U.S. troops have been operating in Afghanistan for eight years now, and have established special training courses back in the United States to prepare troops for the unique combat situations they will encounter. Over 100,000 U.S. soldiers and marines have served in Afghanistan, and these are usually the instructors for these preparation courses. Most of these troops have also served in Iraq, and they know they must warn Iraq veterans to forget about some skills and tactics that worked in Iraq, but won't in Afghanistan. There are also special courses for commanders, who must be prepared to deal with tribal politics in Afghanistan, which is somewhat different than it is in Iraq. The U.S. Army has collected so much information on troops dealing with Afghans that it has created an online simulation (it looks like a video game) where players can realistically interact with Afghans in a wide variety of situations. This helps to eliminate a lot of opportunities for misunderstandings because of cultural differences.
At the same time, the troops in Afghanistan now are trying out new tactics for taking down the Taliban and drug gangs. The U.S. is expanding its intelligence operations in Afghanistan, bringing in a lot of the equipment, and specialists, who were so useful in Iraq. The U.S. Army has developed intelligence tactics that provide "information dominance" that makes it difficult for the enemy to carry out attacks (without the U.S. knowing about it), and more vulnerable to American raids and sweeps. The information based tactics concentrate on capturing or killing the enemy leadership and specialists (mostly technical, but religious leaders and media experts are often valuable targets as well). The Australian commandos have specialized in this approach, and made themselves much feared by the Taliban (who will make an extra effort to avoid dealing with the Australians).
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
01/17/2009 16:02 ||
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Britain's defense chief yesterday sharply criticized NATO's other European members for failing to do their part in Afghanistan, saying some of them had "limited appetites" for the operation and preferred "freeloading on the back of U.S. military security."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
"freeloading on the back of U.S. military security."
That's been the Euro NATO strategy ever since they finally achieved parity back in the 70s in both population and combined GDP.
The Baitul Mukarram National Mosque plunged into chaos again yesterday as newly appointed Khatib Principal Mohammad Salauddin conducted his first juma prayers.
There were protests in and outside the mosque against the new khatib. His supporters and protesters even clashed inside the mosque before khutba (sermon) in the presence of religious affairs Secretary Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury and Islamic Foundation Director General AZM Fazlur Rahman.
Salauddin's supporters drove away the protesting group from the mosque and they held a separate congregation on the road in front of the mosque. Later, they brought out a procession with shoes in their hands.
According to witnesses, the new khatib, who was appointed on January 1, took charge from acting khatib Mufti Maulana Nuruddin yesterday in the presence of several hundred law enforcers and a huge number of personnel from different intelligence agencies. As the new khatib began reading out the khutba around 12:45pm, a group of devotees raised a hue and cry and began throwing shoes at him.
Another group tried to stop them, which ultimately resulted in scuffles between the two groups. The protesters were eventually beaten and driven out of the mosque.
The ousted group of 50-60 protesters held a separate jamat on the road in front of the mosque under the leadership of Maulana Mufti Abdullah.
Delivering the khutba, Mufti Abdullah said offering prayers under the new khatib is "not right". He, however, concluded the prayers in a short time.
Around 250 protesters then brought out a procession that paraded the street.
Sources said students and teachers from different city madrasas took part in the protest against the new khatib allegedly at the instigation of Islami Oikya Jote leader Fazlul Haque Amini. Talking to The Daily Star, Amini, however, said, "I did not ask anybody to stage any demonstration against the khatib."
In reply to a question, he said, "Being a follower of Atrashi pir, Salauddin cannot be the khatib of the national mosque as most people will not accept him."
Salauddin told journalists that he is against any political activities in the national mosque.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
The tragedy that's islam - if they can't fight against 'Jews and Christians', they fight among themselves. The major reason islam needs to go the way of worshiping Ba'al and other false gods.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/17/2009 14:49 Comments ||
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#2
"if they can't fight against 'Jews and Christians', they fight among themselves"
I consider that a feature, not a bug, OP.
We need to help them find more opportunities to do so.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
01/17/2009 14:52 Comments ||
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A federal judge in Alexandria ruled yesterday that she would not throw out contempt-of-court charges against former professor Sami al-Arian, who has refused to cooperate with a terrorism investigation, and set his case for trial on March 9.
U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema said that Arian can use the defense that he was relying on the advice of his attorneys when he declined to testify before grand juries investigating whether Muslim groups in Herndon were financing terrorism in the Middle East. "We are very gratified by Judge Brinkema's rulings with regard to the trial," said Jonathan Turley, one of Arian's attorneys. "We look forward to putting Dr. al-Arian's case in front of the jury."
Arian, 50, declined to comment. In the courtroom was a crowd of Arian's supporters, including nearly two dozen people from Tampa, where Arian taught computer engineering at the University of South Florida before his first arrest in 2004.
Arian was charged then with raising money and otherwise assisting Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a group the U.S. government declared a terrorist organization in 1995. At trial in 2005, he was acquitted on eight of 17 counts, and the jury deadlocked on the other counts. Rather than face a retrial, Arian pleaded guilty in May 2006 to one count of conspiring to assist the terrorist group and was sentenced to 57 months in prison, most of which he had served while awaiting trial. In his plea agreement, Arian did not agree to cooperate with subsequent investigations, as most federal plea agreements require.
Within days of Arian's plea and sentencing, prosecutors in Alexandria subpoenaed him to testify in the investigation of a group of Herndon organizations suspected of funneling money to terror groups, although no one has been charged. Arian refused, both in 2006 and 2007, and was jailed for civil contempt of court for nearly all of 2007. "I refuse to testify," Arian told the grand jury in 2007, "based on my prior plea agreement with the government that I'm not required to testify and cooperate in this or any other investigation. I refuse, therefore, to make any further statements."
