[Iran Press TV Latest] A leading Afghan monitoring group says its observers have witnessed a widespread intimidation campaign and vote fraud in the country's presidential election.
The independent Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) chairman told a news conference on Saturday it was too early to say whether Thursday's election was 'free and fair'.
"Proxy voting was seen ... due to multiple registrations," Chairman Nader Nadery said.
The monitors also said turnout was "fairly light" with fewer people going to polling stations compared to previous polls.
The group has highlighted serious irregularities, including ballot-stuffing and faulty voting equipment.
The Foundation had dispatched more than 7,300 observers to some 60 percent of the polling centers across the conflict-torn country.
Hamid Karzai's campaign team has claimed that the incumbent president has secured the outright majority in Afghanistan's presidential elections, but his main rival former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah rejects the claim.
Abdullah has issued a statement detailing about 40 incidents of alleged irregularities. Abdullah says officials have pressured people to vote for Karzai.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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" The president made this call since it is necessary to not stop people going to Islamic centers, worship Allah any time without fear, and we hope the opposition will accept it without condition"
President spokesman Abdulkadir Osman
[Al Arabiya Latest] Somalia's government has called on warring parties in the conflict-torn horn of Africa nation to stop fighting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a spokesman for the presidency said on Saturday.
President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, a former Islamist rebel, said the ceasefire call was motivated by the need for peace during the religiously significant month.
"The president made this call since it is necessary to not stop people going to Islamic centers, worship Allah any time without fear, and we hope the opposition will accept it without condition," Abdulkadir Osman told Reuters by telephone.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Why bother? Everyone knows Muslims never war with one another.
[Al Arabiya Latest] The United States on Saturday pledged to help the myriad rebel groups in the strife-torn Sudanese region of Darfur to unite after four groups agreed to join forces in the Ethiopian capital.
Three factions that broke away from the Sudan Liberation Army led by Paris-based Abdelwahid Mohammed Nur and a fourth group, the United Resistance Front announced the deal on Saturday following mediation by U.S. envoy Scott Gration. "I can tell you that we are behind this reunification effort. We will do what it takes to make it successful," Gration said. "I look forward to working with all of these leaders in the future as we bring together the rebel movements that we have here today and those that are yet to be unified," he added.
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08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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An Islamist preacher has been banned from addressing a major British fundraising event amid claims he backs attacks on UK troops and supports terrorist organisations linked to Al Qaeda.
The revelation that Anwar al-Awlaki, a Yemen-based preacher accused of advocating violent jihad, was due to speak via video link at Kensington town hall later this month, has raised fears public buildings are being used for extremism. A spokesman for Kensington and Chelsea council said: "Some of the views expressed by Mr al-Awlaki in the past are not appropriate for broadcast in [council] premises."
The council banned al-Awlaki from speaking only after politicians and anti-extremist groups raised concerns about his appearance at the Cage Prisoners event, which will raise money for Muslims held in Guantánamo Bay.
A devastating official report suppressed by ministers has revealed that soldiers' lives are being put at risk by "endemic" failures at the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The secret dossier blames "political fudge" and Whitehall incompetence for the plight of soldiers in Afghanistan who are provided with inadequate frontline kit.
The 296-page report, leaked to The Sunday Times, claims the scale of MoD bungling is so severe it "is harming our ability . . . to conduct difficult current operations".
The publication of the document will be a severe embarrassment for Gordon Brown, who has insisted that the armed forces always receive the equipment they need. A vision of things to come after four years of a donk dominated DOD.
Gordon Brown faced fresh questions tonight after it emerged that he discussed with Colonel Gaddafi detailed conditions for the Lockerbie bomber's return nearly six weeks ago, while senior Labour figures warned of an economic backlash from angry Americans "costing our country dear".
Downing Street released the text of a cordial letter sent to the Libyan leader on the day that Abdulbaset al-Megrahi was released, asking that the event be kept low key because a "high-profile" ceremony would distress his victims and their families.
