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Lal Masjid holy man makes bail
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Africa Horn
US to target pirate assets
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday the Obama administration will take the unusual step of trying to seize pirate financial assets and property, as it works with shippers to thwart hijackers off the coast of Somalia. The measures outlined by Clinton, part of a new U.S. diplomatic initiative to thwart sea piracy, are largely stopgap and symbolic moves while officials weigh more comprehensive diplomatic and military action.
Unlikely to do much good, though it might nibble at the edges. The pirates aren't terrorists, and we don't fight them the same way as we do terrorists. The pirates don't have intricate networks that have to be rolled up.
The exploratory effort to track and freeze pirate assets will be difficult because of the highly localized and informal nature of their economy, which does not often use regulated portions of the international financial system, current and former officials said.

As part of the package, Clinton said the administration will also call for immediate meetings of an international counter-piracy task force to expand naval coordination against pirates. She said federal agencies would meet Friday to review the problem and consider its responses ahead of an international conference on Somali piracy and development next week. She also warned that the United States "does not make concessions or ransom payments to pirates."

Clinton acknowledged that the diplomatic steps she outlined Wednesday will not necessarily address piracy's root causes — endemic instability and insecurity on the ground in Somalia. But she said the moves were critical given the rising number of ship hijackings, including last week's attack on a U.S.-flagged ship that ended with an American hostage freed and three pirates slain by Navy snipers.

"You've got to put out the fire before you can rebuild the house," she told reporters at the State Department. "And, right now, we have a fire raging."

Clinton talked of "going after" pirate bases on the ground in Somalia, a "hot pursuit" policy that was authorized by the U.N. in December but has not yet been undertaken by the U.S. because of liability concerns among military officials. Despite those comments, Clinton did not specifically call for using military force against the pirates. "These pirates are criminals, they are armed gangs on the sea. And those plotting attacks must be stopped," she said. "We may be dealing with a 17th-century crime, but we need to bring 21st-century solutions to bear."
The 17th and 18th century solutions seemed to work pretty well ...
Clinton acknowledged difficulties ahead in Treasury efforts to locate pirate assets. But she wants the U.S. and others to "explore ways to track and freeze" pirate ransom money and other funds used in purchases of new boats, weapons and communications equipment.

"We have noticed that the pirates are buying more and more sophisticated equipment, they're buying faster and more capable vessels, they are clearly using their ransom money for their benefit — both personally and on behalf of their piracy," she said. "We think we can begin to try and track and prevent that from happening."

But a former Bush administration official who worked on piracy and on steps to stop the financing of terrorist groups at the National Security Council and Treasury said such action would be "extremely difficult" to take. "These are local networks that aren't necessarily putting their cash into bank accounts or attempting to transfer it out of the area," said Juan C. Zarate. "Their assets rarely touch either the formal or informal global financial system."

Unlike international terrorist networks who operate in and raise money from people in regulated economies, the pirates do not. "At this stage, I think this is a noble goal but probably not very realistic," he said.
Posted by: Steve White || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Pirate assets? They spend their money on fancy houses (or just plain houses) in Somalia, girls, guns and khat. I find it hard to believe that the FBI is going to discover secret bank accounts in Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Macau. Perhaps we can confiscate their legal defence fund in Kenya, though.
Posted by: trailing wife in Buffalo || 04/16/2009 9:12 Comments || Top||

#2  You're assuming the gunnies in Somalia get most of the money to begin with. I kinda doubt that.
Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain || 04/16/2009 9:16 Comments || Top||

#3  Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday the Obama administration will take the unusual step of trying to seize pirate financial assets and property

Certainly brought Castro in line...er, huh...
Posted by: Besoeker || 04/16/2009 9:33 Comments || Top||

#4  "YarrgHH! Surrender y'ar booty!"
Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 || 04/16/2009 9:50 Comments || Top||

#5  US to target pirate assets

Rubber speed boats, mother ships, AK-47s, RPGs, all seem decent assets to target to me. Better to use hard cold steel on them rather than paper. Save the latter for a thousand cuts on the perps.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 04/16/2009 10:12 Comments || Top||

#6  Tax them to death.
Posted by: bman || 04/16/2009 11:32 Comments || Top||

#7  Once we hit them with a carbon tax, then they'll know we mean business. Or perhaps a cap-and-trade would work better? Either way, that plus a strongly-worded protest should do the trick.
Posted by: Dreadnought || 04/16/2009 14:58 Comments || Top||

#8  Unless this means landings en masse in Eyl & its sister-ports & the burning of ships, boats, warehouses & docks, it doesn't mean a blessed thing.

And no, the current Administration doesn't have the mind-set or the gumption to do this. Hell, the previous Administration didn't have what it took. Until the fuckups in international law find their way out of the maze they've built around themselves, the US government and its appendages are stuck, incapable of doing anything of worth.

Next, comes the chaos.
Posted by: Mitch H. || 04/16/2009 15:19 Comments || Top||

#9  "We may be dealing with a 17th-century crime, but we need to bring 21st-century solutions to bear."

Sorry - considering all the assets the pirates are using, it's a 21st century crime.
Posted by: Pappy || 04/16/2009 15:53 Comments || Top||

#10  Luckily we learned farily well during the 20th century how to deal with international criminal orgs. This shouldn't require much in the way of innovation, so I think the current admin actually has he ability to handle this.
Posted by: Mike N. || 04/16/2009 17:02 Comments || Top||

#11  Pirate assets consist of whatever they have seized, the ransoms they have collected, and the equipment they have bought with the ransoms such as weapons.

