborn, Mich. — which has one of the largest concentrations of Iraqi immigrants — said he has gotten hundreds of calls complaining about the election arrangements. "I have people in every state, they have not been reached, they don't know where to go and what to do," said Al Husainy. "This is the dream of their life to have elections. This is ridiculous. ... It reminds me of Iraq in Saddam's time."
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Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:13:11 AM ||
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Lol!
"I have people in every state, they have not been reached, they donât know where to go and what to do," said Al Husainy. "This is the dream of their life to have elections. This is ridiculous. ... It reminds me of Iraq in Saddamâs time."
Yeah, right - all except for the part where you bitch about it and don't get fed into a shredder, wanker. Democrqacy's messy. It's sorta wacked-out that these people who don't live in Iraq are being given a chance to vote in the election. STFU and get it in gear if you're half as concerned as you imply. Oh, and thank the USA for the fact that they will happen at all and that you're free to mouth off, too, jerk.
#3
Couldn't resist calling my sister in Ohio and jabbing her about Ohio just completing their vote count. I told her the rest of us finished up some weeks ago.
80% of the people in Iraq are registered to vote. Hell that is better than we get in the US.
Iraq has formally asked Syria to arrest and extradite Saddam Hussein aides deemed the leading financiers of the insurgency in Iraq. Officials said the interim government in Baghdad has relayed a request to Syria for the extradition of former Iraqi Baath Party leaders based in Damascus. They said Syria has not responded to the request.
Iraqi domestic intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Abdullah Shahwani has identified several exiled leaders of the insurgency in Iraq. Shahwani said the exiled leaders comprise of Saddam's former aides and family members who shuttle between Syria and Iraq and provide funds and orders to the Sunni insurgency. The exiled leaders based in Syria have financed pro-Saddam forces in Iraq to fight the U.S.-led coalition, Shahwani said. He said the fighters include former army soldiers, Baath Party security agents and Islamic volunteers.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:07:18 AM ||
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Checking off the boxes.
Lessee, this should just about do it for Syria and Baby Asshat. They've failed every other test / request. So they go into the basket in the checkout line - along with their Mad Mullah Masters. Wow, almost a Fire Sale! A bona-fide 3-Fer!
The border security forces in Greece and Turkey have killed more than 9,000 Pakistanis, trying to enter the two countries illegally in the past 10 years. In 2004, more than 100 Pakistani nationals had been killed and 2,000 had been arrested while trying to slip into European and other countries without proper documents, revealed a report compiled by a Rawalpindi-based human rights organisation. The report said at least 938 Pakistanis had been killed by the security forces at the 200 kilometre-long border of Greece and Turkey, on the charges of illegal entry.
The authorities in the two countries had laid land mines in the border area to prevent illegal foreigners from entering, the report said. The report said the Iranian boarder security forces had killed 13 Pakistanis when they were entering Iran in January 2004, adding that nine Pakistanis had drowned at the Dubai coast in January 2004 and more than 90 Pakistanis were still missing after they got lost in the tidal waves while entering into Australia on August 16, 2004. Ulfat Kazmi, president of the Global organisation, said border security forces of Iran had arrested 1,528 illegal Pakistan immigrant, Turkey's police caught 211 and Greece border security force apprehended 158 Pakistanis who were trying to enter these countries illegally.
Talking to Daily Times, he said the Pakistanis who had been caught at different places suffered in jails and the Pakistani embassies in these countries had not made arrangements for their release. Explaining the modus operandi of the travel agents involved in human trafficking, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) sources said they (travel agents) arrange visas and other travelling documents to Sri Lanka, Thailand and Hong Kong or other easy destinations and from there people were sent to European countries without valid travel documents. FIA's immigration staff at the Islamabad airport said up to 17 deportation cases had been registered in 2004.
That's it? That's the best they can do? 9,000 over ten years? Fewer than three a day? The Greeks, I can understand. Their troops wear pom-poms on their shoes. But the Turks — I know they can do better than that!