Last year, Alexandria prosecutors subpoenaed him for the third time and again offered him immunity from prosecution for his testimony. But the immunity order crafted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon Kromberg contained additional language not usually found in such orders, saying that Arian could still be prosecuted for obstructing justice or for actions occurring after his testimony. Arian's attorneys protested, and Brinkema said in August, "I think it's real scary and not wise for a prosecutor to provide an order to the court that does not track the explicit language of the statute."
After Arian's third refusal to testify, prosecutors obtained indictments in June charging him with two counts of criminal contempt of court. Brinkema postponed the trial while Arian appealed his case to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the court declined to consider the case.
Turley sought to have Brinkema dismiss the case, but the judge said, "There is nothing in the record that would indicate that the U.S. attorney in this district is barred, by the plea agreement in Florida, from bringing this action." Brinkema said Kromberg's immunity orders "did not materially change the scope of protection given to the defendant." Kromberg then asked whether the defense would be able to use the theory that Arian refused to testify based on the advice of his attorneys. Brinkema said yes, that a jury could consider it. That issue could become crucial to a jury trying to determine why Arian defied orders to testify.
WASHINGTON President-elect Barack Obama is preparing to prohibit the use of waterboarding and harsh interrogation techniques by ordering the CIA to follow military rules for questioning prisoners, according to two U.S. officials familiar with drafts of the plans. Still under debate is whether to include a loophole that would allow exceptions in extraordinary cases.
The proposal Obama is considering would require all CIA interrogators to follow conduct outlined in the U.S. Army Field Manual, the officials said. The plans would also have the effect of shutting down secret "black site" prisons around the world where the CIA has questioned terror suspects with all future interrogations taking place inside American military facilities.
However, Obama's changes may not be absolute. His advisers are considering adding a classified loophole to the rules that could allow the CIA to use some interrogation methods not specifically authorized by the Pentagon, the officials said, although the intent is not to use that as an opening for possible use of waterboarding.
The new rules would abandon a part of President George W. Bush's counterterrorism policy that has been condemned internationally. Bush has defended his policies by pointing to the fact that the nation has gone more than seven years without another terrorist attack on its soil.
Obama spokeswoman Brooke Anderson did not have an immediate comment Friday about the drafted plans, which the two officials discussed only on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.
No final decisions have been made about how to adjust the government's interrogation standards. Obama is still weighing whether to alter interrogation policy by executive order during his first days in office or working with Congress through legislation.
The plans do not specifically address the issue of extraordinary rendition, the policy of transferring foreign terrorism suspects to third countries without court approval.
In private Capitol Hill meetings, CIA Director nominee Leon Panetta and Director of National Intelligence designate Dennis Blair have said Obama wants a single set of rules for interrogations. And in Senate testimony Thursday, Attorney General nominee Eric Holder called the Army manual "a good place to start."
The 384-page Army manual, last updated in September 2006, is a publicly available document. It authorizes 19 interrogation methods used to question prisoners, including one allowing a detainee to be isolated from other inmates in some cases. The manual explicitly prohibits threats, coercion, physical abuse and waterboarding, which creates the sensation of drowning. Holder termed waterboarding a form of torture on Thursday.
The CIA also banned waterboarding in 2006 but otherwise has been secretive about how it conducts interrogations. In the past, its methods are believed to have included sleep deprivation and disorientation, stress positions and exposing prisoners to uncomfortable cold or heat for long periods. It's also believed that some prisoners have been forced to sit in cramped spaces with bugs, snakes, rats or other vermin as a scare tactic.
Waterboarding has been traced back hundreds of years and is condemned by nations worldwide. U.S. officials waterboarded at least three top al-Qaida operatives including 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed in 2002 and 2003 because of fears that more attacks were imminent.
The Army manual can be amended by the military. It is unclear whether the CIA would be held to the one published in 2006 or future versions.
For Obama, who repeatedly insisted during the 2008 presidential campaign and the transition period that "America doesn't torture," a classified loophole would allow him to follow through on his promise to end harsh interrogations while retaining a full range of presidential options in conducting the war against terrorism.
The proposed loophole, which could come in the form of a classified annex to the manual, is designed to satisfy intelligence experts who fear that an outright ban of so-called enhanced interrogation techniques would limit the government in obtaining threat information that could save American lives. It would also preserve Obama's flexibility to authorize any interrogation tactics he might deem necessary for national security.
However, such a move would frustrate Senate Democrats and human rights, retired military and religious groups that have pressed for a government-wide prohibition on methods they describe as torture.
Glenn Sulmasy, an international law professor at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn., said Obama can and should preserve his executive authority to order aggressive interrogations when necessary. But he said that should be done on a case-by-case basis and not become a broad policy.
"There are some coercive techniques that he might employ on a ticking time bomb scenario, but he'll distinguish himself by making it clear that the presumption under the law is that there is no torture," Sulmasy said Friday.
Critics, however, said Obama cannot claim to ban torture if it's not clear what interrogation methods will be allowed.
"That would not be good," said the Rev. Richard Killmer, executive director of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture. "We don't need to be able to torture and we don't need to engage in any interrogation techniques that are not humane. And unless we have absolute clarity that these interrogation techniques will not be used, they are not going to be able to say that."
Speaking with reporters Thursday, outgoing CIA Director Michael Hayden said harsh interrogation tactics have been needed to get information from the most hardened terror suspects. He and some other U.S. intelligence officials oppose limiting the CIA to the Army manual, which was written specifically for military interrogations and may not be effective on the most dangerous detainees.
"It is an honest discussion to talk about what techniques we should use, but to assume automatically that the Army Field Manual would suit the needs of the republic in all circumstances is a shot in the dark," Hayden said.
Senate Democrats aren't likely to support a classified annex. Holder on Thursday said the interrogation methods outlined in the Army manual would be just as effective as those used by the CIA.
"I'm not convinced at all that if we restrict ourselves to the Army field manual that we will be in any way less effective in the interrogation of people who have sworn to do us harm," Holder said.