Better to target the pirates.
Posted by: JohnQC || 04/16/2009 17:56 Comments || Top||

#12  JohnQC-----right on there. Pirate assets are those items of property taken from the victims, so the best thing is to separate the pirates from the assets. Since government lawyers do not have what it takes to land in Eyl to serve warrants or whatever legal documents, I guess that it comes again to the military to deal with the pirates, in an appropriate manner.
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Nikolaevsk, AK || 04/16/2009 19:08 Comments || Top||


Africa North
UN chief urges Morocco, Polisario to resume negotiations
[Maghrebia] In a report on Western Sahara released on Tuesday (April 14th), UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recommended that the Security Council encourage Morocco and the Polisario to "negotiate in good faith, without any preconditions". According to the UN chief, "little has changed" since the fourth round of talks between Morocco and the Polisario in Manhasset, New York. Ban also voiced concern about the humanitarian situation of Sahrawi refugees in the Tindouf camps.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Bangladesh
JMB men held in Naogaon active members of Jamaat
[Bangla Daily Star] The three JMB suspects held with jihadi publications in Naogaon on Tuesday are members of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, police said.

Abdul Karim, 28, a bakery employee, is the president of Shikarpur union Jamaat in Sadar upazila, Naogaon. On the other hand, Shahadat Ali, 32, a tailor, and Hafez Faruk Hossain, 28, a teacher of Shikarpur Hafezia Madrasa, are Jamaat activists, according to police and local Jamaat leaders.

The police say the arrestees have confessed to having links with outlawed militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) under Jamaat cover. The three were plotting to carry out subversive activities on Pahela Baishakh, the police add.

Acting on a tip off, the police arrested Abdul Karim of Chalk Kalidas in Alupatti, Naogaon on Tuesday. Following his statements, the police raided Shahadat's house and arrested the three.

The police also seized over 50 jihadi publications including books written by militant kingpin-suspect and Ahle Hadith Andolan Bangladesh (Ahab) chief Dr Asadullah Al Galib. There were also books published by Jamaat and Islami Chhatra Shibir.

"The three were arrested following specific information of their active involvement with JMB," said M Mofazzel Hossain, superintendent of police in Naogaon, over phone.

Madrasa teacher Faruk had sheltered JMB leader Minhajul Islam, who has been handed down death sentence in the August 17 blast case in Naogaon, say the police, adding Minhajul got a job at Shikarpur Hafezia Madrasa on Faruk's recommendation.

Shahadat and Karim were engaged in luring youths to JMB and jihad against the country by distributing books among them. They both were also engaged in collecting funds for JMB, the police inform.

Soon after the arrests, a number of Jamaat leaders including Sadar Jamaat Ameer Abdur Rahman and Naogaon municipal Jamaat nayeb-e ameer Aynul Haque rushed to Naogaon Sadar police station.

As the Jamaat leaders requested the police for the arrestees' release in presence of the Naogaon SP, they were kept confined for three hours and later released with the undertaking that they won't do so in future.

The local Jamaat leaders denied the arrestees' link with JMB and said their arrest is "conspiracy" against the party and Islam.

Jamaat leader Abdur Rahman said local Awami League leaders threatened them with such fate if they didn't stop politics just a day before the arrest.

"Faruk and Shahadat are active Jamaat workers. They used to hold regular meetings and maintain report cards. They were falsely blamed as JMB activists," said Aynul Haque.

Replying to a question, Haque said they have yet to find any JMB activists inside their party.

"We are sure of the three arrestees that they have no relations with JMB."
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Islami


Grenades, BDR uniform found at graveyard
[Bangla Daily Star] Police recovered two grenades and a set of uniform of Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) from a graveyard near the BDR headquarters yesterday and Tuesday. The grenades were made in the Bangladesh Ordnance Factory (BOF) in Gazipur as inscriptions on recovered grenades read "REN-84, DB, BOF, police said.

Talking to The Daily Star, BDR Director Maj Gen Md Mainul Islam said the BDR uses imported ARGES grenades, and they do not use homemade grenade.

He, however, said they would verify the uniform and also the grenades.

Police said grenades and uniform were found at the graveyard located between the BDR headquarters and Al-Hera Mosque in Jigatola. Grenades were hidden in the grass and the uniform was found in a sack. Dhanmondi police said, acting on a tip-off, they recovered a grenade on Tuesday evening and the other one along with uniforms yesterday morning.

Sub-inspector Mohammad Atiqur Rahman of Dhanmondi Police Station said they could not continue the search on Tuesday evening due to insufficient light.

Police also said they would handover the grenades and the uniform to the CID which is investigating the mutiny case.

Asked DC Atiqul Islam of Ramna zone said they could not ascertain why those grenades and the uniform were hidden there.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Jamaat campaigning against govtŽs move to try war criminals
[Bangla Daily Star] Jamaat-e-Islami has launched a countrywide campaign against the government move to try war criminals.

Terming the government move 'anti-Islamic', Jamaat has started distributing booklets and leaflets across the country claiming its party men innocent of any war crimes.

Meanwhile, Jamaat leader Mobarak Ali of Eklaspur village in Comilla, arrested in the capital's Pallabi while distributing leaflets and booklets on Tuesday night, was taken on a two-day remand yesterday.

Mobarak, an employee of Public Works Department (PWD) and a resident of the PWD Staff Quarters at Rupnagar in Pallabi, was caught by locals and handed over to police.