Posted by: tipper ||
01/10/2005 1:02:01 AM ||
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We need to rethink our border policy with Mexico. At least confiscate the Rio Grande frogman "how to do it" comic books. Maybe our Border Patrol could take pot shots occasionally.
After signing an accord that ends the long-running civil war in Sudan's south, the United States expects immediate progress on the crisis in the western region of Darfur, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday. He put Sudan's government on notice the prospect of good relations with the United States depends on halting the violence in Darfur.
"We're workin' on it, but we've still got some black fellows left we gotta bump off..."
"These new 'partners for peace' must work together immediately to end the violence and the atrocities that continue to occur in Darfur. Not next month or in the interim period but right away, starting today," said the secretary, who signed on as a witness at the ceremony concluding an eight-year process to halt the war in the south. The United States and other countries "expect the new partners to use all necessary means to stop the violence and we expect to see rapid negotiations on the crisis in Darfur," Powell said at the ceremony.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 12:34 Comments ||
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#5
Even the Arabs don't want these primative savages around....
Notice how today in the news, the Israelis were caught in their usual role of supplying arms to the revolutionaries. Not that they care about Blacks, it's just they hate Arabs more.
#6
"We're workin' on it, but we've still got some black fellows left we gotta bump off..."
Oy vey, the poower manurities. Only second to the holocau$t sympathy industry, the vested black minorities are always ready to squeeze out a few more tear$ for the poower di$crimated minorities.
The NeoCons are pumping up the volume on Arabs Hate propaganda to get more suckers for the war of terrorism in Iraq, Iran, Syria, etc.
To be fair, there has been plenty of bloodshed on both sides. There has been plenty of Black raiding parties looting, raping and killing Arabs nomads and Arab villages.
#7
That's pretty cheap, Cleamp, but we've come to expect that from you through your many aliases. Your arguments are tired and old and they smell funny -- it's the smell of intellectual rot.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 22:21 Comments ||
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Following the crackdown by the Pakistani government against militants in Pakistan's tribal Wana region, Wazir tribesmen have started distributing pamphlets in South Waziristan's regional headquarters, warning the tribals against providing sanctuary to foreign militants. According to the Daily Times, the single page Urdu pamphlet going by the name of 'Qabalili Jirga' was disbursed in Wana nine days before the expiry of the surrender deadline to wanted militant Abdullah Mehsud. Pakistani officials further said that this was the first time since the Pakistan army launched military offensives against suspected Al Qaeda militants and remnants of the Taliban militia in the mountainous Wana region bordering Afghanistan, that Wazir tribal elders have warned their tribesmen from giving shelter to jihadis.
The pamphlet titled: "What foreign terrorists and militants want?" further cites the loss the tribesmen will face if they provide refuge to the terrorists while also asking them to come forward to help the government against unwanted people in the area. "Do not provide shelter or help foreigners. If you do this, you will be at a loss," the paper quoted the pamphlet as saying.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/10/2005 12:14:24 AM ||
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Is this the KKK with different head gear?
Posted by: Captain America ||
01/10/2005 9:07 Comments ||
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...and in the back we have Achmed. Today Achmed is modelling a daring turban in the very latest periwinkle hue. Notice, lads, how he wears it low on the forehead and tilted enticingly to one side. That's how all the fashionable gentlemen are wearing it this year.
Anna Comnena reports from Quetta. Color reporting by Jenny Craig...