#1
Well, with the Donk control of the Senate and Obama doing the nominations, we can rest assured that 'harsh interrogations' have basically come to an end.
#3
OK, no more waterboardig. You may put a lanyard around both ankles and drag the useless bastards behind a cigar boat in open water until such time as they decide to become chatty. Howz zat ?
WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Osama bin Laden's son Sa'ad, a prominent figure in the murky relationship between Iran and al Qaeda, has left that country and is believed to be in Pakistan, U.S. intelligence said. "The person you are talking about (Sa'ad bin Laden) has left Iran. He's not there. He's probably in Pakistan," Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell told reporters on Friday.
Sa'ad bin Laden, who is believed to have played a role in several al Qaeda attacks, was reported to have been living in Iran since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 that ousted the Taliban government shielding al Qaeda.
He is believed to have been under house arrest in recent years, but some reports say he also may have acted as an intermediary with Iran. A U.S. counterterrorism official described the younger bin Laden as "a very well-connected apprentice terrorist."
One family business is construction, the other is terrorism ...
McConnell declined to say whether there was any deal that led to Sa'ad bin Laden's relocation, and the counterterrorism official said the circumstances of his departure from Iran were unclear. But McConnell suggested bin Laden's relocation to Pakistan was promising for U.S. counterterrorism efforts. "It's better for my world if any of these players are in places that we have access," he said.
Smile into the camera, Sa'ad, and don't blink at the flash ...
U.S. officials have spoken of a growing success in crippling al Qaeda's central leadership through pressure on the Pakistan border areas with Afghanistan, where the elder bin Laden and top deputies are believed to be hiding.
Washington has accused Iran of harboring al Qaeda members, and the U.S. commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks said Iran and al Qaeda worked together in the 1990s. But Iran has also arrested several activists, including the younger bin Laden, and al Qaeda, a militant Sunni Islamist group, often criticizes predominantly Shi'ite Iran.
Speculation on Iran's motives for holding the al Qaeda members includes having them available for surrender to the United States in exchange for nonaggression assurances, or as leverage to keep al Qaeda from acting against Iran's interests.
The U.S. Treasury Department said earlier on Friday it would freeze assets of the younger bin Laden and three other al Qaeda members believed to be in Iran. It said bin Laden, arrested in Iran in early 2003, may have left custody as of last September.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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I wonder, he is the son of which one of OBL's wives?
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) Chairperson Asma Jahangir on Friday paid a day-long visit to the provincial metropolis in a bid to get the firsthand information about the growth of militancy in the tribal belt and certain parts of the Frontier province.
During the visit, she met NWFP Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani, NWFP Peace Envoy Afrasiyab Khattak, veteran politician Begum Naseem Wali Khan, civil society members and media persons.
In this connection, a five-member delegation of the HRCP, led by Asma Jehangir, discussed with the NWFP governor the deteriorating law and order situation in Fata and settled districts of the NWFP with a special focus on the Swat region. Other members of the visiting team included HRCP Secretary-General IA Rehman, Vice-Chairperson for NWFP Musarrat Hilali, Council Member Kamran Arif and programme coordinator.
When asked by Asma that being a concerned citizen what should be expected from the government, the governor said that unfortunately, most of the people did not understand the real nature of the problem. "It's not a law and order problem, rather, it's a well-planned ideological insurgency, therefore, it should be treated as such," he said.
The governor said that the forces were facing highly organised and well-funded militants, "who are persistently being espoused by external spy agencies. There are about 15,000 militants in the tribal belt, who have no dearth of ration, ammunition, equipment, even anti-tank mines." They were being paid properly for that, he added.
The governor said that a militant was normally given Rs 6,000 to Rs 8,000 per month while their leaders got Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000 per month which, he asserted, was next to impossible without funding from external intelligence agencies.
He, however, sounded optimistic about containing these militants, saying that now they were back in the areas where the government had lost its writ, but he was quick to add that they had no resources for Fata to bring it at par with other parts of the country.
The delegation also had a long meeting with Afrasiyab Khattak, who informed them about the policy of the ANP-led coalition government to put a permanent damper on militancy in the province.
The HRCP chairperson also held a meeting with a group of media persons and discussed with them in detail the issue of law and order in the region.
The journalists, nevertheless, appeared to be quite sceptical about the role of security agencies in eradicating the problem of militancy.
One of them raised a very appropriate question about the supply line of the militants in Swat, saying that the valley was far away from the tribal region but the shortage of petroleum products across the NWFP had no effect on the local Taliban, "which clearly shows that their logistic activities go on uninterrupted."
A senior journalist said the establishment must bear in mind the fact that the ongoing insurgency in the NWFP and Fata would not end here, rather, it would engulf the country.
"You know first it was confined to Waziristan, then it spread to the whole tribal belt and has now crept into the settled districts of the Frontier and, eventually, it will go to other parts of the country, especially to the Punjab, which is the next door neighbour," he said.
Other media persons apprised the HRCP chief of the threats to them owing to the growing influence of the local Taliban even in the settled areas of the province.
The HRCP chairperson said the commission would soon launch a campaign outside the NWFP to make the people of other provinces aware of the situation prevailing in the northwest of the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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The threat of extremists to close down all girls' schools in Swat on Thursday echoed in the National Assembly on Friday where the lawmakers condemned the move and urged the government to take action against those who wrongly interpreted the teachings of Islam.
On a point of order, the PML-N's legislator Ayaz Amir drew the attention of the House towards the warning by extremists to close down all the girls' schools in Swat, and said it was unfortunate that girls in Swat were deprived of their right to education in the name of Islam.
PML-Q MNA Amir Muqam said most of the schools in Swat had been destroyed. He also pointed out that no compensation had been paid to the heirs of over 1,000 people who had lost their lives in Swat unrest.
The PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal said it was a wrong interpretation of Islam to ban the female education. "Some people are imposing their tribal values and traditions in the name of Islam, which would defame the religion in the world."