Abdul Malek, officer-in-charge (OC) of Pallabi Police Station, told The Daily Star that Mobarak admitted that he is a local Jamaat leader and distributed leaflets and booklets.

"Mobarak, arrested under section 54 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPc), was produced before the court," Malek said.

Our court correspondent adds: The Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate's Court placed Mobarak on a two-day remand after Alamgir Hossain of Pallabi Police Station, also the investigation officer, sought his five-day remand.

Sources said Jamaat has assigned its several hundred activists to distribute leaflets and booklets in the capital and elsewhere in the country.

The booklet titled 'Allegations of war crimes against Jamaat and its leaders are false and motivated' has been published by Chairman of Jamaat's publication department Maulana Abu Taher Muhammad Masum.

It reads, "Although the head of the post-independence Bangladesh government, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, had settled the question of the war crimes with cancellation of the Collaborators' Act, the issue has been raised after 38 years of the country's independence for political gains."

None of the Jamaat leaders had been involved in any killings, rape, looting, arson or any other crimes during the liberation war. Those who want to banish Islam-oriented politics from the country have raised the issue to misguide people, it said.

"They have failed to bring allegations of corruption, terrorism and militancy against Jamaat. Their target is not only Jamaat but also all Islamic parties, people and their institutions," the booklet reads.

"If Jamaat comes under attack unlawfully in the name of trial of war criminals, we shall fight it politically and lawfully," it said.

It further reads that a deep conspiracy is being hatched at the national and international level against Islam and Islam-based politics. Since the conspirators do not dare to attack Islam directly, they have opted for an alternative way.

As part of an attempt to create a rift in the BNP-Jamaat alliance, the Awami League raised the issue and launched an anti-Jamaat campaign.

Meanwhile, a press release issued by Jamaat's Assistant Publicity Secretary Nurul Islam Bulbul said as an authorised political party, Jamaat published the booklets that are sold on the open market and anyone can buy those.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Islami


Britain
Pakistan-UK at odds over arrested terror suspects
Pakistan on Wednesday called British Deputy Political Counsellor Alastair King Smith to the Foreign Office and demanded sharing of information and consular access to alleged Pakistani students arrested by UK.

"It is true that we have asked them to give us information and our high commissioner in London to give consular access, but they have not committed," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Basit said.

The arrest of Pakistani students and reluctance of the British authorities to share any information about them has triggered a diplomatic row between Pakistan and Britain.

Diplomatic sources said Pakistan was not happy with the way the British authorities hauled up Pakistani students and tried to blame Pakistan.

They said it was a "precipitate decision" against the alleged Pakistani students, and so far the authorities had failed to bring any solid evidence. Pakistan's High Commissioner in London Wajid Shamsul Hassan said, "I think somewhere it has got bungled and instead of regretting it, they are trying to cover it up."
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  The operation must lead directly to the ISI or they wouldn't be so excited..
Posted by: 3dc || 04/16/2009 9:19 Comments || Top||


China-Japan-Koreas
N. Korea founderŽs birthday marked, no tension in Pyongyang
[Kyodo: Korea] North KoreaŽs capital marked the birthday of the countryŽs founder Kim Il Sung on Wednesday with festivities, even as international tensions heightened with PyongyangŽs announcement to withdraw from the six-party denuclearization talks. Pyongyang citizens were seen celebrating the 97th anniversary of the late founderŽs birthday, known as the Day of the Sun, holding open-air dance and song performances and having meals at restaurants with friends and family.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Red Mosque cleric granted bail
For those of you keeping score at home, he's the real deal big-time Bad Turban. He's also the one they caught fleeing the scene in a dress...
Pakistan's Supreme Court on Wednesday granted bail to the radical cleric accused of inciting the bloody siege at Islamabad's Red Mosque and seminary nearly two years ago. "A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court granted bail to Maulana Abdul Aziz. He will be released on a surety bond worth 200,000 rupees (2,482 dollars)," his lawyer Shaukat Siddiqui told reporters.

Pakistani authorities had filed 27 criminal cases against the cleric, shortly before military commandos stormed the Red Mosque to end the standoff with his armed students in July 2007.

Aziz was arrested as he tried to flee the building dressed in a woman's burqa. He has been detained under house arrest in the garrison city of Rawalpindi since he was moved out of prison.

"The court has observed that there was no evidence against Maulana Abdul Aziz in this case that could prevent his release on bail," Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui said.

The court ruling followed a petition filed by Aziz challenging a lower court ruling in relation to regarding the illegal occupation of a library adjacent to the mosque.

Aziz has already been granted bail in 25 other cases while charges against him in another case were dropped.

"Maulana Abdul Aziz is expected to be released within two to three days," Siddiqui said.
Posted by: Seafarious || 04/16/2009 00:59 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


PML-N mulls over rejoining of federal cabinet tomorrow
[Geo News] The Central Executive Committee (CEC) and Parliamentary Party of Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) is meeting tomorrow to take a final decision in connection with government's offer to rejoin the federal cabinet. PML-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif will preside over the meeting. Well-placed PML-N sources told that N-league was unlikely to join the government at the center. Besides, charter of democracy (CoD), National Assembly's sessions, Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009, war against terrorism and overall situation of the country will be discussed at the meeting. Meanwhile, a PML-N leader told Geo News that N-league would not join the federal cabinet at any cost. He was of the view that judges were restored as a result of people pressure instead of the agreement made with N-league. Therefore, PML-N was not morally bound to rejoin the government.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


ŽŽTaliban may be in Karachi but not in SindhŽŽ: Qaim
[Geo News] Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has said that Sindh province has no threat of Talibanisation. However, he did not rule out the possibility of Talibans in some areas of Karachi and interior Sindh.
But not in Sindh. Just in places in Sindh.
Talking to journalists here on Wednesday, Qaim said that the country was being administered under 1973 Constitution. The MQM has its own opinion on Nizam-e-Adl regulation, however, it could not affect the alliance with the government, he added.