National Assembly Opposition Leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman said on Sunday that the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) was in contact with the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) to form a grand national alliance against President General Pervez Musharraf. "Our movement against the government has not gathered momentum as we are waiting for the ARD's January 14 meeting to start struggling together for the restoration of real democracy in Pakistan and ridding the country of one man-rule," he told reporters after a seminar on The Role of Religious and Political Parties in the Promotion of Peace and Tolerance. He said the ARD had joined the MMA's black day call, which was a sign of both alliances agreeing on some points to restore democracy in its real shape.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, information minister, on Friday said the government would soon arrest the culprits behind Saturday's Gilgit incident. He was talking to journalists at F-9 Park where he attended the prize distribution ceremony of the first Islamabad Mini Marathon organised by the city administration to raise funds for tsunami victims. "Law enforcement agencies have almost identified the deceased terrorist and this will help identify his accomplices. There are anti-Pakistan elements that cannot stand the country's progress," he said. In clashes with Asgha Ziadduin, a local religious leader, two bodyguards were killed in addition to the deceased assailant. Eleven people were killed in sectarian clashes on Saturday which erupted after unidentified men fired at the car of Ziauddin. The government has since imposed a curfew in the area to control the situation. The minister said recent border clashes between Pak-Afghan forces were under control. "We don't want war with our neighbours, but are ready to face any scenario," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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They're finally going to arrest the person responsible for Gigli, you say? It's about time!
The federal government has asked the provinces and the Islamabad administration to report about Kazakh nationals studying in madrassas (religious schools) in Pakistan, sources told Daily Times on Sunday. The Interior Ministry issued these directives after intelligence agencies reported that some Kazakh nationals, who are members of Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (a militant organisation), had reportedly entered Pakistan and they were studying at madrassas, sources said. The intelligence report said that some of these Kazakh nationals escaped the military operation in tribal areas and took refuge in Pakistan's major cities and they might be involved in terrorism, sources added.
"The Interior Ministry has directed the four home secretaries, police and the Islamabad administration to form teams to visit unregistered madrassas in the remote areas and gather data about foreign students and their whereabouts, sources said. "The federal authorities have already formed various teams which are visiting madrassas regularly," sources said. They said there were 250 madrassas in Islamabad and its suburban areas and only 125 of them were registered.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Afghan leaders are considering offering amnesty to drug smugglers who get out of the country's booming narcotics industry and invest their profits in national reconstruction, senior officials told The Associated Press. The proposed amnesty could blunt a U.S.-sponsored crackdown on traffickers and opium poppy farmers and raises tough ethical questions for a government also seeking reconciliation with followers of the ousted Taliban regime.
Under pressure from the United States and Europe, President Hamid Karzai has declared a "holy war" against the narcotics trade, which has grown rapidly since the Taliban fell three years ago after a U.S.-led invasion. Karzai has said it is his top priority during the five-year term he won in landmark September elections. On Sunday, Karzai's office would not say whether an amnesty was being discussed. But two senior officials told the AP that debate on the proposal had begun. Karzai was "considering the issue," said Haneef Atmar, his rural development minister. "He finds it extremely difficult to bring any kind of amnesty for these people. But as a very responsible leader, he is always looking at all policy options."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/10/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Um, amnesty if they use the heroin profits to rebuild something? Gee, that doesn't sound "responsible" to me, it sounds rather opportunistic and asinine. How about shoot them in the fucking head and confiscate their property and money? I like the ring of that just a wee bit better. Might even send a message, who knows? Certainly worth a try first, before trying the stupid appeasement wrist-slap thingy.
#6
that's like buying the lobsters in the supermarket tank and letting them go so the poor things won't be boiled alive. It does nothing but provide the lobster sellers capital to expand their markets into many other areas. Plus, you increase their supply when you throw the lobsters back.
Collecting taxes from drugs that are going to be sold anyways. I think it's a good idea. More power to them.
#1
While I certainly don't envy this chap his eggshell tightrope (so to speak), he has brought it upon himself. I fail to see any realistic expectation for success should he continue to make all of the appropriate noises that appease his terrorist constituency while simultaneously pretending that fruitful negotiations with Israel are possible.
For Abbas to assume a mantle of genuine leadership, he must somehow lead the Palestinian people out of their self-imposed dark ages of terrorism. I do not see where there is any sincere common desire by his electorate for this to happen. Anti-Semitism is so deeply ingrained in the Palestinian culture that significant progress with Israel will require a literal rewiring of thought patterns. Nothing points towards this in the least.