But critically the letter also refers to a meeting between the two leaders six weeks earlier at the G8 summit in Italy, adding that "when we met [there] I stressed that, should the Scottish executive decide that Megrahi can return to Libya, this should be a purely private family occasion" rather than a public celebration.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/23/2009 00:26 ||
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#1
blood for oil
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/23/2009 9:11 Comments ||
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#4
"To us has been given the privilege of being the first western nation in the last two decades to have the determination and the fortitude to say" 'So far and no further.' We may be a small country, but we are a determined people who have beeen called upon to play a role of worldwide signficance. We Rhodesians have rejected the doctrinaire philosopy of appeasement and surrender. The decision which we have taken today is a refusal by Rhodesians to sell their birthright. We have struck a blow for the preservation of justice, civilization, and Christiananity - and in the spirit of this belief we have thus assumed our sovereign independence. God Bless you all."
Ian Smith declares his historic rebellion against the British Government and declares a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI), 11 November 1965.
Sanctions then began by Great Britain and the west and now we have Robert Mugabe and Zimbabwe. Some things, they simply do not change.
Italy's premier will go ahead with a trip to Libya next week despite international protests over the welcome Tripoli staged for the freed Lockerbie bomber, officials said Sunday. Silvio Berlusconi had long planned to meet with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi on August 30 to mark the first anniversary of a compensation and immigration accord that has helped stem the tide of illegal migrants reaching Italian shores.
The premier's office confirmed the visit was going ahead despite outrage in London and Washington over the warm reception Libya gave to terminally ill Abdel Baset Megrahi, who was freed Thursday by Scotland on compassionate grounds. A Berlusconi ally, Margherita Boniver, said the premier will ask Gadhafi for an explanation when the two leaders meet next Sunday.
#3
"Nice economy ya got there. Be a shame if somethin' happened to it." That's the modern version, Grunter. No need to get all sweaty and sunburnt in rickety sailing ships.
FBI Director Robert Mueller sharply criticized Scotland's justice minister for releasing the Lockerbie bomber, an act that "gives comfort to terrorists" all over the world.
Mueller sent a letter to Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, who cited compassionate grounds in his decision to let Abdel Baset al-Megrahi return to Libya because he has prostate cancer and was given only months to live by British doctors.
The angry tone of the letter is out of character with the normally reserved Mueller, indicating his outrage is personal as well as professional. He also sent copies to the families of the Lockerbie victims.
"I have made it a practice not to comment on the actions of other prosecutors," Mueller wrote. "Your decision to release Megrahi causes me to abandon that practice in this case. I do so because I am familiar with the facts, and the law. ... And I do so because I am outraged at your decision, blithely defended on the grounds of 'compassion.'"
Before he became FBI director, Mueller spent years as a Justice Department lawyer leading the investigation into the 1988 airplane bombing that killed 270 people, most of them Americans.
Mueller said Thursday's release was "as inexplicable as it is detrimental to the cause of justice. Indeed your action makes a mockery of the rule of law."
His letter was dated Friday, and was made public Saturday.
Releasing the convicted bomber "gives comfort to terrorists around the world who now believe that regardless of the quality of the investigation ... the terrorist will be freed by one man's exercise of 'compassion.'"
A statement from Scotland's government on Saturday noted Mueller has "strong views" because of his involvement in the case. "But he should also be aware that while many families have opposed Mr. MacAskill's decision, many others have supported it,"the statement said.
Bert Ammerman of River Vale, N.J., who lost his brother Tom Ammerman in the bombing, praised Mueller for the "frankness and honesty" in his condemnation of the release.
Mueller recounted his own emotional experiences leading the investigation - seeing a teenage victim's single sneaker, a Syracuse University sweatshirt, toys in the suitcase of a businessman heading home to see his wife and children for Christmas.
"Your action," he wrote MacAskill, "makes a mockery of the grief of the families who lost their own on December 21, 1988. You could not have spent much time with the families, certainly not as much time as others involved in the investigation and prosecution."
He ended the Lockerbie letter with a frustrated question: "Where, I ask, is the justice?"
President Barack Obama on Friday called the elaborate homecoming in Libya for the freed bomber "highly objectionable."
[The News (Pak)] Mangal Bagh, head of the banned Lashkar-e-Islam, Friday said any military operation against the peaceful residents of Khyber Agency would be detrimental to the peace of Peshawar and the entire province.