Replying to another question, the chief minister said that IRSA has been asked to ensure the distribution of water among the provinces according to Water Accord of 1991. He said Water Accord 1991 was signed during the premiership of Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and now it is his responsibility to ensure the implementation on the accord. The Chief Minister said that the Provincial Government is making all out efforts to provide available water at the tails of all canals with effective water management. Responding another question, the chief minister hoped that NFC Award would be approved by June of the current year. In this connection, the Chief Minister said that he would discuss the issues of the province in a meeting with the Prime Minister.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  BIGNEWSNETWORK/TOPIX > PAKISTAN TALIBAN WILL NOT DISARM UNLESS SHARIA LAW IS ENFORCED IN SWAT;
+ DEFENSETECH > NEW AL QAEDA CHIEF [Shadow Army] LAYS OUT NEW AFGHAN STRATEGY.

Prob two biggest points for POTUS BAMMER > CONTINUE TO PLAN ATTACKS AGZ THE WEST [read, NO PEACE EVAH!], + attack the major Paki cities.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 04/16/2009 3:28 Comments || Top||


India: New Delhi to give Pakistan more aid in terror probe
[ADN Kronos] India has agreed to provide more information to Pakistan about the deadly Mumbai terror attacks, but said Islamabad should not delay its investigations. "I have just had a discussion with our foreign secretary. We have received the papers (from Pakistan). We are examining them and if there be further information necessary, then we will give them the further information," Indian external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee told the media on Tuesday.

According to Pakistan's GeoNews, the minister said that Pakistan should complete its probe and penalise the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks that struck the city in November last year, he said. "The matter should not be delayed on this or that issue, or on this or that clarification. We are prepared to give them any information that they want, provided we have the information," Mukherjee said.

He said it was a reality that many people were killed in the siege of two major hotels and other locations in the heart of India's financial capital. At least 165 people died in the three-day terror attacks. The sole surviving suspected terrorist was arrested and is about to stand trial on several charges. "These are the realities. These are the facts. If somebody wants to evade and avoid these facts, what can we do?" he asked.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Swat capitulation will be reviewed if peace not restored: Zardari
The government may review the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 if peace is not restored in Swat, President Asif Ali Zardari said on Wednesday.

Addressing the Pakistani community in Tokyo, he said the Nizam-e-Adl, and not sharia, had been imposed in Malakand division, a private TV channel reported. The president was in Japan to attend the Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FODP) ministerial meeting and a donors' conference.

Zardari demanded that the international community extend emergency aid to Pakistan to steer it out of the present economic crisis, saying failure to do so would strengthen terrorists. He said the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) government was engaging the global community to help them realise the gravity of the problems facing Pakistan. He said the country would be saved from various challenges, including economic and security concerns, through a policy of reconciliation and dialogue, APP reported. The president said the FODP initiative, launched by him in New York last year, was part of the engagement process. "As today's world has turned into a globe, no country can avoid the impact of any happening in any part," he added. He said there was a growing sense of realisation in the world of the problems faced by the Muslim world, adding that Muslim countries were trying their best to present the true image of Islam before the world to counter the image being portrayed by extremist elements. He said Islam is a religion of peace, tolerance, brotherhood and harmony, and the people who are portraying it through aggression will face defeat.

He said the government of Pakistan was telling the world the majority of its people, including those in the Tribal Areas, were moderate and peace loving. "If the people in Wana vote for PPP candidates, it gives a message that if they cannot fight (with the militants) they can express their opinion by giving vote to moderate elements," he said.

Zardari said the PPP government wanted to strengthen Pakistan's institutions, alleviate poverty, and tackle all other challenges facing the country, adding the FODP ministerial meeting was expected to provide effective support from the international community for a democratic Pakistan. He also referred to the appointment of special envoys for Pakistan by major countries, saying it was a positive development and would help Pakistan get much needed support for development and progress. "Our spirits are high. We have never accepted defeat and will, God willing, take the country out of various challenges," he added.

The president arrived in Tokyo for a three-day official visit to attend the meeting of the FODP and the donors' conference being hosted by Japan. Senior officials of Japan's Ministry of External Affairs, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pakistan's Ambassador in Japan Noor Muhammad, and Japan's envoy in Islamabad Chihiro Atsumi received him at the Haneda Airport. During his trip, the president would also meet the emperor of Japan.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  Hey there, good luck with that, you betcha.
Posted by: Seafarious || 04/16/2009 10:06 Comments || Top||


'Plot hatched abroad to kill Ajmal Kasab'
Intelligence information indicates a plot has been hatched "from abroad" to kill the lone surviving gunman from the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, Maharashtra Home Minister Jayant Patil has said.

He told The Times in comments quoted on Wednesday that the alleged plot was the reason additional security measures, such as a bombproof corridor, were built in the special courtroom where Ajmal Kasab is being tried.