Responding to points of order, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sherry Rehman said the government would cooperate with the NWFP government in its efforts to protect female educational institutions in Swat and some other parts of the province.
She said the president and the prime minister had taken serious notice of these attacks. She said the PPP had always tried to create consensus against the menace of terrorism. "Our great leader Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto sacrificed her life in the struggle against the dictatorship and terrorism and the PPP got the February 18 mandate on its anti-terrorism stance," said the minister.
"The NWFP government has already taken several steps for protection of girl students and female educational institutions, and more steps would be taken to ensure that no attacks are carried out on female schools in future."
The minister said the women caucus in the National Assembly would present a resolution in the House against attacks on female schools in Swat and some other parts of the Frontier province.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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A spokesman for the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Maulvi Omar, on Friday said talks with the Swat Taliban were underway to review the decision about ban on female education in the valley. "The people of the valley will hear good news and schools in Swat will reopen soon," he told The News by telephone from an undisclosed location.
The Taliban were not against girls' education, Maulvi Omar said, adding that the Taliban Shura was in contact with the Swat-based militants to convince them to review their decision about the closure of all girls' schools in Swat.
He expressed the hope that the Swat Taliban would soon announce the reversal of ban on female education on their FM radio. "The basic manifesto of the Taliban allows female education that is why contacts were made with Maulana Fazlullah in this regard," he said.
Maulvi Omar warned officials of the Central Jail Adiala, Rawalpindi, of serious consequences if the alleged torture on the arrested Taliban was not stopped. He alleged that the prisoners were exposed to inhuman torture to the extent that they had protested against the jail authorities inside the prison.
The TTP spokesman claimed that the banned outfit had never tortured any personnel of security forces or government official as that was against the rights of prisoners. Maulvi Omar said that in a recent meeting, presided over by Baitullah Mehsud, the TTP condemned the treatment meted out to the Taliban prisoners in various jails of the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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THE SADRIST MOVEMENT has steadily fragmented as a result of the Surge, competition among internal factions, and Prime Minister Malikis consolidation of power.
Deliberate Coalition and Iraqi military operations, and Iraqi political maneuvers, have severed the political, military, and social strands of the Sadr Movement, which no longer co-exist in the same entity and likely will not recombine in 2009.
While the political and military power of the movement has declined, its traditional constituency the urban Shia poor and rural Shia tribes remains a large and politically-valuable electorate.
Two main factions within the movement now compete for control of the traditional Sadr constituency: the clerics and politicians (including al-Sadr) who emphasize a return to social, religious and educational programs; and an armed movement, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, which seeks to continue resistance against Coalition Forces. Both groups seek to operate in the political process.
Existing frictions between Muqtada al-Sadr and the leaders of the military wing make it unlikely that the groups will combine assets in the near future.
In light of these ongoing tensions, rival political groups such as Prime Minister Malikis Dawa Party and the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, have sought to co-opt the Sadr Movements key constituency of urban Shia poor and rural Shia tribes.
If Maliki succeeds in building a Parliamentary coalition with leaders from either Sadrist faction, he will most likely cement his hold on power in the 2009 elections and dramatically reshape the political environment in Iraq.
The cabinet on Saturday night convened at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, to vote on a unilateral cease-fire deal which could end Operation Cast Lead three weeks after it began. The cabinet is expected to back an Egyptian-brokered proposal for a 10-day cease-fire with no sign of a commitment by Hamas to stop the rocket fire on southern Israel which sparked the conflict.
Dumb, dumb, dumb ...
Before the meeting, Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday praised IDF troops for their performance in Operation Cast Lead against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip. Speaking to paratroopers and reserve commanders in the South, the defense minister added that the operation had "come very close to meeting [its] targets."
He stressed that it was up to the army to be prepared for all possible outcomes.
The cabinet was convening on Saturday night in order to decide whether to adopt a unilateral cease-fire. According to a statement released by the Prime Minister's Office, "Significant progress was made during talks [Israeli officials] held with the Egyptian intelligence chief."
"Over the weekend the prime minister and the defense minister will discuss the offered draft. Following the discussion, the security cabinet will be convened on Saturday evening to decide whether it should be adopted," the statement said.
The PMO statement was released shortly after Amos Gilad, the head of the Defense Ministry's Diplomatic-Security Bureau, returned from Cairo and briefed Barak on the outcome of the discussions. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's chief diplomatic adviser Shalom Turgeman accompanied Gilad in Egypt.
A unilateral decision is likely after Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal rejected Israel's conditions for a truce and called on all Arab countries to cut ties with the Jewish state during a summit of Arab leaders in Doha, Qatar. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad gave Mashaal their full backing, but significantly, both Egypt and Saudi Arabia boycotted the summit.
On Friday night, meanwhile, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a non-binding resolution demanding an "immediate and durable and fully respected cease fire" in Gaza. The resolution reiterated the legally-binding UN Security Council resolution adopted last Thursday. The vote was 142-4 with eight abstentions, with Israel, the United States, Nauru and Venezuela voting against the resolution, because they hoped for a stronger statement.
Only way this makes sense is if they want to get it off the table before Tuesday.
#2
Shsshshshshshs.... doing it rite.
Remember it was djues that helped start the UN.... more discussion, heeps and heeps and lotsa discussion. Then discourse, an understanding and then perhaps a careful consideration of the reality. Lunch, then holiday.
#3
from comments (sic) at AOSHQ: But Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said a unilateral cease-fire was not enough. "The occupier must halt his fire immediately and withdraw from our land and lift his blockade and open all crossings and we will not accept any one Zionist soldier on our land, regardless of the price that it costs," Barhoum said.
Galid Shalit was unavailable for comment.
Posted by: hit and run
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/17/2009 19:00 Comments ||
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#1
I guess this means the firebombing of Tehran is on. Polish those B-29s till they shine.