"A destabilised Khyber Agency would have a negative impact on the peace of the entire NWFP, especially Peshawar," Mangal Bagh told a press conference in the far-flung Tirah valley in Khyber Agency. He said in Bara the minorities and the government installations, including educational institutions and banks were given protection by the LI.
He said there was no justification for the authorities to start military action in an area where there was peace and tranquillity.However, he alleged certain officials of the security forces were supporting the enemies of the LI.
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08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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[Geo News] Yasin Malik, Chairman Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front said resolution of Kashmir standoff is possible only through ensuring complete freedom in the valley. Addressing the Central Committee of JKLF in Rawalpindi, he said the Liberation Front is struggling for an independent state and only 150 million people of Kashmir have the right to decide its fate. Yasin Malik said Kashmir issue is not under media's focus these days in the present circumstances but Â"I am still not disappointed.Â" He said every foreign diplomat who visits him assures that the former is committed to the cause of Kashmir. Yasin Malik said Liberation Front is being weakened under a planned conspiracy but the patriotic Kashmiris will foil the same.
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08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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[Asharq al-Aswat] The suicide bombers who blew up explosives-laden trucks outside government buildings in Baghdad may have been aided by members of Iraq's security forces, the foreign minister said Saturday, even as the government insisted Iraqi forces could still protect the nation. Anger is mounting over the security lapses that allowed the bombers to drive trucks past checkpoints and position them close to government targets that included the foreign and finance ministries. Wednesday's attacks killed at least 101 people and wounded more than 500.
The violence has shaken confidence in a government eager to demonstrate that it can take over responsibility for the country's security from American troops, who withdrew form Iraq's cities nearly two months ago.
"We have to face the truth. There has been an obvious deterioration in the security situation in the past two months," Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told reporters during a news conference at the damaged ministry building, which was opened Saturday for tours to journalists and some ministry employees.
Zebari said the attacks were so well planned and executed that he would not rule out the possible collaboration of members of Iraq's security forces with attackers.
"We will investigate that," he said.
Zebari said the ministry was investigating how the trucks carrying the bombs were allowed to pass into areas where they are banned from traveling. He also warned Iraqis to prepare for more violence.
"What is coming might be bigger attacks, and the government needs to shoulder its responsibility and deal with the security inefficiencies."
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, in his first televised speech to the nation since the attacks, cautioned against rushing to blame the security forces and undermining national unity.
"I would like to assure the Iraqi people that the security forces are still capable of continuing the battle and achieving more victories despite all the loopholes that took place here and there," he said in an address to mark the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.
The Iraqi military announced it arrested members of an insurgent cell responsible for the attacks but gave no details about the suspects. Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, the chief military spokesman in Baghdad, said on Iraqi state television only that both attacks were carried out by suicide bombers.
The prime minister said he would deal harshly with those responsible for the attacks as well as those whose negligence allowed them to take place. Eleven members of Iraq's security forces have been arrested on suspicion of negligence, authorities said.
Al-Maliki blamed an alliance of Al Qaeda and supporters of Saddam Hussein's Baath party, who he said aimed to disrupt unity before January's national elections.
Al-Maliki has ordered security tightened and concrete blast walls to remain around potential targets in the aftermath of the bombings, reversing an order earlier this month to remove the walls in Baghdad by mid-September. The decision to remove the blast walls, a potent reminder of years of strife in the capital, was seen as a sign of hope that the situation there was improving.
"Regrettably, we accepted the order to remove concrete walls and removal of a joint checkpoint near the ministry," Zebari said.
Iraqi security forces used a crane Saturday to lift concrete blast walls one by one off 10 flatbed trucks to build a new security barrier around the Foreign Ministry, adjacent to the fortified Green Zone. The walls at the ministry were among some of the first ordered removed by al-Maliki with the aim of improving traffic flow and making the city more attractive.
Inside the ministry, where some walls were stained with blood, some employees kissed and hugged, while asking about the fate of other colleagues. Shattered glass and debris were scattered throughout the building.
Zebari said better, stronger security procedures need to be put in place.