The fact that Abbas retains his nom du guerre, Abu Mazen, epitomizes the cognitive dissonance his schizoid stance implies. It's hard to imagine Abbas doing much more than treading political water in a futile effort that pleases no one. The Palestinians have spent decades painting themselves into this political corner. While their arrival at this mordant cul de sac was largely the work of one particularly vile thug (i.e., Arafat), their sincere departure from such entrenched moral and ethical corruption will require much more statecraft than Abbas is likely to provide.
I welcome Abbas' attempts to reconcile the nearly intractable Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but have yet to see much more than lip-service paid towards that end. It is all well and fine for Abbas to publicly call for an end to terrorism, but what he promotes behind closed doors will tell the true tale. I foresee that story having a rather abrupt end, most likely at the hands of dissatisfied terrorist factions seeking a resurgence of the murderous violence they know and love so well.
#2
Lol, Zenster, this is the most balanced and 'fair' comment I've seen out of you :P but you're right. 50-50 that any progress is made AT BEST. :(
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
01/10/2005 1:36 Comments ||
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#3
I welcome Abbas' attempts to reconcile the nearly intractable Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Except that Abbas' only interest in reconciling the conflict is producing a Judenfrei Israel by political rather than "military" means. But otherwise a good comment, Zenster. Especially the phrase mordant cul de sac , which I was not prepared for this early in the morning. ;-)
#6
Except that Abbas' only interest in reconciling the conflict is producing a Judenfrei Israel by political rather than "military" means.
trailing wife, I could not agree with you more. That Abbas apparently has no qualms vis pandering to the hyper-violent factions within Palestinian society puts the lie to all his blather about foresaking terrorism.
This literally boils down to a single refrain so often sung hereabouts. Namely, "But what did he say in Arabic?" This is exactly what I meant by "what he promotes behind closed doors." The potential for (what is now) commonplace Arab duplicity places an immense onus of transparency and accountability on Abbas that, quite frankly, I see no indication of him being able to deliver upon.
However much I detest pessimism, Islamist terrorism has taught me to place little faith in Arab words and gigantic emphasis upon Arab acts. So far, Abbas is nothing more than another prestidigitation-laden Palestinian sideshow and therefore of little consequence. The simple act of Abbas retaining his nom du guerre signals loud and clear SSDD (Same Shit Different Day). That he also attempts to parlay Arafat's fatally tainted legacy into a positive element of his statecraft is enough for me to dismiss him altogether.
But otherwise a good comment, Zenster. Especially the phrase mordant cul de sac , which I was not prepared for this early in the morning.
Contrary to what others here may squawk about, I do make an effort to contribute something of worth. Catching my prey unawares is merely icing on the cake. Thank you for your kind words, trailing wife. Praise from the praiseworthy is what makes life worth living.
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.
Saudi Defense Minister 
ABU DHABI — The boss of Al Jazeera TV has vowed that his channel would, under no circumstances, bow down to any external pressure and continue to render its duties in the same manner. "We will never be influenced by any criticism whether internal or external. We respect our profession and will never give up on principles and ethics under any circumstances," Waddah Khanfar, Director-General of the Qatar-based channel told Khaleej Times yesterday.
Kuwait heightened its security alert to the maximum level on Jan. 7. This is the second increase in the alert level since Dec 31 and it comes in conjunction with the US State Department warning on Dec. 15 of possible Islamic Jihadist attacks. It seems the Islamic militants have created numerous sleeping cells and made Kuwait an operational theatre for Al-Queda just like Saudi Arabia. Al-Queda has infiltrated the Kuwaiti military and even the Government is lenient on the Jihadists, which may be because it is afraid of a popular uprising.