Posted by: ed ||
01/17/2009 11:58 Comments ||
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#2
I accept. The Government of the United States needs to issue me and every other military veteran a weapon and 1000 rounds of ammunition. Any time "palestinians" or other arabs do something like this, we get a free-fire zone. I don't think it will take long to put a stop to this.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/17/2009 14:57 Comments ||
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#3
Old Patriot, I neither accept this headline nor your ammunition request as reasonable. 30 well-placed rounds would have been sufficient to end this so-called "world war."
Hamas will not accept Israel's conditions for a cease-fire in Gaza and will continue armed resistance until the offensive ends, Khaled Meshal, the leader of the Palestinian Islamist group, said on Friday.
Speaking at the opening of an emergency meeting on Gaza in Doha, Meshal called on the leaders present to cut all ties with Israel. Meshal joined Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a surprise appearance at the summit, aimed to show their weight in diplomatic efforts surrounding the Gaza crisis.
Hamas was to send a delegation to Cairo on Friday to discuss Egyptian efforts to mediate a cease-fire in Gaza, a Hamas official told Al-Jazeera television.
Meshal's comments contradicted a report published in the al-Sharq al-Awset daily on Friday, which claimed Hamas was prepared to accept a conditional cease-fire with Israel starting on Saturday. According to the report, Hamas has set five conditions for the cease-fire:
1. The reciprocal truce would begin on Saturday and be followed by the immediate transfer of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
2. The Israel Defense Forces must pull all of its troops out of the coastal territory within the first week of the truce.
3. The flow of trade in and out of the Gaza Strip must be renewed and monitored by observers from Egypt, Europe, and Turkey.
4. The Rafah crossing must be reopened and supervised by Palestinian Authority security forces and international observers, until a Palestinian unity government has been established and can take its place.
5. The truce would be instated for one year with an option for renewal.
Meanwhile, Syrian President Pencilneck Bashar Assad said Friday that the Arab initiative for peace with Israel is "dead" because of its offensive in the Gaza Strip. Speaking at the summit in Qatar, Assad called on the participating Arab countries to sever "all direct and indirect" ties with Israel in protest against its continued operation in the coastal strip.
Ahmadinejad, who is also attending the meeting of Arab and Muslim leaders in Qatar, said the Gaza offensive proved that Israel was in its last throes. Muslim nations "need to cut relations with Israel and America. Just ties. They don't need to do anything more than that," Ahmadinejad said Friday, according to an Arabic translation of his comments.
Earlier Friday, Israeli and Western sources said that Jerusalem has rebuffed some of the conditions initially set forth by Hamas for an Egyptian-proposed truce in the Gaza Strip, including how long it would last and who would manage the border crossings. Jerusalem has expressed reservations regarding the Islamist group's terms, despite Cairo's apparent promise to crack down on arms smuggling to Gaza - one of Israel's key demands - and Hamas's willingness to accept the offer.
The Israeli and Western sources said Israel had objected to putting a
time limit on the truce. Hamas proposed a 12-month agreement that could later be extended. "A time limit on any period of quiet is a mistake," a senior Israeli source said. "We saw that when the previous calm ran out of time, it was just an excuse for some to escalate the violence. An open-ended calm is what is needed."
Another Israeli source said that defense official Amos Gilad, who heads the Defense Ministry's diplomatic-security department, returned from his first day of talks in Egypt on Thursday with a reassuring report of progress. Upon his return, Gilad headed straight to Jerusalem to report to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. Gilad was back in Cairo on Friday for further negotiations.
The diplomatic-security cabinet was to meet Friday to vote on the offer, but decided to put off the debate until Gilad returns to Israel with an additional report.
Meanwhile, Livni headed to Washington on Friday to sign a deal of understanding with her American counterpart Condoleezza Rice on the joint supervision and treatment of weapons smuggling from Iran to the Gaza Strip. "Prime Minister Ehud Olmert authorized this evening the trip of Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to the United States in order to promote an American-Israeli outlined agreement intended to deal with weapons smuggling," Olmert's office said in a statement.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday that he believed a cease-fire could be signed in a few days, but this depends on Israel's leadership.
The Egyptian truce proposal, of which Haaretz obtained a copy Thursday, contains three clauses.
First, Israel and the Palestinians would agree to an immediate, time-limited cease-fire, during which the border crossings will be opened for humanitarian aid and Egypt will lead negotiations on a long-term truce.
Second, the long-term truce must include provisions on both border security and an end to the blockade of Gaza.
Third, Fatah and Hamas should resume reconciliation talks.
Egyptian officials told Haaretz they believe the initial, short-term truce should last a few months, to allow plenty of time for negotiations on the long-term cease-fire. However, the proposal does not require Israel to withdraw from Gaza during the initial truce, and Hamas has said it will not accept the proposal unless that omission is corrected.
Salah al-Bardawil, who was Hamas's Gazan representative to the talks with Egypt, said his organization demands that Israel completely withdraw within five days of whenever the initial cease-fire takes effect. Hamas also insists that the agreement include a deadline by which the border crossings must reopen.
Israel, for its part, insists that the crossings not be reopened until the smuggling issue is resolved to its satisfaction. It also wants Hamas to agree to an explicit timetable for concluding a deal on kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit and to be more flexible in what it is demanding in exchange for Shalit.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Hamas has set five conditions for the cease-fire:
1. The reciprocal truce would begin on Saturday and be followed by the immediate transfer of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
Still not serious. If they were, item #1 would be "Please don't kill us!"
#2
Break them. Once they know they're defeated, they'll agree to a ceasefire with a token facesaving condition. And make sure they hand of Shalit as a 'good faith gesture'
Posted by: Mike N. ||
01/17/2009 1:03 Comments ||
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#3
ION TOPIX > ISRAEL WARNS LEBANON OF LARGER WAR, iff the pro-Paleo/Gaza rocket attacks into Northern Israel from Leb don't cease [full-scale = potent IDF military retaliation]???