The paper also quoted Rakesh Maria, the police officer in-charge of the 26/11 probe, as saying police had uncovered a plan, originating in Pakistan, to silence Kasab. But Maria said Ajmal Kasab, an alleged member of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), knows very little. "We have a limb, not the brain of the organisation behind the attack," he told The Times. "My boys have ferreted out the real conspiracy behind the attack," he said. "The danger we have exposed is not only to India, but to the whole world. The sooner the world realises that, the better," he added. The paper said Kasab's trial was nevertheless set to attract global attention.

Christine Fair, a senior political scientist at the US think tank RAND Corporation, said: "He is the first LeT operative (caught during) an unquestionable terrorist outrage who is absolutely Pakistani. That he was caught alive -- a weird thing for an LeT operative -- puts Pakistan in a very difficult place."

This article starring:
Ajmal KasabLashkar-e-Taiba
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Mumtaz Bhutto can't lodge FIR in BB's killing, says Sanam
Sindh National Front (SNF) chief Mumtaz Bhutto has no right to file a first information report regarding Benazir Bhutto's assassination as he had always criticised her during her life, Benazir's younger sister Sanam Bhutto said on Wednesday. According to a private TV channel, Sanam said Mumtaz wanted to gain public sympathies in the name of Benazir, "but, he did not lend any help to Benazir during her five years in exile and did not do anything about her assassination". The channel said Sanam denounced Mumtaz as the chief of the Bhutto clan and also denied having differences with President Asif Ali Zardari. "The reports being published in the media in this regard have no substance," Sanam said. She said as Benazir had tended to her during her life, it was her (Sanam's) responsibility to take care of her children. Sanam said she had returned to Larkana to look after her property and meet the locals.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Gheit: WeŽll work with Israeli govŽt, just not with Lieberman
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Wednesday that until the attitude of his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman toward his country changes, Cairo will not work with him and he will not be invited to Egypt. "A man must know that there are consequences to the messages that pass from his brain to his tongue," Gheit said in an interview with the television channel Russia Today.

The Egyptian foreign minister stressed that Cairo would cooperate with the new Israeli government, just not via Lieberman.

In the past, Lieberman has harshly criticized Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for refusing to visit Israel, saying he could "go to hell," and once said Israel could attack the Aswan Dam in case of a future war with Egypt.
A very credible threat, mind you, far more effective than a nuke on Cairo.
Earlier this month, Gheit said he would not shake Lieberman's hand until he retracted such statements.

During his speech when he took office last month, Lieberman apparently attempted to relieve tensions with Egypt, calling it an important country in the Arab world and a key factor in maintaining regional stability.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry, however, responded negatively to Lieberman's attempt to mend his relations with Cairo, issuing a statement that Egypt "did not need any party to recognize its position or role, especially from those who have previously attacked it."

Also during Wednesday's interview, Gheit called the alleged Hizbullah activities in Egypt a "dangerous" episode, saying violating Egyptian law had "consequences."

The Egyptian foreign minister went on to say that his country, which he emphasized "is not small," had the full ability to control what goes on in its territory and would not let anyone threaten it. He added that Iran must reevaluate its activities vis-a-vis Egypt, saying that "they aren't hurting Egypt, they are only hurting themselves."
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Israel can refuse to work with Egypt, too. It's not like they're good for much except hosting pointless talks between Hamas and Fatah, and pointless negotiations about the captured Schalit. Egyptian Foreign Minister Gheit is posturing for effect.
Posted by: trailing wife in Buffalo || 04/16/2009 9:15 Comments || Top||

#2  While Lieberman has a good attitude, he is incautious.

An important concept of Realpolitik is that you never, ever say what you really think. It achieves nothing, and can give away much.

Two very good tales of such discretion are first William of Orange, who got his nickname, "William the Silent" (in one version), after listening to a friendly nobleman explaining a complex international situation to him on a hunting trip for hours without saying a word.

Shortly afterward, this nobleman learned that William was the known as the preeminent expert on the subject, but had allowed him to chatter on about it, for inscrutable reasons.

Another example was a high ranking Russian Admiral, who achieved the top rank by mumbling so incoherently, he could always claim he had been misquoted. He thus avoided the pitfalls that eventually took down his peers.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 04/16/2009 10:40 Comments || Top||

#3  Egypt has enough street cred with the Arabs, and enough diplomatic cred with all the proper-thinking people, that a rupture with the Gyptos would not be a good idea. Though I otherwise agree with TW, they aren't much good for anything else.
Posted by: Steve White || 04/16/2009 10:48 Comments || Top||

#4  The most important aspect of realpolitiks, Anonymoose, is "never play the other fellow's game". Israelis have had enough of "Peace Process", and mealy mouthed international mediators.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 04/16/2009 11:32 Comments || Top||


ŽSchalit will end up like Ron AradŽ
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] The fate of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Schalit will be similar to that of missing IAF navigator Ron Arad if Israel does not accept the conditions of Hamas for his release, a senior Hamas official declared on Wednesday.

Abdel Latif Qanou, a Hamas representative in the northern Gaza Strip, said that the abduction of IDF soldiers was the only way to gain the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. "The kidnapping of Israeli soldiers has become a strategic vision for Hamas," Qanou said in a statement marking Palestinian Prisoners' Day. "In the past, this was a tactical move endorsed by [Hamas's armed wing] Izaddin al-Kassam already in 1988 with the kidnapping of [IDF Sgt.] Avi Sasportas."