An attack at an Iraqi military checkpoint Saturday came in an area in northern Baghdad where Iraqi security forces also have began dismantling concrete blast walls to open major roads.
Gunmen killed two soldiers during a drive-by shooting on the checkpoint at about 6 a.m. in Azamiyah, a former Sunni insurgent stronghold, an Iraqi security official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information. In northern Iraq, a bomb exploded inside the office of a Mosul district administrator, killing the district chief and two others, said an Iraqi police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity for the same reason.
The U.S. has halted combat operations and withdrew troops from Iraqi cities on June 30, as required by a U.S.-Iraq security pact.
President Barack Obama has ordered all U.S. combat troops out of Iraq by Aug. 31, 2010, leaving up to 50,000 U.S. troops in training and advising roles. Under the pact, U.S. forces will withdraw from Iraq by the end of 2011. Iraq's government has not asked for U.S. troops to return to the cities to help with security, said Maj. David Shoupe, a U.S. military spokesman. Shoupe said the military was continuing to provide intelligence and forensic support to the Iraqis as they investigate the bombings.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
Perhaps true that security people aided the bombings. Or perhaps the statement is verbal groundwork before purging the security forces of Sunni members.
A prominent leader of the Islamic Jihad movement Mohammed al-Hindi says a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will only serve Tel Aviv's interests.
He said that the solution aims at forcing the Palestinians to abandon 80 percent of their historic land in order to establish a demilitarized non-sovereign state in the West Bank and Gaza.
The senior Palestinian leader meanwhile described the move as part of previous 'attempts to wreck the Palestinian cause'. He stated that such endeavors began with the Oslo Accords on August 20, 1993 and continued with the US-sponsored Middle East peace summit held in Annapolis as well as the Road Map to Peace Plan.
He added that the two-state solution also went against the Palestinian refugees' right of return and would mean that they would have to abandon their legitimate rights in al-Quds.
Article 11 of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194 -- passed on December 11, 1948 near the end of the Arab-Israeli War -- calls for the Palestinians right of return to their homeland, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return.
It is estimated that about 4 million Palestinians living in refugee communities scattered mainly in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon could claim a right of return under this article.
Al-Hindi went on to underscore the soaring threats to the al-Aqsa Mosque especially from far-right Zionist groups which seek to harm the holy site in any way. He called upon Muslims, Arabs as well as all Palestinians to rescue and support the Mosque.
The senior member of the Islamic Jihad group urged the acting Palestinian Authority Chief Mahmoud Abbas to stop negotiations and coordination with Israel.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
An excessive zeal for property rights clothed in religion, or an excessive religious zeal masquerading in property law. I keep forgetting which it is.
Ma'an -- International human rights organizations must carry out a serious and immediate investigation on media reports published by a Swedish newspaper alleging Israeli forces harvested organs from Palestinian youth, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine demanded Saturday.
The report in Aftonbladet quoted Palestinians claiming Israeli soldiers detained young men who died in custody, and alleged their bodies were returned with organs missing.
A PFLP statement said such reports, given the detailed names, dates and photographs included and the staunch support of the Swedish government of the reporter, must be taken seriously. The group said the story was similar to alleged violations carried out by soldiers in the 1980s in Gaza, where they were said to have stolen organs from children taken to Israeli hospitals.
The party praised the work of correspondent Donald Boström and all those who facilitated his reporting. The PFLP reiterated its call for the need to bring Israeli soldiers to justice for their actions.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I consider the "Harvesting Organs" report as pure unadulterated bullshit
You only harvest "Clean"organs. "Palestininian "Youts" do not qualify".
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
08/23/2009 14:52 Comments ||
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[Straits Times] INDONESIA police will start clamping down on Islamic clerics who are suspected of having links to militant groups, in a reversal of its past policy of leaving them alone to avoid accusations of repressing Muslims.
From the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan today, the movements of all clerics will be closely monitored and their speeches at religious lectures and sermons recorded on tape by the police, said national police spokesman Nanan Sukarna yesterday. 'If any preacher is found to have uttered provocative words or broken the law (by preaching hatred), we will definitely take action against him,' he told reporters. 'We won't hinder dakwah, the spread of Islamic message, but we will try to be embedded there, be more transparent and do direct monitoring,' he said.