#7
Meshaal says no to Israeli conditions for a cease fire. Let the war continue. I just hope that international pressure doesn't force IDF out before the job is done. Israel needs to do something like what we dis in Iraq. If they can establish security and set up a government that can maintain that security, then there can be some peace with legs. An Israeli bang bang, shoot 'em up, followed by a hasty retreat will just provide a lull until the Gazans rebuild their weapon inventory.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
01/17/2009 8:52 Comments ||
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#8
An Israeli bang bang, shoot 'em up, followed by a hasty retreat will just provide
With time to realise how badly they've been f*cked, and how much worse the next time is going to be.
#10
Hey idiot-stick: the WINNER gets to set terms, not the loser. Shut your piehole and go back into your manmade cave, hide behind your woman's skirts, and whimper like the sorry-a$$ed loser you are.
Israel: pound Gaza into dust. No need for a cease-fire after that.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/17/2009 14:59 Comments ||
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#11
Speaking at the opening of an emergency meeting on Gaza in Doha
This courageous "lion of Islam" is speaking for Hamas/Gaza all the way from Qatar.
Israel said Friday it hoped it was close to winding down the offensive it launched three weeks ago in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, and that it might make a decision as early as this weekend.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Well, they have until Feb 10. Nobody likes to see dead bodies during an election. Especially IDF bodies. Israelis won't stand for it, and the gov't might pay for it politically. Soooo, of course the offensive is winding down.
Over 40,000 Egyptians in towns and cities take to the streets denouncing Israel's onslaught on Gaza, as Cairo prepares a possible Abbas-Olmert meeting.
the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's main opposition group, announced on its website that after the weekly Friday prayers, 20,000 people protested in the northeast town of Mansura, 15,000 demonstrated in central Fayyum and several thousand is Aswan in the south, all calling for an end to the Israeli assault on the Gazans, contradicting police figures which are quite low.
The protesters also demanded the Egyptian government end its complicity with Tel Aviv's aggression.
In Cairo, police dispersed several hundred people demonstrating in the Bassatin District while a few hundred people protested inside the compound of the al-Azhar mosque, cordoned off by the police.
Government fearing a new "day of anger", had deployed police reinforcements in Cairo and elsewhere.
On January 9, at least 50,000 people marched in the northern city of Alexandria to condemn the "complicity" of some Arab governments in the Israeli blockade of Gaza.
Meanwhile, Cairo is proposing a possible meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian Authority chief President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to sign an agreement as early as Sunday to strengthen a possible truce between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Reuters reported.
It was not immediately clear what the trilateral agreement would necessitate since Israel and Hamas have yet to settle their differences over the terms of a ceasefire to halt 21 days of Israeli onslaught on Gaza.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is visiting the region, could take part if a signing ceremony takes place in Cairo, western officials said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
the racist troll returns. Fuck off and die, lying scum
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/17/2009 9:07 Comments ||
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#2
"Palestinians" get to learn that when "other groups" use military style weapons on an international neighbor, the government IS responsible even if the attack is not sanctioned.
Being in charge of your own piece of ground means that anything that happens to a neighboring country coming from your country is the fault of the governing authorities.
"Palestinians" get no sympathy here because usually they have views that are considered to be less than savory in general as well as polite society.
Your screed concerning racism is dishonest. Israelis are a composite of races and ethnic identities which are united under the Israeli flag for protection against the barbarism that Hamas and the "Palestinians" represent.
#3
Take a load off and read some satire on Israel beating the crap out of Hamas: http://jumpinginpools.blogspot.com/2009/01/un-begs-israel-to-stop-killing.html
Posted by: Michael ||
01/17/2009 11:36 Comments ||
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#4
even better: TheNoseOnYourFace translates Hamas's press conference - heh
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/17/2009 11:48 Comments ||
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The Abu Nihil clan, all 16 members, huddled on the living room floor of a friend's Gaza City apartment. All the windows were gone, shattered by explosions. Israeli helicopters churned overhead. But the family has decided this is as good a place as any to make its final stand. "We're makin' our final stand here! Maw, put some lead on to boil! We're gonna need lotsa ammunition! Ahmed, dig ye a tunnel over to Teheran! Tell 'em we're gonna need some rockets!"
The Abu Nihils have seen three houses destroyed since Dec. 27, when Israel launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and began a war that has left civilians with no safe place to go. "Wherever we go, they are chasing us," said Tarik Abu Nihil, 31, a married father of three. "I've had enough. I'm not moving to another house. If we die here, at least we will die together." "They don't call us Abu Nihilists fer nothin'!"
Despite some close calls, no one in the extended family has been killed or injured. The family still has some food and some money. But like many Gazans, they are exhausted by 20 days of war and have become increasingly fatalistic, in spite of talk of an imminent cease-fire. "Wherever we go, danger will be waiting for us," Tarik lamented. "Danger's our middle name! That's what 'Abu' means in English!"
Gaza's 1.5 million residents are bottled up, confined to a congested strip of coastal scrubland that has absorbed a carpeting of bombs and shells for almost three weeks. Israeli and Egyptian guards have kept Gaza's borders tightly sealed to prevent a flood of Palestinians from escaping. "Cousin Junior, tunnel over to the Dogmushes and ask 'em if they have any fragmentation grenades!"
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#3
What a load of cow-pucky. Only the Washington Post would believe this is "news". May the "news" editor that approved this come down with a ravaging case of "camel's revenge".
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
01/17/2009 16:03 Comments ||
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#4
What a coward that father is to try to hide behind his own family.
A real man would send his family to safety and not draw fire for him onto them.
(AKI) - An emergency summit of Arab heads of state was due to take place on Friday in the Qatari capital Doha, as divisions begin to emerge over how to deal with the crisis in Gaza as the Israeli assault against the war-torn territory entered its 21st day.