Qanou said that Hamas was determined to do everything it could to secure the release of all Palestinians from Israeli prisons, regardless of their political affiliations. "We will use all available methods regardless of the price to release our prisoners," he added. "International diplomacy, false promises and lousy agreements won't do anything for our prisoners."

The Hamas official warned that unless Israel accepted all the demands of the captors, Schalit's fate would be similar to that of Ron Arad.

A Hamas representative in the Gaza Strip said that his movement was waiting to hear from the new Israeli government about its position regarding the possibility of reaching a prisoner exchange agreement between the two sides. "The talks over the release of Schalit are currently frozen," the official said. "We still haven't heard from the new government in Israel."

The Hamas official told The Jerusalem Post that the captors' demands remained unchanged. He said that without the release of hundreds of prisoners from Israeli jails, "Schalit would never see daylight."
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Hamas

#1  Hey Red Thingy? How's the condition of Mr. Shalit? Have you gotten a status update lately?

Red Thingy? Hello???
Posted by: Scooter McGruder || 04/16/2009 1:40 Comments || Top||

#2  They don't want to violate his privacy.
Posted by: Seafarious || 04/16/2009 1:44 Comments || Top||

#3  Yeah - Sgt. Shalit is a legitimate prisoner of war. Yet, if he is still alive, he has undoubtedly been tortured, he has not had visits from the Red Cross/Thingy, and so on. Where is the outrage from Red Cross/Thingy, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the other usual suspects who have been attacking the US over the illegal combatants at Gitmo for years?
What, you say Sgt. Shalit is Jewish?
Never mind.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 04/16/2009 7:35 Comments || Top||

#4  "Schalit will end up like Ron Arad"

What, dead?

We know that already, you Ham-ass idiot.

I'm looking forward to the day you all BURN IN HELL.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 04/16/2009 18:59 Comments || Top||


Mitchell lands in Israel, meets Barak
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] Envoy to hold talks with Netanyahu and Lieberman for the first time since they took office.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Science & Technology
New Very Long Range Sniper Rifle
Posted by: Anonymoose || 04/16/2009 20:41 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


New Predator C Hints At Stealth, Weaponry
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has quietly rolled out its new Avenger unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) - formerly known as the Predator C - and completed its first three flights on April 4, 13 and 14.

While company officials are not calling it a stealthy aircraft, they will admit to a reduced radar signature. The 20-hour-endurance UCAV's undeniably low-observable design offers clues about how it could be employed. A weapons bay allows internal carriage of 500-pound bombs with GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions with GPS navigation and laser guidance kits attached. Given the aircraft's 31-ft length - which will increase by at least two feet in the second test aircraft - the weapons bay appears to be 10-feet long. The bay doors can be removed to allow installation of a semi-submerged, wide-area surveillance pod. The aircraft is designed to carry about 3,000 pounds of weapons and sensors. For an additional two hours of flying time, fuel tanks also can be installed in the weapons bay.

A long, featureless underside further provides an ideal location for a sensor such as an all-weather, active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The wide-area surveillance system - to be provided by the U.S. Air Force - has yet to be defined. It would be carried by a specialized all-reconnaissance version of the Avenger.

The V-tail both deflects radar and shields infrared signature of the aircraft's 4,800-pound thrust Pratt & Whitney Canada PW545B turbofan. Each tail surface has two rudders for flight-control redundancy.

The hump-backed design of the aircraft offers room enough for a serpentine exhaust to prevent radar observation of the turbine. Pratt has been developing an S-shaped exhaust system that both offers protection from radar and cooling to reduce the infrared signature. The engine is expected to provide an airspeed of at least 400 knots, but company officials say envelope expansion tests may prove the speed to be "considerably greater". The UCAV's operational altitude would be up to 60,000 feet.

The Avenger's 17-degree sweep, 66-ft. span wing and tail are all aligned in plan view with one or other of the leading edges. This is the same shaping discipline used on classic stealth designs like the F-22 and B-2. The cranked trailing edge provides the aerodynamic and structural benefits of a tapered wing and helps shield the engine inlet from radar. Other design elements, from nose to tail, help avoid radar cross-section hot spots that would be caused by a curved side.

The aircraft was designed from its inception so that the wing could be folded at the point where it cranks for storage in hangars or for aircraft carrier operations. The UCAV also comes with a tailhook, which suggests that carrier-related trials are planned. The inner section of the cranked wing is deep, providing structural strength for carrier landings and generous fuel volume while maintaining a dry, folding outer wing.
Posted by: tu3031 || 04/16/2009 10:55 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  A stealth, carrier launched drone. The enemy is in trouble. Whomever that may be.
Posted by: Mike N. || 04/16/2009 13:44 Comments || Top||

#2  would think it was less a reconnaisance vehicle than strike, given the engine; fuel expenditure and less ability to hover/linger over a given point.
Posted by: Heriberto Thinert2901 || 04/16/2009 14:01 Comments || Top||

#3  I certainly hope so, HT.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 04/16/2009 15:40 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
Philippines considering ban on sailor deployment
Over one hundred Filipino crewmen are currently being held hostage by Somali pirates dirtbags. It is entirely reasonable for Philippine authorities to consider the wisdom of continuing to send their civilians into that dangerous passage. It is also an entirely predictable consequence of allowing global shipping to be attacked on a constant basis. Score another notch for the global jihad.
With at least a hundred Filipino seamen still held captive by Somali pirates, Malacañang said on Wednesday it will study a temporary ban on their deployment to foreign flag vessels plying pirate-infested areas.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita in his weekly news briefing said the Department of Labor and Employment and the Department of Foreign Affairs will be asked to study the “advisability” of such a ban. He said that based on a DFA report, 100 Filipino seafarers spread among seven ships are still captives of Somali pirates, who in the last two or three days have again seized three more merchant vessels—and some of the crew of these newly-captured ships are Filipinos. Ermita added that a Greek ship with 22 crewmembers was hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden on April 14, but it remains to be known how many Filipinos are onboard.