The Sana'a Counter-Terrorism Appeal Court decided to postpone the final hearing in the USS Cole bombing case to next Saturday. During the hearing Jan. 8, the court judge Saeed al-Kattaa listened to the argument made by the defendants advocate Abdulkaziz al-Samawi against the allegations of the prosecution. Al-Samawi argued that the trial of the 6 defendants was not performed in accordance with the law. "I confirm that the trial was not carried out according to the law. These defendants were arrested for four years without any legal warrant or investigation, only two weeks before the trial started. The law says that imprisoning people for over 24 hours without interrogation is something illegal," he argued. He added that both "the prosecution and the intelligence should respect law and order," adding that the prosecutor is defending "groundless procedures." 
Muslims in Britain must either leave the country or take up jihad, a key Islamic figure has urged. Sheikh 
Pyongyang, January 7 (KCNA) -- The world revolution started with The Internationale will surely end in victory with "Song of General Kim Jong Il." Dipak Sharma, chairman of the Nepalese Young Poets' Forum, says this in his poem "Brilliant Commander of the Century" praising Kim Jong Il. In the poem he says socialism of the DPRK is an impregnable fortress as it is led by the illustrious commander born of Heaven, though the arrogant imperialists are shouting themselves hoarse about "the end of socialism" while resorting to persistent pressure and blockade. There are many countries in the world and they have huge armies, but no army has such a great commander as the Korean People's Army has, he says, and continues: Even the army, which had once boasted of its invincible might, could not save the party breathing its last and the country collapsing as it was not led by a great brilliant commander. He praises Kim Jong Il as the defender of eternal happiness and peace who clears away the dark clouds of war hanging over the planet and the brilliant commander of the century the mere mention of whose name makes a formidable enemy millions strong tremble.
Islamic extremists accused of plotting to kill Iraq's prime minister in Germany are smuggling battle-hardened fighters from Iraq to Europe, raising a potential new terrorist threat on the continent, according to German officials. More than 20 alleged supporters of Ansar al-Islam have been arrested in Europe in the past year as authorities move against the group that has links with al-Qaida and Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who's been leading bloody attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq.
A U.S. helicopter with 10 people on board crashed in a rice paddy as it was trying to land at the Banda Aceh airport Monday while on a tsunami-relief operation, injuring at least two U.S. servicemen, a U.S. military spokesman said. The injured men, along with eight other Navy personnel, were being flown back to their ship in the Lincoln battle group, said Capt. Joe Plenzler, a U.S. military spokesman in Medan, 250 miles southeast of Banda Aceh. The SH60 helicopter crashed in a rice paddy about 500 yards from the airport in Banda Aceh, the main city on Indonesia's tsunami-battered Sumatra island, as it was trying to land, he said. "There was no fire ball but a little smoke. It landed on its side," Plenzler said, adding that the helicopter's propeller was twisted from the impact. U.S. authorities said there was no indication the helicopter had been shot down.
Black-jacketed volunteers from one of Indonesia's most militant Muslim groups scraped away the clammy mud that clung to the walls and floors of a badly damaged house here on Sunday. They moved the once handsome dining room chairs outside to dry. In a few days, they said, the owner of the house, Azman Ismail, an imam at Banda Aceh's central mosque, would be able to move back in. The men, members of Lasker Mujahedeen, a paramilitary group that has fought Christians elsewhere in Indonesia and has had links to Al Qaeda, are among hundreds of Indonesian Islamic militants who have come to Aceh in the name of helping their fellow Muslims, they say, to offer a dose of Islamic teachings to the already devout Acehnese, and to recruit members.
Iran's president called Sunday for an investigation into journalists' allegations they were tortured into confessing to charges such as insulting sacred beliefs and endangering national security after publishing articles critical of conservatives in the government. About 20 journalists from print, Internet and other media outlets have been detained in Iran since a crackdown on the pro-reform press was launched in September. Several of those journalists told a presidential commission last month that they were tortured. President Mohammad Khatami said Sunday he would meet with the head of the country's judiciary about the allegations. "It's deplorable even if 10 percent of what the Web bloggers allege is true," Khatami said, referring to the writers who kept online journals, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency. "It's against the dignity of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has to be probed." Several detainees, some of whom were barred from meeting their attorneys, confessed to charges that included spreading propaganda against the regime and inciting public unrest. "Confessions were extracted from us under physical and psychological pressures in prison. Apparently we were released but threats against us and even our families have been continued," said Hanif Mazroui, one of the detained bloggers.