The summit has been organised despite resistance from the Arab League and some key Arab states such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia. The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority government is not attending the meeting in Doha.
The 22 member Arab League says the minimum necessary quorum of 15 countries did not materialise to hold a formal Arab Summit. However, Qatar insisted it would go ahead with the initiative.
Also on Friday, Arab Foreign Ministers were due to meet in Kuwait to discuss the situation in Gaza, ahead of the economic summit due to be held there on Monday.
On Thursday, US-allied Gulf Arab countries representing the Gulf Cooperation Council met in Saudi Arabia to discuss the crisis, ahead of the meeting in Qatar.
The parallel meetings signal the divide between US-allied countries, namely some Gulf states, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which oppose the Islamist Hamas movement's rule and other Arab countries such as Syria which support Hamas and its links with Iran and the Lebanese party Hezbollah.
Meeting Palestinian officials in the West Bank city of Ramallah, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged Israel to declare a unilateral ceasefire.
Palestinian medical officials say the Israeli offensive against Gaza has killed 1,105 Palestinians and more than 5,100 have been injured since the offensive began.
Thirteen Israelis have been killed in the conflict. Ten of them were soldiers.
The Israeli government claims rocket attacks triggered the latest offensive on 27 December and it is working to achieve long-term security for residents threatened by rocket attacks in the south.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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The United States today signed an agreement with Israel that pledges help in halting weapons smuggling into the Gaza Strip, part of a flurry of diplomatic activity designed to halt a conflict that has left more than 1,000 dead.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in one of her last officials acts before the Obama administration takes power, signed a two-and-half page memorandum of understanding with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni this morning. Under the agreement, the United States said it would help track and thwart weapons shipments that have allowed the Palestinian militant group Hamas rain rockets on Israeli towns and cities.
Rice told reporters the agreement would be part of a broader international effort -- including similar agreements with European countries -- to stem the flow of arms into Gaza.
The U.S.-Israeli deal "should be thought of as one of the elements of trying to bring into being a durable cease-fire, a cease-fire that can actually hold," Rice said. A key element, she said, "is to do something about the weapons smuggling and the potential for resupply of Hamas from other places, including from Iran."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#5
Whatever the mou says they will need Egypt to be on board in some way
It is fairly clear that Egypt wants to prevent rockets and rocket components from getting into Gaza from Egypt. However, what Egypt agrees to in the way of 'assistance' and what Egyptian troops actually do are really unknown.
U.S. security and law-enforcement officials say they have fresh evidence of recent efforts by Iran to evade sanctions and acquire metals from China used in high-tech weaponry, including long-range nuclear missiles.
Iran's efforts are detailed in a series of recent emails and letters between Iranian companies and foreign suppliers seen by The Wall Street Journal. Business records show one Iranian company, ABAN Commercial & Industrial Ltd., has contracted through an intermediary for more than 30,000 kilograms (about 66,000 pounds) of tungsten copper -- which can be used in missile guidance systems -- from Advanced Technology & Materials Co. Ltd. of Beijing. One March 2008 email between the firms mentions shipping 215 ingots, with more planned.
The United Arab Emirates has informed the U.S. that in September it intercepted a Chinese shipment headed to Iran of specialized aluminum sheets that can be used to make ballistic missiles. A month earlier, UAE officials also intercepted an Iran-bound shipment of titanium sheets that can be used in long-range missiles, according to a recent letter to the U.S. Commerce Department from the UAE's Washington ambassador.
Evidence of Iran's efforts to acquire sensitive materials also is emerging from investigations by state and federal prosecutors in New York into whether a number of major Western banks illegally handled funds for Iran and deliberately hid Iranian transactions routed through the U.S. One focus of the inquiries is the role of Italy, including the Rome branch of Iran's Bank Sepah and Italy's Banca Intesa Sanpaolo Spa. Banca Intesa said it is cooperating in the inquiries.
The developments could present President-elect Barack Obama with an early test in responding to what many Washington security officials now say is a rapidly growing threat to the region, including U.S. allies Israel and Saudi Arabia.
All of the high-performance metals Iran has been acquiring also have industrial uses such as commercial aviation and manufacturing, making it difficult for intelligence agencies to be absolutely certain how the materials are being used. "We can't say we know it would, or would not, be used for military purposes," said proliferation expert Gary Milholland of the nonprofit Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, noting that broad economic sanctions on Tehran led by the U.S. mean Iran has to go to unusual lengths to find high-grade materials for industrial use as well as weapons.
Still, he added, "There doesn't seem to be any real doubt or debate whether Iran is going for the bomb or whether Iran is using front companies to import things. Everyone agrees on that around the world."
Officials at the International Atomic Energy Agency said they believe Iran could have enough fissile material for an atomic weapon sometime this year, though it would need to be further processed into weapons-grade uranium. That assessment was echoed Thursday by Central Intelligence Agency Director Michael V. Hayden. U.S. and European governments have grown increasingly alarmed in recent months at the speed they believe Iran is developing ballistic-missile and nuclear capabilities. Last year the United Nations Security Council, which includes China, formally imposed sanctions on Iran's military and most of its banks for nuclear proliferation activities.
A spokesman for Iran at its U.N. mission in New York declined to comment. China "has been strictly implementing" U.N. proliferation sanctions on Iran, said a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry in Beijing. The export of restricted items such as high-grade metals, which include specialized aluminum and titanium, is prohibited, he added.
The patchwork of proliferation agreements don't cover certain materials. Sales to Iran of a powdered form of tungsten copper are prohibited by a nonproliferation accord China has agreed to adhere to, but documents about Iran's tungsten copper purchases refer to ingots, which aren't banned in the agreement though they can be used to make missiles. High-grade tungsten copper alloy withstands ultrahigh temperatures and thus can be used in the fins of long-range missiles to greatly enhance their accuracy, according to proliferation experts.