“It’s getting to be very alarming in the sense that there are already 100 such Filipino seamen still under custody, and so we will ask the DFA and the DOLE for their specific recommendations on making an official pronouncement announcing that measure if that becomes very necessary at this moment.” Ermita added “there’s no foolproof action that we can take to really prevent” Filipino sailors from getting employed in such ships.

For this reason, he said, the government has directed the DOLE “to ensure that there is contact with the local manning agencies and discourage them from bringing in Filipino seamen that will be plying the route in the Gulf of Aden and in the area where these hijackings or kidnappings are happening.”

He said the Philippines is not contemplating moves similar to what the US and French governments had done to help their kidnapped citizens.

Instead, it will monitor negotiations being done by the manning agencies and ship owners with the kidnappers since “our experience has been that we have not had any casualty from among those kidnapped by the Somali pirates.” So far, he said, “there have been a lot of successes in the negotiations being done by the manning agencies and the ship owners. You can see that the motive really other than just gaining mileage through media is ransom. And the manning agencies as well as the ship owners have been willing to pay,” he said.

Ermita said, however, the Philippines continues to observe an official policy of not paying ransom as “it only encourages the kidnappers,” which is “the fact as far as the Somali kidnappers are concerned.” He added: “Of course the government will support whatever action the UN will take in order to address the problem.”
Take note of the following statistic:

The Philippines is the biggest source of maritime manpower in the world .
Posted by: Seafarious || 04/16/2009 01:10 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  That's because the Phillipines is overpopulated and the people will take any crappy job they can get. I know a bunch of Filipinas here in China, most of them make $450 a month or less. Plus, awful working conditions: 7 days a week, no holidays, boss can grope you at work, passports confiscated, etc. But it's still better than being back home to them.
Posted by: gromky || 04/16/2009 6:22 Comments || Top||

#2  ..sort of like working for ACORN then gromky.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 04/16/2009 8:56 Comments || Top||

#3  The number one export in the Philippines is it youth. They have it to an art form. Phils pay for the chance to work overseas, then they pay huge taxes each month to the government. It's human trafficking at its finest.
Posted by: 49 Pan || 04/16/2009 14:20 Comments || Top||

#4  g: I know a bunch of Filipinas here in China, most of them make $450 a month or less.

This is a major league comedown for them, considering that the Philippines used to be the richest country in East Asia (ex-Japan) back when it was an American territory. Of course, the way Filipino politicians explain it is part of the standard Third World narrative - they were plundered by the West and never recovered. Makes you wonder how places like Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong ever became developed countries.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 04/16/2009 16:46 Comments || Top||

#5  Regardless of the question of how or why the Philippines has come to be the largest single source of maritime manpower, the fact remains that the Global Jihad has found a way to disrupt that portion of the supply chain of civilization.

I'll note that Abu Sayyaf and Rogue Elements™ of the Moro Islamists have been ratcheting up the pressure within the Philippines itself. We haven't reported on a lot of it here at the 'Burg, but there's a whole lotta ugly going on "back home".

I believe that these separate incidents are not really so separate after all.
Posted by: Seafarious || 04/16/2009 17:58 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Lebanon's Hezbollah says helped in arresting spy
[Al Arabiya Latest] Hezbollah actively coordinated with Lebanon's security services on the arrest of a retired general suspected of spying for Israel, the Shiite movement's deputy chief said on Wednesday. "Security forces monitored the movements of Adib al-Aalam and asked Hezbollah for information on him," Sheikh Naim Qassem told AFP in an interview.

Aalam was arrested alongside his wife at his office near Beirut on suspicion of having provided Israel with information for the past decade on Lebanese security services and the Shiite Muslim militant group.

" Israel works vertically, and not horizontally. It collaborates with two or three people, and if one network is caught, it may not point in the direction of the other networks "
Sheikh Naim Qassem
Though retired, Aalam continued to maintain an office at the general directorate for Internal Security Forces, which he allegedly turned into a communications center for passing information to the Israelis.

"Preliminary information indicates he had been working as a spy for Israel for over 25 years and retired from his position in national security eight years ago," Qassem said, adding that Aalam's wife was also implicated in the spy operation.

"His arrest was a major achievement," Qassem said.

He added, however, that this did not mean that Israel's network had been busted in Lebanon.

"Israel works vertically, and not horizontally. It collaborates with two or three people, and if one network is caught, it may not point in the direction of the other networks," Qassem said.

Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Hezbollah

#1  " Israel works vertically, and not horizontally. It collaborates with two or three people, and if one network is caught, it may not point in the direction of the other networks "


They'll never figure that Nasralla works for us.
Posted by: Avi from room 401 || 04/16/2009 11:27 Comments || Top||

#2  He also worked under Arafat, if you know what I mean.
Posted by: ed || 04/16/2009 11:40 Comments || Top||

#3  A nod as good as a wink, ed.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 04/16/2009 11:43 Comments || Top||


Russia: No S-300 delivery to Iran
[Iran Press TV Latest] Russia's state arms export service has declared that the country is not delivering its advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Iran.