But he was quick to add: 'We are just stepping up surveillance all over the country because the threat of terrorism remains real and frightening.'
Inspector-General Nanan did not say what action the police would take against the clerics. But Indonesian criminal law confers powers on the police to charge anyone who is found to have committed criminal agitation or incitement. Offenders face six years in prison if convicted.
The new stance by the police came hot on the heels of the manhunt for suspects in connection with the twin bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta that killed nine, including two suicide bombers, and injured more than 50 people on July 17. The attacks, which ended almost four years of lull in terrorist bombings, raised concerns over the activities of some Islamic preachers who could be fanning extremism among youths through their misguided interpretation of the concept of jihad or war, analysts say.
One of the four wanted men involved in the twin bombings of the Jakarta hotels is a preacher, Syaifudin Zuhri Djaelani Irsyad, who taught at a mosque in Bogor, West Java.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
whack a few of the worst, and see how the others behave
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/23/2009 9:26 Comments ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Powerful cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani urged Iran's warring political groups on Saturday to follow the orders of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for ending the present political turmoil.
In his first such statement in direct support of Khamenei since the June 12 election, the former president said "the current situation needs everyone to observe the leader's decrees and advice," Iranian news agencies reported.
Rafsanjani was speaking at the start of a meeting of Iran's top political arbitration body, the Expediency Council, which he heads.
He urged the bitterly divided groups to create "appropriate conditions to act and commit to the constitution ... and confront law breakers, whatever their ideological leanings."
Women ministers
Meanwhile, several Iranian conservative clerics have objected to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's decision to include three women in his new cabinet, a newspaper reported on Saturday as a court decided to ban a controversial presidential aid from public office for two months.
Ahmadinejad named Sousan Keshvaraz, Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi and Fatemeh Ajorlou as his ministers respectively of education, health and welfare, and social security in his 21-member cabinet line-up. "Although it is a new idea to choose women as ministers, there are religious doubts over the abilities of women when it comes to management. This should be considered by the government," Mohammad Taghi Rahbar, the head of the clerics' faction in the conservative-dominated Iranian parliament was quoted as saying by the daily Tehran Emrouz.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV Latest] Amid concerns over health conditions and treatment of Iran's post-vote detainees, an aide to the Iranian president moves to defuse the controversy by saying that serving time in prison helps you understand the importance of keeping your weight under control.
"Arbeit macht frei."
Ali-Akbar Javanfekr, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's advisor for press affairs, addressed concerns over health conditions of jailed Reformist figure Mohammed-Ali Abtahi.
Former Vice President Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a Reformist cleric, appeared in one of Iran's mass post-election trials saying that the three opposition leaders - Mir-Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani formed an alliance in which they "promised to always back each other up" in their efforts to rob the presidency from its 'legitimate winner.'
Following the televised trial, photos of Abtahi circulated the media with human rights activists and opposition figures questioning the credibility of the confessions made by Abtahi who had lost visible weight.
In an interview on Saturday, President Ahmadinejad's advisor explained why the Reformist figure looked so frail during his appearance at court in Tehran.
"It is only natural for a person who has gained an excessive amount of weight to come to his senses in prison that being overweight is not good for your mental of physical health," Javanfekr reasoned.
"Maybe Mr. Abtahi has seized this opportunity and made an effort to lose weight," he was quoted as saying by Tabnak.
The jailed cleric was an advisor to defeated presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi and is accused of provoking and taking part in protests in the capital, Tehran.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/23/2009 00:00 ||
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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.
[Iran Press TV Latest] A leading Afghan monitoring group says its observers have witnessed a widespread intimidation campaign and vote fraud in the country's presidential election. 
Ma'an -- International human rights organizations must carry out a serious and immediate investigation on media reports published by a Swedish newspaper alleging Israeli forces harvested organs from Palestinian youth, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine demanded Saturday. 
[Al Arabiya Latest] Powerful cleric Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani urged Iran's warring political groups on Saturday to follow the orders of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for ending the present political turmoil.