George Perkovich of the pro-disarmament Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said use of the ingots may be an attempt to legally circumvent the restrictions. Chinese merchants, he said, "take a legalistic approach to whether it is prohibited under the treaties," while on the Iranian side, "if there's a problem where somebody's not supposed to sell them stuff, their view is, that's the sellers' problem.' "
Because of economic sanctions and the small size of Iranian banks, the banks have long relied on big European multinational banks to finance their international trade and wire transfers. Many of those transfers flowed through New York City.
Documents detailing Iran's metals acquisition efforts are being reviewed by U.S. law-enforcement and intelligence officials, people involved in the matter said. Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said he is conducting a broad inquiry into illegal transactions by Iran. Last week, Lloyds TSB of London agreed to pay $350 million to settle U.S. sanctions-busting charges with Mr. Morgenthau's office and the Justice Department. The bank admitted it violated U.S. law but said the practice has ceased.
"There are nine other banks that we think were doing this," said Mr. Morgenthau in an interview, including Barclays PLC of the U.K. A Barclays spokesman had no comment beyond a prior disclosure confirming the inquiry. Other banks under scrutiny in the probe include Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank, people with knowledge of the inquiries said. Credit Suisse "is cooperating with the New York County District Attorney's Office, the U.S. Department of Justice and other governmental authorities," the bank said in a statement. A Deutsche Bank spokesman declined to comment.
ABAN Commercial & Industrial Ltd. had accounts at the Rome branch of Iran's government-owned Bank Sepah, records show. Bank Sepah has longstanding ties to Banca Intesa, although no evidence has surfaced to date showing that Banca Intesa facilitated illegal acquisitions of sensitive materials by ABAN, people with knowledge of the matter said.
ABAN is run by two top officials of Iran's Aviation Industries Organization, the documents show. That agency is already under U.S. and U.N. sanctions. Efforts to contact the firm by phone and fax for comment were unsuccessful.
An Oct. 14, 2007, invoice says ABAN contracted for 30,900 kilograms of tungsten copper alloy from a firm in China in exchange for 2.1 million ($2.8 million). Additional orders were made in 2008, according to a March 27, 2008, email to ABAN from Advanced Technology & Materials Co. "I was very happy talking to you on the phone," an AT&M executive told an executive at ABAN in the email. "By now we had sent 215 pieces" of tungsten copper, he added.
ABAN didn't respond to requests for comment. Dan Hong, a lawyer for AT&M, said in an email that AT&M received warnings several months ago of allegations "that we have business dealings with Iran." But he said the firm has never heard of ABAN. "AT&M never signed any contracts with and exported to Iran" the specialized metal, he added. "We checked our business records carefully."
Records show AT&M supplied the tungsten copper to an intermediary firm called Liaoning Industry & Trade Co. Ltd. That firm couldn't be reached for comment.
Another document reviewed by the Journal is a Jan. 10, 2007, message from an executive at a Chinese metals company to Shahid Sayyadi Shirazi Industries of Iran, regarding the impact of U.S. banking sanctions on payment for a shipment of unknown material. Marked "Top Urgent!" the letter observes that the payment was arranged through Bank Sepah.
The Chinese executives "are worrying the payment may be blocked by USA or UK government through their bank/treasury system," states the letter, from an executive other business records show had shipped tungsten copper to Iran. "You are kindly required to consider the matter and check carefully and seriously with Bank Sepah if the payment can be effected safely under the current situation."
Bank Sepah has denied financing illicit weapons programs. Shahid Sayyad Shirazi Industries is part of Iran's Ammunition Industries Group, according to the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, and has been under U.N. sanctions since March 24, 2007. Efforts to contact the firm for comment were unsuccessful.
TEHRAN (AFP) Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei denounced Arab "traitors" and "hypocrites" in the Gaza crisis, in a message Friday to Hamas leader Ismail Haniya, the state news agency IRNA reported.
"Be proud of your patience, courage and sacrifice... Your Jihad up to this day has exposed America, the Zionist regime and its supporters, the United Nations and the hypocrites among the Islamic nation," Khamenei said. "The Arab traitors should know that their fate will not be better than that of the Jews in the Battle of Ahzab," he said, alluding to one of Prophet Mohamed's wars.
"Nations are with the people and combatants of Gaza. Any government that acts contrary to this deepens the gap between itself and its nation. You are victorious this very day and by continuing this noble resistance you will bring the hopeless and anti-human enemy further defeat," the all powerful leader said.
In a letter to Saudi King Abdullah on Thursday Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused some Arab and Islamic states of complicity in "genocide" being carried out against Palestinians in Gaza.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad struck a milder-than-usual tone toward the United States in remarks Thursday, saying he did not want to "judge ahead of time" the policies of President-elect Barack Obama.<
Posted by: Fred ||
01/17/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Only someone like "the One" would give a hoot in hell what Ahmadinejad thinks.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The Baitul Mukarram National Mosque plunged into chaos again yesterday as newly appointed Khatib Principal Mohammad Salauddin conducted his first juma prayers.
WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Osama bin Laden's son Sa'ad, a prominent figure in the murky relationship between Iran and al Qaeda, has left that country and is believed to be in Pakistan, U.S. intelligence said. "The person you are talking about (Sa'ad bin Laden) has left Iran. He's not there. He's probably in Pakistan," Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell told reporters on Friday.
A spokesman for the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Maulvi Omar, on Friday said talks with the Swat Taliban were underway to review the decision about ban on female education in the valley. "The people of the valley will hear good news and schools in Swat will reopen soon," he told The News by telephone from an undisclosed location.
Hamas will not accept Israel's conditions for a cease-fire in Gaza and will continue armed resistance until the offensive ends, Khaled Meshal, the leader of the Palestinian Islamist group, said on Friday. 
U.S. security and law-enforcement officials say they have fresh evidence of recent efforts by Iran to evade sanctions and acquire metals from China used in high-tech weaponry, including long-range nuclear missiles.