"Nothing is happening. There are no deliveries," Interfax news agency quoted Alexander Fomin, First Deputy Director of Russia's Federal Military and Technical Cooperation Service, as saying at an arms fair in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Any possible sale of the advanced missile system to Iran is a sensitive issue that could put Moscow and Washington at odds.

Israel had also urged Moscow not to sell the missile system to Iran.

Last week, Israel agreed to sell three surveillance drones worth $50 million to Russia. The Israeli media reported that the move was made in exchange for Russia's decision not to sell the S-300 missile to Iran.

The truck-mounted S-300PMU, which can travel at more than 2 km per second, can shoot down cruise missiles and aircraft from up to 150 km (90 miles) away.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  "We do not accept checks"
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 04/16/2009 11:28 Comments || Top||

#2  Given their behavior with that Indian carrier, it sounds like they don't accept anything less than 140% of the agreed-upon price in cash. And that's when they're feeling generous.
Posted by: Mitch H. || 04/16/2009 15:21 Comments || Top||


Iran denies Hizbullah operating in Egypt
[Jerusalem Post Front Page] After an Egyptian official said Hizbullah would pay "a heavy price" for what Cairo alleges were attempts to carry out terror attacks inside the country, Iran dismissed the accusations as an "old trick" aimed at influencing the Lebanese parliamentary elections, and accused Israel of involvement. "Labels against... Hizbullah and (its chief Sayyed) Hassan Nasrallah are an old and frayed trick and will not achieve anything," Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was quoted as saying by Iran's Fars news agency.

Mottaki also said Israel and "hands from outside the region" were seeking to "create problems" in the June 7 elections. "The Zionist regime will not succeed in this political plot," he said.

Meanwhile, Hizbullah deputy head Naim Kassem reiterated the group's insistence that Cairo's claims were fabricated. He said Egypt wanted to muddy Hizbullah's name and image, and get back at the group for calling on Cairo to open the Rafah border crossing. "We have one enemy, that's Israel," said Kassem. "Egypt is not our enemy."

Cairo and Hizbullah have been on a collision course since last week, when Egyptian security forces arrested 49 people accused of plotting to carry out attacks against tourists in the Sinai Peninsula.

The investigation carried out by the Egyptians even resulted in fire exchanges between Egyptian officers and Sinai Beduin when the officers wanted to search the Beduin's residence for Hizbullah terrorists on Monday night.

Furthermore, Hizbullah loyalists purchased a building in Cairo and several buildings in the Sinai and were using them as bases, Egyptian sources claimed.

On Wednesday, a top official was quoted by Al Ahram as saying that Egypt would not necessarily attack Hizbullah installations or kill members of the terror group, but Hizbullah members, including ministers in the Lebanese government, might be banned from entering Egypt.

After the interrogation of Hizbullah suspects in Egypt is finished, "treatment of the organization will be different from what it has been in the past," the official promised.

Animosity between the Sunni African country and the Shi'ite terror group flared in the wake of Israel's Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, when Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah called on Egyptians to storm the streets in protest. Back then, Egyptian officials fumed at Nasrallah and accused him of trying to provoke a coup d'etat in Egypt.

But recent developments also stem from historical animosity between Sunni-Arab Egypt and Shi'ite-non-Arab Iran, Hizbullah's patron and enabler.

On Tuesday, the larger regional conflict implicit in the Egypt-Hizbullah clash became explicit when Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit told the London-based Asharq Alawsat that "Iran, and Iran's followers want Egypt to become a maid of honor for the crowned Iranian queen when she enters the Middle East." He was referring to Hizbullah's activity in Egypt, which Cairo interprets as Iranian meddling in its internal affairs.

Meanwhile, Al Quds al Arabi reported Wednesday that Jordan had raised its level of alert following the allegations of Hizbullah activity in Egypt.

According to the London-based paper, the move came despite the lack of specific warnings on possible terror cells working in the Hashemite kingdom.

Apart from the possibility that Hizbullah sleeper cells might be operating in the country, the monarchy also fears that cells affiliated with the Sunni terror group al Qaida might attempt to infiltrate Israel via the Jordanian border, the report said.
Posted by: Fred || 04/16/2009 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Hezbollah



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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.
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Two weeks of WOT
Thu 2009-04-16
  Lal Masjid holy man makes bail
Wed 2009-04-15
  Pak police told to give Talibs a free hand
Tue 2009-04-14
  Zardari officially surrenders Swat
Mon 2009-04-13
  Somali insurgents fire mortars at U.S. congressman
Sun 2009-04-12
  Breaking: Captain Phillips Freed
Sat 2009-04-11
  Holbrooke reaches out to Hekmatyar
Fri 2009-04-10
  French attack Somali pirates, free captured yacht
Thu 2009-04-09
  500 killed in Lanka fighting
Wed 2009-04-08
  Somali pirates seize ship with 21 Americans onboard
Tue 2009-04-07
  B.O. makes surprise visit to Iraq
Mon 2009-04-06
  Today's Pakaboom: 22 dead in Chakwal mosque
Sun 2009-04-05
  North Korea space launch 'fails'
Sat 2009-04-04
  Six dead in Islamabad Pakaboom
Fri 2009-04-03
  Air strike kills 20 Talibs in Helmand
Thu 2009-04-02
  Ax-wielding Paleo kills 13-year-old Israeli boy

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