Forcing naked Iraqi prisoners to pile themselves in human pyramids was not torture, because American cheerleaders do it every year, a court was told today.
Yehya Shatarat punched his fist into his hand as he watched satellite television pictures of Palestinians in the West Bank voting for a successor to the late Yasser Arafat. "
Israel expects Mahmoud Abbas to win Sunday's Palestinian presidential election and is ready to open talks with him, offering to free Palestinian prisoners if Abbas cracks down on Palestinian rocket attacks, senior Israeli officials said. Opinion polls showed Abbas with more than double the support of his nearest rival, democracy activist Mustafa Barghouti, but he was struggling to win a clear mandate to push forward with his agenda of resuming peace talks with Israel and reforming the corruption-riddled Palestinian Authority. The Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the first meeting should take place shortly after the election.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was said to have discussed a proposal to launch a war in the Middle East in an effort to divert attention from an investigation into allegations of bribery and corruption. A former member of Sharon's government said the prime minister met his aides in 2003 and discussed a strategy to foil a police probe into bribery and corruption, an investigation which also involved his sons. Former Deputy Education Minister Zvi Hendel said the war option was discussed by Sharon and his aides as a means to divert attention from the probe as well as persuade Israelis against any change in leadership.
The border security forces in Greece and Turkey have killed more than 9,000 Pakistanis, trying to enter the two countries illegally in the past 10 years. In 2004, more than 100 Pakistani nationals had been killed and 2,000 had been arrested while trying to slip into European and other countries without proper documents, revealed a report compiled by a Rawalpindi-based human rights organisation. The report said at least 938 Pakistanis had been killed by the security forces at the 200 kilometre-long border of Greece and Turkey, on the charges of illegal entry.
After signing an accord that ends the long-running civil war in Sudan's south, the United States expects immediate progress on the crisis in the western region of Darfur, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday. He put Sudan's government on notice the prospect of good relations with the United States depends on halting the violence in Darfur. 
Following the crackdown by the Pakistani government against militants in Pakistan's tribal Wana region, 
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, information minister, on Friday said the government would soon arrest the culprits behind Saturday's Gilgit incident. He was talking to journalists at F-9 Park where he attended the prize distribution ceremony of the first Islamabad Mini Marathon organised by the city administration to raise funds for tsunami victims. "Law enforcement agencies have almost identified the deceased terrorist and this will help identify his accomplices. There are anti-Pakistan elements that cannot stand the country's progress," he said. In clashes with Asgha Ziadduin, a local religious leader, two bodyguards were killed in addition to the deceased assailant. Eleven people were killed in sectarian clashes on Saturday which erupted after unidentified men fired at the car of Ziauddin. The government has since imposed a curfew in the area to control the situation. The minister said recent border clashes between Pak-Afghan forces were under control. "We don't want war with our neighbours, but are ready to face any scenario," he said.
The federal government has asked the provinces and the Islamabad administration to report about Kazakh nationals studying in madrassas (religious schools) in Pakistan, sources told Daily Times on Sunday. The Interior Ministry issued these directives after intelligence agencies reported that some Kazakh nationals, who are members of Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (a militant organisation), had reportedly entered Pakistan and they were studying at madrassas, sources said. The intelligence report said that some of these Kazakh nationals escaped the military operation in tribal areas and took refuge in Pakistan's major cities and they might be involved in terrorism, sources added.
Afghan leaders are considering offering amnesty to drug smugglers who get out of the country's booming narcotics industry and invest their profits in national reconstruction, senior officials told The Associated Press. The proposed amnesty could blunt a U.S.-sponsored crackdown on traffickers and opium poppy farmers and raises tough ethical questions for a government also seeking reconciliation with followers of the ousted Taliban regime.
